During Reading Strategies

Here's another screencast...

This time, it's about a few strategies to use during reading. 

Pop some popcorn, enjoy the video, then grab a good book and start practicing the strategies!

Before Reading Strategies

As we know, being strategic about reading saves time and energy AND helps you to better understand and retain what you read. Being a strategic, active reader needs to happen before, during, and after reading. In the screencast below, learn about active reading in general AND a few before-reading strategies you can use to warm up your brain for the text.

Reading with a Purpose

To be an efficient reader, you should read with a PURPOSE. 

This means that you should determine WHY you're reading the text, and what you'll be asked to do with the information in that text.
For example:

• will have a quiz on vocabulary the next day?
• will you be assessed on your understanding of "big ideas" in the text?
• will you discuss what you read in class the next day?
• will you be asked to write a paper on the topic?
• will you need general background knowledge on this topic, as a jumping-off point for further study?
• will you later need to answer questions about the reading?
• will you need to match the people mentioned in the text, to certain dates or events?

By first determining your purpose, you'll then be able to decide what you should be paying the most attention to while reading.
For example:

• if you know you will be assessed on how well you know the vocabulary in the text, you would pay closest attention to that vocabulary (which may be bolded or highlighted in some texts). 

• if you know you'll have to discuss the text in class the next day, you would benefit from thinking about major questions the text brings up, or how you'd summarize what you read.

• if you know you'll have to answer questions about the text, you could preview those questions so that you're looking for the answers while reading. 

Once you have an idea of your purpose for reading, you can adapt your reading strategy to fit that purpose. For additional pre- and during-reading strategies and tips, check out some of the other posts on this blog, like this one, this one, or this one.

Graphic Novels as a Tool for Accessing Content

Last night, I finished reading a graphic novel called Persepolis, by Marjane Satrapi. It is about a young girl growing up in Iran in the 1970s and 1980s. While I had previously attempted to learn more about that region's conflicts and underlying causes of them, I feel like I never really had a firm grasp of how the recent history of the country impacted its role in the world today.

The format of this book, however, really helped me to see not only the personal impact of the revolutions and war during that time on one family, but also to understand some of the broader political and religious situations that contributed to this time of upheaval. While it looks like a comic book, with its black and white drawings with speech and thought bubbles, and is broken into vignettes that could be read piecemeal, altogether the book really
helped me to better understand the historical context of what has happened in the Middle East in the last few decades.

There are a variety of graphic novels and graphic representations of different historical periods, that may help you or your student to build some background knowledge on the topic. Having background knowledge, as you know, will help you to better understand your textbook or other, more complex required reading. There are also graphic novel versions of many classic novels too, which can be a good supplement to reading the real book, an enjoyable review of major plot points, or a good previewing and jumping-off place prior to reading the whole book.

Give it a try, and you might find it both helpful and enjoyable!

Following Directions

Many students only skim through, or skip over altogether, the directions for an assignment. 

This can obviously cause you some problems: you may do the work incorrectly and need to re-do it, you may do too much work and be wasting your time, or you may not do all of the work that is required. 

There are a few strategies, however, that you can use to make sure you're paying close attention to all parts of directions, and following them correctly. Those strategies include:

1. Reading the directions twice before starting. Then, re-read the directions when you think you're done, to make sure you followed them correctly.

2. Asking yourself, "How would I explain these directions to someone else, using my own words?" If you're not able to do that, it may mean you don't truly understand the directions. So, ask for help or try another strategy.

3. Highlighting or underlining key words in the directions.

• Pay close attention to words like: 
• (English/ History/ Science) Read, underline, circle, summarize, explain, provide details, write in complete sentences, brainstorm, analyze, compare, contrast, prove, describe, annotate, mark up, support...
• (Foreign Language) Translate, summarize, explain, write in complete sentences, describe...
• (Math) Find the product/ sum/ quotient/ remainder, simplify, show your work, diagram, demonstrate...

Sometimes, teachers will make bold, underline, or italicize the most important words in directions, so pay close attention to those signals too!

4. Highlighting, underlining, or circling signs and symbols (x, -, +, =,  ÷) in math problems. If you treat something like an addition problem when it's really a multiplication problem, you're obviously not going to get the correct answer. Color-coding signs for addition, multiplication, subtraction, and division, can be another cue to pay close attention to the signs.

5. If there is more than one step to the directions, you should identify each different step you should take. For example, in the following directions, you're being asked to do three things:

Identify three inventions of the industrial revolution, explain how each invention changed the way people lived, and summarize what life would be like today if these inventions did not exist. 

By highlighting or numbering each step, you're going to be more likely to follow each of the three sub-directions and produce a more complete answer.
Identify three inventions of the industrial revolution, explain how each invention changed the way people lived, and summarize what life would be like today if these inventions did not exist. 

Try out one or more of these strategies if you often hear from teachers that you need to pay close attention to the directions, or if you see that your errors are not really reflective of what you actually understand. 

If you have other ideas or strategies for following directions, please leave a comment to share!

