Signposts

There are many strategies for students to use to help them to understand what they are reading. A strategy that is an excellent choice for upper middle school and even high school students is the Notice and Note signposts. The signposts come from an educational resource, Notice and Note: Strategies for Close Reading. The authors, Kylene Beers and Robert E. Probst, are two leading internationally recognized experts in literacy. The book is published by Heinemann Company. The signposts alert readers to significant moments in a work of literature and encourage students to read closely. When students can identify these signposts and then to question them, allows readers to read a text and find evidence to support their thoughts and inferences.

Here are the five signposts that we cover in 7th grade:

1. WORDS OF THE WISER: When a character (probably older and wiser) takes the main character aside and offers serious advice, STOP and ask, “What’s the life lesson and how might if affect the character?”. This lesson is probably the theme of the story.

2. AHA MOMENT: When a character realizes, understands, or finally figures out something, STOP and ask yourself, “How might this change things?” If it is about a problem, it tells you something about the conflict. If it is a life lesson; it tells you something about the theme.

3. AGAIN & AGAIN: When you notice a word, phrase, or situation mentioned over and over, STOP and ask yourself, “Why does this keep happening again and again?”. The answer will tell you about the theme and conflict, or will foreshadow what might happen later in the story.

4. MEMORY MOMENT: When the author interrupts the action to tell you about a memory, STOP and ask yourself, “Why might this memory be important?” The answer will tell you about the theme and conflict, or will foreshadow what might happen later in the story.

5. TOUGH QUESTIONS: When a character asks himself a very difficult question, STOP and ask yourself, “What does this question make me wonder about?” The answer will tell you about the conflict and help you think about what might happen later in the story.

The Notice and Note signposts will give your child the tools he or she needs to notice critical elements in a text, make note of what they mean, and, as a result, do the close reading we want all students to do.