Procedural
Genre Definition
A procedural text is a story that explains how to do something. They are often written in sequential order or in order that the steps occur. The steps may or may not be numbered. You may have seen your parents read a procedural text when putting together a piece of furniture or a new toy for you.
Classroom Use
Reading Activity: Provide students with good examples (steps are clear and easy to follow) and bad examples (steps are confusing and hard to follow) of procedural texts. Have them perform the task step-by-step following the directions given by the text. This may require manipulatives or extra materials depending on the texts you selected. Discuss what makes a good procedural text.
Writing Activity: Use a procedural text to model what procedural writing looks like. Then have students select an activity that they like to do like riding a bike, baking a cake, etc. Instruct them on the techniques used in procedural writing and have them create their own set of steps for the activity that they chose. Have students share their writings with a partner or the whole class.
Math Activity: In math there are often a few steps that must be taken in order to solve a problem, specifically in geometry with proofs. Have students create an order of steps that would help someone, who has never done that type of problem, be able to solve it.
Selection Process
When selecting a quality procedural text, there are a couple of things to keep an eye out for. Most importantly, the text should be easy to read and use. This applies especially if the text provides a lot of directions for a task or activity. You want the steps and procedures to be clear and easy-to-follow. Because of this, text features are an important aspect to procedural texts. Does the text number the steps or set them apart in any way? Does it provide illustrations and sketches to help comprehend the steps?
Texts that I Recommend
Summary: Rocket is a little dog who discovers the joy of spelling out words and reading stories after a little yellow bird exposes him to the alphabet. This story is very relatable to kids in early elementary when they are first learning how to read.
Text Features: This book is appealing and relatable to students. It contains colorful illustrations, kid-friendly font size, and a main theme that promotes learning.
Awards: Irma Simonton Black & James H. Black Award for Excellence in Children’s Literature, 2010 Parents Choice Silver Honor Award, 2011 Children’s Choice Book Award Finalist, New York Times Bestselling Picture Book
Book Reviews: "With characters as memorable as those in Hills’s Duck and Goose series, this good-natured story shows readers how Rocket, a spotted puppy, becomes a beginning reader, thanks to a little yellow bird."--Publishers Weekly
"Hills makes this a story of friendship. It may persuade tentative kindergarteners that school is worth a try; teachers and librarians will love it."--The Boston Globe
APA Citation: Hills, T. (2010). How Rocket learned to read. New York, NY: Schwartz & Wade Books.
Lexile: 600L
Text complexity grade band: 2-3
Read aloud grade band: K-1
Support: This book is targeted to early elementary, especially kindergarten, when students are first learning how to read. It would work best as a read aloud, because most students at this age aren't reading fluently enough to read this book on their own.
Summary: This story follows the life of a quarter whose name is George. He gets traded, spent, lost, found, donated, and passed around town. Students will learn about math and economics concepts.
Text features: This book includes large kid-friendly font. It has fun and colorful illustrations. The pictures help with comprehension of the text. It includes a section titled "More about money" that shows images of real money and defines words used with money.
Book Review: "Leedy's sense of humor, fun, and the absurd shine through here. The large type is all over the place with dialogue and thought balloons and text vying for readers' attention. Cartoon illustrations keep the plot moving along at a steady clip. This is a wonderfully amusing, inviting, and useful title." --School Library Journal
APA Citation: Leedy, L. (2002). Follow the money! New York, NY: Holiday House.
Lexile: AD130L
Text Complexity grade band: K-1
Read aloud grade band: K-1
Support: This book has a Lexile rating of AD130L which means "Adult Directed." This book would best be used as a read aloud for younger students, because it could be too challenging for students to read independently.
