Text Structures

In a text with a compare and contrast text structure, the author

• explains something that happened and the reasons why

• tells about events in the order they occurred

• explains how things are similar and different

• describes a problem and then explains how someone solved it

In a text with a cause and effect text structure, the author

• explains something that happened and the reasons why

• tells about events in the order they happened

• describes a topic and its characteristics

• describes a problem and then explains how someone solved it

Identify the text structure in the following passage:

Many students in the US say that they've been bullied at school. Natalie H. is a high school student who was bullied a lot in middle school. She often had no one to sit with at lunch. So she created a phone app called "Sit With Us." This app lets students sign up and post when there are free seats at their lunch tables. These students have promised to be kind to those who come sit with them. Natalie hopes her app will help students find people to sit with without fear of being bullied.

• description

• problem and solution

• compare and contrast

• sequence/chronological

Identify the text structure used in the following passage:

A river is a large natural stream of following water. The source of a river is the place where the river starts. This is usually the highest point in the river. Many rivers begin in springs, places where underground water flows to the Earth's surface. Some rivers begin in melting glaciers high up in the mountains or in lakes.

• sequence/chronological

• description

• cause and effect

• problem and solution

Identify the main text structure used in the passage below:

Robots that look like humans are called androids. But not all robots are androids. The industrial robots used in manufacturing and production look like machines and not at all like human beings. So what does an android have in common with an industrial robot? They both have computers. And they both have sensors to gather information and ways to interact with their environments, too.

• sequence/chronological

• cause and effect

• problem and solution

• compare and contrast

Identify the main text structure used in the passage below:

A current is a steady flow of water in the ocean. In the Pacific Ocean, garbage from the shore and ships gets trapped by ocean currents. The currents move the trash into a large area in the middle of the ocean. This has created a swirling mass of plastics and seawater called the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

• cause and effect

• compare and contrast

• problem and solution

• description

Identify the main text structure used in the passage below:

The Greenland shark can grow to be around 16 feet long. It's an apex predator, an animal that is at the top of the food chain. No other creatures prey on apex predators. The Greenland shark can live to be about 400 years old, making it the longest-living vertebrate animal.

• sequence/chronological

• compare and contrast

• description

• cause and effect

In a text with a sequential/chronological text structure, the author

• describes a topic and its characteristics

• tells about events in the order they happened

• explains how things are similar and different

• describes a problem and then explains how someone solved it

In this type of writing, the reader will see words/phrases such as because, as a result of, and due to.

• cause and effect

• problem and solution

• sequence/chronological

• compare and contrast

In this type of writing the reader will find words/phrases such as a problem is, solve, or solution.

• cause and effect

• problem and solution

• sequence and chronological

• compare and contrast