What We Know About Teaching Reading and Effective Readers

Teachers of mathematics, social studies, science, and English can design lessons to help their students read effectively. Research in reading has shown the following: Effective teachers do the following: set high expectations for student achievement in reading help each student achieve success in reading motivate students to read by helping them connect new ideas to their prior knowledge model reading for students to show how effective readers think as they read provide strategies to support reading before, during, and after the reading match reading material to students by offering a variety of reading assignments and resources integrate reading instruction into content instruction provide frequent and timely feedback teach students to use the internal organizational structure of the textbook create a nonthreatening environment in which students are comfortable taking risks Effective readers do the following: set a purpose for reading, e.g., to learn reread, skim, summarize a chapter paraphrase and predict based on chapter headings look for important ideas in charts, tables, and graphs test their understanding of technical information identify patterns in the text that serve as examples of main idea sequence events, e.g., in an explanation of historical facts look for relationships, e.g., between math concepts read ahead for clarification, e.g., of scientific terms and concepts mentally execute directions in a manual relate prior knowledge to new information monitor their understanding of difficult explanations Poor readers do the following: do not connect what they are reading to what they may already know do not know why they are reading their textbooks do not know whether they understand or not do not know how to self-correct as they read miss signs and clues along the way in their textbooks do not give full attention to their reading are not sure what they have learned from their reading

Considerations for Special Needs Students

In increasingly diverse classrooms, there are students who will benefit from additional or alternative strategies on their way to becoming successful readers. Students learning English as a second language are developing their academic language proficiency and may experience difficulty in reading textbooks. Students with identified learning needs will have an Individualized Learning Plan (IEP) with specific information and suggested strategies. Listed below are strategies that may help special needs students.

Break long-term reading assignments into manageable parts. Read textbooks aloud. Allow students to access ideas through additional means, such as video and audio. Provide students with outlines and reading guides. Use multilevel reading selections. Provide supplementary materials on varying reading levels. Identify new key vocabulary. Help students identify additional vocabulary which is crucial to understanding the reading and important to learn. Focus on specific content/ideas to be learned from the reading. Provide direct instruction in language, particularly jargon, idioms, and abstract ideas. Provide bilingual dictionaries in the classroom and consider providing translations if possible. Arrange for tutoring from above-level students. Refer to IEP for information about students identified learning needs.

General Reading Strategies

Effective Questioning Teachers should design questions to challenge students thinking about reading in a variety of ways. Some examples follow: Examples: using Paul Reveres Ride by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Background: Where and when did the ride happen? Tell about colonial Boston. Critical: What problems did the British bring to the colonies? Creative: Who would you (the student) want to be if you had lived at this time and place? Deductive: When Revere rode to warn the rebels, what did they do next? Evaluative: How did the distance between England and America affect the conflict? Factual: What was the date of the ride? How did it fit into the colonial time line? Follow directions: Chart the route of Reveres ride. Label the British and Minutemen. Inferential: What difference would it make if the British attacked by land or sea? Judgmental: Was it wise for the British to wear red coats when fighting the rebels? Predictive: If the British captured all the rebels ammunition, what would happen? Problem-solving: How could pro-British and rebel colonists unite in a new government? Relational: How were the ideas of the rebels shaped by the philosophers of the time? Semantic: What does the word revere mean when it is not a name? Structural: How does the poem format help us imagine Paul Reveres ride? Sustained Silent Reading A block of class time is set aside for the silent reading of pertinent material chosen by the teacher or students, which may be followed by response journals or other comprehension activities. Recommended times for secondary classrooms vary from 10 to 30 minutes.

Sample Reading Strategies: Chemistry

Bonding Assign students to read a section of the textbook that concentrates on a certain type of bonding, and then fill out the chart below. Pages in Text A Covalent Bonding Ionic Bonding Network Metallic 190-195 154-158 217 162 Pages in Text B 307-308 306 404-405 309-310

Essential Characteristics

Properties

Bonding Type Examples Non-examples

Sample completed chart Essential Characteristics Formed between a positive ion and a negative ion Usually a metal and a nonmetal Properties Brittle, high melting points Crystal, structure Conduct electricity when melted or dissolved in water Does not conduct electricity as a solid Ionic Bonding Examples NaCl, FeS O4, KBr, CaCl2, Cu(NO3,)2 Non-examples C12, CH4, Au, H20, Carbon as diamond, Na, Fe

This reading activity can precede a jigsaw strategy. As a homework assignment, assign different groups of students to read about different types of bonding. When they come to class, have all the students who read about a particular type of bonding get together (7 students if you have 28 students.) The students should compare their sheets and decide on the best ones for each section. Then one student from each group should get together (a total of 7 groups of you have 28 students), and each student should share with the others in the group the knowledge about the type of bonding he or she has become expert about. The group can then be given a sheet with some formulas on it. The group should decide what type of bonding each substance would have and give one particular property that would be expected based on the type of bonding.

Double Entry/Dialectical Journal

Notes From Text Responses, Questions, Connections, Observations

Learning Log
Notetaking Notemaking

DRTA
Know you know? Think you know?

What Do You
Think youll learn? Know you learned?

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COMPARE/CONTRAST CHART VENN DIAGRAM

Different

(Alike) Different

30

How ________________ is different.

How _____ and _____ are alike

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

How ________________ is different.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

31 26

6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 8. 7.

VENN DIAGRAM

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