Created by: Robert Leabo
(Compiled from the work of my GRDG 655 Literacy Intervention strategy classmates at SUNY Potsdam in spring 2018)
The following strategies can be used to teach and develop students' competency of the "Five Pillars of Literacy'':1. Phonemic Awareness or recognizing sounds in words
2. Phonics or making the connections between letters and sounds (alphabetic principle) and manipulating the sounds
3. Fluency or reading text with proper accuracy, rate, and prosody or expression
4. Vocabulary or understanding the words in the text
5. Comprehension or understanding and making meaning from text
Literacy Interventions "If, then" Menu:
I found this resource on Teachers Pay Teachers. It offers suggested interventions for different areas of literacy to try with students. It's definitely a great find and "tool'' to have in the teacher or interventionist's tool box!
Literacy Interventions Menu
Emergent Literacy Strategies:
Intervention strategy: Finger painting / Shaving Cream
Skills addressed: letter shape, name, sound and writing
Students will use finger paint or shaving cream to practice writing letter names and identifying the corresponding sounds.
Differentiation:
- Individualized practice of letter names (The teacher might say "This is the letter 'A', can you write the letter 'A'? and then ask to confirm, "what letter is this?")
- Individualized practice of letter sounds (The teacher might say, "Can you write the letter that makes the /d/ sound? The student(s) will write the corresponding letter to help make the link between the letter and its sound.)
- Student(s) could write simple words to practice blending or segmentation (e.g. "cat'' or /c//a/t/)
- The student(s) may also practice identifying and writing the initial and /or final sounds (e.g. lamp, bike, bus, jog, ten, robe, move)
- Students could write in the shaving cream or it can be placed in a bag for practice to accommodate students' individual needs (e.g. sensory or tactile issues).
- Students could practice writing simple sight words or spelling words as well.
The research points out the need for students to master the alphabet. Being able to identify the letter and names and sounds is crucial as it serves for the foundation of literacy. Additionally being able to write the letters is also an important skill as well. I think teachers do a great job with offering students practice and instruction with the alphabetic principle (letter- sound relationship,) however, and too often, practice comes in the form of simply tracing or writing letters on worksheets. While purposeful and meaningful worksheets can be used I am an avid believer that instruction should be as hands on and engaging as possible. Using finger paint or shaving cream is a great opportunity for students to practice the skills but in a more engaging way. Students can still practice writing their letters or words (depending on the students,) but they do so in a more enjoyable setting. This is a great instructional strategy that can be used in a whole group setting (to practice writing sight words) or in a small group or more individualized setting to practice writing the letters as they relate to sounds ("Write the letter that makes the /d/ sound'') and it allows teachers to offer more support to those students. It can also be a great activity for centers as students could easily learn and be able to independently practice their targeted needs and skills. And because of its simplicity (you only need shaving cream, a paper plate or pie tin, and/or baggie) and versatility (it can be modified for all kinds of uses), it makes a great instructional resource in the classroom!
Research:
Combs (2012) writes, "Although children can demonstrate knowledge of the alphabet by naming the letters or sounds, they represent, Bradley and Jones (2007) noted that full understanding requires knowledge of the four components: letter shape, name, sound and writing" (p.26).
According to Reading Rocket (2017), "Children's knowledge of letter names and shapes is a strong predictor of their success in learning to read. Knowing letter names is strongly related to children's ability to remember the forms of written words and their ability to treat words as a sequence of letters.''
From Neal & Ehlert (2007), "Correctly identifying all of the letters of the alphabet is one of the first steps to read (...) letter recognition has long been regarded as one of the crucial components of the reading process, and recent students support the contention that identifying the letters of the alphabet is perhaps the single best predictor of subsequent reading success for children" (p.243).
References:
Combs, B. (2012). Assessing and addressing literacy needs: cases and instructional strategies. Los Angeles, CA: SAGE.
Crawley, S. J. (2012). Remediating reading difficulties. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Neal, J. & Ehlert, D. (2007). Alphabet recognition made simple. Intervention in School and Clinic, 42 (4), 243-247.
