The Pikes Peak
Literacy Strategies Project
Applying the findings and recommendations of the National Reading Panel
to the teaching and learning of reading in Colorado
Spring 2005
This document is designed to improve the teaching of reading throughout
Colorado. Colorado Schools and Districts may duplicate, distribute, extend, and
apply this report with appropriate credit given to the Pikes Peak Literacy
Strategies Project (PPLSP). Project participants have made a significant effort to
cite primary source research wherever possible. The members of the project are
not liable for the content. Any errors gladly will be corrected.
This document is available electronically at:
www.wpsdk12.org/pplsp ~or~ www.pplsp.org
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Contents
Introduction to the Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project........................................
1
Acknowledgments......................................................................................................
2
Training Modules.......................................................................................................
3
The Process: Body of Evidence –> Needs –> Strategies .........................................
4
What is a Body of Evidence.......................................................................................
5
The Importance of Identifying Skills and Needs .......................................................
6
The Importance of Strategies .....................................................................................
7
Overarching Instructional Strategies..........................................................................
9
Seven Things Every Teacher can do to Improve Student Achievement ...................
12
Phonemic Awareness .................................................................................................
13
Phonics.......................................................................................................................
17
Fluency.......................................................................................................................
24
Vocabulary.................................................................................................................
30
Comprehension ..........................................................................................................
37
References..................................................................................................................
52
Additional Suggested Readings .................................................................................
73
Appendix A: Special Circumstances ........................................................................
79
Appendix B: Parent Tips – Elementary ....................................................................
84
Appendix C: Parent Tips – Secondary......................................................................
89
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The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
Spring 2005
In Spring 2003, nine school districts in the Pikes Peak region volunteered to
participate in a project to translate the report of the National Reading Panel (2000)
into a useable, practical document for classroom teachers. The goals of the group
were:
• To ensure that Individual Literacy Plans (ILPs) reflect the comprehensive,
recent research describing what reading is and how to teach it
• To provide teachers with instructional strategy suggestions that are based in
the findings of empirical research
• To speak a common language about literacy that will assist teachers as
students move from one school to another throughout the region
• To improve the quality of instruction at school and support at home for
developing readers
The group produced the first version of the PPLSP document in March 2004,
which was well received throughout Colorado.
During the 2004-05 school year, with funding from a Power Educators Grant from
the Colorado Department of Education, seven school districts in the Pikes Peak
region decided to continue the work of the Project. The document has undergone
significant revision from its original form. In addition, 10 training modules were
developed to accompany the document.
This document is organized as a user-friendly resource tool for district and school
administrators as well as for reading specialists and classroom teachers from all
content areas. It can be used as the central document in staff development and is a
natural part of any discussion about writing and implementing ILPs. The
document is available at no cost in PDF format and may be duplicated on paper or
in electronic format with appropriate credit given to the source.
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Acknowledgments
Support for the project came from the nine school districts in the Pikes Peak Region in year 1
and from a Power Educators grant through the Colorado Department of Education and from 7
districts in year 2. Throughout the process, participants called into question their teaching
practices and their beliefs about how students acquire the complex set of skills we refer to as
reading. It was a challenging and extraordinary process for all involved, resulting in an
appreciation of why a project such as this has not been undertaken previously.
Project Participants
Academy
Carol Carson2
Karol Gates1,T
Julie Holiday1
Bonnie Kern1
Susan Spencer1,T
Cheyenne Mountain
Debbie PierreT
Caryl ThomasonT
Sara Vandenberg1,2
Colorado Dept of Education
Janice McDermott1
Colorado Springs 11
Kim Bolling1
Susan Osburn1
Suzette Pope1
Jeanne Scott1
Barbara Thompson1
Falcon
Ellen Crow1
Joe FabeyT
Jennifer Fishencord2
Laura JadomskiT
Carol Snyder1
Florence
Janelle Bergant1
Fountain
Theresa Hazlett1
Juli Woodman1
Lewis-Palmer
Melody KahtavaT
Vicky LutherT
Julie Robertson1
Judy Roach2,T
Manitou Springs
Annie CollopyT
Karen Martens1
Noli Morath1,2
Linda Tripp1,T
Widefield
Heather DuysenT
Kathy Finnigan2
Carole Hiegert1
Cindy May1
Missy Ross1
Sue SalleeT
Woodland Park
Val Brown1
Sara DoudT
Deb HawesT
Alisabeth Shearn1,2,T,*
Bev Tarpley1,2, T,*
* = Project Coordinator
1 = Year 1 Research Team Member
2 = Year 2 Research Team Member
T = Year 2 Training Team Member
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The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
Training Modules
The ten training modules are available electronically for anyone interested in
using them as long as appropriate credit is acknowledged. The modules are
posted at www.wpsdk12.org/pplsp The training modules were designed to be
used in conjunction with this document.
1.
Introduction to the 5 Components of Reading
2.
Introduction to the PPLSP and CBLA
3.
Instructional Strategies
4.
Phonemic Awareness Evidence and Strategies
5.
Phonics Evidence and Strategies
6.
Fluency Evidence and Strategies
7.
Vocabulary Evidence and Strategies
8.
Comprehension Evidence and Strategies
9.
Reading Strategies for Secondary Teachers in other Content Areas
10.
Bodies of Evidence and a Process for Building the ILP
Differentiated Recommendations for Training: Depending on the role of the teacher and the
teacher’s background knowledge, different approaches to training are suggested. For the teacher
with deep background knowledge, an abbreviated training, group leader role, or facilitator role is
suggested. For other teachers, their role may dictate which modules are most important.
A. Elementary or secondary teacher or specialist directly involved in construction
and implementation of the ILP: All 10 modules are recommended. Modules 1-3
should occur first. Modules 4-8 may be presented in any order. Module 9 is
suggested but not necessarily needed. Module 10 should occur last.
B. Elementary or secondary teacher or specialist who works with ILP students, but
who is not primarily responsible for its construction: Modules 1-3 should occur
first. Modules 4-8 are optional and may be presented in any order. 9 is strongly
suggested especially if 4-8 are omitted. Module 10 is optional and should occur
last.
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The Process: Body of Evidence
Needs
.
Strategies
A thoughtful review of the student’s
comprehensive body of evidence
leads to…
The accurate identification of the
student’s literacy skills and needs
resulting
in…
The selection of appropriate instructional
strategies based on identified needs
The body of evidence
The skill areas identified as
should…
needs should…
• Result from a thoughtful
• Be comprehensive
review of the body of
• Include all 5 components
evidence
of reading
• Be based on the 5
• Be gathered over time
components of reading
• Include multiple
• Be aligned to the skills the
measures
student is expected to
• Tell a story describing
demonstrate at his/her
the student’s
grade level
overarching strengths
•
Represent a synthesis of
and needs
the evidence
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The strategies to teach the
skills should…
• Be selected after needs
are identified clearly
• Be selected from the
areas of greatest need
(especially if the student
has many needs)
• Have research evidence
to demonstrate their
effectiveness
• Involve parents, the
school, and the student
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What is a Body of Evidence?
What is a body of evidence?
A body of evidence is a collection of samples over time that, when taken together, help to
determine whether a student is on track or in need of assistance. The evidence must be aligned
to the grade level expectations and include all 5 components of reading.
Why multiple measures?
No single measure or single sample can tell you everything you need to know about the student’s
reading skills. Also, there are different purposes for using each measure:
Screening – Identifies which students are in need of assistance
Progress Monitoring – Frequent updates on student progress
Summative – Identifies whether the student achieved what was expected in the end
What does CDE require?
CBLA currently is undergoing changes, so please refer to documents from the CDE for specific
requirements from the law and rules.
Are some assessments better than others?
There are several important considerations when interpreting the results from a particular
assessment in the body of evidence:
1) Was the measure well-designed? Are there clear administration procedures? Is there
evidence of high reliability and validity?
2) How well does the assessment align to the grade-level expectations? You should use the
results only for the areas to which it is well aligned.
3) How good is good enough? Does research exist showing how the assessment compares
to other assessments that measure the same thing? How well does performance at
different levels predict future performance on measures such as CSAP?
4) Was the assessment administered under the correct conditions according to the
documented procedures? A good assessment administered poorly is not useful.
CDE provides a starter list of assessment recommendations, but the list is not comprehensive. A
list of criteria for high quality assessments is being written now, and it is hoped that a formal
review process addressing the questions above (and others) will be coordinated by CDE in the
future.
How does a body of evidence result in a decision about which students need an ILP?
Districts have procedures or “decision rules” to determine which students need an ILP. These
procedures vary from district to district. The decision should include all relevant information
from the body of evidence and should be connected clearly to the grade level expectations.
Teachers should have adequate training in interpreting their evidence so that if two different
teachers reviewed the same evidence, they would come to the same conclusion.
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The Importance of Identifying Skills and Needs
What is a need?
When interpreting a body of evidence, it is important to answer two questions: 1) Is the student
behind? 2) In what skill areas does the student need assistance? A good set of procedures to
interpret the body of evidence can help answer the first question. If the student is behind, then
the same body of evidence is used to identify the specific areas of focus, or needs, for the literacy
plan.
Aren’t the 5 components specific enough?
The PPLSP project teams found that the 5 components of reading are too broad if your goal is to
write an effective literacy plan. For example, within fluency there are three different sets of
skills the student needs to master: accuracy, speed, and expression. The student who is fast but
not accurate is different from the student who is accurate but very slow. Both of these students
need work on fluency, but the strategies the teacher employs in each case should be different.
Why are needs important?
Since the first version of the PPLSP document was produced, we have noticed three lingering
problems with ILPs: 1) If the need is misidentified, then the strategies selected will not help the
student; 2) If too many needs are identified, then the literacy plan will be overwhelming and will
not provide sufficient focus for the teacher and family; and 3) If a teacher goes directly to
strategies without being clear about the needs first, then the literacy plan is disconnected.
What skill areas did the PPLSP team identify?
Phonemic Awareness
Identification
Phoneme Manipulation
Segmentation
Auditory Memory
Auditory Sequencing
Phonics
Consonants
Vowels
Compound Words
Phonograms / Word Families
Affixes
Syllabication
Vocabulary
Application
Meaning
Word Knowledge
Comprehension
Background Knowledge
Cognitive Monitoring / Metacognition
Knowledge of Text Structure
Retelling / Recalling
Summarizing
Literal Comprehension
Inferential Comprehension
Evaluative Comprehension
Fluency
Accuracy
Automaticity / Speed
Expression / Prosody
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The Importance of Strategies
What is a strategy? A strategy is a tool, plan, or method used for accomplishing a task.
(Beckman, 2002)
Different types of strategies are employed within instructional settings throughout the school
day. Teachers use instructional strategies to guide student learning. Effective learners activate
cognitive strategies to perform academic tasks. Students and teachers utilize specific steps,
known as learning strategies, to accomplish short and long-term goals and objectives.
How is a strategy different from an activity or a skill?
Effective readers have a bank of skills that they employ effortlessly to make meaning of print.
Strategies are the deliberate use of methods to make sense of print. Skills are the unconscious
use of those same methods. Strategies that are directly taught and practiced frequently enough
become automatic skills. Activities are the means of teaching strategies. Classroom activities,
then, should be done for two reasons: 1) directly teach new strategies or 2) practice strategies so
they become internalized skills. Activities that are not used as tools for strategies or skills are
simply “things to do” and use up valuable teaching time.
Activity
Characterized by:
Developed by:
• A planned and
organized action
• Purpose is to
teach a strategy or
reinforce a skill
N/A
Strategy
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Conscious use
“How to…”
Transfers to other
contexts
Transfers to other texts
Introduction
Modeling of use
Construction of critical
characteristics
Shared guided practice
Independent practice
Revisit for transfer
Skill
• Unconscious use
• Obtained when a
strategy becomes
automatic
• Repeated
independent
practice
• Motivated problemsolving
• Diverse applications
Allen (2002)
Why is strategy instruction important?
The guidelines of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 demand that today’s teachers
reach all students. The exercise of strategic teaching encourages metacognition – the
understanding and monitoring of one’s own learning. When struggling readers are taught
strategies coupled with reassurance, guidance, and practice, they improve in their ability to
process information.
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When should strategies be taught?
Strategy instruction is not another subject for teachers to squeeze into an already overtaxed
schedule. Rather, strategy instruction is a distinct part of every subject. It runs throughout the
school day and the school year. When strategy instruction becomes an integral part of quality
instruction, how teachers teach takes precedence over what teachers teach.
How should strategies be taught?
Strategies should be taught directly. If we do not teach specific strategies for learning, students
will create their own, which are often not effective or reliable. The steps are:
1. describe the strategy and its purpose
2. model its use within the context of a lesson
3. provide guided practice
4. encourage self-monitoring, evaluation, and implementation across various subjects and
genre (Beckman, 2002)
Who benefits from direct strategy instruction?
Implementation of strategies results in engagement on the part of the learner. Engaged, rather
than passive, readers are motivated to attend to instruction and text (Guthrie & Alao, 1997). As
engagement, or involvement, increases, so does intrinsic motivation and understanding (Pintrich
& Schrauben, 1992). Therefore, all readers benefit from strategy instruction, but especially
struggling readers who don’t know how to help themselves when decoding or comprehension
breaks down for them. Motivated students access their prior knowledge in multiple areas to
monitor their comprehension. As students develop good habits in employing strategies, the
strategic thinking goes “underground” and becomes an automatic skill. When strategies are
taught directly, practiced with guidance, and used consistently before, during, and after reading
text, even struggling readers can be taught to be skillful readers. (Allen, 2000)
How are strategies connected to the process of language acquisition?
Reading occurs within the framework of the natural process of language acquisition. The order
of language acquisition cannot be changed, but its rate can be enhanced. Stephen Krashen’s
(1993) research suggests five key concepts to enhance language acquisition:
1) The order or sequence of language acquisition is minimally impacted by conscious
learning (such as in school), both in oral and written language.
2) There is a natural order to language acquisition.
3) Effective language instruction is best used in editing writing when there is more time
to deliberate and recall.
4) Targeting language just above a learner’s proficiency level is ideal for growth in new
structures and vocabulary.
5) Language development is connected to affect. Affect influences the student’s ability
to engage in and retain new language. In order for a person to monitor their language
usage through reading, there must be sufficient time, focus of attention, conscious
knowledge of the rules involved, and suitable affect.
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Overarching Instructional Strategies
Some strategies do not fit neatly into a particular reading component and so a general category
was created. Below is a list of strategies supported in the research literature that can be used by
the teacher, parent, or student to improve overall achievement. In most cases, the strategies
below can be used as a means to teach or reinforce the specific reading strategies described in
each dimension. For example, modeling is an important method the teacher/parent uses to
demonstrate for the student how proper oral reading expression sounds (a fluency skill). The
teacher also can use modeling to demonstrate a sequencing strategy that enhances
comprehension.
These strategies are not limited in their usefulness to a particular content, grade level, or student
demographic. All students benefit from high-quality teaching and the techniques described here
can be very effective when implemented under the right conditions.
Classroom instruction that works: Research-based strategies for increasing student achievement
(Marzano, Pickering, & Pollock, 2001) identifies nine instructional strategies teachers can use in
all grade levels and content areas to improve student achievement. They include:
1.
Identifying similarities and differences helps students recognize the critical
characteristics of concepts and ideas, which are the foundation of knowledge acquisition.
For young children, building the understanding of comparing and contrasting is
accomplished through classifying concrete objects. Activities of this nature lead to the
understanding of abstract ideas and problem solving. For older students, graphic
organizers and symbolic representations such as metaphors and analogies elevate
understanding of content. Being able to distinguish and apply patterns within and among
topics enhances learning at all stages.
2.
Despite their age, summarizing and note taking retain their niche among the most
highly effective cognitive strategies. To concisely summarize, one must possess the
prerequisite skill of separating pertinent from non-relevant information. This pulling
apart and reassembling, or synthesizing, of information is even more crucial in our
society of “information overload”. To be successful, students need guidance and practice
in analyzing information at a deep level through the application of rules, questioning
techniques, clarification of vocabulary, and understanding of text structure.
3.
Effectively reinforcing effort and providing recognition speaks to the affective domain
of learning, but also impacts the cognitive domain through stimulating motivation. All
students do not inherently believe in the power of effort, but its connection to academic
success can and should be taught and demonstrated. Charting effort and progress through
the use of rubrics and graphs empowers students and promotes ownership for their own
learning. Because the concepts of reward and praise can easily be misused and
misunderstood, the authors prefer the application of recognition for specific performances
towards a given goal. This recognition should be personal and specific.
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4.
Practice turns strategies into skills. Homework expands practice. Homework and
practice move students along the continuum to mastery. Practice should first be guided
and move toward independent. Focused practice is most beneficial when students are
engaged in tasks that require a complicated process. Focusing on subtasks for practice
strengthens the entire skill. The purpose of homework should always be clear and
specific. Homework may be assigned for the purposes of practicing a previously taught
content or preparing students’ thinking for new content. Homework should generally be
at a student’s independent level. If it is worth assigning, it should be worthy of feedback.
The amount of homework should vary by grade level.
5.
Nonlinguistic representations provide enhanced learning opportunities especially for
students whose strengths lie in the areas of visual and kinesthetic modalities. The greatest
portion of new content is presented linguistically. Nonlinguistic representations couple
linguistics with imagery, the two ways information is stored in the brain. Nonlinguistic
representations include a variety of activities including: creating mental images, drawing
pictures and pictographs, graphic organizers, physical models, and physical movement.
6.
Cooperative learning, can be a productive support for a variety of students. When
students are thoughtfully grouped for specific learning outcomes, cooperative learning
promotes both social and academic skills. Specific group interaction skills should be
taught to students prior to their participation in groups. Two key elements include
ensuring all students contribute to the good of the group and all students are held
accountable individually within the group to foster positive interdependence.
7.
Encouraging students to set goals and then providing feedback on the status of their
progress toward their objectives reinforces direction, purpose, and metacognition. Goals
should be specific but flexible. Feedback should specifically include what the student is
doing right and what the student is doing wrong. Some students may need personal
contracts to accomplish their goals.
8.
The cognitive skill of generating and testing hypotheses moves students to the higher
levels of thinking in diverse subjects. Deductive thinking involves implementing known
rules to predict future outcomes. Inductive thinking is performed when conclusions are
drawn from known information. Encouraging students to explain their thought process
further deepens understanding.
9.
Cues, questions, and advance organizers are instructional techniques that prepare
students for new learning by activating prior knowledge. Cues, or hints, and questions
should focus on important concepts rather than minute facts. Questions should include
the literal, inferential, and evaluative levels. Wait time, or pausing for several seconds
after posing a question, encourages deeper thinking and active engagement on the part of
more learners.
In addition to the strategies described above, a number of other techniques appeared repeatedly
in the research literature as they relate to learning in general, including:
1.
Acquiring skills and behaviors is aided through modeling the desirable skills and
behaviors according to Albert Bandura’s social cognitive theory. By demonstrating the
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skill for the student, the teacher is providing a visual/auditory means by which the student
can replicate the skill. When students are left to “figure out what the teacher means”
through written or oral directions, they are less likely to produce outcomes at a high level
of quality.
2.
Repetition. The National Reading Panel notes that new vocabulary most likely will
become internalized when it is presented many times and in multiple contexts. While
some behaviors are learned by observing them once or a few times, the skills associated
with reading are more complex. Also, with reading skills, the goal is for students not
only to be able to demonstrate a strategy on demand, but to internalize the skill and apply
it appropriately and independently as needed. Students will need guided opportunities to
apply the strategy in multiple contexts and with a variety of texts to transform the
conscious strategy into an automatic skill.
3.
Scaffolding is the process of providing structure and/or assistance to students to help
them as they learn a new skill. The concept is based on Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory
and more specifically the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD). The ZPD is defined as
the distance between what the student can do by himself and the next level that he can be
helped to achieve with competent assistance. This is a highly motivating and challenging
level of learning for the student with the scaffolds providing temporary assistance
allowing them to direct their activities, plan, and have successful outcomes. Gradually,
more responsibility is released to the student as the skill becomes internalized.
4.
Progress Monitoring and Ongoing Classroom Assessment. The special education
community has been applying the concept of progress monitoring through IEPs for a
number of years. More recently, the regular education community is applying the
concept of progress monitoring in reading and other content areas. The thought is that by
measuring student achievement in a standardized way more frequently, teachers can
modify instruction and remediate immediately when a problem is identified. Certain
measures are more susceptible to practice effects and it is easy to over rely on a single
measure, so one must be cautious. However, regularly connecting classroom assessment
to progress on important skills, and modifying instruction based on student needs is
desirable.
5.
Concept-Based Instruction. Learning best occurs when students see networks of
information, rather than isolated facts to be memorized. Instruction based on “sameness”
helps students develop a holistic understanding of process and content. For example, in
the teaching of reading, students are taught to decode unknown words by recognizing
common phonetic elements in the words. In reading instruction, students are taught to
identify common elements of narrative writing (story grammar) and can then apply their
knowledge of setting, main characters, goal, events and resolution to new stories thus
enhancing comprehension. In content areas such as history or social studies, learning can
become an exercise in the memorization of isolated facts, dates, and events. The use of a
concept-based approach allows students to see information in the larger framework of
related concepts, recurring problems and solutions (Kinder & Bursuck, 1991).
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Seven Things Every Teacher can do to Improve
Student Achievement
1. RESPONSIVE: Provide instruction that is responsive to the diagnosed needs of students. Carefully
listen to and observe students to understand not only who is struggling, but why. Where are the
misconceptions? Which skills are lacking? To do this well, the teacher must skillfully interpret the
data available to them that helps identify the students’ strengths and needs. Also, teachers must
clearly understand the skills and level of sophistication that the student must develop in order to be
successful.
2. HIGH EXPECTATIONS: Set high expectations for all students. A recent article in Education Week
(Burris, 2004) described a school in which the honors track became the normal track for students.
The focus was on equity. Not only did regular achievers thrive, but so did the traditional high
achievers.
3. SCHEMA ACTIVATION: Introduce new concepts by helping students see connections between
what they already know and what is new. As a result, they are more likely to make meaningful and
permanent connections to new information and ideas. Before expecting students to read text
independently in an area in which the student has little background knowledge, begin by connecting it
to prior knowledge in a related area. This can be done through vocabulary and/or through a
discussion of related concepts and ideas.
4. SCAFFOLDING: Scaffolding is when the teacher provides students with assistance as a temporary
means to help the student perform at a level above what he can do independently. It helps the student
operate in his zone of proximal development (Vygotsky), which is a highly motivating and
challenging skill level. Obviously, if a teacher simply starts teaching all students with higher
expectations (see #2 above) without providing them with the support they need to reach those
expectations, many students will struggle and give up. It is important to note that the scaffold should
be removed gradually until the student is able to perform the skill independently.
5. MODELING: Students have the right to know what we expect of them and at what skill level it is
expected. Albert Bandura provided the field with numerous research studies illustrating the power of
modeling in student learning. Students learn a considerable amount from what they observe. Models
allows students to see what the teacher expects, thus allowing them to use the high quality samples to
gauge their own work.
6. FEEDBACK: Provide specific and immediate feedback. Carol Dweck and others have conducted
considerable research in the field of human motivation illustrating that specific feedback is more
useful than general feedback, and that immediate feedback is more effective than delayed feedback.
7. INTERNAL MONITORING: Help students develop metacognition skills. Scott Paris, Dale Schunk,
and others conducted research related to helping students raise their awareness of what they know and
don’t know. Students who are consciously aware of their understanding and who ask questions of
themselves as they read are more likely to notice when their comprehension breaks down.
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Component: Phonemic Awareness
Definition:
Phonemic Awareness is the ability to hear, discriminate, and manipulate the sounds of language.
Overview:
Phonemic Awareness is the critical foundation upon which reading skills are built. It is much
easier for a student to learn to read print, when they are already aware of how the sounds of
language work. Through phonemic awareness training, students learn that words are made up of
single speech sounds or “phonemes.” The sounds are connected to the symbols (graphemes) of
our language through phonics. Phonemic awareness and phonics have a reciprocal relationship;
developing skills in one area helps the other, but they are very distinct and separate skills.
Note: a letter written between two slashed lines (e.g., /b/) signals that the sound of the letter should be made, not
the name of the letter.
Skill Areas Within this Component:
Skill Area
Identification
Evidence of Skill
Phoneme isolation
first sound in Dan is /D/
last sound in trap is /p/
medial sound in men is /e/
•
•
Ability to hear and
discriminate each isolated •
sound that makes up a
word
Beginning Sounds: Alliteration
•
tip, toe, tub
all have the same beginning
sound /t/
Phoneme Catagorization
Teacher: Tell me which of these 3
words does not begin the same.
dog, dot, cup.
Student: cup
Teacher: check, chocolate, thick
Student: thick
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•
•
•
•
•
Evidence of Need
Phoneme isolation
first sound in Dan is /b/
first sound in black is /bl/
last sound in trap is /b/
medial sound in men is /a/
Beginning Sounds: Alliteration
student does not agree that the
words have the same beginning
sound
Phoneme Catagorization
Teacher: Tell me which of these 3
words does not begin the same.
dog, dot, cup.
Student: dot
Teacher: check, chocolate, thick
Student: check
Strategies
1, 2
3
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Skill Area
Phoneme Manipulation
Evidence of Skill
Evidence of Need
Phoneme Substitution
Phoneme Substitution
Student can change a letter in a
Student cannot change a letter in a
Ability to move, add, and given word to make a new word. given word to make a new word
delete sounds in words • change the /g/ in bug to /n/ =
bun
• change the /g/ in bug to
/n/ = nug or nub.
Phoneme Addition
Phoneme Addition
Student is able to add phonemes to Student is unable to add phonemes
form words:
to form words:
• /b/ /i/ /g/ = big
• /b/ /i/ /g/ = gib
• add /s/ to “park” to get “spark” • add /s/ to “park” to get “parks”
Phoneme Deletion
Student is able to delete phonemes
to form words:
• say fields without the “s” =
field
• say pant without the “p” = ant
Segmenting Phonemes
Segmentation
Student breaks words into
Ability to break a word individual parts.
into its individual sounds • can=/c/ /a/ /n/
• ship=/sh/ /i/ /p/
Phoneme Deletion
Student is unable to delete phonemes
to form words:
• say fields without the “s” = ields
• say pant without the
“p” = pan
Segmenting Phonemes
Student cannot break words into
individual parts.
• can=/ca/ /n/
• ship=/s/ /i/ /p/
Student keeps segmented sounds in Student cannot keep segmented
memory and blends them back
sounds in memory and blend them
back together to form the word.
Ability to keep a string of together to form the word.
• /p/ /a/ /n/ /t/ = pant
• /p/ /a/ /n/ /t/ = pan
phonemes or items in
• /f/ /i/ /n /= fin
• /f/ /i/ /n/ = fun
auditory memory long
enough to recall and reciteStudent keeps a sequence of items Student is unable to keep a sequence
in auditory memory in the order
of items in auditory memory in the
them
they were said
order they were said
• cat, pan, table
• cat, table, pan (switched the
order of “pan” and “table”
• boy, apple, sun, television
• boy, apple, sun (could not recall
television)
Auditory Sequencing
.
Strategies
4
5, 6
7
8, 9
10
What the Research Says:
•
•
•
•
Phonemic awareness is best taught as a pre-phonics skill in kindergarten and first
grade.
Phonemic awareness has a strong relationship to reading success in all types of
readers (Ehri, 1994).
Remedial readers generally have poor phonemic awareness (Bradly & Bryant, 1985).
Remediation in phonemic awareness is highly effective for struggling early readers
(Blachman, Ball, Black, & Tangel, 1994).
PPLSP: Spring 2005
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The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
.
The effects of phonemic awareness instruction are evident long after the actual
instruction stops (Byrne & Fielding-Barnsley, 1995).
Each skill area has multiple levels of difficulty. Working with the initial sounds in
words is easiest. Next students should move to the final sounds and work on the
medial (vowel sounds) last.
Teaching segmenting and blending improves performance. Teaching only segmenting
has a positive effect. Teaching only blending is not effective instruction (Torgesen,
Morgan, & Davis, 1992).
Phonemic awareness training is most effective when instruction is brief and occurs
daily. Daily auditory practice is an effective tool for achieving success in phonemic
awareness. This auditory practice consists of 1-2 minutes of daily practice on each
phoneme skill described above.
Instruction in onset and rime through phonemic awareness posivitely effects spelling
skills (Fox & Routh, 1984).
There are better results when students concentrate on using only one or two types of
manipulation (NRP, 2000).
All instruction helps, but small group instruction for phonemic awareness is more
effective than large group or one-on-one instruction (Bus & van Ijzendoorn, 1999).
Best Practices in Instruction:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Teach through the auditory mode. Although it leads directly into phonics when
matching the letters (graphemes) to the sounds, phonemic awareness is an auditory
skill.
