Understanding Vocabulary and Figurative Language - Goal 11

I'm joining a few other terrific bloggers in reading this book by Jennifer Serravallo and sharing our thoughts about the goal and 3 strategies from the book each week!

If you're just joining us now, no worries!  You can catch up quickly by following the links below:

Introduction & Goals 1-4

Goal 5: Understanding Plot & Setting

Goal 6- Thinking About Characters

Goal 7: Understanding Themes and Ideas

Goal 8: Determining Main Topic(s) and Idea(s)

Goal 9: Determining Key Details

Goal 10: Getting the Most From Text Features

Goal 11:Understanding Vocabulary and Figurative Language

Why is this goal important?  

Understanding vocabulary when reading is crucial for reading comprehension.  The research is clear on this and it's important to include instruction on word meaning and vocabulary into our classrooms.

Who needs this strategy:

• students that don't do well on a standardized word assessment
• students that have difficulty determining meanings of unknown words within text
• students that have difficulty finding clues in text for inferring meaning

The author cautions that we are not trying to determine student word knowledge but rather we want to know if they can use the text to infer the meaning of the unknown word. 

 "Multiple Meaning Words"

Who is it for: Levels J-Z+ 

What Genre/Text: any

Skills Used: monitoring for meaning, inferring

This strategy encourages students to think about whether a multiple meaning word is being used when something isn't making sense within the context when reading.  Students are suggested to read before and after.  Think about how it's used and choose a definition that makes sense.

Prompt students to 

• think about how the word is being used 
• think about what meanings you know for the word  
• is there another meaning that would make sense here in the text?

Using an anchor chart like the one below may help to model how to think/list the multiple meanings of a word.

Source

Here's another chart to help work on multiple meanings of words!

Source

 "Infer to Figure it Out"

Who is it for: Levels L-Z+ 

What Genre/Text: any

Skills Used: inferring

This strategy involves getting students to stop when they come to an unknown word and use clues from the text or picture to help you guess the meaning of the word. 

Prompt students by reminding them to stop for unknown words; check the pictures for clues; and to keep reading past the unknown word. 

This anchor chart below shows one way to get students to focus on using different ways of inferring to determine the meaning of words.

Source

I'm stopping here after two strategies today as this post is late. 

I hope you are enjoying this series as much as I am! 

An Awesome Reading Discussion Series Continues!

It's Thursday - so that means that The Reading Strategies Book discussion series continues!

I have a couple of freebie items to go with this week's goal topic too...so keep reading!

I'm joining a few other terrific bloggers in reading this book by Jennifer Serravallo and sharing our thoughts about the goal and 3 strategies from the book each week!

If you're just joining us now, no worries!  You can catch up quickly by following the links below:

Introduction & Goals 1-4

Goal 5: Understanding Plot & Setting

Goal 6- Thinking About Characters

Goal 7: Understanding Themes and Ideas

Goal 8: Determining Main Topic(s) and Idea(s)

Goal 9: Determining Key Details

This Week We're Looking at Goal 10: Getting the Most from Text Features

Why is this goal Important?

Research has indicated that despite all the teaching that is done on text features, most of it has to do with identifying the text features.  Jennifer, the author, believes that we need to go much more beyond that!  We need to spend considerable time "teaching students to use the features to get more information" from the nonfiction text.  We need to show students how to "synthesize the visual and textual information." 

How to Tell If A Student Needs to Work on This Goal:

Here's a continuum of level of understanding students might have in text features.  The list begins with the lowest level and progresses to higher levels of understanding about nonfiction features.

• student ignores text features
• can only name the feature
• names and knows its purpose
• can explain what text features are teaching
• deeper explanation of text features including combining information from the text and the feature
• can connect feature not only to text but also to other features included

Ways to get to know what your student knows about text features are through conferencing with the student, asking questions, having students jot down thoughts as reading, written answers to questions etc.  Kindergarten students might not get beyond the identifying of the features, but the author states that by 5th grade reading levels, students should be able to do all.

Time to move onto the Strategies that you can use with students to improve their skills.

 "Reread and Sketch with More Detail"

Who is it for: Levels A-Z+ 

What Genre/Text: nonfiction

Skills Used: visualizing, monitoring for meaning

This strategy involves reading the text.  Then stopping to sketch a picture based on what you remember of what you just read.  Reread the text again and try to add more details to the first sketch.  Keep repeating this process until you think you have all the important information sketched into your drawing.

In my 3rd grade classroom, I would model this process for students at first.  Then do one together and then release them to try on their own. (I do, we do, you do method.)

I also think there would need to be a discussion between a sketch and a detailed drawing.  The sketch is quick and as we continue adding to it, it will become a detailed drawing.

