Key Features of Research-based Reading Comprehension Instruction:

• Carefully selected text considering student’s reading level, focus strategy(ies), and content (TS)

• Explicit strategy instruction-- teachers use Gradual Release of Responsibility instructional model; strategies need to be taught and applied across content areas for students to have sufficient practice and feedback on their application with different texts so they may develop as skilled, flexible readers  (ESI)

• Collaboration/ Academic Conversations: provide opportunity for extended discussion of text meaning and interpretation (CAC)

Observed Behavior:  Cannot Summarize

• Identify important information (main idea)

• Distinguish between a topic and main idea

• Generalize important information and ideas (concepts)

• Determine and sequence events and ideas

• Identify type of text structure

• Paraphrase

Possible Intervention and Explanation: 

• Preview text features and text structure to identify focus and main idea (TS and ESI)

  • • Headings and subheadings

    • Visuals and Graphs

    • Chapter titles

    • Text structure

• Chunking text (ESI and CAC)

• Reciprocal Teaching (ESI and CAC)

• Collaborative Strategic Reading (ESI and CAC)

• Annotations focusing on key terms and ideas

  • • Take notes and ask reflective questions

Observed Behavior: Cannot Activate and Use Background Knowledge

• Identify type of text structure

• Preview text 

• Ask questions based on what is known about a topic

• Synthesizing text with background information

Possible Intervention and Explanation: 

• Preview text features and text structure to develop preliminary questions and activate background knowledge (ESI)

  • • Headings and subheadings

    • Visuals and Graphs

    • Chapter titles

    • Text structure

• Ask questions about what is already known or assumed about a topic (e.g., questions based on text preview, or KWL chart, or anticipation guide…)

• Collaborative Strategic Reading (ESI and CAC)

Observed Behavior: Cannot Make Inferences

• Use background knowledge

• Determine author’s purpose

• Note and analyze text language

• Recognize author’s perspective, biases, etc.

• Make predictions

• Determine theme

• Draw conclusions

Possible Intervention and Explanation: 

• Preview text features and text structure to make predictions (ESI)

  • • Headings and subheadings

    • Visuals and Graphs

    • Chapter titles

    • Text structure

• Use of graphic organizers appropriate to text and purpose (TS, ESI, and CAC)

• BK + T = I  (Background knowledge/ what’s in my head + what the Text says = Inference)

Observed Behavior: Cannot Generate and Ask Questions

• Obtain or clarify information

• Determine author’s purpose and/or perspective

• Sustain thought process or conversation through higher-order, open questions

• Explore ideas

• Make connections or establish patterns among ideas, topics, events, people/characters, etc

Possible Intervention and Explanation: 

• Model reflective or metacognitive questions that students can apply widely and adjust to be text-specific to help them question text

• Model and teach students how to evaluate their own text-dependent, open, higher-order thinking questions

• Collaborative Strategic Reading (ESI and CAC)

• Reciprocal Teaching

• Questioning the Author

• Question-Answer-Relationship (QAR)

Observed Behavior: Cannot Synthesize Information

• Determine patterns of evidence or information

• Trace development of a text or concept within and among multiple texts

• Compare/contrast

• Draw conclusions using multiple points

Possible Intervention and Explanation:

• Cornell notes

• Use and development of graphic organizers that allow the reader to review and question key or interesting points (dependent on text structure and purpose for reading) 

Observed Behavior: Cannot Self-Regulate or Monitor Comprehension

• Knowing: self as a learner, the reading task, and the reading strategies

• Knowing the purpose for reading

• Looking back, rereading, and reading ahead

• Confirming, clarifying, and revising

• Adjusting reading rate

• Question what is going on in the text, how parts relate, language use, and his/her understanding of these 

Possible Intervention and Explanation:

• Ask questions while reading

• Visualize people, events, setting, etc. as reading 

• Annotate or code text, specifically relating to purpose for reading

• Close Reading

• Prediction chart (Prediction, Confirm/Contradict, Why?/Evidence)

• Collaborative Strategic Reading (ESI and CAC)