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Common Non-Fiction Text Features

D'Nei Albergotti

Created on November 5, 2025

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Transcript

Common Non-Fiction Text Features

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

Included features used in non-fiction informational texts that help you better understand the text.

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

Page spread from History! The Past as You’ve Never Seen It Before (opens in a new window) (DK Publishing). Features: illustrations, diagrams, photographs, and captions.

Non-Fiction Text Features

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

Titles, Headings, & Subheadings

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

Titles

  • The main name of a text or section
    • Tells you the overall topic or main idea.
    • Read before starting to activate background knowledge
Headings/Subheadings
  • Bold or larger text dividing sections
    • Helps organize information into smaller topics
    • Skim them to predict what each section is about

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

Non-Fiction Text Features

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

Table of Contents, Index, & Glossary

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

  • Table of Contents (List of sections and page numbers at the start)
    • Helps find specific topics quickly
  • Bold or Italicized Words (Highlighted or slanted words)
    • Show key vocabulary or important ideas

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

  • Index (Alphabetical list at the end with page numbers)
    • Locates where topics appear in the text
  • Glossary (A mini-dictionary at the end)
    • Defines key academic or domain-specific terms

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

Non-Fiction Text Features

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

Sidebars, Pictures, & Captions

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

  • Captions (Sentences below pictures or graphs)
    • Explain what the image shows or why it’s included

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

  • Sidebar (Boxes beside main text)
    • Provide extra facts, examples, or interesting details.
  • Pictures/Photos (Visual images of information)
    • Support understanding for complex ideas

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

Non-Fiction Text Features

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

Charts, Graphs, Lablelled Diagrams, & Maps

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

Diagrams, Charts, & Graphs (Visuals showing relationships or data)

    • Simplify numbers, processes, or comparisons

Maps (Visual representations of geography or data)

    • Show where something happens or spreads

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

Non-Fiction Text Features

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

1. Title, Headings, Subheadings

Cutaways, Cross-Sections, & Timelines

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

2. Table of Contents, Index, Glossary

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

3. Sidebars, Pictures, and Captions

  • Cutaways/ Cross-Sections
    • "Allow readers to see inside something by dissolving part of a wall or to see all the layers of an object by bisecting it for viewing" (Reading Rockets, 2025)
  • Timelines (Sequence of events in order)
    • Shows cause-and-effect or historical progression

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

4. Charts, Graphs, Labelled Diagrams, and Maps

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines

5. Cutaways, Cross-sections, and Timelines