For the first few weeks, I focused on the
pre-writing process. Then, I turned my attention to text characteristics and
discussed text format on October 7 and text scaffolding last week. You can
scroll down to read those posts.
Today, I’m going to share some ideas about
text density in informational writing. This is a topic I started thinking about
recently because an editor said she wished my writing could be “more breezy.”
It made me realize that compared to the fiction she’s used to editing,
expository writing is often jam-packed with ideas and information that kids (and
editors) have to digest as they read. That’s a lot of work!
As I said in my October 7 post about text
format, breaking expository writing into discrete chunks gives readers a chance
to pause and ponder. And when the chunking follows a recognizable pattern, it
can help readers organize ideas and information in their minds.
As
I was writing that post, I remembered a great essay I read on the #STEMTuesday strand of the
From the Mixed Up Files of Middle Grade Authors blog last January. In it,
children’s book author Jodi Wheeler-Topen (@WheelerTopen) discussed “the
interruption construction”—a common feature of expository writing. Here’s an
example from page 4 of Snowy
Owl Invasion! Tracking an Unusual Migration by Sandra Markle:
“On one sand dune, peeking
through winter-dried plants, sat a big white bird—a snowy owl.”
Notice how the dependent clause “peeking through winter-dried plants” interrupts the main sentence. Why does the author include this extra bit of information? Because it’s a lovely detail that enriches the writing by helping readers visualize the owl and its surroundings.
Here’s another example from page
11 of
Itch! Everything You Didn’t Want to Know About What Makes You Scratch by Anita Sanchez:
“Parasites
are organisms that use other living things—like you and me—for food and
shelter.”
In
this case, the interruption “like you and me” improves the writing by helping
readers feel more connected to the content.
If
students feel overwhelmed by the density of an expository passage, they can hunt
for examples of the interruption construction and cover them with their finger.
After they understand the main
part of the sentence, they can lift their finger to get some bonus information.
Can
you think of other common constructions in expository writing? If we can teach
students to recognize these text patterns when they’re in fourth or fifth
grade, it will help them tremendously as they encounter increasingly complex
nonfiction texts in middle school, high school, college, and in their careers.
I will think about it... I especially loved the Snowy Owl book :). They're such cool creatures!
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