1

VANDEVORST FA13 M2W3 APP

Dominique Vandevorst
Marygrove College
Application Assignment

2
Components of narrative and informational text structures and features:

Narrative text
Story grammar or plot structure with
beginning, middle and end.
Action orientated: stress action
and\or

Informational text
Organizational patterns
Introduction
Supporting details
Text structure: content dictates structure of
text: descriptive passages plus explanatory
passages in order to classify information.

consciousness orientated: explore thoughts,

feelings and motivations.

cause \ effect structure

comparative / contrastive
concept \ definition
problem \ solution
sequential or time based structure

Linear: initiating event followed by series of

episodes usually leading to climax \ high
point \ resolution \ ending
Picture-word correspondence.
Detail of illustration for meaning-making
through complimentary visuals

Complex logical scientific style of thinking

Main idea and details: relevant details and

specificity

Character development through the use of

effective dialogue, leads, introductions and
conclusions.
Characters goals and motivations.
Setting: mood, time and place
Problem-solution-resolution

Points of view: purpose and audience \

Intended message
Figurative language such as similes and
metaphors. Rich precise vocabulary and
word choice for building background
knowledge and conveying the texts
message. Use of imagery \ tone
Logical coherent organization
More predictable
Involves aesthetic reading and requires an
emotional response from the reader

Pictures, charts, diagrams, tables to illustrate

phenomena
Realistic illustrations or photographs
Labels \ captions
Signal words to indicate the purpose of the
text.
Use of technical vocabulary often in bold
Examples
Convey and explain information: authenticity
and accuracy related to various topics.

Text features to organize the content of the

text: table of contents, headings,
subheadings, margin notes, bulleted items,
diagrams, photographs and index
presentation and
repetition of a topic or theme

Prior knowledge is critical

Requires efferent reading: reading to obtain
information.

3
Grade 3: Reduce, reuse, recycle
Texts chosen for this unit:

Narrative text

Informational text

My earth day birthday

Written by Rose Brooker
Realistic (fiction), 1,190 words, Level Q
(Grade 3)
www.readinga-z.com

Nature reuses and recycles

Written by Molly Wetterschneider
A reading A-Z benchmark R book (grade 3)
Word count 690 words
www.readinga-z.com

Middle level

Low level

The Three-R Plan

Written by Penny Atcheson
Fairy Tale (fiction), 971 words, Level Q
(Grade 3)
www.readinga-z.com

Recycling jars and cans

Level T: grade 3
Word count 197 words
Reading a-z fluency passage
www.readinga-z.com

Middle level

High level

The ant in the photograph

Written by Joan Linck
A reading A-Z benchmark T book (grade 3)
Word count 1187 words
www.readinga-z.com

Art Made from What?

Written by Terri Miller Shannon
Descriptive (nonfiction), 862 words, Level 3
Grades 2-3
www.readinga-z.com

High level

Middle level

4
Analyzing text choices:

Narrative text

Informational text

My earth day birthday

The Three-R Plan
The ant in the photograph

Nature reuses and recycles

Recycling jars and cans
Art made from what?

Story grammar or plot structure with

beginning, middle and end: all three texts
have a beginning during which the problem
in the story is set out. For example in The
Three R plan, the king is looking out over his
kingdom and realizes he needs to do
something to clean up his kingdom and
make the plants grow and blossom again.

Organizational patterns
Introduction
Supporting details

In The ant in the photograph, the beginning

explains where Darren was going and why
he is excited. In My earth birthday, the main
character starts by introducing herself and
what the event is that the story is about.

All three texts are introduced to the topic or

information that will be explained in the
book. Nature reuses and recycles starts
with a word wise dictionary explanation of
recycling. Recycling jars and cans starts
with a question: what do you think happens?
Art made form what? starts by defining what
art is.

There is a clear middle in all three texts

during which the story unfolds, the problem
gets looked at and how the main character is
going to resolve the situation. Then there is
a clear ending in all three stories which
shows the solution to what has happened
and how the characters in the story feel
about this.
In all the stories there is some kind of
summing up the moral within the story. For
example in The ant in the photograph,
Darren realizes that he can count on the
kindness of strangers to help him. In the
three R plan, the king and all the citizens are
happy and are using the 3R plan. In My
earth birthday, the main character concludes
her story by telling how the earth day went
and what response she got from the town
she lives in.
Action orientated: stress action
and\or
Consciousness orientated: explore
thoughts, feelings and motivations.
All three stories are consciousness
orientated narratives. They want the reader
to explore how they feel about the

Text structure: content dictates structure

of text: descriptive passages plus
explanatory passages in order to classify
information.
cause \ effect structure
comparative / contrastive
concept \ definition
problem \ solution
sequential or time based structure

5
environment and their own involvement.
The feelings and thoughts of the main
characters in each story are written about
and a response from the reader is required.
The king in The three R plan starts of being
sad and sighing. However as the story
progresses he starts feeling better and in the
end happy because the three R men have
been able to help the kingdom.
In The ant in the photograph, Darren is
proud of his recycled piece of art, then sad
because it breaks and eventually relieved
and happy that someone was able to find his
camera with pictures of the art work.