Stress proper pronunciation of phonemes. There should be no vowel intrusion and
sounds should be crisp when pronounced. The letter “B” says /b/, not /buh/.
Promote older students’ understanding of phonemic awareness skills by having them
create examples in peer tutoring situations with younger students.
Start with larger units and move to phonemes. A sample progression: start with
rhyming words, move to identifying small words withing compound words, to
identifying syllables, to identifying phonemes.
Teach sounds to a level of rapid recall to improve the transfer of skills to reading and
spelling.
Put fears of doing it “wrong” aside. Instruction in phonemic awareness is effective
with a variety of learners under a wide variety of conditions, including instruction
with computer programs.
PPLSP: Spring 2005
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16
Phoneme
Substitution
Phoneme
Blending
Phoneme Addition Making a new word by adding a phoneme to an existing word
(begin with the word park and add /s/ to the beginning = spark
Phoneme Deletion Recognizing a word that remains after a phoneme is removed:
smile minus /s/ = mile
mat minus /m/ = at
Phoneme
Segmentation
Onset / Rime
Auditory
Sequencing
Training
PA-4 Phoneme
Identification
PA-5 Phoneme
Manipulation
PA-6 Phoneme
Manipulation
PA-7 Phoneme
Manipulation
PA-8 Segmentation
PA-9 Segmentation
PA-10 Auditory
Sequencing
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Phoneme
Categorization
Gaskins, et al. (1988);
Glushko (1979);
Goswami (1986);
Joseph (2002a);
Marsh, et al. (1981)
Gaskins, et al. (1988);
Glushko (1979);
Goswami (1986);
Joseph (2002a);
Marsh, et al. (1981)
Play quick and fun word games requiring the child to recognize
different sounds in words. Example: "Which word does not belong bus, bun, rug?" "Which word does not belong - hot, mat, tip?" Take
turns creating the word sets for the game.
Play quick and fun word games substituting one sound for another
to make a new word. Example: "What word do you have if you
change the /b/ in bug to /h/?" "What word do you have if you
change the /i/ in big to /u/?" Take turns creating the word change
for the game.
Model the segmentation of sounds in each word by moving counters
(not letters) into a drawn rectangle that has been divided into as many
sections as sounds in the word. Use different colors to represent each
different sound in the words. Then point to the counter that represents
the sound that is different. Phonemic awareness skills should be
taught according to a sequential, explicit, systematic plan. The skills
should not be taught in isolation.
Model the segmentation of the sounds in the word by placing counters
(not letters) into a drawn rectangle that has been divided into as many
sections as sounds in the word. Then model the deletion of a sound by
removing the counter representing that sound and the replacing of it
with a different counter to represent the new sound. Phonemic
awareness skills should be taught according to a sequential, explicit,
systematic plan. The skills should not be taught in isolation.
Model the segmentation of a word by having the student repeat after
you. "Cat. Say it this way: c-at." while demonstrating using counters
(not letters) into a drawn rectangle that has been divided into as many
sections as sounds in the word. Move the first counter into the first box
as you say the onset of the initial sounds. Then move the rest of the
counters representing the sounds in the rime or rest of the word.
Model the segmentation of the sounds in the word by placing counters
(not letters) into a drawn rectangle that has been divided into as many
sections as sounds in the word. Move a counter to represent the
sound being added. Phonemic awareness skills should be taught
according to a sequential, explicit, systematic plan. The skills should
not be taught in isolation.
Model the segmentation of the sounds in the word by placing counters
(not letters) into a drawn rectangle that has been divided into as many
sections as sounds in the word. Remove the counter that represents
the sound being deleted. Phonemic awareness skills should be taught
according to a sequential, explicit, systematic plan. The skills should
not be taught in isolation.
Model the segmentation of the sounds in a word by tapping a finger for
each sound in the word. Phonemic awareness skills should be taught
according to a sequential, explicit, systematic plan. The skills should
not be taught in isolation.
Ehri & Wilce (1987);
Liberman et al. (1974);
Joseph (2002)
Ehri & Wilce (1987);
Liberman et al. (1974)
Play quick and fun word games making new words by deleting a
sound from existing words. Example: "What word do you have if
you take the /s/ off of the word smile?"
Play quick and fun word games where one player asks the other
player how many sounds in a word. Example: "How many sounds
in the word grab?" Be careful that you count sounds not letters. In
words such as soup there are three sounds, /s/ /ou/ /p/.
To reinforce this strategy, play a memory game where one player
says three to seven words with the same consonant sound.
Example: boy, boat, big. The other player repeats the words in the
same order. Start with three words and work up to seven. Over
time, include words with different sounds such as /b/ and /p/ in Big
and Pig.
Ehri & Wilce (1987);
Liberman et al. (1974)
This strategy can be reinforced through a simple twist on games like O'Conner & Jenkins
I Spy. The parent can say, "I spy something that starts with /b/ (ball, (1999)
boy, brick). "I spy something that ends with /og/ (dog or hog or log
or fog).
Joseph (2002a);
Williams (1980)
Play quick and fun word games making new words by adding a
letter sound to an existing word. Example: "What word do you
have if you add /s/ to park?"
Model the segmentation of the sounds in the word by placing counters Play quick and fun word games where one person asks "What word Joseph (2002a);
Williams (1980)
(not letters) into a drawn rectangle that has been divided into as many does /b/ /i/ /g/ make? Each player takes turns quizzing the other
player.
sections as sounds in the word. Then move your finger under each
counter as you say the sounds quickly while blending the sounds.
Phonemic awareness skills should be taught according to a sequential,
explicit, systematic plan. The skills should not be taught in isolation.
Gaskins, et al. (1988);
Glushko (1979);
Goswami (1986);
Joseph (2002a);
Marsh, et al. (1981)
Play fun and quick word games that require the child to identify
same sounds in words. Example: " Which sound is the same in fix,
fall, and fun?" "What word ends the same as cat" "Which sound is
the same in pot, mom, and top?" Take turns creating the word sets
for the game.
Model the segmentation of sounds in each word by moving colored
counters (not letters) into a drawn rectangle that has been divided into
as many sections as sounds in the words. Have a different color to
represent each different sound in the words. Then point to the counter
that represents the sounds that are the same. Phonemic awareness
skills should be taught according to a sequential, explicit, systematic
plan. The skills should not be taught in isolation.
References
Tips and Ideas for Parents
Play fun and quick word games isolating individual sounds in words. Joseph (2002a);
Liberman, et al. (1974)
Examples include: Asking child "What is the first sound in pizza?"
What is the last sound in couch?" For a more difficult game, one
player says a word and the next player says a word that begins with
the same sound that the first player's word ends with. Example:
toast - stop - pig - goat, etc.
Teaching Tips
Model the segmentation of sounds in a word by moving counters (not
letters) into a drawn rectangle that has been divided into as many
sections as sounds in the word. Then point to the counter that
represents the sound being isolated. Phonemic awareness skills
should be taught according to a sequential, explicit, systematic plan.
The skills should not be taught in isolation.
Say three to seven unrelated words to the student. Say them clearly
Teacher trains student to retain up to seven words to build
memory. Even though this helps students decode words, it is an with about a half second between each one. The student then repeats
the words in the correct sequence. Start at three words and work up to
auditory exercise.
seven.
Break down words into segments by identifying the initial
sound(s) or onset and the remaining word part or rime (c-at, smile, r-ing).
Breaking a word into separate phonemes (grab = /g/ /r/ /a/ /b/).
How many sounds in grab? /g/ /r/ /a/ /b/ (4). Student taps each
sound or puts a finger up for each sound they say.
Combining a sequence of phonemes into a word (/b/ /i/ /g/ = big).
What word does /b/ /i/ /g/ make? Big. Increase the number and
complexity of phonemes in words as students begin to master
the skill.
Substituting one phoneme for another to make a new word
("bug" becomes "bun" when you change the /g/ to /n/)
The word is bug. Change the /b/ to /h/. What is the new word?
Hug
The word is bug. Change the /g/ to /n/. What is the new word?
Bun
The word is bug. Change the /u/ to /i/. What is the new word?
Big
Recognizing a word that has a different sound in a set of words
(bus, bug, run = run does not fit because it does not begin with
the /b/ sound)
Which word does not belong - bus, bun, rug? rug
Which word does not belong – hot, mat, tip? tip
Which word does not belong – can, hat, rip? rip
Identifying the same sound in multiple words (fix, fall, and fun all
begin with the /f/ sound)
Which sound is the same in fix, fall, fun? /f/
Which sound is the same in cat, hot, mitt? /t/
Which sound is the same in pot, mom, top? /o/
Do you hear a /p/ sound in pat?
PA-3 Phoneme
Identification
Elaboration/Clarification
Phoneme
Identification
Strategy
PA-2 Phoneme
Identification
Skill Area
Phoneme Isolation Isolating individual sounds in a word (van = /v/ is the first sound)
What is the first sound in van? /v/
What is the last sound in cat? /t/
What is the medial (middle) sound in hot? /o/
#
PA-1 Phoneme
Identification
The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
.
Component: Phonics
Definition:
Phonics is the ability to 1) learn the alphabetic system known as letter-sound or graphemephoneme correspondence 2) apply this code knowledge during reading by blending the sounds
into words (decoding) and 3) apply this code knowledge during writing by spelling words
(encoding).
Overview:
Phonics is an essential part of the decoding process. Decoding is the primary means of word
recognition. If a student cannot make sound-symbol associations (decode) with accuracy and
automaticity, then fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension will suffer. Readers decipher words
in five ways:
1. by assembling letters into a blend of sounds, referred to as decoding
2. by pronouncing and blending familiar spelling patterns, a more advanced form of
decoding
3. by retrieving sight words from memory
4. by analogizing to words already known by sight (adding affixes to known roots or
bases)
5. by using context clues to predict words (Ehri, Nunes, Stahl, & Willows, 1997)
All of these methods require alphabetic knowledge whether applied slowly or instantaneously
retrieved from memory. Spelling training also benefits from phonics instruction as students learn
to transfer the patterns they hear and read to graphophonic symbols.
Skill Areas within this Component:
Skill Area
Evidence of Skill
Student is able to match a
Consonants
consonant sound to the
Ability to recognize the
representative symbol
sound-symbol relationship • /d/ for d
of the 21 consonants
• /gl/ for gl
• /ch/ for ch
Evidence of Need
Strategies
Student has difficulty identifying and 1,2,3,4,5
pronouncing the consonant sounds,
blends, and digraphs in words
• b for /d/
• g for /gl/
• c for /ch/
Student is able to match a vowel Student has difficulty decoding and
sound to the representative symbol blending vowels within words.
Ability to recognize the
and blend vowels within words
Student consistently mispronounces
sound symbol relationship of• matches short vowel sounds in vowel sounds.
the 5,sometimes 6, vowels
CVC words
• says short e for short i
• matches o, oe, for long o
• says short u for short o
vowel sound
• sounds out o and u for /ou/
• matches i, ie for long i vowel
sound
Vowels
PPLSP: Spring 2005
6,7,8,9,
10,11,12
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The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
Skill Area
Evidence of Skill
Evidence of Need
Compound Words
Student is able to distinguish
smaller word units within a
compound word.
• mailbox = mail/box
• glassware = glass/ware
Students cannot distinguish smaller
word units within the compound
word and pronunciation is inaccurate.
• mailbox = mailb/ox
• glassware = glas/sware
Ability to recognize and
break a word into its
compound parts
Student is able to automatically
Student cannot automatically identify
identify and apply word patterns in the most commonly used patterns of
their reading.
spelling and/or pronunciation.
Ability to distinguish the
• /at/ is in cat, bat, sat
• attempts to sound out
onsets and rimes of pattern • /ish/ is in wish, swish
“ight”, “ought”, “aught”
words
• /ight/ is in bright, tight, sight
Phonograms/Word
Families
Affixes
Ability to recognize
common prefixes and
suffixes and apply that
knowledge when reading
Student is able to apply affix
Student does not pronounce affixes
knowledge when decoding words. correctly and cannot identify
root/base words.
• interaction=inter-ac-tion
• interaction = in-ter-act-ion
Student is able to break words
apart into logical word chunks.
Ability to see phonic word • pro-tec-tion
chunks within words
• bloom-ing
• sec-tion-al
Syllabication
The student who needs work with
syllables is already skilled with
sound-symbol relationships, but is
either trying to decode words sound
by sound or is breaking words into
non-syllabic chunks, making
decoding difficult
• pr-o-t-ec-tion
• b-l-o-om-ing
• s-ect-ion-al
.
Strategies
13
14, 15
16,17,18
19,20
What the Research Says:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Phonics instruction must be explicit (a specific set of letter-sound relations) and
systematic (taught in a preplanned sequence) (Adams, 1990).
Poorly developed word recognition skills are the most pervasive and debilitating source
or reading challenges (Adams, 1990, Perfetti, 1986).
Phonics instruction is best taught for two consecutive years (K/1 or1/2) (NRP, 2000).
Beyond fifth grade, the average student encounters approximatley 10,000 new words
each year (Nagy & Andersen, 1984).
Alphabetic knowledge is essential for literacy acquisition to reach a mature state (Ehri,
Nunes, Stahl, & Willows, 2001).
Teaching students strategies for decoding longer words improves their decoding ability
(Shefelbine, 1990).
Using letters to manipulate phonemes helps children make the transfer to reading and
writing (NRP, 2000).
PPLSP: Spring 2005
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The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
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•
•
•
•
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Assembling letters into blends of sounds reqires knowledge of the relationship between
phonemes, the basic vocal gestures from which spoken words are constructed, and
graphemes, the letter symbols of the sounds in the alphabet (NRP, 2000).
Systematic use of synthetic phonics (part-to-whole) is important in helping
kindergarteners and first graders learn to read (Ehri, Nunes, Stahl, & Willows, 2001).
We learn to use "chunks" of letters to remember similarly spelled words and add-ons
(affixes) to change base word intention or to change word tenses. These patterns form
the basis for reading and writing in English.
Mnemonics in the form of picture and sound cues enable letter and sound learning (Ehri,
Deffner, & Wilce, 1984).
High quality phonics instruction is based on the following 8 characteristics:
1) Understanding the alphabetic principle
2) Development of phonological awareness
3) Obtaining a grounding in letters
4) Avoiding rule-dominated, boring, worksheet-driven, overuse of a reading program
5) Applying sufficient practice of word reading in context and in isolation
6) Applying sufficient graphophonic (writing) applications
7) Practice in recognition of automatic words (sight words)
8) Recognition that phonics is only part of a good reading program (Stahl, DuffyHester, & Stahl, 1998).
Best Practices in Instruction:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Include phonics, phonemic awareness training, and immersion in appropriate literature
and environmental print as essential parts of your reading program.
Teach phonics as long as you see the need in your students, because no clear research
indicates the age or grade at which phonics instruction ceases to be effective.
Make phonics as fun and entertaining as possible.
Use real words or pseudowords.
Provide substantial practice with a variety of words.
Move instruction from code knowledge in isolation, to the context of words, to authentic
text to provide ample practice and demonstrate the connection of phonics to reading.
Deciding to teach the vowel combinations or the syllables will largely depend on the
level of students. Students in intermediate elementary and higher grades may gain more
understanding with instruction in syllabication and affixes.
Realize that basal readers, literature based programs, and sight-word programs generally
are not acceptable sources for phonics instruction because they tend not to be systematic.
Furthermore, just adding phonics workbooks or activities as supplemental materials to
these programs tend to cause confusion for readers because they are not explicit or
systematic.
Teach auditory-visual integration to bridge phonemic awarareness, phonics, and spelling.
Students blend words phoneme by phoneme as teacher writes on a wipe off board;
teacher writes the phoneme and says “sound” to cue students to make the sound; after all
PPLSP: Spring 2005
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The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
•
.
phonemes have been written, teacher says “word” to cue students to read the whole word
(/c/ sound, /a/ sound, /t/ sound, word = cat).
Teach in a whole-part-whole sequence:
o Diagnose the specific skill that is needed - introduce the skill with rich examples
of the particular skill you are teaching
o Read through the sample aloud and with the student
o Isolate all of the words that illustrate the skill and write them on a wipe off board
o Analyze them with the student and teach the skill
o Add other words with the skill to the board and have the student read them
o Finally, put the skill back into the whole and give the student another writing
sample to read, rich with words with the skill just taught.
PPLSP: Spring 2005
20
21
Diagraphs
Silent Consonants Consonants in words that are silent. Examples: the g in gnat, k Introduce silent consonants within a piece of writing. Identify the
in knee, and b in comb. There are many other examples of silent consonant in the word that is silent. Look for and analyze other words
following the same spelling patterns. Look for silent consonants in
consonants in words with atypical spellings.
words that do not follow any rule. Finally, put the words back into
context by using them in a sentence.
Short Vowels
/a/ /e/ /i/ /o/ /u/ in initial, medial, and final position of words
(initial and medial)
Long Vowels Silent e
Long Vowels Doubled
Ph-4 Consonants
Ph-5 Consonants
Ph-6 Vowels
Ph-7 Vowels
Ph-8 Vowels
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Consonant Blends Two consonants quickly blended together, each saying their
typical sound. Can be place at the beginning, in the middle or at
the end of a word. Examples: st-, fl-, tr-, sm-, and -mp.
Ph-3 Consonants
In some cases, when a vowel is doubled, the sound is long
(sheep, teeth)
Also called “magic e,” or “sneaky e;” changes the vowel before it
into its long sound (mad + e = made; rip + e = ripe)
Two consonants together that make a completely different
sound. Examples: th, ch, sh, wh and ph.
Liberman ,et al. (1974)
When reading with your child, help them decode words with silent
letters by telling them which letter is silent.
Liberman ,et al. (1974)
Liberman ,et al. (1974)
The teacher must be able to diagnose accurately the specific skill(s) a When reading with your child, help them decode words with double
student is having difficulty with and then teach that skill in a whole-part- vowels by reminding them of the rule. When the letter e is doubled
whole sequence. To do this, introduce the skill within a piece of writing in a word, it says its name. Example: street.
(something from your content area if you are a secondary teacher).
The text should be rich with the particular skill you are teaching. After
reading it aloud, isolate the words containing the target skill and write
them on a wipe off board. Analyze them with the student and teach
the skill. Add other words that require the skill to the board and have
the student read them. Finally, put the skill back in the context of the
whole text and give the student another piece to read, rich with words
containing the skill just taught (you may need to write your own
examples).
Liberman ,et al. (1974)
When reading with your child, help them decode words with short
vowels by reminding them of the rule. When only one vowel is
present and followed by a consonant in a word or syllable, the vowel
makes the sound other than its name. Example: hat, or con-text
Byrne & FieldingBarnsley (1991);
Joseph (2002b);
Liberman, et al. (1974)
Byrne & FieldingBarnsley (1991);
Joseph (2002b);
Liberman, et al. (1974)
Play games like Concentration, Go Fish and Dominoes which
require student to match picture and letter cards. Word Hunt: Look
for words in text that fit the spelling pattern, analysis if the rule stays
true, and then use the word in a different sentence. Word Sort:
After completing a word hunt, sort the words found into categories.
Word Hunt: Look for words in text that fit the spelling pattern,
analysis if the rule stays true, and then use the word in a different
sentence. Word Sort: After completing a word hunt, sort the words
found into categories.
Play games like Concentration, Go Fish and Dominoes which
require student to match picture and letter cards. Word Hunt: Look
for words in text that fit the spelling pattern, analysis if the rule stays
true, and then use the word in a different sentence. Word Sort:
After completing a word hunt, sort the words found into categories.
When reading with your child, help them decode words with silent e
by reminding them of the rule. When a consonant, vowel,
consonant is followed by e, the e is silent and the vowel says its
name. Example: made, kite, hope, and cute.
The teacher must be able to diagnose accurately the specific skill(s) a
student is having difficulty with and then teach that skill in a whole-partwhole sequence. To do this, introduce the skill within a piece of writing
(something from your content area if you are a secondary teacher).
The text should be rich with the particular skill you are teaching. After
reading it aloud, isolate the words containing the target skill and write
them on a wipe off board. Analyze them with the student and teach
the skill. Add other words that require the skill to the board and have
the student read them. Finally, put the skill back in the context of the
whole text and give the student another piece to read, rich with words
containing the skill just taught (you may need to write your own
examples).
The teacher must be able to diagnose accurately the specific skill(s) a
student id having difficulty with and then teach that skill in a whole-partwhole sequence. To do this, introduce the skill within a piece of writing
(something from your content area if you are a secondary teacher).
The text should be rich with the particular skill you are teaching. After
reading it aloud, isolate the words containing the target skill and write
them on a wipe off board. Analyze them with the student and teach
the skill. Add other words that require the skill to the board and have
the student read them. Finally, put the skill back in the context of the
whole text and give the student another piece to read, rich with words
containing the skill just taught (you may need to write your own
examples).
The teacher must be able to diagnose accurately the specific skill(s) a
student is having difficulty with and then teach that skill in a whole-partwhole sequence. To do this, introduce the skill within a piece of writing
(something from your content area if you are a secondary teacher).
The text should be rich with the particular skill you are teaching. After
reading it aloud, isolate the words containing the target skill and write
them on a wipe off board. Analyze them with the student and teach
the skill. Add other words that require the skill to the board and have
the student read them. Finally, put the skill back in the context of the
whole text and give the student another piece to read, rich with words
containing the skill just taught (you may need to write your own
examples).
Doubled
Consonants
References
Adams (1990);
Fielding-Barnsley
(1997); Torgesen, et
al. (1992)
Joseph (2002b);
Liberman, et al. (1974)
Tips and Ideas for Parents
Play games that match consonant letters to the sounds that they
make. Games like Concentration where a letter card is matched
with a picture card that starts with the same sound.
Teaching Tips
This usually is a teacher-directed strategy. Model and describe the
placement of the tongue in the production of each consonant sound. A
mirror can provide the student with visual feedback of the mouth
shape.
Teach the spelling rule regarding the doubling of consonants f, l, and
s: When all three conditions are present the consonant f, l, and s are
doubled. The word is a one syllable, the vowel makes the short sound
and the word ends in f, l, or s.
The teacher must be able to diagnose accurately the specific skill(s) a
student is having difficulty with and then teach that skill in a whole-partwhole sequence. To do this, introduce the skill within a piece of writing
(something from your content area if you are a secondary teacher).
The text should be rich with the particular skill you are teaching. After
reading it aloud, isolate the words containing the target skill and write
them on a wipe off board. Analyze them with the student and teach
the skill. Add other words that require the skill to the board and have
the student read them. Finally, put the skill back in the context of the
whole text and give the student another piece to read, rich with words
containing the skill just taught (you may need to write your own
examples).
Ph-2 Consonants
Elaboration/Clarification
Sounds that are formed by the tongue changing how the air flows
out of the mouth. Modeling the look, feel, and sound of
consonants helps draw the child's attention to the unique
characteristics of consonants.
Doubled consonants are two of the same consonants together
making only one sound.
Strategy
Individual
Consonants
Skill Area
#
Ph-1 Consonants
22
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Prefix Recognition Prefixes are a group of letters that appear in the front of a word
and Application
and affect the meaning of the base word.
Ph-16 Affixes
We commonly refer to phonograms/word families as rhyming
words.
Complex (-ought)
Ph-15 Phonograms /
Word Families
We commonly refer to phonograms/word families as rhyming
words.
Simple (-on)
The vowel in the open syllable is long (open, apron, ivy, acorn)
Ph-14 Phonograms /
Word Families
Ph-13 Compound Words
Ph-12 Vowels
Long Vowels Open
Ph-11 Vowels
Elaboration/Clarification
Teaching Tips
When two vowels are paired they make a new sound (hook,
The teacher must be able to diagnose accurately the specific skill(s) a
field) or the first vowel is long and the second is silent (rain, beat) student is having difficulty with and then teach that skill in a whole-partwhole sequence. To do this, introduce the skill within a piece of writing
(something from your content area if you are a secondary teacher).
The text should be rich with the particular skill you are teaching. After
reading it aloud, isolate the words containing the target skill and write
them on a wipe off board. Analyze them with the student and teach
the skill. Add other words that require the skill to the board and have
the student read them. Finally, put the skill back in the context of the
whole text and give the student another piece to read, rich with words
containing the skill just taught (you may need to write your own
examples).
The vowel makes a different sound because of the intrusion of
The teacher must be able to diagnose accurately the specific skill(s) a
the r (start, her, shirt, short, hurt)
student is having difficulty with and then teach that skill in a whole-partwhole sequence. To do this, introduce the skill within a piece of writing
(something from your content area if you are a secondary teacher).
The text should be rich with the particular skill you are teaching. After
reading it aloud, isolate the words containing the target skill and write
them on a wipe off board. Analyze them with the student and teach
the skill. Add other words that require the skill to the board and have
the student read them. Finally, put the skill back in the context of the
whole text and give the student another piece to read, rich with words
containing the skill just taught (you may need to write your own
examples).
Begin teaching phonograms with single syllable words. Split them into
onset and rime as described here. Find simple short vowel patterns
such as at, an, et, etc. Create a list of words with that pattern (bat, sat,
hat, cat, rat, mat, etc.). Apply the skill by reading these words
embedded in text. As more sophistication is needed, expand into
analogy word recognition (using word parts for recognition in new
words).
Begin teaching phonograms with single syllable words. Split them into
onset and rime as described here. Find complex word patterns.
Create a list of words with that pattern (sought, wrought, bought, etc.).
Apply the skill by reading these words embedded in text. As more
sophistication is needed, expand into analogy word recognition (using
word parts for recognition in new words).
Provide students with a list of base words and a set of prefixes.
Students combine the word parts to create and present new words.
Create matching games such as matching prefixes to their meaning.
Teach only the most common prefixes first (un, re, in, im, ir, il, dis, en,
em, non, over, mis, sub, pre, inter, de, trans, super, semi, anti, mid,
under).
The teacher must be able to diagnose accurately the specific skill(s) a
student is having difficulty with and then teach that skill in a whole-partwhole sequence. To do this, introduce the skill within a piece of writing
(something from your content area if you are a secondary teacher).
The text should be rich with the particular skill you are teaching. After
reading it aloud, isolate the words containing the target skill and write
them on a wipe off board. Analyze them with the student and teach
the skill. Add other words that require the skill to the board and have
the student read them. Finally, put the skill back in the context of the
whole text and give the student another piece to read, rich with words
containing the skill just taught (you may need to write your own
examples).
The mouth changes shape while making the sound (oi – toil, oy – The teacher must be able to diagnose accurately the specific skill(s) a
Long Vowels toy; ou- mouth, ow – cow)
student is having difficulty with and then teach that skill in a whole-partDiphthongs /
whole sequence. To do this, introduce the skill within a piece of writing
Sliders
(something from your content area if you are a secondary teacher).
The text should be rich with the particular skill you are teaching. After
reading it aloud, isolate the words containing the target skill and write
them on a wipe off board. Analyze them with the student and teach
the skill. Add other words that require the skill to the board and have
the student read them. Finally, put the skill back in the context of the
whole text and give the student another piece to read, rich with words
containing the skill just taught (you may need to write your own
examples).
Compound Words One word made up of two words that could stand alone example: Help the student analyze the word and identify the smaller words within
snowman, mailbox, doghouse, etc.
the larger word. Use the word in context.
Long Vowels - "r"
Controlled
Strategy
Ph-10 Vowels
Skill Area
Long Vowels Diagraphs
#
Ph-9 Vowels
Liberman ,et al. (1974)
When reading with your child, help them decode words with an rcontrolled vowel in it by reminding them of the rule. When one
vowel is immediately followed by an r, the vowel sound is changed.
Examples: start, fur, short, and first.
Byrne (1992); Ehri
(1991); Ehri (1994);
Stahl, Duffy-Hester, &
Stahl (1998); Ehri,
Nunes, Stahl, &
Willows (2001)
Blevins (2001); Tyler &
Nagy (1989); White,
Power, & White
(1989); Wysocki &
Jenkins (1987)
Play rhyming games. Take turns making rhymes with real and
nonsense words. Practice spelling the rhymes noticing the repeated
spelling pattern. (Note: not all words that rhyme are spelled using
the same spelling pattern. They must be spelled the same to be in
the same word family).
When reading with your child help them decode words with prefixes
by identifying the prefix and the base word that it is attached to.
Help them understand the meaning of the prefix and the word
together in the context of the sentence.
Byrne (1992); Ehri
(1991); Ehri (1994);
Stahl, Duffy-Hester, &
Stahl (1998); Ehri,
Nunes, Stahl, &
Willows (2001)
Liberman ,et al. (1974)
Liberman ,et al. (1974)
Play rhyming games. Take turns making rhymes with real and
nonsense words. Practice spelling the rhymes noticing the repeated
spelling pattern. (Note: not all words that rhyme are spelled using
the same spelling pattern. They must be spelled the same to be in
the same word family).