The Alphabetic Principle. (2017, October 11). Retrieved from February 04, 2018, from, http://www.readingrockets.org/article/alphabetic-principle
Intervention strategy: Elkonin boxes
Students use tokens to represent the individual sounds that they hear in words (e.g. "bee'' is /b//e/ or "cat'' is /c//a//t/)
Differentiation:
- Pictures be can used (as evidenced in the photograph)
- The boxes can be used to teach syllables
- Students can write or place letters in the boxes as you dictate words / sounds
- Students could clap the sounds instead of using a token
- Words that are being studied in class or read in books can be used (to help build up a students' word knowledge)
I really like this tactile / kinesthetic strategy. Like shaving cream, in my opinion it's a lot more engaging because of the hands - on use of tokens (which can be changed to match students' interest like using toy cars) instead of simply writing on a worksheet. I think this would be better used in a small group or individualized setting where you can really monitor students' comprehension of the task to ensure that they are actually correctly attending to the sounds in the word and not just putting down tokens or copying what their peers are doing, which hinders the ability to assess their comprehension of segmenting words into sound. In a small group or individualized basis you could watch the students as they repeat the word to themselves, sound it out and place the corresponding tokens, which will help account for any misconceptions (e.g. if they want to put down three tokens in the word "bee'' because it has three letters instead of two sounds.) It would be very important to let students know that they are modeling the sounds that they hear, not necessarily the number of letters that the word has. I think this would be a mistake that some students might make. I do like the idea of moving onto actually writing (or using magnetic / foam) letters to match the sounds because that can help build up their letter - sound relationship as well. I could see this being a very beneficial exercise for helping students with their spelling.Research:
"Phonological awareness is an essential skill students must master to learn how to read. One key aspect of this umbrella skill repertoire is breaking the alphabetic principle" (Combs, 2012, p.65).
Lack of phonological awareness will lead to many reading difficulties, such as: word identification, letter/ sound correspondence, comprehension, fluency, decoding, etc.
"Elkonin boxes build phonological awareness skills by segmenting words into individual phonemes (phonemic awareness)
They help students build phonological awareness by segmenting words into sounds or syllables.
They teach students how to count the number of phonemes in the word.
They help students understand the alphabetic principle in decoding and spelling.
They help students learn to read by blending sounds to make words" (Elkonin, 1973).
References:
Combs, B. (2012). Assessing and addressing literacy needs: Cases and instructional strategies. Los Angeles, CA.: Sage.
Keesey, S., Konrad, M., & Joseph, L. M. (2015). Word Boxes Improve Phonemic Awareness, Letter-Sound Correspondences, and Spelling Skills of At-Risk Kindergartners. Remedial And Special Education, 36(3), 167-180.
McCarthy, P. A. (2008). Using Sound Boxes Systematically to Develop Phonemic Awareness. Reading Teacher, 62(4), 346-349.
Reading Rockets: http://www.readingrockets.org/strategies/elkonin_boxes
Word Analysis Strategies:
Intervention strategy: Vowel Bingo
Skills addressed: Identifying vowel sounds and pairs
Vowel Bingo side 1 asks that teachers call words, while students look for a picture that has the same vowel sound. Vowel Bingo side 2 asks that a teacher call a word and the student will find the word and fill in the blank with the correct vowel or vowel pair (e.g. c_oa_ch)Differentiation:
- Bingo as a group or individualized practice
- The selected Bingo card will match their needs (e.g. side 1 or 2)
- Chips can be used on side 1 with chips and /or expo markers used as needed for other students
- Words can be called by teacher or students can be given a stack of words to draw from for individualized practice
Comments:
With a lot of modeling and support, I feel like this would be a great way for students to practice their vowels and vowel teams. Vowel Bingo Side 1 requires to students to listen to words and identify matching vowel sounds, for example if the teacher calls "cat'' the student might place a chip on the corresponding vowel sound, "bat.'' This will help with their rhyme recognition as they tart to notice patterns as well "_at.'' Side 2 requires more cognitive effort on the part of the students as they not only have to listen to the word, they have to find it and write in the vowel pair (e.g. "ramp'' is r _a_mp) so they really get opportunities to practice identifying and writing their vowels or teams. I could see this game being tricky at first, and may even cause frustration, but with practice and as students get more comfortable with their skills, this could be used in a whole or small group setting. The game board could also be modified for additional skills as needed.
