...to be beneficial, our reading must be carefully
directed
Annaeus Lucius Seneca 4 BCE - 65 AD Roman
philosopher
Reading and research series
Pre-reading Strategies
What you bring to the printed page will affect how you
understand what you read, and may be what is most important in
understanding what you read
Organize yourself before you read
Strategies to activate your prior knowledge:
Brainstorming: Examine the title of the
selection you are about to read List all the information that
comes to mind about this title Use these pieces of information to
recall and understand the material Use this knowledge to reframe
or reorder what you know, or to note what you disagree with, for
further research
Group discussions: Group
discussions in and out of class will help you to discover what you
bring to your reading, what your fellow students bring, as well as
shared experiences If you find they have new background
information, ask for more information from them
Concept or mind mapping: This is a type of brainstorming where you place the
title/subject as the main idea, then develop a "mind map"
around it. It can be effective either in a group or by yourself
Pre-questions: Often chapters in texts provide
organizing questions.
You can also write out a series of questions you expect to be
answered when reading: Examples:
Definition: What is....? Where does ... fit? What group
does ... belong to?
Characteristics: How would I describe...?
What does ... look like?
What are its parts?
Examples
What is a good example of ...? What are
similar examples that share attributes but differ in some way?
Experience What experience have I had with ....? What can I
imagine about ...?
Visual Aids: Pictures and other visual material can activate
your prior knowledge. Use the Internet to search for pictures related to
your title/topic to give you visual images of what you are about to read.
Advance Organizers: Relate new reading material to
something you already know, to your background or experiences. Ask your
teacher for assistance in developing these.
Additional Pre-reading Strategies:
Overviews: Discussing information about the selection or
assignment prior to reading must take place. This may take the form of class
discussions, printed previews, photographs, outlines, or films. Spend enough
time before the students begin the assignment to ensure understanding of it.
Vocabulary Previews: Unfamiliar key words
need to be taught to students before reading so that new words,
background information, and comprehension can improve together.
List all words in the assignment that may be important
for students to understand. Arrange words to show the
relationships to the learning task. Add words students
probably already understand to connect relationships between
what is known and the unknown. Share information with
students. Verbally quiz them on the information before
assigned reading begins.
Structural Organizers: Before reading an
assignment, basic frameworks which are included in the text
should be pointed out such as cause-effect or problem-solution.
It can be beneficial to call attention to specific plans of
paragraph or text organization such as signal words, main idea
sentences, highlighted phrases, headings and subtitles. A review
of skimming techniques might also be appropriate as these
various areas are covered.
A Purpose for Reading:When students have a
purpose for reading a selection, they find that purpose not only
directs their reading towards a goal, but helps to focus their
attention. Purposes may come from teacher directed questions,
questions from class discussions or brainstorming, or from the
individual student. Along with the question, it is a good idea
to pose predictions of the outcome and problems which need to be
solved. These may be generated by the student or the teacher,
but the teacher should use these to guide students in the needed
direction for the assigned selection.
Author Consideration:Depending upon the
content area, a discussion of the author of the particular work
can be helpful to the understanding of it. What is the author
trying to say? What is his point of view and his reason for
writing the particular work?
KWL: This strategy
consists of three steps for students to use with expository
text:
What do I Know? What do I Want to learn?
What did I
Learn?
A good strategy for group discussions. Develop a three column poster with
each question in a column and list out responses. See also:
K - W - L
Website overview:
Kiosk guides for learning are a freely accessible educational environment that offers strategies to recognize and realize learning objectives. We accept individual differences without regard to ability and creed; sexual and affectional orientation; caste, tribal and national affiliation; individual, familial and collective history. Our suggestions should be thoughtfully considered for appropriateness and guidance to your situation, relying on elders, mentors, cohorts and/or professionals to achieve learning objectives and outcomes.