Prompts to use while students are working with you: 

• picture what you just read
• jot down a sketch
• Did you get more information after rereading?  Add it to the sketch.
• Can you get more details?  Let's try!
• Wow!  Look at all the details you have now that you've read it several times!

I'm wondering if it might be worthy to have them use a different colored pencil each time...that way they could see how each successive reading helped to add details.

 "Cover Up Then Zoom In"

Who is it for: Levels A-Z+

What Genre/Text: nonfiction

Skills Used: questioning, determining importance

Getting students to use the text and not the visuals at first is what this strategy is all about.  Use a sticky note to cover the images on the page.  Read the text and think about what it's all about.  The the sticky note would come off and then zoom into the image to see what new information might be found!    

Prompt the students with: "What new information am I learning with this image?  What parts of what I just read are shown in this image?"

NOTE: The author states that this strategy might not work as well

 with the youngest of readers because they most often need to use

 the pictures to help them read the text.

I think this could be done with younger readers if the teacher reads the text to the class without showing pictures first.  Then after reading students could be shown the picture to see what new information comes from it.

I found a site called SMEKENS that has an example of an opposite method: eliminating the text and leaving the images first!  Students would look at images first to see what they've learned and then would be shown the text.  They have a couple of sample pages (with and without text) that you can download.  Click {HERE} to go to the site to get your own copy!

 "Cracking Open Headings"

Who is it for: Levels P-Z+ 

What Genre/Text: expository nonfiction

Skills Used: inferring

As the authors says, most headings are clear in their meaning, but sometimes the author gets creative and crafts a heady that makes the meaning/relationship to the text unclear.  

This strategy involves looking at the headings and if any have a creative title or are confusing, write down the heading title in the chart's first column. 

Then go to the beginning of that section and read.  As you read, try to figure out why the author chose that heading and what it might mean.  

Can you figure out what the heading means now?  Write the meaning in the second column.  

Now rename the heading with one that makes sense to you and write it in the last column.
The chart would look something like this:

You can get a copy of my version of this chart from Dropbox {HERE}!

If you've been following along and haven't picked up a copy of this book, I wouldn't hesitate anymore!  

I think this book is a game changer!  (And....I'm not getting anything for saying that!  That's just my own personal thought!)

What do you think of these strategies?  Would  you be able to use them in your grade level?  Let me know in the comments below!

Enjoy!

The Reading Strategies Book Club: Goal 9

Today, I'm linking up with other blogger friends to host the review of Goal 9 from The Reading Strategies Book by Jennifer Serravallo!

You can find my other reviews of goals below:

Goal 8 - HERE

Goal 7 - HERE

Goal 6 - HERE

Goal 5 - HERE

To see with the introduction and the first 4 chapters (which I missed) click {HERE}. 

Let's get into this week's goal: Determining Key Details 

Why is this goal important?

Jennifer explains that there is a difference between identify details and being able to identify the key details.  It's important to not only know what the text is about, but to be able to read through a text and identify the facts that "align with the main idea."  

I like the analogy she uses to explain the need for students to know the key details of a text: she says determining key details is using a highlighter in text to only highlight the facts to go with your main purpose for reading vs. highlighting everything in the text.

In early grades (K-1) almost all the information is related to the main idea, but Jennifer says "that as the text get complex, the density of information increases" and "the task of supporting an idea with related details becomes more challenging."  By 4th and 5th grade level text, there can be multiple ideas presented within a page of text.

How to tell if your students need to practice this skill:

• support a topic with little detail
• when their support for a main idea is based on one paragraph or just the photo in the text.
• give you a list of random information that may fit the topic but may not
• they can state the main idea but are not able to support if with specific information without prompting
• need support/help in knowing which details are the most important

There are so many strategies that are in this book for each goal, that I'm only sharing 3 each week.  Here are the ones I chose to share:

9.3 "A Spin on KWL"

Who is it for: Levels A-Z+ 

What Genre/Text: nonfiction

Skills Used: activating prior knowledge

This strategy gets students to think before reading about what they are sure they know, what they think they know and what they wonder about the topic.  So...

Instead of this K-W-L

Source

Use This K-W-L:

You can get this new K-W-L {HERE}!

NOTE: Jennifer does not say that the student has to fill out a written KWL - it can certainly be done orally!  The focus should be to get students to think about the 3 parts prior to reading.

Let's take a look at the next strategy I chose to share with you this week:

9.4 "Check Yourself"

Who is it for: Levels A-Z+

What Genre/Text: nonfiction

Skills Used: monitoring for meaning

The Check Yourself strategy is used when you're reading and you realize that something is confusing and not making sense.  We need to teach students to stop, reread, and think about what is confusing and why.  

Jennifer says to prompt the student to think: Did I misread a fact?  Is it different than what I thought I knew?

Reread - based on what you read, what are  you thinking about what you knew before or based on what you read are you thinking you misread it the first time?

