Model Reading Strategies To Improve Comprehension For All Students

I'm not a reading teacher. I teach literature." Iby using picture books, photographs, and video
hear this comment repeated again and again as Iclips. The more students know about a topic, the
coach teachers in Virginia, New York, and Michiganbetter their recall and understanding. Moreover,
and conduct workshops for middle and high schoolincreased comprehension enables students to use
teachers around the country. I'm sympathetic tothe facts and details in a text to analyze
their words because these teachers have hadinformation and build new understandings.
little to no formal training in teaching reading.First, I prepare ninth graders to read and visualize
However, reading is a part of daily learning, notusing their senses. I ask them to pair-share about
only in the primary grades, but in grades 4 andsunsets for about three minutes. What did the
up; and studies by the U.S. Department ofsky look like? What did you hear? Smell? Any
Education (2003) indicate that more than 8 millionconnections you made or emotions felt? Here are
students in grades 4 to 12 are struggling readers.some student ideas I wrote on large chart paper:
In addition, high school students in the lowest 25The sky changes color. I see bars of pinks and
percent of their class are 20 times more likely topurples and grays. I feel the soft wind and think
drop out of school than are excellent andof the ocean and the smell of salt. I hear insects
proficient learners (Carnevale, 2001).humming. I see bats. I can taste
For me, the choice of whether or not to teachevening—the dew, the dark that's coming. I
reading — even if you're not a readingremember watching the sun, like a red ball of fire,
teacher — is obvious: Middle and high schooldescend below the mountain me and my family
students need reading instruction, especiallyclimbed.
students who struggle because they read threeNext I read the poem aloud three times. Poems
or more years below grade level. Annually,should be heard and enjoyed before students
struggling readers slide further behind; they can'tanalyze them. With a short selection from a text,
and don't read in English and content subjects, andit's helpful to read it twice and let students know
they don't choose reading as an independentthat they need to listen carefully to observe how
activity.you are applying the strategy. I also like to give
Some schools have added a special readingstudents something to think
intervention class to support striving adolescentabout—something they will do after I
learners, but that's not enough. In an area highmodel.
school, I worked with ninth graders reading on aDuring Reading: This is the time to pause and think
third to fifth grade level. Success was high as longaloud and show how you use your senses to
as students learned at their instructional levels.visualize and build comprehension. Too often, we
However, their self-confidence and motivation toteachers wait to build students' understanding
read roller-coastered each day because in theirafter reading. I want this process to start during
English class they were expected to read Animalreading. Here's my think-aloud for the poem:
Farm (1993) by George Orwell as well as ninthRobb's Think-Aloud:The words ships, toss, and
grade–level textbooks in science and socialseas make me compare the sunset to the ocean.
studies. In my class, students rode the crest ofThe word toss makes me feel a wind that
the roller coaster and earned A's and B's; in othermoves purple strips across the sky. Seas
classes, their ride plummeted to the valleys asconnects me to the blueness of the sky and
they earned D's and F's.helps me feel and see how vast the sky and sea
We can repair this disconnect between anare. Daffodil helps me imagine the bits of yellow
intervention class and the regular ninth gradesun that still light up the sky. The name of the
curriculum by taking an interrelated two-prongedflower with a golden trumpet raises memories of
approach: supplying middle and high schoolthe sounds of evening that approaches and the
teachers with multiple texts at diverse readingsound of the wind gently tossing ribbons of clouds.
levels for instruction and providing ongoingThe last two lines also use ocean words. Fantastic
professional study that shows teachers how tosailors creates a picture of purples and yellows in
use multiple texts and teach reading strategies todifferent shapes. Mingle helps me see the colors
reach every student in classes with mixed readingmixing as evening approaches. Wharf in the last
levels (Robb, 2007; Tomlinson, 1999, 2002).line means a dock, and I hear the waves lapping, I
Let's look at the experience of Katie, a teachertaste the salty evening, I see darkness settling in
that I coach. Katie teaches a ninth gradejust like a ship docks at a wharf. I think Dickinson
heterogeneous English class at Lee High School inis using the sea to help me picture the sunset as
Staunton, Virginia. In a study of life in the Southshe saw it. The sea images narrow the kinds of
prior to civil rights legislation, she was teaching Topictures and connections I can make.
Kill a Mockingbird (1982) by Harper Lee, a bookAt this point I invite students to pair-share about
that only 30 percent of the students could read.my think-aloud and offer their observations. Here
So she expanded the possibilities by adding Mildredare some points ninth graders made:
Taylor's Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry (1976), TheI think you reading it a few times helped me see
Friendship (1987), and The Gold Cadillac (1987).the sea words. I never thought that the sea and
This way, every student was able to read andsunset had that much in common. It's like she
contribute to discussions and projects. Katie[Dickinson] used one big comparison.
explained that the benefits went beyond engagingAt this point, I compliment students on their
students in texts they could read to bringingthinking and listening and introduce the phrase
multiple perspectives to this pre-civil rights study"extended metaphor." I explain that it is the same
(Robb, 2002; Zarnowski, 2006). Katie also includedcomparison used throughout the poem and that
teaching reading and vocabulary strategies withinDickinson helped us visualize and use our senses
the research-tested three-part readingto see the sunset she saw by comparing it to the
framework of applying strategies before, during,sea and using words we associate with the sea.
and after reading (Gillet & Temple, 1990;After Reading: This is a time for reflection, which
Robb, 2000, 2007; Tierney & Readence,aids recall and the skill of making connections, and
2000).can include discussion, writing, drawing, etc. It's
The Read-Aloud: A Multipurpose Teachingalso the appropriate time for students to apply
Strategywhat they have learned to other texts.
