-
Comprehension Strategies
The ultimate aim of reading is comprehension, making sense of what has been read. When a student satisfactorily comprehends text, he or she is able to summarize it, make connections with it, and respond to it in a personal way. Here are some basic comprehension strategies.
Comprehending a Word's Meaning in Context
-
Skip the confusing word and read to the end of the sentence. Sometimes the author supplies the meaning of the difficult word right in the sentence.
-
Continue reading to find a clue. This may mean reading the next few sentences and then rereading the 2-3 sentences prior to the confusing word.
-
Study the illustrations or diagrams.
-
Think about what you already know about the topic.
-
Reread the difficult section, sometimes several times.
-
Study the word's structure. Look for familiar prefixes, suffixes and root words.
-
Jot down the word on a sticky note and look up the word's meaning.
-
Ask an adult for help after trying the above.
Comprehending Text
-
Preview the Text: Look over titles, headings, bold words, pictures, captions, graphs and questions before reading the text to activate background knowledge.
-
Set a purpose for reading: What do you want to learn or be able to do after reading the text?
-
Plan: What will you do to help meet your purpose for reading? Code the text? Highlight? Complete a graphic organizer? Write question number next to answer found in the text?
-
During reading, remember your purpose and follow through with your plan. Chunk the text and try to summarize each section before reading on. (Monitoring comprehension)
-
After reading, try to summarize what you have read. If you still have questions, scan and revisit the relevant parts of the text. To put the information from the text into long term memory, do something in writing such as a journal entry, graphic organizer or essay. Discussing what has been read with a parent or peer is also suggested.
-
