Comprehension Skill for the Week of December 10rd:
Summarizing and Predicting
Summarizing
Our comprehension strategy for the next 2 weeks is summarizing:
Summary
Setting
Summary
- A basic reading technique.
- Pulls together information in order to highlight the important points.
- Re-iterates the information.
- Shows what the original authors wrote.
- Addresses one set of information (e.g. article, chapter, document) at a time. Each source remains distinct.
- Presents a cursory overview.
- Demonstrates an understanding of the overall meaning.
Setting
- The setting of a story is when (time) and where (place) a story takes place.
Predicting
No reader, it seems, can resist thinking about what a writer is going to write next. Predicting helps readers sort out important information from unimportant information. It also helps them organize their thinking as they encounter new material.
The art of predicting is a critical reading comprehension activities. Students predictions will be based on their background knowledge of the subject matter, so be sure to build it appropriately.
Being able to predict what will happen in a text sets up scaffolding for the students to build upon. Students should make predictions using the elements of the text, such as title, pictures, table of contents, and the back cover.
Continue making predictions as you read the story. Record these predictions on a T-Chart and revisit them during and after reading the text. A simple check-mark beside each prediction is enough to verify if the predictions were accurate or not.
The art of predicting is a critical reading comprehension activities. Students predictions will be based on their background knowledge of the subject matter, so be sure to build it appropriately.
Being able to predict what will happen in a text sets up scaffolding for the students to build upon. Students should make predictions using the elements of the text, such as title, pictures, table of contents, and the back cover.
Continue making predictions as you read the story. Record these predictions on a T-Chart and revisit them during and after reading the text. A simple check-mark beside each prediction is enough to verify if the predictions were accurate or not.
Visualizing
Visualizing is a skill that is essential for building reading comprehension. We know that when readers lose their mental picture, comprehension is lost as well.
As we read, we create mental images of what is happening in the story as it unfolds, based on what we already know and understand about the world around us. We are tapping into prior knowledge, making connections, inferring information, and paying attention to details. Characters are created in our minds and our own unique version of the story begins to play out in our imaginations, just like a movie. This is exactly why some of us are rather disappointed when the book version of our favorite novel hits the big screen. (I’m still getting over my disappointment of the movie version of The Bridges of Madison County. No disrespect to Clint Eastwood and Meryl Streep! They were just so far away from my own mental pictures of Francesca Johnson and Robert Kincaid, the two main characters in the book.)
Readers get upset when their mental picture doesn’t match the casting director’s pick for the starring role. In other cases, we are happily surprised by the movie versions of our favorite books.
As we read, we create mental images of what is happening in the story as it unfolds, based on what we already know and understand about the world around us. We are tapping into prior knowledge, making connections, inferring information, and paying attention to details. Characters are created in our minds and our own unique version of the story begins to play out in our imaginations, just like a movie. This is exactly why some of us are rather disappointed when the book version of our favorite novel hits the big screen. (I’m still getting over my disappointment of the movie version of The Bridges of Madison County. No disrespect to Clint Eastwood and Meryl Streep! They were just so far away from my own mental pictures of Francesca Johnson and Robert Kincaid, the two main characters in the book.)
Readers get upset when their mental picture doesn’t match the casting director’s pick for the starring role. In other cases, we are happily surprised by the movie versions of our favorite books.
Making Connections
Schema theory explains how our previous experiences, knowledge, emotions, and understandings affect what and how we learn (Harvey & Goudvis, 2000). Schema is the background knowledge and experience readers bring to the text. Good readers draw on prior knowledge and experience to help them understand what they are reading and are thus able to use that knowledge to make connections. Struggling readers often move directly through a text without stopping to consider whether the text makes sense based on their own background knowledge, or whether their knowledge can be used to help them understand confusing or challenging materials. By teaching students how to connect to text they are able to better understand what they are reading (Harvey & Goudvis, 2000). Accessing prior knowledge and experiences is a good starting place when teaching strategies because every student has experiences, knowledge, opinions, and emotions that they can draw upon.
Keene and Zimmerman (1997) concluded that students comprehend better when they make different kinds of connections:
Sometimes when reading, readers are reminded of other things that they have read, other books by the same author, stories from a similar genre, or perhaps on the same topic. These types of connections are text-to-text connections. Readers gain insight during reading by thinking about how the information they are reading connects to other familiar text. “This character has the same problem that I read about in a story last year,” would be an example of a text-to-text connection.
Text-to-world connections are the larger connections that a reader brings to a reading situation. We all have ideas about how the world works that goes far beyond our own personal experiences. We learn about things through television, movies, magazines, and newspapers. Often it is the text-to-world connections that teachers are trying to enhance when they teach lessons in science, social studies, and literature. An example of a text-to-world connection would be when a reader says, "I saw a program on television that talked about things described in this article."
