Learning From TEXTBOOK Reading at 2nd Level - Strategies For Success

Learning from Textbook

Reading at Second Level:
Strategies for Success
National Behaviour Support Service
Predicting Skimming
Close Reading Scanning
Finding the Main Idea
Summarising
Making Connections
Visualising Using Text Features
Asking Questions
Rereading Reading Ahead

National Behaviour Support Service (NBSS)

Navan Education Centre
Athlumney
Navan
Co. Meath
Telephone: +353 46 9093355

Fax: +353 46 9093354
Email: nbss@ecnavan.ie
Written and compiled by Fiona Richardson, Literacy Development Officer,

National Behaviour Support Service, 2010.
The National Behaviour Support Service (NBSS) was established by the

Department of Education & Skills in 2006 in response to the recommendation in
School Matters: The Report of the Task Force on Student Behaviour in Second
Level Schools (2006).
The NBSS is funded by the Department of Education and Skills under the
National Development Plan 2007 – 2013

Learn from Textbook Reading at Second

Level: Strategies for Success
Introduce 1st years to their new textbooks and to strategies that will help them learn
in their new school by using and adapting some of the exercises in this resource.
Research has shown that effective learners use a variety of reading and learning
skills.
For example:
• They bring their own experiences and background knowledge to the text - they
make connections.
• They see pictures in their minds when they read – they visualise.
• They have a purpose for continuing to read. They question, predict, confirming
their thinking and adjusting their thinking.
• They are able to infer meaning based on background knowledge and text
clues.
• They understand the main ideas of a text and can determine what is
important.
• They are able to synthesise their reading and produce their own ideas and
create new thinking.
• They keep an eye on their understanding and use ‘fix-up’ strategies like re-
reading when the meaning is not clear.
The direct and explicit teaching of strategies to develop these skills can support and
improve learning. Explicitly teaching students about text features, how to make
connections, how to ask and generate questions, how to visualise and infer, how to
extract important ideas and summarise and synthesise information will lead to
deeper thinking and understanding.
This resource suggests exercises that can be used when teaching students about
(1) text features and how they can support students in determining importance and
making connections; (2) the different question types and their relationship to the
answer - for example when an inference or reading between the lines is required;
and (3) ways to find the main idea and supporting details in a text. Section 4 looks
at the strategies proficient readers use when learning from a text.
*Other NBSS resources are also available on reading, learning and study skills and
strategies.

Contents
1. Text Features Page 5
Take a Textbook Tour Page 7
Big Fox Page 8
Textbook Trifles Page 9
2. Questions Page 12
Question – Answer Relationships (QAR) Page 13
Using QAR Page 14
QAR in Your Textbook Page 15
3. Finding the Main Idea Page 16

3-2-1 Sum It Up Page 17
5-4-3-2-1 Page 18
Get the Gist Page 19
Important Ideas from My Reading Page 20
Main Ideas from my Reading Page 21
Pull it All Together Page 22
4. Textbook Reading Strategies Page 23-27
NBSS Academic Literacy & Learning Resources Page 29

Textbook Reading Strategies 4

.

Let's look at how

text features can
help you find and
learn the
information in
your textbooks.

Complete one exercise from this section using a page or chapter from a textbook.

What are text features?

Text features are parts of your textbook that have been created to help you locate
and learn information. Text features include the design and organisation of pages in
your textbook. The title page and table of contents are text features you can find at
the beginning of textbooks. Headings, graphics, main idea boxes and bolded words are
some of the text features you will find in the middle of your book. Glossaries and
indexes are some text features you might find at the end of your book.
Below is a list of text features. How many can you find in your books?
Title page ✔ Glossaries
Headings Graphics (pictures, graphs, charts,
diagrams, photos, etc.)
Subheadings Table of contents
Bolded or highlighted words Test or Review questions
Vocabulary/Keyword boxes Icons
Main idea boxes Header/Footer
Other: Other:
Why should you look at text features?

Looking at text features will help you know what is most important in a topic and help
you locate information quickly. Looking at the titles in the table of contents and the
headings and subheadings on a page can quickly tell you what information you will find out
about on that page.
How do you use text features?

Knowing which text features to use and when to use them is important. The chart below
can help you decide which text features to look at when you want to understand your
textbooks better.
To understand words To find main ideas To find data or places:

and vocabulary: and topics:
• glossary • table of contents • maps
• vocabulary/word boxes • headings/subheadings • charts
• bolded or highlighted • index • tables
words • main idea boxes
• questions
Can you add to the bullet points?

