NON FICTION TEXT TYPES

1. NON FICTION TEXT TYPES Brabara Kurzik / Halima Alam

2. ANALYSING TEXT TYPE CONVENTIONS: PURPOSE • What is its purpose? • Who is it for? • Who is the author • How will it be used? • What kind of writing is therefore appropriate?

3. ANALYSING TEXT TYPE CONVENTIONS: TEXT LEVEL • Layout • Graphology • Structure/organisation • Sequence

4. ANALYSING TEXT TYPE CONVENTIONS: SENTENCE LEVEL • Viewpoint (first person, third person etc) • Prevailing tense • Active/passive voice • Typical sentence structure and length • Typical cohesion devices

5. ANALYSING TEXT TYPE CONVENTIONS: WORD LEVEL • Lexical choices • Stock words and phrases • Specialised or typical vocabulary • Elaborate/plain vocabulary choices

6. INFORMATION: NON CHRONOLOGICAL PURPOSE: to describe the way things are. (e.g. Worksheet or fact sheet on a topic) STRUCTURE (TEXT LEVEL) • Opening statement should have a general classification. e.g.. “The National Curriculum for English requires that pupils should be taught the alphabet and be made aware of the sounds of spoken English in order to develop phonological awareness’ – followed by further technical classification if required – ‘phonological awareness is the awareness of units of sound in speech.’ • Sequence is dictated by the category of information. • Sentences giving similar information are organised in the same paragraph or series of paragraphs. • Sections containing one or several paragraphs can be divided by headings/subheadings. • Sections might include description of phenomena, including some or all of its qualities, parts and functions, and habits/behaviour or uses.

7. INFORMATION: NON CHRONOLOGICAL (cont.) LANGUAGE FEATURES (WORD AND SENTENCE LEVEL) • Usually written in the present tense. • Connectives of adding or sequencing used to join sentences or paragraphs giving similar information. e.g.. ‘in addition’, ‘also’, ‘furthermore’. • Connectives of comparing and contrasting used to join sentences or paragraphs giving different types of information. e.g.. ‘compared with’, ‘unlike’, ‘in a similar manner’. • Adjectives and adverbs used to aid categorisation.

8. INSTRUCTIONS PURPOSE: to instruct how something should be done through a series of sequenced steps. (Recipes, instruction manuals etc) STRUCTURE (TEXT LEVEL) • Opening statement should include ‘How to…’ • The text should be written in the order that events should happen (chronological order). • The sequence should be clarified by bullet points, numbers, letters. • Often there is a diagram or illustration.

9. INSTRUCTIONS (cont.) LANGUAGE FEATURES (WORD AND SENTENCE LEVEL) • Imperative words in present tense. • Sentences should be short and each one cover one instruction only. • Any connectives will relate to the order in which things happen. e.g.. ‘then’, ‘next’ etc. • The text focuses on generalised human agents rather than on named individuals. • Adjectives/adverbs are used only to be specific. e.g.. ‘Connect the brown wire to the battery’.

10. RECOUNT PURPOSE: to retell events (Report, autobiography, factual account, newspaper report etc) STRUCTURE (TEXT LEVEL) • Opening statement sets the scene. • Events are recounted in the order in which they occurred. • Paragraphs are divided to show change of time, place or focus. • Text should answer the questions: when, where, who, what, why, how.

11. RECOUNT (cont.) LANGUAGE FEATURES (WORD AND SENTENCE LEVEL) • Written in first (autobiography) or third person. • Written in past tense. • Connectives will relate to time, cause or contrast. e.g. ‘at first’, ‘because’, ‘whereas’ etc. • Focuses on individual or group participants. e.g. ‘I’, ‘we’. • Adjectives and adverbs used to add dramatic effect.

12. EXPLANATION PURPOSE: to explain how or why something works/happens. (Scientific process, history fact sheet telling why an event happened, technology guide explaining how something is made.) STRUCTURE (TEXT LEVEL) • General statement to introduce the topic. • Written step by step. • Paragraphs constructed with an opening point then further details or evidence to illustrate or support the opening point. • Final statement sums up the main points that have been made.