Research:
Within word pattern spelling stage: Overgeneralizes spelling patterns, experiment with long vowels, are in a stage of reading where they are approaching fluency (Ness, 2010)
Gentry's Transitional Spelling Stage: spells by writing a letter or group of letters for each sound (Combs, 2012)
Spelling games: Language games can be used to enhance the young child's growing awareness of words and how they are spelled (Lutz)
References:
Lutz, E. Invented spelling and spelling development. Reading Rockets.
Messe, R. (2015). We're not in Kansas anymore: The TOTO strategy for decoding vowel pairs. Reading Teacher. 69(5) 549-552.
Ness, M. (2010). Examining one class of third grade spellers: The diagnostic potential of students' spelling. Reading Horizons. 50(2). 113-130.
Intervention strategy: Bean Bag Bingo
Skills addressed: Phonics, phonemic awareness, vowelsThe student throws a bean bag onto a vowel space and then must give a word on their card that contains the same vowel sound in order to mark it.
Differentiation:
- Bingo cards with pictures of objects representing vowel sounds can be used.
- Students will toss the bean bag onto a vowel sound card for the teacher to read aloud.
- Students will mark the picture that contains the same vowel sound.
- The Bingo cards can contain blank spaces for vowel sounds. The students will toss the bean bag onto the vowel sound cards. The students must then find a word on their card that uses the same vowel /vowel combination and fill it in to mark it (e.g. "short a'' c _a_t)
- One student could toss the bean bag for a rule and the other student could read a corresponding word on their list
- Students could practice the rules (e.g. short vowel sounds, long vowels,) and create their own cards as well.
I like the kinesthetic / tactile and movement associated with this activity! It gives the students the opportunity to practice the skill, but in a different way than just writing or completing worksheets where they simply sort or circle the correct words. I think students would be a lot more engaged with this activity especially if it were modified to fit their specific needs and if they created the cards to take ownership of the words that they may be struggling with. It would become more meaningful for them. I like how it can easily be modified or adapted to fit the currently studied material or students' needs (e.g. long or short vowel). It's also very easy to practice in a whole or small group setting as there aren't many materials. The rules could also be posted around in the room (for constant reminder) and students could use a flyswatter or "sticky hand'' to hit the words as you practice as part of the lesson or "ticket out the door.''
Research:
Phonics is the decoding of words by using the sound value of letters or groups of letters. Decoding is a crucial part of phonics analysis. (Crawley, 2012)
"Explicit instruction helps improve: word recognition, spelling, and reading comprehension. The instruction is most effective when applied to emergent readers in Kindergarten or first grade. Students can reinforce sound - letter correspondence they are already familiar with to help them develop their knowledge of more challenging ones. The use of decodable text provides teachers with the opportunity to model how to blend and segment words, sound out unknown words, and use onset rimes or word chunks to decode words " (Linan- Thompson & Vaugh, 2004).
References:
Crawley, S. (2012). Remediating Reading Difficulties, New York, NY: McGraw- Hill.
Linan- Thompson, S. Vaughn, S. (2004). Research- Based Methods of Reading Instruction, Grades K-3, Alexandria, VA. Association for Supervision & Curriculum Development.
Intervention strategy: Word Building and Sorts
Skills addressed: phonics, phonemic awareness, vowels, word families, onset (the consonant that precedes the vowel in a word or syllable) and rime (the vowel and consonants that follow it)
Students sort or build words based on studied rules.
Differentiation:
- Words could be practiced using white boards to write them down.
- This could be used with a worksheet (template) showing a picture of each word or they can simply build the words, keeping the rime in place and switching out the onset to build different word families.
- It could be timed for engagement or competition.
- The types of words that students build or sort will be individualized to meet their needs.
Comments:
This is a great strategy that can be used to meet a variety of students' needs. The word sorting is great because it allows them to not only sort words based on their rules, but to build up their knowledge regarding rhyme and word families (e.g. mop, cop, stop, shop, top). Students could be given bags of words to sort based on their areas of struggle or need. I like the word building activity as well because students have to be more aware of the letters as they represent the sounds which helps with their alphabetic knowledge. In the picture the vowels are represented by the color red and the consonants are blue, which I think will also help students more easily differentiate the letters and corresponding sounds as they build up the word families. It's similar to the word sorting, but requires them to put forth more cognitive effort and could be used in conjunction with the word sorting activity. Students could sort and build classroom words as well as words that they encounter in books as well.
