1. Fix It Strategies Based on CrisTovani’s book I Read It, But I Don’t Get it Comprehension Strategies for Adolescent Readers
2. Seven Strategies of Successful Readers They use existing knowledge to make sense of new information. They ask questions about the text before, during, and after reading. They draw inferences from the text. They monitor their comprehension. They use “fix-up” strategies when meaning breaks down. They determine what is important. They synthesize information to create new thinking.
3. Signs that you are not comprehending the text The pictures inside your mind stop forming or moving. Your questions and inferences are not getting answered. Your mind wanders from the text; you read it but are thinking about something else. The current page has nothing to do with what you thought the big picture or author’s purpose was for the text. You cannot summarize the last few paragraphs or pages. Characters appear and you cannot remember who they are.
4. Most students have no idea what to do when comprehension breaks down…. “Reread” “Figure it out” “Ask teacher for help” “Think harder”
5. Make a connection between… The text and your life The text and your knowledge of the world The text and another text
6. Information Used for Connections Memories Personal experiences Information about the subject The author’s style Textual organization All help students to visualize, predict, ask questions, infer, stay focused, and remember what they have read. Connections give insight into character’s motive, explain why an event is taking place, and anticipate action Identifying an author’s writing style or the organizational pattern of a text helps the reader understand what the author is saying.
7. Make a Prediction Good readers anticipate what’s coming next. When it doesn’t match the reading, they rethink and revise. Alerts the reader to possible confusion.
8. Stop and Think About What You Have Already Read Connect new information to what has already been read. STOP and THINK gives readers time to synthesize new information. Gives an opportunity to ask questions, visualize, and determine what is important.
9. Ask a Question Clarifying questions: Answered in the text About character, setting, event or process Who, what, when, and where Pondering Questions: How and why Force the reader to go beyond the words by drawing an inference or going to another source.
10. Write about what you read Helps clarify thinking Provides reflection
11. Visualize Create images in your head. If you can see it, you can usually understand it Use tv, movies, and life to create images
12. Use Print Conventions Key Words Bold print Italicized words Capital letters Punctuation What’s important What the author values Voice inflections
13. Retell what you’ve read Activates background knowledge Check on understanding Refreshes memory Prepares for next part Useful when returning to reading after time has passed If not done before, the reader will retell during reading, and not able to pay attention to new reading
14. Notice Patterns in Text Structure Genres have organizational structure Help locate information more quickly Eliminate need to read EVERY word –especially with non-fiction
15. Adjust Reading Rate: Slow Down or Speed Up Slow down when it is difficult Speed up when familiar or boring Forces brain to stay engaged.
16. Reread It is OK to reread text that you’ve already read. An important aspect to remember is that a student doesn’t have to reread everything for the strategy to be helpful. Sometimes rereading a portion of the text – a sentence, or even just a word – can enhance comprehension. Struggling readers tend to think that rereading means they have to reread everything
18. Encountering an Unknown Word Rereading it won’t work Ask for help Use the dictionary Look at the words around Skip it consciously due to lack of importance Flag it for later help Look at the structure of the word – prefix, root, suffix? Use the glossary Can another word be substituted? Does it make sense?
19. Instructional Suggestions Share material you find confusing. Remind students that even good readers get confused. Demonstrate how you implement fix-up strategies and have students record your plan.
20. Instructional Suggestions Give a list of fix-up strategies to your students. Ask them to use these while reading. Ask them to use at least one before asking you to help.
21. Instructional Suggestions Remind students that not all fix-up strategies work in every situation. It is ok to abandon one if it is not working.