Keene and Zimmerman (1997) concluded that students comprehend better when they make different kinds of connections:
- Text-to-self
- Text-to-text
- Text-to-world
Sometimes when reading, readers are reminded of other things that they have read, other books by the same author, stories from a similar genre, or perhaps on the same topic. These types of connections are text-to-text connections. Readers gain insight during reading by thinking about how the information they are reading connects to other familiar text. “This character has the same problem that I read about in a story last year,” would be an example of a text-to-text connection.
Text-to-world connections are the larger connections that a reader brings to a reading situation. We all have ideas about how the world works that goes far beyond our own personal experiences. We learn about things through television, movies, magazines, and newspapers. Often it is the text-to-world connections that teachers are trying to enhance when they teach lessons in science, social studies, and literature. An example of a text-to-world connection would be when a reader says, "I saw a program on television that talked about things described in this article."
Cause and Effect
A cause is WHY something happens.
An effect is WHAT happens.
As you read be a detective.
Look for clue words, such as if, then, because, since, and so.
Clue words can sometimes signal causes and effects.
An effect is WHAT happens.
As you read be a detective.
Look for clue words, such as if, then, because, since, and so.
Clue words can sometimes signal causes and effects.
Determining Importance
Determining importance is the ability to get to the heart of the text. What are the most important ideas or information in this reading? What should I remember? According to Harvey and Goudvis, determining importance is "making sense of reading and moving toward insight". Since 90 percent of what adults read is nonfiction, this discussion on determining importance will focus on informational text.
In order to determine what is important and worth remembering, students need to understand both the external and internal text structures in informational text. External text structure, such as a table of contents, headings, charts, and guide questions, provides organizational aides to facilitate reading. Students need to learn how to utilize these structures to determine what the most important information is.
Internal text structures level the information in the text. The most important ideas are at the top level, the next level supports these ideas, and the bottom level provides the supporting details for each idea. Struggling readers need to know this hierarchical relationship to determine how text structure will help them determine what is important in their reading. Teachers need to help all students understand how to use internal text structure to comprehend and retain the material that they are expected to learn.
In order to determine what is important and worth remembering, students need to understand both the external and internal text structures in informational text. External text structure, such as a table of contents, headings, charts, and guide questions, provides organizational aides to facilitate reading. Students need to learn how to utilize these structures to determine what the most important information is.
Internal text structures level the information in the text. The most important ideas are at the top level, the next level supports these ideas, and the bottom level provides the supporting details for each idea. Struggling readers need to know this hierarchical relationship to determine how text structure will help them determine what is important in their reading. Teachers need to help all students understand how to use internal text structure to comprehend and retain the material that they are expected to learn.
Questioning
Questions can be effective because they:
There are four different types of questions:
- Give students a purpose for reading
- Focus students' attention on what they are to learn
- Help students to think actively as they read
- Encourage students to monitor their comprehension
- Help students to review content and relate what they have learned to what they already know
There are four different types of questions:
- "Right There"Questions found right in the text that ask students to find the one right answer located in one place as a word or a sentence in the passage.
Example: Who is Frog's friend? Answer: Toad - "Think and Search"Questions based on the recall of facts that can be found directly in the text. Answers are typically found in more than one place, thus requiring students to "think" and "search" through the passage to find the answer.
Example: Why was Frog sad? Answer: His friend was leaving. - "Author and You"Questions require students to use what they already know, with what they have learned from reading the text. Student's must understand the text and relate it to their prior knowledge before answering the question.
Example: How do think Frog felt when he found Toad? Answer: I think that Frog felt happy because he had not seen Toad in a long time. I feel happy when I get to see my friend who lives far away. - "On Your Own"Questions are answered based on a students prior knowledge and experiences. Reading the text may not be helpful to them when answering this type of question.
Example: How would you feel if your best friend moved away? Answer: I would feel very sad if my best friend moved away because I would miss her.
Inferring
Proficient readers understand that writers often tell more than they actually say with words. They give you hints or clues that allow you to draw conclusions from information that is implied. Using these clues to “read between the lines” and reach a deeper understanding of the message is called inferring.
Students need to learn how to infer so that they can go below the surface details to see what is actually implied (not stated) within the words of the story. Some meanings are meant to be implied – that is not stated clearly but they are hinted at. When meanings are implied, you have to infer them.
Students make inferences every day without even thinking about it. For example, you can ask children to imagine they are sitting at their desk doing their homework when they hear a loud booming sound and hear pattering against the window. They don’t actually see anything, but they can infer there is a thunderstorm outside. All students recognize the sounds of thunder. They know heavy rain makes a pattering sound. And they know that any time the two go together there is almost a thunderstorm going on.
