Comprehension

Facilitator Notes

• Why are comprehension discussions essential in guided reading with struggling readers?
• Why and how do we support inferential thinking during guided reading?
• How do we support comprehension at transitional reading levels?
• Growth over Time: How did understanding story propel forward a struggling reader’s progress?

Why are comprehension discussions essential in guided reading with struggling readers?

Supporting Documents: Text transcripts of Kitty Cat and the Bird, Baby Panda, Rosa at the Zoo, Mrs. Spider’s Beautiful Web, and The Boy Who Cried Wolf 

Why and how do we support inferential thinking during guided reading?

Supporting Documents: Text transcript of Mushrooms for Dinner

How do we support comprehension at transitional reading levels?

As children move up levels of text, the plots, ideas, vocabulary, and sentence structures all become more complex.  While struggling readers may still be working on a range of competencies needed for an effective processing system (e.g., automaticity with high frequency words, flexibility in solving words, fluency), they also need attention freed up for thinking about the more developed meaning of the story or information they are learning from nonfiction text.  The techniques in the following clips provide a few examples of guiding second grade struggling readers through this terrain.  See Reading Comprehension Module on this website for more detailed exploration of comprehension strategies, usually taught through whole class lessons and conferring in independent reading, which can be applied to guided reading lessons.

Supporting Documents: Text excerpts of Where Does Pizza Come From? and Nelson Gets a Fright

Growth Over Time:  How did understanding story propel forward a struggling reader’s progress?

This example demonstrates the power of meaning to help an emerging reader begin to develop an independent processing system.  It also illustrates the importance of early observation and recognition of a struggling reader’s specific needs, and appropriate action, often including intervention, to change the child’s trajectory as a reader.