Reading Comprehension Success in 20 Minutes a Day, 3rd Edition

Order of Presentation
1.
2.
3.
Order of Importance
1.
2.
3.
You see, of course, that the orders are reversed:
The author starts with what is least important and
ends with what is most important. Why? Why not the
other way around?

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This author uses a least-to-most-important orga-
nizational strategy because he is making an argument.
He’s trying to convince you that the United States
should lower the voting age to 16. In order to be con-
vincing, he must have a strong argument. If he starts
with what he feels is his most important (and most con-
vincing) point, he has already shown his hand, so to
speak. Especially when the issue is controversial, writ-
ers often use the least-to-most-important structure.
That way, if their less important points make sense to
the reader, then their more important points will come
off even stronger. Also, if they were to organize their
ideas in the reverse order, most to least important,
readers might feel let down.
Thus, you can often expect to see this type of
structure—least to most important—in an argument.
As the saying goes, “save the best for last.” In an argu-
ment, that’s usually where “the best” has the most
impact.
In the first example, about choosing a doctor, the
writer was not trying to convince. She was simply giv-
ing some advice. There’s no need, then, for a buildup.
Indeed, in that kind of paragraph, readers might stop
reading after the first tip if they don’t find it helpful.
That’s why the most important ideas come first—to
make sure they’ll be read.
In other words, the writer’s purpose—his or her
motive for writing—influences the choice of organi-
zational patterns. In turn, the structure influences how
you take in and understand what you read.
Practice
Look at the following list of reasons to read more often.
If you were to put these reasons together in a paragraph
to convince readers that they should read more, how
would you organize them? Rank these reasons first in
order of importance and then in the order in which you
would present them.