Reading Strategies We Use Every Day

1. Creating Mental Images Good readers:  Visualize and create pictures in their mind  Organize details in a “mental movie”  Use sensory images to place yourself in the story

Sensory Images  Sensory images are pictures in your mind that effect your five senses.  What do you: See Hear Smell Taste Feel

Create your own mental images  Read “The Lone Shadow’s Adventure” passage  List the sensory images that you have created  Create a quick sketch of a mental image that helps to explain the vision created by the story (similar to a frame of a comic strip)

Now – try it the other way, write 2-3 good descriptive sentences to create a mental image of the picture below

2. Determining importance Good readers: o Decide what the author’s purpose o Recognize the narrator’s point-of-view o Identify a “universal” theme o Locate details that support the theme

Important terms  Author’s Purpose: The main reason the author has written the selection. Do they want to inform, entertain, or persuade you?  Point-of-View: The person’s viewpoint that is telling the story. 1 st person: Hint- uses I, me, we, us 3 rd person: Hint – uses character’s name, he, she, it, they, them.  Theme: the main or universal message that the author is trying to express Examples: Good vs. Evil, Love Conquers All, Crime Doesn’t Pay

Can you determine the importance?  Read the article. Make a quick outline 1.What is the point-of-view that the story is told from? 2.What is the author’s purpose for writing the piece? 3.What is the theme of the selection? 4.List two supporting details that helped you determine the theme.

3. Schema Good readers:  activate background knowledge  make connections to their own experiences  make connections to the world around them  relate information to books, films  Look for patterns within the text

Types of Connections:  Text–to–Self: A connection that relates a part of the story to your own personal feelings or experience  Text-to-Text: A connection that relates the story to another book or written piece that you have read  Text-to-World: A connection that relates the story to an event or similar circumstance in the world  Remember: A complete connection uses words & phrases like: When/This _________ reminds me of _________________________________________ just like/because ___________ in the story.

Using the Schema Strategy  When you were reading the Derek Jeter article, did it remind you of anything that you already knew about, read, or experienced?  Why did it remind you of _____________ ?  How did it help you understand the text? Now use the answers to write a complete connection to the selection.

4. Questioning Good readers:  - Have inner conversations  - Ask questions before, during and after reading  - Ask questions about new information  Look for answers for their questions within the text and from outside resources

3 Types of Questions  1. Literal Question: A question whose answer is written clearly in the text  2. Inferential Question: A question where clues in the text help you make an intelligent guess  3. Critical question: A question that makes you think deeply about the answer. There are many correct answers if you use evidence from the text and background knowledge.

Any questions??? Use the poem, “A Long, Short Story” on page 657 in your literature book  Did the title, pictures, or introduction make you curious about the story you were about to read?  What did you wonder about as you were reading the text?  What questions did you have after reading? Record 1 of each (before, during, and after) question on 3 index cards regarding the passage we just read. Now – switch cards with the person next to you. Can they answer them?

5. Monitor for Meaning Good readers:  Strive to improve comprehension & maintain focus  Re-read passages when necessary  Recognize signs of confusion  Identify & define difficult vocabulary

What does it mean?  What confuses you when you read?  How do you lose focus?  Are there vocabulary words that you find confusing?  Choose three words from the text that you do not understand? How can you determine their meaning? Define each word.

6. Inferring Good readers:  make a logical conclusion using facts from the text combined with background information  look for textual evidence to support conclusions  Determine what the author is trying to reveal

Important terms  Prediction: A logical guess based on the facts. It is either confirmed or disproved by the text.  Inference: A logical conclusion based on background knowledge and clues in the text. (may not be confirmed)  Opinion: A belief or conclusion that isn’t necessarily based on facts or information

Can you make an inference? Working with a partner, complete the worksheet you’ve been given, completing each answer using sentences & details. **Using details & evidence from the text is most important!!

7. Synthesizing Good readers:  Identify literary elements that develop theme and meaning  Re-tell & summarize the text in various ways  Use text organization  Determine the meaning of the selection

Synthesize! Lets put it all together!  Can you identify the story elements? What is the setting? Who are the main characters? What is the plot?

Let’s Practice! Put your heading on your paper, the title of your summer reading book, and answer the following questions.  1. Describe a favorite mental image created by the author. Use good descriptive words, 2-3 sentences.  2. What is the theme of the story? List two details that supported the theme.  3. Write a complete connection to an event of a character of your book.  4. Record two questions that you had either before, during or after your reading.  5. Make an inference describing what you think happened after the book had ended. List one detail from the story and one piece of background knowledge that makes you believe this.