Expository text - nonfiction in which the author seeks to explain or inform. The information can be verified as true. Common structures within expository text include description, comparison/contrast, cause/effect, problem/solution, sequence, or a combination of such structures.
Expository Characteristics:
To inform, explain, describe, enumerate, discuss, compare/contrast, and problem-solve.
Subject orientated; is focused on a specific topic.
Multiple organizational patterns, such as context clues or text features.
Difficult to predict based on content.
Various text patterns are signaled by different headings, subheadings, and signal words.
Contains facts and information using clear and precise dialogue.
Expository Structure:
Includes definition, description, process (collection, time order, or listing) classification, comparison, analysis, and persuasion.
Expository Text Types Include:
ABC books, autobiographies, biographies, essays, book reports, brochures, cartoons, catalogs, comics, complaints, definitions, government reports, graphs and charts, interviews, invitations, journals, lists, memoirs (depends on purpose and text structure), newspaper/magazine articles, recounts of an event, research papers, speeches, etc.