Explanation Texts
ExplanationTextsStructure and featuresof explanation textsPURPOSEAn explanation is written to explain how andwhy something in the world happens. It isabout actions rather than about things.Explanations play a valuable role in building andstoring our knowledge. Technical and scientificwriting are often expressed in this form.TYPESOF EXPLANATIONWhen writing explanations we establish that thephenomenon exists and then explain why orhow this came about. The writer should acquirea great deal of content knowledge beforebeginning the explanation.There are different types of explanation. Onetype explains an occurrence or how somethingworks. It may be mechanical explaining how alawn motor works, technological describinghow a computer works or natural whendescribing how avalanches occur. A secondtype explains why things happen, for examplewhy objects expand and contract and whybathroom mirrors mist up when we shower.Yetanother type may explain the similarities anddifferences between objects and a final typewould explain how to approach a problem thathas to be resolved.This text type links with Science andTechnology topics where explanations ofnatural or non-natural phenomena areexplored, for example how a television works,why earthquakes occur, how tornadoes areformed and how sound moves through a varietyof materials. It also has links with HumanSociety and Environment where explanations50are written for how cotton is processed tobecome articles of clothing, why we shouldexercise and eat a healthy diet and how cheeseis processed from milk.Explanations are written by members of anumber of professions to explain processes.Medical researchers write explanations fordoctors, nurses and health workers about howmedical problems develop. Weather forecastersexplain weather patterns and changes forfarmers, students and scientists. A biologist willdescribe how butterflies develop from cocoonsfor students and conservationists.Students should be writing detailed andaccurate sequences of events and at this stageshould be writing explanations showing causalrelationships as well as sequential ones. Causalrelationships explain natural happenings such astornadoes, earthquakes or a lunar eclipse.Technical terms play an important role inexplanation texts. A glossary of terms may beincluded at the back of the book or writers maywrite a definition of terms within the text.It is important that students understand thatexplanations can be part of a larger text. It isquite usual to find explanations within a reportto explain some aspects of the information.They are frequently found as an integral part ofa procedural text, the procedure explaining tothe reader how to do something and theexplanation detailing how it works.STRUCTUREOFEXPLANATION TEXTSExplanations have the following structure: title general statement introducing or identifyingthe phenomenon series of sequenced paragraphs concluding paragraph labelled diagrams and flow charts.TitleExplanations have a title that prepares and leadsthe reader to the text. This can appear in avariety of forms from a heading that names the
action to a how and why question or a problemthat is to be answered by the explanation.and illustrations are important as they supportthe text.General statementStudents will need to research the topic, makingnotes, drawing diagrams and making drawings.They can make use of the scaffolds and outlinesto assist with the development of these skills.The first paragraph has a general statementthat introduces or identifies the scientific ortechnical phenomenon. It gives the audiencea brief introduction to the event or thing andan understanding of the type of text that isto follow.Sequenced statementsAt this stage students’ explanations aredeveloping causal relationships as well assequential ones. The logically sequencedparagraphs explain why or how somethinghappens rather than focusing on an object. Theexplanation sequence should consist of a seriesof happenings, actions, causes or processes thatare the focus of the text type. This chain ofactions, causes or events results in thephenomenon about which the explanation iswritten. Events may be related according totime or cause or through both and should bedetailed and accurate, ensuring that all elementshave been included. Sequences often develop byexplaining how the events happen over a periodof time: first this happens and then this isfollowed by the next event. It is important thatin addition to researching the facts, studentsunderstand the reasons behind them. Attentionshould be focused on writing these reasons intheir explanations.It is important that students realise that theywill need to make thoughtful decisions aboutwhat to write and the order in which theinformation should be presented. Generallythere is no human involved in the processof events.Concluding statementLANGUAGEFEATURES OFEXPLANATION TEXTS Use of present tense. Use of complex noun groups to builddetailed descriptions, e.g. The enormousexpanse of arid land; The rampaging,threatening river. Use of abstract nouns, e.g. heat, earthquakes. Use of pronouns for words alreadyintroduced in the text. Usually the subject is not human, e.g.mountains, rain, video. Use of sentences that have a clear subject andverb agreement. Use of action verbs to explain cause, e.g.from, started from. Use of adverbial phrases of time and place totell where and when actions occurred, e.g. Itis to be found in North America. Use of connectives to link time sequences ina cause and effect sequence, e.g. first, then,after, finally, so, as a consequence. Use of passive voice and nominalisation tolink the events through cause and effect. Use of time conjunctions, e.g. when, as, tosequence and link events and to keep thetext flowing. Placing of these conjunctionsfirst in the sentence in order to focus thereader’s attention, e.g. When he reached thesummit of the mountain, he felt exhilarated. Use of technical terms or word chainsabout a subject, e.g. a spider falls into thefamily of arachnids.An optional concluding statement can tie upthe explanation.Labelled diagramsLabelled diagrams and flow charts can be usedto clarify information or to add additionalinformation not included in the explanation.Particularly in scientific texts accurate diagramsBlake Education Fully Reproducible51
