Definition

Comparison and contrast

Cause and effect

Chronological order/sequence

Description

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.5 – Analyze the structure of texts, including

how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of the text (e.g., a
section, chapter, scene, or stanza) relate to each other and the whole.
Expand to View All Common Core State Standards Related to Text Structure

ELA Standards: Informational Texts

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.5 – Describe the overall structure (e.g.,
chronology, comparison, cause/effect, problem/solution) of events, ideas,
concepts, or information in a text or part of a text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.5.5 – Compare and contrast the overall structure
(e.g., chronology, comparison, cause/effect, problem/solution) of events,
ideas, concepts, or information in two or more texts.
Analyze the structure an author uses to organize a text, including how the major sections contribute to
the whole and to the development of the ideas

Text structure refers to how the information within a written text is organized. This strategy helps
students understand that a text might present a main idea and details; a cause and then its effects; and/or
different views of a topic.
To create the text structure strategy teachers should:

1. Choose the assigned reading and introduce the text to the students.
2. Introduce the idea that texts have organizational patters called text structures.
3. Introduce the following common text structures (see chart below for more detailed information):
o description,
o sequence,
o problem and solution,
o cause and effect, and
o compare and contrast.
4. Introduce and model using a graphic organizer to chart the text structure.

To use the text structure strategy teachers should:

1. Show examples of paragraphs that correspond to each text structure.

2. Examine topic sentences that clue the reader to a specific structure.
3. Model the writing of a paragraph that uses a specific text structure.
4. Have students try write paragraphs that follow a specific text structure.
5. Have students diagram these structures using a graphic organizer.

Remember:
Chrono = Time
Logic = Order
Stories are told chronologically or in order of time.
Chronological: information in the passage is organized in order of time
 Compare and
Contrast: two or more things are described. Their similarities and differences are
discussed.