Comprehension Strategies

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Comprehension Strategies

• Scott Foresman Reading Street
• Grades 4 and 5

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Answer Questions

• -Who or what is the question about?
• -Where can you look to find the answer to this
  question?
•  
• There are two sources for finding answers to
  questions- text knowledge (in the book) and
  background knowledge (in your head). This is
  called Question-Answer Relationships (QAR).
•  
• In the Book
• -Right There, The answer is in the one spot in
  the text and usually easy to find.
• -Think and Search, The answer is in the text, but
  not in one spot. You need to search for the
  answer and put the information together.
•  
• In My Head
• -Author and Me, The answer is not in the text,
  but the author gives clues about the answer. You
  use what youve read and what you already know.
• -On My Own, The answer is not in the text at all.
  You think about what you already know and use
  background information to answer the question.
•  
• Good readers ask questions before, during, and
  after reading.
•  
• THINK ALOUD
• -What type of question is this?
• -Where should I look to find the answer?
• -How did answering this question help me
  understand what Im reading?

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Ask Questions

• -What do you want to know about
  ________________________?
• -What questions do you have so far?
• -What questions do you have about the
  ____________________ in this selection? Use the
  words who, what, when, where, and how to ask your
  questions?
• -Do you have any questions after reading?
•  
• Questions Before, During, and After Reading
• -Signal Words, Questions begin with who, what,
  when, where, why, and how and focus on
  predicting, setting a purpose for reading, or
  identifying important ideas.
• -KWL, Students list what they already KNOW and
  what they WANT to learn. After reading, students
  list what they LEARNED.
• -Story Structure, Questions are based on setting,
  characters, plot, and theme.
• -Question Stems, Generic question stems relate to
  a variety of texts and include What is the main
  idea of ___________________? and How are
  ______________ and ______________
  alike?
•  
• THINK ALOUD
• -Even before I read, I can ask questions. I can
  preview text features to make predictions and
  identify the topic. I can think about what I
  already know.
• -As I read, I keep asking myself questions, such
  as, What does this mean? and Is this
  important? Why?
• -After I read, I ask questions about the most
  important things I read, what I learned, and what
  else I would like to know.
•  
• Activity (Active Participation, Turn and Talk,
  Unison Response) RECIPROCAL TEACHING, Model
  questioning for students and then have students
  generate questions about the text. Have
  volunteers ask the questions for classmates to
  answer.

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Graphic Organizers

• -What kind of graphic organizer could you use to
  help you understand this selection? How will it
  help you keep track of information?
• -What graphic organizer would best show
  ______________________?
•  
• Graphic Organizer Purpose
  
• KWL Activate prior knowledge and set purpose
• Story Map Record literary elements and story
  structure
• Time Line Record sequence of events
• Venn Diagram Compare and Contrast
• Vocabulary Frame Predict and check word meaning
•  
• A graphic organizer is a visual and graphic
  display that depicts the relationships between
  facts, terms, and or ideas within a learning
  task. Graphic organizers are also sometimes
  referred to as knowledge maps, concept maps,
  story maps, cognitive organizers, advance
  organizers, or concept diagrams.
•  
• THINK ALOUD
• -When did this event happen?
• -If we dont know the exact date, can we figure
  out whether it happened before or after another
  event?
• -Where should we put it on the timeline? Why?
•  

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Monitor and Fix-Up

• -Does the story or article make sense?
• -What dont you understand?
• -Do you need to reread, review, read on, or check
  a reference source?
• -Do you need to read more slowly or more quickly?
• -How has you understanding changed?
• -What is a ________________? Where could you look
  to find out?
• Monitor Comprehension
• -Think about whether you are understanding what
  you are reading.
• -Ask yourself, Does this make sense? and What
  is this story or article about?
• Fix-Up Strategies
• -Summarize by writing notes and making an
  outline.
• -Adjust your reading rate.
• -Read on to find out if youll figure things out.
• -Reread and review what youve read.
• -Get help from someone else
• -Use features such as heading, captions, and
  illustrations to help.
• -Check reference sources such as dictionaries and
  encyclopedias.

