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Text Structure Worksheets

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An anchor chart, name the structure practice, a signal word sort, a graphic organizer for each structure, and writing pages.

Download the text structure worksheets

Text structure anchor charts

A chart of the five structures with signal words, and one topic written in all five structures.

Name the text structure

Short paragraphs to name, a signal word sort in cut and paste and no-cut versions, and a longer text with a different structure in each paragraph.

  • Preview of the printable “Name the text Structure: set A” worksheet: identifying the text structure of a short nonfiction paragraph and the signal words that show itView all 2 pages

    Name the text Structure: set A

    Identifying the text structure of a short nonfiction paragraph and the signal words that show it

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages48 KB

  • Preview of the printable “Name the text Structure: set B” worksheet: identifying the text structure of a short nonfiction paragraph and the signal words that show itView all 2 pages

    Name the text Structure: set B

    Identifying the text structure of a short nonfiction paragraph and the signal words that show it

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages49 KB

  • Preview of the printable “Name the text Structure: set C” worksheet: identifying the text structure of a short nonfiction paragraph and the signal words that show itView all 2 pages

    Name the text Structure: set C

    Identifying the text structure of a short nonfiction paragraph and the signal words that show it

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages48 KB

  • Preview of the printable “Name the text Structure: set D” worksheet: identifying the text structure of a short nonfiction paragraph and the signal words that show itView all 2 pages

    Name the text Structure: set D

    Identifying the text structure of a short nonfiction paragraph and the signal words that show it

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages49 KB

Text structure graphic organizers

A short text and a graphic organizer for each structure: description, sequence, compare and contrast, cause and effect, and problem and solution.

  • Preview of the printable “Compare and Contrast: frogs and toads” worksheet: using a Venn diagram to organize details from a compare and contrast textView all 2 pages

    Compare and Contrast: frogs and toads

    Using a Venn diagram to organize details from a compare and contrast text

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages43 KB

  • Preview of the printable “Cause and Effect: fall leaves” worksheet: using a cause and effect organizer to show a chain of causes and effects in a science textView all 2 pages

    Cause and Effect: fall leaves

    Using a cause and effect organizer to show a chain of causes and effects in a science text

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages37 KB

  • Preview of the printable “Problem and Solution: bald eagles” worksheet: using a problem and solution organizer to record a problem, its cause, the solutions, and the resultView all 2 pages

    Problem and Solution: bald eagles

    Using a problem and solution organizer to record a problem, its cause, the solutions, and the result

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages36 KB

Write in a text structure

Writing pages where children plan and write their own paragraphs in different structures.

  • Preview of the printable “Write using text structures” worksheet: writing short informative paragraphs organized as sequence, cause and effect, or problem and solutionView all 2 pages

    Write using text structures

    Writing short informative paragraphs organized as sequence, cause and effect, or problem and solution

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages36 KB

  • Preview of the printable “Write a compare and contrast paragraph” worksheet: writing an informative paragraph with a compare and contrast structureView larger

    Write a compare and contrast paragraph

    Writing an informative paragraph with a compare and contrast structure

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    1 page32 KB

Print at 100% (actual size) for the cleanest tracing lines.

About these text structure worksheets

Text structure is the way an author organizes the ideas in a nonfiction text. There are five common structures. Description tells what something is like ("Pandas have black-and-white fur"). Sequence tells events or steps in time order (first, next, finally). Compare and contrast tells how things are alike and different (both, however, unlike). Cause and effect tells why something happens (because, so, as a result). Problem and solution tells about a problem and how it was solved (to solve this problem).

Signal words are the clues. When children notice "first" and "then," they can expect steps in order. When they see "however" or "unlike," they know a difference is coming. Knowing the structure helps readers understand how the ideas connect, remember what they read, and take better notes.

These text structure worksheets start with an anchor chart and a page that shows one topic, sea turtles, written five different ways. Children then name the structure of short paragraphs, sort signal words, read a longer text about bats where each paragraph uses a different structure, and fill in a graphic organizer for each structure. Writing pages let them try the structures in their own paragraphs.

Standards

  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.5Describe the overall structure (e.g., chronology, comparison, cause/effect, problem/solution) of events, ideas, concepts, or information in a text or part of a text.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.4.2.AIntroduce a topic clearly and group related information in paragraphs and sections; include formatting (e.g., headings), illustrations, and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.

How to use them

  1. Read the anchor chart together and talk about the signal words for each structure.
  2. Read the sea turtle page aloud. Ask: how did the author change the way the ideas are connected?
  3. Practice naming the structure of short paragraphs, then move on to the longer bats text.
  4. Use the graphic organizer that matches the structure, then have your child write a paragraph of their own.

Teaching tips

  • A paragraph can use more than one signal word. Ask what the paragraph is mostly doing: describing, telling steps, comparing, explaining why, or solving a problem.
  • Problem and solution often has causes in it. If the text names a problem and tells how people fixed it, it is problem and solution.
  • Dates in order are a clue for sequence, even when the words first and next are missing.
  • Have children circle the signal words before they choose the structure.

Questions teachers and parents ask

What are the five text structures?

Description, sequence (also called chronology or time order), compare and contrast, cause and effect, and problem and solution.

What are signal words?

Signal words are clue words that show how ideas are connected. First, next, and finally show sequence. Both, however, and unlike show compare and contrast. Because, so, and as a result show cause and effect.

What grade are these text structure worksheets for?

They are written for 4th grade, when children learn to describe the overall structure of a text, and they also work well for 3rd and 5th graders who need practice.