Comprehension Tips
I have noticed a lot of visitors coming to my site looking for comprehension tips and ideas. So, I did some research and thinking of what I did in my classroom and put together these tips. This are tips that will work for a wide range of ages and grade levels. Try them out and let me know what you think!
Turn off the Distractions!An important comprehension tip is to read in an area with as few distractions as possible.If you must read in the same room with someone who is watching television, for example, ask them to keep the volume down and turn yourself away from the TV. If you feel you must have some music on, make sure it's not so loud that it distracts you from what you are reading. Also, use music as background by playing music you know or playing classical music. If someone else else listening to music ask them to keep the volume down or to wear headphones.
Tools for Staying FocusedOK, now you have the distractions taken care of, here are the tools and some ideas on how to use them.When you need to stay focused on your reading, have these items close by: pencil, pen, highlighter, ruler or other straight edge, colored transparency, a notebook, and a dictionary. The pen, pencil, and highlighter can be used to help you follow the words, make short notes, and highlight important parts of what you are reading. The ruler or other straight edge, such as an index card can help with following the lines of what you are reading. The colored transparency, which can be cut to fit the page of the book you are reading, helps to lessen the glare from textbooks printed on glossy paper. When you are reading a book that you cannot write notes or highlight information, having a notebook handy to write notes in can be greatly beneficial to remembering important information. You can also use the index cards to record vocabulary words and their definitions. As you are reading and you come across a word you do not understand, having a dictionary close by to look up the definition, then making a note about it will help greatly with your comprehension of the text. Double-Entry JournalThis comprehension tip is also a great way to develop note taking skills!A double entry journal is a response journal, with the page folded on half vertically, where on the left side you write a short passage from what you are reading and then write a response to the passage on the right side. This journal is also helpful with comprehending vocabulary terms, definitions, and important dates and their corresponding events. Another form of a double entry journal would be to make a self test over what you are reading. With the self test, you fold the paper in half length wise, write questions on one side and the answers on the other side. Books to Develop Notetaking SkillsA comprehension tip about notetaking; have your child practice taking notes from books that interest them.Also, if your child has reached a grade where they are learning how to take notes from what they are reading, here is a list of books the will help them develop this skill.
Nonfiction Safari by Robert Bateman The Yellow Star: The Legend of King Christian X of Denmark by Carmen A. Deedy Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank Soaring with the Wind: The Bald Eagle by Gail Gibbons Ladies First, Women Athletes Who Made a Difference by Ken Rappoport Saint Nicholas by Ann Tompert Fiction Whittington by Alan Armstrong Gods and Goddesses of the Ancient Norse by Leonard E. Fisher Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George If I Forget, You Remember by Carol Lynch Williams Follow the Drinking Gourd by Jeanette Winter Raising Yoder’s Barn by Jane Yolen ABC BooksThis comprehension tip is valuable to all grade levels.ABC Books or alphabet books are a great way to help your child focus on important information from their text. There are many alphabet books published on many different subjects. Your child can research a topic and then create their own ABC Book about their topic. This would make a great way to study for an test. In your local or school library these books can be found with the children’s books, and in the non-fiction section. Check some out to look through, for examples, and as resources for reports. The Calypso Alphabet by John Agard A Farmer’s Alphabet by Mary Azarian The Animal ABC by Leslie Baker Eating the Alphabet: Fruits and Vegetables from A to Z by Lois Ehlert Dr. Seuss’s ABC by Theodore Geisel Animal Alphabet by Bert Kitchen Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Museum ABC by Metropolitan Museum of Art Dinosaur ABC by S. Mufford A is for Africa by Ifeoma Onyefulu Alpha Beta Chowder by Jeanne Steig Animal Parade: A Wildlife Alphabet by Jakki Wood Me! Me! ABC by Harriet Ziefert Bio PoemHere is a comprehension tip for the more creative reader you have in your family.A bio poem helps the reader show their understanding of a character or person they have read about. A bio poem consists of ten lines using this formula: Line 1: Character’s or Person’s first name Line 2: Title given to character or person Line 3: Four words that describe the character or person Line 4: “Lover of (three things, objects or ideas)” Line 5: “Who believed (one idea or concept)” Line 6: “Who wanted (three things)” Line 7: “Who used (three things)” Line 8: “Who gave (three things)” Line 9: “Who said (direct quote)” Line 10: Character’s or person’s last name (or a synonym that describes him/her) It is a good idea to have your child create a “me poem” about themselves before writing a poem about someone else or a character from a book. I love this comprehension tip, because of its creativity!
