In a Reading State of MIND Brain Research, Teacher Modeling, and Comprehension InstructionPredicting Making an educated guess about what might happen next, given the available information, is known as predicting. Humans have been predicting since time immemorial. The ability to predict has been tied directly to the survival of the species (Wolsey & Fisher, 2008). When making predictions, readers typically use the following processes: (a) activating prior knowledge, {b) thinking on both literal and inferential levels, (c) supplementing or modifying their knowledge base, (d) linking efferent and affective thinking processes, (e) making connections, and (f) filling the gaps in the author's writing (Block, Rodgers, & Johnson, 2004). In other words, predicting requires the use of a number of skills and strategies. Children understand the importance of making predictions. For example, McNay and Melville (1993) demonstrated that elementary school children understood predicting as “an internal process in which one uses knowledge to anticipate a future event” (p. 561). The challenge is to help students understand that predicting is not just a wild guess, but rather a hypothesis formed from using the available information. Equally important is the notion of learning from predictions, especially predictions that are incorrect. Some of the common clues readers use to make predictions include word choice, tone or mood, literary devices (flashback, foreshadowing, symbolism), and text features such as headings, subheadings, and highlighted terms. Modeling the use f predicting should include revisiting missed clues that cause inaccurate predictions. Students shouldn't leave the predicting experience saying to themselves, “Oh, | guess | was wrong: i's just a guess anyway.” During his modeling of a text about the Civil War, Mr. Sotelo used the title of the article to make his first prediction. He said, “The title gives me a great clue about the reading. It says ‘It Could Have Been Called the Boys’ War.’ Given that I know we're studying the Civil War, {can use the available information to predict that the war identified in the ttle is the Civil War. can also predict that there must have been a number of children in this war, given that the author is saying that we right consider a different name for this war. I'll return to this prediction, at the end of the reading,” In this case, Mr. Sotelo used predicting to also establish a purpose. ‘Mr. Jessop, modeling his thinking using predicting, focused on the use of literary devices during a reading of Edgar Allan Poe's short story, “The Fall of the House of Usher." In his words, “I always look for foreshadowing as a way to predict what's going to happen. | knowenough about foreshadowing to know that this is cool technique for keeping the reader's attention. I's like when you watch a horror movie, and you know something creepy is going to happen before the character does. And Poe sure writes creepy! | read this sentence describing Roderick Usher's house on page 41. ‘I looked upon the scene before me—upon the mere house, and the simple landscape features of the domain—upon the bleak walls—upon the vacant, eye-like windows — upon the few rank sedges—and upon a few white trunks of decayed trees...’ Man, | got that creepy feeling. His eyes are all darting around. think that’s why he used all those hyphens between phrases, so Id get that jumpy feeling, That's when | knew he wasn’t just taking some time to describe the house. He was warning me that the house was going to be like the people in it. These words, like bleak, vacant, rank, decayed: that’s a heck of a way to describe a very troubled family.” As with Mr. Sotelo in the previous example, Mr. Jessop didn't confine his modeling to prediction only. The text dictated that some visualizing was happening as well, and the English teacher didn’t concern himself with only modeling a “pure” form of prediction. As Mr. Jessop said, “Poe writes to overwhelm our senses, so why wouldn't | share that with my students? He wants to make our minds race, and | 6 want my students to see how my head is spinning.” Questioning As readers, we regularly generate questions before, during, and after our reading, These questions may focus on the text's content, structure, or language. The evidence base for questioning is filled with effective ways for readers to question. For example, students can be taught to ask questions of the author (Beck, McKeown, Hamilton, & Kucan, 1997), Alternatively, Raphael and Au (2005) demonstrated the impact that teaching students questioning skills has on comprehension and test taking. In their research, readers were taught to focus on four types of questions: 1. Right there, The answer to this type of question can be found on a specific line of text 2. Think and search. The answer to this type of question can be found in the reading, but not in a specific place in the text. Instead, the reader must compile information from several places.Teaching Peer tata eka “@plastic54 «s Introduction simply stated, good readers predict. When students predict they set @ purpose for reading and anticipate what they will read. = ublne (2001) Predicting is fundamental to comprehension. Good readers anticipate meaning. They do this by predicting what they think is going to happen jn the selection and by revising their predictions as they read. Duly (2003) Predicting is when students use