This document discusses how to effectively read textbooks by utilizing their common features and structures. It identifies 12 key textbook features including titles, headings, introductions, visuals, key terms, typography, reading checks, subheadings, skill builders, summaries and previews, end-of-chapter questions, and informational tools. By familiarizing yourself with these features, you can make predictions about the content and information, monitor your comprehension, and become a better strategic reader. The document encourages students to actively engage with textbook features like titles, headings, and visuals to improve understanding and retention of the material.
2. Textbook Structures
Most textbooks have common features.
Strategic readers automatically consider
how a particular text is structured in
order to improve comprehension.
Becoming familiar with text features
will help you be a better reader.
3. Let’s Be Information
THIEVES
Title - What can we predict?
Headings - What questions do you think they will answer?
Introduction & first paragraph - Can you predict the main
idea?
Everything you know - What background knowledge do you
already have about his topic?
Visuals - What do the visual clues tell us?
End of Chapter questions - Can you predict what they will be
by looking at summaries, bold-faced or italicized words, or
sub-headings?
So What? - Why did the author write this? Why is the
information important to know?
4. NB # - Textbook Features
Try to create a mental image of your history
textbook.
With your partner, brainstorm a list of textbook
features that the publisher uses to help you
understand new information.
As we review the features, circle the ones you
predicted correctly. Add the ones you didn’t get to
your list.
5. Text Feature 1 -
Chapter Titles
What will this
chapter be about?
What do you already
know about this
topic?
Text Feature 2 -
Standards
What are you
expected to
know?
6. Text Feature 3 -
Visuals
What kinds of visuals
do you expect to
see?
maps
charts
photos
captions
diagrams
timelines
What pictures are on
the page?
What do they tell you
about what you will
be learning?
7. Text Feature 4 -
Introduction
What will you learn?
What is the Big Idea?
If YOU were there . . .
taps into what
cognitive strategy?
What is the purpose of
Building Background?
Text Feature 5 -
Key Terms
What new vocabulary
will you learn?
Where can you find
the definitions for
those terms?
8. Text Feature 6 -
Typography
How does the
publisher indicate
important words,
terms, or ideas in
the text?
Highlighting
Italics
Bold-face
Color
Font size
Font style
9. Text Feature 3 - Visuals
Looking at Maps
How do you know
what’s most important?
What is a legend? What
information is it giving
you?
What is an inset map?
What is its purpose?
What is a compass
rose? How does it help
you answer the
Interpreting Maps
questions?
How does the map and
its captions relate to
what you’re learning?
10. Text Feature 7 -
Reading Checks
Where do the
Reading Check
questions occur?
Why should you try
to answer them?
Text Feature 8 -
Subheadings
What questions will
the subheadings
answer?
11. What Text Features
are on this page?
Subheadings
Key terms
Visuals
Captions
Typography
12. Text Feature 9 -
Skill Builders
Besides learning
information about
history, what skills
do they want you to
develop?
Why are those skills
important?
How could they help
you in other classes?
In your life?
13. Text Feature 10 -
Summary and Preview
What main ideas were
you supposed to have
learned?
What’s coming up next?
Text Feature 11 -
End-of-Chapter Questions
What does the red text
indicate?
Where can you go to
search for the answers?
How would pre-reading
the assessment
questions first help you
as you read the chapter?
14. Text Feature 12 -
Informational Tools
If you need to find
information, where
can you look?
Table of Contents
Glossary
Index
15.
16. Remember . . .
I can show you the tools . . .
but you have to choose to use
them!