Remembering Big Ideas
Question 2:
"How can I help striving learners remember the big ideas?"
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When some students encounter nonfiction text they fail to grasp what the text really has to offer. Students may read only the text in paragraphs and skip over charts, diagrams, pictures, captions, etc. They may not stop to think about what questions they may have and not think about where certain information can be found. Without an ability to effectively navigate nonfiction text, students loose sight of the big ideas found in the text. Students who do not know how to use nonfiction text features will not be able to effectively learn from their reading.
Our most striving readers will try to plow through a nonfiction text from beginning to end rather than using text features to answer specific questions they may have. Striving readers may try to read too much at a time, too much for them to comprehend and apply. We will discuss certain researched strategies that will help you teach these striving readers to slow down, read with a critical eye, and develop meaning from nonfiction text.
Our most striving readers will try to plow through a nonfiction text from beginning to end rather than using text features to answer specific questions they may have. Striving readers may try to read too much at a time, too much for them to comprehend and apply. We will discuss certain researched strategies that will help you teach these striving readers to slow down, read with a critical eye, and develop meaning from nonfiction text.
How to solve this problem in the classroom
Solution #1 Sketch, Label, Share
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In sketch, label, share, striving readers stop momentarily to draw quick sketches with labels. The act of creating these simple sketches increases content retention, boosts comprehension, and strengthens student writing as they learn (Keene & Zimmerman 2007). Students learn more when they take the time to represent new learning and their thinking visually.
Show your students how you might do this as you read aloud nonfiction or while your class is participating in a shared reading experience. Model your thinking aloud as you use simple line or stick sketches to represent your thinking. Show your students how you would connect sketches with arrows to show sequential events in a horizontal fashion. Model how you would label sketches with key words. Tell how you might represent a cycle with sketches arranged in a circle connected with arrows.
Steps for using sketch, label, share with a small group of striving readers:
1. Hand students a copy of a nonfiction text at their independent reading level. Ahead of time place sticky notes at stop points.
2. Model how to read up to a sticky note and then stop to make a sketch with key word labels. Refer to your sketch while you model a brief retell of the section.
3. Try the next section as a group. As readers demonstrate understanding of the strategy allow students to work independently or with a partner. Act as a coach, reminding students to sketch quickly, only using line drawings and to include labels with key words from the text.
4. Allow students to share their sketches. This provides another opportunity for students to solidify and affirm their ideas and thinking. It also allows them to use academic vocabulary to reprocess information.
Extension: Once the reading is finished, ask students to write about the topic using the sketches as a tool. Discuss how the sketches helped them write about the topic.
Show your students how you might do this as you read aloud nonfiction or while your class is participating in a shared reading experience. Model your thinking aloud as you use simple line or stick sketches to represent your thinking. Show your students how you would connect sketches with arrows to show sequential events in a horizontal fashion. Model how you would label sketches with key words. Tell how you might represent a cycle with sketches arranged in a circle connected with arrows.
Steps for using sketch, label, share with a small group of striving readers:
1. Hand students a copy of a nonfiction text at their independent reading level. Ahead of time place sticky notes at stop points.
2. Model how to read up to a sticky note and then stop to make a sketch with key word labels. Refer to your sketch while you model a brief retell of the section.
3. Try the next section as a group. As readers demonstrate understanding of the strategy allow students to work independently or with a partner. Act as a coach, reminding students to sketch quickly, only using line drawings and to include labels with key words from the text.
4. Allow students to share their sketches. This provides another opportunity for students to solidify and affirm their ideas and thinking. It also allows them to use academic vocabulary to reprocess information.
Extension: Once the reading is finished, ask students to write about the topic using the sketches as a tool. Discuss how the sketches helped them write about the topic.
Solution #2 Text Features Scavenger Hunt
Nonfiction texts have many features that support readers as they navigate resources. They provide easy access to content when their function is understood. Striving readers can move in, out, and through informational text with confidence if they learn to expect nonfiction features.
