Unit Plan 6 (Grade 7 ELA): Nonfiction Text Features & Structures
Grade 7 ELA unit: students analyze how headings, graphics, and hyperlinks shape understanding in informational texts. They identify text structures, integrate visuals with written content, and cite evidence across sources to explain how organization clarifies relationships and ideas.
Focus: Headings, graphics, hyperlinks; overall text structure across sources
Grade Level: 7
Subject Area: English Language Arts (Reading Informational)
Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 50–60 minutes per session
I. Introduction
Strong informational readers don’t just read words—they use the page. This week, students learn how headings/subheadings, graphics (charts, diagrams, maps, photos/captions), and hyperlinks guide meaning. They will analyze overall text structure (chronology, cause/effect, problem/solution, compare/contrast) across multiple sources, and support claims with precise evidence from both prose and visuals.
II. Objectives and Standards
Learning Objectives — Students will be able to…
- Analyze how organizational features (headings, subheadings, previews, hyperlinks) and overall structure (chronology, cause/effect, problem/solution, compare/contrast) contribute to meaning and clarify relationships among ideas (RI.7.5).
- Integrate information presented in charts, graphs, diagrams, maps, photos, and captions with the text to build a coherent understanding (RI.7.7).
- Cite specific textual and visual evidence (figure/caption numbers, headings, line/page refs) to support analysis and inferences (RI.7.1).
Standards Alignment — CCSS Grade 7
- Reading Informational 7.5 (RI.7.5): Analyze the structure and how it contributes to meaning.
- Reading Informational 7.7 (RI.7.7): Compare and integrate information from different media and formats with words in a text.
- Reading Informational 7.1 (RI.7.1): Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis and inferences.
Success Criteria — student language
- I can name the overall structure of a text and explain how it helps me understand the ideas.
- I can use headings, subheadings, and hyperlinks to predict, locate, and confirm information.
- I can read a graphic (chart/diagram/map) and explain what it adds beyond the prose.
- I can support my claims with evidence from both the text and the visual.