Reading Element Card Informational Text Grades K-2
BACK TO Element Cards
Teaching Informational Text All of the CCCs in this document relate to teaching informational text. Page 2 of this document provides a template of an Element Card and a line by line explanation of its components. Each Element Card contains related CCCs within a grade band (i.e., K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12) and suggestions as to how the CCCs may be taught, supported and scaffolded. The suggested strategies are commonly used by general educators and may need to be modified to meet the needs of students with disabilities. Many of the instructional strategies will be strengthened when used in combination with systematic instruction such as a system of least prompts or time delay. An Instructional Resource Guide is provided on the NCSC Wiki (https://wiki.ncscpartners.org/index.php/Main_Page) and contains information on how to use specific systematic instruction strategies when teaching academics. The strategies, supports and scaffolds listed on the Element Cards are suggestions and not intended to be an exhaustive list. Below are some additional resources that may be helpful:
NCSC Curriculum Resource Guides Reading Informational Text Vocabulary Acquisition and Use
- Access these guide here: https://wiki.ncscpartners.org/index.php/Curriculum_Resource_Guides
NCSC Content Modules Author's Purpose and Point of View Main Idea, Theme, and Details Summarizing and Inferencing Text Structure Vocabulary Use and Acquisition Informational Writing Persuasive Writing
- Access all Content Modules here: https://wiki.ncscpartners.org/index.php/Content_Modules
Websites for additional information http://aim.cast.org http://www.inspiration.com/community/lessons-and-ideas www.edhelper.com http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/lesson-plan/graphic-organizers-reading-comprehension http://learnzillion.com http://www.teacherspayteachers.com http://www.ncte.org/standards/common-core/nonfiction-texts http://blogs.loc.gov/teachers/2013/02/informational-text-the-common-core-and-the-library-of-congress-a-resource-center-rich-with-primary-sources-and-teacher-tools/
Grades K–2 Reading Element Card – Informational Text – Retelling Texts Using Details1
Grade 3 students: | Grade 4 students: | Grade 5 students: | |
2 | CCSS | CCSS | CCSS |
3 | PI | PI | PI |
4 | CCCs | CCCs | CCCs |
Specific K grade CCCs would be listed here. | Specific 1st grade CCCs would be listed here. | Specific 2nd grade CCCs would be listed here. | |
5 | Essential Understanding: | Essential Understanding: | Essential Understanding:
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6 | Suggested Instructional Strategies:
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7 | Suggested Scaffolds and Supports: |
Explanations for corresponding line numbers
- Strand and Instructional Family: The Instructional Families group the CCCs into easily interpretable visuals that illustrate the areas of curricular emphasis within and across grades by ELA CCSS Anchors and Anchor Standards. https://wiki.ncscpartners.org/index.php/Instructional_Families
- Common Core State Standard (CCSS): A set of national standards that provide a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn. http://www.corestandards.org/
- Progress Indicators (PI): The PIs come directly from the Learning Progression Framework (LPF) and provide the sequence for instruction within strands. http://www.naacpartners.org/publications/ELA_LPF_12.2011_final.pdf
- Core Content Connectors (CCCs): The CCCs represent the eligible content for instruction and assessment for students who participate in the alternate assessment based upon alternate achievement standards. The CCC cells are color coded to represent the Instructional Family. https://wiki.ncscpartners.org/index.php/Core_Content_Connectors
- Essential Understandings: The Essential Understandings (EUs) identify the fundamental concepts and skills that students use to address the content described in a reading CCC at a specific grade level. These EUs are in a suggested progression which reflects one potential path to reach the content targets within the CCCs. Since students differ in how they learn and demonstrate their understanding, instructional decisions should be made by the teacher to meet the needs of each student.
- Suggested Strategies: Suggested instructional strategies to teach the specific concepts and skills of the CCC.
- Suggested Supports and Scaffolds: Suggested supports and scaffolds for students to be able to demonstrate what they know and can do.
*Strategies/Supports/Scaffolds should promote understanding for a range of students and should support instruction at various levels of difficulty.
Grades K–2 Reading Element Card – Informational Text – Using Details to Describe Text & Describing the Main Idea
Grade K students: | Grade 1 students: | Grade 2 students: | ||||||
CCSS:RI.K.1 With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
RI.K.2 With Prompting and support, identify the main topic and retell key details of a text.
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CCSS:RI.1.1 Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
RI.1.2 Identify the main topic and retell key details of a text.
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CCSS:RI.1.7 Use the illustrations and details in a text to describe its key ideas.
