Cause and Effect in Reading Passages
Cause and Effect in Reading Passages
Cause and effect is a common way to organize information in a text.
Paragraphs structured as cause and effect explain reasons why something happened or the effects of something. The cause and effect writing is generally used in expository writing (to explain, describe, or inform -give information) and persuasive writing (to persuade, develop a logical argument, or give an opinion) styles.
To put it another way: when an author gives reasons why something happened, he or she is explaining what caused an effect (reasons are causes and the thing that happens is the effect). Also, when a writer explains the results of an action, he or she is explaining the effects of a cause (results are effects and the thing that occurs is the cause). The cause and effect text structure is used so commonly that you have probably written a paragraph using it and not noticed.
Example 1: Many people think that they can get sick by going into cold weather improperly dressed; however, illnesses are not caused by temperature- they are caused by germs. So while shivering outside in the cold probably won’t strengthen your immune system, you’re more likely to contract an illness indoors because you will have a greater exposure to germs.
Using a graphic organizer, it is easy to label the cause and effect from the reading passage.
Example 2: Students are not allowed to chew gum in my class. While some students think that I am just being mean, there are many good reasons for this rule. First, some irresponsible students make messes with their gum. They may leave it on the bottoms of desks, drop it on the floor, or put it on other people’s property. Another reason why I don’t allow students to chew gum is because it is a distraction. When they are allowed to chew gum, students are more worried about having it, popping it, chewing it, and snapping it then they are in listening, writing, reading, and learning. This is why I don’t allow students to chew gum in my class.
Identifying a text written using the cause and effect pattern of organization can be tricky. In most stories, events in the plot occur for various reasons. This can be mistaken for the cause and effect; however, stories are organized chronologically, and the information in each passage is more likely to be organized by the time in which each event occurred. Most stories are not organized by cause and effect. Cause and effect passages usually focus on explaining the reason why something occurs or occurred, and time will usually not pass in these paragraphs. One way to remember is that the cause happens first and effect happens second.
Here are some signal words that may indicate that information in a paragraph is organized as cause and effect: because, as a result, resulted, caused, affected, since, due to, effect, and so.
Exercises: Write the cause and the effect from each sentence. Underline the signal word that helped you.
1. It had begun to rain, so Sadio and Yusuf had to run inside.
Cause: _____________________________________________________________
Effect: _____________________________________________________________
2. Since it was so chilly and damp outside, Ahmed built a big fire in his fireplace.
Cause: _____________________________________________________________
Effect: _____________________________________________________________
3. Ernestina was getting very frustrated and angry because none of her good ideas were being recognized at work.
Cause: _____________________________________________________________
Effect: _____________________________________________________________
4. In the move “The Wizard of Oz”, a tornado picked up Aunty Em’s house in Kansas, and as a result, Dorothy and Toto ended up in the wonderful world of Oz.
Cause: _____________________________________________________________
Effect: _____________________________________________________________
5. We went to the grocery store because we needed milk, tortillas, and cheese.
Cause: _____________________________________________________________
Effect: _____________________________________________________________
6. Scientists believe that long ago humans needed food, so they followed herds of mammoths to North America.
Cause: _____________________________________________________________
Effect: _____________________________________________________________
7. Long ago humans used weapons because they needed to find food.
Cause: _____________________________________________________________
Effect: _____________________________________________________________
8. Since they wanted to learn about how life was long ago, archaeologists study artifacts.
Cause: _____________________________________________________________
Effect: _____________________________________________________________
9. Early hunter-gatherers learned to grow food, and as a result, their lives became much easier.
Cause: _____________________________________________________________
Effect: _____________________________________________________________
10. The glaciers began to melt and therefore the land bridge between Asia and North America became flooded.
Cause: _____________________________________________________________
Effect:
_____________________________________________________________
Challenge: Write your own cause and effect statements in the space below:
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
material is remixed from eReadingworksheets.com
TEACHER ANSWER KEY
1. It had begun to rain, so Sadio and Yusuf had to run inside.
Cause: It had begun to rain.
Effect: Sadio and Yusuf had to run inside.
Key word: so
2. Since it was so chilly and damp outside, Ahmed built a big fire in his fireplace.
Cause: It was so chilly and damp outside.
Effect: Ahmed built a big fire in his fireplace.
Key word: Since
3. Ernestina was getting very angry and frustrated because none of her good ideas were being recognized at work.
Cause: Ernestina was getting very frustrated and angry.
Effect: None of her good ideas were being recognized at work.
Key word: because
4. In the move “The Wizard of Oz”, a tornado picked up Aunty Em’s house in Kansas, and as a result, Dorothy and Toto ended up in the wonderful world of Oz.
Cause: A tornado picked up Aunty Em’s house in Kansas.
Effect: Dorothy and Toto ended up in the wonderful world of Oz.
Key word: as a result
5. We went to the grocery store because we needed milk, tortillas, and cheese.
Cause: We needed milk, tortillas, and cheese.
Effect: We went to the grocery store.
Key word: because
6. Scientists believe that long ago humans needed food, so they followed herds of mammoths to North America.
Cause: Humans needed food.
Effect: They followed herds of mammoths to North America.
Key word: so
7. Long ago humans used weapons because they needed to find food.
Cause: Humans needed to find food.
Effect: Humans used weapons.
Key word: because
8. Since they wanted to learn about how life was long ago, archaeologists study artifacts.
Cause: Archaeologists wanted to learn how life was long ago.
Effect: They study artifacts.
Key word: Because
9. Early hunter-gatherers learned to grow food, and as a result, their lives became much easier.
Cause: Early hunter-gathers learned to grow food.
Effect: Their lives became much easier.
Key word: as a result
10. The glaciers began to melt and therefore the land bridge between Asia and North America became flooded.
Cause: The glaciers began to melt.
Effect: The land bridge between Asia and North American became flooded.
Key word: therefore
Challenge: Answers will vary.