The purpose of writing is to inform, entertain, or persuade. It is a good comprehension strategy for students to learn how to recognize and describe the author’s purpose as they read text. This will also help them to make critical judgments about the meaning of a text, which is important when writing their own works.
How to Identify an Author’s Purpose
Several factors can influence the author’s purpose, such as the genre of the text and the audience for the text. For example, a persuasive author may use faulty reasoning or tug at the heartstrings of their reader, while an informative writer may include facts to teach.
Genre:
There are many different types of texts written for specific purposes. These can include articles, essays, biographies, speeches, and news reports. Some examples of common genres are fiction, nonfiction, and literary non-fiction (which includes autobiographies, memoirs, and biographies).
In most cases, an author’s purpose is linked to the genre of the text they write. For example, the author’s purpose in an article about recycling would be to give readers information and entertain them.
When teaching students how to identify an author’s purpose, organize them into small discussion groups of four or five students. Provide each group with copies of sample texts written for various purposes, and let them read through the text individually. They then work to identify the author’s purpose, making notes as they go.
Then, they discuss their findings with the class and discuss any trends they see across the texts they read. This is a great way to develop their reading skills and improve their ability to analyze text, and it also allows them to practice identifying an author’s purpose unconsciously while they are learning.
One of the most important things to remember about author’s purpose is that it is not always easy to identify. Sometimes an author will mix several purposes into one text, or a single text will have more than one purpose.
Some examples of authors who combine the purposes of informing and entertaining are Doreen Cronin, author of Duck for President, or Mo Willems, author of Pigeon books. The author of the Duck for President story is clearly writing for the purpose of entertaining her reader, while the author of the Pigeon books is probably writing for the purpose of informing her readers about the complexities of pigeons and their care.
While it can be difficult for some students to identify author’s purpose, it is a necessary comprehension skill that students should master. It is a good idea to take time with your students to identify author’s purpose as they read any text, and to practice this skill throughout the year. This will help your students to improve their comprehension of text and, ultimately, their writing.