clues such as the title, ilustrations, blurb, author and text type or shat they have read so far to make smart guesses about what is coming up next in the text How does predicting support reading comprehension? Predicting is @ key pre-reading strategy as it helps to set a purpose for reading. Continuing to make predictions and confiring oF revising them throughout the reading process encourages students to become active readers who have expectations of the text. This also keeps them actively engaged in the reading process. This engagement i crucial for comprehension. By thinking about thelr predictions and confirming oF revising them, students remain motivated and focused. Language we use when predicting + Ithink the text will be about because _ + Ipredic __will happen next. 4 Fromwhat Ihave read so far, [predict that__- «From what | already know about predict + The picture makes me think that + The style of this author is 0 think = .-.and revising our predictions thought __ but then I read that __sonow think + I changed my first prediction because it said in the book _ + My prediction was confirmed in the story because _ + My prediction was partly right but _ © Tassumed Butfe PMG | | Prediction flowchart for... Text Your name ‘To help you make your first prediction, look at some OF all of the following: ‘tle front and back covers blurb pictures or diagroms table of contents k about the: topic author 7 2uthOk (fr example narrative, newspaper report, recount) My first prediction .- = = Revised or new prediction . .- Was your prediction confirmed? Why or why not? i Read Ih ay (3 ) Revised or new prediction . . Was your prediction confirmed? a a Why or why not? Read ‘@ 4, | (3 | Revised or new prediction... What will happen now the story is St ey finished? . Read cheng Sangreensan ras ‘snes Cameron 2008. Te geared for clssoom62 «= Prediction flowchart activity focuses on the process of predicting and revising predictions The prediction flowchart ty with the whole class using a picture throughout a text. It may be helpful to complete this activi book before students attempt it independently Strategies and skills practised: making and revising predictions using new information in the text Material + Prediction flowchart PMG «a picture book: or a sophisticated picture book for older students student grouping: Individuals then small groups or whole class Procedure sro pacher preparation: Read the picture book or text and use sticky notes tO indicate appropriate stopping points for students to make predictions. 2 With the class: Discuss why predicting isa helpful strategy for ‘comprehension. (It helps to set a purpose for reading, orientates the student to the type of text being read and encourages them to think about what might be coming up next.) 3 Discuss what helps us to predict (see the list on Prediction flowchart PM6) The teacher reads the title, shows the cover and perhaps reads the blurb. The students write their own predictions for the book in the first prediction box. 5 Read the story, stopping at the predetermined points you have marked with sticky notes At ‘each point ask the students to revise their previous predictions and make new ones forthe next part of the story. 6. Share the students’ responses in small groups or as a whole class. Prediction flowchart for we Mhataea and tie Albatispernne Annabelle | Be bia h tet gam Hat es 98109 \ reek cree [ peg reece FRR cite neQuality Comprehension SANDRA K. ATHANS DENISE ASHE DEVINE7 Making Predictions Engaged readers become involved in the material they are reading. Good readers make logical predictions about what will happen next in a story. Making predictions not only maintains readers’ interest in the text but also assists them with comprehen- sion as they test predictions. Teacher Tips for Strategy Instruction * During initial instruction a teacher may pause at a predetermined part of a pas- sage and ask students to make a prediction in order to monitor their ability to au thentically apply the strategy. Monitoring students when they are engaged in authentic reading activities may be necessary to determine if students are chal- lenged by this strategy. + students level of engagement with the text he or she is reading varies and will af- fect the student's ability to make predictions. If students struggle to make predic- tions, it may be because they simply don't like the story or characters, they are unable to comprehend and become disengaged with the text, or they are unable to creatively anticipate an outcome when given a set of circumstances. Determining which obstacle is causing the interference—through methods such as teacher ob- servation and student assessment—will be important. me students may need a longer period of time to develop and articulate (verbal- ly or in writing) a prediction. Allowing them this added time is one way teachers can help students develop this ability. They may also benefit from listening to oth er students’ predictions during group instruction. In addition to these sugges- tions, encouraging students to draw pictures of what they think might happen next, in the story may be another approach to take. © Attimes, students may become sidetracked by their personal experiences, which will interfere with their ability to make a logic-based prediction. As a result, stu dents may lose track of events in the story, lose meaning, and become disengaged. Students can also become