Research:
Students need to have strategies to decode or break the words apart, sound by sound, and then blend the sounds together. (Combs, 2012).
One of the most useful spelling patterns for beginning readers are rimes, also known as word families or common phonograms (Rasinksi, Rupley & Nichols, 2008)
"The idea is to teach beginning readers word families so that they can use their knowledge of these spelling patterns in other words that they encounter in their reading" (Cunningham, 2005)
"Word sorts are designed to help children examine, discriminate, and categorize words according to spelling and sound patterns " (Joseph & Orlins, 2005)
References:
Combs, B. (2012). Assessing and Addressing Literacy Needs: Cases and Instructional Strategies. Los Angeles, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc.
Cunningham, P.M. (2005). Phonics they use: Words for reading and writing (4th ed.). New York: Allyn & Bacon.
Joseph, L.M., & Orlins, A. (2005). Multiple Uses of a Word Study Technique. Reading Improvement, 42(2), 73-79.
Rasinksi,T., Rupley, W.H., & Nichols, W.D. (2008). Two Essential Ingredients: Phonics and Fluency Getting to Know Each Other. The Reading Teacher, 64(3), 257-260.
Vocabulary Strategies:
Intervention strategy: Sight Word Dominoes and ChessSkills addressed: word identification, vocabulary, reading sight words
Students can create the dominoes to reflect their needs. They begin with the card that says "start here'' and then take turns flipping cards to try and find matches as they put the dominoes together as they read the words.
Differentiation:
- The words on the dominoes can be individualized to meet whole or small group students' needs
- The dominoes can be used to play Checkers as students practice their sight words.
- It could be modified to match upper case and lower case letters for early childhood students as well.
Comments:
This activity could be used in whole group and modified to play "I have, who has?" as well as for students to practice in partners, small group or even individually. It's a simple -- but straightforward -- activity in which students practice reading and building up their sight word knowledge. I think the power of this activity comes in the form of students creating their own dominoes based on their needs. After assessing students using a sight word list, for example, students will create dominoes based on those targeted words so that they can practice them. It can be a quick activity that is used if students finish early or as part of centers during small group instruction time. The checkers game might be a little more engaging as it's more "game like'' which may help with some of the reluctant or unmotivated students. Research:
"Word analysis skills are used automatically by proficient readers. This automatic use of word analysis skills allow readers to focus on comprehension interacting with text and attaching meaning to printed symbols (...) It is the goal of educators to have students who are independent in their skills of word analysis" (Crawley, 2012, p. 40)
"Individual word banks are flexible powerful tools that help students build a sight vocabulary, learn high - frequency words, and learn about word patterns" (Combs, 2012, p.75)
"If word reading is fluent and if words are recognized by sight, pronunciation and meaning are retrieved directly from memory, which enhances text comprehension, the ultimate goal of reading" (Gorp, Segers, & Verhoeven, 2017)
References:
Crawley, S. (2012) Remediating Reading Difficulties, New York, NY. McGraw-Hill
Gorp, K., Segers, E., & Verhoeven, L. (2017). Enhancing Decoding Efficiency in Poor Readers via a Word Identification Game. Reading Research Quarterly, (1), 105. doi:10.1002/rrq.156
Combs, B. (2012). Assessing and Addressing Literacy Needs: Cases and Instructional Strategies. London, United Kingdom: SAGE Publications, Inc.
Bashir, A. S., & Hook, P. E. (2009). Fluency: A Key Link between Word Identification and Comprehension. Language, Speech, And Hearing Services In Schools, 40(2), 196-200.
Intervention strategy: "Don't Wake the Bear'' Card Activity
Skills addressed: sight word reading
Students will select cards from the pile and read the sight words. If they read them, they can keep them. If they pick up the "alarm clock'' card, they have "woken the bear'' and have to put all of their cards back. The game ends when all of the cards are gone.Differentiation:
- Teacher can focus on one unit (of study) at a time or pick out the specific words in individual units that the students struggle with.
- Teacher can break the group into smaller group and individualize the words based on the students in the group.
- The words on the cards can contain blends, digraphs, long vowel patterns, inflected endings, or vocabulary words (depending on student need).
- The cards can contain letters that the students can use to identify letter names or sounds.