1. Using the Table of Contents, find the chapter number for the topic _______.
2. In the Index at the back of the text, find and list all the pages that deal
with ____________.
3. On page _____, what is the purpose of the coloured box (e.g. highlights a key
or main idea).
4. What diagram appears on page ______? How is it connected to other

information on that page?
5. In the Table of Contents, which topic is covered in Chapter____, Section __?
6. On page _____, what special feature helps you to identify the definition of
__________?
7. In the Index, how many page references are there for ________________?
Which reference provides you with the most complete information on the topic?
8. In Chapter ____, how many subheadings appear throughout the chapter?

Where is the subheading that identifies __________ (e.g. summary, activity)?
9. Where would you go in the textbook to (quickly) find information about

___________?
11. Turn to page ______. Read the first paragraph and find the words in italics.
What is the purpose of this feature?
12. Open the text to pages _____and _____. Scan the words in boldface type.
Why did the writers use this feature?
13. Open the text to page _____. Look at the graphic (e.g. map, photograph,
graph). What is the purpose of this feature?
Textbook Reading Strategies Source: Think Literacy 7

Remember to leave your prints on the text!
Bold – List any words or
B phrases that are in bold

print.
Italics – List any words
i or phrases that are in

italics.
G Graphics – Describe any

graphics (photos,
drawings, graphs, charts,
maps, tables, etc.).

Facts – List at least 5
F
facts found in the pages.
Opinions – List any
O
opinions found in the
textbook piece.
X marks the spot – or
X
at least the main point.
In 2-3 sentences, write
the main point of the
piece you have previewed
(Hint – read the opening
sentence of each
paragraph).

Textbook Reading Strategies Source: teaching today.glencoe.com 8
Trifles – Find out the ingredients of your textbook!
Title
What is the title?
What do I already know about this topic?
What does this topic have to do with the chapter before it?
What do I think I will be reading about?
Read the headings

What does this heading tell me I will be reading about?
What is the topic of the paragraph beneath it?
How can I turn this heading into a question that is
likely to be answered in the text?
Introduction
Is there an opening paragraph?
Does the first paragraph introduce the rest of the chapter?
What does the introduction tell me I will be reading about?
Do I know anything about this topic already?
First sentence in a paragraph

What do I think this chapter is going to be about based on the first sentence in
each paragraph?
Look at the visuals and vocabulary

Does the chapter include photographs, drawings, maps, charts or graphs?
What can I learn from the visuals in a chapter?
How do captions help me better understand the meaning?
Is there a list of key vocabulary terms and definitions?
Are there important words in boldface type throughout the chapter?

Do I know what the boldfaced words mean?

Can I tell the meaning of the boldfaced words from the rest of the sentences?
End-of-chapter questions
What do the questions ask?
What information do they point to as important?
What information do I learn from the questions?
Summary
What do I understand and recall about the topics covered in the summary
paragraph?

Now you’re ready to eat up the information in your textbooks!
Adapted from: ReadWriteThink

What’s in your Textbook TRIFLES?

Topic Title: _____________________
Textbook Page/s: ____________________
T
R
I
F
L
E
s
Let's find out

about the
different types of
questions we can
get asked in our
textbooks.
Complete ALL the exercises in this section

Question-Answer Relationship (QAR)

(Teacher Note: QAR provides a basis for three comprehension strategies: locating information;
showing text structures and how the information is organised; and determining when an inference
or reading between the lines is required. QAR shows students the relationship between questions
and answers, how to categorise different types and levels of questions, as well as understand that
the text does not have all the answers).
In secondary school you need to know HOW to find the information that is
important in your textbook and how to ask different types of questions, as
well as find the answers to different question types.
QAR
IN THE BOOK
Right There Think and Search
The answer is in one place in the The answer is in several places in the
text. You can put your finger on it! text. You put together (think and
Words from the question and words search) different parts of the text to
that answer the questions are often find the answer.
“right there” in the same sentence. • Skim or reread
• Reread • Look for important information
• Scan • Piece together different parts
• Look for keywords. from the text to answer the
question.
IN MY HEAD
Author and You On My Own
The answer is not in the text. The answer is not in the
• Think about how what you know text.
and what’s in the text fit together • Think about what you already know
• Reread • Think about what you’ve read
• Think about what you already know before
and what the text says • Make connections.
• Predict.