RI.2.1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text. RI.2.2 Identify the main topic of a multi-paragraph text as well as the focus of specific paragraphs within the text. | ||||||
PI: E.RI.d approaching informational text with a question to answer; identifying key details and main topics. | PI: E.RI.d approaching informational text with a question to answer; identifying key details and main topics. | PI: E.RI.d approaching informational text with a question to answer; identifying key details and main topics. | ||||||
CCCs | CCCs | CCCs | ||||||
K.RI.d1 With prompting and support, answer questions about key details in a text.
K.RI.d3 With prompting and support, retell/identify key details in text. K.HD.d3 Discuss key details and main topic of a preferred text. |
1.RI.d1 Answer questions about key details in a text read, read aloud, or viewed.
1.RI.d3 Retell/Identify key details in a text. 1.HD.d5 Discuss key details and main topic of a preferred text. |
2.RI.d1 Answer who, what, where, when, why, and how questions from informational text.
2.HD.d4 Discuss key details and main topic of a preferred text. | ||||||
Essential Understanding:
Identify photo, diagram, or graphic on a page of informational text. THEN
Identify key details from the text base on a photo, diagram, or graphic. THEN
Answer simple questions about key details from the text. |
Essential Understanding:
Identify photo, diagram, or graphic on a page of informational text. THEN
Identify key details from the text based on a photo, diagram, or graphic. THEN
Answer simple questions about key details from the text. |
Essential Understanding:
Explain the contribution or purpose of illustrations in informational text. THEN
Identify a key idea from a list that corresponds to an illustration. THEN
Answer simple questions about a key idea from the text. | ||||||
Suggested Instructional Strategies:
Write to Understand
Discuss to Understand
Sort to Understand
Model to Understand
Key Details
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Scaffolds and Supports
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Additional Resources
Tompkins, G. (2005). Patterns of practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. |
Note: Many of these strategies will be strengthened through the use of Systematic Instruction. Refer to Instructional Resource Guide for full descriptions and examples of systematic instructional strategies.
Grades K–2 Reading Element Card – Informational Text – Using Details to Describe Text & Describing the Main Idea
Grade K students: | Grade 1 students: | Grade 2 students: | ||||||
CCSS: RI.K.2 With prompting and support, identify the main topic and retell key details of a text. | CCSS:RI.1.2 Identify the main topic and retell key details of a text.
RI.1.7 Explain major differences between books that tell stories and books that give information, drawing on a wide reading of a range of text types. |
CCSS: RI.2.2 Identify the main topic of a multi-paragraph text as well as the focus of specific paragraphs within the text. | ||||||
PI:E.RI.d Approaching informational text with a question to answer; identifying key details and main topics.
E.RI.e Locating/Interpreting information using a variety of text features (e.g., title, illustrations, bold print, glossary).
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PI: RI.d Approaching informational text with a question to answer; identifying key details and main topics. | PI: E.RI.d Approaching informational text with a question to answer; identifying key details and main topics. | ||||||
CCCs | CCCs | CCCs | ||||||
K.RI.d2 With prompting and support, identify the main topic.
K.RI.e1 During shared literacy activities suggest things you might learn about for a given print or non-print text (e.g., What do you think we might learn about in this book?). K.HD.d3 Discuss key details and main topic of a preferred text. |
1.RI.d2 Identify the main topic of an informational text.
1.HD.d5 Discuss key details and main topic of a preferred text. |
2.RI.d2 Identify the main topic of a multi-paragraph informational text.
2.HD.d4 Discuss key details and main topic of a preferred text. | ||||||
Essential Understanding:
With prompting and support, answer simple questions about the topic of an informational text. |
Essential Understanding:
Answer a simple question about the main topic of an informational text. |
Essential Understanding:
Identify the main topic of a simple informational text (e.g., one paragraph). | ||||||
Suggested Instructional Strategies:
Write to Understand
Discuss to Understand
Model to Understand
Key Details
| ||||||||
Scaffolds and Supports
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Additional Resources
Tompkins, G. (2005). Patterns of practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. www.liketoread.com |
Note: Many of these strategies will be strengthened through the use of Systematic Instruction. Refer to Instructional Resource Guide for full descriptions and examples of systematic instructional strategies.
