43 Reading Nonfiction

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Reading Nonfiction Opening Page

Start-Up Activity

Display the term nonfiction and ask a volunteer to define it (writing about real people, places, things, and ideas). Then, have students identify examples of nonfiction (magazine and newspaper articles, textbook chapters, Web pages, and so on).

Next, refer students to a page in a textbook or to a Web page and ask them why reading a page like this is important (to gain information) and what makes it challenging (so many facts and details, new words, and so on). Point out that this chapter provides strategies to help students read nonfiction more effectively. Have a volunteer read the opening page aloud.

Think About It

“I still believe nonfiction is the most important literature to come out of the second half of the 20th century.”

—Tom Wolfe

Page 370 from Write on Course 20-20

Reading on the Internet

The next two pages outline the different ways students can read information on the Internet. Review with students the tips for scanning and evaluating. You can provide students with a brief checklist for evaluating online sources or a more extensive one for in-depth evaluations. Then move onto the skills and activity on the next page.

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Page 371 from Write on Course 20-20

Reading on the Internet (Continued)

Lead students through the final three strategies for reading on the Internet: skimming, study-reading, and interacting. Help students practice the skills from this page and the last by asking them to complete this activity:

  1. Choose a subject from the “Essentials of Life Checklist” on page 33 of Write on Course 20-20. Do a Web search for that subject or for a specific topic within that subject area.
  2. Scanning: List the URLs for two interesting Web pages that resulted from your search.
  3. Evaluating: Apply the evaluation questions from page 370 to each Web page. Ask and answer “yes” or “no” for each question.
  4. Skimming: Choose one of the pages, skim it, and write a one-sentence description of it.
  5. Study-reading: Use the study-reading strategies from pages 372–373 to read the page and take notes about it.
  6. Interacting: List any interactive features of the page.
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Page 372 from Write on Course 20-20

Study-Reading Strategies

The next pages introduce two study-reading strategies students can use to closely analyze a nonfiction text. Review with students the steps for the “Before, During, and After” strategy. Then model using steps with a nonfiction text of your choosing. Afterward, have students practice the strategy with a different text. 

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Page 373 from Write on Course 20-20

KWL

Introduce students to the steps in the KWL strategy. Model using the steps with a nonfiction text. Then have students practice using a KWL chart for a nonfiction reading topic of their choice.

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Page 374 from Write on Course 20-20

Patterns of Nonfiction: Description

The next 12 pages explore the common patterns employed in nonfiction. Point out to students that being able to recognize these patterns will help them better understand factual texts.

Page 374 examines the description pattern. Inform students that texts describing a living being will tell what it looks like, what it eats, where it lives, and so on. Descriptions of an object tell what it looks like, what it does, how it works, and so on.

Ask for a volunteer to read the sample text. Then show how the graphic organizer on the next page identifies the main details from the sample text about plate tectonics. 

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Page 375 from Write on Course 20-20

Patterns of Nonfiction: Description (Continued)

Review the sample cluster. Then model the webbing or clustering process for another description before having students try it themselves.

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Page 376 from Write on Course 20-20

Main Idea/Supporting Details

The main idea/supporting details pattern is probably the most universally employed pattern in nonfiction texts. Have a volunteer read the sample text on page 376. After the reading, direct students' attention to the next page, where a table organizer identifies the main idea and supporting details in the text. 

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Page 377 from Write on Course 20-20

Main Idea/Supporting Details (Continued)

Model using a table organizer for another text before having students try it themselves. Consider assigning the related minilesson.

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Page 378 from Write on Course 20-20

Comparison/Contrast

The comparison/contrast pattern is commonly used in texts that examine two similar topics. Have a volunteer read the sample text on page 378. After the reading, refer to the next page, where a Venn diagram identifies the similarities and differences between Venus and Earth.

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Page 379 from Write on Course 20-20

Comparison/Contrast (Continued)

Before having students try it themselves, model using a Venn diagram for another text that uses a comparison structure. Consider assigning the related minilesson. 

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Page 381 from Write on Course 20-20

Chronological Order

Chronological order is used most often to report on events and to explain processes. Have a volunteer read the sample text on page 380. After the reading, refer to the time line on page 381, which chronologically identifies the main events in the expedition. 

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Page 381 from Write on Course 20-20

Chronological Order (Continued)

Before having students try it themselves, model using a time line to analyze a text that recalls an event. Consider assigning the related minilesson.

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Page 382 from Write on Course 20-20

Cause and Effect

The cause-effect pattern is commonly used in texts that analyze the results of actions and the impact of decisions. Transitions and key words such as the main reason, the primary cause, the major impact, and as a result are often used with this pattern.

Have a volunteer read the sample text on page 382. Then refer to page 383, where a cause-effect organizer identifies the causes and main effects outlined in the text. 

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Page 383 from Write on Course 20-20

Cause and Effect (Continued)

Before students try it themselves, model using the cause-effect organizer in a text that analyzes an event or a series of them. Consider assigning the related minilesson.

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Page 384 from Write on Course 20-20

Process

The process pattern is used in texts that explain how something works or how something is made. This pattern is another version of chronological order; both patterns organize information according to time and use the same transitions or linking words, such as first, second, then, next, and so on.

Have a volunteer read the sample text on page 384. Then refer to page 385, where a process list identifies the steps in a theory. 

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Page 385 from Write on Course 20-20

Process (Continued)

Model using this organizer in a text that explains a process. Then assign another such text and ask students to analyze it by writing notes about the process.

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Page 386 from Write on Course 20-20

Reading Nonfiction Review

Review the steps for reading nonfiction. Clarify any concepts that students still have questions about. Finally, make sure to highlight the helpful hint, which shows the difference between text reading and Internet reading.

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