Search for compound words in text. Discuss that two words are put
together to make one word. Your child can illustrate the word to
further demonstrate understanding. Example for the word
"doghouse" the drawing would be of a dog and a house.
When reading with your child, help them decode words with vowel
combinations by reminding them of the sound the combination
makes.
When reading with your child, help them decode words with an open Liberman ,et al. (1974)
vowel syllable by reminding them of the rule. When a word has
more than one syllable and one of the syllables ends in a vowel, or
a one syllable word ends in a vowel that vowel says its name.
Examples: o-pen, a-corn, so, and be
References
Liberman ,et al. (1974)
Tips and Ideas for Parents
When reading with your child, help them decode words with long
vowels by reminding them of the rule. When two vowels are paired
the first vowel says its name and the other is silent as in the words
rain, beat, goat and blue. When two vowels are paired they make a
new sound as in the words hook, boot and field.
23
Students need to understand and recognize the 6 patterns of
syllabication (orthographic units). These key concepts should be
taught in the following sequence: closed, open, vowel,
consonant, silent e, r controlled, consonant l-e. The concepts
should be modeled and practiced and each syllable type should
be introduced and then practiced separately.
closed syllable: rab-bit, nap-kin
open syllable: va-cant, pi-lot
v-c-silent e: base-ment, line-man
vowel team (diagraph): ai, ay, ae, ee, oa, ow, oo, oi, oy, ou, ie,
ei.
r controlled: car-pet, for-tune
consonant -le: ta-ble, lit-tle
Ph-20 Syllabication
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Visual Cues with a Every syllable in a word has only one vowel sound, even if there
Mirror
are several vowel letters. This strategy involves helping students
feel, see, and hear syllables by using a mirror to watch their
mouth as they say words.
Ph-19 Syllabication
Direct Instruction
of Six Syllable
Types
Teaching Tips
Henry (1988)
When reading with your child help them decode words with affixes
by identifying the base word and the affix that it is attached to it.
Help them understand the meaning of the affix and base word
separately and together in the context of the sentence.
When reading with your child, help them read multisyllable words by Moats (1998); Share
helping them identify the different syllables. Place your hand under (1995)
your chin and say the word. Every time your hand goes down is a
new syllable. Breaking the word into syllables helps longer words
be more manageable to the reader.
References
Blevins (2001); Tyler &
Nagy (1989); White,
Power, & White
(1989); Wysocki &
Jenkins (1987)
Tips and Ideas for Parents
When reading with your child help them decode words with suffixes
by identifying the suffix and the base word that it is attached to.
Help them understand the meaning of the suffix and the word
together in the context of the sentence.
Activity 1) Select a word with recognizable word parts according to the When reading with your child, help them read multisyllable words by Cunningham (1978);
6 syllable spelling patterns. Underline or loop your finger under or
helping them identify the different syllables. Place your hand under Cunningham (1980);
reveal the first syllable pattern. Help the student pronounce the
Sheflebine (1990)
your chin and say the word. Every time your hand goes down is a
syllable. Continue syllable by syllable for the rest of the word. Have the new syllable. Breaking the word into syllables helps longer words
student blend the syllables together to pronounce the word. If this
be more manageable to the reader.
activity occurs within the context of reading, ask "Is that a real word?
Does it make sense in the sentence?"
Activity 2) Write several words syllable by syllable, leaving enough
space between word parts for students to see the syllable divisions.
Have the student identify the type of syllable and pronounce it. Then
blend the syllables together to form words.
Activity 3) Write a series of related syllables (all of the same type).
Have the student read syllables and identify the syllable type.
Activity 4) Write individual syllables on note cards. Have students
arrange syllables to form words.
Activity 5) Give the student a list of polysyllabic words. Student should
be able to segment the words into syllables and pronounce each syllable
Activity 6) Give the student a list of common syllables of several types.
Have they read as many as possible in one minute.
Activity 7) Some good sources for words and syllables are the 100 Most
Common Non-word Syllables and 322 Most Frequent Syllables in the
5,000 Most Common Words in English
Have the student look in a mirror and count the number of times his
mouth opens when saying a word. Each jaw drop is a syllable. Ask
the student to identify which part of the word made their mouth open
(the vowel sound). Each syllable has one vowel sound. Present the
student with various words so they can detect the syllables in them.
Also, you can connect this learning to decoding during reading, by
having the student segment the words into syllables on paper while
using the mirror.
Provide students with a list of base words and a set of suffixes.
Students combine the word parts to create and present new words.
Create matching games such as matching suffixes to their meaning.
Teach only the most common suffixes first (s, es, ed, ing, ly, er, or, ion,
tion, ation, ition, ible, able, al, ial, y, ness, ity, ty, ment, ic, ous, eous,
ious, en, ive, ative, itive, ful, less, est).
English words are derived primarily from Anglo-Saxon, Latin, and Help students separate the base word from the affixes. Define the
base word. This can be done through direct practice and word games.
Greek. Recognizing and understanding base words and how
Then, discuss how the addition of affixes modify the meaning of the
affixes modify those words is a key to making meaning when
word in context. Students can combine word parts prefix-base-suffix to
reading.
make new words that they would then use in their writing and speaking
or look for when reading.
Elaboration/Clarification
Base Words with
Affixes
Strategy
Ph-18 Affixes
Skill Area
Suffix Recognition A suffix is a letter or group of letters that is added to the end of a
and Application
base word. A suffix changes the meaning of the root or base
word. Students need to understand the meaning of the suffix
and how it affects the word it is attached to.
#
Ph-17 Affixes
The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
.
Component: Fluency
Definition
Fluency is reading text meaningfully with appropriate speed, accuracy, and expression.
Overview
Fluency is a prerequisite to the primary goal of reading, which is constructing meaning from
print. When fluency is in place, reading sounds like interesting conversation. When readers
miscue, or make mistakes in reading the print as it is found on the page, it interferes with
fluency, and comprehension suffers. Oral reading is the teacher’s window to student fluency.
Oral reading has two purposes: 1) to diagnosis fluency 2) to target instruction with appropriate
accuracy, speed, and expression strategies. Because fluency is a well-researched predictor of
reading ability (Fuchs, et al., 2001), teachers can glean valuable information about readers’
strengths and weaknesses as they carefully observe oral reading fluency and its characteristics.
Skill Areas Within this Component
Skill Area
Accuracy
Evidence of Skill
Student makes minimal errors in
reading.
Ability to correctly break • applies phonic knowledge to
words into individual
unknown words
parts using phonic
• decodes words quickly and
knowledge
accurately
• monitors own reading and self
corrects
Automaticity
Ability to quickly
recognize words and
word parts
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Evidence of Need
Student makes frequent errors in
decoding.
• says: sat for sad, protest for
protect
• makes multiple attempts at
pronunciation says “sat, set,
sad”
• does not self correct when
meaning is lost:
“The cat sad on the chair.”
Student can automatically apply phonicStudent’s reading is “choppy.”
knowledge when reading.
• reads words sound by sound
• focuses on phrases or chunks of
instead of in chunks
text with eyes
/b/ /l/ /o/ /t/ for blot
• applies knowledge of blends,
• reads at a laborious pace with
affixes, word families, etc.
minimal sight word knowledge
• word/phrase recognition appears • may read word by word
to be effortless
instead of phrase by phrase:
“in-the-tree” for “in the tree”
• reads fluidly with natural breaks in
phrases
• reads with hesitations-poor
phrasing:
“The/man got/off of/the ladder
when/the bell/rang.”
Strategies
1,2,3,4,5
6,7,8,9,
10,11
24
The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
Skill Area
Evidence of Skill
Student is able to read text fluently
Expression / Prosody
Ability to read print with with expression and prosody.
an understanding of
• reading sounds like conversation
phrasing, intonation, and • uses punctuation as meaning cues
punctuation
• divides text into meaningful
chunks while reading
* Note: prosody is
associated with rhythm,
meter, and verse and
comes into play
frequently when reading
poetry or lyrical prose.
Evidence of Need
Student reading is monotone and
lacks natural pauses and
expression.
• reads through punctuation
marks
• “robot” reading-student reads
in a choppy manner:
“Jon-a-thon ask-ed the teacher if he could be the leader.”
• frequent pauses or unnatural
pausing:
“I went-to the-store”
.
Strategies
12,13,14,
15,16,17
What the Research Says about Fluency:
• Has a reciprocal relationship with comprehension; each fosters the other (Strecker, Roser
& Martinez, 1998)
• Is more directly related to text comprehension than word recognition (Clay, 1985).
• Is the most neglected component of reading improvement.
• An appropriate rate is necessary for, but not sufficient for, comprehension
• Develops gradually over time with practice.
• Requires consistent, monitored practice on independent or instructional reading level text
• Direct instruction shows results well beyond fifth grade for struggling readers (NRP, 2000).
• Research supports oral reading practice as an avenue to improve fluency, but there is insufficient
support for the practice of silent reading practice as a contributor to the improvement of fluency
(NRP, 2000).
• Oral reading is beneficial to reading, but Round Robin reading prohibits, rather than facilitates, the
ability to read fluently (Opitz & Rasinski, 1998).
• Modeling and repeated readings are two of the most effective interventions (Rasinski & Hoffman,
2003)
• Improves with support from peers and adults almost as well as with support from teachers
(Simmons, Fuchs, Fuchs, Mathes, & Hodge, 1995).
• Listening to text read fluently prior to reading improves fluency more than silent practice before
oral reading (Rose, 1984).
Best Practices in Instruction:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Provide direct instruction and practice within the content of a text (not word lists).
Use short passages (50-200 words).
Use a variety of genre.
Use only passages at the individual’s independent reading level.
Increase the level of difficulty of the passages gradually as accuracy and fluency increase
Provide approximately fifteen minutes of direct instruction in fluency daily.
PPLSP: Spring 2005
25
The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
.
Teach during small, guided reading groups, not during shared reading in large groups.
Break longer text in large group instruction into smaller sections, assign specific passages
to individuals by reading ability, and afford ample practice time before students read
aloud in front of the group.
Assess progress regularly (every two weeks) with timed samples on text that has been
mastered for accuracy.
Provide readers with decoding strategies to remove that barrier to fluency.
Use authentic reasons to read, such as preparation for presentations, to make practice
meaningful.
Provide students with feedback about their fluency (graph their progress).
Model fluency through teacher read alouds in expository and narrative text.
Maximize the amount of practice struggling readers have available to them.
Allow sufficient time for self-correction by the reader during oral reading.
Use oral reading as a tool for teaching self monitoring of reading.
PPLSP: Spring 2005
26
The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
.
~ Fluency Strategy Example ~
A Suggested Process for Improving Reading Fluency – Accuracy and Speed
Note: The process described here uses the strategy of repeated practice to improve fluency,
first with a focus on accuracy followed by a focus on speed.
Step 1: Find the student’s instructional reading level. This is the level of text difficulty
where the student reads with 90% accuracy.
Accuracy Rates
Word Recognition
Comprehension
Reading Levels
Independent
Instructional
95% +
90% +
90% +
75% +
Frustrational
< 90%
< 75%
Step 2: Have the student practice the text repeatedly until he/she can read it at an
independent level (approximately 95% accuracy).
Step 3: On the text that he/she can read with 95% accuracy, have the student read the
passage repeatedly until he/she can read the text at the appropriate speed according to the
table below:
Suggested reading speeds on independent-level text (adapted from Hasbrouck
& Tindal (1992) and Opitz & Rasinski (1998) Notes: these speeds are based on a
one-minute timed reading on a practiced passage. Count only words read
correctly (self-correction within 3 seconds is not counted as an error)
Grade
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Words per
Minute
60-80
80-95
90-115
100-140
105-160
115-180
125-190
135-200
Step 4: Repeat steps 1-3 with different genre and with text of increasing difficulty.
PPLSP: Spring 2005
27
28
Accuracy
Accuracy
Accuracy
Accuracy
Automaticity /
Speed
Automaticity /
Speed
Automaticity /
Speed
Automaticity /
Speed
Automaticity /
Speed
Automaticity /
Speed
Expression /
Prosody
Expression /
Prosody
F-2
F-3
F-4
F-5
F-6
F-7
F-8
F-9
F-10
F-11
F-12
F-13
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Skill Area
Accuracy
#
F-1
Strategy
Teaching Tips
Some students lack fluency because they show regular error patterns
when reading aloud. These errors are related to a lack of attention to
the phonic code and often coincides with repeated rereading of words
to self-correct or a lack of awareness that miscues have occurred.
Based on the type of errors the student produces, please refer to
phonics section for specific instructional suggestions.
Elaboration/Clarification
Students who have correct letter-sound recognition are able to
read more accurately and thus fluency increases.
Wolf, et al. (1986)
Students who have automatic letter-sound recognition are able to Practice speed drills with the same sound in various positions in the
read more accurately and thus fluency increases.
word. For example, the /a/ is in the initial position of apple and the
medial position of back. Provide controlled lists of words where the
sound appears at various positions in all words of the list. The student
practices reading the list of words for automaticity.
Repetition enhances the automatic recognition of words, letters, Speed drills using letters, words, different syllable types, objects
and objects, The focus with this strategy is on speed.
Guided Choral
Reading
Tape Assisted
Reading
Tape Assisted
Reading
This is a 10-15 minute instructional activity that incorporates
several key principles of effective fluency instruction. Each
student is handed a copy of a 50-150 word passage. Texts are
selected for content, predictability, and rhythm. Rhyming poems
and song lyrics for children work well.
Books at various levels are recorded. When choosing books,
consider the extent of interest in the book, the maximum phrase
length that can be assimilated, the maximum reading rate that
can be followed, and the amount of material the student can
assimilate in one sitting.
This strategy was used with third and fourth graders who were
both slow readers and had reading comprehension below grade
level. It was used in addition to regular classroom instruction.
The results showed improvement in both listening and reading
comprehension.
Assisted Reading This assisted reading technique focuses on developing reading
for Speed
speed with the assistance of the teacher. Teacher and student
read aloud together, but the teacher controls the reading pace,
gradually increasing text difficulty or reading rate.
Repeated readings result in faster reading pace with fewer
Repeated
hesitations.
Reading of
Independent Level
Text
Carbo (1978)
Record books at various levels. Make sure the amount of material can Provide books on tape or computer for your child to listen to as they
follow along. After several readings, stop occasionally and have the
be assimilated in one setting. The student listens to the tape three or
child locate a specific word within the text they just read.
four times. The teacher then guides the student through the reading
focusing on expression whether it is dialogue or punctuation.
Rasinski, et al. (1994)
Shany & Biemiller
(1995)
Students listen to stories on tape with headphones while reading along Provide books on tape or computer for your child to listen to as they
with the text (either out loud or silently). The tapes are recorded at 100 follow along. After several readings, stop occasionally and have the
child locate a specific word within the text they just read.
words per minute (but students could vary the speed from 80 - 120
wpm). The students listen to several stories over several weeks.
Model reading with expression for your child. Poems, newspaper
articles, road signs, cartoons from the newspaper, picture books
with characters, invitations, and educational texts are all good
sources. Another suggestion is to have the student take over the
bedtime reading for a younger sibling. Practice expression and
pacing.
Heckelman (1969)
Together, you and the child read aloud at a fast pace. Read into the
child's ear as you slide your finger, in phrases, under the words
being read. Start with short, easy passages and move to more
difficult ones.
The student and teacher read simultaneously and at a rapid rate. The
student sits in front of the teacher, both holding the book. The teacher
reads in the students ear. The teacher slides a finger under the words
and can vary the pace from louder and faster to slower and softer.
Start with easy material at first before graduating to more difficult
selections.
The teacher reads a selection out loud, emphasizing expression,
phrasing, and appropriate pausing. Then he leads a discussion of the
text content and the teacher's oral reading of the text. Particular
attention is given to the teacher's rate, phrasing, expression, and
intonation during reading. The teacher leads the whole class in several
choral readings of the text.
Dowhower (1987)
Choose short selections (about 50 -100 words) and have your child
reread the passage five times. Time how long it takes to read the
passage each time and celebrate when the speed increases.
On independent-level text or instructional-level text with support, the
student rereads the text multiple times until she can read it quickly.
Logan (1997);
Play rhyming games. Take turns making rhymes with real and
nonsense words. Practice spelling the rhymes noticing the repeated Stanovich, Nathan, &
Vala-Rossi (1986)
spelling pattern.
Wolf, et al. (1986)
Use a stopwatch or second hand as you play a game to see how
fast you can name letters, words, or objects in a given category. For
example, words that start with /g/ as in gate. (go, guess, give, gift,
gas, gone, etc.)
Use a highlighter or small piece of colored plastic to highlight the
sound the child is practicing within a word. Give feedback on the
correct pronunciation of the sound. Point out that sound in words as
you read.
Do all steps on a small passage: 1) you read aloud while they follow Dowhower (1987)
along with finger 2) you both read aloud together and follow with
finger 3) child reads silently alone and asks for help if needed 4)
child reads aloud alone - should be accurate and smooth
Repeated readings are used to increase fluency through the
accuracy of text by having the student practice reading a text
several times. Feedback focused on accuracy is the important
component of this strategy.
Use materials at the student's independent level. Keep passages
relatively short. Make sure the student has demonstrated 95%+
accuracy. The focus here is on accurate reading of words. Paired
reading fashion. Students work in pairs as stated above. The reader
reads the passage three times and evaluates how well she reads each
time. The listener gives feedback and praise when the reader has
improved. The readers then switch roles.
Laberge & Samuels
(1974)
Laberge & Samuels
(1974)
Practice the same text several times. Break the passage into pieces Koskinen & Blum
(1984)
small enough to build success (sometimes 1 sentence). Use your
finger to force their eyes across the page at a faster and faster rate.
Always cover words with your finger in phrases, not word-by-word.
Check for their understanding of the main idea of the passage.
Utilize flash cards and words in connected text. Introduce a word
pattern and create words using that pattern (ap: rap, tap, sap, map,
cap or ean: mean, steam, bean, dean, clean)
Name a category (farm animals, food, clothing) and help your child
quickly name objects that fit in that category. Start with three words
at a time and build to seven. Say the grouping of words, letters, or
sounds and have your child repeat them back to you in the same
order.
Play rhyming word games that start easy and become harder: Do
yes and no rhyme? Do yes and guess rhyme? Tell me a word that
rhymes with…..
References
Laberge & Samuels
(1974)
Tips and Ideas for Parents
When your child is reading to improve accuracy and stumbles on a
word, look at the word to determine which part of the word is the
difficult part. Help your child with the unknown part. Encourage her
to plug that sound into the word, blend the word and reread the
entire sentence.
Assisted reading strategies: 1) Paired reading - One student is
assigned as the lead reader (more proficient reader). The struggling
reader or "assisted reader" receives support and feedback as the
struggling reader is reading. 2) Choral reading - Using a big book,
basal story, or another primary text, the teacher and students read
aloud together. 3) Use recorded text for students to do paired reading.
Examples of word patterns include: cvc (cat), cvvc (coat), cvce
(came), irregular and regular high frequency words. Experience
with words and consistent practice are necessary to develop
word reading skills.
Assisted readings are used to increase fluency through the
accuracy of text. Feedback through repetition in "sticky spots" is
an important component of this strategy.
Experience with words and consistent practice are necessary to Use flashcards to practice words families that focus on the 41
Letter Patterns
phonemes.
develop word reading skills. Average 3rd graders rely primarily
and High
Frequency Words on word recognition skills whereas by 5th grade average readers
have also incorporated decoding of unusual vocabulary. Fifth
graders still challenged with automaticity lag developmentally
behind and can be coached in these two areas.
Rapid Naming of
Letters, Words,
Objects
Automatic
Recognition of
Sound-Symbol
Relationships
Repeated
Rereadings with
Feedback on
Independent Level
Text
Repeated
Reading of Letter
Patterns and
Words
Assisted Reading
Speed drills using letters, words, different syllable types, objects
Correct Naming of At the very beginning stages of reading, fluency refers to
automatic letter name, letter-sound recognition, and the skill of
Letters, Words,
quickly listing items in categories. Repetition enhances automatic
Objects
recognition.
Correct LetterSound
Recognition
29
Expression /
Prosody
Expression /
Prosody
Expression /
Prosody
F-15
F-16
F-17
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Skill Area
Expression /
Prosody
#
F-14
Strategy
Elaboration/Clarification
Text segmentation provides a scaffold for readers by having the
teacher organize the text ahead of time to provide practice with
appropriate pausing. The visual cues provided by segmentation
can take several forms, including: segmenting by line,
segmenting by line and indentation, segmenting by slashes, or
segmenting by spaces. Segmentation practice is shown to
improve the reading performance of struggling readers at all
levels, and even helps regular ability readers in high school and
college.
Reader's Theater
Teaching Tips
Tips and Ideas for Parents
References
Dowhower (1987);
Dowhower (1991)
The text is taped or performed live by a competent reader. Students
replicate the reading, being shown explicitly where to pause, where to
change pitch, which words to stress and which segments to elongate.
The modeling gives the reader a sense of what reading with expression
sounds like. It is important to use selections that are age/level
appropriate.
Read a play or another piece of literature that can be read by
different characters. You read for certain characters and the
student reads for other characters.
Millen & Rinehart
(1999); Keehn (2003)
Chomsky (1976);
Unable to read with your child? Make a tape of his favorite story or
Dowhower (1991)
tape record his reading lesson for school. Listening and following
along in the text makes a great connection with your child and helps
with reading fluency. Get relatives who live far away in on the
activity, also. Or, you could ask your child to make a tape of a book
or short story for a grandparent, sick friend or someone at a nursing
home.
Dowhower (1987)
Have the student reread a passage of text (unassisted except for some Break passages to be practiced into smaller chunks to build
help with word recognition) until it is fluid, flowing, and is produced at a success. The children practice the text alone, only receiving help
predetermined reading speed. Passages should be kept short (50-300 with the words they can't decode on their own. They practice the
section as many times as they feel they is needed to be able to read
words) and at an appropriate reading level (85% accuracy before
rereading). The mastery level for the passage should be set at 85-100 it quickly and smoothly with no mistakes and proper expression. The
practice should be done aloud so they can hear themselves read.
WPM. When the student reaches mastery on the first or second
Finally they read the section aloud to you.
reading, the teacher can move to more difficult text. The number of
rereadings should be set, not the criterion for mastery. The greatest
improvement in fluency tends to occur between the 3rd and 5th
rereading. While listening to the rereading, the focus is listening for
expression and appropriate pausing.
Divide the text physically by placing each phrase on a line by itself in a Take turns reading a text with your child. Model good expression as
you read. Let your child rate your performance. Then switch roles
column. Indent to make the division clearer. Blank spaces can be
and do the same for your child.
added between phrases. The student reads the segmented text
silently. Then the text is read aloud and the student rates the quality of
the expression using a scale of 1-5. The segmented text can be cut
apart and pasted on construction paper in order with periods placed in
the correct locations. The text can be audio recorded and used as a
read along tape.
Significant gains in rate, retelling, and expressiveness have been Choose scripted material that can be read to an audience. The
achieved with this strategy. This is an interpretive activity where students practice the material or parts out loud and finally perform the
reading. The reading should be emphasized, not costumes or acting.
students repeatedly read a story based script. It provides oral
rehearsal in preparation for reading performance.
Auditory Modeling Auditory modeling can take several forms: assisted reading,
paired reading, choral reading, echo reading, shared reading
experience, read-along, and tape-assisted or technologyassisted reading. The goal with auditory modeling is for the
student to have many repeated opportunities to hear and
practice the cadence of fluent language. Often, several of
these techniques are combined.
Repeated
Dowhower (1987) found that second graders who read slowly
Rereadings
and paused inappropriately, gained in reading accuracy, rate,
and comprehension, and decreased inappropriate pausing after
practicing 5 stories repeatedly. The study found that this effect
generalized to other, new unpracticed text as well.
Text
Segmentation
The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
.
Component: Vocabulary
Definition:
Vocabulary describes all of the words we know and use to meaningfully communicate concepts
and ideas. Receptive vocabulary is recognized and acquired through listening and reading.
Expressive vocabulary is produced through speaking and writing. Our receptive vocabulary is
typically larger than our expressive vocabulary. Stephen Krashen’s (2003) research shows that
our exposure to new words is far more critical in acquiring new vocabulary than our expression
of those words.
Overview:
Vocabulary is a critical key to effective comprehension. It is important because it gives
connection and meaning to print and it expands existing knowledge. Vocabulary words are often
categorized in three tiers. Tier 1 includes basic, readily encountered words such as car, school,
run, and happy. Tier 2 includes high frequency, more abstract words such as antique, ridiculous,
acquire. Tier 3 includes less readily encountered words such as photosynthesis, corolla, and
pampas. The words on these 3 tiers will vary greatly from student to student due to their
experiences and receptive exposure. When teaching vocabulary, research suggests focusing on
Tier 2 because these words are specific to academic language, essential to new learning, and are
high frequency in usage.
New vocabuarly can be obtained both indirectly and directly. Since most vocabulary is derived
indirectly through daily interactions with oral and written communication, children with limited
exposures to a broad vocabulary are at a severe disadvantage, even before they enter formal
schooling (a 2,500 word vocabulary versus a 5,000 word vocabulary). Without strategic
exposure and direct intervention, the vocabulary gap can widen dramatically over time.
Classrooms must by necessity be vocabulary rich environments - rich in strategic speaking,
listening, reading, and writing of a wide range of vocabulary.
Explicit, or direct, instruction in vocabulary benefits all readers at all ages and is supported by
research; but research also shows this to be not as effective as vocabulary acquisition through
independent and strategic manipulation of novel words. Vocabulary words that are critical to
teach directly include 1) key words important to understanding concepts 2) high frequency
words that will be useful to future learning 3) words that are particularly difficult, obtuse, or
specific to the text.
New vocabulary falls into four general categories: 1) new meaning for a known word, such as
the multiple-meanings for bank 2) a new word for a known concept, such as box to cube 3) a
new word for an unknown concept, such as nucleus 4) solidifying the depth and degree of
meaning of a known word, such as eat, devour, consume, erode. Frequent and varied repetition
PPLSP: Spring 2005
30
The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
.
and application across various texts will provide the needed opportunities to turn receptive
vocabulary into expressive vocabulary.
Skill Areas within this Component:
Skill Area
Evidence of Skill
The student is able to:
Application
• use a wide and varied vocabulary
Ability to
fluently
appropriately apply • express thoughts and ideas in a
known words in
variety of circumstances
written or spoken
formats
Evidence of Need
The student is unable to:
• supply appropriate words in
context when speaking and or
writing
Strategies
1,2,3,4,
5,6
The student is able to:
The student is unable to:
7,8,9,10,
11,12,13, 14
• discern intended meanings of words • use the context within an
Ability to use
15,16,17, 18
across a wide variety of content
unfamiliar selection to gain
background
areas
meaning of a new vocabulary word
knowledge and
• read unfamiliar subject matter using • relay an understanding of what was
context clues to
context clues to understand
just read
gain meaning when
unknown vocabulary words
• appears confused during and after
reading unfamiliar • relay what was just read with
reading a selection
subject matter
confidence
• Has a blank look or look of
confusion even though the student
was on task during reading.
Meaning
Word Knowledge The student is able to:
• discern meanings of words by
Ability to recognize
examining their component parts
and apply
preheat, preheated
knowledge of word
interact, interaction
families, affixes,
compound words,
etc
The student is unable to:
• break words into meaningful
chunks (word families, affixes,
compound) to comprehend new
vocabulary words
immigrate, immigration,
immigrated
19,20,
21,22,23,
24,25, 26
What the Research Says:
•
•
•
•
Multiple exposures to new words in various contexts facilitate a deep understanding and
use of new vocabulary (McKeown, Beck, Omanson, & Pople, 1985).
Student initiated conversations about words heard and read in context strongly support
new vocabulary learning (Dickinson & Smith, 1994).
On average, children can acquire and retain 2-3 new words a day when taught in context
and followed with explanations (Biemiller, 2001).
Providing contextualized sample sentences with new words bolsters understanding (Scott
& Nagy, 1997).
PPLSP: Spring 2005
31
The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
•
•
•
•
•
.
Preteaching of target words in context facilitates acquisition and comprehension. (Brett,
Rothlein, & Hurley, 1996).
Preteaching vocabulary in the content areas increases comprehension (Carney, Anderson,
Blackburn, & Blessing, 1984).
Mixing a definition and contextual approach works better than using either approach
exclusively (Kolich, 1991).
Computer assisted instruction has positive results on vocabulary acquisition (Reinking &
Rickman, 1990)
Factors that affect the acquisition of new vocabulary words are utility, application, and
memory load (Bruland, 1974).
Best Practices in Instruction:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Expose students to new vocabulary indirectly by: 1) reading aloud to all ages and
pointing out special words found in the text, 2) encouraging students to read extensively
on their own, and 3) encourage rich classroom discussions and applications of old and
new concepts.
