Literacy

For the Love of Reading

Comprehension in 3 steps

Before Reading
● Create interest in the book by talking about the theme, topic, show images of the
topic, make the book relevant to their lives, introduce a way they can identify with
the book
● Discuss what the students already know about the topic, what they will read, and
how the book is organized
● Allow students time to look at the book, flip through it looking at the images,
chapter titles
● Find a purpose for reading, compare books to movies
● Think, talk, and maybe write about the topic or theme
● I think it is important to do a novel study without a writing assignment sometimes.
The objective is to engage everyone in the class, not just the academic students
● Teach meaning of new words, have a visual in the classroom for new vocabulary
 ● Teach the importance of rereading to clarify understanding

During Reading

● Build stamina in reading by having students read to themselves, to others

and listen to reading
● Make reading aloud optional
● Build word attack skills
● Ask students questions to keep them engaged
● Asking questions also ensure they understand the important ideas
● Help students make inferences and predictions
● Have students summarize the main sections and point out supporting
information
● Chunk the story into smaller manage sections and summarize or get
students to summarize so everyone understands the story line
 ● Go over former predictions to see if they were correct
● Make connections with related ideas and with events in students’ lives
● Encourage students to questions themselves about the reading
● Visualize the characters and settings
● Create a timeline for the events with words and images
● Introduce paraphrasing to help them learn to restate information and
events
● Get students to interpret the reading and give opinions
● Create a visual list of difficult/new vocabulary
● Study students’ errors when reading so an effective intervention can be
programmed

After Reading
● Discuss the book, have students retell sections in their own words
● Discuss ideas for further reading
● Have students wrap up the reading with option of diagram, video, skit,
writing, music, or students create next chapter of book
 ● Relate reading to real life situations
● Review new knowledge acquired from reading

Sources:
Reading and the Brain: Strategies for Decoding, Fluency, and Comprehension
https://www.ldatschool.ca/teaching-the-brain-to-read-strategies-for-enhancing-reading-d
ecoding-fluency-and-comprehension/
Strategies and Structures to Support Independent Reading in Students with Learning
Disabilities
https://www.ldatschool.ca/independent-reading/
Strategies That Promote Comprehension
http://www.ldonline.org/article/29202/

Strategies to aid in fluency

● Have students read in private and record them so you can analyze their fluency
and devise strategies to help them
● If need be allow them to use a ruler or finger to not get lost
● Repeating what was read helps them gain fluency
● Preteach vocabulary and practice sight words
● Use different texts and content and try different font styles and sizes to see if it is
a vision problem

Source:
10 Fluency Strategies for Struggling Readers
https://www.readandspell.com/fluency-strategies-for-struggling-readers

“Teach the Reader Not the Book”

Podcasts by jen serravallo
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/teachers-ask-jen-serravallo/id1037686677?mt=2
Sept 8, 2015 Episode
“Teach the reader not the book”
I chose this podcast because it is about wanting to teach something that is useful for life not
just for the specific book or the moment. I want my students to love to read, but giving them a
book and an assignment on the book is not setting myself up for success.
I did a book study in grade 6 without giving a written assignment. The discussion was all
about learning to infer, predict, and using prior knowledge. The class was engaged with the
novel and frequently asked to have an extra Language Arts class to continue with the novel, that
was my sign of success. The class enjoyed the reading, discussion, and sharing experiences.
 My takeaway from the podcast and my experience is that when possible allow the student to
choose the book. I think it is important to do a novel without always having a written assignment
attached to it. If possible have a library in the classroom, if not take the class to the library. I
often wonder if it is possible to move around while we read. I don’t like to walk and read but I
have seen many adults do it so I will accept it in the classroom as long as they do not disrupt
others. I can ask students about what they are reading as opposed to giving them a written
assignment. Students should be encouraged to express their different opinions, reflections, and
interpretations of the book, they do not all have to have the same interpretation. Students need
to be encouraged to read for enjoyment and interest.

● Teach students to infer, predict, and use former knowledge

● Encourage different opinions, reflections, interpretations of the book
● Encourage students to read for enjoyment and interest

How to teach the reader not the book:

● Allow the students to choose the book
● Not everything they read has to have an assignment attached to it
● Have a decent library in the classroom
● Allow children to move around when they read as long as they do not bother anyone
● As opposed to a writing assignment ask the students about what they are reading
● Teach students to infer, predict, and use former knowledge
● Encourage different opinions, reflections, interpretations of the book
● Encourage students to read for enjoyment and interest

25 Reading Strategies That Work In Every Content Area

1. Reread
2. Activate Prior Knowledge
3. Use Context Clues
4. Infer
5. Think Aloud
6. Summarize
7. Locate Key Words
8. Make Predictions
9. Use Word Attack Strategies
10. Visualize
11. Use Graphic Organizers
12. Evaluate Understanding

