Before reading a long page, people often scan its headings. They are looking for the shape of the argument and a place to begin. Assistive tools can use the same structure to help readers move between sections.
A heading should name the section that follows it. Its level describes the relationship between sections, while its appearance can be designed separately. Making a sentence large does not automatically give it a useful structural role.
Read the headings of a page without its paragraphs. If they tell a coherent story, the structure is doing helpful work. If every heading says something vague, revise the labels before adding another visual flourish.
Bring the idea into a day.
A heading such as Preparing the document gives more context than Next steps alone. The extra specificity can help when the section is read separately.
Another angle on the story.
Treat the words around an interaction as part of the interaction. A clear label can answer a question that another visual flourish would leave open.
- Read the headings as an outline.
- Name the content of each section.
- Keep structure separate from appearance.
Follow a related question
Inspect the information attached to a sample file.
The details a file carriesAsk which situations the examples cover.
Examples shape the model’s taskKeep learning
Related background to continue exploring this subject.
MDN: learn web development MDN: how the web works