Book Box or BagHere is another comprehension tip for the creative student or child in your life.Creating a book box or book bag is a fun way to tell about the important characters, events, and details of a story. For a book box, take a cereal box or shoe box and cover it with plain paper. Then you can decorate the box with pictures from the story, or write about the story and then glue the short paragraphs to the box. For a book bag, take a brown or white lunch sack, decorate the outside, and put small objects or drawing in the bag about the story. Character or Story MapsThis comprehension tip helps to show the reader how the story flows and takes shape.Character maps and story maps are a series of connected shapes with short phrases or pictures in them about a story, character, or event. These are also known as thinking maps, flow maps or bubble maps. For a character map, you would draw a circle and write the character’s name in the middle of the circle. Then around that circle you would have traits and descriptions of the character in other circles connected to the center circle with a line. For a story map, you could use circles or rectangles; I would use rectangles and starting from the top have the title of the book author’s name main character two important characters three major events of the story the conclusion For a chapter book, you could have the summary of each chapter in its own box. These maps could be used for the steps in a science experiment or to explain what happened leading up to a historical event. Click here to learn more about the parts of a story. Creating Chapter TitlesThis comprehension tip is a great idea for the reader struggling with summarizing what they have been reading.Creating chapter titles will help with selecting the important information from a chapter and with summarizing. I would begin with an early chapter book, like a Frog and Toad, cover the chapter titles with a post-it note, and then after reading a chapter, see if the title my child came up with was close to the author’s choice of a title. After getting the hang of guessing chapter titles, move on to a chapter book where the chapters are numbered, read a chapter, and then come up with a title for the chapter. A few suggested titles are: Because of Winn-Dixie by K. DiCamillo
From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. Konigsburg Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan.
Guided ImageryThis comprehension tip is great for building listening skills.Guided imagery is an excellent comprehension activity for the visual learner. You read a story to your child, without showing them the pictures from the book, and then have them draw their own picture of what you have read. Then read the story again and show them the illustration from the book, talk about and compare the pictures. Here is a list of books that would be great to use for a guided imagery activity! Feelings by Aliki My Painted House, My Friendly Chicken, and Me by Maya Angelou Sleepy River by Hannah Bandes Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans Anna Banana and Me by Lenore Blegvad Stelluna by Janell Canon Sleeping Beauty by K. Y. Craft Thee, Hannah! by Marguerite de Angeli In the Swim by Douglas Florian Angelina Ballerina by Katharine Holabird Moon, Have You Met My Mother? by Karla Kuskin The Red Balloon by Albert Lamorisse Frederick by Leo Lionni Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse by Leo Lionni My Book by Ron Maris Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey Curious George by H. A. Rey Richard Scarry’s What Do People Do All Day? by Richard Scarry The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss Snuggle Piggy and the Magic Blanket by Michele Steptoe The Pied Piper of Peru by Ann Tompert KWL ChartA KWL chart has three columns and is used while you are reading a story or non-fiction book. This activity is a great way to take notes and for your child to show their comprehension of hwat they have been studying.The columns are titled: What I Know What I Want to Know What I Learned
The What I Know and What I Want to Know columns are filled in before the book is read; the What I Learned column is filled as the book is read. You can add additional columns such as, Still Want to Know for questions that weren’t answered while reading the story or text. How We Will Find Out, would be helpful for a research project. The activities I have written about can be used for fiction or non-fiction books and can be used for a character or whole book study.
Magazines for KidsA great way to use the comprehension tip of making a KWL chart is while reading a magazine article. You can gather a lot of information from just one article. One magazine with a lot of great articles is Zoo Books. Click on this link to explore if Zoo Books would be a good magazine for your family.
Another great magazine for kids is Highlights!
Knowing phonics is an important part of reading, check out my Phonics Word Families page! I would love to know what you think about these comprehension tips! Click here for more comprehension tips. Click here for more comprehension ideas. Click here to visit the Joy of Reading Book Shop.
|
