Closing in on Reading Strategies
Merryhill Roseville Professional Development
Objectives
- To learn the how, when and why of strategies for guided reading
- To learn the how, when and why of strategies for close reading
- To learn the how, when and why of strategies for shared reading
Guided Reading
The WHY of Guided Reading
Developing readers have already gained important understandings about how print works. These children know how to monitor their own reading, They have th ability to check on themselves or search for possibilities and alternatives if they encounter a problem when reading. For thesis readers, the guided reading experience is a powerful way to support the development of reading strategies.
The ultimate goal of guided reading is silent reading, which is achieved as children move past the beginning levels. The teacher's support helps propel the developing reader into independent performance.
Refer to PowerPoint below on Guided Reading
Reading Behaviors During Guided Reading
Close Reading
The WHAT of Close Reading
CHECKING FOR UNDERSTANDING
Shared Reading
The WHAT and HOW of Shared Reading
Make Connections
- This reminds me of a time when I...
- I know about this topic because I...
- The setting of this book is just like...
- This book is something like...
- What's going on in this book is just like what's happening in..
Ask Questions
- Before I read this text, I wonder about...
- While I'm reading, I try to figure out...
- After I read, I ask myself...
- I wonder why...
- What does this word mean?
- Why did ____________ do that?
- What is going to happen next?
- Why did the author put that part in there?
- I have questions about this part because it doesn't make sense. I need to make sure I read it right. If I reread and fix a mistake, that might answer my question.
Visualize
- The author gives me a picture in my mind when he or she describes...
- I can really see what the author talks about when he or she...
- I can draw a picture of what the author describes.
Determine Text Importance
- I know these parts of the story are important because they match my purpose for reading, which was...
- I believe the author thinks ____________ is important because...
- I think the author's opinion about _____ is ______ because...
- This text uses the (cause/effect, problem/solution, description, compare/contrast, sequence/steps in a process) text structure. I can use a graphic organizer to help me understand it...
- I see lots of information right here. I need to identify which parts are important and which parts are just interesting...
- All these ideas are important, but I think some are more important than others. I need to determine which ideas are the most important...
- This (chart, table, graph, time line) helps me understand that...
- These (boldfaced words, font changes, bullets, captions) help me locate what is important.
- Let me take the big ideas and summarize the text.
Make Inferences
- The author says this, but means...
- If I read between the lines, the author tells me that...
- The clues to prove my inference are...
- Because of what the author said, I know that...
- From the clues or information the author gives, I can conclude that...
- I think that ____________ will happen next because the author says ____________.
Synthesize
- This story or passage is really about… My views on this area...
- My opinion of _________ is...
- I first thought ________ about the topic. Now I think...
- I've read a lot of information. Let me stop and think about this for a minute.
- My judgment of this information is...
- From this information, I can generalize that...
Think Aloud as a Reading Strategy
Modeling through think-alouds is the best way to teach all comprehension strategies. By thinking aloud, teachers show students what good readers do. Think-alouds can be used during read-alouds and shared reading. They can also be used during small-group reading to review or reteach a previously modeled strategy.
Wilhelm (2001) describes a think-aloud as a way to:
- Create a record of the strategic decision-making process of going through text
- Report everything the reader notices, does, sees, feels, asks, and understands as she reads
- Talk about the reading strategies being used within the content being read
- The teacher models the think-aloud while she reads aloud, and the students listen.
- The teacher thinks aloud during shared reading, and the students help out.
- Students think aloud during shared reading, and the teacher and other students monitor and help.
- The teacher or students think aloud during shared reading while writing on an overhead, on self-stick notes, or in a journal.
- Students think aloud in small-group reading, and the teacher monitors and helps.
- Students individually think aloud during independent reading using self-stick notes or a journal. Then students compare their thoughts with others.
(Wilhelm, 2001)
When you introduce a new comprehension strategy, model during read-aloud and shared reading:
- Decide on a strategy to model.
- Choose a short text or section of text.
- Read the text ahead of time. Mark locations where you will stop and model the strategy.
- State your purpose—name the strategy and explain the focus of your think-alouds.
- Read the text aloud to students and think aloud at the designated points.
- If you conduct a shared reading experience, have students highlight words and phrases that show evidence of your thinking by placing self-stick notes in the book.
- Reinforce the think-alouds with follow-up lessons in the same text or with others.