TEXT STRUCTURE

1. The term “text structure” refers to how information is

organized in a text.
2. The ways that authors organize information within
paragraphs or longer texts, appropriate to genre and
purpose.
3. The arrangement of ideas and the relationships among the
ideas; readers and writers who are familiar with text
structure recognize how the information is unfolding.
4. The structure of a text can change multiple times in a work
and even within a paragraph.
 According to Meyer & Rice
Ornstein (1994), (1982)
• Text structure is • Text structure as
the main idea of the ideas of a text
the text, which are
information interrelated to
organization, as convey a message
well as the verbal to the reader.
and textual cues
which bring unity
to the text.
 Created from imagination
Entertains
FICTION
Plot (beginning, middle, end)
Mystery, romance, fantasy, thrillers

Based on facts

NON Informative
FICTION Parts/sections
Newspapers, textbooks, journals, articles
 Fictional Text Features
• Title

• Chapter Index

• Illustrations

• Bold print

• Continuous text

• Dialogue
 Fictional text structure
• Characters

• Settings

• Problem/solution

• Plot

• Beginning/middle/end

• Goals

• Sentence and Paragraphs or Lines and stanzas

 NON-FICTIONAL TEXT FEATURES

• Title • Glossary

• Table of contents • Date line (Periodicals)

• Index • Bold print

• Photos • Headings

• Captions • Sub-titles

• Diagrams
 NON-FICTIONAL TEXT STRUCTURES

• Types of text: narrative, argumentative, expository, descriptive,

instructive
• Text Structure: Cause and effect, Problem and solution, Description,
Compare and contrast
• Organizational patterns: Main idea, supporting details, sequencing,
comparisons, logical sequence (Transition words and phrases)
• Introduction and conclusion
• Sentence and paragraphs
• Sequence (Beginning, middle, end) and others
• Time order/chronological order
• Cause and effect

• Problem and solution

• Description

• Compare and contrast

• Sequence (Beginning, middle, end) and others

• Time order/chronological order

 TYPES OF TEXT STRUCTURE

1. CAUSE AND EFFECT:

• Cause is why something happened. Effect is what happened.

(Sometimes the effect is listed first.)

• The author describes something that has happened which has had
an effect on or caused something else to happen. It could be a good
effect or a bad effect. There may be more than one cause and there
may also be more than one effect.

Signal questions:

• What happened? Why did it happen? What caused it to happen?

Signal words:

• So, Because, Since, Therefore, If…then, This led to, Reason

why, As a result/results in, results from, May be, due to, Effect
of, Consequent/ly, For this reason, cause/s, cause of, caused
by, leads to, bring about, originate, produce, make possible,
owing to, by means of, accomplish by, since, because, in order
to, reasons, why, if/then, on account of, in explanation, effect,
affects, so, thus, therefore, accordingly, for the purpose of…
 2. COMPARE AND CONTRAST

• Comparison and Contrast structure is used to explain how two or

more objects, events, or positions in an argument are similar or
different.

• Shows how two or more things are alike and/or how they are
different. (compare/contrast) – relates ideas by differences and/or
similarities.

Signal questions:

• What things are being compared? In what ways are they alike? In
what ways are they different?
Signal words/ key words/phrases:
• Same as, Similar/ly, Alike, also, As well as, in the same way,
as, in common, Not only…but also, Both , Instead of ,
Either…or, On the other hand, Different from, As opposed to,
instead, but, however, alternatively, whereas, on the other
hand, although, unlike, while, compare, in comparison, in
contrast, in opposition, not everyone, all but, have in common,
similarities, share, resemble, the same as, just as, more than,
longer than, less than, act like, look like, despite, although,
difference, differentiate, different…
 3. PROBLEM AND SOLUTION

• A problem is described and a response or solution is proposed or

explained. Tells about a problem (and sometimes says why there is
a problem) then gives one or more possible solutions.

Signal questions:

• What is the problem? Why is this a problem? Is anything being done

to try to solve the problem? What can be done to solve the
problem?
 Signal words:

• Question is…, Dilemma/issue is…, The puzzle is…, To solve this…,

One answer is…, One reason for the, problem is, situation, trouble,
crisis,

• In the body of the paragraph, key words include: solve, solution,

resolved.

