Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
Karen Hunter & Ben Weisner
Agenda
Introduction
Tips & Resources
Strategies for Answering Questions Types
Story Options
Introduction
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
1 Webinar Handout
KeyWordsIntroduction
Introduction
KeyWords
Introduction
Prediction
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
2 Webinar Handout
ReadAlongIntroduction
ReadAlongIntroduction
QuizQuestionsIntroduction
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
3 Webinar Handout
Sequenced Series 1. Main Idea 2. Detail 3. Vocabulary
(context) 4. Inferential 5. Short Answer 6. Vocabulary 7. Literal 8. Inferential 9. Summary
Introduction
QuizQuestionsFormatIdioms Series 1. Main Idea 2. Detail 3. Vocabulary
(context) 4. Inferential 5. Literal 6. Vocabulary 7. Application
Phonics Series 1. Detail 2. Detail 3. Detail 4. Detail 5. Short Answer
Introduction
Retell
Introduction
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
4 Webinar Handout
Pass/ReviewWorkIntroduction
RemedialActionsIntroduction
Agenda
Introduction
Tips & Resources
Strategies for Answering Questions Types
Story Options
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
5 Webinar Handout
• Set the length of time for Prediction and Retell steps.
• Set the minimum number of times the student must read along with the story or practice the story.
• Turn on Spanish read along.
• Set the Practice step for whole-story timing.
• Turn off Retell step for a while.
Other: Provide a printed copy of the story and questions.
StoryOptionsStory Options
Agenda
Introduction
Tips & Resources
Strategies for Answering Questions Types
Story Options
Question Types
PredictionPrediction: Begin to engage with the story content by predicting what the story will be about.
• Review the key words.
• Consider the title.
• Look at the story illustration.
• Write a prediction.
• As you read the story, you can determine whether or not your prediction was accurate.
• Your teacher may discuss your prediction with you during the Pass step.
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
6 Webinar Handout
PredictionQuestion Types
Question Types
ComprehensionGraph
Main Idea: It’s not just a fact from the story, but what the story is mostly about.
• Read the main idea question, and carefully “Test” each possible answer to see if it tells what the story is mostly about.
• Ask,
“Is this what the whole story was mostly about, or is it just one fact I learned from the story?”
• Select the correct answer.
Question Types
Question#1:MainIdea
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
7 Webinar Handout
Question Types
Question#1:MainIdea
Literal: You can find the answer right there in the story.
• Read the literal/detail question carefully.
• Search for the sentence in the story that contains the answer to the question.
• Examine each possible answer to the question.
• Select the correct answer(s).
• For cloze questions, reread the paragraph.
• For sequence questions, make sure the sequence is in time order.
Question Types
Questions#2&7:Literal/Detail
Question Types
Question#2:Literal/Detail
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
8 Webinar Handout
Question Types
Question#7:Literal/Detail
Vocabulary: Determine what the word means in the story.
• Read the vocabulary question carefully.
• Click on the word in the story to hear the definition.
• Search for the sentence that contains the vocabulary word.
• Reread the sentence before the word and the sentence after the word for context clues.
• Examine each possible answer to the question.
• Select the correct answer.
Question Types
Questions#3&6:Vocabulary
Question Types
Question#3:Vocabulary
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
9 Webinar Handout
Inferential: Look for the clues and put them together to figure out (or infer) the answer.
• Read the inferential question carefully.
• Search the section of the story related to the question and look for clues.
• Put the clues together and determine what they mean.
• Examine each possible answer to the question.
• Select the correct answer.
Question Types
Questions#4&8:Inferential
Question Types
Question#4:Inferential
Question Types
#4
Question#4:Inferential
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
10 Webinar Handout
Short Answer: Use information from the story to answer the question in your own words.
• Read the short-answer question carefully.
• Look for information in the story.
• Pick out the key words from the question that may need to be included in the answer.
• Try to restate the question within your answer.
• Answer the question using your own words.
• Reread your answer before clicking Next.
Question Types
Question#5:ShortAnswer
Question Types
Question#5:ShortAnswer
RetellRetell : Write a retelling of the story in your own words.
• Tell what you remember about the story.
• Meet the expectations your teacher has established for the retell.
• Reread your retell before clicking Next.
• Your teacher will review your Retell during the Pass Step to see if it meets expectations
Question Types
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
11 Webinar Handout
RetellQuestion Types
RetellGraphQuestion Types
Agenda
Introduction
Tips & Resources
Strategies for Answering Questions Types
Story Options
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
12 Webinar Handout
Quiz Problem: How can I support a student who is working at an appropriate level and consistently scores below 80% correct on first attempt on the Quiz step.
Select appropriate remedial actions:
☐ Redo missed quiz questions.
Make other adjustments:
• Teach strategies for specific types of questions. • Preview questions before Practice step. • Assign crossword puzzles. • Use alternatives for short-answer questions. • Adjust one or more Story Options.
Tips & Resources
Tips & Resources
1website: www.readnaturally.com n phone: 800.788.4085/651.452.4085
A Teacher’s Strategy for Teaching the Comprehension Questions in Read Naturally Strategy Programs
Each Read Naturally story in the Sequenced, Spanish, American Manners & Customs, and Idioms Series (for levels 2.0 and above) includes five common types of comprehension questions: main idea, literal, vocabulary, inferential, and short answer. It is important for students to understand the different types of questions and have strategies to answer them.
Angela Walker Foster of Anderson County Schools in Lawrenceburg, KY has developed a great instructional strategy for teaching the comprehension questions, and we’re pleased to share the strategy with you.
