Reading: Text Structure, Cohesion & Coherence
B1 Lesson 2: Recognizing Common Text Organization Patterns
Listen to this lesson's key concepts.
Why Do Text Patterns Matter? 🗺️
Think of text organization as a map for the reading. When you recognize the pattern, you know where the author is going. This helps you read faster and understand the main idea more easily.
At a B1 level, you can start to find these patterns by looking for "signal words."
Three Common Text Patterns
This pattern organizes information in the order it happened (time order).
Signal Words:
- First, Next, Then
- After that, Before
- Finally, In 2023, Last year
Used for: Stories, instructions, history.
This pattern shows how two or more things are alike (compare) or different (contrast).
Signal Words:
- Similarly, Both, Also (Compare)
- However, On the other hand
- In contrast, While (Contrast)
Used for: Reviews, making decisions, analysis.
This pattern explains why something happened (the cause) and what happened as a result (the effect).
Signal Words:
- Because, Since, Due to (Cause)
- As a result, Therefore
- Consequently, Leads to (Effect)
Used for: News, science, arguments.
Pronunciation Tip
🗣️ Pausing After Signal Words
To help your listener follow your logic, fluent speakers often make a small pause after a signal word, especially when it starts a sentence. Your intonation often rises slightly, then falls.
- "First, ↗ [pause] we need to check the budget."
- "However, ↗ [pause] the cost is very high."
- "As a result, ↗ [pause] the project was delayed."
Practice: Identify the Pattern 🎯
Read the short passages and choose the main text pattern the author is using. Look for the signal words!
"To cook the perfect noodles, first, you must boil the water. Next, add the noodles and cook for three minutes. After that, drain the water and add your sauce. Finally, mix everything together and serve."
What is the pattern?
"Living in the city is exciting. On the other hand, living in the countryside is much more peaceful. While cities have more jobs, the countryside has cleaner air and less traffic."
What is the pattern?
"Last night, there was a major power outage in the city. Due to a strong storm, several power lines were damaged. As a result, thousands of homes were without electricity for over five hours."
What is the pattern?
Key Vocabulary (Click 🔊)
-
Text Structure / Organization
The way an author organizes information in a text.
-
Chronological
Arranged in the order of time.
-
Compare
To look for what is similar or the same.
-
Contrast
To look for what is different.
-
Cause
The reason why something happens.
-
Effect
The result of a cause; what happens.
- Signal Words
Keywords that show you the text's pattern (e.g., "however," "next," "because").
Your Reading Mission ⭐
This week, become a pattern detective!
- Find one short English news article or blog post (like from VOA, BBC, or any English website).
- Read it and try to find signal words (like `however`, `as a result`, `first`, `next`).
- Based on the signal words, decide which pattern the author used: Chronological, Compare/Contrast, or Cause/Effect.
This will help you start to see the "map" in every text you read!