The book shares a poster that is circular in nature called "Check Yourself"

It is a visual of the steps in this strategy: 

READ - Notice Confusion - Reread - Revise Your Thinking - and back to Read.

Moving onto the final strategy this week:

9.19 "Event Connections"

Who is it for: Levels P-Z+ 

What Genre/Text: narrative nonfiction

Skills Used: understanding cause and effect, sequencing, summarizing

This strategy is for historical narratives that often contain lots of details and information that are usually hard to keep track of.

Source

Source

The author suggests keeping track of these events by jotting them on paper in a timeline fashion with a few key words.  This will create a flow-chart of events that will remind students of the important events in the book and their relationships.

Jennifer also suggests that students may need to have help with using the strategies for goal 5 which was understanding plot and setting.  She states that some of those strategies even though fiction in nature could be adapted to the narrative fiction to assist students in understanding flashbacks or foreshadowing that may occur in these texts.

Well - that covers the 3 strategies that I'm focusing on today!  Make sure you check out what other bloggers are choosing as strategies to focus on for this week....click {HERE} to see!

Join us in reading this book!  Get your own copy HERE.

I really would like to hear your thoughts on this goal or on the whole book series so far....just leave a comment below!

The Reading Strategies Book Club: Goal 8

I'm joining up with fellow bloggers again to review the book: The Reading Strategies Book by Jennifer Serravallo!  

Thank you to those who have joined me for previous posts in this book study.  If you're new this week, you might want to go back and read the following:

Goal 7 - HERE

Goal 6 - HERE

Goal 5 - HERE

To see with the introduction and the first 4 chapters (which I missed) click {HERE}.  This link brings you to Kelly Malloy's site An Apple For The Teacher. 

This week we are taking a look at goal 8: 

Determining Main Topics and Ideas (nonfiction)

 

Why is this goal important?

Students need to know more about the main idea or topic of what they read in nonfiction.  Comprehension of nonfiction text is more than just being able to recall a couple of interesting facts'  This goal is about learning how to understand the entire section of text.  As students progress through to higher reading levels, the text may have multiple main ideas and the need for nonfiction comprehension is critical.

How to tell if your students need to practice this skill:

Jennifer gives several ideas for how to assess students in this skill both formal and informal methods.  You'll know a student needs practice when they can't give you the main idea of the whole text or article; if they give you only a few facts or only give the main idea of a part of the text.

Here's the 1st strategy I've chosen to spotlight this week:

8.2 "Notice What Repeats"

Who is it for: Levels A-I

What Genre/Text: Nonfiction

Skills Used: determining importance

  
Students would use this strategy to figure out what a book is mostly about and it involves looking and paying attention to what is repeating on each page.
Jennifer uses a picture from a book about ostriches to show this strategy.  The pictures and text repeatedly uses and shows information about the ostrich's nest.  In the example there are sticky notes with arrows pointing to each section that shows the repetition.  That's a clue that the main idea of this section is ostrich lay eggs in nests that are different from other birds.

Jennifer also briefly explains the different between main topic and main idea.  In early reading levels, (before level J), books have a main topic.  Main idea is more than the main topic.  For example in the above ostrich example: 
Main topic is Ostriches
Main idea is an ostrich has a different kind of nest than most other birds.
NOTE: the author says that for students at the lower levels expecting them to identify main idea may be too difficult; identifying the main topic is sufficient.

Prompt students to notice what repeats - on the page, in text, the pictures.  Have them look for what's the same and use that to state the main idea/topic.

Here's the 2nd strategy I chose:

8.2 "Opinion - Reasons - Evidence"

Who is it for: Levels M-Z+

What Genre/Text: Expository nonfiction

Skills Used: determining importance, synthesizing

This strategy involves noticing how the text is organized.  Sometimes the author may come right out and express their opinion and then offers the details 
OR 
the author may start with details and then the author concludes with an opinion.

Paying attention to and following the structure of the evidence, reasons, and opinion will help you to identify the main idea.

I created a poster based on the example shown in the book:

Click {HERE} to download the PDF file for this poster.

Finally, the 3rd strategy I chose to talk about today:

8.18 "Shrink A Text With a Partner"

Who is it for: Levels M-Z+

What Genre/Text: nonfiction

Skills Used: summarizing, determining importance

This strategy involves reading a section of text with a partner.  Together decide what the main idea is and shrink it down into 1 sentence!

After students have practice doing this with partners several times and are successful, then the author suggests having students work independently.

Steps to this strategy.:
Read a chunk of text.
Stop & decide the main idea with your partner.
Say the main idea in 1 sentence.

I've created a worksheet that I plan to use with my class:

Click {HERE} to get a PDF of the worksheet!

I hope you learned something new or got an idea from this post!  I'd love to hear your thoughts or comments below.

