Understanding text structure

Help students see how they might present some content using one organizational structure, but then turn
to another structure to develop their discussion further.

for readers

for writers

look at the physical shape of the texts

What
does that suggest about the importance of the content in this segment or its organizational function

the quantity of paragraphs

the size of all the part

text structure as idea chunking

n academic writing, authors often use headings to help readers recognize different content chunks

An additional way of thinking about text structure is as a clustering or chunking of ideas on a similar
topic.

A content text chunk might contain multiple paragraphs—even pages—devoted to the same related topic.

Text Structures as Organizational Patterns

Spatial Organization

Chronological Organization

Logical Organization

help students to think of the
ways in which a movie camera records a scene

When teaching
chronological structures, be alert to the possibilities of flash back and flash forward.

uses the structures of analysis: process, enumeration, classification, part-
to-whole, problem and solution, comparison and contrast, cause and effect, and definition.

Text Structure as Architectural Shape

Authentic text structures are organic. They emerge from the
confluence of content, purpose, and audience.

Writers structure texts to accommodate the kinds of content they wish to present as well as to emphasize
certain points.

way to describe text structure is to think of beginning, middle, and end.

The beginning of
a text—its title and its opening paragraph(s)—interests readers

The middle presents the content and the discussion.

effective endings provide a
sense of closure and satisfaction for readers

Text Structures as Organizational Patterns

Teaching analytical structures helps students develop necessary logical skills such as sequencing,

Help students see how they might present some content using one organizational structure, but then turn
to another structure to develop their discussion further.

Text Structures as Idea Chunking

Another way to think about text structure is to think about “chunks” of related content.

In the first chunk, students might take one or two paragraphs to summarize the points of the texts

there's also the presence of the final chunk where anything can happen this creating the conclusion of certain texts