Jane Hill, Lead Consultant, MCREL

Originally presented November 9, 2004 at Coaches Meeting

Presented by Rebecca Derenge

Title I Coordinator

With special thanks to

Kimberly Mutterback, Mercer County for capturing this information for future coaches

Teachers struggle with

• What are the specific skills or knowledge that students need in order to read content material effectively?

• What learning environments promote effective reading and learning?

• What strategies can be used with student to help them become more effective readers and independent learners?

Students Struggle with

• Organizing ideas as they read.• Making meaningful connections• Tackling vocabulary• Decoding symbols• Reading at the text level• Understanding text organization

Traditional Views

New Definition

Research Behaviorism Cognitive sciences

Goals Master of isolated facts and skills

Constructing meaning and self-regulated learning

Reading as a Process

Mechanically decoding words: memorizing by rote

As interaction among the reader, the tex, and on the content

Learner Role and Metaphor

Passive vessal receiving knowledge from external sources

Active: Strategic reader, effective strategy user, cognitive apprentice

Components to think about

purpose

prior knowledge

vocabulary

metacognition

cues and questions

patterns

graphic organizers

reflection

For struggling readers, comprehension is a mystery.

When students aren’t successful with

comprehension, they really start to get

frustrated and lose confidence. It leads to

blaming the text and the teacher.

Reader

Prior Knowledge

Content Knowledge

Personal Experiences

Misconceptions

Mental Disposition

Motivation

Confidence

Interest

Attitude

Strategies that access prior knowledge Strategies that promote

productive habits of mind

The three interactive elements of the reading process that influence comprehension:

1. What the reader brings to the situation.

2. The learning climate

3. The characteristics of the text

One way to assist students in text comprehension is through the use of an Anticipation Guide.

An Anticipation Guide is a set of questions that the

reader is given prior to reading the text that they must answer according to their belief. Then, after

reading the text, they evaluate the

statements once more and provide answers

based on what the text states.

Five Premises About Reading

• Schema

We store what we know in knowledge frameworks called schemata.

Learners refer to their schemata to

Make inferences and predictions

Organize

Reflect on new information

Elaborate on new information.

Read and fill in the blanks.

In the early 1860’s, A_____________ issued the

Emancipation _______________. This order freed

Millions of ______________. The C___________ had

the authority to enforce this order. Emancipation

alone did not give the former _____________ a new

life. Decades of economic hardships and unequal

rights continued. A___________________ plan was

supported by many R___________________.

The Answers.

In the early 1860’s, Alexander II issued the

Emancipation Edict. This order freed

Millions of Serfs. The Czar had

the authority to enforce this order. Emancipation

alone did not give the former Serfs a new

life. Decades of economic hardships and unequal

rights continued. Alexander’s plan was

supported by many Russian’s.

Prior Knowledge

• The more a reader brings to the text in terms of knowledge and skills, the more he will learn and remember what he reads.

The procedure is actually quite simple. First, you arrange items into different groups. Of course, one pile may be sufficient depending how much there is to do. If you have to go somewhere else due to lack of facilities, that is the next step; otherwise, you are pretty well set. It is important not to overdo things. That is, it is better to do too few things at once than too many. In the short run, this may not seem important, but complications can easily arise. A mistake can be expensive as well. At first, the whole procedure will seem complicated. Soon, however, it will become just another facet of life. It is difficult to foresee any end to the necessity for this task in the immediate future, but then, one never can tell.

After the procedure is complete, you arrange the materials into different piles again. Then you can put them into their appropriate places. Eventually they will be used again, and the whole cycle will then have to be repeated. However, that is a part of life.

The procedure is actually quite simple. First, you arrange items into different groups. Of course, one pile may be sufficient depending how much there is to do. If you have to go somewhere else due to lack of facilities, that is the next step; otherwise, you are pretty well set. It is important not to overdo things. That is, it is better to do too few things at once than too many. In the short run, this may not seem important, but complications can easily arise. A mistake can be expensive as well. At first, the whole procedure will seem complicated. Soon, however, it will become just another facet of life. It is difficult to foresee any end to the necessity for this task in the immediate future, but then, one never can tell.

After the procedure is complete, you arrange the materials into different piles again. Then you can put them into their appropriate places. Eventually they will be used again, and the whole cycle will then have to be repeated. However, that is a part of life.

Metacognition

• A reader’s ability to think about and control thinking process before, during, and after reading.

Students who have learned metacognitive skills can plan and monitor their comprehension, adapting and modifying their reading accordingly.

Learning increases in a collaborative setting.

• Discussing what they are learning, questioning their thinking around it, and seeking clarity allows students to interact in an environment that promotes learning.

Students want to feel:

Accepted, competent, and valued

A sense of safety and order

The role of Text Features

Reader Climate

Text Features

Vocabulary Text Style

Vocabulary Development

High Conceptual Density

Can include people, places, and ideas in addition to “things”

Influenced by perceptions and prior knowledge

Includes historical or geographical words uncommon in student’s daily

lives

Includes phrases

Can be the organizing of ideas themselves

Text Density

• Number of new or difficult words in a section of text.

• High density text is one new word for every 10 words.

• Low density text is one new word for every 250 words.