Nature reuses and recycles uses a concept

definition structure. It starts by explaining
what reusing, recycling and reducing are and
gives examples to clarify the concepts. It
also touches on cause and effect.
Art made from what? uses cause and effect
structure. Before and after, how can we use
some of the recycled materials and turn
them into pieces of art.
Recycling jars and cans a sequential
structure. What happens after glass or jar is
thrown into the bin?

Tara in My earth birthday is motivated to do

something for the environment. Through her
story the reader becomes aware of how they
can help the environment and why. The
story encourages the reader to do something
as well.
Linear: initiating event followed by series
of episodes usually leading to climax \
high point \ resolution \ ending

Complex logical scientific style of thinking

All three stories have a clear linear story line

which is easy to follow. There are initial
events, for example a birthday, an art piece
that breaks or a kingdom that is grey and
fruitless.
There is a high point in all three stories and
a resolution or ending as in the three R plan,
the kingdom is restored and flowers and
plants grow again.
Picture-word correspondence.
Detail of illustration for meaning-making
through complimentary visuals
The pictures in all three books are there to
enhance the story, to help the reader
understand the story. The pictures are
colorful, bright and without captions or
labels. They help the reader make meaning
of what is happening.
Main idea and details: relevant details
and specificity

Pictures, charts, diagrams, tables to

illustrate phenomena
Realistic illustrations or photographs
Labels \ captions
In Nature reuses and recycles and Art made
from what? are many illustrations, photos,
diagrams with captions and labels to explain
information more clearly.
Signal words to indicate the purpose of
the text.
Use of technical vocabulary often in bold
Examples
Recycling jars and cans does not have any
illustrations as this is short text used for

6
fluency practice but uses signal words to
indicate the structure of the text and the
logical order within the text. For example:
first, when, now.
The other two texts use signal words, bold
lettering for technical and scientific words
such as: masterpieces, mosaics, recycling
and so on.
Character development through the use of
effective dialogue, leads, introductions and
conclusions.
Characters goals and motivations.

Convey and explain information: authenticity

and accuracy related to various topics.

Setting: mood, time and place

The three stories clearly describe where the
story is taking place. In the three R plan: the
opening paragraph begins: Our kingdom,
once so beautiful, grows barren and dies
more and more each day, indicating what
the place looks like. The opening sentence
in the ant in the photograph starts by setting
the scene: opening night in a third grade
classroom. In My earth birthday the writer
lets the reader know where the story is at
various times within the book, on the beach,
at school, at home.
Problem-solution-resolution

Text features to organize the content of

the text: table of contents, headings,
subheadings, margin notes, bulleted
items, diagrams, photographs and index
Both Art made from what? and Nature
reuses and recycles have a table of
contents and glossary. Nature reuses and
recycles also has an index to help find the
information or specific vocabulary in the
book.

Points of view: purpose and audience \

Intended message
There is a clear point of view to all three
stories: they are written to tell the audience a
message which is to take care of the
environment. In the Three R plan the author
shows through the various characters how to
take care, in The ant in the photograph there
is a concrete example of how to reuse

They use bold heading and bold letters to

indicate content specific vocabulary.
Presentation and
repetition of a topic or theme

7
materials and in My earth birthday there is
action that can take place to help people
understand why and how to look after the
environment.
Figurative language such as similes and
metaphors. Rich precise vocabulary and
word choice for building background
knowledge and conveying the texts
message. Use of imagery \ tone
In The ant in the photograph the author uses
descriptive words, metaphors and similes to
help the reader create an image, for
example: excited, Darren felt like a balloon
filled close to bursting, as colorful as a circus
clown and so on.
In the three R plan, for example: a lush open
valley.
Logical coherent organization
More predictable

Prior knowledge is critical

When reading all three texts it would be
helpful if the reader already knows
something about recycling. It would help the
reader to understand the examples in the
texts and will help the reader relate to the
new vocabulary.
Knowing how important recycling is will
focus the readers attention to what can be
done about keeping the environment clean
and how to do this in the text.

Involves aesthetic reading and requires an

emotional response from the reader

Requires efferent reading: reading to

obtain information.
All three texts give information. They are not
directly trying to provoke feelings or
emotions but very clearly want to inform the
reader. It gives specific scientific details why
it is important to recycle cans and jars for
example. In nature recycles and reuses the
difference between the two is explained
through illustrations and diagrams. Making
sure the reader will really understand the
information the author is trying to convey.

