Post Reading Activities - How Teachers Can End a Lesson Effectively

Post-reading activities serve several purposeslearning cannot be substituted for content.
- To obtain a sense of closureStudents need to redigest or synthesize the
- To personalize the main activityinformation again, but in a different less linear
- To summarize, reinforce and evaluate what wasperhaps more creatively depending on how well a
doneteacher knows her students.
Post-reading activities for teachers:Graphic Representations and Graphic Organizers
- To practice / review new vocabularyGraphic organizers and representations have been
encountered in the textfound a very helpful tool in helping pupils
- To practice / review grammatical structurescomprehend a text of any subject and level.
encountered in the textFor lower performing students: the teacher,
A post activity should be the last 5-10 minutes ofhaving introduced organizers previously and having
the lesson. In a reading lesson for example, thereanalyzed the text, provides the organizer as a
is a difference between applying the activity at anworksheet. The pupils fill in the relevant
earlier stage of the reading process and at theinformation either while reading or post reading. If
post reading stage. This difference is due to thefilled out initially during the reading, the post
quantity and quality of information possessed byreading activity requires a review and revision of
the reader.the previous stage.
Some generic lesson endings are :For stronger pupils: the students who are already
- Asking the students what was taught and done.familiar with several graphic organizers create
This could be written on the board. Students couldtheir own graphic organizer and fill in the relevant
then give a grade for each lesson part and/orinformation.
discuss how effective it was taught.In a mixed ability class the stronger students can
- Reviewing the goals of the lessonscreate the graphic organizer (which should be
- Having a question and answer session.checked by the teacher) to be filled in by the
Please note: Many teachers often confuse givinglower performing students.
homework as a post activity. Procedure based