Sample Annotated TextTEXTORGANISATIONHOW DO WELANGUAGEFEATURESbreathe?General statementintroducing phenomenonSeries of sequencedparagraphsThe nose, trachea and lungs arethe main organs which make up therespiratory system. This systemallows the exchange of gases whichare needed for us to live.Breathing happens when the brain sends a messagethrough the nerves to the intercostal muscles whichlie between the ribs and diaphragm. When theinstruction is received, the muscles pull the ribsoutwards and the diaphragm relaxes so that the spacein the chest gets bigger. Because the pressure in thechest gets lower, air rushes in to fill the lungs.This air is first taken in through the nose or mouth.It then travels into the throat (the pharynx) and onthrough the voice box (the larynx). The opening to thevoice box has a cover over it called the epiglottis.This cover opens when a breath is taken. In this way,the air is able to flow down the trachea but food iskept out.After passing down the trachea the air travels into thelung down either the right or left bronchus, throughthe bronchioles and at last into tiny air sacs calledalveoli. These are covered with small blood vesselscalled capillaries. From here, oxygen is finally takeninto the blood stream and carbon dioxide is passedback to the lungs.The intercostal muscles then push the rib cage backinwards. As a result, the space in the chest getssmaller and the pressure rises, thus pushing thecarbon dioxide back out of the lungs.Concludingsentence/paragraph52And it all happens in the space of a single breath!TitleUse of presenttense, e.g. are,allowsUse of actionverbs, e.g.sends, pullUse ofconjunctions oftime, e.g. when,becauseUse of adverbialphrases of place,e.g. outwards,biggerUse of pronounsfor words alreadyintroduced,e.g. ItUse of technicalwords, e.g.epiglottis,tracheaUse of timeconnectives tolink timesequences, e.g.after, as a resultUse of noungroups, e.g.small bloodvessels, the mainorgansUse of clearsubject and verbagreement, e.g.muscles, pushUse of abstractnoun, e.g. breath
Name DateBLM 36Outcomes Checklist Explanation TextsAt the end of the units on explanation texts, students will have worked towards achievingthe following National Level 4 (NSW Stage 3) outcomes.SPEAKING AND LISTENINGBLMNA 4.1 NSW 3.1 Communicates and interacts confidently for arange of purposes and a variety of audiences to express welldeveloped, well organised ideas dealing with more challengingtopics.51, 54, 56NA 4.3 NSW 3.4 Controls and evaluates structures and features ofspoken language. Interprets meaning and develops and presentsideas and information in familiar surroundings.51, 56NA 4.4 NSW 3.2 Interacts in different sized groups using effectivecommunication skills and strategies and listening attentively54, 56DATE & COMMENTSREADING AND VIEWINGNA 4.5 NSW 3.5 Reads an extensive range of texts with fairlycomplex structures and features, justifying own interpretation ofideas, information and events in the response to themes and issues.58, 59, 64NA 4.7 NSW 3.8 Identifies the structures of different texts andwith assistance discusses the grammatical structures and features thatshape readers’ and listeners’ understanding of texts.58NA 4.8a NSW 3.6 Selects a range of strategies appropriate for thetexts being read.49, 50, 55, 60, 64NA 4.8b Working with peers, is able to find information andresources for specific purposes.50, 55, 60, 64WRITINGNA 4.9 NSW 3.9 Writes well structured literary and factual textsusing challenging topics, ideas and issues for a variety of purposesand audiences.51, 55, 59, 61, 65,66NA 4.10 NSW 3.13 Evaluates writing in terms of effectiveness ofpresentation of subject matter and adjusts to focus on context,purpose and audience.50, 51, 65, 66NA 4.11 NSW 3.14 Discusses and evaluates how texts have beenconstructed to achieve their purpose and shape readers’ and viewers’understandings using grammatical features and structures.49, 54, 55, 58, 59,61, 65NA 4.12a NSW 3.10 Uses a range of strategies to plan, edit andproofread own writing.50, 55, 60, 61, 65NA 4.12b NSW 3.11 Uses a range of strategies to spell unfamiliarwords.54, 56, 58, 60, 61,64Blake Education Fully Reproducible53
