The Q.A.R strategy is a questioning strategy that students can use to understand the relationship between the question, the text, and the readers’ background knowledge. There are four different types of questions that students may come across while answering comprehension questions. Understanding the question and what is being asked will assist students in locating the information they need to respond accurately.

1. Right-there Questions

2. Think and Search Questions

3. Author and You Questions

4. On My Own Questions

Students with learning disabilities tend to have difficulty with determining if questions require background knowledge, personal experiences, or information that is stated directly in the text. When given a question or writing prompt, students sometimes include information that is unrelated to the topic of discussion. For this, students can use the Q.A.R strategy to understand the different question types, what is being asked of them, and what evidence and support they should use in their answer.

Teachers can print out Q.A.R bookmarks and have students keep one in their desk and one in their homework folder. Students can use this as a resource and refer to it when working independently and when completing in-class assignments. This tool will help students answer questions across the curriculum. Based on the question stems, students can determine which specific strategy (i.e., reread, skim, scan, summarize) they should use to answer the questions wholly and accurately.