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Teaching Comprehension in
Early Reading

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 General Framework for Teaching Comprehension

Before Reading During Reading After Reading

•Set objectives
for instruction •Stop periodically
•Strategic
to ask students
integration of
•Identify and questions
comprehension
preteach
instruction
difficult to read •Map text structure
words elements
•Planned review
•Prime students’ •Model ongoing
•Assessment of
background comprehension
students’
knowledge monitoring
understanding
•Chunk text

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 Big Idea: Listening and Reading Comprehension

Conspicuous Strategies

Mediated Scaffolding

Primed Background Knowledge

Strategic Integration

Judicious Review

Kame’enui, E. J., Carnine, D. W., Dixon, R. C., Simmons, D. C., & Coyne, M. D.
(2002). Effective teaching strategies that accommodate diverse learners (2nd
ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. 10
•Set comprehension objectives

•Preteach difficult to read words

•Preview text and prime background knowledge

•Chunk text into manageable segments

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 Setting Comprehension Objectives

Refer to instructional priorities on grade-level curricular

maps:

Examples:

Accurately answer literal and inferential questions

about Stuart Little.

Identify the main character and setting in Stuart

Little.

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 Preteaching Difficult-to-Read Words

• Identify words that will be barriers to students’

independent reading.

• Use familiar procedures to teach or review

difficult-to-decode words:

Sounding Out
Structural Analysis

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 Story Words

Ping-pong
Irregular Words
Stuart
weight

sofas
Multisyllabic Words
whole

meant radiator

perspiration

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 Activity

• Read the excerpt from The Country and City Mouse in

your handouts.

• Assemble into groups of three or four.

• Identify difficult-to-read words.

• Categorize the words into story words, irregular words,

and multisyllabic words.

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 Previewing Text and
Priming Background Knowledge

• Teach students to preview the text and predict what the

text is going to be about before reading a passage.

• After previewing, teach students to think about what

they already know and what they’d like to learn about
the story or the topic.

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 How to Teach Previewing and Priming
Background Knowledge

Conspicuous Strategies

Teacher actions should model how we preview a story or

informational text using a “think aloud” procedure.

Example: Look at the title, look at the pictures or diagrams,

survey headings.

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 How to Teach Previewing and Priming
Background Knowledge

Conspicuous Strategies (Continued)

Teacher actions should model how to predict what the story

or informational text is going to be about.

Example: “I think this story is going to be about a mouse

named Stuart Little and his life.”

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 K-W-L Procedure
(Ogle, 1986)

K-W-L is most effective for preparing students to read

informational text.

What do I know? What do I want to know? What have I learned?

Encourages students
Engages Helps students to review what they
students and generate a have learned and
primes their purpose for prompts them to
background reading. think of things they’d
knowledge. still like to learn.

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 The Birds of
Iceland

What do I know? What do I want to know? What have I learned?

Iceland is cold. How do birds live in the It’s not always cold
It is an island. cold weather? in Iceland.
Birds there live in
What do the birds eat in
burrows on the coast.
Iceland?
They fly from the
coast over the ocean
looking for fish. 22
 How to Teach Previewing and Priming
Background Knowledge
Mediated Scaffolding
• Begin with passages that are read aloud by the teacher
accompanied by pictures to help students preview the
passage.

• Once children are reading independently, use passages with

pictures closely related to the content and progress to
passages that have fewer pictures.

• Once students learn to preview and predict, use passages

with content that is familiar to students and progress to
more complex and unfamiliar content.
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Chunking the Text Into Manageable Segments

It is important to determine how to divide the passage into

manageable segments before reading. Considerations in
chunking the text will include:

•Appropriate stopping points for asking questions

•Specific vocabulary that might need to be reviewed

•Appropriate points for identifying text structure elements

•Opportunities to summarize the main ideas in the passage

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 Important Skills in Reading Comprehension

1. Identifying text structure elements

2. Answering literal, inferential, and evaluative questions

3. Retelling the stories or main ideas of informational text

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 Text Structures
Narrative Expository

• Tell stories that • Informational books

usually follow a
familiar story • Contain structures that
structure. can differ from one text
to another and within a
• Usually include the single passage (e.g.,
following story elements: compare-contrast,
Characters description).
Setting
Problems • Help students
Solutions understand content
Theme area textbooks.
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An Example of Narrative Text Structure

In August, Henry and

Henry’s big dog Mudge always
went camping. They went with
Henry’s parents.

Henry’s mother had been a

Camp Fire Girl, so she knew all
about camping. She knew how to
set up a tent. She knew how to
build a campfire. She knew how to
cook camp food.

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An Example of Expository or Informational Text

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Common Types of Expository or Informational Texts

•Descriptive

•Sequence

•Cause/Effect

•Problem/Solution

•Compare/Contrast

•Enumerative
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 Narrative and Expository Texts

Listening to and reading both types of texts helps students:

•Comprehend a variety of written materials.

