Questioning: Food for Thought

Browse comprehension books

Plan lessons

Children enter school as

question marks and come out

as periods.
Neil Postman 1995

I wonder

I Wonder
Questioning,

the strategy that propels readers forward

Questioning At Its Best!

Wouldnt it be nice

Launching Sequence
Concrete experiences

Sensory exercises

Wordless picture books

Time for Text

Concrete Experience:
Questioning Rock

In Business for Questioning 24/7

Asking Questions
When Teachers Ask Students
Questions

When Readers
Ask Themselves Questions

Assessment Questions

Sincere Questions

(teacher generated)

(self generated)

Questions teachers know the

answers to

Questions we dont have the

answers to

Questions teachers ask in

order to check or monitor the
students

Questions we ponder and

wonder about
Questions that require
further research by both
teacher and student

Making Questioning Visible

Language to Use with Questioning

I wonder
Why?
What does this mean?
That was great question. Do you have any
more?
Your question made me think of another
question.
How come?

Thinking Stems
I wonder
What if
Why
I dont understand
It confused me
How could

How Does Asking Questions Help

Me as a Reader?
Clarify Confusions
Speculate About What Is Yet to be Read
Determine Authors intent, style,
content or format
Locate a specific answer
Focus on the text
Consider rhetorical questions inspire
by the text

Choosing The Right Book

What I Noticed

Professional Resources
Picture Books
Social Issues
Appropriate for Grade Level
Appealed to Me

Text Modifications

Knowledge of Author
Anthology

What Are We Wondering

Before We Read?

What Are We Wondering While We

Read?

What Are We
Still Wondering?

Huh? What Now?

Finding the Answers

???

Still Wondering

In the Head

In the Text

MODEL!
MODEL!
MODEL!

Link Questioning for Deeper

Comprehension

Watch the
chain grow!
Task/ Discuss:
Was your question chosen from
column 1 or 2?
Take turns sharing a question. If
that question evokes another
question, discuss it and link it.

Continue sharing questions/

discussions in this manner to grow
a chain.

Quotes to Get Kids Thinking

Not to know is
bad not to wish
to know is worse.
African proverb

Ones first step in

wisdom is to question
everything
Lichtenberg, Scientist
The answers arent
important really.
Whats important
are the questions.
Snyder, author

Beliefs

Questions

Important
Points

 Bibliography
Diller, Debbie, 2007. Making the Most of Small Groups:Differentiation for
All. Portland, Maine: Stenhouse Publishers.
Fountas and Pinnell, 1999 . Matching Books to Readers. Portsmouth , NH:
Heinemann.
Fountas and Pinnell, 2011. The Continuum of Literacy Learning, second
edition. Portsmouth , NH: Heinemann.
Fountas and Pinnell, 2006. Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency
Portsmouth , NH: Heinemann.
Harvey & Goudvis. 2007. Strategies that Work . Portland, Maine:
Stenhouse Publishers.
Miller, Debbie, 2002. Reading with Meaning. Portland, Maine: Stenhouse
Publishers
Keene, Ellin Oliver, 2008. To Understand. New Horizons in Reading
Comprehension. Portsmouth , NH: Heinemann.
McGregor, Tanny, 2007. Comprehension Connections, Bridges to
Understanding. Portsmouth , NH: Heinemann