Textbook Reading Strategies Source: T. E. Raphael, 1982; 1986 13

Using QAR with set questions
After reading the text below work with a partner to decide the question-
answer relationship for each question. Explain why it fits that QAR
category.
Sam has lived in Merrytown his entire life. However, tomorrow Sam
and his family would be moving 100 miles away to Rosslare. Sam hated
the idea of having to move. He would be leaving behind his best
friend, Pat and the local football team he had played on for the last
two years. And to make matters worse, he was moving on his birthday!
Sam would be thirteen tomorrow. He was going to be a teenager! He

wanted to spend the day with his friends, not watching his house
being packed up and put in a van. He thought that moving was a
horrible way to spend his birthday. What about a party? What about
spending the day with his friends? What about what he wanted? That
was just the problem. No one ever asked Sam what he wanted.
1. What is the name of the town where Sam and his family are moving?
2. Why was Sam not looking forward to the next day?
3. What might Sam do to make moving to a new town easier for him?
4. In what ways can moving to a new house and to a new town be exciting?
* If you were a teacher and there were 30 marks in total for this exercise, how would
you divide the marks out between the different questions? Should each question be
worth the same amount of marks or not? Why?
Textbook Reading Strategies Adapted from: McMillian McGraw Hill 14
Look at the questions in your textbook chapters and find

examples of the different question types. Put examples of the
different types of QAR questions in the chart below.
Reading Strategies
Textbook 15
Let's find out

ways to get
the main idea and
important points
of what we read.
• Start by completing the 3-2-1 or 5-4-3-2-1 exercise by reading a
paragraph or page from a textbook.
• Then complete the ‘Get the Gist’ exercise using the information from
the same page or paragraph.
• Finally read one more page. Then complete one ‘ideas map’ from this
section, noting down the main points in the circles. Finish by writing a
short summary using the points from the ‘ideas map’ or complete the
‘Pull it All Together’ exercise.


When you finish reading the paragraph or page write down your 3-2-1 points to help you
sum up the main ideas and to figure out anything you don’t totally understand.
Important things I found out…
Interesting things…
Question I still have…

After reading a page or paragraph in your textbook complete the chart below to help
you sum up what you have learned.

Keywords from the pages
1.
2.
3.

4.
5.

Facts related to the main topic
1.
2.
3.

4,

New words
1.
2.
3.

Facts you already know
1.
2.

Questions you still have
1.

Heading: Textbook Page:

1. Read the paragraph.
2. Who or what is the paragraph mostly about?

This paragraph is mainly about…
3. What important pieces of information are linked to the ‘who’ or

‘what’?
•
•
4. Put together the answers above and tell the main idea in 10 words or
less!

Textbook Reading Strategies Source: Cunningham, 1982 19
Linked information Linked information
Important Idea 4
Important
Idea 1
Topic: _______
Textbook Pages:
___________
Important Important
Idea 3 Idea 2

What happened?
Where did it happen?

When did it happen?
Topic Map about
_____________
Who was involved How did it happen?

in the events?
Why did it happen?


You’ve now found out about text features, the different types of question you can be
asked and also ways to find the main idea and important points in a paragraph or page of
your textbook. Now pull all this learning together by using the exercise below.
Main Idea Record

Name(s): _____________________ Section Title: ________________________

Main Idea of Section, Paragraph or Page:

Write some ‘teacher‘ questions you could ask about the ideas in this paragraph.
(Remember the QAR question types)
What text features helped you get the ‘gist’ of what you skimmed and scanned?

Let's find out

about the

different reading
strategies we use

to understand

and learn from

textbook reading.


So What Ways Do We
Read?
Find out about the different Reading

Strategies you use by matching the ‘how
to explanations’ to the reading strategy
listed on the next page. Then practice
using them to help you understand and
learn more from your textbooks.

Reading Strategies How to Explanation
You make informed guesses about the text. You use what
Predicting you already know and clues (like text features) from the
text to make a judgment and predict what will happen
next.
You read quickly to get the main idea of a paragraph,

Skimming
page or chapter to get the gist of what the text is about.
Your eyes dart around a text searching for a specific
Scanning word/phrase/number/name, etc., for example when
you look through the newspaper to find the time of
your favourite TV programme or match result!
You pay close attention to the meaning of each word in a
Close Reading sentence, for example when you read a maths problem.
You ask yourself questions as you read (in your head)
Questioning to help you get the meaning and understand the ideas
in the text.
You read back in a text or read forward in order
Reading Backwards
and Forwards to make connections and check your understanding.
You connect what you read to your own life and

Making Connections
to what you already know. You use your what you know
to understand something new!
You see a picture or movie in your mind to help

Visualising
gain a better impression or understanding of the
text.
This is when someone makes a point that isn’t obvious
Inferring
and you have to read “between the lines” to find
the meaning.

