text features

Learning Target

174
Lesson 11 Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings)

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Introduction

Lesson 11

Read Stores use signs and pictures to help you find what you
need. Writers use special signs called text features to help
you find important ideas and details in a text. Captions, bold
print, and subheadings are types of text features to look for
when you read.

Read the passage below about igloos. What text features
do you see?

Using text features to find information in nonfiction
text will help you better understand what you read.

Text Features, Part 1 (Captions,
Bold Print, Subheadings)

An igloo is a house made of snow.
Some people in snowy areas still
make igloos today.

Making an Igloo
Igloos are built with large blocks
of packed snow. The snow is cut with
a saw or knife. The blocks are then
stacked tightly together in the shape
of a dome.

The window in this igloo is made of sea ice.

House of Snow

ELAGSE2RI5

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Theme:Homes, Past and Present

Lesson 11

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175
Lesson 11 Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings)

• text features
• subheadings
• bold print
• captions

Academic Talk
Use these words and phrases to talk about the text.

Talk Using the information in your chart, talk to your partner
about how text features help you find information as you read.

Think Look again at the article about igloos. Then fill in the
chart below to tell about three text features.

Purpose

Text Feature

caption

bold print

subheading

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Modeled and Guided Instruction

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Lesson 11 Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings)
176

Read

Genre: History Article

by Henry Wallace

1
Have you ever heard of a sod house? Sod is a layer of dirt.
It has grass growing on it. Long ago, pioneers used sod to
build houses all across the American prairie.

Why People Built
Sod Houses

2
The prairie looked like a sea
of grass. There were not many
trees that pioneers could use to
build houses. So they cut bricks
out of sod instead.

Building a Sod House

3
Making sod bricks was not easy. The roots from
prairie grasses were tough. They were hard to cut through.
Pioneers stacked up sod bricks while the roots were still
growing. After a while, the bricks would grow together to
make a strong wall.

4
Sod houses kept pioneers cool in the summer
and warm in the winter. They also protected
them from storms.

Close Reader Habits

Circle text features
that help you find
information in the
article.

Sod Houses

A family and their sod
house in Nebraska

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Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings) Lesson 11

Explore

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177
Lesson 11 Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings)

How do the text features in “Sod Houses” help you
find information?

Think

1 Fill in the answers in the chart to tell about the text features in
the passage.

Text Feature

Purpose

Examples from Article

bold print

tells about the topic
of the text that
comes after it

A family and their sod
house in Nebraska

Talk

2 Which text feature helped you the most as you read the article
on sod houses?

Write

3Short Response Which text features helped you find out what
sod is and how to build a house from it? Write your answer in
the space on page 180.

HINT Use the
details from your
chart to help you
answer the
question.

I’ll look at all the
text features in
the article and
think about what
they tell me.

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Guided Practice

Read

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Lesson 11 Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings)
178

W rld

Homes Around

the

by Coriander Singh

1 People have all kinds of homes, or places where they live. Some
families live in houses. Other families live in apartments in large
buildings. People around the world live in homes like these. They
also live in homes you may never have heard about.

A Home People Can Take Apart

2 Some people live in huts. Huts are small,
simple homes. They are made from branches
that are covered with cloth. These homes are
easy to put up and take apart. If it’s time to
move, people can take their homes with them.

A Home That Floats on Water

3 Some people live on houseboats. Houseboats are
homes that float on water and can travel on rivers
and lakes. Some houseboats have many rooms,
just like houses do on land.

How All Homes Are Alike

4 No matter where they are, all homes are the same
in some ways. They protect us from the rain and the
sun. They give us a safe place to live, work, sleep,
and eat.

Close Reader Habits

How do text features
help you find
information in a
passage? Put a box
around each
subheading. Circle
the words in bold
print, and underline
their meanings.

Genre: Magazine Article

Eight people can live
on this houseboat.

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Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings) Lesson 11

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Lesson 11 Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings)

Think

1 Why is the word “Huts” in bold print?

A to help you know what huts look like

B to show that it is an important word in the passage

C to tell about the topic of the text that comes after it

D to help you find information about apartments

2 Which text feature helps you find information about homes
that can travel on rivers?

A the bold print word “homes”

B the bold print word “Huts”

C the subheading “A Home People Can Take Apart”

D the subheading “A Home That Floats on Water”

Talk

3 How can the text features in the article help you understand the
information you read about houseboats?

Write

4Short Response How do subheadings help make the facts
in this article easier to find? Write your answer in the space on
page 181.

HINT Reread the
subheadings. What
kinds of details
would you find
under each one?

Rereading the
subheadings will
remind me what is
in the article.

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Modeled and Guided Instruction

Check Your Writing

Did you read the question carefully?

Can you say the question in your own words?

Did you use proof from the text in your answer?

Are your ideas in a good, clear order?

Did you answer in full sentences?

Did you check your spelling, capital letters, and periods?

Don’t forget to check your writing.

180
Lesson 11 Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings)

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WriteUse the space below to write your answer to the question on page 177.