Inferring with context clues
One way students can infer a word meaning is from context clues within the text. Students have to learn how to work out meanings from these clues. There’s several ways to do this.
They can simply make an educated guess using the hints given before the unknown word and the sentences that follow the word. Asking questions is one way to unravel these clues.
Guided reading questions
Here are a few questions teachers can ask during guided reading sessions to help students uncover the meaning of unknown words.
During the guided reading session, the teacher should have these question stems available when students find a word they don’t know the meaning of. The teacher pauses the reading and chooses the appropriate question to ask.
“What do you think the word means considering (a certain action or event) has happened?
“How do you know that the word means (insert definition)?”
“What part of the text helps you make this inference?”
“Where can you find other clues to help you understand?”
“If you substitute what you think is a similar word, would the sentence still make sense?”
Students need to learn how to infer so that they can go below the surface details to see what is actually implied (not stated) within the words of the story. Some meanings are meant to be implied – that is not stated clearly but they are hinted at. When meanings are implied, you have to infer them.
Students make inferences every day without even thinking about it. For example, you can ask children to imagine they are sitting at their desk doing their homework when they hear a loud booming sound and hear pattering against the window. They don’t actually see anything, but they can infer there is a thunderstorm outside. All students recognize the sounds of thunder. They know heavy rain makes a pattering sound. And they know that any time the two go together there is almost a thunderstorm going on.
Inferring with context clues
One way students can infer a word meaning is from context clues within the text. Students have to learn how to work out meanings from these clues. There’s several ways to do this.
They can simply make an educated guess using the hints given before the unknown word and the sentences that follow the word. Asking questions is one way to unravel these clues.
Guided reading questions
Here are a few questions teachers can ask during guided reading sessions to help students uncover the meaning of unknown words.
During the guided reading session, the teacher should have these question stems available when students find a word they don’t know the meaning of. The teacher pauses the reading and chooses the appropriate question to ask.
“What do you think the word means considering (a certain action or event) has happened?
“How do you know that the word means (insert definition)?”
“What part of the text helps you make this inference?”
“Where can you find other clues to help you understand?”
“If you substitute what you think is a similar word, would the sentence still make sense?”
Other strategies:
In addition to determining importance and asking questions we will focus our studies on nouns, text features, facts and opinions, and usage of reference sources.
Interactive Reading Comprehension Website!
http://www.kn.att.com/wired/fil/pages/listcompreheta.html
http://www.mantex.co.uk/2009/09/16/how-to-summarize/
http://www.kimskorner4teachertalk.com/readingliterature/readingstrategies/inferences.htm
http://bogglesworldesl.com/setting.htm Settings
http://www.studyzone.org/testprep/ela4/h/setting.cfm Settings
http://www.busyteacherscafe.com/literacy/comprehension_strategies.html#questioning Questioning
http://penningtonpublishing.com/blog/reading/how-to-improve-reading-comprehension-with-self-questioning/ Questioning
http://beyondpenguins.ehe.osu.edu/issue/icebergs-and-glaciers/visualizing-to-understand-content-area-text Visualizing
http://www.k12reader.com/reading-activities-for-making-inferences/ Inferences
http://www.busyteacherscafe.com/literacy/comprehension_strategies.html#importance Determining importance
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPsCEDQ3MUs Determining Importancehttp://reading.ecb.org/teacher/makingconnections/index.html Making Connections
http://suite101.com/article/making-connections-and-reading-a129868 Making Connectionhttp://havefunteaching.com/worksheets/reading-worksheets/predictions-worksheets/ Predictions
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uql0IIIMJDY Making Connections
http://www.mantex.co.uk/2009/09/16/how-to-summarize/
http://www.kimskorner4teachertalk.com/readingliterature/readingstrategies/inferences.htm
http://bogglesworldesl.com/setting.htm Settings
http://www.studyzone.org/testprep/ela4/h/setting.cfm Settings
http://www.busyteacherscafe.com/literacy/comprehension_strategies.html#questioning Questioning
http://penningtonpublishing.com/blog/reading/how-to-improve-reading-comprehension-with-self-questioning/ Questioning
http://beyondpenguins.ehe.osu.edu/issue/icebergs-and-glaciers/visualizing-to-understand-content-area-text Visualizing
http://www.k12reader.com/reading-activities-for-making-inferences/ Inferences
http://www.busyteacherscafe.com/literacy/comprehension_strategies.html#importance Determining importance
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPsCEDQ3MUs Determining Importancehttp://reading.ecb.org/teacher/makingconnections/index.html Making Connections
http://suite101.com/article/making-connections-and-reading-a129868 Making Connectionhttp://havefunteaching.com/worksheets/reading-worksheets/predictions-worksheets/ Predictions
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uql0IIIMJDY Making Connections