Teaching our students to differentiate between different text structures helps them better understand the nonfiction passages and materials they read, identify any bias in the texts they read, and determine the author's purpose.
One simple way to bring a variety of text structures into your classroom to kick off a text structure unit or to accompany your unit is to read and use picture books as text structure mentor texts. I love using picture books as text structure mentor texts because they provide the perfect visual for students for each text structure, and they are easy to refer back to throughout the unit...and all year long!
Just getting started with text structure?
Text structure refers to how the content of a nonfiction reading passage or book is organized. Understanding the different text structures helps our students focus on important ideas, find the main idea, infer, and monitor comprehension.
Five nonfiction text structures to practice with students...
- cause and effect
- sequence
- description
- compare and contrast
- problem and solution
I have compiled my favorite picture books to use when teaching text structure to upper elementary students. Check this list out, add them to your text structure lesson plans, and watch your students' understanding skyrocket!
👉Don't miss out on the FREE text structure starter kit at the bottom of this post!