3Short Response Which text features helped you find
out what sod is and how to build a house from it?

HINTUse the details
from your chart to help
you answer the question.

Sod Houses

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Guided Practice

Check Your Writing

Did you read the question carefully?

Can you say the question in your own words?

Did you use proof from the text in your answer?

Are your ideas in a good, clear order?

Did you answer in full sentences?

Did you check your spelling, capital letters, and periods?

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Lesson 11 Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings)

WriteUse the space below to write your answer to the question on page 179.

HINTReread the
subheadings. What kinds
of details would you find
under each one?

4Short Response How do subheadings help make the
facts in this article easier to find?

W rld

Homes Around

the

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Independent Practice

182
Lesson 11 Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings)

Read

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Genre: Social Studies Article

WORDS TO KNOW
As you read, look
inside, around, and
beyond these
words to figure out
what they mean.

• covering

• frame

Homes, Now and Then

1 Today, Native American people live in modern
houses built from many different materials. Their
houses might have parts made from wood, metal,
concrete, or glass. But long ago, Native American
people built their homes using what they found in
nature.

2 Native American people of long ago lived across
North America. Each group had its own way of life.
Some groups lived in warm places. Others lived
where there were long, cold winters. Some Native
American people hunted animals and gathered
berries. Others grew their own food.

Wigwams

3 Some Native American families lived near what is
now New England in wigwams. These people moved
based on the season. So, wigwams were perfect for
these people. They could build a wigwam in less than
one day. They used trees and bark. When it was time
to move, the families packed their wigwam coverings
and ropes. They left the frames behind because they
could build new ones.

by Sarah J. Ball, Appleseeds Magazine

A wigwam made
of bark and wood

Homes Built
fromfromNature

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Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings) Lesson 11

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Lesson 11 Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings)

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Pueblos

4 Native American people who lived in the
Southwest stayed in the same place all year.
Their homes were pueblos. The rooms were
built using clay or stone. The clay was called
adobe. Rooms were stacked together. Each
family lived in one room of the pueblo.

Longhouses

5 Some Native American people lived in the
Eastern Woodlands. They built longhouses
made of poles and tree bark. Longhouses could
be 100 feet long and had a hallway down the
middle. There were booths, or small rooms, on
both sides. Each family lived in its own booth.

Tipis

6 Other Native American people lived in tipis.
They traveled on the grass-covered Plains. Wood
was difficult to find. So, they had dogs drag the
tipi poles from place to place. To set up their
houses, these families tied three or four poles
together at the top. Then, they added more poles.
They covered the poles with buffalo skins.

7 Native American people of long ago lived in
many kinds of houses. Children worked and
played around their homes. Their parents taught
them how to find food and build shelter using
nature around them.

A pueblo made of clay

A longhouse made
of poles and tree bark

Tipis made of poles
and buffalo skins

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Independent Practice

184
Lesson 11 Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings)

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Think Use what you learned by reading “Homes Built from Nature”
to respond to the following questions.

1 This question has two parts. First, answer Part A. Then answer
Part B.

Part A
Which information can you find under the subheading “Homes,
Now and Then”?

A how Native Americans invent new building materials and
design homes

B the materials used to build Native American homes today
and in the past

C why Native Americans of today live in modern homes

D why groups of Native Americans lived in different places

Part B
Write two sentences from the text that show why you chose
your answer in Part A.

2 What do you learn from the caption under the photograph on
page 182?

A who built the home

B where the home is located

C what the home is made of

D when the home was made

•

•

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Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings) Lesson 11

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185
Lesson 11 Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings)

3Which subheading refers to a home made of bark that people
removed and traveled with?

A “Wigwams”

B “Pueblos”

C “Longhouses”

D “Tipis”

4 Which facts are found under each subheading in the passage?
Write the letter of the fact in the correct box in the chart.

A The homes were found in the Plains.

B The people who made the homes moved with the
seasons.

C The people who made the homes lived in the Southwest.

D The homes were up to 100 feet long.

E The people lived near what is now New England.

F The homes had small rooms called “booths.”

G The people lived in the same place all year.

Wigwams

Pueblos

Longhouses

Tipis

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Independent Practice

186
Lesson 11 Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings)

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5 Read this sentence from paragraph 2.

Some Native American people hunted animals and
gathered berries.

What does “gathered” mean in this sentence?

A grew

B found

C ate

D picked

6 Which text feature helps you know what pueblos were built from?

A the caption “A pueblo made of clay”

B the caption “Tipis made of poles and buffalo skins”

C the subheading “Wigwams”

D the subheading “Longhouses”

Write In the past, what materials did Native American
people use to build their homes?

7Plan Your Response List two materials that each type of home
was made of.

Wigwams

Pueblos

Longhouses

Tipis

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Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings) Lesson 11

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187
Lesson 11 Text Features, Part 1 (Captions, Bold Print, Subheadings)

Learning Target

How does knowing about text features help you find
information in a nonfiction text?

8Short Response Tell why Native American people in different
parts of North America used different materials to build their
homes. Tell about at least one type of home in your response.

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