Grades K–2 Reading Element Card – Informational Text – Analyzing Relationships
Grade K students: | Grade 1 students: | Grade 2 students: |
CCSS: RI.K.3 With prompting and support, describe the connection between two individuals, events, ideas, or pieces of information in a text. | CCSS: RI.1.3 Describe the connection between two individuals, events, ideas, or pieces of information in a text. | CCSS: |
PI: E.RI.f Making connections among pieces of information (e.g., sequence events, steps in a process, cause-effect, compare-contrast relationships). | PI: E.RI.f Making connections among pieces of information (e.g., sequence events, steps in a process, cause- effect, compare-contrast relationships) | PI: |
CCCs | CCCs | CCCs |
K.RI.f1 With prompting and support, describe the connection between two individuals, events, ideas, or pieces of information. | 1.RI.f1 Describe the connection between two individuals, events, or pieces of information in a text. | |
Essential Understanding:
Answer simple questions about an individual event, idea, or piece of information. |
Essential Understanding:
Answer simple questions about an individual event, idea, or piece of information. THEN
Identify connections between two individuals, events, or pieces of information. |
|
Suggested Instructional Strategies:
Write to Understand:
Discuss to Understand
Model to Understand
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Scaffolds and Supports
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Additional Resources
Tompkins, G. (2005). Patterns of practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. |
Note: Many of these strategies will be strengthened through the use of Systematic Instruction. Refer to Instructional Resource Guide for full descriptions and examples of systematic instructional strategies.
Grades K–2 Reading Element Card – Informational Text – Identifying Text Structure
Grade K students: | Grade 1 students: | Grade 2 students: |
CCSS: | CCSS:
RI.1.5 Know and use various text features (e.g., headings, tables of contents, glossaries, electronic menus, icons) to locate key facts or information in a text. RI.1.7 Explain major differences between books that tell stories and books that give information, drawing on a wide reading of a range of text types. |
CCSS: RI.2.5 Know and use various text features (e.g., captions, bold print, subheadings, glossaries, indexes, electronic menus, icons) to locate key facts or information in a text efficiently. |
PI: | PI: E.RI.e Locating/Interpreting information using a variety of text features (e.g., title, illustrations, bold print, glossary). | PI: E.RI.e Locating/Interpreting information using a variety of text features (e.g., title, illustrations, bold print, glossary). |
CCCs | CCCs | CCCs |
1.RI.e2 Identify and use various text features (e.g., bold text, titles) to locate key facts or information in a text.
1.HD.e2 Identify text features to aid comprehension. 1.HD.e3 Use text features to aid comprehension. |
2.RI.e1 Identify and use various text features (e.g., title, bold print, illustrations, glossaries) to locate key facts or information in a text efficiently.
2.HD.e1 Identify text features to aid comprehension. 2.HD.e2 Use text features to aid comprehension. | |
Essential Understanding: | Essential Understanding:
Identify various text features (e.g., bold text, titles) within informational text. THEN
Locate key facts and information using text features. |
Essential Understanding:
Identify various text features (e.g., title, bold print, illustrations, glossaries) within informational text. THEN
Locate key facts and information using text features. |
Suggested Instructional Strategies:
Write to Understand
Discuss to Understand
Model to Understand
| ||
Suggested Scaffolds and Supports
| ||
Additional Resources
Tompkins, G. (2005). Patterns of practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. |
Note: Many of these strategies will be strengthened through the use of Systematic Instruction. Refer to Instructional Resource Guide for full descriptions and examples of systematic instructional strategies.
Grades K–2 Reading Element Card – Informational Text – Distinguishing a Point of View
Grade K students: | Grade 1 students: | Grade 2 students: |
CCSS: RI.K.6 Name the author and illustrator of a text and define the role of each in presenting the ideas or information in a text. | CCSS: RI.1.6 Distinguish between information provided by pictures or other illustrations and information provided by the words in a text. | CCSS: RI.2.6 Identify the main purpose of a text, including what the author wants to answer, explain, or describe. |
PI: E.RI.g Exploring the differences among texts and recognizing author's purpose: texts to "teach" us about… | PI: E.RI.g Exploring the differences among texts and recognizing author's purpose: texts to "teach" us about… | PI: E.RI.k Using supporting evidence to analyze or compare texts or parts of texts: author's purpose, points of view, key ideas/details, different accounts. |
CCCs | CCCs | CCCs |
K.RI.g1 Identify the author's purpose in an informational text. | 2.RI.g1 Identify the main purpose of a text, including what question the author is answering, explaining, or describing. | 3.RI.k1 Identify the author's purpose in an informational text. |
Essential Understanding:
Identify the author of an informational text. |
Essential Understanding:
Identify the author of an informational text. THEN
Describe why the author might have written the text. |
Essential Understanding:
Identify the author of an informational text. THEN
Describe why the author might have written the text. |
Suggested Instructional Strategies:
Discuss to Understand
Model to Understand
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Scaffolds and Supports
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Additional Resources
Tompkins, G. (2005). Patterns of practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. |
Note: Many of these strategies will be strengthened through the use of Systematic Instruction. Refer to Instructional Resource Guide for full descriptions and examples of systematic instructional strategies.
