No Nonsense in Nonfiction

Nonfiction describes books of information and fact about any topic. Nonfiction tells a story but the facts and concepts are emphasized, with storytelling used as an expressive technique. It includes real people, places, and events.The facts and concepts must be truthful, verifiable, and understandable. Diaries, biographies, and memoirs are considered nonfiction. 

An example of a quality nonfiction book that focuses on current events is Trapped by Mark Aronson. The book follows the events that occurred in early August 2010 when a mine in Copiano, Chile collapsed. Thirty-three miners were trapped 2,000 feet below the surface for sixty-nine days. The author captivates the reader's attention through the multiple rescue attempts using various drilling equipment. With scarce resources and dwindling air quality, the miners with the support of family and rescue workers, were able to overcome psychological, physical, and environmental factors. The novel also include full-color photos, timeline of events, glossary, and notes. This is a story of hope and survival. 

Common subjects/topics for nonfiction include math. Math Curse by Jon Scieszka, illustrated by Lane Smith, is a humorous book that shows the math in our lives and provides math puzzles for the readers to figure out. This is a great book to use at the beginning of the year with students to help alleviate some anxiety that some students feel about math.  

Types of Nonfiction
Nonfiction is text in which the emphasis is on the facts and concepts being presented. It can use a narrative style to present these facts. Expository text is text that has the primary purpose “to communicate information so that the reader might learn something”. This type of text must follow a non-narrative text structure. Informational text is clearly organized. It has a table of contents, and it may have a glossary, a subject index, a bibliography, and appendixes.

To help students remember how nonfiction text may be organized, you can show this fun rap song:

Nonfiction books should be used more in the classroom. There are many outstanding books on virtually any topic and for a variety of readers. When students read nonfiction, they build background knowledge to then make more connections to other genres that they read. The formats of nonfiction make them interesting because they are reader friendly with strategically placed illustrations. The ideas are clearly developed and presented logically. The author’s expertise and resources are used to add detailed information. The writers use rich language and facts are current and complete. The prose can be used to model informational writing. Teachers who want their students to excel should add nonfiction to their classroom libraries.