Include two types of direct instruction in vocabulary: 1) definitions of specific words,
and 2) information about word parts (roots, bases, and affixes).
Teach for quality, not quantity. Retention suffers when the number of new words is too
great.
Choose words that have a meaningful application for the students.
Teach the applications of practical Latin and Greek affixes to older students to support
vocabulary in the content areas.
Use a variety of instructional activities to promote participation and enthusiasm.
Provide frequent review applications to facilitate retention through repeated exposure.
Develop teacher-made assessments that are specific to the new vocabulary in context.
Preteach unfamiliar vocabulary before asking students to interact with text independently.
Enable extended use of new words through engagement in a variety of activities utilizing
the new words.
For strategic readers, teach how to attend to text structure clues. This can enable readers
to access word meaning from the text structure.
Encourage “deep” processing through:
- relating explanations to personal experience
- constructing metaphors and analogies
- classifying and relating words
- connecting words to prior knowledge
- developing graphic representations of concepts words represent
- using words in various contexts and contents across the curriculum
- creating word plays, puzzles, jokes and riddles
- finding synonyms and antonyms.
PPLSP: Spring 2005
32
33
Application
Application
Application
Application
Application
Meaning
V-2
V-3
V-4
V-5
V-6
V-7
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Skill Area
Application
#
V-1
Strategy
Morphemic
Analysis
Varied Visual
Complexity
Risk Taking with
Vocabulary
Vocabulary
Transfer in
Multiple Contexts
Flexible
Application of
Language
Variance
Varied and
Repeated
Applications
Personal Word
Bank
Elaboration/Clarification
Dixon-Kraus (2001);
Jaswal & Markman
(2001); Koriat, et al.
(2003); Rosenhouse,
Feitelson, Kita, &
Goldstein (1997);
White, Graves, &
Slater (1990)
Harmon (1999); Ivey
(1999); Jordan &
Thomas (2002); Koriat,
et al. (2003); Marzano
(1998); Rosenshine,
Meister, & Chapman
(1996)
Dixon-Kraus (2001);
Elley (1989); Fawcett
& Nicolson (1991);
Shore & Durso (1990);
Stahl (1983)
Belleza (1986); Hulme,
et al. (2004);
Thompson & Barnett
(1985)
Baumann, et al.
(2002); Mori & Nagy
(1999); Shu &
Anderson (1997)
Noting with your child the differences in standard, non-standard
usage brings attention to what is appropriate at different times.
Attention to the use of English by characters in movies or television,
lyrics to music, or heard conversations can lead to.
Do crosswords together. Note the multiple meanings of words
connected to crossword clues. For younger students, there are
some great children's books that focus on multiple meanings of
words. Your school or local library should be able to help you find
these books.
Ask your child to read you an article from the newspaper when you
are preparing dinner. Discuss the vocabulary that is unfamiliar and
the ideas connected to the vocabulary.
Play word games that include different types of challenges. Mix up
easy and hard together. It's easier for the mind to remember things
because of the change in complexity calls unconscious attention to
many things.
This is typically a teacher directed activity which parents could
support by choice of words and drawing attention to prefixes and
suffixes. Example: prepaid, preview, prepare. Discuss with the
teacher how you can support this strategy at home.
Teachers models and calls attention to standard English usage daily.
Teacher reinforces appropriate uses of standard English in writing and
conversation. Students read and analyze examples of both standard
and non-standard English in literature, on web-sites, in the newspaper
as a way of drawing comparisons. Students can create “role plays”
and dramas and evaluate the appropriateness of language use.
Teach multiple applications of a word across the curriculum to integrate
the word knowledge across connected themes, and into varied writing
and reading tasks. Provide multiple contexts in which the word is
required to be used. Assign a variety of processing tasks, both oral
and written, to have the student use one word over several types of
content materials.
Model use of new words used in new ways. Take risks with your class
and show them how to use vocabulary inexactly but "in the
neighborhood" until a good fit is found. Use colorful and eccentric
speech to describe things and to communicate when asking students
to take risks such as with 6 Trait Writing "Word Choice."
Pre-select words for study and include an equal proportion of short
words to the long words critical to learn. Strategically place the words
to be studied either by alternating the long and short words on the
page for contrasting visual complexity, or by placing them within a
visual structure, shape or picture. Have students work with the words
in this visual arrangement. Inform the students that it is their visual
system contrasting and constructing complexity clues that will aid them
in recall.
Select sets of prefix families to teach one by one. Teach only one
prefix family at a time, with multiple example of words with that prefix.
Provide new words for students to discern the meaning, given their
prefixes and roots. Learning the "twist" of meaning that affixes give to
words students are familiar with helps them to look at whole families of
unfamiliar words. E.g.. Number prefix family: mono, bi, semi;
monotone, monochrome, monopoly, bilingual, bicentennial, binomial;
semicircle, semisweet, semester. Good readers do this consistently by
third grade but struggling readers don't access this part of the text and
should be taught explicitly. First graders were found to be inconsistent
in their use of morphemes for meaning.
Teacher models thinking aloud about when non standard English
is used and/or encountered and explores the advantages and
specific purposes of using a variety of dialects and regionalisms.
The goal is for students to become adept at identifying standard
English, and to be able move between formal and informal
language depending on the situation, purpose and audience.
Students learn to recognize the difference between dialect,
idiomatic, regional, and cultural varieties of English and
appropriate uses for different purposes and audiences.
Teacher models word use across a variety of subject matter, and
instructs students to apply words in novel contexts. Student will
extend usage of assigned vocabulary words into multiple
applications and context. The focus of this strategy is to
encourage different applications and to provide many
opportunities for the student to apply the new words.
The teacher provides novel, safe, fun activities to experiment
with new vocabulary for the student who habitually uses safe,
generic word choice. The student will deliberately incorporate
new vocabulary in journals, daily learning logs, classroom
discussion, and all modes of writing. Creative and playful
prompts may encourage experimentation.
When deciding on vocabulary lists to study, vary the length and
complexity of the chosen words. Word length, in and of itself, is
not the challenge in recall, but the similar complexity of
remembering several long words from an assigned list is the key
to recall. Long words are recalled as easily as short words if they
are learned from a listing that alternates short and long words.
Unconscious cues in complexity (through compare/contrast)
facilitate recall. When many long words are grouped together,
there aren't enough distinguishing features in differences in
complexity to aid recall. Another aid to help visual discrimination
cue recall is to arrange words within a structure, shape, or
picture.
Students learn the meanings of select morphemic elements.
This knowledge helps them to infer the meanings of new words
immediately following instruction. The effects of this type of
instruction degrade over time and so instructionally revisiting this
strategy periodically can maintain student facility of use. This
strategy is very effective when combined with contextual analysis
from determining word meanings not taught through direct
instruction. This strategy first needs to help students separate
words into their parts, before focusing on learning Greek and
Latin roots. Note: Shu & Anderson (1997) found three
components necessary for learning new words through
morphemic awareness; morpheme recognition, knowledge of
word meanings, and command of morphological analysis.
Fawcett & Nicholson
(1991); Ivey (1999);
Jaswal & Markman
(2001); Jordan &
Thomas (2002); Manis
(1985); McKeown, et
al. (1985); Robbins &
Ehri (1994); Stahl
(1983)
When speaking with your child, use rich vocabulary; avoid baby talk
or catch all words like "stuff" and "junk." Include your child in adult
conversations with different experts who use specific language.
Watch science or history programs on television and discuss the
topics using new words from the show.
References
Tips and Ideas for Parents
Buy a "word a day" calendar for the house. Put it on the dining table Petrimoulx (1988)
or by the telephone where it can be seen each day. Have family
members try to use the word several times in conversation.
Encourage your child to bring home a word bank he uses at school.
Add new words to the word bank when new vocabulary comes up
during homework time or in conversation.
Teaching Tips
Model how to use a personal word bank as a reference, and then
require students to create and use frequently their own personal word
bank. Provide and practice with sample graphic organizer, semantic
feature analysis, metaphors, analogies, synonyms and antonyms, etc.
Frequent ly check student logs. Model how to sticky note unfamiliar
words while reading, and then later how to add that word to a personal
word bank.
Directly teach specific vocabulary words in context and plan for
repeated practice over time. Assign different tasks over several weeks,
monitor for long term retention and/or the need for continued practice.
Encourage word used in authentic and real world applications.
This strategy is for the student who keeps no record of learned
words or who may keep but not use assigned word learning
materials. The student will create and reference a personal log of
novel vocabulary words that is frequently accessed and updated.
The log may include: music, rap, rhyme, mnemonics, semantic
feature analysis, pictures. A class word bank aids in keeping
students accountable for a certain number of new vocabulary to
use throughout the year.
Multiple opportunities are created for repeated and varied
vocabulary use. Students need to use a word many times before
it is internalized and the greater variety of settings or situations
in which they can apply the word increases the depth of
understanding of that word. This strategy of varied repetition is
most successful when applied over a long period of time.
34
PPLSP: Spring 2005
V-14 Meaning
V-13 Meaning
Consistent Depth Metacognitive checks while reading help to catch discordant
of Meaning Check word meanings. Students need to access correct depth and
application of word meanings. Through practice, students
develop an ability to self-monitor breakdowns in comprehension
due to unfamiliar vocabulary and employ other strategies, such
as "context clues" or "Greek and Latin roots" to understand new
words.
Vocabulary
Students gain word knowledge prior to reading an assigned text,
Preview
which benefits comprehension of whole text. This is a prereading strategy that includes previewing/reviewing identified
vocabulary words that are key to comprehension and words
determined to be difficult for, or unknown to, students. Note:
Words selected for a vocabulary preview guide the student's
attention. Words organized thematically helped in recall of
central themes. Words noncentral to the text aided in recall of
details not central to the theme.
This strategy is useful for the student who may successfully
Semantic Maps
memorize new words, but then has trouble applying them in
and Semantic
Feature Analysis context, and/or may not see more depth of meaning. Through
mapping out in a graphic way the various meanings a, the
student demonstrates an understanding of new words through a
graphic that elaborates on the depth of meaning of a word and
its associations.
V-12 Meaning
Successful readers skim titles, text format, pictures, charts, word
banks, subheadings, and make reasonable predictions,
associations, or visualizations before reading. Students can
access prior knowledge not only through mental associations and
visualization, but also through writing activities, discussion, or
utilizing graphic organizers. Comprehension increases when
prereading vocabulary activities occur that allow students to
make connections to things they already know. Accessing their
prior knowledge or associations, they are more likely to have
success when encountering unfamiliar vocabulary.
Linking Words to
Prior Knowledge
Successful readers monitor their own comprehension for gaps in
word meaning and use surrounding text and concepts to derive
meaning for unfamiliar and novel words. Student will move from
the unfamiliar word to the larger passage and attempt to connect
meaning from the whole reading including context, pictures,
graphics, and text features. Cautionary note: Schatz &
Baldwin's (1986) research demonstrates that context clues alone
"do not reveal the meaning of infrequent words in naturally
occurring prose." Students may use morphological clues in
tandem with hard to remember but known meanings to
successfully apply context clues. Redundancy of meaning made
context clues accessible. E.g.. "Lepton" is not contextually
described in most physics texts, but is assumed to be understood
from prior exposure to particle physics, as is "neutrino."
This strategy targets key vocabulary within an overarching
conceptual framework, and maps it out in a visual and spatial
way that clarifies and codes the relationships of the ideas noted.
By using a visual spatial cuing system with greatly reduced
language, the concepts and connections between the them are
more easily remembered. It is key to clearly map out the
vocabulary in terms of the relationships or connections of the
ideas, and to use minimal language. This type of graphic
knowledge map communicates across cultural barriers and so is
very effective in diverse classrooms.
V-11 Meaning
Linguistic
Knowledge Map
Elaboration/Clarification
Students practice looking at the word pieces that make up a
word: roots and affixes (prefixes, suffixes). Students learn to
identify words of similar roots within text and across texts.
Students gain access to a large bank of related words by
learning specific Latin or Greek roots and affixes, because more
than half of English vocabulary derives from Greek and Latin.
By breaking the words into parts and by learning the meaning of
many roots, students can more quickly gain access to meaning
of unfamiliar words. Biemiller & Slonim (2001) stress that the
earlier the better in root word instruction, particularly for those
students who enter school with a lag in vocabulary.
Context Clues
Meaning
V-9
Strategy
Greek & Latin
Affixes & Roots
V-10 Meaning
Skill Area
Meaning
#
V-8
Bean, et al. (1986);
Bos & Anders (1990);
Karbon (1982); Koriat,
et al. (2003); Pittelman
& Johnson (1985);
Rosenhouse,
Feitelson, Kita, &
Goldstein (1997);
Smith (2002)
Baker (1985); Medo &
Ryder (1983), Stahl
(1983), Willoughby, et
al. (1997); Wixon
(1986)
This is an easy strategy to include in your everyday activities with
your child. For example, when going on an errand, talk with your
child about what you are going to do ahead of time. Use words that
are unique to that activity when describing it. If you are going to the
bank, you might use words such as commerce, deposit, withdrawal,
change, credit. By describing the words ahead of time, the child will
better understand what they observe during the activity. Of course,
you also can discuss new vocabulary before the child reads a book,
magazine, or newspaper at home.
When your child has a list of words or concepts to memorize or
Provide a visual display which demonstrates the relationships of
study as homework, consider having her represent the words
features and related words to the vocabulary word. A semantic map
graphically. They can be represented in a picture, map, or table.
may include synonyms, antonyms, analogies, metaphors, related
For example, words or concepts that are similar can be grouped
topics, definition, examples, and is can be mapped similar to a web.
The initial ordering may be random but then replicate the same graphic together. Talk together about why she organized the words as she
did.
organizer so that a student's visual memory can replicate the
organization. Semantic feature analysis is for review of related
vocabulary words with a structured, teacher-provided grid in which
students review a checklist of common traits that link the words to
categories. This is useful for compare and contrast.
Teacher pre-selects and teaches vocabulary words prior to reading the
text. Teacher models vocabulary previews and builds time into other
lessons for vocabulary previews. Vocabulary can be previewed
through a variety of other strategies, including analogies, graphic
organizers for salient features, semantic maps, word storms, etc.
Bean, et al. (1981);
Nagy & Anderson
(1984)
Griswold, Gelheizer, &
Shepherd (1987);
Jordan & Thomas
(2002); Koriat, et al.
(2003); Morrow, et al.
(1997); Nagy &
Anderson (1984);
Stahl (1983); Stahl &
Fairbanks (1986);
Wysocki & Jenkins
(1987)
Discuss words that are unusual or new with your child. Ask them to
think of other words they already know that sound like the new
word. Guess at meanings that make sense in the situation.
Model prereading activities designed to activate prior knowledge such
as: think alouds, guided discussion, instructing students in use of
learning logs, facilitating peer talk and predictions. Include use of the
key terms. Encourage students to make independent, personal
connections to text, and to conceptualize these words in connection to
their prior knowledge.
When reading aloud to your child, pause periodically to talk about
Model pausing and thinking aloud while reading to demonstrate
metacognitive process of word acquisition. Teachers demonstrate fix-it what you are both thinking. There is no right or wrong answer, this
strategies: such as Step Up to Writing “Pause and Respond”; how to is just to bring awareness to the meaning of the book.
question the text; text to text, text to self, text to world.
Dixon-Kraus (2001);
Elley (1989); Jenkins,
Matlock, & Slocum
(1989); Jenkins, Stein,
& Wyoscki (1984);
Nagy & Anderson
(1984); Nagy,
Anderson, & Herman
(1987); Schatz &
Baldwin (1986)
Explain your thought process aloud as you do a new activity with
your child. For example, as you cook a new recipe together, you
might talk through the process, using new vocabulary such as
"saute, crisp, rinse, broil, divide."
Teacher taught strategy for organizing key words linked to concepts. Bahr & Dansereau
(2001); Koriat, et al.
Encourage children to use when taking notes for homework that
(2003)
includes many new vocabulary words and complex relationships.
The teacher can model for you how this strategy is used at school.
When discussing new ideas and concepts, you and your child can
construct a map together.
Select a big idea. Decide on the relationships of the key vocabulary to
this idea. Map out the various branching out of concepts and the
connections of the target vocabulary. Keep the visual/spatial
representation of these connections clear and organized. E.g..
nutrition> complex carbohydrate> Kreb's cycle> metabolic rate>
exertion> endurance; nutrition> simple carbohydrate> Kreb's cycle>
metabolic rate> exertion> perspiration> dehydration> exhaustion.
When reviewing these concepts, give cues coordinated to the visual/
spatial arrangement of the Linguistic Knowledge Map.
Model explicit thinking aloud while reading to demonstrate the process
of discerning meaning from various context clues. Model selfmonitoring of comprehension and the kinds of logical strategies
involved in determining possible definitions. Have students practice
thinking aloud and self-monitoring themselves as they read and
attempt to determine meaning of new vocabulary. Include word
substitution based on meaning. Guide students through the thinking
process of checking for consistency of meaning in the sentences
following the unknown word. Acknowledge that confusion is as likely
as clarity in many instances, and that responsibility for checking and
keeping a coherent picture of the text is all a part of good reading
practices. Explicitly practice trying to decipher meaning from context
with some tough words so students can see how to work through the
challenge.
References
Biemiller & Slonim
(2001); Nagy, et al.
(1989); Nagy,
Diakidoy, & Anderson
(1993); Stahl &
Erickson (1986); Tyler
& Nagy (1985); White,
Power, & White
(1989); Wysock &
Jenkins (1987)
Tips and Ideas for Parents
Teacher taught strategy which can be supported at home by calling
attention to common words that combine or use roots and affixes.
E.g., Tele (meaning 'distant' in Greek) as used in telescope,
telephoto, telephone, telepathic.
Teaching Tips
Provide direct instruction of high frequency roots one at a time, plus
their affixes. Incorporate supporting pictoral and textual material, with
repeated opportunities to identify, practice and apply Greek and
Latinate roots and affixes. Teacher will model root identification within
the context of a text passage, and then will incorporate modeling word
segmentation. Students will practice identifying pre-taught roots and
will also practice word segmentation with novel and student-found
words. 7 to 10 roots per semester, introducing only one new root per
lesson.
35
Dictionary,
Glossary, Word
Banks, and other
Resources
Frequent
Discussion with
More Competent
Peers and Adults
V-19 Word Knowledge
V-20 Word Knowledge
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Rich Print
Environment
V-18 Meaning
Citation pending
When your child does not have much background knowledge on a
topic (such as in social studies or science), it can help when the text
they read is very well organized. If your child expresses interest in
learning more about a particular topic or if they need to work on a
project in an area about which the student does not know a lot, look
for books and other sources that include clear headings and are
written in clear language. The student is more likely to be able to
make sense of unfamiliar words when the rest of the text is wellorganized and clear.
Choose text that is well organized with explicit titles, topic sentences,
and which uses obvious transitions, signal words and phrases.
Additionally, select text that elaborates key concepts for the reader.
This type of text provides additional support for the student for making
meaning from unfamiliar vocabulary.
Practice with Text Students acquire vocabulary on their own through wide reading
experiences. When reading content-area expository text,
that has Clear
incidental acquisition of word meaning occurs best when key
Structure
concepts are elaborated and shown in relation to larger systems.
Complete explanations of key concepts are especially critical to
non-expert middle-grade students. Students of all abilities
benefit from text revisions that elaborate the concepts. Also, the
organization of text structure can be a factor in how many new
word meanings they can learn. Text features occur at the
macrostructure and microstructure level. Text macrostructure
can be well-organized with titles, obvious topic sentences,
subheadings, and chunks of information. Microstructure helps
the reader with transitions, signal words and phrases ( e.g. first,
second, additionally). A clear text structure sets up a favorable
condition for students to glean word meanings from new
vocabulary as they read their content textbooks.
V-17 Meaning
Dixon-Kraus (2001);
Elley (1989); Koriat, et
al. (2003); Morrow, et
al. (1997); Stahl
(1983)
New projects like cooking, knitting or working on a car engine all
require specialized vocabulary for the tools and new processes to
be learned. In cooking, for example, there are many ways which
need new vocabulary, to prepare meat: braise, broil, baste, saute,
deep fry, sear, poach, etc.
Pre-select a big idea to teach and identify key concept words, prompt
discussions, model or “seed” the words into discussion, call attention to
the connections of the words to the big ideas, work past the small
concrete details. Structures practice with concept words embedded in
big idea elaboration through writing and discussion.
Duke (2000); Kos
(1991); Koskinen, et
al. (2000); Morrow &
Weinstein (1986);
Worthy, Patterson,
Salas, Pratterson, &
Turner (2002)
Katz (1978); Nagy &
Anderson (1984);
Nagy & Herman
(1984); Scott & Nagy
(1997); Shore & Durso
(1990)
Beck, Perfetti, &
McKeown (1982); Cho
& Krashen (1994);
Jaswal & Markman
(2001); Nagy &
Anderson (1984);
Nagy & Herman
(1984); Nagy,
Anderson, & Herman
(1986); Rosenhouse,
Feitelson, Kita &
Goldstein (1997);
Stahl & Fairbanks
(1986)
Children need many opportunities to see print materials and to talk
about what they have read. Cereal boxes, toy packages,
newspapers, phone books, catalogues are all good reading. Have
books around the house. A rich print environment is only useful if
you make a point to talk about words and ideas they represent.
Build and maintain a home resource library that includes dictionaries
(adult and student-friendly), Wordbooks or encyclopedias, special
interest resources such as overviews of artists, foreign languages,
and classics of literature.
Have students read reciprocally with parent volunteers or senior
citizens. Have students write reciprocally with community members,
the local media, a pen-pal classroom from another state or across
town. Include written work all over the classroom. Create abundant
opportunities to encounter a new book or an old favorite. Make text
central to the child's visual experience. Leave no space out when
setting the stage. Leave no young reader or writer with a limited
audience.
Model frequent resource usage, particularly the dictionary and
glossaries. Demonstrate finding the word and then how to match the
appropriate definition to the context. Students can employ this
strategy before, during, and after reading and/or writing. Students
need practice using resources to make it a low effort task. If too
unfamiliar, the process of using references is very distracting from the
main task of word understanding within a literate context.
Provide a rich “smorgasbord” of genres and levels of print materials, as Read aloud a book to a child and discuss challenging vocabulary as
the book progresses. With older children, read the same books as
well as diverse and detailed conversation and auditory materials.
they are reading. Ask them their impressions of the book.
Model the learning process of hearing new vocabulary and testing it
that new vocabulary. Promote and reinforce vocabulary acquisition
through frequent, diverse, rich conversation and discussion.
Providing a rich print environment on the walls of the entire
school, on the shelves of the entire school, in the homes of the
children is only part of setting the stage. Print experiences must
include multiple audiences to read and write to, and must include
a community of modeled reading and writing that surrounds the
child. Opportunity to experience literacy with many involved
adults is another part of setting the stage. Worthy's research
shows that individual attention, interaction and a strong
demonstration of caring accountability on the part of a reading
tutor helped students "turn the corner."
Students need specific words to gain entry into technical and
content specific material. This variety of technical and or content
specific vocabulary is rare in conversation and reading, too
infrequent for some students to derive word meaning from such
limited exposure. Therefore students need to use resources to
understand the word (dictionaries, glossaries, pre-selected word
banks, previously used graphic organizers, etc.). Note: Research
by Scott & Nagy (1997) demonstrates frequent miscuing by
dictionary definitions. Students often take a sentence fragment
and accept that as the definition and tend to ignore the structure
of a definition and/or a complete definition. This failure to extract
the correct information is not due to ambiguity, but to the
newness of words. If the vocabulary is unknown, it is likely to
remain unknown after dictionary use. This was true of both high
and low readers.
Students with limited conversational and reading vocabulary
need many opportunities to talk with and listen to people using
rich vocabulary across topics and in many contexts. Successful
readers gain a large proportion of their vocabulary from rich
spoken and print environments. Providing these textual and
conversational opportunities is extremely important for helping
vocabulary limited students catch up to their peer. They need
exposure just above their competence level so frustration is not
an issue.
Concept maps are designed to help students who use limited
vocabulary when discussing “big” ideas and cannot articulate
their own ideas and connect their thinking to the larger ideas due
to limited vocabulary. Students develop higher level thinking
skills as they learn vocabulary, which they will use as tools to
express abstract thoughts and concepts. Practicing thinking
during discussion generates a need for richer vocabulary. This a
cyclical tag game of thought to new vocabulary to new thought.
References
Elley (1989); Jenkins,
Matlock, & Slocum
(1989); Jenkins, Stein,
& Wyoscki (1984)
Tips and Ideas for Parents
Teaching Tips
Set up numerous contexts for application of the many meanings of the Puns are an example of how important context is to meaning.
Jokes that include puns allow your child to have fun with words that
chosen vocabulary words. Select only a few words to introduce.
have multiple meanings.
Students practice applying multiple meanings of the words in rich
context. For example, one context may be with a read-aloud. Teacher
stops during read-alouds to discuss and to anchor word
usage/meaning to the context and student practices the new meaning
in oral or written work after the text is finished.
Elaboration/Clarification
The goal with this strategy is to help the student understand
multiple meanings of words. For example, the word “bear” –meaning bear (the animal), bear arms (carry), bear a child (give
birth), bear responsibility (be accountable), bear in mind (hold a
thought), could not bear (could endure or suffer), and so on.
Concept Maps
Strategy
V-16 Meaning
Skill Area
Depth of Meaning,
and Multiple
Meanings of
Words
#
V-15 Meaning
36
Mapping
Synonyms,
Antonyms, and
Analogies
Multi-Sensory
Learning
Word Play through
Songs, Raps,
Ditties, Skits, or
Movement
Emotional Hooks
V-23 Word Knowledge
V-24 Word Knowledge
V-25 Word Knowledge
V-26 Word Knowledge
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Memory Devices
Strategy
V-22 Word Knowledge
Skill Area
Word Play and
Improvisation
#
V-21 Word Knowledge
Elaboration/Clarification
Emotional memory is recorded in non-linguistic parts of the brain
and associated memories are encoded with great strength.
Emotions trigger responses before cognitive thought. Coding
vocabulary with emotional values or overtones, can make the
targeted vocabulary permanent and automatic.
Brain research highlights the multiple pathways and additional
regions of the brain that are involved with music, song, drama,
dance, physical action, etc. Individually or in groups, have
students create sound and movement to rehearse and practice
definitions of vocabulary. Emphasize accurate representations
of meaning, combined with the use of sound and movement.
Student will practice new words through manipulating, acting out,
singing, drawing, listening, speaking, chanting, rhyming and
other means to engage the senses. This includes the sound of
the word, the visual shape of the word, and the actions of
contextualized meaning. Word learning first forms through
associations and as students learn symbolic usage, abstract
word meanings become easier to understand and use.
Students learn more about a word and make more mental
connections when they examine substitutions and comparisons
with synonyms and antonyms to clarify and elaborate meaning.
Students can create analogies, similes and metaphors to create
a fuller understanding of new words. Word learning first forms
through associations and as students learn symbolic usage,
abstract word meanings become easier to understand and use.
Students enhance retention of unfamiliar words through
keywords, mnemonics, visualization, and associations to assist
rapid, long-term retention of new words. This is cognitively
demanding and 504 or sped students may find the keyword
method difficult to learn. It requires rehearsal to make it an easy
method of word learning. Mnemonic strategy use works well in
pairs and assessment supports this, individually or paired.
Playful activities that are open-ended and positive, use art,
music, physical activity, and/or games are good at lowering the
affective filter to language acquisition. The surprise and delight
of spontaneous playful activities cue memory with the strong
connection of emotion, as well as the lowered affect filter.
Provide and practice using the dictionary and thesaurus. When
working on writing assignments at home, you can use these tools to
help make the writing more interesting and descriptive by replacing
general words with more specific ones.
Dixon-Kraus (2001);
Sometimes students are given assignments that allow them to
Stahl (1983)
present their understanding of a topic in a variety of ways. For
example, a student may be able to present a book report as a skit or
a song. When working on reports and projects, encourage your
child to choose the best way to express what they know. Help him
choose precise and accurate words for the presentation or project.
Play charades at a gathering of family or friends that includes adults Dixon-Kraus (2001);
and children. Include words that are associated with emotions (e.g., Stahl (1983)
anticipation, elation)
Have students recall and share memories and anecdotes of
emotionally charged situations like “anticipation” and “exhilaration,” or
students can physically express/demonstrate these words through
movement. Model how to draw cartoons, create jokes, write poetry,
sad stories, spooky stories, etc that highlight the meaning and include
the target word. Practice this strategy multiple times with active
guidance to maintain a focus on the central meaning of the vocabulary
word.
