Both of these evidence-based strategies are intended to engage students in collaborating in their learning about a text. In both cases, the teacher is a facilitator who supports effective group work and dynamics and the students take responsibility for their own learning and concentration.
The instructional strategies outlined below are only two examples of ways that teachers can engage their students in collaboration with texts.
Questioner - poses questions about unclear sections, confusing information, connections to other texts
Clarifier - attempts to answer questions
Predictor - makes predictions before and after the reading
Literature Circles of Book Clubs Small groups of students, each with roles such as:
Discussion Director - writes questions that will lead to discussion by the group.
Literary Luminary - points out interesting or important passages within the reading.
Vocabulary Enricher or Word Wizard - discusses words in the text that are unusual, interesting, or difficult to understand.
Checker - “checks” for completion of assignments, evaluates participation, helps monitor discussion for equal participation.
Artful Artist or Visualizer - uses some form of artwork to represent a significant scene or idea from the reading.
Capable connector - finds connections between the reading material and something outside the text, such as a personal experience, a topic studied in another class, or a different work of literature.