Top 10 Reading Strategies

Why have a K-12 emphasis on reading? Elkhart Community Schools is focusing (K-12) on reading instruction. All data have shown the need for a systematic approach to instruction.

Listening Speaking Reading Writing Language Development Language acquisition involves an interaction among these connected processes. As students are exposed to language, they first mimic the language of their environment and eventually develop the capacity to use language independently.

Actual Differences in Quantity of Words Heard Reading difficulties begin here….. Actual Differences in Quantity of Words Heard In a typical hour, the average child would hear: Welfare 616 Words These stunning data from the University of Oregon’s research on early literacy make a strong case for explicit instruction and modeling. Working Class 1,251 Words Professional 2,153 Words

Most students fall into the first two categories: Did you know... Most students fall into the first two categories: - welfare - working class 25% fall in the Welfare category; 60% fall in the Working Class category; and 15% fall in the Professional category. According to research shared by Ruby Payne, most minority students and poor students do not have access to formal language at home. This is why our emphasis on reading strategies instruction is so critical. As educators, we must guide students from casual to more formal language which is used in schools and the work environment.

Language Reading Thinking Connection Language, Thinking, and Reading are inter-connected. Reading involves cracking the alphabetic code to determine the words and then thinking about those words to construct meaning. Strategic readers address their thinking in an inner-conversation that helps them make sense of what they read. Reading Thinking

Reading IS Thinking “The purpose of reading is understanding.” Reading strategies focus on language development and the thinking aspects of reading.

Strategic Thinking Stephanie Harvey and Anne Goudvis, authors of Strategies That Work, state that, “Getting readers to think when they read, to develop an awareness of their thinking, and to use strategies that help them comprehend are the primary goals of comprehension instruction...”

Strategic Thinking “True comprehension goes beyond literal understanding and involves the reader’s interaction with text. If students are to become thoughtful, insightful readers, they must extend their thinking beyond a superficial understanding of the text.” Stephanie Harvey and Anne Goudvis This means moving beyond answering questions at the end of a story.

Why teach reading strategies? “Once thought of as the natural result of decoding plus oral language, comprehension is now viewed as a much more complex process involving knowledge, experience, thinking and teaching.” (Linda Fielding and P. David Pearson, 1994) Students may be able to decode or read the words in a book but if they don’t have the knowledge of the subject or some experience to connect to what they read, they won’t understand the text.

What strategies should be taught? Researchers identified strategies that proficient readers use to construct meaning from text. Pearson, Keene, Harvey, Goudvis, Robb and others summarized these strategies. Elkhart Community School’s Top 10 Reading Strategies are based on the work of the above researchers. Elkhart’s Top Ten Reading Strategies are a result of collaboration between elementary and secondary teachers. These teachers investigated leading research in the fields of reading, brain-compatible instruction, at-risk and special student populations.

Top 10 Reading Strategies Connect to the Text Ask Questions Expand Vocabulary Predict & Prove Sense It Decide What’s Important Make Inferences Then Draw Conclusions Summarize and Synthesize Check Your Understanding Build Fluency Here they are --- If you’ve attended any seminars or read any research --- they should look familiar.

Making Connections: A Bridge From the New to the Known Strategy 1: Connect to the Text Making Connections: A Bridge From the New to the Known Text to Self Text to Text Text to World According to Harvey and Goudvis, “Readers pay more attention when they relate to the text. Readers naturally bring their prior knowledge and experience to reading but comprehend better when they think about the connections they make between the text, their lives, and the larger world.”

Asking Questions: The Strategy That Propels Readers Forward Ask Questions Asking Questions: The Strategy That Propels Readers Forward “Questioning is the strategy that keeps readers engaged. When readers ask questions, they clarify understanding and forge ahead to make meaning. Asking questions is at the heart of thoughtful reading.” Harvey and Goudvis Ruby Payne discussed this issue when she came to Elkhart several years ago in the context of working with children from poverty. One way to address this concern would be to share the questions you (as the teacher) have about what is being read and to always talk about what you are wondering while you are reading.

