Reading In The Content Areas

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Reading In The Content Areas

• Lets Reason Together!

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• Reading Is
• more than personally reacting to a text it is,
  instead, interacting with the text, reasoning
  with it to develop a hypothesis and justify it.
  By using accurate facts and inferences from the
  text, readers can transform interpretations into
  valid and reasonable thought.
• Louise Rosenblatt, 1978 1983

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Lets Reason Together

• What challenges do teachers and students face
  when reading in the content areas?
• Brainstorm the possibilities with your table
  group.

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Challenges to Reading in the Content Areas

• Reading Traditions
• Classroom/Curriculum priorities
• Students avoid reading the textbook
• Students cant read the textbook

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Content Area Reading

• Elements of Textbooks
• Chapter Previews
• Charts, Graphs, Timelines
• Footnotes
• Glossaries, Indexes
• Photos, Illustrations, Maps
• Table of Contents
• Questions, Reviews
• Unit, Chapter, and Section Headings
• Special Features

• Expository Text
• Structures
• Description
• Sequence
• Compare/Contrast
• Cause/Effect
• Problem/Solution
• Question/Answer

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From Challenges to Solutions

• Integrating reading strategies into the teaching
  of science, social studies and math prepares
  students to study new information, helps them
  learn new vocabulary, improves students
  comprehension of textbooks and trade books, and
  enables students to learn and think with new
  ideas, concepts, and facts.
• Laura Robb, 2003

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Meeting the Challenge Through Coaching
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Classroom SupportThe Walkthrough

• What are the teachers perceptions about reading
  in the content areas?
• What do you observe that will inform your
  coaching?
• What will your next steps be in support of the
  teacher and classroom instruction?

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Picture This

• Youve just completed a brief walk-through at the
  request of the science teacher.
• Many of the students were having difficulty
  reading the assigned textbook pages, while others
  had completed the reading and moved on to copying
  notes from the overhead.
• What areas can you identify for coaching support
  in this content area classroom?

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Classroom Support Coaching
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Modeling of Strategies

• Show me
• The teacher models and thinks aloud
• Help me
• The teacher provides time for students to
• practice and apply
• Let me
• The teacher releases control gradually and
• moves students toward independence
• Laura Robb

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Before/During/After Practices

• Students set a purpose for reading and build
  their prior knowledge before learning
• Students develop ways to monitor and improve
  their comprehension while learning
• Students apply new information to meaningful
  experiences after learning

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Assess/Activate/Build Prior Knowledge

• Preview/Scan
• Think Aloud
• Brainstorm
• Categorize
• Text Structures
• Graphic Organizers

• Pose Questions
• Read Aloud
• Shared Reading
• Build Vocabulary Concepts

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Improve Comprehension

• Visualize
• Experiment
• Analyze
• Infer
• Draw Conclusions
• Take Notes
• Outline

• Self-monitor
• Textbook Cues
• Make Connections
• Summarize
• Question
• Predict
• Clarify

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Connect and Apply New Knowledge

• Reread
• Skim
• Discuss
• Write
• Question
• Synthesize
• Evaluate

• Paraphrase
• Role Play
• Reflect
• Debate
• Simulation
• Oral presentation
• Project

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Reading Tools to Support Instructional Practices
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Higher Order Thinking Skills

• In what ways might we support teachers to ensure
  students move beyond recall to
• application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation
  of information?

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Differentiated Instruction

• Whole group Small group One on one
• Scaffolding
• Leveled texts
• Multiple texts
• Student choice

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Leveled, Supported Independent Reading

• Provides all students with access to text at
  their independent reading levels
• Supports student learning through differentiated
  instruction
• Supports student learning through scaffolding of
  instruction
• Supports student motivation through content
  aligned topics

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Print/Information Rich Environment

• Multiple texts
• Content word walls/charts
• Reference materials/resources
• Graphic Organizers
• Current displays of student work
• Primary source documents
• Models and manipulatives

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Professional Development

• Think about the information, instructional
  practices, and specific strategies that have been
  shared today.
• Now, think about the data, teachers , and
  students from your particular school site.
• In what ways could you provide support to meet
  the diverse needs of teachers and support student
  learning in the content areas?

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The Reading Leadership Team

• Coach responsibilities
• Research current, scientifically based reading
  practices
• Enhance school-site knowledge base for reading in
  the content areas
• Support school-wide practices/initiatives for
  reading across the curriculum

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References

• Carr, E. (2004). Teaching comprehension A
  systematic and practical framework with lessons
  and strategies, New York Scholastic.
• Fisher, D. Frey, N. (2003). Improving
  adolescent literacy Strategies that work,
• Harvey, S. Goudis, A. (2002). Strategies that
  work Teaching comprehension to enhance
  understanding.
• Robb, L. (2003). Teaching reading in social
  studies, science and math, New York Scholastic.
• Santa, C.M., Havens, L.T., Maycumber, E. M.
  (1996). Project CRISS Creating independence
  through student-owned strategies, 2nd ed.,
  Dubuqui, IA Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company.
• Vacca, R.T., Vacca, J.L. (1999). Content area
  reading Literacy and learning across the
  curriculum (6th ed.). New York Longman.
• Zimmerman, S. (2002). Seven keys to comprehension
• htttp//www.ed.gov./teachers/how/tools/initiative/
  summerworkshop/hinkle/index.html