TEXT STRUCTURES FOUND IN SOCIAL STUDIES TEXTS
TEXT STRUCTURES FOUND IN SOCIAL STUDIES TEXTS
Fluent readers recognize and use organizational patterns to comprehend text. A particular text may reflect more than one organizational pattern. The writer’s purpose influences the organizational pattern of a particular text. When students do not recognize a text’s structure, their comprehension is impaired. The seven organizational patterns of social studies text are:
|Type of Organizational Pattern |Signal Words |Questions Suggested by the Pattern |
|Chronological Sequence: organizes events in|after, afterward, as soon as, before, |What sequence of events is being described?|
|time sequence. |during, finally, first, following, |What are the major incidents that occur? |
| |immediately, initially, later, meanwhile, |How is this text pattern revealed in the |
| |next, not long after, now, on (date), |text? |
| |preceding, second, soon, then, third, | |
| |today, until, when | |
|Comparison and Contrast: organizes |although, as well as, as opposed to, both, |What items are being compared? |
|information about two or more topics |but, compared with, different from, |What is it about the item that is being |
|according to their similarities and |either…or, even though, however, instead |compared? What characteristics of the |
|differences. |of, in common, on the other hand, |items form the basis of comparison? |
| |otherwise, similar to, similarly, still, |What characteristics do they have in |
| |yet |common; how are these items alike? |
| | |In what ways are these items different? |
| | |What conclusion does the author reach about|
| | |the degree of similarity or difference |
| | |between the items? |
| | |How did the author reveal this pattern? |
|Concept/ Definition: organizes information |for instance, in other words, is |What concept is being defined? |
|about a generalized idea and then presents |characterized by, put another way, refers |What are its attributes or characteristics?|
|its characteristics or attributes. |to, that is, thus, usually |How does it work, or what does it do? |
| | |What examples are given for each of the |
| | |attributes or characteristics? |
| | |How is this pattern revealed in the text? |
|Description: organizes facts that describe |above, across, along, appears to be, as in,|What specific person, place, thing, or |
|the characteristics of a specific person, |behind, below, beside, between, down, in |event is being described? |
|place, thing or event. |back of, in front of, looks like, near, on|What are its most important attributes or |
| |top of, onto, outside, over, such as, to |characteristics? |
| |the right/ left, under |Would the description change if the order |
| | |of the attributes were changed? |
| | |Why is this description important? |
|Episode: organizes a large body of |a few days/ months later, around this time,|What event is being described or explained?|
|information about specific events. |as it is often called, as a result of, |What is the setting where the event occurs?|
| |because of, began when, consequently, |Who are the major figures or characters |
| |first, for this reason, lasted for, led to,|that play a part in this event? |
| |shortly thereafter, since then, |What are the specific incidents or events |
| |subsequently, this led to, when |that occur? In what order do they happen? |
| | |What caused this event? |
| | |What effects has this event had on the |
| | |people involved? |
| | |What effects has this event had on society |
| | |in general? |
|Generalization/ Principle: organizes |additionally, always, because of, clearly, |What generalizations is the author making |
|information into general statements with |conclusively, first, for instance, for |or what principle is being explained? |
|supporting examples. |example, furthermore, generally, however, |What facts, examples, statistics, and |
| |if…then, in fact, it could be argued that, |expert opinion are given that support the |
| |moreover, most convincing, never, not |generalization or that explain the |
| |only…but also, often, second, therefore, |principle? |
| |third, truly, typically |Do these details appear in a logical order?|
| | |Are enough facts, examples, statistics, and|
| | |expert opinion included to clearly support |
| | |or explain the generalization/ principle? |
|Process/ Cause and Effect: organizes |accordingly, as a result of, because, |What process or subject is being explained?|
|information into a series of steps leading |begins with, consequently, effects of, |What are the specific steps in the process,|
|to a specific product, or into a causal |finally, first, for this reason, how to, |or what specific causal events occur? |
|sequence that leads to a specific outcome. |how, if…then, in order to, is caused by, |What is the product or end result of the |
| |leads/ led to, may be sue to, next, so |process; or what is outcome of the causal |
| |that, steps involved, therefore, thus, |events? |
| |when...then | |
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