Text Structure Organizing Ideas

Purpose Text structures help the writer organize ideas for his/her readers Recognizing these structures can help the reader make connections between information presented

4 Kinds of Structure

1. Enumeration/Sequence Defined – Explaining things first, second, third, and so on Example: – First, you need to become a leader of a political party. Second, you need to win a seat in the House of Commons. Third, your party must have a majority of seats.

2. Chronology Defined – Describing events in the order in which they happened Example – The life and death of a star begins somewhere in space. Astronomers claim that a star begins as a cloud of hydrogen and helium. As the cloud moves about it collects bits of dust and more floating gases. Then the cloud begins to warm as more dust and gases are pulled into it. After a long period of time as the cloud becomes denser, heat and friction cause the atoms to explode. That is how a star is born. The star will burn for about ten billion years as it radiates heat and energy. When the hydrogen begins to burn out the star becomes even larger. At this stage, it gives off a lot of light but not much energy. The star may continue to burn brightly but dies when it runs out of hydrogen. This is the life cycle of a star.

3. Comparison and Contrast Defined – Showing how one thing is similar to or different from another thing Example – My hometown and my college town have several things in common. First, both are small rural communities. For example, my hometown, Gridlock, has a population of only about 10,000 people. Similarly, my college town, Subnormal, consists of about 11,000 local residents. This population swells to 15,000 people when the college students are attending classes. A second way in which these two towns are similar is that they are both located in rural areas. Gridlock is surrounded by many acres of farmland which is devoted mainly to growing corn and soybeans. In the same way, Subnormal lies in the center of farmland which is used to raise hogs and cattle.

4. Cause and Effect Defined – Showing how one event causes another event, and so on Example – In recent decades, cities have grown so large that now about 50% of the Earth's population lives in urban areas. There are several reasons for this occurrence. First, the increasing industrialization of the nineteenth century resulted in the creation of many factory jobs, which tended to be located in cities. These jobs, with their promise of a better material life, attracted many people from rural areas. Second, there were many schools established to educate the children of the new factory laborers. The promise of a better education persuaded many families to leave farming communities and move to the cities. Finally, as the cities grew, people established places of leisure, entertainment, and culture, such as sports stadiums, theaters, and museums. For many people, these facilities made city life appear more interesting than life on the farm, and therefore drew them away from rural communities.

Let’s Practice

Elementary schools and middle schools have many traits in common. Typically, both are open five days a week for a set number of hours each day. Students sit at desks in classrooms and are expected to listen to and learn from their teachers. There is a set time for lunch. Each day, students are given homework assignments. Students take quizzes and tests. In all of these ways, middle school should feel somewhat familiar to new students. Compare and Contrast

There is much preparation to be done before hunting season arrives. First, hunters must obtain their deer or elk tags from the Department of Wildlife which allows them to legally kill these animals. Then they must consult their calendars, ask for time off of work, request assignments from teachers like Mrs. B, and determine where they will go to hunt. Finally, because big game live in the wilderness, sportsmen must prepare to keep warm during many days outside by gathering their warm coats, woolen socks, hats and gloves. To most hunters, thankfully, the groundwork is just as exciting as the hunt itself! Chronology

The emotion of fear sets off many changes in your body. When you become frightened, you breathe more deeply, giving your muscles more oxygen and greater energy. Your hearts beats more powerfully so that your blood circulates faster, carrying oxygen to all parts of your body. Your stomach and intestines no longer contract and all digestive action stops. No saliva flows in your mouth and your throat becomes dry. Your face becomes pale and the tiny blood vessels shrink under the skin so that less blood would flow if you were cut. The blood can clot faster so that there would be less bleeding from a wound. The pupils of your eyes enlarge, admitting more light during the emergency. You might be able to perform great feats of strength in this condition. Cause and Effect

“The moon is our closest neighbor. It’s 250,000 miles away. It’s gravity is only 1/6 that of Earth. This means a boy weighing 120 pounds in Virginia would weigh only 20 pounds on the moon. In addition, there is no atmosphere on the moon. The footprints left by astronauts back in 1969 are still there, as crisply formed as they were on the day they were made. The lack of atmosphere also means there is no water on the moon, an important problem when traveling there.” Enumeration/Sequence

Homework What text structure is used for the Slave Laws of 1980, and how does that affect the organization of the text? – Remember…Paragraph format: Topic sentence (the answer to the prompt) At least three textual examples with explanations Clincher sentence