Which instructional activity will best help students identify the text features in expository texts?

• A. Participating in a scavenger hunt to locate the elements of text
• B. Summarizing paragraphs after reading
• C. Taking notes on a vocabulary list
• D. Reading aloud with a partner

Answer: (A)

Identifying text features in expository texts is about recognizing how information is organized and where to find key details. An activity that uses a scavenger hunt to locate elements of text gets students actively looking for features such as headings and subheadings, bold terms, captions, charts or diagrams, sidebars, glossaries, and the table of contents. As they search and point out each feature, they connect the feature to its purpose—how it helps readers navigate the text and locate information quickly. This hands-on discovery builds automatic recognition and recall, which is exactly what you want when students read informational texts.

Summarizing paragraphs after reading focuses more on extracting content than on recognizing organizational cues. Taking notes on a vocabulary list targets word knowledge rather than how text is structured. Reading aloud with a partner supports fluency and collaboration but doesn’t directly train students to identify text features. The scavenger hunt combines exploration with purposeful labeling of features, making it the strongest choice for developing the skill of spotting and using text features in expository writing.