This is a list I quickly decided to put together after working with a couple of kids today. When a kid has trouble with reading comprehension, it really affects them in all subjects. Worse than that, the kid's parents have no clue how to help. For advice on that, you must read this post:
http://atozlesson.blogspot.com/2011/06/teacher-tip-reading-like-champ.html
Moving on.....
TOP REASONS YOUR KID DOES NOT UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY JUST READ:
1. They may not be stopping at ending marks. This makes sentences flow together in an odd sort of way. The meaing of the sentences are lost.
2. They make mistakes in reading and do not go back to correct what they read. When a child does this, they are not paying attention to the story, but sounding out the words...again, losing meaning.
3. They do not understand the vocabulary. The struggling reader will simply continue, hoping to get the meaning figured out. They typically do not. They passed up the sentence or two that would've helped.
4. They do not ever reread. If they do not understand what they read, or forgot, or was daydreaming while reading, they continue. They think that it will show their struggle if they have to read it again. When I tell a struggling reader that I have to read things more than once all the time, they are shocked. Their eyes actually get wide. They have no clue that successful readers reread and poor readers do not.
5. They do not envision what they read. I always thought this was a natural thing until my husband and a couple of friends said to me, "I don't see the movie in my head when I read" Gasp! Use art to help this skill. Have them draw their favorite scene and tell you about it. They are retelling the story when they do.
6. They are reading above their level. My daughter is notorious for this. She wants to read what her brother is reading. They are too hard. This causes frustration and eventual disinterest, causing them to think all reading stinks....and giving up.
7. They have not found a genre or author they enjoy. A dyslexic student came to me this week and said, "Hey! Mrs. Adrienne, I hate to read, but this book is so good! I can't put it down!" I quickly had him write down the series and the author encouraging him to find more books by him. He got in trouble for reading during class today:)
8. They do not find out anything about the book before reading. Have them read the back cover. If they do not, they spend the first few chapters distracted until they find out what is really going on here.
9. They are still learning how to read. In this case, read with them. Listen to how they read, and read to them in a way that fixes those mistakes, exaggerating your pause at a comma, the stop at an ending mark, the excitement with an exclamation, and the sadness the character may feel.
...and # 10~ Well, you'd have to read another post for #10. Here's the link.
http://atozlesson.blogspot.com/2011/01/teacher-tip-getting-that-dang-straw.html
God Bless!
ACZ
Showing posts with label student struggles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label student struggles. Show all posts
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Reading Like a Champ!
(A post from my mom blog, Summertime 2011)
It's summertime! The time when the kids can sleep late, play on the Wii until they start bouncing around like Mario and Luigi, eat enough to feed third world countries, and annoy the living heck out of each other. In all of this madness, we, the well-meaning moms, are just mean enough to require them to fit in some quality reading time. My kids must be mutants because they love reading time. In all fairness, I taught reading to 2nd grade for quite a few years and know all the tricks to make this happen. They also come from me, the nerd who once missed her bus-stop and traveled to the next little town because I was enthralled in a good book (Charlotte's Web). I thought you might like to know some tricks.
This blog is geared more toward the child who needs a little more help in their reading comprehension. If your child comprehends just fine and soars as a reader, all you need is to share the reading time with them. Read with them. For example, Mr. Popper's Penguin will be in theatres this month. We all read this story together last week. My oldest whizzed through it alone, but my 7-year-old preferred that I read it with her. They had fun, and we can't wait for the movie.
Now, for the tips.
1. Find what they like.
Go to the library and see what genre they like best, or find an author they like. Girls tend to like fiction more, boys tend to like non-fiction more. If they don't like their book, let them get another. They need to know that people don't always like every book they pick up, and that's okay. They think that THEY don't like the book because they don't like to read. (Books they could later watch as movies are great.)
2. Read with them.
If your child is of elementary age, they are never to old to be read to, especially if they are struggling. You CAN read with your fourth grader. It's called shared reading. You read, I read, you read, I read. Take turns. They love the attention, and it helps when they hear a good reader read. Remember to use expression. (If you're going to fly through a book devoiding it of all meaning, don't waste your time...sorry so harsh)
3. Mess up.
While sharing, make it a point, as the more efficient reader, to mess up, catch your mistake go back and reread. Kids who struggle think that good readers don't mess up. Tell them there are times you read a whole page and have to reread. They think that doesn't happen, too.