Gupta (1996); Juel, et
al. (2003); Regier, et
al. (2001)
Bos & Anders (1990);
Chen, Yanowitz, &
Daehler (1995); Hayes
& Henk (1986); Katz
(1978); Koriat, et al.
(2003); Regier, et al.
(2001); Shore & Durso
(1990); Stahl (1983);
Stahl & Fairbanks
(1986)
Recognize diverse learner’s needs for non-linguistic instruction,
representation, and rehearsal. Utilize the modalities of music, drama,
and dance to learn target vocabulary. Model non-linguistic
representations for students initially. Later, have students create their
own sons, dramas, and movement. Emphasize accurate application of
word meaning embedded in sound and movement. The creativity of the
performance may vary greatly and this is acceptable.
For primary this is a directed approach during a “read to” time or “read Encourage your child to read along with you from a familiar story.
Allow time to stop and act or draw parts of the story.
with” time. Highlight the word as an important word while mid story;
use phonemic awareness to segment the sounds; students practice the
sounds; use phonics to visually segment the sounds of the word;
students can then spell the word; tell the meaning for this context; and
then students rehearse the meaning in more than one modality. e.g.
Acting out the word and singing a rhyme. Continue with the narrative
after the embedded word experience.
Model creating semantic maps using dictionaries, thesauri, and
technology to generate synonyms, antonyms, and analogies. After
sufficient practice students can use these strategies independently for
word learning and for generating context clues.
Condus, Marshall, &
Miller (1986); Hwang &
Levin (2002); Jones &
Hall (1982); Jones,
Levin, Levin & Beitzel
(2000); Mastropieri,
Scruggs, & Falk
(1990); McCormick &
Levin (1984); Powell
(1980);
References
Play memory games with cards. Play games that encourage
Model memory devices such as: mnemonics, keyword method, and
associations and connections like Charades or Pictionary.
visualization word associations. Provide students with multiple
examples and assistance as they learn to create their own mnemonics.
Provide frequent opportunities for students to create their own memory
aids for new vocabulary as they master the technique.
Tips and Ideas for Parents
Dixon-Kraus (2001);
Nagy & Anderson
(1984); Ruddell &
Shearer (2002); Stahl
(1983)
Teaching Tips
Engage students in word games frequently and often. Some examples Hold family game nights: invite your children to play scrabble, work
crosswords, play Pictionary.
are puzzles, art, drama, music, puns, etymology, poetry, proverbs,
creative writing, computer assisted word games, word searches, etc.
The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
.
Component: Comprehension
Definition:
Comprehension is "intentional thinking during which meaning is constructed through
interactions between text and reader" (Durkin, 1993). "Therefore, comprehension is the reason
for reading" (NRP, 2000). Comprehension integrates all five components of reading. The
foundation of comprehension is the access to text provided by the other four components.
Overview:
Proficient readers make engaged, active, and purposeful connections and decisions as they read
any given text. They attend to both words and meaning as they read. Skilled readers gain
meaning at the word, sentence, and complete text levels through contextual analysis. Efficient
readers continually exercise metacognition and employ effective strategies through
metacognition - they actively think about their thinking. Skilled readers have a bank of effective
strategies they utilize and are flexible in coordinating and shifting among those strategies in
order to fully comprehend a given text for a specific task. They can organize and integrate new
information into their existing schema. Struggling readers may not naturally have access to these
thinking tools, but they can be taught explicitly what to attend to and how to monitor and guide
their thinking. Through active engagement, practice with strategy use, and close monitoring,
these students can evolve into independent and efficient readers. This process involves repeated,
varied, and explicit teacher explanation, cognitive modeling, and student practice.
Skill Areas within this Component:
Skill Area
Evidence of Skill
Evidence of Need
Strategies
The student:
The student:
1,2,3,4,
Background
5,6,7,8,
Knowledge /
• brings personal experiences to • does not make personal connections to
9,10,11,
Schema Activation
the reading process
text (e.g., text is about grandparents and
12,13,14
student does not apply his relationship
• accesses prior knowledge of
Ability to apply prior
with
his
grandparents
to
what
is
read)
the subject during the reading
knowledge and or
process
• does not apply prior knowledge to new
experiences that have • possesses a rich vocabulary of
situations
been previously
subject matter and easily
• lacks the vocabulary and ideas/concepts to
learned, to a new
applies it to the text
access information in a new text (e.g. In a
situation
book about volcanoes, student lacks a
• can distinguish between what
conceptual knowledge of lava, eruptions,
has been previously learned,
etc.)
with the current text, and the
prior knowledge that was
• confuses prior knowledge with what is
brought to the reading
read in the text and this conflict affects
text comprehension
• makes faulty connections between
thinking and reading
• can recall ideas or vocabulary from the
text but makes no connection to the ideas
PPLSP: Spring 2005
37
The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
Skill Area
Evidence of Skill
Evidence of Need
.
Strategies
The student:
15,16,17
Knowledge of Text The student:
Structure
• readily locates information in • does not skim, scan, or revisit the text for 18,19,20,
21,22,
text by skimming and
specific information (e.g., cannot locate
The ability to read
23,24
scanning
three facts about the planet Earth)
many types of texts • answers questions about text • does not distinguish between different text
and apply needed
on many levels of
types and usages (e.g., narrative vs.
skills to be proficient
comprehension, (e.g., literal,
expository)
inferential, evaluative)
• does not locate information from an
• uses text elements to gain
index, table of contents, glossary,
information,( e.g., indexes,
appendices
table of contents, glossary,
• does not locate information from maps,
appendices)
charts graphs, captions, bolded text, etc.
• uses text elements to gain
• cannot read a variety of text formats, such
information from maps, charts,
as job applications, lab reports,
graphs, captions, bolded text,
spreadsheets, websites, etc.
etc.
• is unaware of transitions, idea hierarchies,
• reads a variety of text formats,
and/or correlations
such as job applications, lab
reports, spreadsheets,
websites, etc.
The student:
• reads selections with constant
interaction with the text,
asking questions along the
Ability to monitor
way to increase
one’s own reading,
comprehension (e.g., “After
assess understanding,
the baby turtles hatch, how do
and return to the text
they get to the ocean?”)
when meaning is lost • shows outward signs of
interaction with text (facial
expressions such as smiles,
bewilderment, frowns, etc.)
• revisits portions of text when
meaning is lost
• visualizes while reading,
which brings a depth of
understanding to text
• skips ahead or goes back in
the text
Cognitive
MonitoringMetacognition
PPLSP: Spring 2005
The student:
• does not check own comprehension by
asking questions. May read through
entire text with out questioning
• may not show outward signs of
interacting with text (e.g., confusion,
amusement, sadness, intensive study
while reading).
• does not reread and or self-correct. (e.g.,
“That didn’t make sense.” I said, “The
tire went fat.” It actually says, “The tire
went flat.”)
• does not make personal connections to
text (e.g., “I was on a bike ride once and
my tire went flat too! I had to walk it
home.”)
• does not visualize what is happening in
text while reading.
25,26,27,
28,29,
30,31
38
The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
Skill Area
Evidence of Skill
Evidence of Need
.
Strategies
The student:
Retelling/Recalling The student:
• recalls and verbalize what has • does not remember what has been read
Ability to remember
been read
• does not recall text even when prompted
important details and • provides details such as places
with specific literal questions such as:
main events in text
and events from a text
Which president was in office during the
Civil War?
• makes connections between
significant details and possible • may not remember names, places, and
outcomes in the reading
events even though they get the big
selection
picture and make inferences
• responds to specific text with • does not give extensive details with an
the appropriate tone and or
understanding of context or connect
humor in the retelling
significant details to the meaning or
outcome of the reading
• does not recognize humor or tone in the
retelling (e.g., does not laugh, show
excitement, etc. when telling the
storyline)
32,33,34
35,36,37,
38,39,40,
41,42
43
Literal
Comprehension
The student:
• provides information that is
“right there” in the text
Ability to remember
without adding personal
important details
experiences
from a text
The student:
• does not recall information that is “right
there” in the text such as: main
character’s name and where he lived, the
definition of a meteorologist, the names of
the planets
The student:
• identifies and differentiates
Ability to discern and
between the main idea and
communicate key
details in a selection
points from a text
• analyzes a selection when
reading to gain deeper
meaning
• discerns key information in a
selection from minor details
when retelling
• discerns pertinent information
in a selection from
inconsequential details
The student:
44,45,46
• cannot differentiate between main ideas
and details
• does not analyze the text for deep
understanding
• fails to identify key information when
giving a retell of the selection
• does not list or outline key ideas in a topic
• cannot recall information and or the recall
is scant with gaps of knowledge
indicating a lack of understanding
• fails to differentiate key information from
irrelevant details
Summarizing
PPLSP: Spring 2005
39
The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
Skill Area
Evidence of Skill
The student:
• communicates beyond the
obvious literal information
and brings inferential thought
processes to the text
• predicts and draws
conclusions (e.g., Prediction:
“I think the passage will be
about the pioneers.”
Conclusion: “The pioneers
will have a rough winter
because their crops were
ruined.”)
• Locates passages that can
support an inference.
The student:
Evaluative
Comprehension
• judges or evaluates the
accuracy, reliability, and
Ability to sift
consistency of a text
through both literal • spots weak arguments
and inferential
• challenges the authority of
information and
the text
evaluate the validity
Inferential
Comprehension
Ability to see past
what is given in a
text to predict and
draw conclusions
Evidence of Need
.
Strategies
The student:
• is unable to offer information beyond the
literal, such as who, what, where, and
when
• does not identify other passages or
background knowledge to support an
inference
• does not predict or draw conclusions (e.g.,
does not use information about pioneers
to infer and draw conclusions about their
life during the winter.)
47,48,49,
50,51,52,
53,54,55
56,57,58
The student:
• fails to notice inconsistencies within a
passage
• does not distinguish between improbable
facts and the truth
• does not distinguish between arguments
and emotional appeal
• is unable to compare texts with one
another and evaluate the arguments in
each
59,60,61
What the Research Says:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Comprehension often involves more than thirty cognitive processes (Block & Pressley,
2002).
Reading comprehension requires the application of many complex skills applied
successfully and simultaneously (Durkin, 1993).
Students must be able to understand and make sense of content by assimilating
vocabulary, concepts, and information with their prior experiences (Pressley, 2002).
Comprehension strategies should be taught directly (Durkin, 1981).
Most effective instruction in strategy recognition and use is done by the teacher, not from
the presentation within the reading basal.
Strategies are often practiced and tested in basal reading series, but few are taught
directly (and they need to be) (Pressley, 1998).
Even when strategies are not taught perfectly, there is improvement in comprehension on
the part of the reader (Bramlett, 1994).
Students must monitor their ongoing understanding before, during, and after reading
(Pressley, Harris, & Marks, 1992).
PPLSP: Spring 2005
40
The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
•
•
•
•
.
Students who do not use cognitive processes automatically by third grade, even if their
decoding skills are adequate, may never catch up (Block, 2000).
Students benefit from instruction and repeated practice over time in the use of a repertoire
of strategies (Duke & Pearson, 2002).
Good comprehenders actively engage with text and flexibly apply appropriate strategies
at the point where their understanding requires them to adjust their technique (Durkin,
1979).
A strong, rich, and varied vocabulary is the key component of strong comprehension
across a variety of texts (Biemiller, 2001).
Best Practices in Instruction:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Model comprehension strategies through explicit and frequent think alouds.
Weave comprehension strategy instruction into everyday teaching in the classroom.
Use a wide variety of text genres and levels for instruction and for independent practice.
Connect reading and writing activities.
When the student gets stuck, encourage him/her to reread, to pay attention to the code, to
jump around in the text sequence, to identify key words and concepts, to pay attention to
text structure, and/or to create and use visual clues.
Expect and encourage students to articulate how they make their decisions about
understanding what they read.
Use book clubs or literature circles within the classroom setting to activate social learning
strategies.
Separate narrative reading strategies from expository techniques.
Set a purpose for reading to encourage engagement, schema activation, focus, and recall.
Teach students to create mental images that capture key concepts, foster connections, and
improve retention.
Clarify concepts and difficult portions for the students to avoid misconceptions.
Encourage higher levels of thinking and problem solving through analysis, synthesis,
evaluation, and application of judgments.
Use strategic questioning techniques. Specifically, have student generate questions about
the text before, during, and after reading to increase engagement, metacognition, and
comprehension.
Scaffold instruction of strategies that target inferences. This is the most difficult type of
comprehension for struggling readers and will require explicit modeling, usage, practice,
and application of the thinking involved in making inferences.
PPLSP: Spring 2005
41
42
Background
Knowledge /
Schema Activation
Background
Knowledge /
Schema Activation
Background
Knowledge /
Schema Activation
Background
Knowledge /
Schema Activation
Background
Knowledge /
Schema Activation
Background
Knowledge /
Schema Activation
Background
Knowledge /
Schema Activation
C-2
C-3
C-4
C-5
C-6
C-7
C-8
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Skill Area
Background
Knowledge /
Schema Activation
#
C-1
References
Alvermann, Smith &
Readence (1985);
Boscolo & Mason
(2003); Hansen
(1981); Kaakinen,
Hyona, & Keenan
(2003)
Denner, Rickards, &
Albanese (2003);
Graves, Cooke, &
Laberge (1983);
Kaakinen, Hyona, &
Keenan (2003)
Baumann (2002);
Garner, et al. (1991);
Gaskins (1996);
Jimenez (1997); Kos
(1991); Kelter, Kaup,
and Claus (2004);
Mackey (2003);
Webster (2001)
Kamberelis & Bovino
(1999); Karchmer
(2001); Lenski (1998)
Boscolo & Mason
(2003); Markham &
Latham (1987);
Jimenez (1997);
Kamberelis & Bovino
(1999); Karchmer
(2001); Many, Fyfe,
Lewis, & Mitchell
(1996); Morrow,
Pressley, & Smith
(1997); Webster
(2001)
Bauman (2002); Lorch
& Lorch (1985); Meyer,
et al. (2002); Surber
(2001)
Hwang & Levin (2002);
Rummel, Levin, &
Woodward (2002)
Taglieber, Johnson, &
Yarbrough (1988);
Wixon (1984)
Tips and Ideas for Parents
Do activities with your student that help to build their background
knowledge. Becoming a good predictor requires regular discussions
and interactions with others related to those experiences. "Based
on the discussion we had in class yesterday about volcanoes, I
predict that our homework will focus on why and how Earth's plates
move. I bet there are certain places on Earth where volcanoes
happen more often than other places. I wonder where those places
are?"
Scan the text with your student before reading. Pay attention to
pictures, headings, tables, and other information. Point out words
that are important and that may cause the student to stumble. Ask
your child questions that will help him/her make connections
between the text and what he/she already knows.
Refer to and make connections to books, movies and stories that
you have shared (e.g., At a large family gathering: "This meal
reminds me of 'Cheaper By the Dozen'").
Watch different movie versions of a classic (Charles Dickens' A
Christmas Carol; old and new versions of A Midsummer Nights
Dream). Compare the movies to each other and the original book.
Discuss which you liked best.
Broaden the use of television and movies by watching educational
programs with your child. History reenactments, performances of
classic works of fiction, travelogues, documentaries, biographies of
famous people combine entertainment with education.
Look at a box for a cake mix or pizza and search for directions on
how to cook or for nutritional information with your child. Talk out
loud about where to find the information.
Read the text ahead of time and construct a visual overview of the
text. This should include both information directly from the text and
related concepts to which the child may already relate. Discuss the
visual organizer before having the child read the text.
Before seeing a movie or reading a book, ask questions about what
it will be about.
Teaching Tips
Preview the narrative with several questions. Present a synopsis of the
text which includes setting, characters, plot and point of view. Briefly
discuss the theme in small groups or as a whole class prior to reading
the text. Study the definitions of 3 or 4 difficult words in the same or
similar discussions. Read the text and note what matched the
discussion and what departed from the initial discussion. After
students have read the text, repeat the process to see how different
students processed what had already been discussed.
Introduce a nonfiction reading by using fictional picture books to help
students make a personal connection to their own experiences. Assist
students in connecting to a character and/or situation. They are
generally able to do this more easily than to factual information. The
hook to personal experience is established through this intermediary
step and makes the non-fiction text approachable. Secondary: Use
news articles, currents events, movies, and/or internet connections to
aid in personalizing text. Include cultural perspectives and authentic,
controversial issues in the discussion.
Promote connections across texts by providing multiple texts around a
topic for students to experience. Hartman and Allison, (1996) suggest
5 ways to organize intertextual connections: 1) complementary texts
which focus on a central topic, 2) conflicting texts that provide
alternate perspectives to develop critical thinking, 3) controlling texts one main text that acts as a "bible" or as the authoritative text,
surrounded with supporting texts, 4) dialogic texts which continues
characters, topics, events in a variety or series of books, 5) synoptic
texts which offer variations on a single theme, event or story, often
from different points of view.
Teach culturally relevant aspects of a given text explicitly. Expand
student comprehension through exposure to relevant cultural
experiences and viewpoints. For example, integrate a Social Studies
unit on Homesteading in the West with hands-on and experiential
activities that will develop first-hand knowledge of unfamiliar cultures
and time periods. Include drama and reenactment of Native American
and Homesteader experiences. Include multiple sources of original
documents.
Teacher gives direct instruction on how to identify the different text
elements in a content area textbook: chapter titles, section headings,
boldfaced words, pictures and their captions, charts, and tables.
Before reading a section, students are asked to predict and generalize
what the text will be about.
Providing the visual is equivalent to setting the stage. Research shows
that the visual organizer is most effective when provided at the very
outset reading the text. The best visual context is one that provides
background knowledge in addition to the overall schema.
Set a minimum number of questions that students might pose.
Students should be given guidance about what kind of questions they
might think of.
This strategy is effective with complex narratives or new content,
and is primarily a teacher-directed activity. This strategy
activates schema through asking and answering questions and
highlighting difficult vocabulary prior to reading the text. By
engaging students in discussion, they are actively engaged prior
to reading.
Accessing prior or background knowledge gives students a
framework on which to "hang" new knowledge. The most basic
connection is linking text to their own experiences (self).
Students need added practice with this skill to help them select
similar, concordant experiences or contrasting, disparate
experiences. "Comprehenders create a dynamic representation
when reading about an unfolding occurrence" that mimics real
world occurrences, according to Kelter, Kaup, & Claus (2004).
The greater amount of time between the real life occurrence and
the textual representation, the more difficult the connection of the
two similar occurrences. Prompting students to recall and
discuss prior personal experiences right before reading greatly
facilitates this connection to text for greater comprehension.
In addition to prior personal experiences, readers bring prior
textual experience from texts they have read in the past. These
experiences help readers form their own "inner texts." As they
interlink knowledge of past texts with new texts, they reshape
their own mental models in anticipation of future readings.
These inner texts are often in "revision" as readers read more
and varied texts. Note: "Text" refers to visual (drama, video,
art), or auditory (music, speeches) sources as well as traditional
printed sources (books, magazines, internet).
Students' cultural background knowledge, difference in
knowledge, or lack of knowledge, facilitates or hinders
referencing new cultural understanding. Students need explicit
exposure from multiple sources to develop new cultural
knowledge and to create multiple ways to contextualize events
and actions. Students have better understanding and better
recall when they have related topic knowledge and interest.
Engage secondary students in discussions around cultural
perspectives and authentic, controversial issues.
Students who understood and used knowledge of text structure
and text elements in a non-fiction content area textbook
increased comprehension when measured by student surveys,
learning logs and text/question assessments.
Providing students with text that begins with visual images or
contextual organizers makes the comprehension task easier by
giving an organizational scheme for the entire passage. The
visual serves as an advanced organizer or script activator letting
students retrieve relevant schema from their cognitive structure
that aids in the comprehension process.
Students are given a one sentence summary of the passage
topic. Then they formulate questions that come to mind and
might relate to the text. Prequestioning leads to deeper and
more active involvement in the reading.
Preview the Text
Text to Self
Text to Text
(intertextuality)
Text to World
Text Feature
Previewing
Visual / Pictoral
Organizer
Prequestioning
Elaboration/Clarification
Introduce a story or passage by giving the key ideas and then asks a
question based on students' previous learning and experiences. Have
students respond using their own background knowledge. This
generates memories and concepts to make their own connections to
the text prior to reading. The teacher asks students to predict
something similar to the students' knowledge and/or experience that
may also happen in the story or text. Model ways to help students find
key ideas in an unrelated piece of text to prompt generation of
connections. Model using questions and ideas to draw on background
knowledge (e.g. "How is this topic like my life and experiences?" "What
did I learn last year about rainforests?") that will connect to the text or
story.
Strategy
Make Predictions Students use their own knowledge and thinking to make
Using Background predictions in stories. This strategy is teacher directed at first,
but can be structured to allow independent practice by students.
Knowledge
Research shows that topic knowledge and interest lead to higher
comprehension. By having students activate their topic
knowledge and engage in the text by making predictions, their
interest and ability to make connections are increased. Caution:
Inaccurate background knowledge may override processing new
information in the text, particularly when comprehension breaks
down. Time must be spent to assure the students have correct
information securely understood before processing the text.
43
Chinn, Anderson, &
Waggoner (2001)
Play around and have everyone talk at once sometimes…at the
dinner table, in the car, anywhere. The goal is to get the child to
express their thinking in a "safe environment" before having to talk
in a more public way. For example, at the dinner table, everyone
talks for 1 minute all at once about how their day went. Then, each
person can talk one at a time. It gives everyone a chance to
practice what they might say. It also can lead to a lot of laughing!
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Experience Text
Relationship
Baker (1985); Dole,
Brown, & Trathen
(1996); Guthrie, et al.
(1996); Kaakinen,
Hyona, & Keenan
(2003); Kos (1991);
Lorch & Lorch (1985)
For the student who is having difficulty making sense of stories, the
teacher may give students a story map ahead of time. The map
shows the characters, setting, and plot. Over time, the teacher may
have students make their own story map as they read. Parents can
help their child complete a story map by asking questions such as
"What is going on?" "Who?" "What is the problem in the story?" and
"How did it turn out?" Show them how the answers to those
questions can change the further they read and how to put their
answers in the story map.
This is a teacher directed strategy. Prepare sample story maps of
known stories. Identifying the main idea, central characters, the
complication or problem, and the resolution to the problem. Review
these details and their connections with the students. Ask the students
if the story could be told for the same purpose without any of these key
components. Discuss why that is so. Teach students to construct a
story map as they read a new narrative. Have them make predictions
while they read as they try to discern the main idea, central characters,
the complication or problem, and the resolution to the problem. Guide
their information processing with these key questions: "What is going
on?" "Who?" "Problem?" and "How did it turn out?" When they are
reading, cue them to stop once a page, or so to keep them making
predictions about those 4 key story components. Discuss what they
thought the answers were at different stages of the narrative as they
read along.
Read a text, in class or as assigned. Have all students respond to a
This is a strategy to get all students engaged in processing the
information and concepts of the text. It can be boisterous. It can prompt or question. Have students freely process their thinking out
be managed through modeling and "volume controls" discussed loud, simultaneously if they so choose. Listen to the talk and select
key ideas and important points from the sea of voices. Pick out trends
ahead of time. It allows students to express thinking in the
classroom that they might be embarrassed to say or fear was off in students perception and discuss the merits of the thinking being
topic or wrong. It allows a high % of student talk time to teacher done.
talk time. It gives teacher discretionary control of the direction of
discussion and to present an authoritative stance if desired.
C-14 Background
Knowledge /
Schema Activation
Denner, Rickards, &
Albanese (2003);
Guthrie, et al. (1996);
Jetton & Alexander
(1997); Kaakinen,
Hyona, & Keenan
(2003) Kos (1991);
Rawson & Dunlosky
(2002); Risko &
Alvarez (1986)
This is a teacher-directed activity. Before reading a text, the teacher
gives students a list of important phrases and lines from the text.
The teacher uses this list to introduce important ideas ahead of
time. Please talk with the teacher about how you can support this
strategy at home.
Select the key phrases that represent the critical information of this
text. Keep it simple and short, and list them one page double or triple
spaced for linear text. Distribute them appropriately for non-linear text.
Tell students to write a story or explanation of their own, or to complete
the diagram, map, chart or illustration. Students are generating ideas
and schema as they complete this task and this is one of the strengths
of this method. Next, instruct students to read the actual text. As they
do this, have them compare their version to the assigned one. By
comparing and contrasting, they are using higher level thinking and
they are manipulating the key information and connections. This helps
recall, inferential thinking and concept development.
Story Impressions This strategy has broad applications for both narrative and
expository texts, and linear or non-linear structures. It is teacher
dependent in that the teacher must select the key phrases from
the text beforehand, but since it involves student generation of a
conceptual framework and a running text, it is successful in
engaging students in constructing knowledge and schema.
Students have significantly higher recall with this strategy than
with a preview through a prewritten synopsis. Students have
more developed schema from evaluating the pieces of
information and organizing and developing them into a coherent
text.
C-12 Background
Knowledge /
Schema Activation
This strategy keeps the readers as active participants and
engages their procedural and conditional knowledge in the
meaning making process. It encourages students to use their
prior knowledge as a filter to interpret what they are reading and
to integrate new and old knowledge. This strategy allows
students to self regulate how/when/why to activate prior
knowledge when reading independently. Procedural knowledge
gives the student a sense of control and independence.
Conditional knowledge helps the student to understand why the
strategy is helpful and how to use it flexibly. By making
predictions as they go along, they continually need to check
facts, evaluate whether things make sense, and revise their
thinking when necessary.
Dole, Brown, &
Trathen (1996);
Kaakinen, Hyona, &
Keenan (2003);
Rawson & Dunlosky
(2002); Risko &
Alvarez (1986)
When a child does not have much background knowledge about a
topic, it can be difficult for him to understand a book or movie about
the topic. Story content introduction is a written preview of the topic.
It should be used only with unfamiliar topics. The overview can be
written as an outline, a map, or a drawing. The goal is for the child
to see and hear about the topic ahead of time so it will make more
sense later.
Prepare topics and materials ahead of time. Write a script that briefly
previews the content material of the targeted text. Focus the script on
the most important and/or most potentially challenging to the students.
Provide students with a copy of the script. Allow them to read, and
also discuss the material. Engaging students actively at this step is
critical to the best results from this preview activity. Students will now
have a conceptual framework for incorporating, prioritizing, and
organizing the new information encountered in the target text(s).
Present and teach content that will build and activate student
knowledge about topics in upcoming text(s). This strategy works
well with difficult hard to access texts, but can lose student
engagement with easily accessible texts. This is a teacher
dependent strategy that works well with declarative knowledge,
the facts in the story. Transfer to independent student usage is
limited, due to the very nature of having to learn about a topic
prior to reading about a topic. A key to success with this method
is to have group or class discussion to actively engage students
in the topic. The preview selection by the teacher limits student
input and so that must be balanced with a method that includes
student thinking prior to reading the target text.
Story Content
Introduction
C-11 Background
Knowledge /
Schema Activation
Strategic Story
Content Preview
Boscolo & Mason
(2003); Lawless
(2003); Lehman &
Schraw (2002); Jetton
& Alexander (1997);
Rinehart, Stahl, &
Erickson (1986)
Setting different purposes before you act will change the outcome.
For example when you go to the store, what is the purpose? To get
out in 10 minutes; to get the best deal; or to buy specific items for a
birthday party. Talk about your the purpose of your tasks with your
child.
Set a clear reading objective. Think about Bloom's taxonomy and at
what level you want the student to process the text, from facts to
evaluation. Explicitly tell the student what his learning objective will be.
These advance scripts help the student make appropriate predictions
and hypotheses about events and subject matter, as well as interpret
new vocabulary correctly.
Setting a Purpose Students need to focus their reading with a purpose. Students
need to know what to pay attention to and how to think about it.
Background knowledge can cause misinterpretation of an
ambiguous passage. The set task needs to be aligned with the
reading objective.
C-10 Background
Knowledge /
Schema Activation
C-13 Background
Knowledge /
Schema Activation
References
Jetton & Alexander
(1997); Lorch & Lorch
(1985); Risko &
Alvarez (1986); van
den Broek, et al.
(2003)
Tips and Ideas for Parents
Script activation is similar to making a plan at home. Focus ahead
on a goal in sports, such as team cooperation or personal skills.
Teaching Tips
Give students an advance organizer to focus their thinking. It could be
in the form of a short statement; it could be a title. It could be several
pictures that represent the beginning, middle and end.
Elaboration/Clarification
Script activator induces the appropriate schema which facilitates
comprehension and recall. A script activator is a short concise
set of words or images that capture the concept or story line of a
text. ELLs greatly benefit from this strategy.
