What Good Readers Do

What Good Readers Do Strategies to help with reading comprehension

Objectives • Students will become familiar with the characteristics of good readers. • Students will begin to practice the reading strategies used by good readers.

Good Reader Strategy #1 • Set a purpose for reading. • Ask yourself: • Why am I reading this book? • Are you reading for: • Enjoyment? • To retell? • To answer questions? • To gain information?

Method of Reading • After you set a PURPOSE for reading, you can decide on a METHOD of reading to use. • Different methods: • Carefully reading and rereading: Reading to confirm meanings and understandings and to clarify details. • Skimming: Reading to gain an overall understanding of the context of the text. • Context means everything that makes up the setting, plot, characters, etc. (The main issues of the text.) • Scanning: Reading only to locate specific information. • Which of these three methods do you use most often, and when do you use this method? When do you use the other two methods of reading?

Good Reader Strategy #2 • Use prior (past) knowledge to make connections • Three types of connections: • Text to Self • Text to Text • Text to World

Text Connections • On the left side of your IN (page 3), explain whether you were able to use your prior knowledge to connect the article “Young Riders” to yourself, other texts, and to the world.

Examples of How to Use Prior Knowledge • Text to Self: • The article, “Young Riders,” reminded me of the time I went horseback riding and it started to rain and got really cold. I can imagine what it must have been like for the young boys who had to ride horses for 75 miles straight in bad weather. • Text to Text: • The article, “Young Riders,” reminds me of a movie I saw about a postman in the 1800s. He wasn’t really hired as a mail carrier, but he posed as one for a while. By the end of the movie, he started to learn how important this job was for people who lived hundreds of miles apart without phones or the internet to connect them. • Text to World: • In our society, nearly everyone has a cellphone and an email address. Even when we do have to wait for something to come in the mail, it comes in just a few days rather than several weeks, like it did in the 1800s when the pony express was created.

Good Reader Strategy #3 • Ask questionsbefore reading, while reading, and after reading. • Questioning helps you keep track of what’s important. • Types of questions: • Who? • What? • Where? • When? • Why? • How? • I wonder…

Questions Before, While, and After Reading “The Great California Earthquake of 1906” • Before Reading: I wonder how big this “great” earthquake was and if anyone was hurt. How many earthquakes have every happened in California? I wonder what it’s like to be in an earthquake. • While Reading: I wonder how much the people in the Great California Earthquake lost. What kinds of damage can earthquakes cause? I wonder what would happen if we were to have a similar sized earthquake today in the same area. • After Reading: Even though people can’t predict when an earthquake will happen, can we predict where earthquakes are likely to happen? 40 seconds doesn’t sound like a very long time – What is the longest lasting earthquake every recorded? I wonder what happened to all of the people left homeless after the earthquake. What would I do if I was ever in a very big earthquake?

Good Reader Strategy #4 • Focus on the most important ideas • Do you remember our Good Reader Strategy #3? • When reading, you should answer these questions: • Who is the story/article about? • What is the person/people doing, and what is the conflict/issue? • Where does the story or article take place? • When does the story or event take place? • Why is the conflict/issue occurring? • How does the story or article end?

“Food Fight” by Kenn Nesbitt • Who is the poem about? • Teachers and students • What is the issue? • There was a food fight and the teachers were distressed; the teachers used some words the students were not supposed to here • Where does the poem take place? • In the lunch room • When does the poem take place? • During lunch • Why is the issue taking place? • Someone threw a bun and other students joined in the fun • How does the poem end? • The students AND the teachers went into detention

Good Reader Strategy #5 • Visualize • Make mental pictures in your head as you read • Make sensory connections • Touch • Smell • Sight • Taste • Sound

“Ode to a Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich”http://www.teenink.com/poetry/all/article/163473/Ode-to-a-Peanut-Butter-and-Jelly-Sandwich/ • Read the poem “Ode to a Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich” • Answer these questions about the poem: • What does the sandwich feel like? • How does the sandwich smell? • What does the sandwich look like? • How does the sandwich taste? • What sounds can you hear while reading the poem?

Good Reader Strategy #6 • Make predictions and inferences • Prediction: saying what you think will happen • Inference: to make a guess based on what you alreadyknow

Practice with Making Inferences Caleb almost wished that he hadn’t listened to the radio. He went to the closet and grabbed his umbrella. He would feel silly carrying it to the bus stop on such a sunny morning. Which of these probably happened to Caleb? • Caleb realized that he had an unnatural fear of falling radio parts. • Caleb had promised himself to do something silly that morning. • Caleb had heard a weather forecast that predicted rain. • Caleb planned to trade his umbrella for a bus ride.

Inference Practice Continued “Samuel, as your boss, I must say it’s been very interesting working with you,” Miss Wade said. “However, it seems that our company’s needs and your performance style are not well matched. Therefore, it makes me very sad to have to ask you to resign your position effective today.” Miss Wad was probably trying to tell Samuel that ________? • She would feel really bad if he decided to quit. • He was being fired. • He was getting a raise in pay. • She really enjoyed having him in the office.

Inference Practice Continued No Sir, I don’t want you to spend a lot of money on my birthday present. Just having you for a grandfather is the only gift I need. In fact, I’ll just drive my old rusty bucket of bolts down to the mall and buy myself a little present. And if the poor old car doesn’t break down, I’ll be back soon. Which of these messages best tell what the speaker was trying to say? • I don’t want a gift. • Buy me a new car. • The mall is fun. • I’ll carry a bucket for you.

Inference Practice Continued Jason and Allison were team captains for the soccer tournament. They were almost done taking turns choosing the people for their teams. It was Allison’s turn to choose, and only Darren was left. Allison said, “Darren.” We can most likely assume that ________ • Darren is not a very good player. • Allison was pleased to have Darren on her team. • Darren was the best player on either team. • Allison was inconsiderate of Darren’s feelings.

Good Reader Strategy #7 • Use strategies to “fix it” when you don’t comprehend at first • Skip ahead • Reread • Use the contextclues • Use the syntax (how the sentence is constructed) • Break the word into parts and sounditout

Good Reader Strategy #8 • Know when you have zoned out during reading

Good Reader Strategy #10 • Retell and summarize what was read

Good Reader Strategy #9 • Study the vocabulary and define any unfamiliar words

What Good Readers Do