Question-Answer Relationships (QARs) Rashawn Grissom EDUC 585 May 9, 2011

 QAR was developed by Taffy Raphael as a tool for clarifying how students can approach the task of reading texts and answering questions. Development

 QARs help students enhance their comprehension by learning to answer a range of questions and understand each questions relationship to the text, to the author, and to themselves (i.e., in the book, in my head).  “Where would I find an answer to this question in the text?”  What type of question is this? How do I answer it? QARs

 Explicitly shows the relationship between questions and answers  Categorizes different types and levels of questions  Helps students to analyze, comprehend, and respond to text concepts  Helps refute the common misconception held by students that the text contains all of the answers Why use this strategy?

 Students need to understand:  What is QAR?  How do you perform a QAR?  When would you use the strategy?  Why would you use the strategy? Before Independently Using QAR

How do we Teach QARs?  Model the desired behavior  Asking questions, finding answers, and then categorizing the question-answer relationship  Guide students as they practice the desired behavior  Gradually release the responsibility for learning to the students  Provide opportunity for students to try the strategy on their own  Observe and evaluate students performance to inform instruction

 Literal Question (right there)  Inferential Question (think and search)  Critical Question (author and you)  Creative Question (on my own) Types of Questions

 For literal questions, the answer is “right there” in the text.  Exact words from the question are in the text. Literal Question

 Answer can be found if the student will “think and search” or “put it together.”  Students will have to bring two ideas together from the text in order to figure out the answer. Inferential Question

 The answer is not directly in the text.  The student will have to combine their own ideas with the author's opinion in order to come up with an answer to the question. Critical Question

 The student will not find a direct answer in the text.  There may be a range of different answers to the question, the student must come to an answer based on his/her imagination or from information he/she already knew about the topic. Creative Question

Jack and Jill Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water. Jack fell down and broke his crown and Jill came tumbling after. Intro Practice

1.Where did Jack and Jill go? Answer: Up the hill to get some water QAR: Right there Questions

2. Did Jill get the pail of water? Answer: No, she fell down the hill too. QAR: Think and Search (Putting it together) Questions

3. What could have caused Jack’s crown to break when he fell down the hill? Answer: The pail of water hit him in the head QAR: Author and Me Questions

4. Do you think Jack and Jill ever got the pail of water they went up the hill to get? Answer: I think they got the pail of water but it all spilled out when they fell down the hill. QAR: On my own Questions

 Cecil, N. L., & Gipe, J. P. (2009). Reading comprehension. In Literacy in grades 4-8: Best practices for a comprehensive program (2nd ed., pp ). Scottsdale, Arizona: Holcomb Hathaway.  Jones, R. C. (2006). Strategies for reading comprehension: Question-answer relationships. Retrieved May, 2011, from Reading Quest.org website:  Question answer relationship: Teaching children where to seek answers to questions. (n.d.). Retrieved May, 2011, from Readinglady.com website: QARQuestionAnswerRelationshipTeachingChildrenWheretoS eekAnswerstoQuestions.pdf QARQuestionAnswerRelationshipTeachingChildrenWheretoS eekAnswerstoQuestions.pdf References