Strategy
Script Activation
Skill Area
Background
Knowledge /
Schema Activation
#
C-9
44
Generating
Questions Academic Text
Transitions 1
C-18 Knowledge of Text
Structure
C-19 Knowledge of Text
Structure
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Generating
The use of authentic materials and authentic tasks in literacy
Questions - Forms instruction has proven highly effective. Real-life materials and
tasks are interesting, practical, and motivating. Working on
literacy competence with authentic materials and tasks is
motivating for students, and embedding skill instruction and
strategy coaching into lessons with these materials/tasks has
been very effective. Questioning strengthens recall, but
attention should be paid to what topic and/or information is
targeted by the questions.
Schema general: What is the leading character trying to accomplish in
the story?
Story specific: Will the barber kill the officer with the razor?
Especially when reading in an area where the student has less
background knowledge, use signal words or phrases (e.g. “A
second reason is...”) that point to logical and temporal relations
within the text. These do not add new content but identify
significant information or express how it is related – either
explicitly or implicitly.
Bauman (2002);
Reynolds & Anderson
(1982); Wixon (1984)
Before seeing a movie or reading a book, ask questions and predict
what will happen. Afterwards, talk about the answers and how they
differ.
Choose textbooks and other reading materials that are "considerate" of Work through a craft project or cooking recipe with your child. Draw Darch, Karmine, &
Kameenuie (1986)
the reader in that they provide connections between concepts through attention to the signal words that connect and organize the steps
transitions, and well-organized flow of information. Material should be (e.g. before, while, after, when, during).
age-appropriate. Scaffold students who are attempting to read difficult
text by pointing out signal words that indicate relationships. Model and
have students take notes of one main idea and one supporting detail
when reading difficult text, using the transitions as an aid.
Baldwin, PelegBruckner & McClintock
(1984); Dickson,
Simmons, Kameenui
(1995); Ivey (1999);
Purcell-Gates,
Degener, Jacobson, &
Soler (2002); Rex
(2001); Reynolds &
Anderson (1982);
Wixon (1984)
Let your child read and fill out his application for a sports camp.
Help your teenager apply to colleges, sign up for classes, register to
vote and bank online. Discuss the form as you complete it together
(e.g., Why do you think they want to know this? Which experience
should I choose to describe here and why?)
Dole, Brown, &
Trathen (1996);
Gurney, et al. (1990);
Rahman & Bisanz
(1986); Singer &
Donlan (1982);
Williams, et al. (2002)
When watching a complicated story with your child, discuss the
characters and what motivates them, what problems do they face
and how are the problems resolved.
Teach traditional plot elements or schema of the short story: plan,
goal, action, obstacles, outcomes. Then pose schema-general
questions about plot elements, E.g., Who are the important
characters? What challenges (conflicts) do they face? What is
important about where and when the story takes place (setting)? How
does the main character resolve the problem? Apply this questioning
strategy to a specific text. Guide student practice of question
generating. Instruct students to stop and generate new questions
throughout the story, perhaps every other paragraph or every page.
Examples from Singer & Donlan (1982):
Schema general: Who is the leading character?
Story specific: Is this story going to be more about the officer or the
barber?
References
Lawless, et al. (2003);
Lehman & Schraw
(2002); Leu, DeGroff,
& Simons (1986);
Schrieber, et al. (2002)
Tips and Ideas for Parents
Maps contain much information which is presented through charts,
legends, symbols, numbers and pictures. On road trips, let your
child be the map expert. Ask her assistance in calculating
distances, finding exits, identifying towns, rivers, national parks, and
historic places.
Teaching Tips
Select non-linear text with information in chunks for your first lessons
on reading different visual presentation of text. Demonstrate how to
visually track what is on the page. Explicitly state what your priorities
are as you look at this non-linear text. Walk students step by step
through how you question what is on the page. Orient the students to
any titles, coding, symbols, etc. that contain specialized information.
Help students to pay attention to the details on the
map/diagram/chart/etc. Practice noticing and decoding salient features
such as color, size, shape, bolded items, borders, boundaries, etc. as
well as the relationship between features and their location on the page
or within the text frame. Select a project in which students create their
own non-linear text which is similar to what was studied. Have student
pairs or groups create their text to a set of criteria. Have them peer
review each others' text against the set of criteria.
Using an authentic form (e.g.. lease, job application, taxes), model how
to locate the main idea in each section, and ask focusing questions,
such as, "What do they want to know for this item?" Focus student
attention to include the larger picture of the purpose of the form
coordinated with the specificity of each item. Demonstrate how
questions about the main idea of a section lead to identification of
supporting details asked by each individual blank to be completed.
Scaffold the process by first having students write down their "selfquestions" on paper. This allows teachers to evaluate whether
students have mastered the skill of locating the main ideas and posing
a question about it, and to see if they can look at the specific questions
and focus in on the correct detail. Students working in pairs or small
groups can strategize collaboratively
Teacher models by thinking aloud how to generate questions by
Teaching students to create questions related to their readings
looking at section headings in a nonfiction text. Teacher models how
helps them focus on the text, gives them a way to check and
to make a question out of headings by asking "who, what, where,
monitor their own understanding of the text and allows for
interaction with the text. When students generate questions they when, why, and how." As students take responsibility for creating their
own questions, they also are answering their own questions after
become responsible for finding the answers. When students
reading the text. They self-monitor by reviewing the information and
begin to question texts and think about the ideas within them,
correcting themselves. The ReQuest method is also modeled through
they begin to construct their own knowledge. Questioning
a "think aloud." Both teacher and students read a passage. Students
strengthens recall, but attention should be paid to what topic
initially ask questions of the teacher, who models good reading
and/or information is targeted by the questions. Teacher and
strategies as she reviews the section for an answer. As the modeling
student text priorities often differ. Using questions to cue recall
progresses, teacher models "better" questions that involve higher level
of text supports inferential thinking through more focused
thinking skills. As students become better questioners, they may do
attention.
Request in small groups or independently.
Students need help navigating through unfamiliar narrative
forms. They are taught story grammar elements and then
practice with familiar or easy stories first. They need to rehearse
identifying and naming story elements until they are familiar with
them. They then can identify the elements in new stories (see
Strategic Story Content Preview). \ This teaches students to think
procedurally and conditionally about narrative forms. The teacher
then models how to generate questions about key plot elements
in new, challenging short stories. The teacher must first directly
teach and build this knowledge of narrative structure as a genre.
It is critical for the students to generate these story specific
questions not the teacher. It is in generating ideas that students
find engagement and greater gains in comprehension. Note:
Poor readers struggle with "story grammar" as an organizing tool
much more than good readers, and they process text differently
than good readers or early readers. Focusing on "theme
comprehension" in combination with a structured lesson and
discussion has shown results with LD students.
C-17 Knowledge of Text
Structure
Elaboration/Clarification
High-knowledge readers have greater facility in processing nonlinear text. Students with a limited knowledge base have less
access to the concepts that would create mental connections
between items presented in a non-linear fashion. Providing
students with the needed knowledge prior to viewing the text
facilitates the ability to make the right connections. Predictability
also influences readers ability to comprehend. Repeated
exposure to similar non-linear representations facilitates the
understanding of what types of connections are represented.
Selecting materials that have a serial flow to the encoded
information as well as having students generate their own nonlinear texts help students to master the components and
principles of this presentation format of information. Note: One
large map, or one comprehensive graphic, is easier to process
"pictorally" and therefore easier to recall than several smaller
maps or graphics. Enhancing relevance to text segments helps
compensate for lack of coherence.
Schema-General
Questions
Strategy
C-16 Knowledge of Text
Structure
Skill Area
Non-Linear Text
#
C-15 Knowledge of Text
Structure
45
Students in this study were low achieving, intermediate grade
readers. The study showed that explicit teaching of mental
imagery improved comprehension monitoring and helped them
remember what they read. The researchers suggest that a
useful follow up study would address strategies for fixing
comprehension errors.
Visualization
C-25 Cognitive
Monitoring /
Metacognition
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Gambrell & Bales
(1986); Guthrie, et al.
(1996); Hwang & Levin
(2002); Rummel,
Levin, & Woodward
(2002)
Students need explicit instruction in what makes a good
paragraph. Younger students often understand the mechanical
aspects of indentation and punctuation, but lack the concept that
expository texts have paragraphs of sentences about the same
topic with a superordinate sentence as the leading idea.
Younger students have greater difficulty in identifying what gives
cohesion and what is the main idea in a paragraph. Practice
identifying these elements and explaining their reasoning will
help students to grasp these important expository text
organizers.
Paragraph
Structures
C-24 Knowledge of Text
Structure
Keep art supplies handy for your children to draw pictures of their
Cue students to make "make pictures" in their minds as they read.
Teach this skill directly and then scaffold until students master the skill. reading.
As students read text, ask them to compare the image in their heads to
the words they read to look for any inconsistencies.
Brabham & LynchBrown (2002);
Donovan & Smolkin
(2001); Donovan &
Smolkin (2002); Kelter,
Kaup & Claus (2004);
Kucan & Beck (2003);
Mackey (2003);
Moreno & Meyer
(2002); Penno,
Wilkinson & Moore
(2002); Rosenhouse,
Feitelson, Kita, &
Goldstein (1997);
Wade, Buxton, & Kelly
(1999)
Call attention to how information can presented in different types of
formats. For example: some information is in the form of cartoons,
some as advertisement, bulleted lists, articles, websites. Talk about
connection between purpose, audience and the presentation.
Select several genres of material that center on the same scientific
concept. Read them aloud on by one over several days. Discuss each
text as you are reading it, paying attention to what makes this text
distinct in it's presentation, organization, and "flavor" of the information.
Compare and contrast these features as you read more texts. Discuss
what kind of thinking goes with reading different texts. Discuss that
each genre has value and each has limitations in its treatment of a
topic. Heighten student awareness through prompting their
observations as to what is captured in the text and how it is organized.
Heighten student awareness through prompting their observations as
to what might not be in this treatment. Include narrative, poetry,
drama, expository (without added narrative treatment), biography,
graphics, visual arts, historical texts for at least one topic.
Physical presentation of text includes visual textual cues such as
headings and subheadings, signal words (transitions), location of
main idea sentences, and spacing between "chunks" or idea
units within sentences. Students who recognize text clues that
signal the importance of a sentence will attend to reading that
sentence more carefully and have greater free recall of the
information. Students who pay close attention to headings and
topic structure had larger working memory capacity and more
accurate summaries.
Guided Discussion Students need experience with all genres of text and they need
of Expository Text guided "tours" of the differences in the specific features of a
given genre. Students need explicit instruction in all forms of text
Structure
as they may be used to deliver academic content at a different
stage of schooling. Literacy in all genres can be developed
early, and research shows that young children have an
awareness of different purposes, organization, and audience with
different "authors' aims." Classroom discussion during reading a
text aloud can highlight and clarify many features of genre in an
open dialogue that invites questions and comments. A literary
stance on scientific material is quite different than an expository,
or scientific stance, and students need exposure to both
perspectives of scientific concepts. Read alouds significantly
contribute to vocabulary gains and recall.
Garner, et al. (1986)
Hyona, Kaakinen, &
Lorch (2002); Lorch &
Chen (1986); Lorch &
Lorch (1985); Surber
(2001)
Many do-it-yourself projects include following information that is
presented in an easily read format. Help your child read a dress
pattern, airplane model direction, skateboard kit or recipe. Pay
attention to how the information is sequenced.
Instruction in the physical conventions of text is modeled then
scaffolded. Teacher shows students how to apply strategy using
headings, subheadings, and paragraph topics by thinking out loud. In
guided practice phase, peers and teachers share think aloud and
summarize with each other.
Presentation of
Text Features
C-22 Knowledge of Text
Structure
Introduce expository text at the paragraph level. Have students identify When your child tells you a story with a lot of details, ask "How
could you say the important parts of that in just a few words?"
which idea is the main idea, the biggest concept, the umbrella that
covers all of the other ideas. Ask them where it occurs in the
paragraph. Ask them if all of the other sentences match, or fit, the
main idea. Ask them to explain how they knew. Guide students with
leading questions to clarify their thinking when they get the wrong
superordinance or wrong relatedness within a topic. Practice with
paragraphs that may not be in standard form. Have students create
paragraphs for other students to examine for these structural elements.
Instruct students to explain the results of these examinations.
Bromage & Mayer
(1986); Dinnel &
Glover (1985); Lorch &
Lorch (1985); Meyer &
Freedle (1984); Risko
& Alvarez (1986);
Williams, et al. (2002)
The teacher may be able to supply you with several examples of
text structures. A brief description or graphic of each structure can
help you at home when you are previewing a text with your child.
Reminding your child of the structure ahead of time can make the
text easier to understand.
Explicitly instruct students in how the text is structured. Provide
students with a two to three sentence description of the way a text is
organized prior to reading. Select text that provides clear and coherent
presentation of the material. E.g. Technical text for the operation and
use of a light meter in photography can be converted into 1/2 page of
critical information. Provide a summary sentence. Provide a drawing
with key features noted and a chart that coordinates meter reading, film
speeds, and camera settings. Include a step by step set of succinct
directions.
The way a text is structured follows different organizational
Advanced
Organizer on Text patterns for different purposes. For example, the way a
compare/contrast text is organized differs from a sequence text.
Structure
Examples of text structures include narrative text (which has its
own story grammar) and expository texts including sequence,
descriptive, enumeration, compare/contrast, persuasive and
problem/solution/effect. Students familiar with the text structure
who read well-organized text remember significantly more with
more coherence. The semantic base of the Advance Organizer is
critical, and it more useful if it prompts paraphrasing rather the
merely lifting text. Careful encoding by the student is important
for retention.
C-21 Knowledge of Text
Structure
C-23 Knowledge of Text
Structure
References
Baumann (1986);
Darch, Karmine, &
Kameenuie (1986);
Foltz (1996); Willows
& Ryan (1986)
Tips and Ideas for Parents
If the student needs help with linear sequencing, practice telling how
to do something with using the words…first, second, next, after that,
finally. Read directions on how to make something together and
include words that let your child know it's time to move to the next
step. As the student masters these skills, try different sequencing
words that cue a comparison or contrast (e.g., Comparison:
similarly, like, in the same way as. Contrast: however, by contrast,
unlike).
Teaching Tips
Select a predictable text with a specific type of transitions and with
clear signals of the transitions. Provide a list of transition vocabulary
and talk about what those words do when they connect text. Read
through some of the text and model highlighting transition words. Tell
students that transitions stand out in the text to help readers locate the
ideas and their connection to one another. Tell students that marking
words such as first, next, or finally, not only locates important ideas, but
shows how they relate to each other. Tell students that transitions take
the reader from one idea to the next. Examine the relationships among
the different ideas or parts of the passage after locating the words of
transition. Are they contrasting? Are they complementary? Consider
the points the author makes, the conclusions drawn, and how and why
those points are made or those conclusions drawn. Provide work time
for student pairs or groups to practice finding transition words and
seeing the connection of ideas.
Elaboration/Clarification
Transition can indicate a Series, Time Order, Cause/Effect,
Comparison/Contrast, a Definition, Combinations of Patterns.
When students make non-coherent transitions, they often
express confusion and then try to get back to where they had
been previously. Understanding the transition words and making
transitions stand out in the text helps to locate the ideas and their
relationship and/or connection.
Strategy
Transitions 2
Skill Area
#
C-20 Knowledge of Text
Structure
46
PPLSP: Spring 2005
C-30 Cognitive
Monitoring /
Metacognition
Click and Clunk
C-29 Cognitive
Monitoring /
Metacognition
This technique is applicable at many levels. The QAR helps
students identify where they found answers in their text: right
there, think and search, or on my own. The study showed that
younger students will need explicit training/modeling of how to
use this technique. The technique was especially helpful for
elementary students and for low to average ability students at the
elementary and middle levels. Questioning strengthens recall,
but attention should be paid to what topic and/or information is
targeted by the questions. Teacher and student text priorities
often differ.
Click and Clunk is a quick check of students' comprehension
usually performed during shared reading. Students are able to
tell the teacher where clarification is needed. The study was
done with upper elementary students. Kelter, Kaup, & Claus
(2004) showed that the reader's mental representation of a text is
critically sensitive to depicting the unfolding description of the
text. Running comprehension that falters for more than a
moment while reading has a strong effect on overall
comprehension. Cautionary note: Schommer & Surber (1986)
showed that students can have an "illusion of knowing" as they
read. This manifests itself in feeling and looking like
comprehension but it is with distorted meaning or
miscomprehension. Students who "clicked" accurately and
smoothly had a generally correct understanding but still missed
28% of the larger concepts when summarizing. Those with the
"illusion of knowing" had only a partial understanding with
misinformed connections. Those who clunked were accurate in
their self assessment. Including quick comprehension
statements from the "clickers" when checking
for clicks and clunks might address this false sense
of comprehension.
Students who generate their own questions while reading are
Question
Generation During engaging in several metacognitive processes. They are setting a
purpose for reading, identifying important concepts in the text
Reading
and the hierarchy of the concepts, and thinking of possible
answers to their own questions. Students who are taught more
elaborate story grammar or schema for more challenging texts
are able to comprehend and recall those texts with greater
accuracy. Expository text becomes the most important text
structure for learning after the primary grades. In content
textbooks, students will encounter density of information and
challenging vocabulary. It is recommended therefore that
expository text be used to train students in these self-monitoring
strategies. Questioning strengthens recall, but attention should
be paid to what topic and/or information is targeted by the
questions. Teacher and student text priorities often differ.
QAR (Question
Answer
Relationships)
Modeling Through Showing students how to monitor their own comprehension
Think Alouds
increases their understanding of text. This strategy also can be
applied to help students identify the type of discourse they are
reading and the thinking that goes along with each discourse
type (e.g. comparison, problem/solution, causation, or a
collection of descriptions). Processing text aloud aids in
vocabulary acquisition. Students trained with general
metacognitive strategies perform higher than those given task
specific metacognitive strategies.
C-27 Cognitive
Monitoring /
Metacognition
C-28 Cognitive
Monitoring /
Metacognition
Elaboration/Clarification
Students who self-monitor their studying can improve their
comprehension. Note: Words selected as key terms guide the
students attention. Words central thematically helped in recall of
central themes. Words noncentral to the text aided in recall of
details not central to the theme. Students can reliably predict
their comprehension based on ease of processing. When
students are struggling, break the text assigned into smaller
chunks when applying Delayed Key Words.
Strategy
Skill Area
Delayed Key
Words
#
C-26 Cognitive
Monitoring /
Metacognition
Teaching Tips
Tips and Ideas for Parents
Using expository text, model how to locate the main idea in a passage Stop during reading and ask questions about characters and what is Hahn (1984);
going to happen.
Reynolds & Anderson
and ask a question concerning the main idea. Demonstrate how
(1982); Wixon (1984)
questions about main ideas lead to identification of supporting details.
Scaffold the process by first having students write down their "selfquestions" on paper. This allows teachers to evaluate whether
students have mastered the skill of locating the main idea and posing a
question about it. Using narrative text, teach students the basic story
grammar or schema for a challenging text, such as a short story (a
plan, a goal, action, obstacles, outcomes – success or failure). Teach
students general questions from the framework of that schema, such
as “Who is the main character? What is he or she trying to
accomplish?” Then teach the students how to create specific
questions based on their story from the general questions, such as
“Will the boy win the game?” Note: this strategy worked best by
focusing on one element at a time (i.e., goal, obstacles, outcomes).
Repeated sessions with different elements and different stories
showed improvement after the third session.
Kelter, Kaup, & Claus
(2004); Klingner,
Vaughn, & Schumm
(1998); Rawson &
Dunlosky (2002);
Schommer & Surber
(1986)
When you are reading to your child, ask them periodically to explain
At key points in a text, the teacher stops and students either signal
what just happened.
click with their thumbs up or clunk with their thumbs down. Click
signals comprehension and clunk signals a lapse in understanding.
This allows the teacher to quickly assess if students are understanding
and can move on, but more importantly, it encourages students to
constantly ask themselves if they are understanding the text. Check for
coherence / comprehension after unfamiliar and challenging
vocabulary. Include requesting quick comprehension statements from
the "clickers" when checking for clicks and clunks to address students
with a false sense of comprehension. Have students state things in
their own words.
Baumann, SeifertKessell, & Jones
(1992); Brabham &
Lynch-Brown (2002);
Jetton & Alexander
(1997); Kelter, Kaup, &
Claus (2004); Mackey
(2003); Meyer &
Freedle (1984); Miller
(1985); Rosenhouse,
Feitelson, Kita, &
Goldstein (1997)
Raphael & McKinney
(1983); Wixon (1984)
Think alouds are a great way to let your child "jump into your brain"
and see how you think. When working on a project, talk about your
thinking as you solve a problem. When reading aloud, you can
[pause in the middle and talk about what you are thinking as you
read.
References
Rawson & Dunlosky
(2002); Thiede,
Anderson, & Therriault
(2002); Wixon (1986)
Teach students the three types of QARs: 1) right there - the answer is Ask your child questions and then ask them to explain how they got
explicit in the text, 2) think and search - the answer is implicit. Student their answer.
must read more than one place to figure out the answer, 3) On my own
- Student needs to use their own knowledge to answer the question.
After teaching these types of QARs, practice with texts, giving students
questions and having them determine which type each question
illustrates. Then have student identify different types of questions and
answers. Finally, have students generate their own questions of each
type.
1) Read a passage aloud to students, pausing occasionally to model
your thought process. Talk through what you are thinking and doing.
Explain the strategies you are using and why you are using them. 2)
Model any or all of the following strategies to assist students: a) selfquestioning, b) QAR, c) predicting, d) inferencing, e) retelling, f)
rereading, g) reading on.
This primarily a teacher directed activity. Look for key words in
1) Student reads assigned passage. 2) After reading, the student
creates a list of 5 key words. 3) Give students a pretest on material. 4) newspaper headlines, road signs, titles, and advertising.
Tell students how they performed overall and allow them to reread the
text as they choose. 5) Retest students on the material.
47
Anderson (1983);
Jetton & Alexander
(1997); Jordan &
Thomas (2002);
Kaakinen, Hyona, &
Keenan (2003);
Lehman & Schraw
(2002); Rinehart,
Stahl, & Erickson
(1986)
Guthrie, et al. (1996);
Kucan & Beck (2003);
Rose, et al. (2000);
Rowe (1998)
On vacations or in your own city, take the family to museums and
historical exhibits that immerse the viewer in another time or culture.
Exhibits about ancient Egypt, American Indians, pioneers, whalers
or historic renovated houses display another perspective through
artifacts, photos, architecture, journals, records and art. Ask
questions of the student that challenges him/her to think from the
viewpoint of a different person.
Encourage your child to participate in after school drama
productions. Enroll in summer performing arts programs. Buy
tickets to a live theater show or watch one on television. Discuss
how the actors use imagery to communicate.
Assign a point of view or role to the student to focus and contextualize
the information they glean from the text. For example, the student may
be reading a story where the setting is a house. One perspective might
be that of a person who is house-hunting. Another might be that of a
burglar. After reading, ask student to write all that they remember from
that perspective.
Read the story independently. Then read the same story aloud with
inflection and intonation. Have students identify characters and
elements of the story and use student-created props to illustrate these
elements and personalize the characters. Act out the story in a third
reading, and then with a retell and recall. Note: props can be symbolic
of who, what, when, where, how, why....
The student is assigned a perspective (a point of view) either
before, during, or after reading, providing greater proficiency in
retelling and recalling. The perspective assigned can be that of a
character in the narrative or in history or a scientist perhaps. It
could also be that of a person outside of the narrative, or that of
an inanimate object or an imaginary creature. The key is to
provide a clearer frame of reference and more focus to the
material as the student reads the text.
Drama-based reading instruction uses imagery, elaboration, and
story element segmentation: all of which creates more neural
pathways in the brain which facilitate greater retention and recall.
It positively reinforces student reading comprehension, factual
recall and inferential reasoning. Young children naturally use
play to act out and make sense of their world, including texts.
Older children need opportunities to utilize this powerful tool of
comprehension and higher level thinking.
Graphic organizers can be used to review and explore concepts
in many content areas and with many levels of students.
Graphic organizers help students identify main ideas, the
relationships between main ideas, and the connections to
subordinate ideas by spatially demonstrating their relationships
and connections. By arranging concepts spatially, this creates
more neural networks to reinforce the concept and relationships
involved. They aid in the recall of factual information and
encourage inferential connections. They are shown to be more
effective in cooperative learning groups which allow for
collaborative thinking and discussion to clarify concepts. The
type of graphic organizer used should match the type of text the
student is reading. It is key that the visual/spatial arrangement
be conceptual related to the relationships of the ideas being
organized. This is the key to deeper learning and recall.
Students who are slow readers and have below grade level
reading comprehension can benefit from a "read and listen." It is
to be used in addition to regular classroom instruction. It
improves both listening and reading comprehension, as well as
allowing a child to keep pace with the other students in chapter
book reading assignments. Multiple exposures to the same text
increases retention of key information and terms, particularly with
technical, academic text.
C-33 Retelling / Recalling Assigned
Perspectives
C-34 Retelling / Recalling Imagery Through
Drama
C-35 Retelling / Recalling Graphic
Organizers
C-36 Retelling / Recalling Tape Assisted
Reading
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Set up a listening station for tape facilitated listening with headphones.
Have the students listen while also reading along in the text ( out loud,
or silently). Repeat each listening assignment for better retention.
Keep on target with the other students' reading assignments. Allow all
students to fully participate in class discussions and assignments.
Adjust tape speed to appropriate rate for student.
Read the same book at home that is being read in the classroom to
bolster motivation and comprehension. Listen to the book on an
audiotape to reinforce struggling readers or those for whom English
is a second language.
Bromage & Mayer
(1986); Moreno &
Meyer (2002); Shany
& Biemiller (1995)
Darch, Karnine, &
Kameenuie (1986);
Guthrie, et al. (1996);
Hwang & Levin (2002);
Kelter, Kaup, & Claus
(2004); Lorch & Lorch
(1985); Slater, Graves,
& Piche (1984)
Glover, Bruning, &
Plake (1982); Griffin,
Malone, & Kameenui
(1995); Surber (2001)
Before embarking on a joint cooking project with your child, ask him
to skim the recipe for special ingredients or tools you might need.
Ask questions before cooking, such as how much time it will take or
if there are any pre-cooking steps or set-up requirements. Look for
the answers before cooking.
Note that to teach this strategy effectively, first model SQ3R before
leading students into guided practice. Then release students gradually
into independent practice. Survey= Skim the text for general
understanding before reading it. Look specifically for bold-faced
headings, pictures, graphs, captions, and any bold vocabulary.
Question= Formulate questions using the text's bold headings and
preview any questions that may appear at the end of the text.
Read=Read the text to find answers to the questions the student found
or generated before reading. Recite= Paraphrase main ideas and
supporting details and check them against the passage.
Review=Recall the main points before reading subheadings. Recall as
much supporting information as possible. Then read the entire
passage without any specific directions (just read).
C-32 Retelling / Recalling Survey, Question, This strategy was used to help secondary students to grasp
content area textual information. SQ3R has been more effective
Read, Recite,
in a group setting than with individuals. This may be due to the
Review (SQ3R)
complicated nature of the strategy and the time it takes to fully
follow the formula. Interaction between students at each stage
seems beneficial. That is Survey and then discuss, Question
and then discuss, Read and then discuss, Recite and then
discuss, and finally Review and then discuss. Having the text
available when writing summaries is shown to be more beneficial
to recall than without the original text (Glover, Bruning, & Plake,
1982).
You can help your child make sense of what they read by
This strategy can be adapted easily to match the needs of different
types of learners and different types of text. Give explicit instruction on constructing graphic organizers with them. A graphic organizer is a
the relationships represented by the graphic using the following steps: drawing or graphic to help organize information. Some types of
graphic organizers include webs, Venn diagrams, and categorical
1) Read and discuss the graphic organizer with whole group. 2)
lists. You can create a graphic organizer before reading to organize
Rehearse with group how to use an unlabeled graphic organizer in
background knowledge, during reading to keep track of information
which to write students' own labels. 3) Allow students to use graphic
organizer independently with a delayed check. E.g. Expository text in a on-goingly, or after reading to make sense of what was read.
social studies class was matched to a graphic organizer with a
hierarchical structure. Follow these steps: 1) Use a separate graphic
organizer for each section of the chapter. 2) Write the main ideas
inside large geometric shapes and write supporting ideas in smaller
figures of the same shape that are visual tied to the larger shape and
systematically arranged. The type of shape then changes with each
paragraph. 3) The teacher should model this technique at least 5 times
before expecting students to be able to use the skill independently. 4)
Keep graphic organizers limited to 10 sections or fewer and each shape
contain single words, phrases, or simple sentences only.
References
Driesbach & Goschke
(2004); Garner, et al.
(1991); Gaskins (1996)
Tips and Ideas for Parents
When your child is struggling to get homework done and is
frustrated, interrupt the study with a moment or two of something
your child likes to do. You want to distract the child from their
emotional frustration. Then return to the work with a fresh
perspective. When returning to the work, you may want the child to
explain their thinking so far and where they are stuck. You may be
able to help them get beyond their stuck place through the minibreak and explanation.