THINK ALOUD For a Non-Fiction Article -Headings
and subheadings tell me what each section is
about. -Ill write each heading and subheading in
an outline format beginning with Roman Numerals
for the main headings and using letters for the
subheadings. -I can add details under each
subheading by using numbers and letters. MONITOR
COMPREHENSION Questions to ask while reading a
fiction text -Who is the story about? -Where
does the story happen? -When does it
happen? -What happens in the beginning of the
story? In the middle? At the end? Questions to
ask while reading a non-fiction text -What is
the author trying to tell us? -What does this
mean? -Does this make sense? -Do I understand
this? Use sticky notes when asking questions!
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Predict/ Confirm Predictions

• -What do you think this story or article will be
  about? Why do you think as you do?
• -What do you think you will learn from this
  selection?
• -Do the text features help you predict what will
  happen?
• -Based on what has happened so far, what do you
  think will happen next?
• -Is this what you thought would happen?
• -How does ______________ change what you thought
  would happen?
• Predicting is a process of telling what you think
  will happen, checking to confirm whether your
  prediction is correct, and changing it based on
  new information.
• Before Reading
• -Look at pictures, headings, and other details to
  determine the topic.
• -Predict what you think the selection will tell
  you.
• -Have students justify their predictions.
• During Reading
• -Revise your prediction if necessary based on new
  information.
• -Predict what might happen next based on what has
  already happened.
• After Reading
• -Look back at the selection and review your
  prediction.
• -Confirm whether your prediction is correct,
  incorrect, or partially correct.

Activity Listen to this story Jack and Jill
didnt study for their test. Instead, they
decided to play ball. What might happen next?
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Preview

• -What do the photographs, illustrations, or
  graphic sources tell about the selection?
• -What do you want to find out? What do you want
  to learn?
• Previewing a text allows the reader to prepare
  for what they are going to read. It also helps
  set a purpose for reading.
• Skim and Scan to get an idea of what the text is
  about. Skimming is looking quickly to get a
  general idea. Scanning is looking to find
  specific information.
• Use text features, such as illustrations,
  photographs, headings, boldface or italic type,
  and so on, to get an idea of content.
• Relate to prior knowledge as you think about
  what you already know and what you would like to
  learn. Use a strategy such as KWL or SQP3R
  (Survey, Question, Predict, Read, Recite, and
  Review)
• Set a purpose for reading to provide direction
  and focus.
• Ask questions to focus reading on specific
  information.
• THINK ALOUD
• -What do I learn after skimming the text?
• -Is any of the text written in boldface or
  italics? If so, what does this tell me?
• -Is the text fiction or non-fiction?

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Prior Knowledge

• -What do you know about _________________?
• -Have you read stories or articles by this author
  before?
• -How is this selection like others that you have
  read?
• -How is this like something that happened to you?
• -What does this remind you of?
• -How does your prior knowledge help you
  understand ________________?
• -Did the text match what you already knew? What
  new information did you learn?
• Activating prior knowledge is a strategy readers
  use before and as they read to think about what
  they know about a given topic based on personal
  experiences and what they have read.
• Use a KWL Chart
• -Preview a text and identify what you KNOW.
• -Set a purpose for reading based on what you WANT
  to know.
• -Review what you have LEARNED.
• Make Connections
• -Text-to-Self occurs when readers think of their
  own lives.
• -Text-to-World occurs when readers recall people,
  places, and things from the wider world.
• -Text-to-Text occurs when readers recall
  something theyve read before.

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Prior Knowledge

• THINK ALOUD
• -What do I know about this topic and author?
• -What have I seen that is similar to these
  illustrations?
• -What can I predict about the characters based on
  other people I know? Based on similar characters
  I have read about?
• -How is the setting of this selection similar to
  places in the world I have seen?

