WEBVTT

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[Music] Welcome to the overview

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on Teaching Reading Comprehension
Strategies

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and Selecting Appropriate Text.

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When good readers approach a text,
they use a number of ways of thinking

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about text in order to
understand what they are reading.

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These comprehension strategies
need to be taught early on so

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that students can grow
into effective readers.

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Comprehension strategies are
thinking tools, mental actions,

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or routines that are used before,
during, or after reading a text.

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They involve deliberate effort on the
part of the reader to better understand

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or remember what is being read.

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Research studies have identified
six strategies in the primary grades

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that improve readers' comprehension:
activating prior knowledge,

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relating personal experience, or
predicting what will happen in a text;

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asking questions while reading;
visualizing or "painting a picture

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in your mind" of what is being
read; monitoring or checking

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for understanding while reading; 
Drawing inferences;

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for understanding while reading;  Drawing inferences;

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and summarizing or retelling.

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These strategies may be taught one at a
time or in combination with one another.

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It may be easier to begin with
single-strategy instruction

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because it allows the
teacher and students

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to focus on one strategy at a time.

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However, as additional
strategies are introduced,

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teachers should encourage students

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to use all the strategies they
have learned while they read.

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It is important that
teachers explain how

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and why these strategies
relate to better reading.

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Filling out worksheets or practicing
strategies outside of the context

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of reading will not improve
comprehension.

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Students should have opportunities to
practice them while reading with peers,

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with teachers, and independently.

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Training students to use multiple
reading strategies may require

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additional professional development,
but it can be quite effective

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in improving reading comprehension.

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Approaches to comprehension strategy
instruction include reciprocal teaching,

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whereby students learn
to lead discussions

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about text using four reading strategies
that have been explained and modeled

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by the teacher; transactional 
strategy instruction,

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during which teachers model
strategies using thinkalouds

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and help students practice the strategy;
and informed strategies for learning,

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whereby teachers display each
strategy with a visual metaphor,

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like a stop sign symbol for "stop and
say the meaning in your own words."

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Because the use of strategies may
not come naturally to young readers,

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they should be taught through a
gradual release of responsibility.

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This means that the teacher initially
takes on responsibility for explaining

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and modeling how to use the strategy.

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Over time, the teacher supports
students as they practice

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in whole- and small-group settings.

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Ultimately, the teacher releases the
responsibility for using strategies

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to the students, who are able
to use them on their own.

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Adapting strategy instruction

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to individual student
needs may be a challenge.

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Some strategies for differentiated
instruction are placing students

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with similar comprehension skills into
small groups, modeling a strategy more

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often for students who are having
difficulty, lengthening the periods

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of guided practice and feedback,

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and reading smaller sections
of the text together.

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The choice of text can make or break
the success of a reading lesson.

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Because students have such different
needs, there is no such thing

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as "one size fits all" when selecting a
text for teaching reading comprehension.

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Teachers should introduce students to a
variety of texts that are rich in ideas

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and information, have a level
of difficulty appropriate

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to the students' word-reading
and comprehension skills,

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and support the purpose of the lesson.

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Many resources are available to teachers
as they search for high-quality texts,

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such as lists of children's
book award winners.

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Teachers should use both
narrative and informational texts

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to teach reading comprehension,

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because they require different
reading skills.

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Here are some things to
consider when choosing texts:

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Does the text have rich content?

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Does the text have strong organization?

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Is there variation and richness in
word choice and sentence structure?

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Ultimately, a chosen text should
support the purpose of the lesson.

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When introducing students to a
strategy, such as summarizing,

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select a text in which that
strategy is easily applied.

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Later, as students become more
skilled in a particular strategy,

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present them with a text
that is more challenging.

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When doing a thinkaloud,
use a text that is just

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above the students' reading level.

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When reading to students,
select a text that is well

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above the students' reading level,

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but is at their listening
comprehension level.

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The strategies students
practice and develop

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in their early years will
become lifelong skills

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to draw upon whenever they
encounter a challenging text.

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When they stop to check their
understanding, highlight key phrases,

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or take summary notes, they are doing
what good readers and learners do.

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And as a result they
will be able to work

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with increasingly difficult
texts and content.

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[Music] To learn more about Teaching
Reading Comprehension Strategies

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and Selecting Appropriate Text, please
explore the additional resources

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on the Doing What Works website.