Teaching Tips
Find quick, positive interruptions when students need a boost to
understand. Over time, create a system for a student to self-prescribe a
"positive quickie" when they get stuck. Follow the quick positive
interruption with the difficult to learn concept or the hard to remember
theory. Remember the formula....stuck in a rut, break for a positive
emotional boost, look to the novel idea.
Elaboration/Clarification
Positive emotional moments aid cognitive flexibility, while
simultaneously detracting from perseverance. This strategy is a
great "bad habit" breaker as a positive jolt of emotion changes
students' affect, allows them to think in a new way while helping
them to not continue thinking in the old way. This is not a
strategy to employ when you want a student to persist in the
same way on the same task. It can be a good strategy for the
student who frequently gets stuck and uses negative self-talk.
Strategy
Skill Area
Mini Breaks
#
C-31 Cognitive
Monitoring /
Metacognition
48
Elaboration/Clarification
This strategy keeps the readers as active participants and
engages their procedural and conditional knowledge in the
meaning making process. It encourages students to use their
prior knowledge as a filter to interpret what they are reading and
to integrate new and old knowledge. This strategy allows
students to self-regulate how/when/why to activate prior
knowledge when reading independently. Procedural knowledge
gives the student a sense of control and independence.
Conditional knowledge helps the student to understand why the
strategy is helpful and how to use it flexibly. By making
predictions as they go along, they continually need to check
facts, evaluate whether things make sense, and revise their
thinking when necessary.
C-41 Retelling / Recalling Strategic Story
Content Preview
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Prepare student content instruction topics and materials ahead of time. Re-enact stories you have read through puppet plays or skits.
Write a script that briefly previews the content material of the targeted
text. Focus the script on the most important and/or most potentially
challenging to the students. Provide students with a copy of the script.
Allow them to read and also discuss the material. Engaging students
actively at this step is critical to the best results from this preview
activity. Students will now have a conceptual framework for
incorporating, prioritizing, and organizing the new information
encountered in the target text(s).
Present and teach content that will build and activate student
knowledge about topics in upcoming text(s). This strategy works
well with difficult, hard to access texts, but can lose student
engagement with accessible texts. This is a teacher-dependent
strategy that works well with declarative knowledge, the facts in
the story. Transfer to independent student usage is limited, due
to the very nature of having to learn about a topic prior to reading
about it. A key to success with this method is to have a group or
class discussion to actively engage students in the topic. The
preview selection by the teacher limits student input and so that
must be balanced with a method that includes student thinking
prior to reading the target text.
C-40 Retelling / Recalling Story Content
Instruction
Dole, Brown, &
Trathen (1996)
Kinder & Bursuck
(1990); McKeowen,
Beck, Omanson, &
Perfetti (1983); Meyer
& Freedle (1984);
Ravitch & Finn (1987)
Prepare sample story maps of known stories: identifying the main idea, While reading, stop periodically and predict what will happen next.
Dole, Brown, &
central characters, the complication or problem, and the resolution to
Ask children how their predictions changed and how the story differs Trathen (1996)
the problem. Review these details and their connections with the
from their predictions. There are no "wrong" predictions.
students. Ask the students if the story could be told for the same
purpose without any of these key components. Discuss why that is so.
Teach students to construct a story map as they read a new narrative.
Have them make predictions while they read as they try to discern the
main idea, central characters, the complication or problem, and the
resolution to the problem. Guide their information processing with
these key questions: "What's going on?" "Who?" "Problem?" and "How
did it turn out?" When they are reading, cue them to stop once a page,
or so to keep them making predictions about those 4 key story
components. Discuss what they thought the answers were at different
stages of the narrative as they read along.
Preteach general concepts related to the content to be studied (e.g.
for a social studies unit on the Civil War, pre-teach basic economic
principles). Preteach note-taking skills. Preteach how to analyze
problem-solution-effect by modeling. Use isolated passages with
explicitly stated problems. Ask these four essential questions: 1)
What was the problem? 2) Why was it a problem? 3) What was the
solution? 4) What was the effect? Using textbook, guide students
through a "chunk" of text. Discuss with class the four essential
questions. Then take structured notes on content, problem, solution,
analysis. Scaffold note-taking, then allow independent practice.
Create a timeline to accompany each chapter, to show the sequence of
events. Identify, record and define key vocabulary words in the text.
Record the word and its meaning in notes. After completing notes for
the entire chapter, review.
This strategy is usually teacher-directed. If it has been selected as
a strategy to use at home, you may want to consult the teacher for
assistance. The strategy involved structured note-taking related to
four questions: 1) What was the problem? 2) Why was it a
problem? 3) What was the solution? 4) What was the effect?
These questions are helpful when making sense of stories,
biographies, and history text in particular. As a parent, you can ask
your child these questions as a way to check how well he/she is
making sense of what is being read.
Glover, Bruning, &
Plake (1982); Taylor
(1982); Taylor &
Beach (1984)
A hierarchical summary is an outline of information. Help your child
to clarify what the main point of an article is after reading a
complicated story in a newspaper or a magazine. Together, identify
the most important ideas and the supporting information associated
with each idea.
Hierarchical summary format includes:
- Headings and subheadings as Roman numerals
- Under every heading, the student lists 2-3 supporting details from the
text
- Group the Roman numerals that are related by writing key ideas in
the margin
- Generate a title of the summary based on key ideas
The students can compare their summary to the teacher's template.
Follow this by having students recall what they remember to a peer
before being tested on the material.
References
Hwang & Levin (2002);
Jones, Levin, Levin, &
Beitzel (2000);
McCormick & Levin
(1984); Peters & Levin
(1986); Rummel,
Levin, & Woodward
(2002); Veit, Scruggs,
& Mastropieri (1986)
Tips and Ideas for Parents
Mnemonic imagery is using a catchy phrase to remember something
important. For example, the first letter in each word of "Every good
boy deserves fudge" corresponds to the letters on the bars of the
musical scale "EGBDF." "Never eat soggy wheat" can help you
remember directions "North East South West." The mental image of
someone eating soggy wheat reminds the student of what they
need to recall. It can be a fun activity to see if you can create funny
or memorable mnemonics to remember the important concepts
when your student is trying to memorize information for school
(especially in classes such a social studies and science).
Teaching Tips
The first step involved having students changing an unfamiliar name to
something familiar (to create a first image - i.e., Taylor to tailor). Next,
students were shown by an illustrated example how to form
interactions between the keyword (name) and secondary information
(accomplishment); for example, a tailor working on his invention in a
house with plants. Third, students were given a new passage and
followed the same procedure except that they created their own image
before seeing the illustrated example. Finally, in testing conditions, the
students were prompted to use the strategy.
C-39 Retelling / Recalling Content, Problem, Students retain "networks of information" better than isolated
Solution, Effect
facts. Specifically, in teaching social studies, students were
better able to see the relationship between events, facts and
concepts using a method called "content-problem-solutioneffect." This is a teacher-directed activity. The program includes
prior instruction of concepts relating to the readings and preskills
instruction on problem-solution-effect analysis and note-taking
procedures. The teacher then leads class discussion to analyze
"chunks" of information, and models how to record notes that
identify a problem, solution, and effect (Kinder & Bursuck, 1990).
In addition, developing a timeline helped students see the
sequence of events (Ravitch & Finn, 1987). Finally, since
vocabulary instruction is integral to reading comprehension,
students defined key vocabulary in the text in their notes
(McKeowen, Beck, Omanson, & Perfetti, 1983).
This strategy is used to summarize unfamiliar content area text.
Hierarchical summaries were found to enhance recall and had a
positive effect on expository writing. Generate a skeleton outline
by writing a Roman numeral for every major section in the
reading selection. Then write a capital letter for every
subsection. Finally, leave five or six lines between capital letters
where the important supporting details may be listed. Having the
text available when writing summaries is shown to be more
beneficial for later recall than working without the original text
(Glover, Bruning, & Plake,1982). Caution: Students must be able
to master this format/strategy in order to improve recall. Focus
instruction on improved summary skills (Taylor & Beach, 1982).
Strategy
C-38 Retelling / Recalling Hierarchical
Summaries
Skill Area
This strategy was used with eighth graders with poor and good
comprehension. They read on- grade level text about people
and their accomplishments and were taught by example how to
create mnemonics. The results showed improved recall. When
used with a variety of learning disabled students, this strategy
had an advantage over traditional instruction for recall with the
added feature of less inaccurate misinformation included with the
correct information (Viet, Scruggs, & Mastropieri, 1986). Using
mnemonics in tandem with PAL (peer assisted learning) works
well.
#
C-37 Retelling / Recalling Mnemonic
Imagery
49
Elaboration/Clarification
Teaching Tips
Tips and Ideas for Parents
Collaborative
Summaries
Collaborative
Paragraph
Shrinking
Direct Instruction
of Written
Summary Skills
Directed Reading
Thinking Activity
(DRTA)
CLOZE
C-44 Summarizing
C-45 Summarizing
C-46 Summarizing
C-47 Inferential
Comprehension
C-48 Inferential
Comprehension
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Collaborative
Strategic
Rereading
C-43 Literal
Comprehension
Tell the whole story of a movie or show in 10 words or less.
Assign students to mixed ability pairs: high to middle, low to middle.
Explain "paragraph shrinking" as summing up the key concepts of each
paragraph in 10 words or less. Model with the class "shrinking" one
easy paragraph and one challenging paragraph. Have each student
read aloud for 5 minutes with the stronger reader modeling reading the
paragraph first. Then have the other student reread the same
paragraph. Have the students continue "shrinking" for the whole
passage.
This strategy pairs readers of different ability; high to middle, low
to middle. This can be used in a reading class or content area
classes, when the key concepts need to be identified. The
students develop comprehension by "shrinking paragraphs" or by
stating the key concept in ten words or less. Working together
reinforces students' reflective and critical reading skills, and
allows students to contract and think in more complex ways.
This strategy is a Peer Assisted Learning Strategy and is
adapted from Class Wide Peer Tutoring, both of which are found
to be very effective with learning disabled students.
The teacher prepares a passage, deleting several key words
throughout the passage. The teacher then shows students the process
of figuring out the missing words by using clues from the surrounding
text. Next, students fill in a CLOZE passage on their own. The teacher
then uses inferential questions on the passage and the students use
the CLOZE strategy to search the text for clues that help them draw
the inference.
Play a story creating game in which you begin a sentence and let
your child fill in the blank. Your next line builds on his answers. For
example, "Once there was a princess, who lived in a castle." "She
was very tall and wanted to live in a tree house."
Reading an advertisement, look at the picture or slogan, guess what
Make initial prediction from title and pictures. Read 1/3 to 1/2 of the
it's about; then check.
text and evaluate predictions (true/false/partly true/partly false/not
mentioned at all). Make additional predictions and repeat the cycle as
needed. Model the thinking behind verifying whether a prediction used
evidence from the text. Include what led you to the prediction and then
how you evaluated if your prediction was true, partially true, or not at
all. Practice thinking through those steps with students. Have students
work in groups and share their thinking to make group decisions while
verifying.
DRTA stands for Directed Reading Thinking Activity. Students
were taught to use the predict and verify strategy for reading and
responding to stories and to improve comprehension monitoring.
Van den Broek's (2001) research shows that inferential thinking
is developmental and care should be exercised with young
readers to practice rather than perform.
This study was conducted with upper elementary students of all
abilities. Although CLOZE itself is not used to make inferences,
the training of looking backward and looking forward in the text
trains students in making inferences. Please note that the
CLOZE method is a "sophisticated linguistic process involving
both the reception and production of language" in a complex
manner. (McKenna, 1986). This activity can be extremely
challenging to language learners and younger learners.
Give students a copy of the rule sheet and samples of good
summaries. Teacher models how to use the rules. Start with simple
passages and move to more difficult ones. Provide students with
feedback on their use of the strategies. Four rules for writing a
summary: 1) Collapse lists, 2) Use topic sentences, 3) Get rid of
unnecessary detail, 4) Collapse paragraphs.
Used with high school students, results showed that students
wrote better summaries and this effect generalized to other
summary activities. Teaching summary skill reinforces retention
of main ideas but has been shown to have no effect on retention
of details. Explicitly stated main ideas were identified by
students but implicitly stated main ideas were hard to discern.
Students need direct instruction in how to sort through
information to determine which idea is more of an umbrella to the
other ideas, and also how to put the pieces together to come up
with a larger idea that is not directly stated.
This is an in-class activity. Parents could let a child create lists for:
groceries, chores, places to go, party activities, gifts for a friend.
Assign students in pairs of mixed ability. Have them look over the text, Parent and child ask after a television show or movie, "What was
that about?"
and then have the stronger reader reads the assigned text aloud first.
Then have the struggling reader reread the text aloud. Instruct them to
work collaboratively to ask and answer questions about the passage.
E.g.. What was happening? The dog was on the roof because it
chased the cat up there. Next, have students write a summary
sentence or two using the answers to questions. Have students assist
each other whether they write the summary separately or together.
Review the answers, and the students can revise their work together.
Use this strategy a paragraph at a time, and build up to longer
passages as students are able.
With this strategy, pair a strong reader with a struggling reader.
Have the pair review the text together, with the stronger reader
modeling reading first for the other student, and then the
struggling student rereads the text with support. Together, they
determine the important content as they summarize and/or
respond to questions. Working together reinforces students'
reflective and critical reading skills, and allows students to
construct and think in more complex ways.
Assign students to small groups of mixed ability. Have students
highlight or code the text and record their thoughts as they read; have
students use these notes to determine the main idea in a collaborative
group. Focus on groups getting the gist of a passage by reinforcing
their working together to identify the most important ideas in a
paragraph or section. Provide generic cues or prompts for students to
filter out information such as "What's up?" "Who?" "What problem?"
"How'd it end?"
Check out the same book your child is reading for English Class.
Discuss the book at mealtimes or while driving to weekly
appointments. Focus on identification of the most important ideas in
the text.
Strategy
Clarification strategies and those focused on the main idea work
well in collaborative mixed small groups and/or whole
classrooms. Working together reinforces students' reflective and
critical reading skills, and allows students to construct and think
in more complex ways. This strategy enhances vocabulary
through reading passages aloud.
Skill Area
Preview a book by looking at chapter headings and illustrations
Select the key phrases that represent the critical information of this
before you read the story. Make up a story before reading the book
text. Keep it simple and short, and list them on one page double or
triple spaced for linear text. Distribute them appropriately for non-linear and then compare with the actual plot.
text. Tell students to write a story or explanation of their own, or to
complete the diagram, map, chart, or illustration. Students are
generating ideas and schema as they complete this task and this is
one of the strengths of this method. Next, instruct students to read the
actual text. As they do this, have them compare their version to the
assigned one. By comparing and contrasting, they are using higher
level thinking and they are manipulating the key information and
connections. This helps recall, inferential thinking and concept
development.
#
C-42 Retelling / Recalling Story Impressions This strategy has broad applications for both narrative and
expository texts, and linear or non-linear structures. It is teacherdependent in that the teacher must select the key phrases from
the text beforehand, but since it involves student generation of a
conceptual framework and a running text, it is successful in
engaging students in constructing knowledge and schema.
Students have significantly higher recall with this strategy than
with a preview through a prewritten synopsis. Students have
more developed schema from evaluating the pieces of
information and organizing and developing them into a coherent
text.
References
Dewitz, Carr, &
Patberg (1987);
Hwang & Levin (2002);
McKenna (1986)
Baumann, SeifertKessell, & Jones
(1992); Rader &
Sloutsky (2002); van
den Broek, et al.
(2001)
Hare & Borchardt
(1984); Rinehart,
Stahl, & Erickson
(1986)
Ares & Peercy (2003);
Fuchs, Fuchs, &
Kazden (1999); Fuchs,
et al. (2001); Hacker &
Tenent (2002); Kos
(1991); Kucan & Beck
(2003)
Ares & Peercy (2003);
Hacker & Tenent
(2002); Klingner,
Vaughn, & Schumm
(1998); Kos (1991);
Kucan & Beck (2003);
Penno, Wilkinson, &
Moore (2002); Rex
(2001)
Ares & Peercy (2003);
Hacker & Tenent
(2002); Kos (1991);
Kucan & Beck (2003);
Mastropieri, et al.
(2003); Rex (2001)
Denner, Rickards, &
Albanese (2003)
50
The advantages of dialogue journals include evaluative
processing, multiple viewpoints of social issues and normative
expectations. Intergenerational dialogue journals between the
student and a parent, grandparent, or other adult can spark rich
social commentary with both parties having authority to speak.
Many events are seen through different eyes and good
discussions can occur in the safety of the journal's parameters.
Conversations occur slowly, over time, at one's own pace, with
respect.
Paraphrasing and integrating information from the text are
prerequisite skills for inferencing. Research suggests that all
inferencing tasks require the same underlying attributes of
paraphrasing and integration of knowledge. Older children were
found to be more proficient than younger children, but the
question remains how much can skill practice accelerate this
cognitive growth. Inviting students to express ideas in their own
words and to think about how things might have been different
can provide the opportunity for skill development.
Use of Multiple
Texts
Dialogue Journal
Expository
Inferencing
C-52 Inferential
Comprehension
C-53 Inferential
Comprehension
C-54 Inferential
Comprehension
Good readers connect and relate ideas to their previous reading
experiences over time. Providing a rich reading environment
allows students to make their own connections between ideas.
Students often take on text as authoritative without questioning
its reliability or foundation. Students who read two texts are less
likely to accept a perspective carte blanche and research shows
that they will learn and retain more content knowledge.
In this technique, the teacher provides explicit instruction in
visualization/imagery and provides feedback as they draw
inferences from their mental pictures. Readers form mental
images of things stated in the affirmative and/or constructed in
the text, but rarely visualize that stated in the negative or that
which has been destroyed. Guiding students to form
representations of the things "not there" or the things "lost"
assists them in remembering these details.
Visualization /
Imagery
C-51 Inferential
Comprehension
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Teaching Tips
Pre-read an expository text and prepare a list of questions not explicitly Practice "What if" questions. (e.g., "What if you lived in another time Davey & Macready
than now?")
(1985)
answered within the text. Read the text to the class and pause after
information to guide their skills of integrating knowledge. Cue the
students to paraphrase with something like: "I'm going to ask you some
questions, and because I know that you are very clever, I want you to
answer these questions without repeating the exact words of the text.
Can you do that?" Proceed to ask questions like: "What do you think
the important idea in this sentence is?" "What do you think the main
idea of this paragraph is?" "What would have happened if Columbus
had landed in Greenland?" "What would have been the result of
Pasteur working with potato mold instead of bread mold?" Practice this
type of questioning after key pieces of information have been
presented in the text.
Bean & Rigoni (2001);
Guthrie, et al. (1996);
Kelter, Kaup & Claus
(2004); Kos (1991);
Kucan & Beck (2003);
Mackey (2003); Rex
(2001); Rosenhouse,
Feitelson, Kita, &
Goldstein (1997)
Guthrie, et al. (1996);
Kaup & Zwaan (2003);
Rummel, Levin, &
Woodward (2002)
Ask your child what something looks like. Practice making mental
pictures about things heard or read.
Have a journal handy on a trip or at home in which you write back
Assign student pairs, when possible, between separate classes or
and forth with observations.
different grades. Set up a weekly schedule to read a chapter of the
assigned text, and then to write in the dialogue journal for that week.
Write to a prompt or just reflect on the chapter, possibly to a battery of
guiding questions provided at the outset. Exchange journals with a
partner each week. Respond to partner's journal, and then write the
new chapter entry. Repeat weekly until the end of the novel. Discuss
in small groups or as a whole class after several chapters to foster a
larger dialogue with multiple perspectives. Possible exchange partners
can be with HS & college class, JH and parent volunteers, elementary
and senior citizens, peer tutors and older/younger buddies within a
school can also work well.
Cox & Matz (1982);
Hansen (1981);
Reynolds & Anderson
(1982); Wixon (1984)
While reading or viewing materials, ask what the message of the
author might be. "What does it really mean?"
Buehl, Alexander,
Murphy, & Sperl
(2001); Hartman &
Harman (1993)
References
Konopak, Martin, &
Martin (1987); Rader
& Sloutsky (2002)
Tips and Ideas for Parents
Before visiting a new place for vacation, find out about where you
are going and things to do. After the vacation, talk over whether it
was what you expected it would be.
Visit the library and check out a selection of books on a topic of
Teacher must decide on these four decision-making questions for
interest to your child. Include picture books, different authors, and a
reading across texts: 1) What types of materials can be used (from
variety of points of view, styles, etc.
linguistic to nonlinguistic); 2) What are ways to arrange the texts?
(companion, complementary, synoptic, disruptive, rereading); 3) What
activates can students engage in? (close-ended to open-ended); 4)
How can outcomes be represented? (one medium to several media).
Explicit instruction is provided to help students make mental images of
each text passage. Students make verbal and visual representations
of the mental images. The teacher provides corrective feedback as it
relates to inferential reasoning.
Before reading about a specific topic, the teacher has the class
brainstorm what they already know about the topic. Then, students
write about what they already know as a result of the brainstorm. After
reading about the topic, students write again, but this time, they
incorporate their new knowledge acquired during the reading of the
text. Have students provide evidence for all of their conclusions,
predictions, guesses, and/or inferences. Discuss with the class what
kind of evidence strongly supports an inference and what evidence
may mislead or misguide. Model reasoning Have students categorize
their inferential writing into "strongly supported" and "weak
connections."
Explain to the students that they will learn some new words and then
This strategy extends over several days of time, culminating in
discuss some ideas that they will encounter later in a story. Follow this
inferential questioning. The study was conducted with early
elementary students as part of their regular reading instruction. It sequence of activities related to the text: Day 1 - key vocabulary
instruction, Day 2 - prereading engagement activity, Day 3- guided
led to improved comprehension. The development of the
reading with inferential questioning of students for 100% of the
cognitive processing needed for inferential connections is age
questions asked. Prohibit literal questioning and answering. Explain to
related and research suggests that strong prompts should be
the students that these are inferential questions and that the answers
used with younger children fading to moderate prompting in
secondary. Questioning strengthens recall, but attention should are things that the text hints at, gives clues about, or wants us to guess
might have happened but nowhere in the text will we find the specific
be paid to what topic and/or information is targeted by the
words to answer these questions.
questions. Teacher and student text priorities often differ.
Elaboration/Clarification
This study was conducted with high school social studies
students but it can be applied easily at all levels. Using this
strategy over a 3-day period, not only helped students with
inferential reasoning, but improved the quality of their ideas and
their writing. Typically, readers draw inferences from both valid
and faulty premises. It may be that deliberate reasoning skills
occur separately from comprehension of text. Care should be
taken in guiding students to examine the conditions and
associations set up in the text and testing their inferences with
strong textual evidence.
Guided Practice
with Inferential
Questions
Strategy
C-50 Inferential
Comprehension
Skill Area
Structured Prewriting / Postwriting
#
C-49 Inferential
Comprehension
51
Reading Aloud to
One's Self
Questioning the
Author
Multiple Texts
Text to Text
Connections
Collaborative
Reasoning
C-57 Inferential
Comprehension
C-58 Inferential
Comprehension
C-59 Evaluative
Comprehension
C-60 Evaluative
Comprehension
C-61 Evaluative
Comprehension
PPLSP: Spring 2005
Predictable Texts
Strategy
C-56 Inferential
Comprehension
Skill Area
Question
Generating
#
C-55 Inferential
Comprehension
Elaboration/Clarification
This activity is suited for 4th graders and older. It engages
struggling readers in higher thinking and discussion of the issues
while relieving the burden of their fluency and comprehension
differences. This activity shifts interpretive "authority" from the
teacher to the students and helps them develop their critical
thinking, elaboration, prediction and to incorporate multiple
perspectives. It also requires that students pay close attention to
the facts, development and concepts of the text in their literal and
inferential comprehension. Steven's research shows that
adolescent readers are ready to discuss relevant social issues
and that the transition to higher education is facilitated by
developing discussion skills in students.
When students begin to compare and to question texts, and to
think about the ideas within them, they begin to construct their
own knowledge. Helping students make connections across the
curriculum aids students in constructing meaning and increases
learning. By using more than one text, students internalize more
conceptual information and are less persuaded by the "authority"
of one text's presentation of material. A comparison of similar
material presented through different types of discourse can help
illuminate the features of internal discourse structure.
Understanding the structures of discourse allows the focus of
attention to stay on the content material.
Students' engagement and interest in reading increases when
teachers use multiple texts (rather than a solitary text) to teach
content area subjects. Studies point to greater recall of the
subject when multiple texts are used. Critical thinking and writing
skills also improve. By reading multiple texts, students are able
to view knowledge as something constructed from a variety of
sources and viewpoints. The use of multiple texts is effective in
primary grades and should continue on through upper grades.
This develops student comprehension strategies as students and
teacher try to work out what the author intended to say. Topic
control can be student directed or teacher directed. This method
would be good with a non-linear narrative, dense expository text,
or texts with elaborative, convoluted, or unfocused presentation.
Challenging vocabulary can be good to include in the
questioning.
Struggling readers have better comprehension when they have
the chance to read out loud and not silently. Reading individually
in a quiet voice facilitates comprehension. Readers who read
this way are able to do well with inferential comprehension
pertaining to main idea, cause/effect relations, and use of implied
meanings. For literal comprehension, these readers must be
cued to pay attention to the details. Perhaps this is easier on a
second reading after a general structure of the textual
information has been constructed.
Using predictable texts where students are not challenged by
fluency and/or vocabulary allows struggling readers to focus their
attention on inferential reasoning. Contextual information is used
for word recognition. At a more sophisticated level, using
predictable structures of discourse achieves a similar purpose of
freeing the readers attention to the task of comprehending and
freeing it from figuring out how the text is put together.
Use this strategy with expository passages that are not explicit in
their main ideas or with confusing narrative structures, such as
from multiple viewpoints or stream of consciousness. By
teaching students how to generate their own questions prior to
reading as well as during and after, students perform better in
both inferential and literal tests. This helps student
metacognition, engagement, and higher order thinking. When
students begin to question texts and think about the ideas within
them, they begin to construct their own knowledge. Questioning
strengthens recall, but attention should be paid to what topic
and/or information is targeted by the questions. Teacher and
student text priorities often differ.
Teaching Tips
Tips and Ideas for Parents
References
Buehl, et al. (2001);
Lenski (1998); Many,
Fyfe, Lewis, & Mitchell
(1996); Meyer &
Freedle (1984)
Chinn, Anderson &
Waggoner (2001);
Scharer, Lehman &
Peters (2001);
Stevens (2002);
Wade, Buxton, & Kelly
(1999)
Questioning across curricular areas: some examples of questions that Talk about how one story is similar or different to another story.
Make connections between the same story told in different ways
encourage intertextual links are 1. when reading this text, what other
(short story to a comic strip retelling).
print texts come to mind? 2) what non-print texts come to mind? 3)
why did you remember those texts when reading the current text? 4)
how is the information from this text like other information you know? 5)
how is the theme (or characters, plot, conflict, etc..) in this text similar
to others you have read, seen, or heard? 6) what other texts follow a
similar text organization to this one? 7) what other texts are similar in
the problem, solution, setting?
Assign students to collaborative groups. Have each group of students Ask your child what they would do differently about something you
see or hear about. Ask your child, "Why do you think he did that?"
adopt a "critical stance" or a position on an issue raised by the text.
and then talk about whatever your child says.
Allow students to choose their own issue gleaned from the text, or
choose one from a teacher prepared list. Give students work time.
Provide guidance and a presentation rubric as groups prepare their
presentation. Include supporting evidence and reasoning in the
presentation requirements. Allow students to change their minds when
confronted with conflicting evidence
Incorporate internet searches, newspaper and magazine articles,
authentic or historical documents as writing models. Give students a
problem to solve with a writing task and allow them to research with
multiple sources. Assign students a writing task that mirrors their
reading i.e. if students are reading descriptive passages, they write a
descriptive paper; if they are reading opinions they then write an
opinion.
Stahl, et al. (1996);
Walker & Bean (2003)
Chinn, Anderson &
Waggoner (2001);
Stevens (2002)
Select a text that is confusing or unclear for students. Prepare a series Practice asking questions together, whether you are in the grocery
store, doing laundry, or at the park.
of difficult passages to question. Model the first section with reading
interrupted by pauses to ponder aloud …"what did the author want to
say here?" "I think… I wonder if… He could have said..." Ask
students what they think the author was trying to say. Cue them to
state things in their own words and not to merely quote the text. Read
subsequent passages, allowing students to assume more and more of
both the questioning and the supposing. Work in cooperative groups
to engage more student thinking, questioning and speaking time.
