Probable Passage

Quick Guide to Probable Passage

What is Probable Passage?

-Probable Passage is a reading strategy that frontloads meaning prior to reading a text.

Why is it important?

-Dependent readers often struggle because they don’t predict what the text might be about, don’t think about what they already know about the topic, and don’t form mental images as they read.

How it works:

-The teacher selects a body of words(12-15) from the text.

-The students are given the Probable Passage Worksheet and ask to place words into boxes that are labeled “Characters,” “Setting,” “Problem,” and “Outcomes,” and then from the placement of those words, write a prediction statement that offers the gist of what this selection might be about.

Example:

-Use a set of words from the book, Fox, by Margaret Wild to complete the worksheet.

-Magpie, alone, desert, strange new creature, coolibah trees, Fox, trembles, rage, envy, fly, pads away, journey, Dog, blind, brunt wing