• Problem: problem, trouble, difficulty, hazard, need to prevent,

threat, danger, puzzle, can hurt, not good, bad…

• Solution: to satisfy the problem, ways to reduce the problem, so

solve these problems, protection from the problem, solution, in
response, recommend, suggest, reply…
 4. SEQUENCE

• Information is organized in steps or a process is explained in

the order in which it occurs. Texts are written in an order or
timeline format.

• Describes items or events in order or tells the steps to follow

to do something or make something.

• The writer explains the main idea with a series of events or

steps in a process that follow one after the other in time order.
• Sequence uses time, numerical, or spatial order as the
organizing structure.
• Sequence can be:

• Spatial order: above, below, beside, nearby, beyond, inside,

andoutside.

• Time order: before, after, first, next, then, when, finally, while, as,

during, earlier, later, and meanwhile.

• Numerical order: first, second, also, finally, in addition, equally

important, and more or less importantly.

• General/specific order: for example, such as, like,namely, for

instance, that is, in fact, in other words, and indeed.

Signal questions:

• What items, events, or steps are listed? Do they have to happen in

this order? Do they always happen in this order?

Signal word/phrases:

• first, second, then, next, after, while, since, then, soon, finally, at
last, in 1965, last June, later, over time, the next step, the following
week, not long after, now, soon.
 5. DESCRIPTION

• Information is organized in order of space (top to bottom, left to

right).

• A topic, idea, person, place, or thing is described by listing its

features, characteristics, or examples. (generalization, settings) –
relates ideas by elaboration of attributes, specifics, or setting
information. The main ideas is that aspects of a topic are presented
(e.g., newspaper article).
Signal questions:

• What specific topic, person, idea, or thing is being described?

How is it being described (what does it look like, how does it
work, what does it do, etc.)? What is important to remember
about it?

Signal words:

• For instance, Such as…, To begin with, An example, To

illustrate, Characteristics
 IMPORTANCE OF TEXT STRUCTURE

Students can recognize that.

• Effective at improving reading comprehension; help students focus
attention on key concepts and relationships, anticipate what’s to come,
and monitor their comprehension as they read.
• As readers interact with the text to construct meaning, their
comprehension is facilitated when they organize their thinking in a
manner similar to that used by the author.
• Acquire critical content knowledge by reading across the curriculum
which helps them to comprehend informational texts filled with high
vocabulary and content demands as well as unfamiliar structures.
• Use these text structures to organize their own writing, and represent
information in different ways.
• Helps in understanding the explicit and implicit relationships
among ideas in texts organized by cause-and-effect, sequence,
comparison, problem/solution, or description;

• Analyze how the organizational pattern of a text (e.g., cause-

and-effect, compare-and-contrast, sequential order, logical
order, classification schemes) influences the relationships
among the ideas

• Use multiple text features (e.g., guide words, topic and

concluding sentences) to gain an overview of the contents of
text and to locate information.
 Watch the videos:

• Nonfiction Text Structure.

https://youtu.be/SMS7bhYuLlE

• Text Structure Techniques – Comparison.

https://youtu.be/d_ZL0yEeUac

• Compare and Contrast Text Structure.

https://youtu.be/p4JHsbF_rwg

• Text Structure Techniques - Sequence & Description.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpD4lcbeSJo
• Problem and Solution Text Structure.
https://youtu.be/xzlXLmlElOY
• Text Structure Techniques - Problem / Solution & Cause /
Effect. https://youtu.be/gEEXvMPMU2k
 ACTIVITY
• Q. How does understanding of the following helps in reading
comprehension?
1. Sentence structure
2. Paragraph structure
3. Titles/headings and sub-headings
4. Transitions and connecting words
5. Images/pictures/illustrations/ graphic organizers
6. Types of text or text genres
7. Organization of the text such as descriptive, cause and effect,
compare and contrast, problem and solution, argumentative texts,
instructive texts, narrative texts etc
 References
• Wijekumar, K., & Beerwinkle, A.L. (n.d.). Implementing the
Text Structure Strategy in Your Classroom. Reading Rockets.
https://www.readingrockets.org/article/implementing-text-
structure-strategy-your-classroom

• Ereadingworksheets.
https://www.ereadingworksheets.com/text-structure/text-
structure-worksheets/

• Teaching text structures.

https://keystoliteracy.com/blog/teaching-text-structures/