Encourage interests of your child through internet searches, picture
books, different authors, points of view, styles, etc.
Miller & Smith (1985);
Rowe (1998)
Have your child read to a favorite stuffed animal, the family pet, to a
Assign struggling readers a name for their very quiet reading aloud
neighbor or relative, even a baby brother.
voice. Cue them to read difficult text in this quiet voice. Cue them to
read first for the main idea and cause and effect relationships. Allow
them to read a second time for details. Assign average readers to a
silent group. Assign strong readers to either group, aloud and/or silent.
Select predictable texts when choosing to use another "drawing
inferences from the text strategy." Select books that are easy to
process so students can feel a mastery of reading. Practice with
predictable texts to allow students to use working memory on learning
and becoming proficient with a strategy, rather than using that brain
power on deciphering text and using inefficient but undemanding
strategies.
Leu, DeGroff, &
Simons (1986);
Linderholm & van den
Broek (2002); Lorch &
Lorch (1985); Meyer &
Freedle (1984); Mori &
Nagy (1999); Rawson
& Dunlosky (2002)
Ares & Peercy (2001);
Davey & McBride
(1986); Kelter, Kaup &
Claus (2004); Wixon
(1984)
Ask "what comes next?" when you are doing something you always
do…going to school, washing clothes, setting the table. Help your
child get good at predicting what is next.
Use this strategy with expository passages that are not explicit in their Make your own questions as you read with your child. What more
do you want to know? What does it remind you of?
main ideas, or with confusing narrative structures, such as from
multiple viewpoints or stream of consciousness. By teaching students
how to generate their own questions prior to reading as well as during
and after, students perform better in both inferential and literal tests.
This helps student metacognition, engagement, and higher order
thinking. When students begin to question texts and think about the
ideas within them, they begin to construct their own knowledge.
The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
.
References
Adams, M. J. (1990). Beginning to read: Thinking and learning about print. Cambridge, MA.
MIT Press.
Adler, C.R. (Ed.). (2001). Put reading first: The research building blocks for teaching children
to read. Washington, D.C.: National Institute for Literacy and U.S. Department of Education.
Allen, J. (2000). Yellow brick roads. Portland, Maine: Stenhouse.
Allen, J. (February, 2002). On the same page: Using shared reading to support comprehension.
Annual Meeting of the Colorado Council of the International Reading Association. Denver, CO.
Alvermann, D.E., Smith, L.C., & Readence, J.E. (1985). Prior knowledge activation and the
comprehension of compatible and incompatible text. Reading Research Quarterly, 20, 420-436.
Anderson, R. C. (1983). Effects of the reader's schema at different points in time. Journal of
Educational Psychology, 75, 271-279.
Ares, N.M., & Peercy, M.M. (2003). Constructing literacy: How goals, activity systems, and
text shape classroom practice. Journal of Literacy Research, 35, 633-662.
Armbruster, B. B., Lehr, F., & Osborn, J. (2001). Put reading first: The research building blocks
for teaching children to read. Jessup, MD: Partnership for Reading.
Bahr, G.S., & Dansereau, D.F. (2001). Bilingual knowledge maps in second-language
vocabulary learning. Journal of Experimental Education, 70, 5-24.
Baldwin, R.S., Peleg-Bruckner, Z., & McClintock, A.H. (1985). Effects of topic interest and
prior knowledge on reading comprehension. Reading Research Quarterly, 20, 497-504.
Bauman, B. (2002). Improving student comprehension in social science by teaching reading
strategies. Unpublished master’s thesis. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No.
ED465991).
Baumann, J.F. (1986). Teaching third-grade students to comprehend anaphoric relationships:
The application of a direct instruction model. Reading Research Quarterly, 21, 70-90.
Baumann, J.F., Edwards, E.C., Font, G., Tereshinski, C.A., Kame’enui, E.J., & Olejnik, S.
(2002). Teaching morphemic and contextual analysis to fifth-grade students. Reading Research
Quarterly, 37, 150-176.
PPLSP: Spring 2005
52
The Pikes Peak Literacy Strategies Project
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Baumann, J.F., Seifert-Kessell, N., & Jones, L.A. (1992). Effect of think-aloud instruction on
elementary students’ comprehension monitoring abilities. Journal of Reading Behavior, 24, 143172.
Bean, T.W., & Rigoni, N. (2001). Exploring the intergenerational dialogue journal discussion of
a multicultural young adult novel. Reading Research Quarterly, 36, 232-248.
Bean, T.W., Singer, H., Sorter, J., & Frazee, C. (1986). The effect of metacognitive instruction
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Roller, C.M. (1985). The effects of reader- and text-based factors on writers’ and readers’
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Appendix A
Special Circumstances
Vision
When a student has a vision problem, there must first be a medical diagnosis as to the extent and
type of the problem. When that is in place, the delivery of reading instruction could include:
longer time for reading passages, larger print, glasses for the student, Braille instruction, or
delivery through books on tape. Computer technology is full of new processes such as having
the computer read to the student, magnification of print, and programs that take dictation from
the student. Consulting with the Vision Specialist in your district in always the first step. They
have a multitude of ideas and strategies.
Teachers should look for students that want or need to sit close to the board, squinting, holding
the book closer that the recommended distance, writing letters or numbers backwards and writing
with their nose on the paper as conditions that prompt the teacher to call the parent or consult
with the school nurse to recommend a vision exam.
Hearing
Hearing-impaired students learn fewer words per year than a hearing child does. Hearing
impairment impacts language acquisition, which in turn affects reading. The more language a
child brings to the reading process the greater the reading success.
What to look for in a hearing impaired student:
• student exhibits a lack of understanding of directions and they cannot filter out
background noise
• student may leave off sounds in words such as: s, f, th,
• student may have frequent ear infections
• student is easily distracted, inattentive and compensate hearing loss using visual clues
from what others are doing.
ELL
Students who are not native English speakers can have a variety of difficulties acquiring English
based on when the student begins to learn English and whether the student already has a
command of their native language aurally and with or without first language literacy. There is a
strong transfer of skills from first language phonemics and from first language literacy.
All healthy babies have the capacity to hear phonemes from any language. When children are
very young their brains are continually reinforcing their neural mapping of sounds they hear in
the environment and associating meaning to groups of sounds. When sounds are not heard in the
environment neurological pruning occurs, because there is no meaning attachable to linguistic
sounds not present in the first language and therefore no need to recognize or distinguish those
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sounds (Genesee, 2000). All sounds present in a first language are readily heard in a second or
third language, but if the sound is not present in the first language, increased, focused exposure
and practice of new sounds within a meaningful context are necessary for the recognition and
production of any new phonemes. English vowel sounds present particular problems becuase the
English language has between 19-21 distinct vowel sounds, whereas other languages commonly
have fewer. Spanish has only five, for example. A solid aural base of a minimum of two to
three thousand words (ideally 5000 words for first literacy learners) should be established prior
to explicit phonics instruction. Concepts of print may be taught simultaneous to building this
aural base, but reseach says that it is counter productive to start formal literacy instruction prior
to strong phonemic awareness in the language of instruction (Cloud, Genesee, & Hamayan,
2000, Krashen, 2003).
Older students with a solid foundation in literacy in their first language will not need as large of a
vocabulary base prior to instruction through literacy, but again, they still need to develop
phonemic awareness for English prior to encountering instructional text. Vocabulary is directly
influenced by the amount of prior meaningful oral and written experience by the ELL student.
Lack of vocabulary is a major stumbling block for English Language Learners (Birch, 2002).
Bilingual readers rely on vocabulary for making meaning while reading far more than their
monolingual peers (McLaughlin, et al., 2000). Conversations with others, particularly adults,
helps children develop word meaning and syntax. Listening to others read aloud and then
participating in discussions provides ELLs with opportunities to explore and expand word
knowledge in a rich, contextualized, and social way. It is key to remember that language is
social by its very nature and that for those students learning English, providing social interaction
within the classroom lessons is critical to success in the skills that support literacy (Ramirez,
2000, Krashen, 2003).
Independent reading has a strong correlation to vocabulary size and acquisition (Adler, 2001,
Krashen, 2003). The volume of reading impacts vocabulary development, and the efficiency of
gaining new words per total words read increases significantly with reading a series (Krashen,
2003). The advantages of reading a series are the constancy of the authors style and syntax, as
well as thematic treatment and general plot structures. Freeing the reader from deciphering new
literary structures with each new book allows a reader to focus more deeply on meaning and
more flexibly on vocabulary. Fluency, vocabulary and comprehension all benefit from repeated
readings within a series. One more concern with English language learners is their
understanding of cultural nuances and idiomatic expression. These are things understood
automatically by native English speakers, but require explicit explanations for those with home
languages and cultures different from the mainstream.
Dyslexia
Dyslexia is a condition that is diagnosed by a physician. Dyslexic students have difficulty with
decoding words because of weak phonological processing skills. Dyslexia is not simply the
reversal of letters and sounds that is a natural part of the process of learning to read. These
difficulties are unexpected compared to age, other cognitive abiltities, and academic abilities of
the student. Dyslexia affects the students ability to read, write and spell to different degrees.
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Dyslexic students need more help than most students in putting their ideas, feelings, and
information into words.
Dyslexic students also struggle with sorting, recognizing, and sequencing. Individuals with
dyslexia need explicit training in developing skills related to rhyming, segmenting, and blending
as well as direct teaching of phonics-based word attack strategies. This teaching needs to be
presented in a multisensory way that involves the visual, auditory, touch, and movement
modalities. Other modifications that may be helpful but should not substitute remediation
include: providing small group or individual tutoring, providing extended time in testing
situations, administering exams orally, and allowing credit for hands-on activities and projects.
These students may have an IEP, 504 plan, or ILP.
Gifted
Gifted and talented (GT) students are identified by Renzulli’s (1996) three-ring model, which
includes above average ability, task commitment, and creativity. The purpose of identification is
to match students with appropriate services to meet their individual needs. Once identified, GT
students’ needs may be met within the regular classroom in two basic ways: enrichment or
acceleration. Thresholds vary from school to school for admitting GT students.
Enrichment typically involves activities for expanded depth and breath of learning. Some
examples include independent projects, stations, learning centers and other opportunities that
allow for higher level thinking skills to be utilized. Acceleration allows the student to cover the
same content in less time or it exposes the student to new content at an earlier stage than peers.
When enrichment and acceleration complement one another, the greatest benefits are realized for
the student. Enrichment and acceleration allow GT students not only the opportunity access
higher level thinking skills but also to develop their interests thereby maintaining their
motivation. Given the wide spectrum of abilities within the regular education classroom, GT
students often are the most neglected group of students.
Keep in mind that all Gifted and Talented students are not gifted readers. One area of need for
GT students is in expression or prosody skills within the area of fluency. Gifted readers are
typically hyperlexic, which means they approach the text from the bottom up. They focus
mostly on accuracy at the expense of comprehension.
Comprehension: Hyperlexic readers usually possess advanced comprehension skills, especially:
• anticipation of meaning based on visual clues
• use of prior knowledge and experience
• awareness of cognitive processing of text
Gifted readers tend to rely on six strategies significantly more often than the average reader.
They are:
1. rereading
2. inferring
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4.
5.
6.
.
analyzing text structure
watching or predicting
evaluating
relating what is read to content area knowledge
Some gifted readers are underachieving due to a lack of motivation. They may experience a
sense of frustration that the material either is not challenging enough or that it is too highly
pitched, persuasive, or emotional. To motivate GT students, tasks and instruction should allow
for intuitive expression, analogies, discrepancies, tolerance for ambiguity, creative thinking and
visualization.
Some metacognitive training may be needed in order to help GT students access high-level texts.
Instruction should be aimed at the top levels of thinking in Bloom’s Taxonomy. For example, a
group book talk might emphasize questions at the synthesis and analysis level rather than
knowledge and application.
Good literature is a must for the gifted reader as they access their metacognitive skills. Since
they might not choose such literature on their own, it is the teacher or adult who must offer
guidance and direction in the selection of quality text.
Non-Engaged
Students who lack motivation to succeed in school need to experience success in school in order
to re-capture the motivation that they are lacking. Often the reason for being non-engaged is that
they lack the skills in reading to succeed. Looking at the interests of the student could be a
springboard for instruction. Using items from popular culture such as music, books on
skateboarding, magazines, movies, TV shows, Internet, video games, audio recordings, comic
books or cartoons, as a means for instruction could be the key to achievement. Movies can be
summarized; main ideas can be found in cartoons and comic books. Finding vocabulary in
music, looking up the meanings on the Internet are all things that might be the needed means.
Once students find something that they want to read, they will accomplish other tasks.
Older students
Older students who struggle with reading typically develop compensatory and avoidance
strategies to hide their reading needs. Older students who are struggling with reading often act
out in class, give excuses for not doing their work or drop out of school. Often they respond to
one-on-one instruction in phonics or phonemic awareness so they can decode words. Multisyllabic word instruction is another method to use with these students. Some students may
require intense, specialized intervention (Salinger, 2003). Vocabulary development is so
important to these students and there should be links to their content area studies. Students must
also learn idioms, phrases and colloquial expressions in addition to learning single words
(Salinger, 2003). Students that struggling in reading also need direct instruction in using the
strategies that will help them read harder textbooks.
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Speech/Language
Language is a consistent, rule-regulated, coded system with which one can convey and exchange
thoughts, ides, and feelings regarding people, situations, and events in the world. Students with
speech/language difficulties may require specific interventions that fall under two categories:
articulation or delayed development of, or use of, language. Articulation refers to phonology, or
the study and description of the sounds of language. Articulation is the child’s ability to 1)
discriminate between the different sounds in a language, and 2) produce those sounds accurately.
Speech sounds develop over time. Research has suggested that in 75% of children, consonant
sounds are acquired over a three to four year span. Certain sounds, like the “s” and “r” families,
may not develop until age 7 years 6 months.
Delays in articulation can impact communication and learning. Delays become evident when the
children: demonstrate poor phonemic awareness skills, have difficulty being understood by peers
and adults, fail to communicate because of poor intelligibility, or are unable to be understood by
the listener when speaking. Errors in written language may occur when children write with the
same errors they produce in their speech.
Language has a significant impact on learning. Students with language disorders have difficulty
handling the narrative tasks of the classroom environment. Strong narrative skills underlie
success in the academic skills of reading comprehension, summarizing, written narratives, and
oral presentation.
The relationship between vocabulary knowledge and academic achievement is well established.
Research indicates a significant gap between high and low achievers. Low achievers lag behind
in their knowledge and use of vocabulary by approximately 4,500 to 5,400 words (Nagy &
Herman, 1984). These students may appear to have all of the answers verbally and participate in
class, but have great difficulty with written assignments.
If you have students who write and spell with the same errors that are evident in their oral
communication, or demonstrate a delay in vocabulary or chronic difficulties with new
vocabulary, seek the advice of your speech pathologist.
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Appendix B
Helping Children with Reading
PHONEMIC AWARENESS
Phonemic awareness is the ability to hear, produce, and manipulate the sounds of language. When
children are able to segment words (break them apart sound by sound) and put them back together
(blending) by hearing and saying them, they will become more successful readers. Providing
opportunities to learn, practice and refine phonemic awareness skills are critical to a child's reading
progression.
The following are phonemic awareness activities that will help strengthen this foundational part of
reading for your child.
•
•
•
•
•
•
Help your child recognize large chunks of language as in compound words. Say a compound word
out loud to your child and ask that he/she tell you the two words that make up that compound word.
Example: sunflower =sun/flower, butterfly = butter/fly
Starting with simple 2 and 3 syllable words, model out loud how you would break a word apart by
syllable. Take turns breaking words apart into syllables. Examples: pro-tect, en-ter, in-ter-est If
needed have them clap out the number of syllables in words and names.
Play rhyming games with your child. In the car say a word and ask your child to supply a word that
would rhyme. (cat, sat, bat, hat, slat, flat or back, tack, stack) Have fun chanting a string of words
that rhyme.
Say a word to your child and have them break the word apart (segment) into individual sounds
Example: you say “black” and your child says, /b/ /l/ /a/ /ck/ or /bl/ /ack/
Ask your child to blend sounds together when you break them apart.
Examples:
/g/ /e/ /t/ = get /f/ /r/ /o/ /g/ = frog
To strengthen your child’s auditory sequencing have your child repeat a string of unrelated words
Examples: cat, snow
bread, tire, house, parachute
television, pencil, car, watermelon, school
The goal is to help your child hold more words in auditory memory so that when they segment words
while reading they will be able to hold the “chunks” of the words long enough in auditory memory to
blend the “chunks” back together into the word.
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Appendix B
Helping Children with Reading
PHONICS
Phonics is the component of reading in which children connect sounds to symbols and put sounds
together into syllables and words. Students need repetitive and consistent practice with phonics to
achieve success. Try the following activities if your child is struggling in the component of phonics.
ABC ACTIVITIES
• Put together alphabet puzzles together. Discuss the letters and the associated sounds.
• Read a variety of alphabet books to your child.
• Make an A-Z book with your child by cutting pictures out of magazines that start with different
letters of the alphabet.
• Play "I Spy" with your child while driving in the car. "I spy something that begins with "d."
Take turns guessing.
• Purchase magnetic alphabet letters to use on your refrigerator. Work with your child on letter
recognition and sound knowledge. Begin putting the letters together to make simple words.
WORD GAMES
• Write words on index cards and have your child match the word up with the corresponding
picture.
• Say an initial sound and have your child match the sound to a picture that starts with that initial
sound. Example: Say /b/ and have your child find matching picture for that initial letter sound.
• Say a word and have your child match a spoken word with the written word.
• Make word card sets (2 cards of each word). Have your child find the words that match.
• Play bingo and memory games that emphasize letter recognition (uppercase as well as lowercase)
letter sounds, words, etc.
• Cut apart words: Kids enjoy having letter cards to move and manipulate. As you have your child
rhyme words, write them on note cards. Cut the words apart by compound words, syllables,
sounds, or prefix/suffix and see if they can put them back together.
WRITING
• Have your child write everyday. Writing and reading help each other. To improve in reading
your child needs to write and to be a better writer your child needs to read. When a child writes
he/she sounds out the words during the writing process resulting in improved phonic skills.
• Have your child:
o draw pictures and then write a few sentences about the picture
o write letters to relatives and friends
o make lists and notes
o draw maps and label the items on the map
o keep a travel journal while on family vacations
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Appendix B
HELPING CHILDREN WITH READING
FLUENCY
Fluency is the ability to read a text accurately, quickly, and with expression. A fluent reader has few if
any decoding issues and can recognize words quickly, allowing attention to be placed on the
comprehension of the text. When working on different components of fluency, you will want to be sure
and choose books that are in the child's independent reading level (fairly easy for the child). If the book is
too difficult, you will be unable to focus on fluency because the child's attention will need to be more on
decoding the text. Readers who are fluent are able to focus their attention on meaning rather than on
decoding.
ACCURACY
• Help your child develop rapid word recognition that is effortless. Put commonly used words such
as color words, number words, object names, on index cards and rapidly flash them to your child.
• Older children can work on subject specific vocabulary words such as: dates and places in
history, scientific and mathematical formulas, etc.
• Pattern books! There are many wonderful pattern books with a lot of repetition that tell stories,
contain song lyrics or poetry, or contain repeated text that are highly motivating to read over and
over again. Have your child read those types of books over and over again to achieve a smooth
sound to their reading.
SPEED
• Repeated readings of familiar and favorite texts aid in the development of fluency. Have your
child reread short books or passages 3-5 times. Time your child during the first reading and last
reading and celebrate growth. (Note: Do not emphasize speed without accuracy.)
• Have your child practice reading a book to a younger sibling with the purpose of rereading.
• Read along with your child to help them with pacing of their reading.
EXPRESSION and PROSODY
• Model fluent reading from a variety of sources: books, magazines, poetry, newspapers and
advertisements. Students benefit from hearing the phrasing and rhythm from different types of
text. Children often want their parents to reread the same books over and over again because they
love the sound and predictability of language.
• With your child read books with a lot of dialogue. Take turns being different characters,
changing your voice appropriately for each character.
• Tape record your child reading and play it back for them. After practicing a selection several
times, play it back to them showing them their improvement. This is very motivating.
• Read together every day with a focus on expression and rhythm. Texts that work especially well
include rhyming, predictable print books, poems and song lyrics. Well-written mystery stories
use language to manipulate the reader's pacing as a method for building suspense.
• Repetition, repetition, repetition! When working on fluency, students should practice with books
that are fairly easy for them to read accurately. For younger readers, following along with song
lyrics or taped stories can help students become more fluent. Students may need to reread stories
several times before they can read them accurately with speed and expression.
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Appendix B
HELPING CHILDREN WITH READING
VOCABULARY
Vocabulary refers to the words we must know to communicate effectively. In general, vocabulary can be
described as oral vocabulary or reading vocabulary. Oral vocabulary refers to words that we use in
speaking or recognize in listening. Reading vocabulary refers to words we recognize or use in print.
(Armbruster, Lehr, & Osborn, 2001)
These activities can help your child increase vocabulary skills.
APPLICATION
• Engage your child in daily conversation using a rich challenging vocabulary. Define and talk about
new words that are introduced. Give examples of how to use new words in multiple contexts.
• Model and teach your child to use context (surrounding words, sentence structure, pictures) to figure
out word meanings.
WORD KNOWLEDGE
• Provide an environment with vocabulary resources for your child to utilize such as: dictionaries,
thesauruses, and word origin books.
• Subscribe to a free dictionary website such as www.dictionary.com. They will email you a "word of
the day." Discuss the word of the day with your child and how to incorporate that word into daily
conversations with others. Challenge your child to use that word throughout their day. At the end of
the week add that week's words to your own "word of the day" dictionary.
• Discuss affixes (prefixes & suffixes) when reading with your child. Encourage them to extend past
the given word and give examples of other words with those affixes and root bases. "What other
words do you know that start with inter?" "Can you name any other words that contain sub?"
BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE
• Continue to read aloud to your child, even when they are proficient in reading. Choose a book above
your child's reading level that contains a rich vocabulary.
• Discuss words they already know and put new words into multiple contexts for vocabulary
extensions.
• Read from a variety of text such as fiction, poetry, plays, science fiction, and non-fiction including
directions, newspapers, websites, etc.
• Expose your child to experiences they will be expected to understand when they read. Examples:
zoos, museums, nature walks, exhibits, fairs.
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Appendix B
HELPING CHILDREN WITH READING
COMPREHENSION
Webster defines comprehension as "to look at carefully so as to understand the meaning of something
written or printed: to read a book." If readers just simply read words, without understanding what they
are reading, they are not reading. The reason for reading is comprehension – making meaning from print.
Good readers are purposeful and active in their reading and monitor their comprehension.
Comprehension is the integration of all 5 components.
The following are suggestions for how you can assist your child in comprehending what they read.
BEFORE READING
• Help your child activate background knowledge. Ask questions such as: "What do you know
about the rainforest?" "Have you ever seen that animal before?"
• Set a purpose for reading: Ask your child, "Why would someone want to read this book?" "What
will you learn about?” or “What will be enjoyable about reading this book?"
• Make predictions about the text and what might be read. “When do you think this story is taking
place? Past or Present?”
• Take a picture walk through the book and let your child become acquainted with the text structure
(illustrations, table of contents, chapter headings, captions, graphs, maps, indexes, glossaries,
etc.).
• Discuss vocabulary words that your child may not know. If possible, personalize the definitions
to your child’s life to provide a stronger link of understanding. Give several definitions to build a
broad knowledge base for those words. “Remember when Grandma visited? You saw her
prosthetic teeth.”
DURING READING
• Pause periodically while reading and ask your child the five "W" questions: Who, When, Where,
What, Why.
• Ask questions which require your child to go beyond the obvious or literal information. "How do
you think that character felt?" "How could you use the information you just read?"
• Model aloud to your child the skill of thinking and self-monitoring while reading, also known as
metacognition. Example: "I never thought about that." "Wait, that didn't make sense." Model
going back and rereading when meaning is lost.
• Help your child make connections between what he is reading and what he already knows.
AFTER READING
• Ask your child to retell what was just read. Look for details, events, and main ideas to be a part
of the retell. Listen for beginning, middle, and end and a sense of story in fiction. Listen for
facts, insights, and conclusions.
• Have your child summarize what she has just read.
• Ask both literal and inferential questions. Have her show you where her answer is supported in
the text.
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Appendix C
HELPING SECONDARY STUDENTS WITH READING
Many thanks to the teachers from the Colorado Secondary Literacy Network for several of the
ideas described in this section (September 2004).
Why focus on Reading with Secondary Students?
Results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (Reading Today, 1999) show
that:
o “Fourth, eighth and twelfth graders who reported reading the most pages daily—11 or
more—for school and homework had the highest average NAEP scores. In other words,
students who read more, have higher achievement.
o At all grade levels, students who reported talking about their reading activities with
family or friends once or twice a week, or at least monthly had higher average reading
scores than students who reported doing so rarely or never.
o Student who reported watching three or fewer hours of television
each day had higher average reading scores then student who reported watching more
television.
Tips for Motivation
1. Encourage your student to read. One way to encourage more reading is to buy your
child a magazine subscription of their choice
2. Discuss newspaper articles that both parents and children read. The sports section is
reading, too!
3. Tie some privileges to the reluctant reading, i.e.: read ½ hour daily= extra car time,
later curfew, etc.
4. Model your own reading habits.
5. Encourage the fact that reading may include comics and graphic novels.
6. As you model reading, model also the value of information and pleasure you receive
from reading.
7. Ask your children what they did during the day. Ask specific questions, “How was
Algebra?” or “What did you write in English?” Help your child organize her
thoughts orally. Then the chances of transfer to reading and writing are more likely
to occur.
8. Read to them! Even it is the same book over and over. Even 11th graders love to be
read to. Include children’s books
9. Read with your student. Create your own mini-book club.
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10. Start a mother/daughter book club with some of her friends.
11. Have your student read to his/her younger siblings.
12. Join Pikes Peak Library summer teen read programs.
13. Make sure he has a good lamp to read by his bed.
14. Let them read the comics, Mad magazine, and Snowboarding— whatever their
interest is in.
15. Keep books in key locations—car, bathroom, kitchen, den near the TV and computer.
16. Make sure your teen has transportation to the library and bookstores.
17. Turn off television one evening per week and spend the time reading.
18. Enter a magazine-sponsored essay contest.
19. Read a magazine advice column. Discuss with friends and then write your own
advice column.
20. Collect a clipping file on your favorite entertainer.
21. If you feel a book or other item is inappropriate, take the opportunity to discuss it.
Express your concerns in a non-judgmental way and remember that what is forbidden
may become more attractive.
22. Remember that reading is not the same thing as doing. Many young people seek
factual information from libraries. A factual book, unlike hearsay from friends, can
ease their fears or even keep them safe for harm.
Tips for Comprehension
1. Do activities with you adolescent that help to build their background knowledge.
Look for ways to tie literacy to these events.
2. Use the driver’s manual to teach technical reading.
3.
Find out what books your students will be reading in English during that year. Get
them on tape from the library, rent them from Cracker Barrel, or purchase them from
a bookstore. When you are on a car trip, listen to the book with your student and
discuss it with them. Later on when they have to write a paper about the book, you
will be able to have a working knowledge of the book and can offer suggestions.
4. When your child is reading a book for English Class, check out the book and read it
too. Discuss the book on the way to school, at breakfast, dinner or after school.
5. After reading a book, watch the movie as a family and compare and contrast the
movie and the book.
6. Watch different version (Romeo and Juliet) of the movie and discuss the differences.
Choose which you liked better.
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Tips for Vocabulary
1. Have your student work analogies and crossword puzzles.
2. Play board games such as Scrabble and Trivial Pursuit.
3. Have a word-a-day calendar visible and discuss the word.
4. Ask them to look a word up in the dictionary that they think you don’t know. Try to
guess the meaning. It is OK if you don’t know the meaning, you teen would love to
be smarter. Then it is your turn to stump them.
5. Try to find words on menus that are from another language and figure out together
what the word means—even if you have to order something that you don’t know what
it is.
Tips for Fluency
1. Have them read to a younger sibling.
2. Have them take books with them to read when they are babysitting.
3. Ask them to read you an article from the newspaper when you are preparing dinner.
4. Ask them to tape a book for a grandparent, sick aunt or someone at a nursing home.
5. Sing in the car. This puts strings of words together fluently.
6. Encourage your teen to volunteer somewhere. They may have to read to someone or
might just feel better about themselves when they are done.
Sources:
American Library Association (1999). Tips to keep older kids reading. Reading Today, 17, 8.
Reading Today (1997). Guiding children's reading and library use: tips for parents. 18.
Colorado Secondary Literacy Network (personal communication, September 2004).
Stoll, D. R (1997). Using magazines with kids: tips for parents. Reading Today, 14(5), 18.
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