English 11A — Lesson 3: Text Structure
In "Save the Redwoods," how does the organizational structure of Paragraph 3 help to develop Muir's point that redwoods are at great risk?
By specifically describing the small range in which redwoods grow, he emphasizes that redwoods are a rare resource that cannot easily be replaced if destroyed.
Which option best states a central idea of "Save the Redwoods"?
One reason to save the redwoods is that the measures established to protect the trees will serve as a model for forest conservation in other parts of the country.
Which response explains how the text structure used in "Peregrine Falcon" effectively develops ideas in the text?
The cause-and-effect structure explains how the plight of the falcons contributed to the ban on DDT.
Read the paragraph from "Peregrine Falcon." (9) Scientists at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Patuxent Wildlife Research Center near Laurel, Maryland, began investigating the peregrine's decline. They found unusually high concentrations of the pesticide DDT and its breakdown product DDE in peregrine falcons and other birds of prey. The peregrines accumulated DDT in their tissues by feeding on birds that had eaten DDT-contaminated insects or seeds. The toxic chemical interfered with eggshell formation. As a result, falcons laid eggs with shells so thin they often broke during incubation or otherwise failed to hatch. Because too few young were raised to replace adults that died, peregrine populations declined precipitously. Which two transitions are most helpful in determining the organizational structure of the paragraph? Select all that apply.
as a result because
Read the paragraph from "Peregrine Falcon." (8) Peregrine falcons have never been very abundant. Studies in the 1930s and 1940s estimated that there were about 500 breeding pairs of peregrine falcons in the eastern United States and about 1,000 pairs in the West and Mexico. Then, beginning in the late 1940s, peregrine falcons suffered a devastating and rapid decline. By the mid-1960s, the species had been eliminated from nearly all of the eastern U.S. Although less severe, the decline spread west, where peregrine populations were reduced by 80 to 90 percent by the mid-1970s. At that time, only the populations of Peale's falcons nesting along the north Pacific Coast in Alaska and British Columbia appeared to be stable. What organizational structure is used in this paragraph and how do you know?
chronological, because of the dates listed and words like Then, By, and At that time
Reread Paragraph 1 in "Save the Redwoods." What structure does the author use to organize the ideas in the paragraph?
compare and contrast
Read the paragraph from "Peregrine Falcon." (14) To release captive-bred peregrines, young birds are placed in specially equipped boxes on top of a manmade tower or cliff ledge. At first, the birds are fed through a chute so they cannot see their human benefactors. When they are old enough, the box is opened and the young peregrines begin testing their wings. Their food is gradually reduced as the young falcons learn to hunt on their own. This process is known as "hacking." What is the organizational structure used in this paragraph?
sequence