This was a fun little game to play to practice the sight words. And I like how it was more "game like'' than just simply drilling sight words with flash cards (which is still an effective strategy too.) When working with students who struggle it's important to craft instruction that a) focuses on their needs and b) is engaging so that they are motivated to practice. This is another activity that is simple, but effective, and can easily be modified to fit the students' needs after assessment. It is also great because it can be put into a bag for individual student use after they've completed their work or for use during small group instruction. The students can create the cards themselves (which will help with writing and presentation) and further reinforce the words that they are practicing. Additionally instead of a bear, the pictures can also be modified to match students' interests, which will make the game more engaging. Instead of "Don't wake bear'' it can become "Don't wake the teacher'' and I'm sure students would find that very amusing!
Research:
"Sight words are words that can be recognized instantly and pronounced without resorting to the use of word analysis. Elevator, turbo and geometric are sight words if you can read them automatically or instantly," (Crawley, 2012, p.41).
Learning sight words is the foundation a child needs to become an adequate reader (Hayes, 2016).
Instant recognition should be the goal for all readers since this is what allows them to move through text quickly, efficiently, and fluently (Cunningham, 1999).
References:
Combs, B. (2012). Assessing and addressing literacy needs: cases and instructional strategies. Los Angeles, CA: SAGE.
Cunningham, P. (1999). What should we do about phonics? In L. Gambrell, L. M. Morrow, S. B. Neuman, & M. Pressley (Eds.), Best practices in literacy instruction (pp. 68–89). New York: Guilford Press.
Crawley, S. J. (2012). Remediating reading difficulties (6th ed.).
Hayes, Colleen, (2016) "The Effects of Sight Word Instruction on Students' Reading Abilities" Education Masters. Paper 327
Fluency Strategies:
Intervention strategy: Echo reading and "Fluency Fun'' (reading in different voices)
Skills addressed: reading fluency
The student will echo read text after a model reading by a teacher or skilled / fluent reader. Afterward, the student will practice reading text with different voices to focus on how fluent readers with expression and emotion.
Differentiation:
- Images can be added to the card or modified phrases for the correct grade / reading appropriate level.
- Students can act out what is on the cards or in the reading
- The text can be more complex and sophisticated; will include dialogue and conversation as well to really focus students' attention on how real conversation "sounds'' while they are reading to move beyond emotionless and awkward reading.
I like the idea of echo reading and practicing fluency by reading in different ways. Echo reading is a tried and true literacy strategy / intervention that has been used because it requires a stronger reader (be it teacher, parent, audio recording) to serve as a model for a struggling reader. When students read without the proper speed, expression or accuracy, often times they don't even realize that they are reading this way especially if they don't have a model to listen to or compare their own reading with. We've all heard the students who read like a "robot'' where their reading is very emotionless / chunky or awkward. The echo reading is the perfect strategy to help students not only hear how text should sound when it's read, but also allows for a discussion about how it shouldn't and students can compare the two. As literacy specialists/ teachers, we need to be models for our students. Additionally, the fluency activity is also neat because it allows students to be creative and tap into their own knowledge as they "experiment'' with different ways to read a text (e.g. "read like an alien,'' ''read it like you are sad,'' ''read it like you are a pirate''). It's an engaging way to practice fluency while students develop the metacognitive process of thinking about how text should sound when they read.
Research:
Fluency has been found to improve a reader's comprehension. Without accuracy and fluent word recognition, there will always be constraints on comprehension; beginning readers focus on the decoding of words, often times not paying attention to what they are reading. More fluent readers are better able to make connections between their background knowledge and the printed page (Crawley, 2012).
References:
Crawley, S. (2012). Remediating Reading Difficulties, New York, NY: McGraw- Hill.
Intervention strategy: Taped oral (or video) reading and reader's theater
Skills addressed: fluency
Students audio / video record themselves as they read to listen back afterward for critique and analysis. After modeling and practicing, they can re-record and listen to the comparison.
