Text Features

“Once you learn to read, you will be forever free.”

- Frederick Douglass

What are text features?

Text features help the reader navigate and

comprehend the text.

Text features help authors organize the text to best convey information to their

readers.

Text features provide information that might not be written in the

text.

Text features can be found in all types of

nonfiction text.

There are two main types of

text features…

print features

…and visual aids.

Print features guide readers through patterns of organization and help readers find important

information.

Visual aids expand the meaning of the text through illustrations and graphic aids, and represent information in an

organized, specific manner.

First, let’s discover the

print features.

Table of Contents

table of contents

a list of the parts of a book or document; placed at

the front of the book, it's organized in the order in which the parts appear

Find the Table of Contents in your book.

Index

index

alphabetical list of topics included in the

book and their corresponding page numbers; found in

the very back

Find the index in your book.

Glossary

glossary

alphabetical list of key terms and their definitions

Find the glossary in your book.

Preface

preface

a statement at the front of the book by the

book's author or editor, explaining its purpose

and expressing appreciation for help received from others

Find the preface of your book.

Pronunciation Guide

Pronunciation guide

using the pronunciation symbols found in a

dictionary, this guide helps students say the

words in the text

Find a pronunciation guide in your book.

Appendix

appendix

supplementary material at the end of a book, article, document, or

other text, usually of an explanatory, statistical, or

bibliographic nature.

Find the appendix in your book.

Boldface Print

boldface type

dark letters indicating important information; reader must slow down

and pay attention to these

Find boldface print in your book.

Colo

red

prin

t

Colored print

words printed in a different color highlight new or important words

Find colored print in your

book.

Italicized type

italicized type

slanted letters indicating important information; reader must slow down and

pay attention to these

Find italicized words in your book.

Bullets

bullets

symbols used to introduce and

emphasize key points or important concepts

Find bullet points in your book.

Titles

titles

show the main idea of the text and help the

readers by letting them know what they are

about to read

Find

tit

les

in y

our

book

.

Heading

heading

announces the topics that will be covered,

helping students identify topics

throughout the book as they skim and scan

Find a heading in your book.

Subheading

subheading

a heading given to a smaller subsection

within a larger piece of writing

Find a subheading in your

book.

caption

Caption

text describing the contents of a picture, graph or

chart

Find a caption in your book.

Labels

labels

identify pictures, diagrams, or

photographs and their parts

Find labels in your book.

Sidebar

sidebar

In informational text, boxed sections off to the

side containing interesting, related

information that can stand on its own.

Find a sidebar in your book.

Now, let’s locate the

visual aids.

Photographs/Drawings

photographs/drawings

give information in a visual way, working with the words and headings to

help teach the material…and to help the reader

understand exactly what something looks like

Find photographs or drawings

in your book.

Magnification

magnification

an enlarged representation, image,

or model that helps readers see details in

something small

Are any images magnified in your

book?

Diagrams

diagrams

help the reader understand a more

detailed or simplified view of information

Are there any

diagrams in your book?

Flow Charts

flow chart

visual representation of a sequence of events or

actions, helping to simplify a complex

process

Is there a flow chart in your book?

Comparisons

Comparisons

visual aid that helps the reader understand the size of one object by

comparing it to the size of something familiar

Do you see any

comparisons in your book?

Graphs

graphs

a graph that uses bars or lines to compare

information

Find any graphs in your book.

Maps

map

a visual representation of an area that helps students understand

where things are in the world

Find a map in your book.

Charts/Tables

Charts/tables

graphic organizers that summarize and

compare information

Find a chart or table in

your book.

Cross Sections

cross section

a section formed by a plane cutting through

an object, helping readers understand

something by looking at it from the inside

Are there any cross sections in your book?

Overlays

overlays

a method of preparing copy for multicolor

printing, in which matter for each color is prepared

on a transparent sheet that is placed over a key plate, usually the one to

be printed in black

Are there any overlays in your book?

timeline

timelines

a visual representation of important events in the order in which they

occurred that helps readers understand the

sequence of time

Find a timeline in your book.

Text features will help you understand

what you read!

Text features can help you LOVE reading!

Enjoy your nonfiction selection!