sidetracked if they place an exaggerated significance ona minor event. Here, too, the result is that the students lose track of meaning and may eventually disengage from the text. * During group instruction, it may be necessary for teachers to remind students that predictions are thoughtful ideas, not wild guesses. In addition, reminders that i's OK for students’ predictions to be wrong may also be needed. At times, students may choose to turn this into a competitive event. Clarifying events in the story or helping to steer students who might have been sidetracked may be a more effective way of working with all students. Text Suggestions Beginning with realistic fiction is an easy way to introduce this strategy. Selecting a humorous intermediate-grade chapter book that is partially based in a school setting guarantees that most students will be successful making predictions. Texts that con- tain action-based plots and that lead to reliable and believable outcomes are well suited to instruction in this strategy. Also, works of historical fiction that blend ele- ments of mystery often have strong plots and provide a great opportunity to chal- lenge students once they become skilled with this strategy. Although students may be more comfortable making predictions for works of fic- tion or realistic fiction (especially if they contain elements of mystery), they can also make predictions while reading nonfiction. Encouraging students to make predictions gC, #2 Pare?based on personal experience (if the work is narrative fiction) or on text clues such as subheadings or photo captions (if the work is informational) is a worthwhile approac to extend this strategy and skill development. Transferring this skill o works of nonfic- tion is a strategic way to help students strengthen their ability to work with different genres and also to practice their skills with content and informational text. Narrative nonfiction written by peers in the intermediate grades is a good source to explore, and small-format guided-reading works are ideal choices for content and information works. The subject matter can be selected to coincide with units of study in the social studies or science curriculums, or high-interest texts on any subject will be suitable.zrnan016 Predicting -TeacherVison.com Original URL: https:/www.teachervision com/skill-builder/reading/487 11 html (https:/iwww. teachervision.com/skill-builder/reading/48711.html) 2 @) TeacherVision ') Predicting What Is It? Effective readers use pictures, titles, headings, and text—as well as personal experiences (/skill builder/reading-comprehension/48540.ntml)—to make predictions before they begin to read. Predicting involves thinking ahead while reading and anticipating information and events in the text. After making predictions, students can read through the text and refine, revise, and verify their predictions “The strategy of making predictions actively engages students and connects them Io the text by asking them what they think might occur in the story. Using the text, students refine, revise, and verify their thinking and predictions. Why Is It Important? Making predictions activates students’ prior knowledge about the text and helps them make connections between new information and what they already know. By making predictions about the text before, during, and after reading, students use what they already know-—as well as what they suppose might happen—to make connections to the text. Snow (1998) has found that throughout the early grades, reading curricula should include explicit instruction on strategies used to comprehend text either read to the students or that students read themselves. These strategies include summarizing the main idea, predicting events or information to which the text is leading, drawing inferences, and monitoring for misunderstandings. How Can You Make It Happen? Teachers should begin modeling the strategy of making predictions regularly with young students, and they should continue using this strategy throughout elementary and middle school—until students have integrated the strategy into their independent reading. Model how to make predictions for emergent readers. The "think-aloud” strategy (/skill-builder/problem- solving/48546.html), is particularly helpful. + Think aloud before reading a book to students, modeling the process of predicting before reading. “I found an interesting book at the library and by looking at the cover | am guessing or predicting the story will be about and . When we use what we know to make a guess before we read it is called 'predicting.” + Think aloud while reading a book to students, modeling the process of predicting while reading. "Hmmm... my prediction that the story would be about was right, but | did not think that would happen. I'll make a new prediction that will happen based on what we read." tpt teachevision com/skil-bulderreacng4871. Nimo, printing=1 18Predicting - TeacherVisioncom zinarao%e «Think aloud after reading, modeling the process of reflecting on predictions after reading, "My first prediction was _ After reading part of the story I predicted _ Now that | am finished reading | think my predictions were closeinot close to what really happened because. ‘As students move toward independent integration of the strategy, teachers should provide opportunities for them to make, revise, and verify their own predictions before, during, and after