Differentiation:- This is very individualized to meet students' needs as they read different types of texts based on reader's level and interests and focus on different areas (e.g. accuracy, rate, and expression or prosody)
- Students can focus on their needs and set goals based on observations from recordings
- Students can analyze their own mistakes using a check list to note any patterns; can be used as a self - assessment
I like this strategy because it's very engaging and targeted to individual student's needs. Again when students read and make mistakes, they often go unnoticed and when you try to point them out, there may be some resistance on behalf of the student. They may either not acknowledge that they made mistakes in their reading or simply do not know. By recording students as they read this serves as evidence that can be used to improve. Students will notice behaviors in their own reading and how they interact with the text, if the video recording is used. I like the self -evaluation component as well because it sets a purpose for reading other than just "to read.'' If the students are self - evaluating then they can keep track of how they do , set goals, and compare with subsequent readings. Tying this with reader's theater is great too because the readings are meant to be exciting and engaging so students will be able to "act'' while reading and practicing their fluency. It could be awkward and uncomfortable at first for students to record and listen themselves, but it could be presented as a tool at the beginning of the year to truly help students become better readers while building their confidence and identity as readers in the classroom. This is an activity that all students could complete in whole, small group or individually with both known and practiced texts and unknown texts so that they can compare the pre and post reading. The integration of technology is very engaging for students and will help keep their interest.
Research:
"Reading fluency helps students improve more positive images of themselves as readers (...) without accuracy and fluent word recognition, there will always be constraints on comprehension" (Crawley, 2012, p. 112).
Video Self Modeling (VSM) as an intervention for Oral Reading Fluency helps students become their own model and develop cognitive techniques; this is used an enhancement to direct instruction; VSM results in increased motivation and self -efficacy and growth (Akin - Little, Little, & Montgomerie, 2014).
References:
Akin-Little, A., Little, S., & Montgomerie, R.(2014). Video Self-Modeling as a Intervention for Reading Fluency. New Zealand Journal of Psychology, 43(1), 18-27.
Crawley, S. J. (2012). Remediating Reading Difficulties. New York: McGraw-Hill
Intervention strategy: "Using Headlines''
Skills addressed: comprehension; finding the main idea and details; reading non-fiction text
Differentiation:
- Students work in pairs to complete the task to help support struggling readers.
- Students may work individually (if additional practice is needed).
- The text used can be modified to meet the reading levels of the students using a resource like NewsELA to change the Lexile Level.
- The pictures can be removed (or added) from articles to help support individual readers.
- Students can use the text clues to write their own headlines instead of finding a match.
Comments:
With some tweaking and modifications this can be a great way to practice finding the main idea and details as students read non- fiction or informational text. I would want my students to really closely read the text and look for those main ideas or concepts that stand out and thus would modify the text (e.g. remove the pictures) so that they are not just looking at the pictures and selecting the headline that matches the pictures. To make it more challenging I would also give the students multiple articles addressing the same topics so that they are very similar so that they have to have an academic conversation in which they use the text evidence to justify their responses. I would also have students using highlighting and other annotation strategies to support their responses as well. I would give them the headlines after spending significant time reading the articles so that they really need to think about the main idea of the text and may even ask them during that time to think about what a headline could be. I like the modifications and variations that can be used with this activity. Based on my students' interests and reading abilities I would use NewsELA to change the Lexile Level so that all students could participate in the activity. I may even present it in "tiers'' in which I start simple so that they can get comfortable with the task and then provide harder / more modified texts to keep them engaged in the activity. I think this would be a great activity to use in ELA and in the content areas as well because they are informational text heavy and students often lack the skills and comfort to read the text. This is an engaging way to read such texts.
Research:
Combs (2012) states, "Reader's oral language and vocabulary development, background knowledge, and motivation all impact comprehension (...) summarizing requires readers to identify key elements in a text (important ideas, events, and details, in expository text, or characters, setting, events, problem and solution in narrative text) and to prioritize and organize them into objective retelling" (p.190).
Crawley (2012) states, "Students often have difficulty reading informational text because of the high density of concepts and abstract idea presented" (p.138) Additionally, "(...) research supports the use of comprehension strategies that teach reader to make predictions, activate prior knowledge, think aloud, use text structures, use visual displays of text (...) summarize and generate and respond to questions" (p.139).
PISA international studies showed in 2009 that 18% of 15 year olds have difficulties in identifying the main idea in a text (Van Rijk, et al., 2017).
In primary schools effective and motivating learning environments and educational strategies are needed to teach reading for comprehension to all students (Van Rijk et al., 2017).
