Text Organization Teacher Resources

Young writers use the Iroquois Constitution as a model to help them organize their own class constitution in the seventh lesson of this unit. Using this historic text helps students better understand the structure of this type of...

When provided with multiple objects, how many ways can the class organize and display them based on predetermined factors? Assist class members with a handy activity—theoretically teaching them concepts to understand periodic table...

Can your fourth graders use headings to organize their ideas? Help them format their research papers with paragraphs and headings to break up different ideas. The eighth video in a series about informational text takes them through the...

An organized outline is at the heart of a well-developed essay. Using a strategy of constructing boxes and bullets, your young writers will learn how to take the main points of their essay, add appropriate supporting details, and then to...

In this organizing and presenting information worksheet, learners read a paragraph and examine a table before they respond to 10 short answer questions regarding the information.

After reading "A Pair of Silk Stockings" by Kate Chopin, middle schoolers respond to the text through a fictional narrative. An informative video starts out by reviewing the steps of the writing process. The narrator then walks the...

Fourth-grade writers get the skinny on how to skim texts to find answers in the third of nine videos designed to support research reading and writing. Using a unit on Native Americans as the context, writers complete the second section...

Lesson ten in this unit for the book Bullfrogs at Magnolia Circle, prepares third graders to begin writing an informational paragraph about the adaptations of bullfrogs. First, young writers work either independently or in pairs to...

Reading and discussing Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness is not for the faint of heart. The dark, ambiguous, and complex novel is one of the most frequently cited books on the AP Literature exam. The questions in this guide ask readers...

Great literature discussions are a consequence of carefully crafted questions, interpretative questions that permit more than one response, and responses supported by specific evidence from the text. The discussion questions in a guide...

Gain insight into how scientists group materials based on their properties, such as conductibility and malleability, with this informative and engaging video. First, molecules, atoms, substances, and elements are reviewed, then an...

Ask your class to identify the organizational pattern of any informational text you are reading. The worksheet provides six different types with definitions that pupils can refer to as they read. They must identify the pattern and back...

Try out a persuasion map to help your pupils plan their argumentative essays. The video models how to analyze the writing assignment, find useful details in previous notes, and write two topic sentences. Class members can follow along...

Seventh graders conduct research and make note of it. In this research skills lesson, 7th graders select questions to investigate and locate appropriate resources for research. Students take notes and organize those notes to prepare...

Teach learners how to interact with both fiction and non-fiction text with a packet of activities and worksheets. After looking over text structure and the difference in text features between different types of writing, readers analyze...

Examine the text features of non-fiction. Start the lesson by reading editorial samples provided by their instructor and analyze the texts for word choice, details, and organization. An editorial example and graphic organizer are...

Authors, particularly authors of articles and other informational texts, organize their ideas into sections or chunks. Often, pupils will rush through a text or scan over it without really taking any of it in. Readers can deepen their...

If you have a few minutes to spare in your informational text lesson, use a video about planning your writing. Helpful graphics, such as a KWL chart, and narration show fourth graders how to use a table of contents to write their...

The first in a series of writing lessons included in a unit study of the Iroquois focuses on gathering information needed to craft a paragraph. Writers use the included four-square graphic organizer to record a topic sentence, details...

Identify literary devices (alliteration, repetition, allusion, etc.) that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. used in his "I Have a Dream" speech. Middle schoolers go on to identify the literarcy devices Malcolm X used in "The Ballot or the...

Scholars use sticky notes to increase reading comprehension. They read a book selection and stop periodically to place sticky notes on items they want to discuss. They then write a short note, summary, or question on the sticky note to...

Developing an informational text is like designing a building—if the structure is weak, it will not stand. A language arts video provides an overview of the five types of text structure. A catchy song and specific examples help give a...

If you want to get ahead in business, is it better to foster collaboration between departments, or to allow specialists to work on their own projects? A short video introduces C.K. Prahalad and Gary Hamel's 1990 work, The Core Competence...

Synthesizing and analyzing information is an important skill for future adults to practice. With field trip Earth, they should choose a topic that interests them (or you could provide sample topics), obtain background information, and...