RL 6.5 - RI 6.5 Station Information (Math Conference)

Essential Skills/Concepts Related to RL/RI 6.5

Text Features

TEXT FEATURES ARE special ways authors present information to help their readers better understand the material. You might say these features are like maps—they help you find your way through a maze of information!  Fiction selections have features.  However, text features are more commonly found in nonfiction.

SOME COMMON NONFICTION TEXT FEATURES

boldface words	dark type used to emphasize important vocabulary
bulleted list	listing of important facts set off from regular text
caption	text with a graphic that gives details about it
contents	lists each book chapter in sequence and the page on which it starts
glossary	mini-dictionary at the end of a book that defines each boldface word
heading	name of a selection, chapter, or section
index	alphabetical list at the back of a book identifying important ideas in the book and pages on which each idea is mentioned
italicized words	slanted italic type used for book titles, foreign words, a word as an example of a word (the word word), or for emphasis
sidebar	information placed beside the main text, often in a box, that expands on an idea in the text
subhead	divides a selection into parts and tells what each part is about
title	name of a whole book

Skim and scan books and articles for any features before you begin to read.  They can help you predict what the selection is about and what you can expect to get out of reading it. Planning ahead like this as an active reader can help you not only increase your understanding of what you read, but retain the information longer.

Essential Skills/Concepts Related to RL/RI 6.5

Graphics

IN THE LAST lesson, you saw how authors use text features to help you understand what you read. Well, authors also use graphic features to help clarify ideas or give readers additional information to that given in the text. Here are some common graphic features you may find in fiction and nonfiction:

COMMON GRAPHIC FEATURES

chart	list of information
diagram	drawing that shows arrangement and labeled parts of a whole
flowchart	series of boxes and arrows to show step-by-step progression
graph	shows the relationship between numbers of things
illustration	drawing of people, a place, an object, or an event
map	drawing of part of Earth to show features like oceans, countries, mountains, or roads
photo	printed image of people, a place, an object, or an event
realia	detailed photo of a real historical object, like a poster, map, or newspaper article
table	a systematic arrangement of data in rows and columns
timeline	lists facts along a line in the order in which they happened

Before you read a book or article, skim and scan to look for graphics. Use them to try to predict what the material is all about.

Extension Activity for RL 6.5

Create a Graphic based on The Absolute Value of Mike.  You can utilize any of the Graphics listed below or any other Graphic that you can recall.

Chart

diagram

flowchart

graph

illustration

map

photo

realia

table

timeline

 Extension Activity for RI 6.5

·         In a paragraph, discuss how Text Features and Graphics enhance or could enhance the article (in your folder).  Your paragraph should include which Text Features/Graphics are present or should be present in the article.  Your paragraph should be 5-6 sentences.

·         Bonus – What is the point of view for these directions?