A Different Way to Take Notes

Visual Note-taking 

(aka Sketch Notes or Graphic Notes)

Bullet points, outlines, and summaries are not always the best way to take notes from assigned reading or from lectures and class discussions. The video below explains another method of note-taking called "sketch notes" that relies on the creation of visual images along with recording text, to record and reinforce essential information.

"Do things your way so everything makes more sense." In my opinion, this is one of the essential take-aways of that video. Everyone perceives things differently, and we all have unique learning styles.  If you find a method for taking notes that works well for you, and it is effective, then keep on using it! Most of us will have to try a bunch of different styles and strategies for note-taking before we find one that works. Many of us also have to use different styles of note-taking depending on the task or what we will be expected to use those notes for.

Below is a video I recorded when I was attempting to use this style of note-taking to keep track of events in a chapter from A Long Way from Chicago by Richard Peck. Please be gentle when judging my sketches.

Thanks for not being a critic, but I'll admit it- I don't think that went that very well. It was difficult to not just draw the scene I was reading about. However, that was one of my very first attempts at this style of note-taking. So, I'm going to try it again... after watching this video done by someone way more versed in this style of note-taking.

A few important things I took away from this instructional video were that you don't have to try to get all of the details down in  your notes in the moment; instead, you can go back to fill in details like additional text, color, and more precise drawings. Also, the video pointed out the importance of thinking about the layout or format of the notes, prior to beginning. I think that for the notes I took from A Long Way from Chicago, it would have made more sense to have a storyboard setup, where I have frames showing the different scenes and important events in the chapter. Maybe even reading the whole chapter first, then going back to sketch out the most important elements like the conflict, rising action, climax, and resolution, would have made more sense.

I'll have to keep working at this format of note-taking because I do think that it would work well for me in certain situations. I hope you will try this style of note-taking as well, in a few different situations, so you can see if it's something that may work for you!

Resources for Online Learning

Resources for Online Learning

Need to brush up on some of your academic skills or understanding? Not thrilled with learning some of your classes' content from textbooks or other resources your teachers have provided? Want to continue learning about a subject once the class has moved on, or want to move ahead of the pace of the class? Check out some of these suggestions...

*Special thanks to the magazine All You, and author Jessie Van Amburg, for some of these resources and ideas.


Multi-purpose sites and apps
Quizlet.com allows you to use pre-made flashcards, or to make your own, to review content ranging from science vocabulary to math facts. If you have this app on your phone or tablet, it's a productive thing to use while you're in traffic (as a passenger!), waiting in line, or just have a few minutes of downtime.

The Hopscotch app allows you to practice coding your own games, art, and animation. Coding may not be taught at your school, but this app makes learning about and practicing it fun and easy.

StoryJumper.com allows you to create your own books by writing text and choosing from preloaded illustrations. If you choose, you can also get a hard copy version of the book printed and bound, and shipped to you for as little as $13. While StoryJumper is geared toward younger kids, there are other more mature options for older students. If you're into writing at all, starting your own blog on a free blogging platform like blogspot.com or EduBlogs.com can give you the opportunity to see your writing published online, and to have a real audience!

Audible.com has over 100,000 books and audio resources. If your eyes tire easily, or you're sick of listening to music in the car or while working out, an audio book is a fun (and sometimes free) thing to try. Podcasts (downloadable through the iTunes store) are also a great audio resource, and you can find podcasts on all sorts of topics and in various genres.

FactMonster.com has interactive games (including math facts practice with varying degrees of difficulty) and supplemental materials that could be applied to the content in many of your classes.

Grammar 

The Mad Libs app (free)is a digital version of the old favorite. Play with your friends or alone, plugging in nouns, adjective, verbs, and other parts of speech to create a zany story and to learn some new vocabulary.

Chompchomp.com is a favorite resource among some middle school English teachers, for their interactive and weird games that allow students to practice grammatical concepts independently and at their own pace.



Foreign Language
Watch a foreign language film on Netflix, Amazon Instant Video, or Hulu. Choose to watch it with or without subtitles. Or, watch an English language film (maybe one you've seen before) that has been dubbed over in another language. Already knowing the plot of the film may allow you to focus more on listening to the vocabulary and pronunciation, because you don't have to be trying to figure out what's going on.

The DuoLingo app and website allow you to make learning and practicing any of ten foreign languages, into a game! You can compete with friends, family, or classmates, or you can play as an individual. There are varying levels of difficulty you can work through too, so you'll be able to track your own progress and move at your own pace.



Science 

YouTube has a bunch of channels that focus on science content. SciShow, MinutePhysics, and Khan Academy are some favorites. Khan Academy also has its own full site, with videos, tutorials, and exercises related to science, math, and other content.

Budding astronomers may like the SkyView app, which lets you chart the stars overhead simply by pointing your phone or tablet at the night sky.

iBirdLite is another free app that lets you explore your natural surroundings, specifically plants and animals.