reading. Here are some suggestions: « Pre-select and mark stopping points throughout a book. Use sticky notes to mark students’ books if they are reading independently. «Asa class of in groups, have students make and discuss predictions. Have them think aloud as they share their predictions. «Have students write or draw predictions in journals, learning logs, or on chart paper to refer to throughout the story. «At the pre-selected stopping points, have students refine, revise, and verify their predictions. Make changes to the journals or chart as needed. + Atthe end of the story, have students reflect on their predictions in relation to the entire story and ‘ask them to draw a final sketch or write a learning log response about their predictions. Encourage students to think about why their prediction was correct or incorrect and what information they are using to make that decision. Taking Predicting to the Next Level ‘As students become proficient in making predictions, they can start using the Direct Reading-Thinking Activity (DR-TA) (Iskil-builder/reading/48610.html) strategy, which guides students in making predictions ‘about a text and then reading to confirm or refute their predictions. Students justify their predictions, discuss or write their explanations, and make new predictions based specific evidence from the text. Students can also determine whether predictions came from their own prior knowledge and which predictions were based on evidence from the text. When Can You Use It? Reading/English Use the prediction strategy when introducing new picture books to primary students or new chapter books to older students. With young students, read the book aloud making predictions as a class or a group and reading to confirm the predictions. With chapter books, have students make predictions at the start of each chapter so that their predictions draw from the chapters they have already read. Have students make predictions based on other books they have read by the same author or other books they have read in the same genre. After reading, discuss the text and any information that helped verify or caused them to revise their predictions. Writing After students read a text or passage using the prediction strategy, have them write a summary of their initiat prediction and why it was correct or needed to be modified. Students can justify their ideas based on evidence from the text. ritps sv teacher vision comiskil-bildracing/467"1himt for priting= 1 20zima7016 Predicting TeacheVision com ‘Another activity to use when teaching predicting is to have students write the first part of a story and then trade stories with a partner and continue that partner's story, anticipating future events and the story's resolution. Lesson Plans Predicting, The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear (/skill-builder/lesson- plan/48712.html) ‘This lesson is designed to introduce predicting as a reading strategy to primary students using the book The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear by Don and ‘Audrey Wood. In this lesson, students make and refine predictions. This lesson Is the first of a set of predicting lessons designed for students in primary grades. Predicting, Strega Nona (/skil-builderilesson-plan/487 13.htm)) ‘This lesson is designed to establish predicting as a strategy for primary students and uses the book Strega Nona by Tomie de Paola. Students will make predictions prior to reading and refine predictions while reading to help them more easily understand new concepts. This lesson is the second of a set of predicting lessons designed for students in primary grades. Predicting, DR-TA, The Garden of Abdul Gasazi (/skil-builder/lesson-plan/487 14-htmi) This lesson is designed to expand students’ predicting skils using the Directed Reading-Thinking Activity (OR-TA) strategy. Predicting prior to reading and refining predictions while reading can help students more easily understand new and unfamiliar concepts. Revisiting text to verify and clarify predictions increases comprehension of the reading material. © 2000-2016 Sandbox Networks, Inc. All Rights Reserved. titos:sunww. aches viston.com/skil-bilderreading/48711.riml ox printing=1 38SECOND EDITION READING for understanding How Reading Apprenticeship Improves Disciplinary Learning in Secondary and College Classrooms Ruth Schoenbach Cynthia Greenleaf Lynn Murphy WestEd 9Predicting Predicting, like visualizing, requires readers to access their own relevant back- ground knowledge or schema and prepare to organize new information accord- ingly. Essentially, readers must summarize what they know from the text so far, put it in the context of their related schema about genre and topic, predict the flow of main ideas or thrust of a plot, and then select structures or details that_ might logically follow. Authors’ use of text structure, text signals, and visual text features provide multiple clues that support meaningful prediction. Reading Signals in the Text In the case of text structure, students may be much more familiar with using prediction with narrative than with informational text, but prediction can be a particularly valuable strategy for navigating challenging informational text. In a narrative structure, students might predict “The girl has learned she is strong, now the horse will die”; with informational text, students might use their knowledge of text structure to predict “That was one cause of the Civil War, now it’s going to tell about another one” or “This definition of molecule is going to be followed by examples that will make the definition easier to understand.” At another level, instead of predicting how text structure will contribute to meaning, readers keep track of text signals and predict where the text will224 Reading for Understanding go. Text signals allow readers to make predictions about how the author’s use of these language markers will contribute to meaning. Text signals include punctuation and transition words such as however, including, in other words, and for example to signal the path an author has created for readers to follow. In addition, informational text includes visual text features such as subtitles, bullets, and highlighted vocabulary that provide clues for what is important and what is to come. These clues help readers predict or prepare for new ideas or information. The author's purposes in using text structure, text signals, and text features may seem self-evident to experienced readers, but many students miss these How Are My Predictions Doing? PURPOSE ‘To help students learn to check and revise their predictions as needed while they sead, How Are My Predictions Doing? is simple and quick PROCEDURE Provide students with reading material chunked at points that allow for prediction, such as the bbeginning of a chapter in a navel, or one subheading at a time in expository text. At the beginning of each chunk, ask students to make a prediction, an educated guess, or @ hypoth- esis about what wil follow in the text. [At the end oftheir reading, ask students to check and see whether thei predictions made sense and why or why not. The following note taker can help students get used to checking their predictions and getting better at making them, Ter. Pages, 1. Reread your predictions from the last entry. ‘Were your predictions correc? ‘yes, what clues helped you? no, what cus threw you of or what cues dd you miss? Why ais you make the predictions that you aid? 2. What predictions do you have forthe next section of text?The Cognitive Dimension clues without explicit instruction. In Chapter Eight, as we focus on the knowl edge-building dimension of Reading Apprenticeship, signal words and visual text features are discussed again, as examples of the knowledge about text and language structures that students need to build. Building Engagement Predicting can also serve to build students’ engagement with text. When read- cers predict, they establish a particular purpose for reading: to see whether their predictions bear out. Sometimes students will naturally keep track of their pre- dictions and check on how they are or are not unfolding. But if predicting is a new strategy for students, an activity like How Are My Predictions Doing? in Box 7.15 can provide effective practice. Previewing Informational Text When teachers ask students to preview an informational text before reading it, they are asking students to activate their schema about the text content and structure as well as to develop personal reasons for reading the particular text. Previewing helps students prepare to engage the reading task. (A discussion of previewing fiction when students are making personal selections for literature circles appears in Chapter Five. Previewing books for Sustained Silent Reading is discussed in Chapter Six.) With practice, previewing informational text can become almost automatic, but when students are first learning to preview, they benefit from an enumera- tion of things to look for and questions to answer. They also need opportunities to share what they are learning, Through metacognitive conversations, students can come to appreciate that previewing helps them anticipate what will be interesting about a text or what makes them better able to approach a difficult or unappealing text. Questions such as those in Box 7.16 can guide students, when approach- ing informational text, to recognize and use personal resources: their evolving leamer identity and their existing schema, 225Our Teaching of Prediction Predicting Prediction is one of the major comprehension strategies. Based on what we already know we predict and prepare for what is coming next. Prediction makes reading more efficient and safe just as it does in connection with driving, cooking and other activities, Prediction helps readers connect what they are reading with what they already know. Predicting helps bring meaning to text in order to get meaning from text. We teach readers to: ‘*Tomake a range of predictions based on - © personal experiences, (© content/world knowledge © genre knowledge, © knowledge of similar texts - story grammar, illustrations, cover features, character and setting knowledge, text features + To justify predictions using evidence = Search for and use information to confirm or disconfirm predictions? = Change predictions as new information is gathered from the text 1. What texts will you use and for what purpose? Gather a number of texts that will support your modelling through Think Aloud. Make sure that you have a variety of genres. Read the texts carefully, thinking about how you will use it and why. Mark your possible stopping points. 