Identifying Patterns of Organization in Writing

Study Notes

Patterns of Organization

Patterns of organization show the relationships between supporting details in paragraphs, essays, and chapters, providing an outline for ideas to flow.

Chronological Organization

Organized by the time in which each event occurred (chrono = time, logic = order)
Often contains dates in nonfiction passages
Fiction passages are organized chronologically but usually have no dates
Even with flashbacks or flash-forwards, events occur along a timeline
Every story has a beginning, middle, and end

Point-by-Point Organization

Ideas or similarities/differences for one object are followed immediately by the other
Signal words: examples, comparisons, and contrasts
Examples: comparing vacationing on the beach vs. in the mountains, comparative profiles of leaders or countries

Order of Importance Organization

Ideas or steps are prioritized according to a hierarchy of value
Can be difficult to identify alongside cause and effect and sequence text structures
Information can be structured from most to least important or vice versa
Example: hierarchy in a company, with president, board members, regional managers, and branch managers

Spatial Organization

Organized in order of space or location
Also called descriptive writing
Used to describe settings or character appearances in fiction and nonfiction
Signal words: next to, behind, across from, below that, above that, to the right of
Example: describing the structure of a volcano

Cause and Effect Organization

Shows causal relationships between events
Often used to assert and explain arguments about how things are and how they got that way
Paragraphs can be ordered as causes and effects or effects and then causes

Reading Comprehension

Understanding the topic, gist, or larger conceptual framework of a passage is a sophisticated reading task
Being able to draw conclusions, evaluate, and critically interpret articles or chapters is important for overall comprehension
Topic: the broad, general theme or message of a paragraph
Main idea: a statement about the topic that conveys the overriding theme of most sentences in a paragraph

Inference and Prediction

Inference: going beyond what is stated explicitly in the text to infer the intended message
Reasoning: examining the facts of a given situation and determining what those facts suggest about the situation
Prediction: giving motivation and purpose for reading to develop a deeper meaning and understanding
Importance: helps develop metacognitive skills and become proficient readers

Description

Test your understanding of different patterns of organization used in writing, including chronological, logical, and others. Learn how to recognize and create a clear structure in your essays, stories, and passages. Improve your reading comprehension and writing skills!