Primary Readers Diving Into Nonfiction

We want to plunge children into a rich pool of visual and verbal ideas, giving them confidence to venture forth independently into nonfiction of all kinds.

Big ideas We live in an information age, where nonfiction dominates reading and writing We need to explicitly teach our children how to read and write nonfiction What is taught is determined by the text and the purpose for reading

What have you read or written this past week? Text messages Tweets Blogs Facebook s Newspaper Magazine Letters Bills Invitations Recipes Directions Information Programs Charts Schedules Brochures Contracts Maps Articles Research Advertisements Notices Menus

Primary classrooms vs. real world Primary Classrooms 80-90% of all classroom reading instruction uses fiction Real World 10-20% nonfiction 80-90% of what we read and write is real-world nonfiction 10-20% fiction

Comparing fiction and nonfiction FictionNonfiction Purpose Facts or information Characters Organization Progression To entertainTo inform or persuade Embedded or inferred Directly stated SpecificGeneral Beginning-Middle-EndAccess features, body structures Narrative Read front to backCan be read in pieces, back and forth

Big ideas We live in an information age, where nonfiction dominates reading and writing We need to explicitly teach our children how to read and write nonfiction What is taught is determined by the text and the purpose for reading

Steps in a nonfiction lesson Prepare to read Guide reading Explicitly teach comprehension and fluency Facilitate connections

What determines what is taught? The text The purpose for reading

Steps in a nonfiction lesson Prepare to read Guide reading Explicitly teach comprehension and fluency Facilitate connections

Prepare to read Access or establish schema Text and topic knowledge Set a purpose for reading Preview text What information might we find in this text? What questions might this text answer?

Guide reading Goal 1: Make text accessible Goal 2: Understand while you read Goal 3: Demonstrate understanding

Guide reading Goal 1: Make text accessible Understand language Vocabulary Figurative language and idioms Text devices, such as rhyme, rhythm, repetition Recognize and utilize text features Determine important ideas Use pictures Connect text to self Make and confirm predictions

Guide reading Goal 2: Understand while you read Determine cause and effect Generate questions Visualize Distinguish between fantasy and reality Compare and contrast text and pictures Give and support opinions Draw and support conclusions Use prior knowledge Use references and resources Interpret information from graphs, charts, and diagrams Understand setting and its importance

Guide reading Goal 3: Demonstrate Understanding Monitor comprehension and use fix-up tips – Reread – Look at the pictures – Think about what makes sense – Read ahead – Ask for help Sequence events or steps Recall details Summarize Respond to text

Explicitly teach comprehension and fluency Comprehension A deeper examination of what was guided Fluency Read with appropriate rate Use proper pitch and volume Use appropriate expression Facilitated through accessible text and repeated readings

Facilitate connections Written response: “Write about...” Lasting lessons: A real-life connection to the text Cross-curricular connections Learn more: text or technology

Big ideas We live in an information age, where nonfiction dominates reading and writing We need to explicitly teach our children how to read and write nonfiction What is taught is determined by the text and the purpose for reading

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