References:
Combs, B. (2012). Assessing and addressing literacy needs: cases and instructional strategies. Los Angeles, CA: SAGE.
Crawley, S. J. (2012). Remediating reading difficulties. New York: McGraw-Hill.
van Rijk, Y., Volman, M., de Haan, D., et. al. (2017). Maximising meaning: creating a learning environment for reading comprehension of informative texts from a Vygotskian perspective. Learning Environments Research, 20, 77-98. https://doi-org.webproxy.potsdam.edu/10.1007/s10984-016-9218-5
Intervention strategy: Using graphic organizers
Skills addressed: reading comprehension; finding text details and evidence; writing; summarize and re-tell stories
The students will use selected and purposeful graphic organizers and annotation strategies to record targeted information as they read to aid in their text comprehension. Differentiation:
- The assigned text can be differentiated to meet the reading levels of students. Assistive technology (e.g. listening to the audio book) can be used.
- Students will color - code targeted information in the text (e.g. appearances, actions and feelings,) which will help as they read, identify and classify information.
- Students can work in pairs (or groups) to read select passages from the text and each be responsible for one section of the graphic organizer so as not to feel overwhelmed with the task. For example, student A will be responsible for finding evidence of appearance, student B actions, and student C feelings. They can share their findings with the group and determine if there is any over -lap afterward.
- Tasks can be assigned based on students' skills and abilities.
- Completed in Google Docs for easy collaboration and teacher feedback.
I really like the idea of using graphic organizers to assist students in their comprehension of the text. Often times when (struggling) students read they don't really put in the cognitive effort to focus on the details and thus miss important information. A graphic organizer is a great reading tool that forces the students to not only read carefully, but to re-read as needed and read purposefully! When students have a task to complete it makes the reading more meaningful and purposeful, which can not only help with comprehension as students' reading is now focused, but it can help with engagement as well because they are now assigned a task or goal to complete as they read. I like the use of color - coding the information as well that students will complete because it also requires them to engage with the text, show their evidence, but it also serves as a great reminder for after they've read and will help when they revisit the text. I would couple the use of graphic organizers with annotation strategies like using highlighters or writing in the margins, because that will also help students connect with and make sense of the text as they read. Struggling readers, especially, need all of the tools and metacognitive strategies that we can supply them with as they read. They need to know to circle any unknown words so that they can employ a reading strategy and go back to the word instead of simply skipping it and moving on. As a teacher I also want them to highlight any questions or comments that they have while reading to bring to discussion. The annotations and notes will help keep students' thoughts organized as they read so they will not be frustrated afterward. If students read assigned text and are given a role that they are responsible for then they may not feel so overwhelmed with reading and thus are more likely to successfully complete the task. Depending on the assigned text, it may be too daunting of a task to read and look for key details (like finding evidence of characters' appearance, action and feelings) independently. Additionally, the tasks can be assigned based on students' skills, abilities and needs so that all students can be successful when sharing their ideas with their group members and during whole group discussion. Some tasks, like finding evidence of character's feelings may require more inferential skills that students lack and thus may feel uncomfortable --even resistant -- to completing it. Therefore, that task could be assigned to a different group member who will not only highlight his/ her answers, but provide the text evidence and a rationale "I said this was an example of feelings because the text says ...") which will help serve as a model for struggling readers in the group. I love the versatility of the graphic organizers because they can be tweaked to meet the needs of the reading purpose and for students. The text can also be differentiated to meet students' needs as well. There is a reason that graphic organizers are a "tried and true'' method for teaching reading comprehension. And with the assistance of technology, they could be completed in Google Docs so that students can collaborate easily and receive instant feedback from the teacher.
Research:
Summarizing is one of the most important and useful skills to learn. Good summarizing requires students to be able to identify main ideas and details. It takes many years to develop (Crawley, 2002).
Proficient readers ask questions which enhances reading comprehension as it pushes readers forward in their understanding of the text (...) students need to interview others to gather information and answer questions. This helps develop text comprehension. (Ness, 2016).
Crawley, S. (2012) Remediating Reading Difficulties, New York, NY: McGraw- Hill.
Ness, M. (2016). When Readers Ask Questions: Inquiry- Based Reading Instruction. Reading Teacher, 70 (2), 189-196.