Steps for using Text Features Scavenger Hunt with striving readers:
1. With readers, gather a list of nonfiction text features. Have several nonfiction texts available to reference and expand the list.
2. Make a copy of the list for each set of partners.
3. Show students how to analyze a text to check for the text features on the list. Think aloud as you add tally marks next to the features you find and count.
4. Give partners time to search several nonfiction texts for the features and add tally marks to the list. Tell students that they should pause after each tally mark to think about how that feature helps the reader understand the text.
5. Gather the group after a time to report findings. Which features appear most often? Which features were found less frequently? Which features help you best comprehend content? Which would you like to include in your nonfiction writing?
Steps for using Text Features Scavenger Hunt with striving readers:
1. With readers, gather a list of nonfiction text features. Have several nonfiction texts available to reference and expand the list.
2. Make a copy of the list for each set of partners.
3. Show students how to analyze a text to check for the text features on the list. Think aloud as you add tally marks next to the features you find and count.
4. Give partners time to search several nonfiction texts for the features and add tally marks to the list. Tell students that they should pause after each tally mark to think about how that feature helps the reader understand the text.
5. Gather the group after a time to report findings. Which features appear most often? Which features were found less frequently? Which features help you best comprehend content? Which would you like to include in your nonfiction writing?
Solution #3 Jot It Down
![Picture](/uploads/2/4/3/3/24334210/6098303.jpg?296)
We retain information best when we experience it with multiple senses. Have you heard that learners remember 10% of what they read, 20% of what they hear, 30% of what they see, 50% of what they see and hear, 70% of what they say, and 90% of what they do and say. I believe this applies to what we write. Writing is a kinesthetic mode to retaining information. When learners are allowed to talk about and write about their learning they retain more information.
Our book authors talked about the act of writing a shopping list. That even though the list is forgotten at home, one is more likely to remember all the items than if he or she had never written the list. Jot It Down is a strategy that helps striving readers take meaningful notes while reading informational text.
Steps for using Jot It Down with striving readers:
1. Ask students to view a picture from a nonfiction text. Ask students to talk about what they can learn from the picture and the text. Write words or phrases on sticky notes and create a list. The list can be categorized to help with retell or writing later.
2. Next, show students how you would read a portion of the text, talk about the key points, and write those key words and phrases on sticky notes. The hardest part of note taking is only writing a few words to describe the information learned.
3. Once students demonstrate an understanding, allow them to read sections of the text and write key words on sticky notes.
4. Once several sections have been read, and several sticky notes are written, have students talk about their notes and sort them into categories.
5. As striving readers seem ready to proceed on their own, allow students to work in pairs with copies of the nonfiction text. Invite them to keep reading and taking notes.
6. Coach readers as they sort sticky notes and help them practice restating information orally to summarize learning.
7. Discuss how taking notes and sorting them into categories helped students retain more information.
Our book authors talked about the act of writing a shopping list. That even though the list is forgotten at home, one is more likely to remember all the items than if he or she had never written the list. Jot It Down is a strategy that helps striving readers take meaningful notes while reading informational text.
Steps for using Jot It Down with striving readers:
1. Ask students to view a picture from a nonfiction text. Ask students to talk about what they can learn from the picture and the text. Write words or phrases on sticky notes and create a list. The list can be categorized to help with retell or writing later.
2. Next, show students how you would read a portion of the text, talk about the key points, and write those key words and phrases on sticky notes. The hardest part of note taking is only writing a few words to describe the information learned.
3. Once students demonstrate an understanding, allow them to read sections of the text and write key words on sticky notes.
4. Once several sections have been read, and several sticky notes are written, have students talk about their notes and sort them into categories.
5. As striving readers seem ready to proceed on their own, allow students to work in pairs with copies of the nonfiction text. Invite them to keep reading and taking notes.
6. Coach readers as they sort sticky notes and help them practice restating information orally to summarize learning.
7. Discuss how taking notes and sorting them into categories helped students retain more information.