Grade 6 · Making Sense of Nonfiction · Central Idea and Structure
Text Structure and Text Features
Name four common text structures.
Learning objectives
- Name four common text structures
- Use headings and captions to predict content
- Explain what an infographic adds to a text
AERO English Language Arts alignment
AERO.ELA.6.RI.5
Analyse the structure an author uses to organise a text, including how major sections and paragraphs contribute to the whole and to the development of ideas. Grade 6 / MYP 1 emphasis: work with one text or a clear pairing, with modelled evidence, sentence starters and short structured responses.
AERO.ELA.6.RI.7
Integrate and evaluate information presented in different media and formats, including charts, maps, infographics and video, as well as in words. Grade 6 / MYP 1 emphasis: work with one text or a clear pairing, with modelled evidence, sentence starters and short structured responses.
AERO.ELA.6.RI.6
Determine an author's purpose and point of view, and analyse how the author acknowledges or responds to conflicting evidence or viewpoints. Grade 6 / MYP 1 emphasis: work with one text or a clear pairing, with modelled evidence, sentence starters and short structured responses.
MYP criteria
- Criterion A — Analysing
- Criterion B — Organizing
ENGAGE
How Does a Text Guide You?
Imagine opening a page about mangroves in Qatar. Before reading every word, you notice a heading, a photograph with a caption and a colourful infographic. These features give you clues about the topic and help you find information quickly. Authors also arrange ideas using structures such as description, sequence, cause and effect, and compare and contrast. In this lesson, you will examine how structure and text features work together to make a non-fiction text clear.
Think about it
- What do you usually notice first on a non-fiction page?
- How can a heading help you predict what you will learn?
EXPLORE
Read: Why Mangroves Matter in Qatar
Why Mangroves Matter in Qatar
Along parts of Qatar's coast, mangrove trees grow where land and shallow seawater meet. Their tangled roots rise above the muddy ground and slow the movement of water. These roots also hold sediment in place. As a result, mangroves can reduce the erosion of the shoreline.
A Nursery for Wildlife: The mangrove habitat supports many living things. Young fish shelter among the roots, while small crabs search the mud for food. Birds rest on branches or look for creatures in the shallow water. In this way, one area provides feeding, resting and nursery spaces for different species.
Observing with Care: Visitors can help protect mangroves by watching wildlife from a suitable distance and taking litter home. Quiet observation causes less disturbance to animals. Caption: Mangrove roots create sheltered spaces between the land and sea.
Infographic: Life around a Mangrove
Branches: resting birds | Shallow water: young fish | Mud: small crabs | Roots: shelter and shoreline support
Think about it
- Which text structure is most clearly used in the first paragraph?
- What content could you predict from the heading “A Nursery for Wildlife”?
- What information does the infographic show more quickly than the paragraphs?
EXPLAIN
Structures and Features Work Together
Text structure is the way an author arranges ideas. Recognising the structure helps you understand how details connect and how each paragraph contributes to the central idea.
| Structure | Purpose | Common signal words |
|---|---|---|
| Description | Explains the qualities, parts or features of a topic | for example, includes, has, such as |
| Sequence | Places events or steps in order | first, next, then, finally |
| Cause and effect | Shows why something happens and its result | because, so, therefore, as a result |
| Compare and contrast | Shows similarities and differences | both, similarly, however, unlike |
Structure is not the same as a feature
Structure organises ideas. A text feature, such as a heading or caption, helps you locate, predict or understand information.
A heading names a section and signals its focus. Before reading the section “A Nursery for Wildlife”, you can predict that it will explain how mangroves provide safe spaces for young animals.
A caption is a short explanation placed beside an image. It identifies what the image shows or explains why the image matters. A useful caption adds information rather than simply repeating the heading.
An infographic combines brief words with a visual arrangement. The mangrove infographic groups animals by location, allowing you to see the relationship between branches, water, mud and roots quickly. It supports the paragraphs without replacing their fuller explanations.
- Name the structure.
- Identify a signal word or arrangement of ideas.
- Quote or paraphrase one relevant detail.
- Explain how the section or feature supports the central idea.
- Use this frame: “The author uses ___ to show ___. The detail ___ supports the idea that ___.”
MYP_PRACTICE
Analyse the Mangrove Page
Return to the extract and examine how its parts work together. Write short, organised responses using evidence from the paragraphs, headings, caption and infographic. Your aim is not only to name a structure or feature, but also to explain how it helps develop the central idea.
- Write the central idea of the whole text in one sentence.
- Name the structure of the first paragraph and copy one signal phrase as evidence.
- Explain how the heading “A Nursery for Wildlife” prepares you for its paragraph.
- Identify one fact made easier to locate by the infographic.
- Use the sentence frame to explain how one section contributes to the whole text.
EXIT_TICKET
Before you close this lesson
Think about it
- How is a text structure different from a text feature?
- Which feature helped you understand the mangrove text most, and why?
Interactive practice · structure feature analysis
Build a Clear Evidence Response
Complete each field using the mangrove extract. Then join your ideas into a short paragraph that names a structure or feature, gives evidence and explains its contribution to the whole text.
Check your answer
Task
Use precise vocabulary and arrange your ideas in a logical order.
Record your findings
Sentence frames
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Key vocabulary
- text structure
- The pattern an author uses to arrange and connect ideas.
- heading
- A short title that identifies the topic of a section.
- caption
- A brief explanation placed beside an image or diagram.
- infographic
- A visual display that communicates information using words, images or symbols.
Practice questions
0/3 correct
Level 1 · Criterion A
Which structure is used when the first paragraph explains that roots slow water and, as a result, reduce erosion?
Level 1 · Criterion A
What is the best prediction from the heading “A Nursery for Wildlife”?
Level 2 · Criterion A
What does the infographic add to the written paragraphs?
MYP criterion tasks
Level 2 · Criterion A
Explain how the paragraph under “A Nursery for Wildlife” contributes to the whole text. Use one detail as evidence.
Level 3 · Criterion B
Write two organised sentences comparing the jobs of the heading and the infographic.
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