Fostering Deep Comprehension In The Classroom

Common Core and Literacy Strategies: English Language Arts Module 3 Reading: Fostering Deep Comprehension inthe ClassroomFostering Deep Comprehension in the ClassroomIn the last module, you learned about the importance of text complexity in creatingtruly literate students who are ready to live and work in the 21st century. Critical toreading complex texts, of course, is student understanding of these texts. Students“must show a steadily growing ability to discern more from and make fuller use oftext, including making an increasing number of connections among ideas andbetween texts, considering a wider range of textual evidence, and becoming moresensitive to inconsistencies, ambiguities, and poor reasoning in texts” (CommonCore State Standards Initiative (CCSSI), 2010, p. 8). In this article, we will use theterm comprehension to mean this wider understanding.Common Core State Standards: ReadingHistorically, English language arts classes have focused primarily on literary texts—stories, poems, and dramas. The CCSS places a far greater emphasis on studentengagement with informational texts. As you consider the reading standards, focusespecially on how these standards will apply to informational texts, which you willneed to be using more often in your classroom.In the CCSS, the college and career readiness anchor standards for reading arebroken down into four basic elements: The ability to determine key ideas and details:o what is clearly stated versus what is inferredo textual evidence that supports conclusionso analysis of people, events, and ideas An understanding of craft and structure:o word choice and tone—connotative, literal, and figurative

Common Core and Literacy Strategies: English Language Arts Module 3 Reading: Fostering Deep Comprehension inthe Classroomo analysis of structureo point of view and style The integration of knowledge and ideas in various content formats:o evaluate content from diverse mediao evaluation of arguments and reasoningo comparison of texts A wide range of reading and text complexity, including literary andinformational textsA Sampling of Standards: Informational Text and LiteratureThe Common Core State Standards break each of the basic four elements ofreading down into clear and progressive grade level standards. For example, bothliterature and informational reading have “integration of knowledge and ideas”standards in which students evaluate and analyze content from multiple sources.Here’s an example of the same “integration of knowledge and ideas” standard forinformational texts written for four different grade levels. Notice how the standard—which is focused on identifying and evaluating information—develops through thegrades. In kindergarten, students are actually looking at illustrations to evaluate howthey support the text. By Grades 11 and 12, students are evaluating informationpresented in different media.KindergartenGrade 4Grade 7Grades 11–12With prompting andsupport, describe therelationship betweenillustrations and thetext in which theyappear.Interpret informationpresented visually,orally, orquantitatively andexplain how theinformationcontributes to anunderstanding of thetext.Compare andcontrast a text to anaudio, video, ormultimedia versionof the text, analyzingeach medium’sportrayal of thesubject.Integrate andevaluate multiplesources ofinformationpresented in differentmedia or formats.

Common Core and Literacy Strategies: English Language Arts Module 3 Reading: Fostering Deep Comprehension inthe ClassroomTo see how the informational standards compare to the literature standards, take alook at an “integration of knowledge and ideas” standard for literature that alsofocuses on identifying and evaluating content:KindergartenGrade 4Grade 7Grades 11–12With prompting andsupport, describe therelationship betweenillustrations and thestory in which theyappear.Make connectionsbetween the text of astory or drama and avisual or oralpresentation of thetext, identifyingwhere each versionreflects specificdescriptions anddirections in the text.Compare andcontrast a writtenstory, drama, orpoem to its audio,filmed, staged, ormultimedia version,analyzing the effectsof techniques uniqueto each medium.Analyze multipleinterpretations of astory, drama, orpoem, evaluatinghow each versioninterprets the sourcetext.By looking at the reading standards for both informational text and literature, youcan see that they are similar in focus but different in what students are required toanalyze, based on the type of text they are reading.A Comprehension FocusBefore teachers can get down to the nitty-gritty of using comprehension strategies inthe classroom, they need to think about the overall milieu of their class. Is yourinstructional style conducive to successful comprehension for all students? In theirarticle “Reading Comprehension: What Works” (1994), authors Linda G. Fieldingand P. David Pearson suggest four components to any successful comprehensioninstruction: Ample amounts of reading time—Students need to practice reading and theyneed to be engaged in what they are reading. As they read, they gainknowledge.

