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Contributor: Jennifer Blanchard. Lesson ID: 13916
Is it easier to find something on an organized desk or a messy one? When a text is organized, it is easier to find (and understand!) the main ideas. Discover how here!
I think you are! Try to complete one or all of these challenges!
They were probably tricky because the order in which we do things matters!
Like with these examples, the order of information in a text matters, too, because it allows the reader to understand the information more clearly.
Writers organize their information simply by putting the ideas in a way that makes sense. They think about what information the reader would need to know first, what would be helpful to know after that, and so on.
While writing, authors organize the following.
However, that does NOT mean that all authors organize all texts in the same way or order! There are different structures that they can use, including the following.
Learn a little more about these different structures, or types, of organization.
| Chronology | ||
| What Does It Mean? | ||
| The information goes in order of what happened first, next, after that, and so on until what happened last. | ||
| Example | ||
| First, I went to the store to buy ingredients. Next, I went into my kitchen and mixed all the ingredients. Then, I put the mixture into the oven. Finally, I took a cake out of the oven and served it for my friend's birthday. | ||
| Comparison | ||
| What Does It Mean? | ||
| The information is presented in a way that compares (similarities) and contrasts (differences) the topics being discussed. | ||
| Example | ||
| The vanilla cake is white inside with white frosting on top. The chocolate cake also has white frosting on top, but it is dark brown on the inside. Both cakes taste sweet. | ||
| Cause and Effect | ||
| What Does It Mean? | ||
| The information is written to show that one action caused something else to happen. It also shows the effects (what happened) of what happened first. | ||
| Example | ||
| I added cocoa powder to the flour, butter, and eggs to make a chocolate cake. Adding sugar to it is what made it taste sweet. | ||
| Problem and Solution | ||
| What Does It Mean? | ||
| The information is given as a problem (something wrong) and then as a solution (how it was fixed). | ||
| Example | ||
| The chocolate cake was very flat when I took it out of the oven. I did not like how it looked, so I put it on a tall cake stand and added extra frosting. | ||
As a reader, it is your job to notice which type of structure the author used throughout the text or even just a part. This will help you understand what is being said.
As a writer, you should use these structures to organize your information as well to help your readers understand!
Move FORWARD and not backward to the Got It? section!
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