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Comprehension: Beyond literal understanding

Lynda Goldrick

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• Overview of comprehension • Strategies • How do I teach the Strategies? : Gradual

release of responsibility • Guiding comprehension Booklet (PDST)

Objectives of session

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“Comprehension is defined as intentional thinking during which meaning is constructed through interactions between reader and text”

Harris and Hodges (1995)

Comprehension is a process in which readers construct meaning by interacting with text through the combination of prior knowledge and previous experience, information in the text and the stance the reader takes in relation to the text Pardo, 2004

What is Comprehension?

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“Comprehension strategies are the unobservable in the head thought processes

and reading behaviours that good readers use to understand text”

Clay 1991

Reading recovery….

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“The ultimate objective of reading is

comprehension or the reconstruction of meaning”

“The vast majority of comprehension should be oral in nature. Written exercises for comprehension should be the

exception rather than the norm” TG

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Components of the Reading Process

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What key components need to be incorporated into the teaching of

comprehension ?

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Variables of Comprehension Prior Knowledge

Word identification skills

Decoding skills

Reading fluency

Personal engagement

Motivation

Vocab Development

Comprehension Strategies

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• Not too easy, not too hard, just right……

• Instructional level 90%-95% accuracy.

• 9-10 words correct.

• Need for automatic word recognition and decoding.

• More difficult texts can

be read to weaker readers

and comprehension will occur.

Goldilocks effect

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Building Bridges of Understanding

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• A clear detailed account of the strategy and its use

• Child-friendly language • An account of what the strategy is, how we

use it and why we use it • It is co-created with the children • It fosters a common language surrounding the

strategy. • The anchor chart hangs visibly in the

classroom • Children refer to it as needed

Anchor Chart what is it?

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• Predicting

• Visualisation

• Making Connections

• Questioning

• Clarifying/ Declunking

• Determining Importance

• Inference

• Synthesis

Strategies

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• “Prediction is thinking about what might happen in the story, using the information you have amassed so far to make a sensible guess as to what might happen next. It can occur before, during or even after reading.”

Predicting ( Infants- 6thclass)

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• As we read our mind creates images in response to details in the text. These images can be sensory in nature, including not only sight but also taste, smell, sounds and touch. Our ability to visualise is linked to our prior knowledge and experiences.

Visualisation (Infants- 6thclass)

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• When good readers think about a text they consider how it relates to their own life experiences and knowledge. In doing so they make connections with the text, deepening their own understanding.

Making Connections (Infants-6th class)

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• Text to Self Connections - where a link is established between the text and the reader’s own life. This is a highly personal connection.

• Text to Text Connections – where a link is identified between two sections of the same book or another piece of literature.

• Text to Wider World – a link between the text and knowledge derived from another source such as films, environment or newspapers.

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Questioning involves the reader generating questions before, during and after reading. The first questions a reader may have will be based on the title, the front cover and perhaps the blurb of the story. As the reader progresses through the story more questions will be generated based on the information they read. At the end of a story, the reader may be left with more questions in his/her head.

Questioning (Infants-6th class)

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• Seeking Clarification involves equipping readers with that vast array of ways to actively repair any comprehension problems they may have. It involves assisting readers to become flexible, adaptive and independent in monitoring their understanding.

Clarifying/ Declunking (3rd-6th class)

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When the texts stops making sense it is vital that the reader acknowledges this and stops. The first step is to identify the issue impeding comprehension. Generally they fall into two categories:

• There is a word/ phrase/ idea that is confusing me – I need it clarified.

• There is a word I cannot read/decode – I need this declunked.

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• When proficient readers read a piece of text, they unconsciously separate the essential from the non- essential information they determine what is important in the text.

Determining Importance ( 1st-6th class)

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Children should be enabled to:

• Identify all key pieces of information or facts

• Sort this information into categories according to the task

• Order the facts in an appropriate way.

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Inference is a process whereby a proficient reader blends information from the text with his/her schema and prior knowledge to create opinions that are not explicitly state by the author but are inferred through hints etc.

Inference (2nd-6th class)

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Synthesis is a complex, evolving process where a reader constructs and manipulates meaning during and after reading. For teachers, synthesis should be described as when children use all their comprehension skills, that have been explicitly taught and modelled, to construct their own individual meaning from a piece of text.

Synthesis (3rd-6th class)

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How do I teach the strategies?

The PDST is funded by the Department of Education and Skills under the National Development Plan, 2007-2013

Gallagher and Pearson – Gradual Release of Responsibility Model

© PDST, 2010

35

Gradual Release of Responsibility

Guiding The teacher provides scaffolds for students to use the strategy. Teacher provides feedback.

Students work with help from the teacher and peers to practise the use of the strategy using a variety of problems

Sharing The teacher continues to demonstrate the use of the strategy with a range of problems inviting students to contribute ideas and information.

Students contribute ideas and begin to practise the use of the strategy in whole-class situations.

Modelling The teacher demonstrates and explains the strategy being introduced. This is achieved by thinking aloud the mental processes used when using the strategy

The students participate by actively attending to the demonstrations.

Applying The teacher offers support and encouragement as necessary.

The students work independently to apply the strategy in context across the curriculum.

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1. Modelling

• Whole class activity – Teacher led

• Most significant step when teaching any

reading strategy

• Think Aloud – unlocks “secret”

• Articulate thinking

• Needs to be well planned, focused and

thought out session

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• Whole class activity – Teacher led, children

contribute

• Children and teacher think through text

together

• Teacher continues to demonstrate strategy

• Children invited to contribute ideas and

information during demonstration

2. Sharing

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• Small group activity – scaffold provided by

the teacher

• Practise strategy in meaningful reading

context when using a variety of texts

• On-going feedback and support

3. Guiding

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• Children taking charge of their own reading

• Can be paired or squared to allow for Talk and Discussion and sharing of ideas

• DEAR (Drop Everything And Read)

• USSR (Uninterrupted Sustained Silent Reading)

• SURE (Sustained Uninterrupted Reading for Enjoyment)

• Book Clubs / Book Discussion Groups

4. Independent

The PDST is funded by the Department of Education and Skills under the National Development Plan, 2007-2013

Gallagher and Pearson – Gradual Release of Responsibility Model

© PDST, 2010

40

Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge

Role of the

Teacher

Role of the

Student

Guiding The teacher provides scaffolds for students to use the strategy. Teacher provides feedback.

Students work with help from the teacher and peers to practise the use of the strategy using a variety of problems

Sharing The teacher continues to demonstrate the use of the strategy with a range of problems inviting students to contribute ideas and information.

Students contribute ideas and begin to practise the use of the strategy in whole-class situations.

Modelling The teacher demonstrates and explains the strategy being introduced. This is achieved by thinking aloud the mental processes used when using the strategy

The students participate by actively attending to the demonstrations.

Applying The teacher offers support and encouragement as necessary.

The students work independently to apply the strategy in context across the curriculum.

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Guiding Comprehension Booklet

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