There's still time to join us in reading this book!  Get your own copy {HERE}

The Reading Strategies Book: Goal 7

I'm back again (a little late) to discuss the book with some blogger friends! 

You can find my other reviews of goals below:

Goal 6 - HERE

Goal 5 - HERE

To see with the introduction and the first 4 chapters (which I missed) click {HERE}.  This link brings you to Kelly Malloy's site An Apple For The Teacher. 

Okay - onto this week's goal:

This weeks topic is Goal 7: Understanding Themes and Ideas!

According to the author, Jennifer Serravallo, understanding themes and ideas is important because stories are rich with them and they don't "jump off the page at you".  

Students that need help or extra practice with this strategy are the ones that might give you an answer based on a part of the story, but are not taking the whole story into consideration when identifying the theme.

I had an aha moment when I read this...I know students that are like that.  They give you an answer that's not wrong, but it doesn't encompass everything.  I always say that they are on the edge of the "circle" with their answer but not "dead on" or right in the center.  Now I have some ideas for helping them!  

NOTE: Jennifer does say that students need to have a good understanding of plot, setting, character and vocabulary consistently before working on this skill.

In beginning stories, the theme or lesson is clearly stated in the book but as reading levels progress, they are less and less obvious and are not stated.  

My Thoughts: I've been thinking that this is a skill that may need lots of practice for my 3rd grade students who come from low economic backgrounds.  I also see the connection for the need to  reinforce vocabulary prior to expecting them to do well with theme.

Let's Get Into the 3 Strategies!

7.1 "The Difference Between Plot and Theme"

Who is it for: Levels G-Z+

What Genre/Text: fiction

Skills Used: inferring, determining importance

This strategy involves thinking about whats happening in the plot and then infer the theme by asking what's so important or what's the "big idea" about that.

Jennifer says that students often want to talk about the plot as their theme answer.  She says students will tell you about something that happened and we need to take it a step further and guide them to tell us what is important about that event.

Jennifer writes that "Plot is what happens in the story and theme represents the bigger ideas of the story.  Plot carries the big ideas".  Students have to think beyond the plot to get to the theme.

Get students to stop at important events and take note of the bigger idea/theme/message.

In a whole group lesson, you can model doing this with the class.  An example the author uses is a T-Chart to list the plot events on one side vs. the theme on the other side.

Here's an example of what I came up with for a chart based on what she had in the book, with my own (made up) plot and theme.

Moving on to the next focus strategy.....

Strategy 7.15 - "The Real World in My Book"

Who is it for: Levels N-Z+

What Genre/Text: fiction

Skills Used: inferring, determining importance

Authors will write about real world topics and we can use what we read to think about these topics.  The focus of this strategy is to get students to stop and think about any events in the story that could be a real life event and then take it to another level.  Think about what the author is saying about this topic and then think about the importance of it.

Prompt students to take this time to think about these real world issues by asking:

What real issues are you finding in the story?

What might the author be trying to say?

What ideas do you have?

You've named something that happens in the book, think about how that connects... 

The third and final strategy for this post....

Strategy 7.18 - Character Change Can Reveal Lessons

Who is it for: Levels N-Z+
What Genre/Text: fiction
Skills Used: inferring, determining importance

This strategy involves getting students to think about the character(s) and their traits and how they may have changed from the beginning to the end.  If they think about this change, they'll often get a clue about the lesson, theme or message.

Jennifer's example uses a chart to list the traits of the characters into two columns: At the Beginning / At the End (like a T-Chart) and at the bottom of the chart have the "So...." section.  It's in this section that you would list the possible themes based on the changes listed.

An example that I'm thinking of in my head is the book is Poppy. (I know - I've used this before, but I love the story - so bear with me!)

Traits at the beginning: Poppy is fearful of Ocax; she blindly follows directions and doesn't question things; she doesn't speak up or think for herself

Traits at the end: Poppy is brave, she questions things, she starts thinking and speaking up for herself; she learns that porcupines are not her enemy but actually can be the opposite.

So....: It's okay to question things and think for yourself.

           Face your fears head on!

           Oftentimes, what we are afraid of is not as bad as we         think it is.

            Friends help friends with their problems.

These are all possible lessons/themes/messages from the story.

Well, that's it for this week's goal for me!

I have to say that I am truly enjoying this book!  The number of strategies per goal is amazing.  The strategies are easy to use and implement in a one-to-one conference, a guided reading group and with the whole class.

It's a big book but it's packed with lots of good, useful information!  I think this is one of those books that I will constantly refer to and will effect change in how I teach reading comprehension!  If you don't have it, I'd highly  recommend  that you get a copy!  

{Note - I am not getting anything for saying the above or by giving you a link to purchase below.  I just think the book is so valuable to have!}

Join us in reading this book!  Get your own copy HERE