To the above list, we’d add:

13. Question the Text

14. Stop!
15. Monitor & Repair Understanding (While Reading)
16. Paraphrase
17. Annotate the Text
18. Adjust Reading Rate
 19. Prioritize Information
20. Use Graphic Notetaking
21. Predict
22. Set a Reader Purpose
23. Text-connections (text-to-self, text-to-text, text-to-world)
24. Skim
25. SSQ (Stop, Summarize, Question)

Source:
25 Reading Strategies That Work In Every Content Area
https://www.teachthought.com/literacy/25-reading-strategies-that-work-in-every-c
ontent-area/

Response to Intervention Reading

Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 3

Instruction Core Instruction: Supplemental Instruction: Intensive Instruction:

● Differentiated Instruction
● UDL
● 1 on 1 as needed
● Small groups
● Regular assessment
● If the student is not
meeting benchmarks an
SBT form will be sent to
Learning Services and SBT
will be set up, student’s
teachers and
administration will meet
and decide on best
interventions to implement
● Students are not ● More frequent
responding to core instruction
instruction ● Outside classroom
● Formal targeted instruction in addition
to inside classroom
interventions are
instruction
needed
● In addition to core and
● Supplemental supplemental
Instruction is in instruction
addition to core ● Formal targeted
instruction and occurs interventions
in the classroom

Interventions ● Use best teaching practices ● Bring in specialized ● groups of 1-3

And ● High-quality class teachers students
Strategies instruction ● create groups of 5-8 ● instruction is
● Identify successful students individual needs
instruction practices
● review concepts structured
● Move student to the front
taught in tier 1 ● more time spent
● Give more frequent breaks
● Use visuals ● prompt students to reviewing concepts
● Teach vocabulary prior to correct their own and practicing
lesson errors ● show student error
● Introduce background ● Technology aids and how to correct it
knowledge
● Use technology aids
 ● Chunk work into ● Build vocabulary, ● May need to revise
manageable portions background support
● Sequence steps needed knowledge and ● Build vocabulary,
● Teach students to lookover understanding for background
material before reading to
content in core knowledge and
understand what it is
subjects understanding for
about by looking at titles,
subtitles, and illustrations ● Chunck the reading, content in core
● Create class discussion after each small subjects
about the topic, discover section is read review ● Bridge old and new
what is everyone knows what was important in knowledge
about the topic the reading and write ● Ongoing intervention
● Make connections notes on the board during the summer
● Use basic reading summarizing main ● Teach students to
strategies: ​reread, use  points (teach students summarize,
context clues, make  to make notes this visualize, review, ask
connections with prior 
way) questions, reread
knowledge your life 
● Reread and confirm and confirm
and the world, infer, 
understanding with understanding
think aloud, 
summarize, kind key  peer ● Provide direct
words, predict,  ● Graphic and visual instruction, strategy
visualize, use graphic  organizers are very instruction and
organizers, question  important because it is rehearsal and
what you are reading,  easier to remember practice
check your  an image than a word ● Give students time to
understanding, take  ● Put sequential steps respond and process
notes, decide what is  on board information
the most important,  ● Give students time to
and paraphrase respond

Assessment ● Regular class assessments
● If the student is not
reaching full potential
submit SBT report
● Student’s teachers meet
and decide if Tier 2
supports should be
implemented
Regular term assessments are
made to see if the student is
progressing
● Is progress sufficient to
return to Tier 1?
● Should the student
continue in Tier 2?
● Should the student
receive additional
support in Tier 3?
Regular term assessments are
done as well as regular
assessments to check the
success of Tier 3 interventions
● Is progress sufficient
to return to Tier 2?
● Is progress sufficient
to stay in Tier 3?
● Is screening for special
education needed?

Who ● Classroom teachers ● Specialized teachers ● Specialized teachers

provides ● Education Assisstants ● Education Assisstants
support ● A psychologist may be
brought in for testing

Sources:

CK Burns RTI Website

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LO63-qUL4nKS_9_WEOfuVM7_s_QOH5Lf0WDaqq7R
NTY/edit

Coast Mountains Board of Education School District 82

http://cmsd.bc.ca/r-t-i-101-resource-information/

Reading Disabilities Manitoba Education Module 3 Supporting Students With Reading

Disabilities ​https://www.edu.gov.mb.ca/k12/docs/support/learn_disabilities/module3.pdf

Response to Intervention With Secondary School Students With Reading Difficulties

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3356920/

25 Reading Strategies That Work in Every Content Area

https://www.teachthought.com/literacy/25-reading-strategies-that-work-in-every-content-area/

Comprehension Strategies I Have Used in Class

● Scaffolding
● Prior knowledge
● Inferring
● Predicting
● Chunck the work and review each section to ensure understanding
● Go over vocabulary first
● Visualize