BackgroundLessonsSession 1Becoming familiarwith the text typeModel the construction of an explanation.Ensure that students understand that eachsection has features and functions and is notmerely a description. Students should be giventhe opportunity to identify the phenomenon,the sequenced explanation and underline theconcluding statement.Follow this with an activity when students reconstruct a model text that has been cut intosections. They will need to select the sentenceidentifying the phenomenon to introduce thetext and follow this with logically sequencedevents.Take opportunities to work with students onpoorly constructed texts, modelling how toimprove the structure and flow of the language.Session 2Oral explanationsWhen trying to find out information, orallanguage is used to inquire, to answer questions,to offer information, to explain to peers, to tellpeers to do things and to exclaim.Model an oral explanation and ask students toassist you to build up the stages so they canincrease their confidence and desire to constructtheir own texts. Students working in pairsshould research topics for oral explanations.They should produce clearly labelled visualtexts such as flow charts, timelines or diagramsto represent causal and sequential explanations.To assist students to think through causalexplanations such as ‘How do we breathe?’,suggest they create a grid that will force themto focus on what is doing the action and the54effectthat thisTimewill have. ActionSectionconjunctionMusclesWhenPullEffectThe diaphragmrelaxesAsk students to design a clearly labelledmachine that will clear rubbish from shoppingaisles. Encourage them to deliver a detailed oralexplanation of how the machine will work for aspecific audience, using palm cards, gesture andexpression. Students need to concentrate onusing clear vocabulary when describing thesections or parts to provide clarity for theaudience.Session 3Correctlanguage usageDiscuss the aspects of language needed whenwriting an explanation text.Model for students how to use a glossary ordictionary to find the meaning of technicalwords. Because so many technical words are used, itis important that students develop their abilityto define these terms. The definition shouldinclude an explanation of the meaning,followed by a description of the features orstructure. Students could develop their ownglossary on a subject by linking technicalwords and their explanations.Take, for example, a bobby pin. The meaningis an object that holds the hair in place. Itsstructure can be explained as a metal hairpinwith two slender prongs that clamp together.Give students the opportunity to define termssuch as geography, pizza, cosmonaut, sunset,tripod. Develop students’ ability to create noungroups by giving them a number of generalnouns and asking them to develop noungroups adding adjectives or adjectival phrases,e.g. beach—hot parched gritty sandy beach. Conjunctions are used to link clauses,sentences and paragraphs. They change a list
of relevant facts to a reasoned explanation bysmoothly linking and helping the flow of onepart of the text to another in a way that buildsthe logic and sense. Give students a numberof simple sentences and ask them to useconjunctions to create more complex sentences. Frequently objects, sentences or ideas arecompared or contrasted in explanations.Students may be asked to compare twonovels by the same or different authors orcompare and contrast life styles and culturein different countries or even events takingplace in different areas, e.g. comparing andcontrasting the benefits of reading andwatching television. Ask students to searchfor similarities and differences as they developparagraphs where they are contrasting theseor other ideas. Ask students to list connectives that link thecause and effect sentences, for example because,so, so that, if, before, after, therefore, due to,consequently, as a result of. These words couldbe used to make word banks (see example onpage 56). Follow this with an activity where cause andeffect sentences are cut up and ask students tolink them, ensuring that the cause comesbefore the effect. After this a suitable activitywould be to give students a series of causesand ask them to write the effect, for example:It has been raining for one week now so The girl slipped in the puddle and Alternatively students can be given the effectand can add a cause, for example:The father was late for work because Jamie had no clean clothes for school as Ask students to collect newspaper articleswhich they should summarise under theseheadings: firstly what it is referring to, then itscause or the effect ithas and finally thesolution that isoffered.Session 4Joint constructionRevise the structure of an explanation by writinga text with the students. The teacher and studentsneed to establish knowledge of the topic,the audience and purpose of the text beforestarting. Students should read explanationsfrom a variety of sources, e.g. books, videos,CD-ROMS, the Internet.This is a suggested outline for the jointconstruction: Write a how or why question for the topic. Brainstorm current knowledge on the topicand jointly construct a sequenced flow chart,fishbone design or timeline to representsequenced events. Model a note making activity for students,focusing on key words. Plan an explanation by deciding how tobegin and by listing and ordering key points.Decide how to combine notes from differentresources that discuss the same point, andhow to deal with conflicting information. Elaborate on points and link ideas usingconjunctions and connectives. Focus onwords that indicate sequence in time, e.g.then, next; those that link cause and effectsuch as because, due to, consequently; andaction verbs such as force, cause. The aim is towork towards complex and detailed wellstructured explanations. When editing drafts, focus on the use ofcommonsense definitions for technical words,diagrams that illustrate technical points andexplanations that flow logically. Visual texts should clearly show sequential orcausal relationships and should be referred toin the text.It is important for students to strive to becomecritical writers who understand why one way ofexpressing something is better than another.They will need to focus on use of appropriatevocabulary for the purpose and audience,graphics that add to the understanding of thetext, structure, and well organised use of onlythe necessary information.55