13. EXPLANATION (cont.) LANGUAGE FEATURES (WORD AND SENTENCE LEVEL) • Can be written in past or present tense. • Connectives will relate to time, cause or comparison. e.g.. ‘at first’, ‘from that point’, ‘as a result’, ‘similarly’. • Use adjectives/adverbs only to be specific. e.g. ‘Their ships were smaller and more manoeuvrable’.

14. PERSUASION PURPOSE: to argue the case for a point of view. (Newspaper editorials, campaign leaflets etc) STRUCTURE (TEXT LEVEL) • Thesis – opening statement e.g. ‘Vegetables are good for you’. • Arguments – one per paragraph, often in the form of a point of view plus further elaboration. • Summary of main arguments and restatement of opening position.

15. PERSUASION (cont.) LANGUAGE FEATURES (WORD AND SENTENCE LEVEL) • Written in the present tense. • Focus is on generic participants, not on individuals. • Connectives are related to logic. e.g. ‘this shows’, ‘therefore’, ‘in fact’. • Adjectives/adverbs are used for emotive/rhetorical effect.

16. DISCURSIVE – ANALYSIS INCLUDING ESSAY WRITING PURPOSE: to present arguments and information from differing viewpoints. STRUCTURE (TEXT LEVEL) • Opening statement of the issue with a preview of the main arguments. • Each paragraph contains the statement of one argument for or against followed by supporting evidence OR each paragraph contains one argument with some supporting evidence, followed by a counter-argument and supporting evidence. • Quotations are used to support arguments/points. • Final statement will sum up and draw conclusions from arguments made and may include writer’s own recommendation or opinion.

17. DISCURSIVE – ANALYSIS INCLUDING ESSAY WRITING (cont.) LANGUAGE FEATURES (WORD AND SENTENCE LEVEL) • Usually written in the present tense. • Connectives relate to logic. e.g.. ‘however’, ‘therefore’. • Connectives relate to contrast/comparison. e.g.. ‘whereas’, ‘similarly’, ‘moreover’. • Phrases to indicate the use of evidence. e.g.. ‘this is supported by the fact that…’ • Adjectives and adverbs will be used when value judgments are being made but have limited use in this form of writing.

18. EVALUATION INCLUDING SELF-EVALUATION PURPOSE: to record strengths/weaknesses of a performance/product. (Reviews of books, products, performances etc) STRUCTURE (TEXT LEVEL) • Opening statement contains value judgement in answer to a question. • Can be written in a list form with bullet points, numbers or letters. • Subheadings may be used to focus attention. • Paragraphs should contain statement of strengths or weaknesses with evidence to support statements. • Summary will sum up strengths and weaknesses and may be followed by targets for future.

19. EVALUATION (cont.) LANGUAGE FEATURES (WORD AND SENTENCE LEVEL) • Written in first person. • Written in past tense to reflect on performance; present tense to reflect on personal/group characteristics; future for target setting. • Connectives relate to comparison/contrast. e.g.. ‘although’, ‘however’, ‘since’, ‘therefore’ etc. • Phrases used for commentary. e.g.. ‘we felt that’, ‘it seemed as if’ etc

20. TASK • In groups of two or three, agree on the correct sequence of paragraphs in the tabloid newspaper article (DfEE 2001) • What features helped you to decide the correct sequence? • Using grid provided identify key features. • Analysing Text Types Newspaper Editorial: Answers

21. REFERENCES • Barton, G. (2005) Grammar Survival. A Teacher’s Toolkit. London: David Fulton Publishers • DfEE (2001) Key Stage 3 National Strategy English Department Training 2001. London: DfEE. • Ronald Carter, Angela Goddard, Danuta Reah, Keith Sanger and Maggie Bowring (2001) Working with Texts. A core introduction to language analysis. London: Routledge