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Story Structure

• -What is the problem in this story?
• -What is the high point of this story?
• In every story, characters have conflicts and
  there is a rising action (events that cause
  complications), a climax, and a resolution in
  which the conflict is resolved. Story structure
  includes the characters, setting, plot, and theme
  of a story.
• Before Reading
• -Preview. Look for clues to the characters,
  setting, and plot.
• -Make predictions and ask questions about where
  the story takes place and what might happen.
• During and After Reading
• -Identify the problem or conflict in the story
  and notice how the characters react to it. Look
  for foreshadowing.
• -Pay attention to the rising action in the middle
  and identify the climax and resolution at the
  end.
• -Summarize the theme of the story.
• As you read, use a graphic organizer to record
  the title, characters, and setting. Continue
  reading and list important events that take place
  leading to the resolution of the problem.

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Story Structure

• THINK ALOUD
• Before Reading Ask
• -Is this selection fiction or non-fiction?
• -What clues to characters, setting, and plot can
  I see?
• During Reading Ask
• -What is the conflict or problem?
• -What events form the rising action in the story?
• -What event marks the climax?
• After Reading Ask
• -How are the events linked?
• -What might be the theme of the story?

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Summarize

• -What two or three important ideas have you read
  so far?
• -How will summarizing help you remember important
  ideas?
• -How do the text features help you summarize?
• Summarizing means picking out the important ideas
  in a story or article and restating them in your
  own words.
• Writing a Summary
• -Make sure you understand the selection. Reread
  if you dont.
• -State the main ideas, including the authors
  main point. Dont include unnecessary details.
• -For fiction, think about story elements.
• -For non-fiction, think about the text structure.
• -Write a few sentences that tell the main ideas
  in your own words.
• -Reread your summary to see if it reads smoothly.
• THINK ALOUD
• For non-fiction ask
• -What is this selection about?
• -How is it organized?
• -What are the main ideas?

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Text Structure

• -How has the author organized his or her writing?
• -What clues tell you that ___________________ is
  the text structure.
• -How does the text structure help make things
  clearer?
• Text structure is how a selection is organized.
  Non-fiction texts are often organized by sequence
  or by description or definition.
• Text Structure
• -Sequence The events are told in the order in
  which they occurred.
• -Description or Definition Important ideas are
  listed and described.
• -Comparison and Contrast The text describes
  similarities and differences.
• -Cause and Effect The text shows how events
  happen because of other events.
• THINK ALOUD
• Before reading ask
• -What is the topic?
• -What text features are there?
• -Is there a pattern to the way the information is
  given?
• During reading ask
• -What clue words help me recognize text
  structure?

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Visualize

• -When you read this, what do you picture in your
  mind?
• -What do you hear, see, or smell?
• -What do you think _______________ looks like?
• -How does becoming the character help you
  visualize?
• Visualizing is creating pictures in your mind.
  When you visualize, good readers use all five
  senses (hear, see, smell, taste, touch). The
  reader can see what is happening, smells the
  smells, feels the textures, and hears the sounds
  described in the text. Lets talk about the words
  imagery and sensory details.
• Before Reading
• -Visualize to activate prior knowledge.
• -Relate what you see in the text to things youve
  seen before.
• During and After Reading
• -Use details from the text to create pictures.
• -Revise and refine mental pictures based on new
  information.
• -Relate what you read in the text to things
  youve seen before.
• -Visualize to help recall text.

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Visualize

• THINK ALOUD
• Before reading ask
• -What previous experiences can I visualize about
  this topic?
• During reading ask
• -What do the details help me see in my mind?
• -What sounds do I hear?
• -Which details help me picture what is happening?
• -What do I picture the next step in this process
  will be?
• Activity (Active Participation, Turn and Talk)
  Read a picture book to students. Have them
  describe the images they see without showing them
  the pictures. Turn and talk. Then share and
  compare visualizations with the pictures.