Essential Questions
Features that help a reader to navigate a Nonfiction Text more easily.
What are Nonfiction Text Characteristics?
Found in the beginning of the book. It contains the author’s name, the publisher, the city of publication, the copyright date, and the ISBN. The ISBN stands for the International Standard Book Number…it is a 10 digit number (but can also have 13 digits) that is different for every book published.
What is a verso page?
Used to show information in a visual way, this can be a bar graph, pie chart, or plot line.
What is a graph?
A mini-dictionary found at the end of a nonfiction book. It gives the definition of unknown words from the book that are listed in alphabetical order. Often the words found in the glossary are in bold font in the text.
What is the glossary?
Offers nuggets of information not found in the text. It usually has a box around it and can be found anywhere on the page.
What is framed text?
Shows the location of an area
What is a map?
A visual that is used to compare and contrast information
What is a chart?
It has the title, the author’s name (and illustrator if there is one), and the publisher
What is the title page?
A title found at the top of a page or section of text. It is often written in larger, bold print, and lets the reader know what that section will be about.
What is a heading?
Tells the order of events that something took place. They can be about a person’s life or events in history
What is a timeline?
A picture drawn or painted to show how something or someone looks
What is an illustration?
Located near a photo, illustration, or any kind of visual that helps to explain to the reader the visual. It is usually a sentence or two.
What is a caption?
Titles underneath headings. It breaks the information down even further. It allows the reader to skim and scan to find the information that they might need
What are subheadings?
Found in the beginning of a book. It is sometimes labeled just “Contents”. It contains chapter titles or headings and lets the reader know what page they are on. This allows the reader to know what is in the book and also be able to find information quickly
What is the table of contents?
a picture taken with a camera to show the reader exactly what something looks like
What is a photograph?
Similar to captions in that they are located near photos or illustrations. However, labels are one or two words instead of one or two sentences.
What are labels?
Located at the back of a book. It lists the sources that the author used to find the information to write that book
What is a bibliography?
Usually in a different size, bolded, or in italics to show that they are important. They help us to focus on what is important on the page. They also might be vocabulary that we might need to look up in the glossary.
What are key words?
Found at the back of the book and contains important ideas or central concepts. The words are always listed in alphabetical order with the page numbers the information can be found on. The index helps a reader to locate information quickly.
What is the index?
A drawing or picture that has labels showing the important parts.
What is a diagram?