To accomplish the shift from teaching one bookI divide these ninth graders into groups of four,
to all students to using multiple texts, I use thegive each one a poem with an extended
read-aloud as a common teaching text. Not onlymetaphor, and invite them to explore and
am I reading aloud to model how strategies work,discover the comparison and use this along with
but I'm also developing students' listening skills. Thetheir senses to visualize, build comprehension, and
common texts I choose are short — Imake connections. Each group has its own copy
teach with poetry; passages from picture books,of the poem and one copy on an overhead
short stories, and articles; and sections fromtransparency so the group can present its learning
longer texts. If the selection is complex, I maketo the class.
an overhead transparency so students can followClosing Thoughts
my modeling.When you show with think-alouds how a strategy
This thinking aloud is important for all middle andworks, students can step inside your head and
high school learners, for it shows them whatbetter understand how visualizing (or another
happens in your mind and emotional center as youstrategy) supports reading. Moreover, using the
read. When I ask struggling readers what goes onread-aloud as your common teaching text will
inside their minds when they read, the response isenable you to offer groups reading materials they
unanimous: "Nothing!" Their reaction helps mecan apply the strategy to because they can read
understand why they don't read, for readingthem.
texts without imagining, questioning, connecting,References
thinking, and feeling is simply saying words. EachCarnavale, A. P. (2001).Help wanted...college
time you model how reading strategies workrequired. Washington, DC: Educational Testing
becomes an opportunity to show students whatService, Office of Public Leadership.
happens inside your mind when reading isGillet , J. W., & Temple, C.
enjoyable.(1990).Understanding reading problems:
One of the most powerful strategies forAssessments and instruction (3rd ed.). New York:
supporting the development of mental picturesHarperCollins.
and connections is visualizing. And when youLee, H. (1982, orig. publ. 1960).To kill a mockingbird.
include as many of the five senses as you canNew York: Warner Books.
— seeing, hearing, tasting, touching, smellingOrwell, G. (1993, orig. publ. 1945).Animal farm. New
— you enrich visualizations by buildingYork: Everyman's Library.
connections with past experiences and theRobb, L. (2000).Teaching reading in middle school:
emotions surrounding them.A strategic approach to reading that improves
Let me walk you through a lesson that Icomprehension and thinking. New York: Scholastic.
facilitated for ninth graders on visualizing. I usedRobb, L. (2002). Multiple text: Multiple opportunities
the following four-line poem by Emily Dickinson:for teaching and learning.Voices from the Middle,
SUNSET9(4), 28-32.
Where ships of purple gently toss On seas ofRobb, L. (2003).Teaching reading in social studies,
daffodil, Fantastic sailors mingle, And thenscience, and math: Practical ways to weave
— the wharf is still.comprehension strategies into your content area
One purpose of describing the lesson here is toteaching. New York: Scholastic.
demonstrate that creating mental pictures withRobb, L. (2008).Differentiating reading instruction.
sensory images and memories can increaseNew York: Scholastic.
comprehension and build strong personalTaylor, M. (1976).Roll of thunder, hear my cry.
connections. The "walk-through" below providesNew York: Viking.
suggestions along with my think-alouds that canTaylor, M. (1987).The friendship. New York: Puffin.
guide your planning for building reading instructionTaylor M. (1987).The gold Cadillac. New York:
around the three-part framework.Puffin.
Paint Mental Images Using YourTierney, R. J., & Readence, J. E.
Senses—Before-, During-, and(2000).Reading strategies and practices: A
After-Reading Strategiescompendium. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
In addition to showing students how using theTomlinson, C. A. (1999).The differentiated
senses can increase understanding by buildingclassroom: Responding to the needs of all learners.
strong mental pictures, I wanted them toAlexandria, VA: ASCD.
discover and come to understand what anTomlinson, C. A. (2002, September). Different
extended metaphor was through their experiencelearners, different lessons.Instructor Magazine.
and my think-aloud.U.S. Department of Education. (2003).Nation's
Before Students Read: Reading starts beforereport card: Reading 2002. Washington, DC:
opening a text, and getting students ready toNational Center for Education Statistics.
read is as important for them as it is for you andZarnowski, M. (2006).Making sense of history:
me. When students share with a partner and thenUsing high-quality literature and hands-on
with the entire class, preparation can enlargeexperiences to build content knowledge. New
background knowledge and introduce vocabulary.York: Scholastic.
At this point, students' responses let you know(Originally published at ADLIT In Perspective, April,
whether they have enough background2007 and reprinted with permission of the author,
information to proceed with the reading. If not,Laura Robb).
take some time to build students' prior knowledge