2. What specific strategies will you focus on during your shared reading/read aloud lessons to teach the prediction? Possible thoughts + Understand what it means to predict + Predict and read to confirm predictions + Predict and modify predictions in the light of new information + Use your prior knowledge to anticipate text content before reading, attend to content while ‘reading and reflect on content after reading + Generate expectations based on genre, author, illustrator or topic. + Use language of language or language syntax and meaning to propel forward + Use knowledge of characters, plot, setting or theme to anticipate what will happen next + Given the topic or organization, anticipate kinds of information in the text + Make predictions based on information in the text as to what will happen, what characters are likely to do, and how it will end 3. What sequence will the lessons take? References ~The Continuum of Uteracy Learning by Fountas and Panel, Mesoi of Thought by Keene and Zimmerman, Strategies That Work by Harvey and Gouds, Teaching Comprehension ~An interactive professional development course Diane SnowballWe always keep in mind that we need to be responsive to the needs of the students. Our lessons might have to be repeated with another text or another aspect of the strategy might arise and we need to deal with te 4, What teaching contexts and strategies will you use? We will teach within the context of the Gradual Release of Responsibility. Think aloud will be crucial, as will quality tlk, guided practice and plenty of opportunities for students to practice using the strategy. 5. What tools will you use? + Possible Charts to build with the students - see attachment = Clipboards ~ students coming to the meeting area with clipboards to record their thinking + Post-its for recording thinking as they read independently + Forms to be used by students ‘Assessment How will you assess ~ before and during - on an ongoing basis? It is important to assess our students understanding of the strategy before we start our teaching. We can ask them a few very simple questions ~ see the attached survey. ‘Throughout the study we will need to monitor student progress on an ongoing basis and have a system for, recording our observations. Checklists We can use an individual student checklist or class checklist ~ see attached examples. 3, Student Self Assessment - We teach children to ask themselves the following types of questions: + Did | use my background knowledge before reading to predict? + During reading, did | merge my background knowledge with information in the text to predict, and/or modify my predictions in light of new information? + Did | discuss my prediction with others? + Did I record my predictions? + Can t explain how forming and justifying my predictions helps with my reading comprehension 4, What Does This Look Like in the Classroom? Evidence + Notebooks contain the students’ connections, predictions and inferences about their reading? 1 Short texts are used where students have jotted down their predictions. + Anchor Charts + What we Learned about predicting + Connections and Predictions 5. Conferences will be important - we can use the conference to determine whether the student - References ~The Continuum of iteray Learning by Fountas and Panel, Mosaic of Thought by Keene and Zimmerman, Strategies That Work by Harvey and Goudis, Teaching Comprehension ~ An interactive professional development course ~ Diane Snows‘© Understand what it means to predict ‘+ Uses text evidence and background knowledge to make predictions and modify predictions ‘+ sable to support/defend predictions ‘+ Canarticulate how predicting deeps their understanding of texts Possible Class Charts ‘The language we use when we are teaching prediction “tm thinking that...” “From the story, | can predict that.” “predict .." “That's probably why .. what ... how “My prediction is.” Probably." “think that .” “Perhaps...” What we learnt about Predicting when we predict we are thinking about what might happen in a story or what a book might be about. © We predict before and during reading. © We think about our predictions before and during reading. © We think about the title and the pictures to predict. © Sometimes when we predict, our predictions are confirmed and at other times something different happens. © We often change our predictions as we read more of the story. ‘We often change our predictions as we learn more information. References The Continuum of titeracy Learning by Fountae and Pinnel, Mosaic of Thought by Keane and Zimmerman, Strategies That Work by Harvey and Goudhis, Teaching Comprehension ~ An interactive profesional development course —Diane Sowellme ]neye/areraiTc erlaUayVisualizing and Inferring: oe Se ne day Steph walked into a staif develop- Making Whats eee alee tebe as = search of a fresh, new picture book to teach socio be' eigen Che Hutchins suggested Estelle Condra’s See the Ocean, PCS SES cl win sing wana illustrations, striking poetic words, and a moving It is the tale of a little girl who travels to a beach ‘house with her parents and her brothers each sum- mer. As we read through the story, we soon notice a cc so Se Se never me Ten Ani niece coer Bo saak Ma Sahel, oe cheaters Nan bee we SAIN he wtlnd ae apes aug she, too, had endless questions, “T wonder why Chryse recommended this for visualizing?” she asked ‘Anne the next day. “I think it’s perfect for questioning.” Anne read it and com- til ihe lou tes stuneeetong rth meng eat ctulde wiki She sl ta fer pepe tenilungnge nemposz wang sn tnnng neg Sew le teaching visualizing. SEs