8
The information about narrative and informational text will be useful for teaching the unit on
reduce, reuse and recycle. I will be able to show the differences between narrative and
informational text by using the books I found for this assignment. There are many ways I can
use this information within literacy lessons either as whole class lessons or mini-lessons.
Here are some examples:

I can compare Nature reuses and recycles with My earth birthday and point out the different
text structure and key features of both texts, one is narrative and one is a informational text.
I would give students both the booklets and they could fill out a compare and contrast
graphic organizer. This would show them visually what features belong to each text and
which ones they have in common.
I can use Recycling jars and cans to show sequence and the signal words that indicate order
of events in which the jars and cans are recycled (Gunning, 2013). When students can find
and identify the signal words they can deduct the purpose and order of events of the text
which is what happens to cans and jars once they have been put in the bin? I would ask
students to underline the first word in each paragraph and ask them what they can see and
what these words tell them. This would quickly show them that this text is introducing steps
to a process.
I can use both Nature reuses and recycles and Art made from what? to show how important
specific vocabulary is highlighted in bold and through the use of explanation boxes. I would
ask students to find some key words. These would be the highlighted words within the text. I
would then ask them to explain what those words mean. Together with a partner students
would read the sentences around the key word and find that the sentences around the key
word help explain the key word.

Gunning (2013) explains that informational texts have a greater variety of organizational
patterns. In the three text examples I found, the organization of information is different in

9
each text. In narratives on the other hand the organization of main idea and details is very
much the same. I can use the three informational pieces to show the students the
differences in how information is organized: through signal words, through contents page,
glossary, index and headings, through diagrams (Frey and Fisher, 2007). I would have a
find the exercise whereby the students need to look through two of the informational texts
and tick off the features they find in the book: for example glossary or captions or diagrams
and then compare the informational booklets.

I can use My earth birthday and An ant in the photograph to show students how to visualize
or create mental images. When doing a read aloud I would model how I use the text to
create a mental picture that will help me remember the story. I could also check with the
illustrations in the book. I can also use these texts to help students make text to self
connections. I would ask the students to write on one side of the page what the problem is in
the story and on the other side whether they have a similar experience.

My earth birthday, An ant in the photograph and The three R plan can all be used to explain
narrative story structure (Gunning, 2013). Students could discuss together questions such
as when and where does the story take place which would help them find the setting. Who
are the characters and what problems do they face? This would help them to find the idea
and supporting details in the story. What is the problem, solution and resolution in the story.

10
References:
Atcheson, P. The Three-R Plan, www.readinga-z.com
Brooker, R. My earth day birthday, www.readinga-z.com
Frey, N., & Fisher, D. (2007). Reading for information in elementary school: Content literacy
strategies to build comprehension. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall.
Gunning, T. (2013). Creating literacy instruction for all students (8th ed.) Upper Saddle River,
NJ: Pearson.
Linck, J.The ant in the photograph, www.readinga-z.com
Recycling jars and cans www.readinga-z.com
Wetterschneider, M. Nature reuses and recycles www.readinga-z.com
Shannon, T. M. Art Made from What? www.readinga-z.com

11
(680 Lexile Level)
Introduction
All around the world, the way that people live is closely connected to their
physical environment
. The
landforms
, and the
temperature, the seasons, and the amount of rainfall in a place are all importa
nt parts of its
physical environment
. Some places
around the world, such as the Arctic, are very cold all year round. What do you think people who live there
wear? Probably no
t
T
shirts and shorts! If youre thinking warm clothing, youre right!
Climate
Climate
is how hot or cold, wet or dry a place is. Some places have a climate that changes with the season. For
example, here
in New York State, our summers are usually hot. We do get some rain, but it doesnt happen every day. Our
winters are cold.
In som
e parts of New York State we get lots of snow in winter. Spring and fall are not too hot or too cold. We
usually get some
rain during those seasons.
There are some places in the world where it is always hot. Most of those places are near the
equator
. Som
e of those hot
places are also very dry. These hot, dry, places are called
deserts.
The Sahara desert in Africa is a great example of a place
like this. Other hot places can be very rainy. Indonesia is a great example of a place like this.
Remember those
people who live in the Arctic? They live in cold climates. Even though it is cold, it is very dry, and if the air is
dry, there will be no moisture in the air to make snow. In fact, it gets so cold (below 14 F (

10 C)) that it hardly ever snows!

It is a
cold desert. The reason why you see snow in pictures of these places is that when it does sometimes get
warm enough to
snow, the temperature never gets high enough to melt the snow, so the snow stays there year after year.
Landforms and Water Features
M
ountains, valleys, hills, forests, cliffs, and plains are all examples of landforms. In some parts of New York
State, there a
re
many mountains, hills, and forests. Some parts of New York State are very flat. Some places around the
world, like
Afghanistan,
have a lot of mountains. Other places, like the grasslands of Africa, are very flat.
Oceans, rivers, waterfalls, lakes, and bays are all examples of water features. You can find all of these
water features in N
ew
York State! Some places around the world,
like Finland, are right on the ocean. It has a long coast, where the water meets the
land.
Summary
The
climate, landforms
, and water features of a place are important parts of their

12
physical environment.
All around the world, there
are lots of different
kinds of
physical environments.
Think about this: What would living near an ocean be like? How about living
in a desert? What about living high up in the mountains? Would life be exactly the same in all these places?
1

Written by Expeditionary Learning for Instructional Purposes. Adapted from

Junior Classroom Atlas
(Rand McNally &
Company
, 2001), ISBN: 978
0
528
17734
7. Lexile: 680.