Common Core Standards: Informational Text

What is informational text?
Nonfiction resources, such as literary nonfiction, history books, autobiographies, and technical or "how-to" books are considered by the common core standards to be informational text. Texts categorized as "informational text" usually have key points organized in a way that make it easier for readers to find information. Take a history book as an example, pages often include section heads, terms are in bold, and photos include captions. Other instances include tables of contents, glossaries and infographics; such as graphs, tables, charts and diagrams.

Why have informational text guidelines changed?
There is a new focus on instruction using informational text with students, particularly in the elementary grades. This shift is based on a study that shows that children in grades K-6 spent only 7-15% of their time reading informational text, yet 80% of adult reading is spent on nonfiction text, including information text. To be successful in higher education, and in the workplace, the common core standards ask for increased exposure to informational text.

How does Kurzweil 3000 support informational text?
First and foremost all materials uploaded into Kurzweil 3000 preserve their original format. Tables, graphs or pictures uploaded into digital format will look the same as they do in print. Reading support tools including Text-to-Speech, dictionaries, translation, and study tools help students to comprehend complex language used in informational texts. This is especially important for students with dyslexia and other language-based learning disabilities that may have difficulty reading tables, charts, and other components used in informational text.

Text-Dependent Questions

Academic Vocabulary