alls ety on dient sais ofp ten glx bee understanding. We mention this because, as we have said, well-crafted picture books can be used to teach and practice just about any strategy. To gain under- snag a2 he Glan alos ihe os ee so, ihe hain gusing saline 1a idee ice Mk ater dc sett cpr tne pag ee spe age ERIS TG ys ute ee ee Bia a sy aoe he gy ams ae gain meaning. Veronica’s sticky notes show how this eighth grader activates all three of these strategies and more as she reads and thinks through See the Ocean (see Figure 9.1). These sticky notes provide strong evidence of her flexibility (iy te teeta oregon ee Veer lang ad Inet nn ape hey 2 1s dost ed) Yaalong sheng fu fal ag WhenFe 91 Vereias Sicky Nate Fespenses See Ocean Chapter 9 Visualizing and Inferring 131 why didn} She Tied wf har oo er wre eS ta, winks? | | | | nat’ wierd "bee Slein timed Shw's & content T pete of nan cs ues IRE HA OR. u's ust es ta cean ag ancl Bee Gt Geng ag ba Be Te prabone Sq GAA @ Cool! | LY | © lhy did che ask HE ghar SAI She | cial car Ra cma Come es Tn oeten | 197 Maye Shes ind | DH's devious QB's bind ee She Sees te cee In ter mind. visualize, we are in fact inferring, but with mental images rather than words and thoughts. Visualizing and inferring don’t occur in isolation. Strategies Interweave. Inferring involves merging background knowledge with text clues to come up with an idea that is not explicitly stated in the text. Inferring is the proverbial reading between the lines. ‘A variety of mental processes occur under the umbrella of inferential thinking. When we teach kids to infer, we might teach them to draw conclu- sions or make predictions. Inferring may involve using the context to figure out the meaning of an unfamiliar word oF noticing a character's actions to Sur face a theme. Our colleague Judy Wallis created a Visual that describes the mul- tifaceted nature of inferential thinking. She chose an umbrella to represent the ‘many aspects of inferring, We have adapted it here as a way of showing the dif- ferent ways readers use inferential thinking to enhance understanding. (See Figure 9.2.)132 Strategies That Work Inferring ‘Merging background knowledge with clues in the text to come up with an idea that is not expliity stated by the author. Reasonable inferences need to be tied to tho text. “|, ana paste’ | Infering relationships | Predicting outcomes, upcoming events, and actions Setting to pot | Using context to figure out the meaning of unfamiliar Cause and etect wordsiconcepts| Character’ feelings and motives | Interpreting the meaning of language Inferring the authors purpose Figurative language Creating interpretations based on text evidence Idiomatic language Using dere te surat ees andes Metaphoricianguage Inferring the meening o text features and visuals, Visualizing Inferring the answer to @ question i Constructing mearing witha visual mage Drawing conclusions based on tet evidence | [___Inering reste a ltr, move, or sideshow inthe mind gute 9.2 Tre eng Unevela Visualizing: Movies in the Mind Visualizing brings joy to reading. When we visualize, we create pictures in our minds that belong to us and no one else. As more and more books are routinely churned into movies, we are not surprised that most people prefer the book ‘over the movie, kids included. One problem inherent in transforming text to film is that Hollywood routinely takes a four-hundred-and-fifty-page novel and converts it into a one-hundred-page script. Not surprisingly, depth and texture suffer. Another common complaint relates to the characters. Steph could never sit hack and enjoy the film Seven Years in Tibet, based on one of her favorite books by Heinrich Harrer, because Brad Pitt, no matter how cute he was, did not jibe with her image of the book's protagonist. Some years ago, a short-lived program about Beverly Cleary’s beloved character Ramona hit TV. Kids were outraged. Each had clear, yet very differ- ent, pictures of Ramona in mind. Not one we spoke to could relate to the tele- vised image of Ramona. When we visualize, we create our own movies in our minds. We become attached to the characters we visualize. Visualizing person- alizes reading, keeps us engaged, and often prevents us from abandoning a book prematurely. When we introduce visualizing, we are likely to facilitate a conversation about books and movie adaptations in an attempt to make the strategy concrete. Kids relate and quickly weigh in with their own opinions.Freaicuon or imierenices \When Curtis stated that he was making a prediton, gave Jennifer and Step ciscuss the relationship between prediction and inference, Predicting is ree course, but we predict outcomes, events, or ations thal are confirmed or ce end ofthe story. Prediction is one aspect of inferential thinking. ‘To help our students understand the dtlerence, we encourage them to cc ccome ofan event or action each time they make a prediction and naice whether here has been 2 resolution. Curtis continued reading and found thatthe book ends before resolving whether the father finds a new jo. But the story ends hopefully, and Curtis wasnit wrong toner hat the dad would find employment. He had good reason to believe i. Curtis made alist of inferences in his rotebook as he read Tight Times. When he frished reading, he went back and marked those tat were cond (4 and those that wore contracted (-). He left thase thet were unresolved coded with only for