Explain the author's purpose and message within a text

Standards Alignment

• TEKS.110.22.09A primary
  explain the author's purpose and message within a text;
• TEKS.110.22.09B primary
  analyze how the use of text structure contributes to the author's purpose;
• TEKS.110.22.09C primary
  analyze the author's use of print and graphic features to achieve specific purposes;

Lesson Overview

This Grade 6 English Language Arts lesson focuses on helping students explain the author's purpose and message within a text. Students will analyze how text structure and the use of print and graphic features contribute to the author's purpose. The lesson includes direct teaching, guided practice, and reflection, supporting students in critical inquiry and purposeful application of author's craft.

Learning Objectives

• Explain the author's purpose and message within a text.
• Analyze how the use of text structure contributes to the author's purpose.
• Analyze the author's use of print and graphic features to achieve specific purposes.

Success Criteria

• I can identify the author's purpose and message in a text.
• I can explain how the text's structure helps the author communicate their purpose.
• I can describe how print and graphic features support the author's purpose.

Prerequisite Knowledge

Students should be able to read grade-appropriate texts independently and have basic comprehension skills, including identifying main ideas and details.

Key Vocabulary

• Author's purpose
• Message
• Text structure
• Print features
• Graphic features
• Main idea
• Supporting details

Materials and Resources

• A short mentor text or passage suitable for Grade 6
• Graphic organizer for analyzing author's purpose and text features
• Chart paper or whiteboard
• Markers
• Printed copies of texts with various print and graphic features

Teacher Preparation

• Select a short mentor text that clearly demonstrates an author's purpose and includes varied text structures and print/graphic features.
• Prepare a graphic organizer to guide students in identifying author's purpose, message, text structure, and print/graphic features.
• Prepare questions to prompt student discussion and explanation.
• Arrange materials for shared reading and group discussion.

Detailed Lesson Notes

Author's Purpose and Message

The author's purpose is the reason why the author writes a text. Common purposes include to inform, entertain, persuade, or explain. The message is the main idea or lesson the author wants the reader to understand. Understanding the author's purpose helps readers make sense of the text and its meaning.

Text Structure and Its Role

Text structure refers to how a text is organized. Examples include chronological order, cause and effect, problem and solution, and compare and contrast. The way a text is structured helps the author achieve their purpose by organizing information clearly and guiding the reader's understanding.

Print and Graphic Features

Print features include elements like headings, bold or italicized words, bullet points, and captions. Graphic features include pictures, charts, diagrams, and maps. Authors use these features to highlight important information, clarify ideas, and engage readers, all supporting the author's purpose.

Analyzing Author's Craft

By examining the author's choices in text structure and print/graphic features, students can better understand how the author communicates their message. For example, a persuasive text might use bold print to emphasize key points, or an informational text might use a cause-and-effect structure to explain a process.

Common Misconceptions

Students might confuse the author's purpose with the topic of the text. The topic is what the text is about, while the purpose is why the author wrote it. Another misconception is thinking all texts have the same purpose; authors write for different reasons depending on their goals.

Worked Examples

Classroom Activity

Students listen and follow the text, noting any print or graphic features they observe.

Guided Practice

Independent Practice

1. Foundational: What is one common reason an author writes a text?
2. Developing: How does a text’s structure help the author?
3. Application: Look at a text with headings and pictures. How do these print and graphic features help the author’s purpose?
4. Analysis: Explain how the author’s use of cause and effect text structure supports a text written to persuade readers.
5. Challenge: Compare two texts with different structures (e.g., chronological and problem-solution). How do these structures affect the way the author’s purpose is communicated?

Independent Practice Teacher Answer Key

1. 1. One common reason is to inform the reader.
2. 2. It organizes information so the reader can understand the author’s message better.
3. 3. Headings organize the text and make it easier to find information; pictures help explain or show ideas, supporting the author’s message.
4. 4. Cause and effect structure shows how one event leads to another, helping the author convince readers by explaining reasons and results clearly.
5. 5. Chronological structure presents events in order, helping the author explain a process or story clearly. Problem-solution structure highlights an issue and how to fix it, which supports the author’s purpose to persuade or inform about solutions.

Guiding Questions

• Why do authors write texts?
• What is the author's purpose here?
• How does the text structure help?
• What print or graphic features do you notice?
• How do these features support the author's message?

Common Misconceptions

• The author's purpose is the same as the topic of the text.
• All texts have the same author's purpose.
• Print and graphic features are just decorative and do not affect meaning.

Differentiation

Assessment

• Observe student participation in discussions and partner work.
• Review completed graphic organizers for understanding.
• Ask guiding questions during activities to check comprehension.
• Write one sentence explaining the author's purpose in today's text.
• Name one print or graphic feature and explain how it helps the author.
• Describe how the text structure supports the author's message.
• Write a paragraph analyzing the author's purpose, message, text structure, and print/graphic features in a new text.
• Create a presentation explaining how an author uses text features to communicate a message.

Answer Guide

• What is the author's purpose in a text that explains how to do something?
  Answer: The author's purpose is to explain or teach the reader how to do something.
• How does a problem-solution text structure help the author?
  Answer: It helps the author show a problem clearly and then explain how to solve it, supporting the purpose to inform or persuade.
• Why do authors use bold print or headings?
  Answer: To highlight important information and help readers find key ideas easily.
• What message might an author want to share in a story about friendship?
  Answer: The message could be about the value of friendship and how friends support each other.
• How can graphic features like charts help readers?
  Answer: Charts organize information visually, making it easier to understand and remember.

Real-Life Application

Encourage students to find examples of different author's purposes in books, articles, or advertisements at home and discuss how text features help communicate the message.

Homework or Home Connection

• Encourage students to find examples of different author's purposes in books, articles, or advertisements at home and discuss how text features help communicate the message.

Lesson Summary

In this lesson, students learn to explain the author's purpose and message within a text by analyzing how text structure and print/graphic features support the author's goals. Through reading, discussion, and writing, students develop skills to critically understand and apply author's craft in their own reading and writing.

Teacher Notes

Use the exact standards alignment and retrieved-source provenance stored with this enrichment.

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