Grades K–2 Reading Element Card – Informational Text – Distinguishing Point of View & Connecting Diverse Media and Formats
Grade K students: | Grade 1 students: | Grade 2 students: |
CCSS: RI.K.7 With prompting and support, describe the relationship between illustrations and the text in which they appear (e.g., what person, place, thing, or idea in the text an illustration depicts). | CCSS:
RI.1.6 Distinguish between information provided by pictures or other illustrations and information provided by the words in a text. RI.1.7 Use the illustrations and details in a text to describe its key ideas. |
CCSS: RI.2.7 Explain how specific images (e.g., a diagram showing how a machine works) contribute to and clarify a text. |
PI:
E.RI.c Recognizing organization and features of informational texts (e.g., describes a topic, finds facts in visual information). E.RI.f Making connections among pieces of information (e.g., sequence events, steps in a process, cause-effect, compare-contrast relationships). |
PI:
E.RI.c Recognizing organization and features of informational texts (e.g., describes a topic, finds facts in visual information). E.RI.f Making connections among pieces of information (e.g., sequence events, steps in a process, cause- effect, compare-contrast relationships). |
PI: E.RI.e Locating/Interpreting information using a variety of text features (e.g., title, illustrations, bold print, glossary). |
CCCs | CCCs | CCCs |
K.RI.c1 Identify a labeled photo or diagram or graph from within an informational text.
K.RI.f2 With prompting and support, interpret the information provided in photos or diagrams or graphics and the text in which they appear (e.g., what person, place, thing, or idea in the text an illustration depicts). |
1.RI.c1 Use the photos, diagrams, or graphics and details in a text to describe or identify key ideas.
1.RI.f3 Distinguish between information provided by pictures or other illustrations and information provided by the words in a text. |
2.RI.e2 Explain or identify what specific images (e.g., a diagram showing how a machine works) teach the reader to do or tell the reader.
2.RI.c1 Use the illustrations and details in a text to describe or identify key ideas. |
Essential Understanding:
Identify a photo/diagram/graphic in an informational text. THEN
Answer simple questions about the photo/diagram/graphic. |
Essential Understanding:
Identify a photo/diagram/graphic in an informational text. THEN
Differentiate a photo/diagram/graphic from the caption describing it. |
Essential Understanding:
Identify a specific image in the text that matches a provided description. |
Suggested Instructional Strategies:
Discuss to Understand
Model to Understand
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Scaffolds and Supports
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Additional Resources
Tompkins, G. (2005). Patterns of practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. |
Note: Many of these strategies will be strengthened through the use of Systematic Instruction. Refer to Instructional Resource Guide for full descriptions and examples of systematic instructional strategies.
Grades K–2 Reading Element Card – Informational Text – Describing the Main Idea & Gather Information
Grade K students: | Grade 1 students: | Grade 2 students: | ||||||
CCSS: RI.K.8 With prompting and support, identify the reasons an author gives to support points in a text. | CCSS: RI.1.8 Identify the reasons an author gives to support points in a text. | CCSS:RI.2.2 Identify the main topic of a multi-paragraph text as well as the focus of specific paragraphs within the text.
RI.2.8 Describe how reasons support specific points the author makes in a text. | ||||||
PI: E.RI.g Exploring the differences among texts and recognizing author's purpose: texts to "teach" us about… | PI: E.RI.g Exploring the differences among texts and recognizing author's purpose: texts to "teach" us about… | PI: E.RI.d Approaching informational texts with a question to answer; identifying key details and main topic.
E.RI.g Exploring the differences among texts and recognizing author's purpose: texts to "teach" us about… | ||||||
CCCs | CCCs | CCCs | ||||||
K.RI.g2 With prompting and support, identify the facts an author gives to support points in a text. | 1.RI.g1 Identify the facts and details an author gives to support points in a text. | 2.RI.d3 Identify the focus of a paragraph and the details that support the focus in an informational text.