Common Core and Literacy Strategies: English Language Arts Module 3 Reading: Fostering Deep Comprehension inthe Classroom Comprehension strategies—Teachers cannot assume that students willunderstand what they read. Instead, teachers should provide (and model for)students specific strategies that will help them before, during, and after theyread. (See below for specific strategies.) Peer and collaborative learning—Students rarely learn best in isolation. Inmore cooperative learning activities, students build community and learn about atext through other people’s thinking processes. Discussion with teachers and peers—Comprehension is aided in groupdiscussions particularly when the teacher does not control the discussion orforce an interpretation of a text (p. 65).Pre-Reading, During-Reading, and Post-Reading StagesThink about the reading process as having three stages—pre-reading, duringreading, and post-reading. Each of these stages provides opportunities for studentsto read deeply a range of increasingly complex text, as called for in the CCSS. Thefollowing table defines three stages of reading:Stage 1: Pre-ReadingStudents assess what priorknowledge they have of thecontent being taught andestablish their purpose forreading.Stage 2: During-ReadingStudents determine theirlevel of comprehension byvisualizing, clarifying areasthat are still confusing, andbeginning to makeconnections with the text.Stage 3: Post-ReadingStudents deepen theirunderstanding of thecontent, build furtherconnections, and expandtheir knowledge of thesubject matter.Several simple strategies that assist students in comprehending subject matter canbe easily implemented into any lesson plan. These strategies not only help studentsconnect with the ideas being presented to them in the text, but also support them inreading complex text closely with attention to detail. The reading skills they learnthrough these strategies will be invaluable not only in the K-12 school career, butwill prepare them for the kinds of reading required for college and career.

Common Core and Literacy Strategies: English Language Arts Module 3 Reading: Fostering Deep Comprehension inthe ClassroomWhen students employ one or more comprehension strategies while reading a text,they actually understand and retain more of the content. Moreover, teachers findthat they do not have to engage in the frustrating task of reteaching materialbecause the necessary background knowledge has already been established instudents’ memories.The following table provides suggested general comprehension strategies for eachstage of the reading process whether reading literature of informational texts.Stage 1: Pre-ReadingStrategies: Predicting Skimming Reading the title andsection headings Identifying what priorknowledge one has onthe topic Learning importantvocabulary wordsStage 2: During-ReadingStrategies: Rereading Making predictions Asking questions Answering questions Constructing mentalpictures Identifying unknownvocabulary Summarizing along thewayStage 3: Post-ReadingStrategies: Rereading Evaluating whether thepurpose for reading wasmet Confirming predictions Summarizing Reflecting Questioning Thinking about how thematerial connects toone’s own lifeStrategies for Reading in English Language ArtsLet’s take a look at a few specific comprehension strategies that require students toread actively. Remember to consider the type of text students are reading and theobjective set for reading that text before choosing the strategy students will use.K-W-L (What I Know; Want To Learn; Learned)This strategy is particularly good for use with informational text. This strategy takesreaders through all the stages of reading. Before reading a text, students completethe first two columns of a K-W-L chart. In the K column, students are identifying anyprior knowledge they have on the subject. In order to determine this, they will likelyhave to preview the text, reading the title, section headings, and any captions ordiagrams. As part of completing the W column, students are questioning and

Common Core and Literacy Strategies: English Language Arts Module 3 Reading: Fostering Deep Comprehension inthe Classroompredicting, among other things, what they might learn while reading the text. As theycomplete the L column, after students complete the reading, they are usingstrategies such as summarizing, confirming predictions, and reflecting.For example, if the topic is “whales,” students list what they already know aboutwhales in the K column. In the W column, they record what they would like to findout. Students can and should get very specific. Now students read the material—with their own goals in mind. As they read, additional questions may arise and canbe added to the W column of the chart. After they read, they fill in the final columnlabeled L, answering as many of the W questions as they can. Other versions of theK-W-L chart add another W column for what else they would like to learn and an Hcolumn for how they will locate that information.KWhat I knowWhales are large mammals.WWhat I want to learnHow big are the largest whales?LWhat I learnedThe blue whale is the largestanimal known to man.Venn Diagram: Comparing and ContrastingIn the domain of integration of knowledge and ideas, the CCSS has a standard thatrequires students to compare and contrast various literary elements, depending onthe grade level. For example, students compare two characters from a story using aVenn diagram. Or they might be asked to compare two separate texts. Studentsreceive the Venn diagram before they begin reading. They fill it in during or afterthey read, identifying elements that are unique to and similar to both items beingcompared. The diagram serves as a tool from which students can explain theirthinking about the characters in a story or the attributes of two texts. They can usethe diagram to help them summarize their findings or to make connections to othercontent or experiences.