Comprehension Concepts and Instructional Practices

Reading teachers should know and understand:

- Reading comprehension takes place through an interaction between reader and text - Comprehension instruction takes place before, during, and/or after reading - Background knowledge influences comprehension - How to determine text complexity - How to purposely select text for various purposes. - How to differentiate instruction for English language learners and struggling readers - Read-alouds are an effective way to build background knowledge and develop reader processes - The need to match instructional practices with the reader and the task - Effective independent reading strategies and processes

Teachers can help students activate prior knowledge by:

- explaining or discussing the text in advance; - having students preview the text (e.g. look at the illustrations, the title, the table of contents); - asking questions; - actively engaging students in discussion; and - providing an overview of vocabulary or critical concepts in the text.

New Literacies "New literacies" are those new forms of literacy made possible by technological developments, specifically digital information literacies. include:

media literacy online navigation digital storytelling social networks blogs podcasts instant messaging photo sharing artificial intelligence literacy

Making Connections with Text The process of making connections is done before, during, and after reading. Readers make the following connections:

text-to-self text -to-world text-to-text

Activating Prior Knowledge

Activating prior knowledge about the subject, content, or vocabulary in a text prior to reading it can help readers make connections between what they already know and what they are about to read, improving comprehension.

Opinion/Argumentative

Based on author's judgement Used to persuade

The act of grasping the meaning, nature, or importance of text is describing

Comprehension

Monitoring Comprehension

Comprehension is the process of constructing meaning, interacting with text by using prior knowledge and personal experiences. Readers can draw meaning and understanding from the context of the text, which are the words and phrases surrounding the word(s).

Self-Assessment

Comprehension self-assessments help students better understand their reading strategies and gauge their comprehension. Students are taught to ask themselves questions before, during, and after reading, such as: what they know about the text before reading; if they stayed focus and engaged with the text while reading; if they understood the text; what strategies they used to gain understanding if they did not understand all of the text; and if they were able to successfully retell or summarize the text.

Comprehension

Concepts and Instructional Practices

What is the initial step in the process of comprehension?

Engaging in classroom discussions to activate prior knowledge

Literary Text Structures and Elements

Explicit instruction that teaches students to recognize the structure of a text enhances comprehension, memory, recall, and retelling ability. Instruction in literary elements can be done in many ways, including but not limited to: teaching students how to use story maps/graphic organizers; teaching students explicit questioning and answering strategies; and both modeling and having students engage in think-alouds.

What is described as the bridge between decoding and comprehension?

Fluency

Genre

Genre is a category of writing that is characterized by a particular style, form, or content.

Content Literacy For content area instruction, the content is the what which is being taught. But how the content is taught is often based in literacy. Teachers should consider the following questions when preparing content instruction:

How do I support students in learning the vocabulary needed to comprehend the text? How do I support students in reading the material with strong comprehension? How will students write about what they have learned? How will students effectively question, discuss, and/or present the content?

After reading new information, readers combine this information with what they already know to create personal understandings. This is commonly described as "reading between the lines." What comprehension process is this?"

Inferring

Informational Text Structures & Elements Informational texts may be supplemented by mathematical equations and scientific findings, maps, graphs, tables/charts, timelines, diagrams, and photographs, all of which add to the information provided in the text.

Informational text informs, or "communicates facts about the natural or social world" (Duke, 2006). Informational text spans a wide variety of text structures, including books, articles, brochures, websites, etc. Explicitly teaching how to use graphic organizers to dissect the text, teaching how to construct mental images through think-alouds, and teaching how to appropriately ask and answer questions about the text all aid in student comprehension of informational text.

Informational Text

Informational texts are those pieces of written material whose purpose is to inform. Through informational text, readers gain knowledge about a specific topic. Informational texts include literary nonfiction, historical, scientific, and technical texts

Literary Text

Literary texts are those pieces of written material whose purpose is to tell a story or entertain. Literary texts include fictional stories, drama, poetry, and songs. Literary texts may be light or dark, whimsical or serious, political or apolitical, etc.

The central or overarching meaning of a text:

Main idea

As Jamal, Julianne and Yolanda began discussing the first few chapters they read in Frindle, Yolanda brought up the number of times she too has made up new words, just like Nick, the protagonist in the book. Yolanda is doing which of the following?

Making a text-to-self connection

Making Predictions

Making predictions is when a reader utilizes information known about the text prior to reading (e.g. title, cover art, description) to predict or anticipate what the text will be about. Predicting is a part of the metacognitive process, as the reader thinks about what they are going to be reading, and then can consider their predictions throughout the reading of the text.

Metacognition

Metacognition is an awareness of one's own mental processes. Teachers model metacognition by explaining what they are thinking during the reading process. This shows what good readers do automatically. The "think-aloud" strategy is often used by teachers to demonstrate and teach students to use metacognition while reading

Literary text genres include:

Narrative fiction Science fiction Historical fiction Fantasy Mystery Folklore Legend Myths Poetry Drama Lyric

What type of text is a composition that tells a story or recounts sequences of events and experiences?

Narrative text

Informational text genres include:

Nonfiction Autobiography Biography News articles Debates/speeches

Text Formats

Picture book Chapter book Novel Graphic novel Wordless book Prose Diary Limerick Free verse Script Brochure Manual

Module 7

Quiz

Literary elements include:

Standard story grammar character setting theme conflict plot climax rising action falling action Points of view (character and self) Cause and effect Dialogue Mood and tone Foreshadowing Irony Allusions

What is an often overlooked and under-addressed factor in reading comprehension?

Subject-matter knowledge

When students use key words or phrases to identify the main points in a text, they are engaged in which of the following reading skills?

Summarizing

What is the role of classroom discussions in comprehension?

To help students understand information and acquire knowledge

Descriptive

Used to describe a place or thing, create characters, set a mood, develop a sensory experience

Narrative

Used to entertain, to tell a story, etc. Typically consists of a plot structure including setting, characters, theme, and purpose

Informative/Expository

Used to inform the reader Explains content

Visualizing Text

Visualizing refers to a reader's ability to create pictures in their head while reading based on the text. When a reader creates mental images of what is being read, comprehension is strengthened as a result. Many young readers need to be taught to visualize, and for them visualization is conscious experience. Over time, as readers gain skill and practice, visualization becomes automatic. Many refer to visualization as "seeing a movie in your head while reading." Visualization is a part of the metacognitive process, as readers assign images to the text based on their prior knowledge and what they are thinking of while reading.

Informational text types /elements include

descriptive persuasive argumentative chronological cause/effect compare/contrast problem/solution explanatory