Text Structures
Elementary schools and middle schools have many traits in common. Typically, both are open five days a week for a set number of hours each day. Students sit at desks in classrooms and are expected to listen to and learn from their teachers. There is a set time for lunch. Each day, students are given homework assignments. Students take quizzes and tests. In all of these ways, middle school should feel somewhat familiar to new students. However, there are some big changes that new middle school students should be aware of. In elementary school, students usually stay in the same classroom with one teacher for most of the day. That is not the case in middle school, where students typically have a different teacher for each subject. Students must move to a different classroom for each subject too. Since there is not one classroom in which to store supplies, middle schools often provide students with lockers. For many kids, getting a locker is a welcome rite of passage.
Compare and Contrast
This text feature tells us what is in the book. It is usually organized by chapters, or topics, located at the front of the book. It tells us the pages where we can find the topics we are looking for.
Table of Contents
James and his sister, Anna, went to the carnival on Saturday. They rode the merry-go-round, the roller coaster and the Ferris wheel. James ate popcorn and a hot dog. Anna drank lemonade and ate an apple. They saw many exciting shows. They were tired when they went home
James and Anna did many things at the carnival.
Astro
(astronaut, astronomy)
anti-
(antifreeze, antihero)
against
To make a cake, first you have to get out
your ingredients. Next, you have to follow the
directions on the cake box to mix the correct
ingredients together. Then, you put the cake
in a pan and put it in a pre-heated oven,
according to the temperature on the box.
Finally, you pull the cake out of the oven, let it
cool, and put icing on it so you can enjoy!
Sequence
These text features are used to compare different facts, usually in the form of a visual.
Charts and Graphs
If you saw the title “Waves Crashing Along the Shore,” which would you think the passage would most likely be about?
A. A beach frozen in ice
B. A boat sailing in the middle of the ocean
C. A sandy beach during a storm
C
Bene
(benefit, benefactor)
Good
dis-
(disappear, disprove)
not
My most valuable possession is an old, slightly warped blond guitar - the first instrument I taught myself how to play. It's nothing fancy, just a Madeira folk guitar, all scuffed and scratched and finger-printed. At the top is a bramble of copper-wound strings, each one hooked through the eye of a silver tuning key. The strings are stretched down a long, slim neck, its frets tarnished, the wood worn by years of fingers pressing chords and picking notes. The body of the Madeira is shaped like an enormous yellow pear, one that was slightly damaged in shipping. The blond wood has been chipped and gouged to gray, particularly where the pick guard fell off years ago. No, it's not a beautiful instrument, but it still lets me make music, and for that I will always treasure it.
Description
This text feature is a story or additional information that is in addition to the body of the rest of the page.
Sidebar
A penny for your thoughts? If it’s a 1943 copper penny, it could be worth as much as fifty thousand dollars. In 1943, most pennies were made out of steel since copper was needed for World War II, so the 1943 copper penny is ultra-rare. Another rarity is the 1955 double die penny. These pennies were mistakenly double stamped, so they have overlapping dates and letters. If it’s uncirculated, it’d easily fetch $25,000 at an auction. Now that’s a pretty penny.
The value of a penny or how rare it can be.
Meter
(kilometer, millimeter)
Measure
-less
(fearless, hopeless)
without
In recent decades, cities have grown so large that now about 50% of the Earth's population lives in urban areas. There are several reasons for this occurrence. First, the increasing industrialization of the nineteenth century resulted in the creation of many factory jobs, which tended to be located in cities. These jobs, with their promise of a better material life, attracted many people from rural areas. Second, there were many schools established to educate the children of the new factory laborers. The promise of a better education persuaded many families to leave farming communities and move to the cities. Finally, as the cities grew, people established places of leisure, entertainment, and culture, such as sports stadiums, theaters, and museums. For many people, these facilities made city life appear more interesting than life on the farm, and therefore drew them away from rural communities.
Cause and Effect
This text feature is usually at the back of the book. You can look up a topic and this tells you what page or pages it is on.
Index
Before you put on that skeleton costume and rove door-to-door pandering for candy, take a minute to reflect on this tradition. Halloween is believed to have come from an ancient Celtic festival dating back some 2,000 years. November 1st was the Celtic New Year and marked the end of summer to the Celts. They celebrated on its eve by wearing costumes made of animal skins and dancing around bon fires. Over the next two millennia, this primitive celebration grew to be the candy fueled costume ball that we know today.
The origins of Halloween.
Port
(portable, transport)
Carry
-ful
(hopeful, grateful)
ful of
Astronauts face many problems in space caused by weightlessness. One of these problems is floating around the cabin. To solve this problem, astronauts wear wear shoes that are coated with a special adhesive. This adhesive sticks to the floor of the cabin. Serving food is another problem. It won't stay put on the table! Experts solved this problem by putting food and drinks in pouches and tubes. It only needs to be mixed with water. Weightlessness also causes problems when an astronaut tries to work. The simple task of turning a wrench or a doorknob can be difficult. Since there is no gravity to keep him down, when he exerts a force in one direction, the opposite force may flip him over completely. To solve this problem, he must be very careful about how much force he uses to do these simple tasks. Here on earth, life is much simpler, thanks to gravity.
Problem and Solution
This text feature consists of words that are important to the text. It is a list that is located in the back of the book and gives definitions for each word.
Glossary
When one hears the term "reality" applied to a show, one might expect that the events portrayed occurred naturally or, at the least, were not scripted. This is not always the case. Many reality shows occur in unreal environments, like rented mansions occupied by film crews. Such living environments do not reflect what most people understand to be "reality." Worse, there have been accusations that events not captured on film were later restaged by producers. Worse still, some involved in the production of "reality" television claim that the participants were urged to act out story lines premeditated by producers. With such accusations floating around, it's no wonder many people take reality TV to be about as real as the sitcom.
How reality TV isn’t always “real.”
Multi
(multiple, multilingual)
Many
micro-
(microscope, microcomputer)
small