When you were looking at the titles, the bold words and the diagrams in the
textbook features exercise you were skimming and scanning. But what exactly
is scanning and why use it?
Scanning
What is it? When you SCAN, you move your eyes quickly down a
page or list to find one specific detail, for example
what time your favourite TV programme is on!
Why do I Scanning allows you to quickly find a specific fact,

scan? date, name or word in a page without trying to read
or understand the rest of the piece. You may need
that fact or word to answer a question or to add a
specific detail to something you are writing.
How do I 1. Knowing your textbook well is important. Note how

scan? the information is arranged on a page. Scan the
features like headings, diagrams, boxed, highlighted,
bolded terms, words, names and dates.
Read in this 2. Move your eyes vertically - up and down, or
direction. diagonally down the page, letting them dart quickly
from side to side looking for bolded words and other
text features.

Source: Think Literacy
What exactly is skimming and why use it?
Skimming
When you SKIM, you read quickly to get the main

What is it?
idea of a paragraph, page, chapter, or article and a
few (but not all) of the details.
Skimming allows you to read quickly to get a general

Why do I
sense of a text (the gist). You may also skim to get a
skim? key or main idea.
1. Read the first paragraph, a middle paragraph and

How do I the final paragraph of a piece, trying to get a basic
skim? understanding of the information.
2. You can also skim by reading the first and last

sentences of each paragraph, that is, the first few
Read in this
sentences and concluding sentences.
direction.
3. If there are pictures, diagrams, or charts, a quick
glance at them and their captions may help you to
understand the main idea or point of view in the
text.
4. Remember you do not have to read every word

when you skim.
5. Generally, move your eyes horizontally- left to

right (and quickly) when you skim.
Textbook Reading Strategies Source: Think Literacy 27

Now that you’ve found out

about the different ways
we read to learn don’t
forget to use these

strategies when you are

reading, doing your

homework or studying from

your textbooks!


National Behaviour Support Service (NBSS)

Navan Education Centre
Athlumney
Navan
Co. Meath
Telephone: +353 46 909 3355

Fax: +353 46 909 3354
Email: nbss@ecnavan.ie
Textbook Reading Strategies

For further information contact the NBSS Literacy Development Officer: frichardson@nbss.ie 29

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Learning from Textbook

National Behaviour Support Service

National Behaviour Support Service (NBSS)

Telephone: +353 46 9093355

Written and compiled by Fiona Richardson, Literacy Development Officer,

The National Behaviour Support Service (NBSS) was established by the

Learn from Textbook Reading at Second

3. Finding the Main Idea Page 16

4. Textbook Reading Strategies Page 23-27

NBSS Academic Literacy & Learning Resources Page 29

Textbook Reading Strategies 4

Let's look at how

Textbook Reading Strategies 5

What are text features?

Why should you look at text features?

How do you use text features?

To understand words To find main ideas To find data or places:

Can you add to the bullet points?

4. What diagram appears on page ______? How is it connected to other

5. In the Table of Contents, which topic is covered in Chapter____, Section __?

8. In Chapter ____, how many subheadings appear throughout the chapter?

9. Where would you go in the textbook to (quickly) find information about

Textbook Reading Strategies Source: Think Literacy 7

Remember to leave your prints on the text!

Bold – List any words or

B phrases that are in bold

Italics – List any words

i or phrases that are in

G Graphics – Describe any

Opinions – List any

X marks the spot – or

Trifles – Find out the ingredients of your textbook!

Read the headings

First sentence in a paragraph

Look at the visuals and vocabulary

Do I know what the boldfaced words mean?

Adapted from: ReadWriteThink

What’s in your Textbook TRIFLES?

Let's find out

Complete ALL the exercises in this section

Textbook Reading Strategies 12

Question-Answer Relationship (QAR)

Textbook Reading Strategies Source: T. E. Raphael, 1982; 1986 13

Using QAR with set questions

Sam would be thirteen tomorrow. He was going to be a teenager! He

2. Why was Sam not looking forward to the next day?

Look at the questions in your textbook chapters and find

Let's find out

Textbook Reading Strategies 16

Important things I found out…

Question I still have…

Textbook Reading Strategies 17

Textbook Reading Strategies 18

Heading: Textbook Page:

1. Read the paragraph.

2. Who or what is the paragraph mostly about?

3. What important pieces of information are linked to the ‘who’ or

Linked information Linked information

Textbook Reading Strategies 20

Where did it happen?

Topic Map about

Who was involved How did it happen?

5. In the Table of Contents, which topic is covered in Chapter__, Section ?