•Build and extend background knowledge about a variety of topics.
•Develop vocabulary.
•Make connections to real life experiences.
•Learn how different texts are organized and written.
•Distinguish between different genre.

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 How to Teach Text Structure:
Design Considerations
Conspicuous Strategies

Teacher actions should model how to identify a text

structure element in a story or informational text.

Example: After reading the first two paragraphs of Stuart

Little, the teacher says: “They are telling me about a baby
that looks like a mouse. His name is Stuart. That’s also
the title of this book. I think Stuart is the main character.”

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 How to Teach Text Structure:
Design Considerations
Conspicuous Strategies (Continued)

Teacher actions should also model how to periodically

pause during reading and summarize the known text
structure elements.

Example: “I know that Stuart has a mom, a dad, and a

brother George, and they live near a park in New York
City. So, I know the characters and the setting in this
story.”
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 How to Teach Text Structure:
Design Considerations
Mediated Scaffolding

• Teach each text structure element thoroughly before

integrating them with previously learned elements.

• Teach simple text structures (beginning, middle, end) in

kindergarten. Progress to more complex text structures (main
character, setting, problem, solution) in first through third
grade.

• Once students demonstrate understanding of narrative text

structure, introduce simple expository text structures.
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 How to Teach Text Structure:
Design Considerations

Mediated Scaffolding (Continued)

• Use text structure maps and think sheets to assist

students in mapping the critical elements of narrative
and expository texts.

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 A Simple Story Map
Grade 1
Example
Who?

What?

When?

Where?

Why?

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Story Blocks for
Setting

Characters

Problem(s)

Grades 2-3
Solution Example

Theme

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 Activity

• Read The Little Red Hen story in your handouts.

• Assemble into groups of 3 or 4.

• Map the story onto the accompanying story map.

• Discuss what parts your students would find difficult

and why.

• Debrief.

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 Teaching Literal, Inferential and
Evaluative Question Answering

• Literal questions have responses that are directly

stated in the text.

• Inferential questions have responses that are indirectly

stated induced or require other information.

• Evaluative questions require the reader to formulate a

response based on their opinion.

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 Literal, Inferential or Evaluative?

• What are puppies like

Puppies are very small when they are born?
and helpless when they
are born. They cannot • Are puppies born blind?
see until they are about • Why do they stay close to
two weeks old. During their mothers?
this time they stay very • Would you like to have a
close to their mothers. puppy?

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 Teaching Literal Question Answering:
Design Considerations

Conspicuous Strategies

• Teacher actions should model how to respond to a literal

comprehension question.

Example: After reading the first section of Stuart Little, the

teacher says: “What are Stuart’s parents names? Their
names are Mr. and Mrs. Little.”

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 Teaching Literal Question Answering:
Design Considerations
Mediated Scaffolding

• Begin with literal questions that are directly stated

(verbatim) in the passage.
• Ask the question immediately after the information
is given.
• Design questions directly stated but not verbatim.
• Increase interval between where the information is
given and when the question is asked (end of
paragraph, end of story).

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 Teaching Inferential Question Answering:
Design Considerations
Conspicuous Strategies

• Teacher actions should model explicitly how to respond

to inferential comprehension questions.

Example: After reading the first two chapters of Stuart

Little, the teacher asks: “How did Stuart’s size help his
family? His size is helpful because he is able to do lots of
things that only a mouse could do.”

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 Teaching Inferential Question Answering:
Design Considerations
Mediated Scaffolding
• Design questions that cannot be answered with verbatim
responses and/or use pronoun referents.

• Design inferential questions indirectly stated in the passage.

• Design inferential questions that can be induced from

relationships not directly stated.

• Design questions in which other knowledge (not provided in

the passage) is required to respond.

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 Teaching Evaluative Question Answering:
Design Considerations
Conspicuous Strategies

• Teacher actions should model explicitly how to respond

to evaluative comprehension questions using opinion.

Example: After reading the first paragraph of chapter 3 in

Stuart Little, the teacher says “Stuart likes to be the first
one up in the morning. Do you like being the first one up
in the morning in your house?”

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 Teaching Evaluative Question Answering:
Design Considerations
Mediated Scaffolding

• Begin with questions that elicit an opinion from

students without requiring additional knowledge.

• Progress to questions that require students to integrate

information from the passage with their knowledge and
experience to develop an opinion.

• Increase interval between where the information is

given and the question is asked.
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 Activity

• Assemble into groups of 3-4.

• Using The Little Red Hen

• Write 2 literal questions, 2 inferential

questions, and 1 evaluative question.

• Pair and share your questions.