(Struggling readers will read, mess up, and not reread, making the story impossible to understand. They may not even realize they skipped 2 lines because they are only reading words and not a story. When your child finally stops and rereads, it is a milestone. Acknowledge it, but be cool about it.)
4. Make it real
If the story is about a dog who eats a slipper, talk about the time your dog did something he shouldn't have. Relating the story to real-life helps them to remember it. It's okay to talk about something else while you're reading, and go back to the story.
5. Ask questions at opportune times (when you're not stopping the flow of the story).
This is the most important one. Never ask any question that can be answered with yes or no. Ask questions that require thought and were not stated by the author. How do you think that made him feel? Why do you think her friend is so angry? What do you think she should do next? Do you think she will do that next? Why do you think he wants to go there so badly? How do you know? What would you do if it were you?
These go along with the skill of drawing conclusions and inferencing (figuring out things that the author meant but didn't say). These are the skills that kids struggle the most with. Think of when you go see a movie. As the plot unfolds you try to guess what will happen next, you feel what the characters feel, you try to guess the ending. Bring those questions to the story being read.
I guess that's all I have for now. I could go on and on, but these are the most important. So, Go!...read...get out of this heat. :)
~ACZ
It's summertime! The time when the kids can sleep late, play on the Wii until they start bouncing around like Mario and Luigi, eat enough to feed third world countries, and annoy the living heck out of each other. In all of this madness, we, the well-meaning moms, are just mean enough to require them to fit in some quality reading time. My kids must be mutants because they love reading time. In all fairness, I taught reading to 2nd grade for quite a few years and know all the tricks to make this happen. They also come from me, the nerd who once missed her bus-stop and traveled to the next little town because I was enthralled in a good book (Charlotte's Web). I thought you might like to know some tricks.
Now, for the tips.
1. Find what they like.
Go to the library and see what genre they like best, or find an author they like. Girls tend to like fiction more, boys tend to like non-fiction more. If they don't like their book, let them get another. They need to know that people don't always like every book they pick up, and that's okay. They think that THEY don't like the book because they don't like to read. (Books they could later watch as movies are great.)
2. Read with them.
If your child is of elementary age, they are never to old to be read to, especially if they are struggling. You CAN read with your fourth grader. It's called shared reading. You read, I read, you read, I read. Take turns. They love the attention, and it helps when they hear a good reader read. Remember to use expression. (If you're going to fly through a book devoiding it of all meaning, don't waste your time...sorry so harsh)
3. Mess up.
While sharing, make it a point, as the more efficient reader, to mess up, catch your mistake go back and reread. Kids who struggle think that good readers don't mess up. Tell them there are times you read a whole page and have to reread. They think that doesn't happen, too.
(Struggling readers will read, mess up, and not reread, making the story impossible to understand. They may not even realize they skipped 2 lines because they are only reading words and not a story. When your child finally stops and rereads, it is a milestone. Acknowledge it, but be cool about it.)
4. Make it real
If the story is about a dog who eats a slipper, talk about the time your dog did something he shouldn't have. Relating the story to real-life helps them to remember it. It's okay to talk about something else while you're reading, and go back to the story.
5. Ask questions at opportune times (when you're not stopping the flow of the story).
This is the most important one. Never ask any question that can be answered with yes or no. Ask questions that require thought and were not stated by the author. How do you think that made him feel? Why do you think her friend is so angry? What do you think she should do next? Do you think she will do that next? Why do you think he wants to go there so badly? How do you know? What would you do if it were you?
These go along with the skill of drawing conclusions and inferencing (figuring out things that the author meant but didn't say). These are the skills that kids struggle the most with. Think of when you go see a movie. As the plot unfolds you try to guess what will happen next, you feel what the characters feel, you try to guess the ending. Bring those questions to the story being read.
I guess that's all I have for now. I could go on and on, but these are the most important. So, Go!...read...get out of this heat. :)
~ACZ
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