Question 1: Main IdeaMain Idea: It’s not just a fact from the story, but what the story is mostly about.
1. Provide each of your students with the same five stories.
2. Explain to the students what the term “main idea” means: It’s not just a fact from the story, but what the story is mostly about.
3. Display the definition of “main idea” so the students can see it, and highlight the key words in the definition that students need to remember: mostly about.
4. Read the first story aloud with the students.
5. Examine the first possible answer for the main idea question. Ask the students the following question about the answer: “Is that what the whole story was mostly about, or is it just one fact we learned from the story?” Discuss why the answer is either what the story is mostly about or only a fact. Repeat this process for each of the remaining possible answers. The purpose of this activity is to help students understand how to identify the main idea. This should be a think-aloud exercise that involves all of the students.
6. As a group, choose the one answer that is what the story is mostly about.
7. Repeat steps 4 through 6 using the second story.
8. Ask students to find the main idea in the third story independently.
9. Review each possible answer to the main idea question for the third story as a group, and ask the question “Is that what the whole story was mostly about, or is it just a fact we learned from the story?” Discuss why the answer is either what the story is mostly about or only a fact.
10. Repeat steps 8 through 9 using the fourth story.
11. Use the fifth story as an assessment to determine whether the students understand how to identify the main idea. If they are still unable to identify the main idea, choose a few more stories to practice as a group. As with any new lesson, some students will need more practice and instruction than other students.
A Teacher’s Strategy for Teaching the Comprehension Questions
Preview Questions Before Practice Step
Tips & Resources
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
13 Webinar Handout
Assign Crossword Puzzles
Tips & Resources
Tricky Tail Level 6.0
Solution:P A P P R O X I M A T E L Y
H U E U UR D I S T R A C T S T EI S O D XO E L U D I N G T I PD I A O S OI D N P M C SC A R T I L A G E D U P L I C A T EA A E E Z RL W T N E DL B A S K I N G A D EY A C A D
C H GK E ES E X P E N D
Read Naturally Live 20 Crosswords
Tricky Tail Level 6.0
1 2 3 4
5
6 7
8
9
10
11
12 13
14
15
Copyright © 2012 Read Naturally, Inc.
ACROSS 2 nearly, close to, or about 5 a shade of color 6 draws someone's attention away from something 9 avoiding or escaping by using cleverness or skill
12 strong white tissue in the skeleton that is more flexible than bone
13 an exact copy 14 bathing in heat or soaking up warmth 15 to use up
DOWN 1 every now and then 3 following or chasing something 4 to remove or cast off a body part, usually when under
attack 7 to put something out in the open 8 thrown away or disposed of
10 a body part that is connected to the main body or head of an animal
11 the bad parts of something that is otherwise good 13 no longer connected
WORD BANK: appendage, approximately, autotomize, basking, cartilage, detached, discarded, distracts, drawbacks, duplicate, eluding, expend, expose, hue, periodically, pursuing
Read Naturally Live 20 Crosswords
Alternatives for Short-Answer Questions (also Prediction & Retell)
Tips & Resources
• Write responses in a notebook.
• Respond orally during the Pass step.
• Turn off the Retell step.
StoryOptionsTips & Resources
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
14 Webinar Handout
Quiz Problem: How can I provide more challenge for a student who is working at an appropriate level and consistently scores 80 to 100% on first attempt on the Quiz Step.
Provide more challenge:
• Raise expectations for short-answer question (#5) and summary question (#9). • Assign Comparison Questions (levels 5.6 – 8.0).
Tips & Resources
Raise Expectations for Short-Answer Questions
Tips & Resources
Add an extra requirement:
• Rephrase the question within the answer. • Write at least three sentences. • Include at least one vocabulary word. • Write a topic sentence and two or three detail
sentences.
• Write complete sentence(s). • Begin with a capital letter and use correct
punctuation.
Expect basic grammar and punctuation:
Comparison Questions Tips & Resources
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
15 Webinar Handout
Retell Step Problem: How can I provide more challenge for a student for the Retell step?
Provide more challenge:
• Raise expectations for retelling the story. • Transition to summarizing the story. • Use a structured format for writing a retell or
summary.
Tips & Resources
Tips & Resources
RaiseExpectationsforRetell
Additional Resources
• Teacher’s Strategy for Teaching the Comprehension Questions https://www.readnaturally.com/knowledgebase/documents-and-resources/10/25
• Crossword Puzzles (All levels of Sequenced, Phonics, & Idioms) https://www.readnaturally.com/knowledgebase/documents-and-resources
• Comparison Questions (Sequenced 5.6, 6.0, 7.0, 8.0) https://www.readnaturally.com/knowledgebase/documents-and-resources?query=comparison+questions&productId=10&btnSearch=Search
• Retell Step Directions https://www.readnaturally.com/userfiles/ckfiles/files/structured-retell.pdf
• Read Naturally Strategy Programs Q & A https://www.readnaturally.com/knowledgebase/q-and-a/26#n-188
• Read Naturally Strategy Programs: Ideas for Questions step https://www.readnaturally.com/knowledgebase/documents-and-resources/10/205
Tips & Resources
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
16 Webinar Handout
For more information:
Contact Read Naturally • Phone: 800.788.4085 • Fax: 651.452.9204 • Email: [email protected] • Website: www.readnaturally.com
Questions?
Karen Hunter
Ben Weisner [email protected]
Copyright © Read Naturally, Inc. Beyond the Basics: Comprehension
17 Webinar Handout