Reading Comprehension & Note-Taking Strategies
Double-Entry Journals
The Double-Entry Journal is a note-taking strategy students can use to record notes on or responses to a particular reading. Like Cornell or 2-Column Notes, this format can be used in a multitude of ways to help students acquire knowledge and make meaning out of what can often be complicated course texts. In addition to reading comprehension, a Double-Entry Journal can be useful for students as they record notes on direct instruction or various multimedia presentations. AdLit.org provides a helpful explanation of how the strategy can be applied to various classroom activities, and their site includes PDF and Word templates of the double-entry journal, as well as examples/models of completed notes. Below are four examples of Double-Entry Journals used in 5th Grade ELA, Kindergarten Science, and 7th Grade Science lessons, as well as a Mimio file created by Bruce Middle School teacher Joshua Segaloff, which introduces students to the process of Double-Entry Journals, examples of student-created work, and a specific task associated with his lesson.
Think Aloud & I Wonder...
Think Alouds are a great strategy to model the practices of effective readers. While this strategy is most commonly seen at the elementary levels when students are learning to read, it is also very useful at the upper levels as students encounter increasingly complex texts, new genres, and unfamiliar text types. During a Think Aloud, the teacher models what insightful readers think as they engage with a particular text. The teacher pauses to reflect aloud, ask questions, and monitor comprehension that would normally be done silently by the independent reader. Similarly, in an "I Wonder..." activity, teachers pause to make inferences about the text and speculate about what will happen next. This is particularly useful for modeling the reading of fiction, but could also be used for the reading of informational texts, such as those that involve a process or sequence (e.g. "I wonder what will happen if water is added to the mixture..."). ReadingRockets.org provides useful instructions on using Think Alouds in the classroom, as well as videos of classroom implementation and a checklist students can use as they participate in the Think Aloud. Think Alouds are also a great way to have students practice their reading with a partner or in small groups. Here are examples of 11 different teachers using Think Aloud and I Wonder... in their classrooms!
Partner Reading
Partner Reading provides students an opportunity to practice their reading fluency with a partner or in a small group. It's a great opportunity for teachers to focus on different cooperative groupings to support English Language Learners - from pairing Level 1 and 2 ELLs with Level 4 and 5 or L1 English speakers, to pairing students at similar levels to decrease their inhibitions about practicing aloud due to a high affective filter and promote their comfort level reading and speaking. Here is how Partner Reading is being used in LPS elementary ELA and Math classrooms:
Text Features
Helping students understand the text features of various genres and text types can improve their comprehension of what they are reading. Students are better able to process the content of a text when they are enable to use and understand the function of features like titles, headings, subheadings, bullets, charts, maps, images, pop-outs, and other elements of literary and informational texts. Text features are certainly introduced as an integral part of teaching reading at the elementary level, but middle and secondary teachers need to be cognizant that many of their students, especially their ELLs may be unfamiliar with particular text types or genres and their inherent features. Taking time to directly instruct students on how to use these features in all content areas can be incredibly helpful in increasing students' comprehension of course texts. Check out how text features are being used in elementary Reading, ELA, and Math classrooms in the district:
Jigsaw
Jigsaw strategies are highly adaptable to a variety of learning activities and to meet numerous content objectives. As a reading activity, jigsaws can be used to break down long or dense readings into smaller chunks that individual students or small groups will focus in on and be accountable for. Often times it can be effective to have all students read an entire excerpt of a text, but then have small groups conduct close readings of specific sections, identifying main ideas and significant supporting details (or any other targeted reading skills, such as author's purpose, use of imagery, the development of an argument, etc.) and then "teach" the content of the assigned section to their peers. In the process of students becoming "experts" on their passage, ELLs have the opportunity to practice their reading as well as their oral communication skills as they report out to their peers in a non-threatening context, for which they have had plenty of time to prepare. For Jigsaws to be most effective for ELLs, teachers should thoughtfully consider the cooperative groupings of students for each activity.