What we know

1. Students need to be exposed to the word at least 6 times in context before they have

enough experience with the word to ascertain and remember its meaning.

2. Even superficial instruction in new words enhances the probability that students will understand the words when they encounter them.

Examples: cluster wall, incidental learning

Cluster Wall

Effort

1. Brainstorm all of the words that come to mind with the main idea word.

2. Regroup the words into categories (clusters) to identify the main idea word.

4 main categories: people, events, actions, and effort/determinations

3. One of the best ways to learn a new word is to associate a mental image or symbolic representation with it.

4. Direct vocabulary instruction works. Teaching new vocabulary directly increases student comprehension of new material.

5. Direct instruction on words that are critical to new content produces the most powerful learning.

Planning Vocabulary Instruction

Identify goals

Develop vocabulary lists

Determine the level of understanding of terms

Select appropriate vocabulary strategies.

Present students with a brief explanation or description of the new word.

Present students with a nonlinguistic representation of the new word.

Ask students to generate their own explanation or description of the word.

Ask students to create their own nonlinguistic representation of the word.

Periodically ask students to review the accuracy of their explanations and representations.

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

Step 5

Vocabulary Development

Freyer’s Model

Concept Definition Mapping

Semantic Mapping

Student VOC Strategy

Verbal and Visual Word Association

Word Sorts

Zooming In and Zooming Out

Text Style

Text Structure Text CoherenceAudience

Appropriateness

Text

Organization

Text

Presentation

Has a direct impact on reading comprehension

Includes the way a text is organized and the way it is presented.

In Social Studies most text organization is informational, however, Social Studies is the content area (outside of language arts) in which narrative text is often found.

Writing in which a story is told, the details of which may be fictional or based on fact.

It is

written sequentially

depicts numerous episodes of action

causal chain of events

setting, character, plot, conflict, and

theme

Venn Diagram

Venn Again

Creative Metaphors

Decision Making

Historical Investigation

What I know I know:

What I think I know:

What I think I’ll learn:

What I know I learned:

Informational Text Strategies

1. DR/TA

2. Pairs Reading

3. Propositional/Support Outline

4. Reciprocal Teaching

5. SQ3R

6. Think Alouds

7. Structured Note Taking

Stage What it means Notes

Survey what you are about to read

•Think about the title: What do I know about this subject? What do I want to know?•Glance over headings and/or skim the first sentences of paragraphs•Look at illustrations and graphic aids.•Read the first paragraph•Read the last paragraph or summary.

Question •Turn the title into a question. This becomes the major purpose to your reading.

•Write down any questions that come to mind during the survey.

•Turn headings into questions

•Turn subheadings, graphics, and illustrations to questions.

•Write down unfamiliar vocabulary and determine the meaning.

Read Actively

• Read to search for answers to questions.

•Respond to questions and use the context clues for unfamiliar words.

•React to unclear passages, confusing terms, and questionable statements by generating questions.

Recite •Look away from the answers and the book to recall what was read.

•Recite answers to questions aloud or in writing.

•Reread text for unanswered questions.

Review •Answer the major purpose question.

•Look over answers and all parts of the chapter to organize info.

•Summarize the info learned by creating a graphic organizer that depicts the main ideas by drawing a flow chart, by writing a summary, by participating in group discussion, or by writing an explanation of how this info has changed your perception.

More Informational Text Strategies

Graphic Organizers

Group Summarizing

Predict, Locate, Add, Note (PLAN)

Problematic Situation

Proposition/Support Outline

Sensory Imagery

Alexander The Great

Description Childhood

Accomplishments Interesting Facts

1. Brainstorm and predict the topic, graphing the information

2. Locate the information within the article, and check off the things on the graph that were present in the text

3. Add things to the graph that you had not previously predicted

Problematic Situation

Problem:

Group Discussion:

Possible Solutions:

Rapidly increasing global population will lead to environmental destruction, and a lowering of the quality of life for many people.

1. Facts

2. Statistics

3. Examples

4. Expert Authority

5. Logic and Reasoning

Topic

Proposition

Support

Global Population Growth

Two things I learned: Two things I will use tomorrow:

Two things I will change: Two things I still need:

Reflection Strategy

Focus on strategic processing skills through

Questioning

Writing

Discussion

In the Text

Think and Search: Put it together

In Your Head

Author and You

On Your Own

Right There

The answer is in the text

The answer is usually easy to find

The words used to make up questions and the words used to answer are right

there in the same sentence

The answer is in the text

You need to put together different story parts to find it

Words for the questions and answers are not the same and not in the same

sentence

You need to think and search different words, phrases, setences and paragraphs for the answers.

The answer IS NOT in the story

You need to think about what you already know; your own prior

knowledge

You need to think about what the author has told you in the text.

Form your answer using II and III

The answer is not in the text.

You could even answer the question without reading the selection

You need to use your own experience and your prior knowledge

Reading the text should add to your knowledge and help you answer the

question

QAR

Role

Audience

Format

Topic

Role Audience Format Topic

constituent governor letter State

taxes

parent Board of Education

complaint No Child Left Behind

21st Century American

James Madison

Thank-you

note The Constitution

For any questions, comments, or suggestions regarding this

presentation

Please email me,

Kimberly Mutterback,

at

kmutterb@access.k12.wv.us

Mercer County Academic Coach