Reading Comprehension and Vocabulary Development

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Reading Comprehension and Vocabulary Development

• November 3, 2005

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Comprehension is The Point
. . . readers process of using prior
experiences and the authors text to construct
meaning that is useful to that reader for a
specific purpose. (p. 252)
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Theories of Comprehension

• Schema Theory
• Mental/Situation Models

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Factors Affecting Comprehension

• Decoding and fluency skills
• Vocabulary
• Background knowledge
• Academic vs. conversational vocabulary
• Understanding structure of written language
• Processing abilities
• Understanding the purpose for a reading
• Cognitive abilities/skills

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Comprehension is The Point
. . . readers process of using prior
experiences and the authors text to construct
meaning that is useful to that reader for a
specific purpose. (p. 252)
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Assessing Reading Comprehension

• Graded passage with comprehension questions
• Story re-telling
• Think-alouds (to see how student is attempting
  comprehension
• Assessing background knowledge

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Assessing Reading Comprehension

• Maze
• Jose went to the fair. He had to go through a big
  (hole/gate/tunnel) to get into the fair. Jose
  ate lots of good (food/mud/it). He had fun at the
  (dance/zoo/fair).
• Picture Cards story re-tellings answering
  comprehension questions

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Teachers who were excellent at facilitating
comprehension

• Built language at every opportunity
• (Vocabulary)
• Activated/built students background knowledge
  (schema)
• Provided a purpose for reading
• Followed up on that purpose after reading
• Taught prediction
• Continuously motivated students to read for
  meaning
• Taught strategies to identify the main idea

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Example StrategyRead -- Ask -- Paraphrase (RAP)

• Read paragraph to yourself.
• Ask yourself what is the main idea.
• Put the paragraph into your own words and tell it
  to your partner.
• Switch roles.

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Story Grammar Questioning

1. Read the story and construct a story grammar
   using the elements you identified
2. Write one question for each of the major story
   elements.
3. Ask student to answer story grammar questions
   (using blank story map OR orally OR in pairs OR
   in small groups)

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Vocabulary Development

• Children typically learn approximately 3,000
  words per year!
• Gain new vocabulary through school (instruction)
  and through family activities, trips, hobbies,
  reading independently, etc.

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Stages of Word Learning(adapted from Dade
ORourke, 1971)

• I never saw it before!
• Ive heard of it or I can pronounce it, but I
  dont know what it means.
• I recognize it in context - It has something to
  do with. . . I know one of its meanings
• I know it. I know what it means and can use it in
  several ways or contexts.

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What the Student Knows Instruction Needed
Knows word when hears it but doesnt recognize printed form. Teach printed form.
Knows words oral and written form but doesnt use it in speech or writing. Promote generative knowledge. Give examples of its use clarify word encourage its use in a safe environment.
Knows the concept but not the label. Teach the label and relate it to the concept.
Has partial knowledge of the word. Knows definition but doesnt have contextual knowledge. Develop a deeper meaning of the word examine the word in multiple contexts.
Recognizes the label but has no real conceptual knowledge of the concept. Or knows the words everyday meaning but not how it might be used in a technical sense. Develop the concept.  
Does not know either concept or the label. Develop the concept and the label.
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(No Transcript)
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What it is and What is Isnt

• It is
• hard

• It isnt
• soft

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Comprehension Repair Strategies

• Click Clunk
• Read on.
• Reread sentence.
• Reread paragraph or section.
• Look for information from a resource such as a
  dictionary or glossary.
• Ask someone else for help.

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Content through reading guides

• Teacher can develop guide questions or student or
  small group can develop questions.
• Students can work with guides independently or in
  small groups.

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Content through strategy use
RAP
Graphic Organizers
Admit-Exit Strategy
K-W-L
Question-Answer-Relationship Guide
Directed Reading-Thinking Activity (DR-TA)
Say-Something Paired Reading
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Content through modifications to text
Braille
Highlighted texts
Increased font size
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Content through varying mediums
Tape-recorded books
www.academicmaterials.com/ entrance.htm
E-books
Books on CD
Buddy-reading
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Content through Read-Alouds

• Teacher reads a selection aloud to entire class
• Good as grabbers/hooks
• Allow students to focus on content vs. decoding
• May aid in memory b/c of multiple avenues of
  input
• Model fluent oral reading (support language
  acquisition for ELL students)

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Content through Shared Reading

• Teacher reads aloud while students are looking at
  text
• Be explicit about the purpose of the reading
• Model and teach a specific strategy (e.g.,
  inference, text features, map reading)
• Provide a follow-up activity that allows students
  to practice the modeled strategy