Laying the foundation -- Thinking about the structures behind informational and explanatory texts -- Five kinds of knowledge: the foundation of understanding and expertise -- Five kinds of composing: making informational texts and making them matter -- The process and practical context of inquiry -- Naming and listing: prerequisites for problem solving and performing the possible -- Getting to the point: the process and promise of summary -- Getting oriented and directed: description and process -- Divining and defining: what's the big definition? -- Comparing and contrasting: but what's the difference? -- Classification: the most powerful thought pattern in the world? -- Problem-solution and cause-effect: so what's the problem?.