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 Retelling Stories and Main Ideas

• Proficient readers periodically summarize text as they

read monitoring their understanding of the passage.

• Teaching children to retell occurrences in a story or

the main ideas of informational text helps them
become more accurate in summarizing and monitoring
their understanding.

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 Teaching Retelling: Design Considerations

Conspicuous Strategies

Teacher actions should model explicitly how to identify

the main idea of a text passage.

Example: After reading a paragraph from Stuart Little,

the teacher says, “What was happening in this paragraph?
Because Stuart is small, he helped his mom get her ring
out of the drain.”

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Teaching Retelling: Design Considerations

Mediated Scaffolding

• In the early stages (K-1), limit the amount of text to one or

two sentences. Progress to more lengthy text passages by
having students “tell what they’ve read about so far.”

• If students are unable to summarize a paragraph accurately

reread the passage.

• Initially focus on accuracy of retelling. Progress to asking

students to delimit their retells to the most important
information.
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•Strategic Integration

•Judicious Review

•Formal and Informal Assessment

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 Teaching Text Structure

Strategic Integration

• Once students learn to accurately identify a text

structure element, integrate it with previously learned
elements.

• Integrate text structure elements into new stories and

expository texts.

• Use text structure in developing literal, inferential, and

evaluative comprehension questions.

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 Teaching Text Structure

Judicious Review

• Provide a range of activities that will require students

to use the text structure elements they have learned
including oral and written summaries of stories.

• After reading stories with similar themes, have students

compare elements of their text structures.

• Teach students to use text structure maps in planning

their writing assignments.

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Teaching Literal, Inferential and Evaluative
Question Answering
Strategic Integration

• Once students can consistently respond to literal

questions, include simple inferential questions.

• Increase the complexity of inferential questions

gradually as students demonstrate success.

• Integrate evaluative questions throughout story reading

and independent passage reading.

• Integrate literal, inferential, and evaluative questions

with questions about text structure. 54
 Teaching Literal, Inferential and
Evaluative Question Answering

Judicious review
• Once students learn to respond to all three question types,
include all three in any passage reading activities.

• Encourage students to ask each other different question

types during literature discussions and during partner
reading.

• As you move to new passages, students may need to be

reminded of what sources they need to use to answer the
question (passage, their own knowledge, experiences,
opinions). 55
 Teaching Retelling
Strategic Integration

• Once students learn to retell paragraphs, provide

opportunities for retelling chapters and complete
stories orally and in writing.

• Once students learn to summarize the main ideas in

expository texts, provide opportunities to summarize in
other contexts such as reading directions, content area
textbooks, mathematics problems, and school news.

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 Teaching Retelling
Judicious Review

• Regular opportunities to retell parts of stories and

expository texts should be planned as part of reading
instruction.

• During group and partner reading, students should be

encouraged to summarize major events in stories and
main ideas in expository texts.

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 How do I know what students know?

Monitoring Students’ Progress

• Have discussions and conversations about texts

that include open-ended, more complex
questions.

• Observe students as they read and respond.

• Have students retell stories and monitor for

accuracy and completeness of responses.

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 What should I look for in materials and programs?

• Explicitly teaches listening and reading comprehension

strategies.

• Provides a range of examples for initial teaching and practice.

• Provides independent practice activities that parallel

requirements of instruction.

• Begins with pictures and simple sentences to teach

comprehension before moving to paragraphs and longer text
passages.

• Uses text passages in which the main idea or comprehension

unit is explicitly stated, clear, and in which the ideas follow a
logical order. 59
 What should I look for in materials and programs?
(continued)

• Uses familiar vocabulary and passages at appropriate

readability levels for the learners.

• Uses familiar topics during initial learning.

• Uses familiar, simple syntactic structures and sentence types.

• Uses both narrative and expository texts.

• Progresses to more complex structures in which main ideas are

not explicit and passages are longer.

• Inserts questions at strategic intervals to reduce memory load

for learners. 60
 What should I look for in materials and programs?
(continued)

• Teaches skill or strategy with the aid of carefully designed

examples and practice.

• Continues skill or strategy instruction across several

instructional sessions to illustrate the applicability and utility
of the skill or strategy.

• Connects previously taught skills and strategies with new

content and texts.

• Cumulatively builds repertoire of skills and strategies that are

introduced, applied, and integrated with appropriate texts and
for authentic purposes over the course of the year.
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Models of Reading Program Implementations
K-3
A B C
Core Programs Specialized Programs Time/Grouping Condition
Basal Reading Ladders to Literacy 20-30 minutes small
Programs group teacher-directed
Language! instruction
Reading Mastery
Reasoning and Writing Small groups (3-4) for
extended discussions
Corrective Reading and monitoring
Comprehension
Highly trained and
Soar to Success skilled teachers

Junior Great Books

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