Features of Non-Fiction Texts

In order to understand texts, students must first learn their components—the glossary, index, table of contents, and other features. The Learning Library resources on features of non-fiction texts teaches kids about the makeup of books and articles and how those features can assist in learning.

A crucial component of education is understanding features of a non-fiction book or article. Features of non-fiction texts could be the organizational pieces found within an article or book such as the table of contents, photos, captions, and glossary. A non-fiction feature could also be more abstract such as context clues and text organization. For younger students, the Learning Library provides practical worksheets to help kids learn the basic components of articles and textbooks. Parents and teachers can print out visual vocabulary cards describing photographs, different fonts indications, captions and labels. Other printable, professionally-created worksheets include insight on specific topics, like sea animals or silkworms.

More advanced students can learn to decipher nuanced parts of texts such as a narrative's order sequence, determine themes, or how to compare and contrast. Other assignments sharpen comprehension skills by having students underline key words and identify key features.

But kids don't necessarily need a physical text to understand text features. An online game on text features teach young learners to identify parts of an article like the headline or body paragraphs. The Learning Library’s non-fiction text resources establish that students are adept at navigating books and articles they are sure to encounter throughout their lives.