Reading comprehension occurs when new ideas from the text are connected to what students already know. Teachers can facilitate comprehension by offering creative ways for students to confirm their understanding of the text, integrate it with their background knowledge, and apply the new ideas in creative ways. Providing a variety of possible story responses keeps narrative reading fresh and interesting, and may motivate students to become more avid readers:
Graphic Organizers
Graphic organizers provide a visual representation of key ideas, and are especially useful for making sure all students have a literal understanding of the text. Many teachers use them as a prediscussion tool, completed individually or in pairs, so that students are prepared with ideas to share during small group or whole class discussions. Graphic organizers include:
- Venn Diagram – Compare and contrast characters, settings, or different versions of a story.
- Story Map – Outline the characters, setting, problem, plot points, and solution.
- T-chart – Show the growth of characters or situations from the beginning of the story to the end.
- Herringbone – Put a main idea in the center and supporting evidence on each diagonal line.
- Semantic Web - Associate key elements of the story by webbing them in a meaningful way.
Art Projects
Children love to work with a variety of medium; and art projects provide a natural extension of the reading experience, allowing children to create that which they have imagined while reading. By encouraging students to talk about their artwork, teachers can also assess the ways in which children have integrated the new ideas into previous understanding. The following are simple, yet artistic, responses to reading:
- Draw a picture or create a diorama depicting a scene from the story.
- Make a mobile with a story summary in the center and significant objects or pictures hanging from it.
- Develop a game based on the story. Make pieces, spinners, rules, and a related game board.
- Make a film reel (dot matrix printer paper), with depicting the major scenes of the story.
- Create and use puppets to retell the story for a younger group of students.
Writing
Students who write in response to their reading and related discussion reinforce the connections between author and reader, and between oral and written language. Writing different types of pieces breaks the monotony of essays, and provides different formats for creative expression. Some ideas include:
- Write a "Dear Abby" letter about the story's problem.
- Write a resume for the hero or the villain in the story.
- Rewrite the story from another character’s point of view.
- Write a letter to the author about the story.
- Write a book review.
Partner or Small Group Responses
Small group work does not have to be limited questions and answers about text. Use the following ideas to confirm literal understanding, and help students creatively focus on the important elements of the story:
- Make a six-sided story cube with one of the following headings on each side: character, goal, problem, solution, setting and recommendation. Toss the cube and discuss whatever comes up.
- Fill a box with objects connected to the story. Children choose an object and describe its significance to the story.
- Choose two characters. Partners write questions that one character would ask the other and then role play to answer them.
- Readers Theatre - oral performance of a story.
- Literature Circles - cooperative, student-led story discussion.
By incorporating a variety of creative activities that purposefully connect text content with student experience and personal response, teachers will encourage students to think differently and more creatively about the fiction they read and share in class, as well as motivate recreational reading at home.
Further Reading
Miller, Debbie. Reading with Meaning. Portland, ME: Stenhouse, 2002.
Barbara Abromitis - Barbara Abromitis, Ed.D. is a freelance writer and educational consultant, with degrees in reading education and educational psychology, ...
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