Teach Students the Thinking Strategies of Good Readers (Metacognition)
Good readers...
Make connections to the text - prior knowledge is the main determinant of comprehension. There are different types of connections that good readers make: Text-to-Self, Text-to-Text, Text-to-World
Visualize as they read - make mental pictures or sensory images
Question the text - actively wonder, surface uncertainties, and interrogate the text
Make inferences - predict, hypothesize, interpret, and draw conclusions
Evaluate the text - determine importance and make judgements
Analyze the text - notice text structure, author's craft, vocabulary, purpose, theme, point of view
Recall - retell, summarize, remember information
Self-monitor - recognize and act on confusion, uncertainty, and attention problems
You will want to teach each of these thinking strategies independently and explicitly, sharing what is going through your head as a "good reader" using think-alouds and guiding students' practice with each thinking strategy. These thinking strategies will build upon and be in dialogue with each other. In her book, I Can Read It, But I don't Understand It, Cris Tovani argues that struggling readers need teachers to help them understand that "good readers" actually have multiple voices speaking aloud in their head as they read.
Plan activities and/or lessons that model and guide students in thinking like Good Readers
Reading instruction is most impactful when students understand reading as occurring in three distinct stages. The table below describes each stage and suggests instructional strategies that can be used in every stage.
Sources: Tovani, C. (2000). I Read It, but I Don’t Get It: Comprehension Strategies for Adolescent Readers (illustrated edition). Stenhouse Publishers. Daniels, H., & Zemelman, S. (2004). Subjects Matter: Every Teacher’s Guide to Content-Area Reading. Heinemann.