Classroom Tips: Helping Students Learn How Textbooks are Written

Jim Parsons

What are your student's favorite books? What books do students read more than any other? The answer to the first question is difficult, but the answer to the second is easy. Unless students are avid readers, they read textbooks more than any others. Textbooks may not be their favorite books, but they are the most widely read. In my experience, textbooks remain a mystery to students. Most have a difficult time breaking a textbook's code to reveal the messages within. This article addresses the question: How can teachers help their students understand textbooks better?

First, students should know that people write textbooks. Textbooks may look alike, but the people who write them are individuals with different ideas about what content is important and how to represent that content in the books they write. Good students soon figure out as much about the way the textbook is written as they do about the book's content. Generally, however, students remain naive about how textbooks are put together. Any hint will help.

How Textbooks Are Written

Textbooks are a special form of writing. A textbook writer must write in a way that (a) is easy to understand, (b) is straightforward so that readers have little difficulty deciphering the material, and (c) highlights important facts so students won't miss them. Writing a textbook is not at all like writing a novel. The focus of textbook writing is clarity. In fact, nuance or artistry can confuse understanding.

Obviously, each textbook writer has a personal style. However, most writers use a number of common formats. If teachers can help students figure out how a writer is putting a book together, students will be more able to extract meaning. Below, I have highlighted five common textbook writing styles and class activities related to these styles.

Style #1 Description: Often textbook writers describe events, people, or ideas. A textbook might describe the effects of acid rain or the causes of the Holocaust. The description gives a general overview, but the order is not important. When students take notes, I suggest this format.

List facts about the event, person, or idea described. Here, factual information is highlighted, but order is not important.

Style #2: Linear Time Sequence: Textbook writers might describe events in chronological order. A textbook might describe the steps that led to the end of World War II or that preceded the Great Depression. Here, the description gives both a general overview; AND the order is important. If students are taking notes of a sequenced description, I suggest this format.

The linear time sequence is noted. Students should list factual information AND the order of that information.

Style #3. Cause-Effect: Textbook writers might describe events, history, or ideas in a logical way that shows how activities led to particular ends. A textbook might describe the collective impact of economic events that led to World War I. Here, the author's description gives an overview, showing how a specific order leads to a particular end. If students are taking notes about a cause-effect situation, I suggest this format.

The cause-effect relationship is described. Here, the relationship is described with the effect listed on top and the causes below. If causes represent an ordered relationship, the order is noted.

Style #4. Comparison-contrast: Writers might describe events, people, or ideas that are the same or different. For example, a textbook might describe how different types of immigration shaped the urban picture of Canadian cities or how the battles of World War I differed from those of World War II. Here, the description compares different events, people, or ideas. It is important that students note the items described then note similarities and/or differences. I suggest the following format: The items being compared or contrasted: a list of similarities between first and second items

Style #5. Vocabulary-definition: All textbooks use language; and, all textbook writers, regardless of subject area, define the vocabulary of their areas. A social studies textbook defines the language of social studies. Students must note the particular vocabulary term and definition given by the writer. Here, the student's job is to create a glossary of vocabulary terms. I suggest this format: Vocabulary Term = Definition

Other Hints About Reading Textbooks

The following hints might help students make sense of their textbooks.

1. Look for bold or italicized words. They often represent items, people, or ideas students will see again, either in questions at the end of the chapter or on exams.
2. Study the questions. When authors write questions, they give clues about items they believe are worthy of repetition.
3. Read the first sentences of each paragraph. Usually, textbook writers follow a simple, time-tested format. They put the main point in the first sentence of a paragraph and use the rest of the paragraph to highlight the main point. Reading the first sentence of each paragraph helps review the entire book.
4. Look at numbered lists. Lists are often keys. Most authors give hints about how ideas, activities, or events work together. To make these ideas more understandable, authors use lists to highlight points they believe students should know.
5. Study pictures and captions. Most textbooks use photos to highlight, in a visual way, the text. The captions beneath the picture can be an abbreviated review of important points.
6. Look for names of people, places, or things. The most important information in any textbook are nouns -- people, places, or things. One way to quickly review information is to list the author's choices about who and what are important.
7. Look for graphic organizers and designs. Authors or publishers use graphic (visual) clues about what they believe is important. Often, textbooks place important points in sidebars, italics, on the bottom of the page, or in the glossary.