inference (see Figure 97) opps. ouSee Aaa HUNG CHES IAS STAM IU RAUL f RA + 4 v Featuring 35 lessons plus D NEW posters and reproducibles ~~ cate Free online staff Pee Aa Py} ares UCM ee cA)18 Predicting Many students have been exposed to this popular strategy. Students often define predicting as a form of guessing, and they seem to enjoy making predictions. Predicting goes beyond guessing and involves, previewing the text to anticipate what may happen next. Readers can Table3 Predicting With Fiction and Nonfiction Predicting With Fiction Predicting With Nonfiction Preview cover, title, and illustrations. Preview headings, illustrations, and text Preview text structure looking for clues using F°a*™85, such as maps, captions, and tables. story structure: setting, characters, problem, Look for clues to predict. resolution, events, and a theme or lesson. Preview text structure and decide if tis Use the frame: I think this is about. because... compare-contrast, sequence, main idea and details, cause-effect. Use the frame: I think I will leam. because... acral Teaching at War Powel Satis and eson for Iprvig aading Comprehension (second edon) by Lor 0-Oczks. ©2070 Newark DE nrenatond Reading Astoeaton. Maybe copied for asoom we. use information from the text along with their prior knowledge to make logical predictions before and during reading, Predicting differs when reading fiction or nonfiction. Refer to Table 3 to note the differences. For both fiction and nonfiction, stop periodically during the reading and ask students to gather clues from the text read up to that point and to look ahead to make predictions for the next portion of the text. In addition to discussing predictions you can use a graphic organizer, such as a story map or Venn diagram, which fits the text type. Giving students the opportunity to preview what they read by discussing text features and using graphic organizers provides them with visual clues for predicting. ‘The language that students may use with predicting includes the following phrases (Mowery, 1995; Oczkus, 2009): I think. Vibe... Iwonder if... imagine... I suppose... 1 predict... 1 think I will learn...because. I think...will happen because..Predicting is a strategy that assists students in setting a purpose for reading and in monitoring their reading comprehension. It allows students to interact more with the text, making them more likely to become interested in the reading material while improving their understanding (Fielding, Anderson, & Pearson, 1990; Hansen, 1981) In my experience, students seem to enjoy predicting and do so with exuberance. Predicting When predicting with fiction, students + Preview the front and back covers, illustrations, and headings before reading «= Predict what is likely to happen next based on clues from the text or illustrations « Use what they know (from text and prior knowledge) «+ Stop to predict during reading «Continue to make logical predictions based on clues from the text When predicting with nonfiction, students «Preview the front and back covers, illustrations, and headings before reading «Predict what is likely to be learned based on clues from the text or illustrations « Apply what they already know to help make a prediction « Stop to predict during reading + Continue to make logical predictions based on clues from the text |When using metacognition with either fiction or nonfiction, students tell how predicting helps them understand the text. “The language of prediction that students use* may include the following phrases: +I think,.,because. + Limagine...because. +H bet...because... + I suppose...because.. +I wonder if..because.... + | predict... because...> 84 eee Al masa Description and Comprehension Strategies This lesson focuses on the language of predicting. After modeling each of the strategy starters for predicting in a series of think-alouds, ask students to roll strategy dice at their desks with partners and in groups to practice using the language of the strategies. Materials + Strategy dice; or write the prediction starters on the dry-erase board in front of the classroom or on a chart and number them to correspond with the dice numbers as follows: 1. I think I will leamn...because. 2. Maybe... because... 4, Next, I think... 5, and 6. I'll bet. ‘Teacher Modeling 1. Ask students to help you list ways to start predictions. Chart responses. 2, Number the responses and model in a think-aloud each one for students using a text that they can all see (i.e., projected, multiple copies, Big Book). 3. Roll the dice and, whichever number comes up, model how to use that strategy starter. Repeat once more and model the strategy starter that corresponds with the dice number you roll. Student Participation 1. After you model each starter for predicting, invite students to turn to partners or their table teams to repeat the starter and make another prediction. 2. Continue asking students to try each starter right after you model it. Assessment Tips * Listen and observe conversations. Are students making strong predictions? Are they using text clues and their background experiences to formulate their rationale for their predictions? Can they verbally fill in the “because...” portion of the frame with logical reasons? # Ask students to reflect: “Which starter helped you most in predicting with this text today? Why?" * Use what you learn from your observations to model new think-alouds,