Procedures tell how to do something. This might include instructions for how to carry out a task or play a game, directions for getting to a place, and rules of behavior.
A procedure is usually organized to include:
- the goal of the activity;
- any materials needed to achieve the goal;
- steps to accomplish the goal.
Some procedures have optional stages such as explaining reasons for a step, providing alternative steps, giving cautions, or mentioning possible consequences. Directions, rules and spoken procedures will have a slightly different structure from those which give instructions to make something.
Common grammatical patterns of a procedure include:
- the use of commands (i.e. the imperative form of the verb), e.g. ‘put’, ‘don’t mix’;
- the use of action verbs, e.g. ‘turn’, ‘pick up’, ‘don’t run’;
- the use of precise vocabulary, e.g. ‘whisk’, ‘lukewarm’;
- the use of connectives to sequence the actions in time, e.g. ‘then’, ‘while’;
- the use of adverbials to express details of time and place, manner, and so on, e.g. ‘for five minutes’, ‘2 centimeters from the top’, ‘carefully’.
THE EXAMPLE OF PROCEDURE
– In chronological order
– All necessary steps included
How to Make a Cardboard Photo Frame
1. Find photo.
2. Measure up frames.
3. Cut out first frame.
4. Cut out second frame so that the first frame can fit on top without slipping through.
5. Make the third frame with the same overlap.
6. Paint the frame in different ways.
7. Attach stand or handle.
Taken from Board of Studies, Engish K-6 Module, NSW.1998:218
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup of self raising flour
¼ teaspoon vanilla
¼ cup milk
- Beat butter and sugar to a cream
- Add lightly beaten egg and vanilla. Beat well.
- Stir flour and salt together.
- Fold in dry ingredients alternately with milk and mix well.
- Drop heaped teaspoonfuls of mixture into well-greased patty tins or papers.
- Bake in a moderate oven for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Cool on a wire rack.
- Ice with butter icing
Makes about 12
(Taken from Text Types. A writing Guide for Students. Townsend, Ann. 2006)
Answer the following questions correctly by reading the procedure above.
1) What does the text tell about?
(A) describe about patty cakes
(B) how to make patty cakes
(C) tell the story of patty cakes
(D) give information about buying patty cakes
(E) what the patty cakes for
2) What do you need to make patty cake?
(A) butter, flour, garlic, vanilla, salt, sugar
(B) butter, milk, onion, salt, vanilla, egg
(C) vanilla, flour, salt, butter, egg, milk
(D) vanilla, noodle, salt, milk, egg, flour
(E) milk, egg, flour, sugar, butter, vanilla
3) What will you do after all ingredients mixed well?
(A) cool on a wire rack
(B) bake in an oven about 15 minutes
(C) add flour and salt
(D) fold in dry ingredients with milk
(E) drop heaped teaspoonfuls into patty tins or papers
4) How many minutes do you need to bake the cake in the oven?
(A) 10 to 15 minutes
(B) 20 minutes
(C) 25 to 30 minutes
(D) 30 to 45 minutes
(E) an hour
5) What is the writer’s suggestion to serve the patty cakes?
(A) serve with chocolate chips
(B) those ingredients make 12
(C) keep in cool and icy place
(D) eat patty cake right after taking out from the oven
(E) only 12 people may eat the patty cake
1) List the verbs used in the text above.
2) List the noun mentioned in the text above.
3) Classify them in the table below
Rearrange the sentences below into correct good procedure text.
How to Make Jelly
1) Put it in the refrigerator until it sets (at least two hours)
2) Sprinkle the flavored jelly crystals into a bowl.
3) Add 250mls of cold water and stir.
4) Remove the jelly from the refrigerator and serve.
5) Pour the jelly into a dish or jelly mould.
6) Add 250mls of boiling water and stir with a whisk until dissolved.
How to Recycle Aluminum Cans
1) Make sheets into new aluminum cans
2) Roll the ingots into sheets.
3) Collect the aluminum cans.
4) Grind the cans into small metal chips.
5) Send the sheets to aluminum can factories.
6) Melt the small metal chips and turn them into ingots.
7) Take the cans to a factory
To Find Out Evaporation
1) Measure the water level in both beakers.
2) Fill two beakers with the same amount of water.
3) Put a foil cover over one of the beakers.
4) Mark the water level on the outside of each beaker.
5) Leave both beakers in a warm place for a few days.
6) Write down the results.
Here is the text of making a sandwich. Read the text carefully then rewrite it into the text format as the example. The orders are goal, ingredients/materials, and steps/methods.
Do you know how to make sandwich? Well, first of all, take two slices of bread, and spread them with butter or margarine. Then put anything that you like on top f the bread on one slice; you can have a fried egg, omelet, some strawberry jam (or any kind of jam), chocolate sprinkles, a slice of cheese, a sausage, or something else. After that, join the two slices of bread together, and your sandwich is ready.