What is READING?

Reading means to CONSTRUCT MEANING FROM TEXT. READING IS A

PROCESS THAT MUST INCLUDE THINKING BEFORE, DURING, AND
AFTER READING. We read in order to analyse MEANING and
UNDERSTANDING.
 “Reading is a means by which we can communicate. ”

Comprehension is the aptitude to understand things. Reading

comprehension is the development of meanings through the
acquisition of the most important ideas of a text and the possibility
of forming links between other ideas acquired beforehand.

“The basic communication skills are speaking, listening, reading

and writing.”
Reading Comprehension is the capacity to understand
what is being read, regarding the meaning of the
words that form a text and the overall understanding
of the text itself. 
The skills required are -

 Prior knowledge
 Anticipation
 Prediction
 Observation
 Monitoring
 Inference
 Paraphrasing
 Analysis
 Conclusion
Reading Comprehension
The following outlines the key features of the reading
process at each stage:
 Stage 1 of the Reading Process: Decoding (Ages 6-7) ...
 Stage 2 of the Reading Process: Fluency (Ages 7-8) ...
 Stage 3 or the Reading Process: Comprehension (Ages 8-14) ...
 Stage 4 or the Reading Process: Multiple Viewpoints (Ages 14-18)
Decoding is the ability to apply ones’ knowledge of letter-sound relationships to
correctly pronounce written words. Understanding these relationships gives
children the ability to recognize familiar words quickly and to figure out words
they haven't seen before.
Many students lack the skills needed to breakdown or decode unfamiliar words.
When a student comes to a word they do not know, teachers often tell them to
sound it out or break it down. If a student does not have the strategies or ability
to do this, they cannot successfully proceed further. The capability of decoding
text is the foundation in which all other reading skills build upon.
If students cannot decode words, their reading will lack fluency, their vocabulary
will be limited and their reading comprehension will suffer.
Encoding, spelling or the ability to build words while transferring speech
into writing, is often the only form of instruction used during word study.
Stage 1 of reading process: Decoding - Recognise the words and
sounds

Decoding is the visual analysis of the printed word, and

comprehension is deriving the meaning from the decoded words.
 
Meaning does not come from the printed letters alone. It involves an
interaction between thought and language. Readers, while reading,
hypothesise ideas and predict what will come next, they test and
check those predictions.
 
At this stage readers learn to decode by sounding out words. They comprehend
that letters represent sounds and use this information to blend together simple
words.
Words must be decoded in order to understand their meanings. Letters are
coded symbols. Reading involves learning the code and applying it to
letters as they are grouped together to form words.
Sometimes the code is quite simple, as with sounds of single letters. At other
times the code is complex, as in such words as “augmentation,” in which the
A-U makes its own unique sound. Words like “classicism,” where the first C
sounds like the letter K.
Second Stage of Reading: Comprehension

The entire brain must be involved in learning to read. Areas of the brain control
different functions. Only after the decoding process is fully operative can the brain
be freed to higher level comprehension skills. When the initial reading instruction
method includes all the skills needed for decoding words, meaning and content
automatically occur in a natural, orderly and efficient process.
Third Stage of Reading: Evaluation

Evaluation involves a careful assessment of that which has been read and
comprehended. It involves a different area within the brain than that required
for decoding and comprehension. For example, the statement, “Red is green,”
will be evaluated for accuracy and consequently discredited if the individual
words have been read and understood.
 
Fourth Stage of Reading: Application and Retention
Once the information has been read and properly evaluated, it can be
applied in a meaningful way by the reader. He or she can then decide what
to accept or reject and how to apply it to his or her individual needs. Some of
the information may be deemed to be irrelevant or inappropriate, and may be
discarded.
 
Fifth Stage of Reading: Fluency
When the first four steps are functioning comfortably, the reader
usually finds that reading is a pleasant and effective way to learn and
experience factors that would be inaccessible without the knowledge
gleaned from reading.
 
SQ4R stands for survey, question, read, recite, relate, and review

SQ4R is a flexible reading strategy because it engages the reader

during each phase of the reading process. Readers
preview/SURVEY the text material to develop predictions and
set the purpose for the reading by generating QUESTIONS
about the topic
They READ actively, searching for answers to those questions. They monitor their
comprehension as they summarize WRITE and RECITE - They evaluate their
comprehension through REVIEW activities. Two general learning components must be
addressed as you begin the reading process and the SQ4R method will activate them.
Place the reading in CONTEXT. What is the reading about and do you
have any prior knowledge about this subject to help you extract the
meaning that you are looking for? The SURVEY and SYSTEMATIC
reading puts this process into motion. You get an overview that will "jog
your memory" as you search for prior knowledge on the subject. Ask
questions about what you don't know. Make the questions simple and
general if you don't have much prior knowledge and more specific if this is
an area of study that is familiar to you. Using these questions will GUIDE
YOUR SPEED AND COMPREHENSION as you attempt to answer them.
 Tips for improving reading skills

1. Begin from what you already know (activating prior knowledge).

2. Always try to make sense of what you are reading (context).

3. Ask yourself questions; before, during and after reading.
4. Predict and think about what will happen next in the text, or how your questions will
be answered.
5. Read with a purpose. Know why you are reading and what you are reading to find out.
6. Know that as a good reader you often REREAD parts of, or even, the whole text two or more

times in order to make sense of what you are reading.