Strategy 3: Expand Vocabulary “The larger the reader’s vocabulary (either oral or print), the easier it is to make sense of the text.” Report of the National Reading Panel The National Reading Panel goes on to say, “Vocabulary is important because beginning readers use their oral vocabulary to make sense of the words they see in print. Readers must know what most of the words mean before they can understand what they are reading.”

Strategy 4: Predict and Prove (Guess and Check) “Research suggests that when students make predictions their understanding increases and they are more interested in the reading material.” Fielding, Anderson, Pearson, Hanson According to Chris Tovani, author of I Read It but I Don’t Get It, good readers anticipate what’s coming next. When readers predict they are aware when meaning is breaking down. When an event doesn’t match a prediction good readers rethink and revise their thinking.

Visualizing: A Tool to Enhance Understanding Strategy 5: Sense It Visualizing: A Tool to Enhance Understanding “Visualizing is a comprehension strategy that enables readers to make the words on a page real and concrete.” Keene and Zimmerman “Active readers create visual images in their minds based on the words they read in the text. The pictures they create enhance their understanding.” Teachers sometimes explain this as “creating a movie of the text in your head.” When students create scenarios and pictures in their minds while reading, their level of engagement increases and their attention doesn’t wander. Harvey and Goudvis

Strategy 6: Decide What’s Important “Thoughtful readers grasp essential ideas and important information when reading. Readers must differentiate between less important ideas and key ideas that are central to the meaning of the text.” Harvey and Goudvis Determining important ideas and information in text is central to making sense of reading and moving toward insight. Teachers need to support readers in their efforts to sift and sort essential information depending on their purpose for reading.

Strategy 7: Make Inferences Then Draw Conclusions “Inferring is at the intersection of taking what is known, garnering clues from the text, and thinking ahead to make a judgment, discern a theme, or speculate about what is to come.” Harvey and Goudvis Inferential thinking occurs when text clues merge with the reader’s prior knowledge and questions to point toward a conclusion about an underlying theme or idea in the text. If readers don’t infer, they will not grasp the deeper essence of texts they read.

The Evolution of Thought Strategy 8: Summarize and Synthesize The Evolution of Thought Synthesizing is putting together separate parts into a new whole….a process akin to working a jigsaw puzzle. Harvey and Goudvis “Synthesizing involves combining new information with existing knowledge to form an original idea or interpretation. Reviewing, sorting, and sifting important information can lead to new insights that change the way readers think.” Harvey and Goudvis

Strategy 9: Check Your Understanding “If confusion disrupts meaning, readers need to stop and clarify their understanding. Readers may use a variety of strategies to “fix up” comprehension when meaning goes awry.” Harvey and Goudvis Many students just don’t know that they don’t know. They lack the awareness of how they think when they read. Others are aware that meaning is breaking down but they don’t know what to do about it. Teachers need to point out to their students that even they lose focus or “space out” while reading and need to use “fix-up” strategies to repair their understanding.

Strategy 10: Build Fluency “Fluency is important because it frees students to understand what they read.” Report of the National Reading Panel “Fluent readers are able to read orally with speed, accuracy, and proper expression. Fluency is one of several critical factors necessary for reading comprehension.”

CAUTION! Reading Strategies “Although these strategies tend to be introduced independently, readers rarely use these in isolation when reading. These thoughts interact and intersect to help readers make meaning and often occur simultaneously during reading.” Harvey and Goudvis These strategies are not something that can be taught on Monday and tested on Friday. They must be interwoven throughout ALL curricular areas. The strategies are introduced, modeled, and supported - Kindergarten through 12th grade.

Decide What’s Important Check Understanding Build Fluency Sense It Ask Questions Reading is Thinking Connect To Text Making Inferences/ Draw Conclusions Decide What’s Important Throughout this school year (2003-2004) we will continue to focus on reading and these reading strategies. We will feature a reading strategy each month. Buildings will receive a new Power point presentation for that strategy. They will be designed to share at staff meetings, department meetings, or grade level meetings. Expand Vocabulary Summarize/ Synthesize Predict and Prove