WORD56BANKConjunctionsWords linking causeand auseconsequentlysothereforebecausecaused thisled todue tosocreatedculminated inencouragedgrew out ofinfluenced byinspiredas a result ofshaped bya source ofstemmed frombrought aboutbutsimilarlythat iswhereasfor examplealternativelyin factwhilealsoinsteadin other wordson the other handhoweverAction verbsTechnical topic wordsWords will vary depending on topic,for example:pullpushsendsWords will vary depending on topic,for example:epiglottistracheapharynxlarynx
Session 5IndependentconstructionsInvite a guest speaker or view a video about aphenomenon so that students have someknowledge of technical language as a base.Encourage the class to brainstorm a list of specifichow and why research questions to help themfocus on their research topic. Ideas should developfrom Key Learning Areas but possible topics toinclude are: How you move; How cells releaseenergy; How your heart works; Why weexercise. Encourage students to select a questionthat is fairly focused and that they would like toresearch.This should be followed by the exploration ofrelevant resources. Remind students to readvisual texts, for example life cycles, timelinesand flow charts, by interrupting the reading of awritten text in order to refer to concepts thatwill assist comprehension.knowledge they have gained about the stages ofan explanation. Notes should be written inpoint form and only take in key information.Students should number the points beginningeach one on a different line. The focus shouldbe on headings, subheadings and topicsentences. In oral texts students should listen forwords that will signal important information iscoming, for example The main reasons why Students should create clearly labelled diagramsor a flow chart that can summarise informationand sequence the events. Separate paragraphscan be written for each section and diagramsfor each stage to clarify points. Have studentstalk through illustrations, diagrams or flowcharts and ask them to predict phenomenonidentification, and how they will sequence alogical series of steps. It is important thatstudents realise the importance of writing notesin their own words and not simply copyingpassages from a book.Ask students to scan when researching using the57
BLM 37Name DateCausal Wheel58Blake Education Fully Reproducible
Name DateBLM 38TOPICFishbone Diagram (Causes of Given Effects)Blake Education Fully Reproducible59
BLM 39Name DateA Chain Sequence60Blake Education Fully Reproducible
Name DateBLM 40Flow chartBlake Education Fully Reproducible61
BLM 41Name
Explanation Texts Structure and features of explanation texts PURPOSE An explanation is written to explain how and why something in the world happens. It is about actions rather than about things. Explanations play a valuable role in building and storing our knowledge. Technical and scientif
154 Chapter 2: Informational Texts When you compare and contrast across texts, you look at the similarities and differences in the texts . Comparisons focus on the things that the texts share . Contrasts focus on differences . Comparing and contrasting across texts will help you better understand each text .
HSC English Prescriptions 2019-2023 6 Across Stage 6 the selection of texts must give students experience of the following: a range of types of texts inclusive of prose fiction, drama, poetry, nonfiction, film, media and digital texts. texts which are widely regarded as quality literature, including a range of literary texts written about intercultural experiences and the peoples and .
2016). These texts include multimodal texts and “the oral narrative traditions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, texts from Asia, texts from Australia’s immigrant cultures and texts of the students’ choice” (ACARA, 2016). The inclusion of the literature strand into the Australian curriculum for all year levels
informative texts to select and use texts and compose simple learning area texts with teacher support By the end of Year 2 students use: knowledge of the structure and features of learning area texts to comprehend and compose a growing range of texts with teacher support From: The Australian Curriculum: Literacy continuum across stages of
- Making Inferences/Interpreting Texts 1.5 make inferences about texts using stated and implied ideas from the texts as evidence - Extending Understanding 1.6 extend understanding of texts by connecting the ideas in them to their own knowledge, experience, and insights, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them Traditional Teachings:
THANKSGIVING DAY Year A, Revised Common Lectionary [formatted version with line breaks and verse markers removed] Table of Contents [pgAll Texts, Psalm in Poem Format, with Black and White Art Image s.2-3] Compact Double Column All Texts [pg.4] Compact Triple Column All Texts [pg.5] All Texts, Large Font [pgs.6-12] All Texts, Half Page Format [pg.13]
concludes that both simple and complex explanations have unique utility, with the “best explanation” corresponding to the knower’s purpose. The prescribed title claims that simplicity is a relative characteristic of an explanation: one is
Electromagnetics and Applications - MIT OpenCourseWare . Preface - ix -