2.RI.g2 Identify the facts and details an author gives to support points in a text. | ||||||
Essential Understanding:
With prompting and support, identify a fact in an informational text. |
Essential Understanding:
Identify a fact in an informational text. THEN
Identify a detail linked to a fact in an informational text. |
Essential Understanding:
Identify a fact. THEN
Identify a detail. THEN
Identify the focus of a paragraph within a text. | ||||||
Suggested Instructional Strategies:
Write to Understand Information Coding for Main Topic: Information Coding:Provide the students with a copy of the text the students for students to mark. Students should then create a coding system to help them mark and understand the text. The coding system might look something like this:
Graphic Organizer (e.g., bubble)
Sort to Understand
Model to Understand
Key Details
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Scaffolds and Supports
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Additional Resources
Tompkins, G. (2005). Patterns of practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. www.liketoread.com 1Moore, P., & Lyon, A. (2005). New essentials for teaching reading in pre-k-2. (pp. 96-97). New York, New York: Scholastic. |
* Refer to Instructional Resource Guide for full descriptions and examples of systematic instructional strategies such as time delay, example/non-example and the use of a system of least prompts.
Grades K–2 Reading Element Card – Informational Text – Analyzing Across Texts
Grade K students: | Grade 1 students: | Grade 2 students: | ||||||
CCSS: RI.K.9 With prompting and support, identify basic similarities in and differences between two texts on the same topic (e.g., in illustrations, descriptions, or procedures). | CCSS: RI.1.9 Identify basic similarities in and differences between two texts on the same topic (e.g., in illustrations, descriptions, or procedures). | CCSS: RI.2.9 Compare and contrast the most important points presented by two texts on the same topic. | ||||||
PI: E.RI.g Exploring the differences among texts and recognizing author's purpose: texts to "teach" us about… | PI: E.RI.g Exploring the differences among texts and recognizing author's purpose: texts to "teach" us about… | PI: E.RI.g Exploring the differences among texts and recognizing author's purpose: texts to "teach" us about… | ||||||
CCCs | CCCs | CCCs | ||||||
K.RI.g3 With prompting and support, identify basic similarities in and differences between two texts on the same topic (e.g., imaginary or real bear; photo versus illustration of something not real). | 1.RI.g2 Identify basic similarities in and differences between two texts on the same topic (e.g., illustrations, descriptions, or procedures). | 2.RI.f1 Compare and contrast the most important points presented by two texts on the same topic. | ||||||
Essential Understanding:
Identify what is the same and what is different for two similar images or photographs. THEN
With prompting and support, identify the topic of a text. |
Essential Understanding:
Identify what is the same and what is different for two similar images or photographs. THEN
Identify the topic of a text. |
Essential Understanding:
Identify the most important facts of a text on a familiar topic. THEN
Identify the most important facts of a second text on the same familiar topic. THEN
Identify if two selected facts from the two texts on the topic agree or disagree. | ||||||
Suggested Instructional Strategies:
Write to Understand
Sort to Understand
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Scaffolds and Supports
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Additional Resources
Tompkins, G. (2005). Patterns of practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. |
Note: Many of these strategies will be strengthened through the use of Systematic Instruction. Refer to Instructional Resource Guide for full descriptions and examples of systematic instructional strategies.
Grades K–2 Reading Element Card – Informational Text – Analyzing Relationships
Grade K students: | Grade 1 students: | Grade 2 students: |
CCSS: | CCSS: | CCSS: RI.2.3 Describe the connection between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text. |
PI: | PI: | PI: E.RI.f making connections among pieces of information (e.g., sequence events, steps in a process, cause- effect, compare-contrast relationships) |
CCCs | CCCs | CCCs |
2.RI.f2 Identify the sequence of events in an informational text.
2.RI.f3 Identify the steps in a process in an informational text. 2.RI.f4 Identify the cause and effect relationships in an informational text. | ||
Essential Understanding: | Essential Understanding: | Essential Understanding:
Identify the sequence of events from a provided set of familiar events. THEN
Identify the steps in a process from a provided familiar process. THEN
Identify the effect of a provided cause (or vice versa). THEN
With guidance and support, identify the text structure of a text as either sequence or cause/effect. |
Suggested Instructional Strategies:
Write to Understand
Discuss to Understand
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Scaffolds and Supports
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Additional Resources
Tompkins, G. (2005). Patterns of practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. |
* Refer to Instructional Resource Guide for full descriptions and examples of systematic instructional strategies such as time delay, example/non-example and the use of a system of least prompts.