Reading Strategies
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ALTERNATE CONSEQUENCES: Using three separate handouts, students begin with part 1 and record the character/person’s name, the choice(s) this person makes, and the consequences of those choices. In part 2, the students brainstorm what other possible choices the character/person could have made along with consequences of those alternative choices. In part 3, the students select the BEST alternate choice, as well as their rationale for that decision. To the left is just one example of how students can organize it.
TEA PARTY: Each student receives an index card containing important words or phrases taken from a text. Students must use prior knowledge and problem-solving skills to make predictions, formulate inferences, and establish cause-and-effect relationships. Once individual students have had an opportunity to reflect on their portion of the text, they circulate around the room, comparing their cards with each other in an attempt to draw connections among ideas. After they have time to interact with multiple students, the class is broken into groups where they create “We think” statements that predict what the text will be about. Groups then share their statements with the class, discussing the thinking that went into creating the statements.
SOMEBODY WANTED BUT SO: Using a four-column chart, students identify the people involved in the situation (Somebody), their goals or motivations (Wanted), the conflict or obstacle (But), and the outcome (So). This strategy helps students to isolate the main ideas of a text, allowing them to create a concise summary.
STICKY QUESTIONS: As students read the first couple of paragraphs of a text, have them jot down questions that occur to them. Use Post-it notes and have students write one question per Post-it. Once students have had time to compose their questions, the teacher can collect the notes and post them on a document camera or on the wall for students to walk around and read. As a class, the students can look for common questions, identify patterns of question types, and organize these questions into categories to help them better comprehend the text.
SPLIT-PAGE NOTES: To take split-page notes, students are instructed to read the assigned material quickly, using either sticky notes or writing directly onto a text to mark important facts and ideas. As students work through the text, they should not mark or write down more than three or four words per paragraph. Once students have completed the reading, they review the facts and ideas identified as important during their reading and transfer the significant ideas taken from the text to the left side of their note-taking paper. Next, students go back to each of the ideas in the left-hand column and use the right-hand column to elaborate on the ideas by drawing upon the text, their own experiences, other texts, class lectures, or discussions.
TEA PARTY: Each student receives an index card containing important words or phrases taken from a text. Students must use prior knowledge and problem-solving skills to make predictions, formulate inferences, and establish cause-and-effect relationships. Once individual students have had an opportunity to reflect on their portion of the text, they circulate around the room, comparing their cards with each other in an attempt to draw connections among ideas. After they have time to interact with multiple students, the class is broken into groups where they create “We think” statements that predict what the text will be about. Groups then share their statements with the class, discussing the thinking that went into creating the statements.
SOMEBODY WANTED BUT SO: Using a four-column chart, students identify the people involved in the situation (Somebody), their goals or motivations (Wanted), the conflict or obstacle (But), and the outcome (So). This strategy helps students to isolate the main ideas of a text, allowing them to create a concise summary.
STICKY QUESTIONS: As students read the first couple of paragraphs of a text, have them jot down questions that occur to them. Use Post-it notes and have students write one question per Post-it. Once students have had time to compose their questions, the teacher can collect the notes and post them on a document camera or on the wall for students to walk around and read. As a class, the students can look for common questions, identify patterns of question types, and organize these questions into categories to help them better comprehend the text.
SPLIT-PAGE NOTES: To take split-page notes, students are instructed to read the assigned material quickly, using either sticky notes or writing directly onto a text to mark important facts and ideas. As students work through the text, they should not mark or write down more than three or four words per paragraph. Once students have completed the reading, they review the facts and ideas identified as important during their reading and transfer the significant ideas taken from the text to the left side of their note-taking paper. Next, students go back to each of the ideas in the left-hand column and use the right-hand column to elaborate on the ideas by drawing upon the text, their own experiences, other texts, class lectures, or discussions.