In nonfiction passages, a paragraph’s structure—or pattern of development—is the method a writer uses to organize and develop ideas logically throughout the text. Within a single piece of writing, the text’s structure can shift from paragraph to paragraph.
Patterns of Development
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Main Idea and Key Details – Presents a central idea supported by important facts or examples.
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Narrative/Anecdotal – Uses a story or personal account to illustrate a point.
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Descriptive/Illustrative/Examples – Provides details, imagery, or examples to clarify an idea.
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Step-by-Step Account/Procedural – Explains a process or how to do something in order.
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Cause-and-Effect – Shows how one event leads to another or explains outcomes.
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Compare-Contrast – Highlights similarities and differences between ideas, events, or objects.
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Problem-Solution – Presents a problem and proposes one or more solutions.
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Chronological Order – Arranges events or information in the order they occurred.
Note: For students to effectively identify these patterns while reading, it is essential to teach signal cues and the function, relationship, and alignment of sentences within each paragraph.
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