Remembering What You've Read... Audiobooks and other reading strategies

Do you find it difficult to remember what you've read? Or do you find yourself "zoning out" while reading? Try listening to an audio book while you read and visualize, and you might find that you remember more and/or can pay attention better!

Listen to the audio of the book while you read along and take notes! Although this article emphasizes the benefit of audio books for students who have learning differences, studies find that most people benefit from multiple means of representation when trying to encode (learn) new information.

Online resources like Audible.com, iTunes, audiobooks.com, and your public or school library have online audio books or audio books on CDs (or even cassette tapes?!) that you can check out, so you can easily try this strategy to see if it works for you!


Other active reading strategies you can use while listening to an audio book (or not), to better remember what you've read, include:

• End-of-chapter summaries
• Sticky Note summaries
• 3-bullet summaries
• SWBS summaries

• Stop and paraphrase at the end of each page (Stop, Think, Paraphrase)
• Visualizing
• Connecting
• Margin Notes

I'll post more about these other active reading strategies later. Happy reading (and/or listening!)

During-Reading Strategies

During-reading Strategies

While completing your summer reading, you should consistently check in with yourself to ensure you're reading actively, instead of simply looking at a bunch of words on a page (or a screen). There are lots of things you can do to be an active reader, and you're likely already doing some of those things. Below are some strategies you may already use without thinking about it, or may want to consider using, as you read.

1. Visualize
2. Make Connections
3. Make Predictions
4. Take Margin Notes

Visualizing means to "make a mental picture" of what's happening in the story, as you read. Because a book will likely be action-oriented, and the characters will be doing and saying things, this "picture" is really more like a movie. The more detail you're able to add to your mental movie, the more likely you are to understand what is happening in the story. Just make sure that the details you add to your mental movie (accents, background/setting, characters' facial expressions, etc.) are based on the information that the author has provided. If you find that you're unable to make a mental movie while reading, or if that mental picture is vague and not very detailed, that may be a sign that you're not really thinking about what you're reading, or that you're not understanding what's happening in the story.

Making Connections, as discussed in a previous post, is a great strategy to use in order to stay interested in what you're reading and to remember more of what you're reading. You can connect what you're reading to other things you've read in the past, movies you've seen, things that you have personally experienced, or what you know about the world around you. Making connections can also help you to visualize more clearly, and it can help you to make more logical predictions.

Making Predictions is basically just thinking about what will happen next, based on what has happened so far in a story and based on background knowledge and previous experience. Oftentimes, we have to modify predictions about what will happen, as we read and gain more information. Making predictions can keep us interested in what we're reading, and it can also give us a purpose or focus while reading; we'll keep reading to figure out whether or not our predictions are accurate!

The topic of taking Margin Notes deserves a lot more discussion and time than I'll give it right now, but in short, taking margin notes while reading is a great way to ensure that you're being active (and not just looking at the words on the page), and to show off your thought process or what's happening in your mind, as you read. I always suggest that people have something in their hand to write with, while reading. This is so you can jot down those connections and predictions you're making, as well as questions or other ideas you have, while you're reading. It is also helpful to have something to write with in your hand so you can easily underline or star important parts of the story, note down in the margins when a new character appears or when the setting changes, or when you think the author might be emphasizing a certain point over and over again. It can be a good idea to use symbols and abbreviations when taking margin notes, to save yourself some time and to make certain things pop out at you when you go back to review what you've read. For example, a star can be used to denote something you think is important; "Ch." can be written in the margin when a new character appears; you can jot down a question mark in a margin when you're confused, or an exclamation point when something surprising happens; "Set." can be written in the margin when there's a description of the setting (time and place) of the story; and, you can make up other symbols and abbreviations to show what you're thinking and what sorts of connections you're making as you read. The margins of a book, if large enough, can also be a good place to sketch out some of what you're visualizing as you read, if you think it's an important scene or page.

Happy Reading!

Pre-Reading Strategies

Pre-reading Strategies

Before beginning your summer reading, take a look at these tips and the rationale behind using each.

Pre-reading is an important step in the reading process, especially when you're being asked to read something challenging or when the topic of the text is something you don't find inherently interesting.    Using a few of the pre-reading strategies below can very likely help you to understand the text better when you do read, and it can also increase your interest in the topic and increase your motivation to read something that's required. 

Below are 5 strategies you should try BEFORE reading a book:

1. Build Background Knowledge and/or Activate Background Knowledge
2. Skim and Survey
3. Question the Text
4. Make Predictions
5. Make Connections

1. Build Background Knowledge and/or Activate Background Knowledge
Activating background knowledge or Building Background Knowledge prior to reading can help you to be better able to visualize, connect to, and generally comprehend what you're reading. Activating background knowledge basically primes our brains to retain incoming information, because the part of our memory that stores similar information will already be alert and ready to receive more. Clearly there's a better scientific explanation, but I like to think of our brains as velcro and the new information contained in a text as a tennis ball. If the velcro's "sticky" side is facing out because it's been activated, the tennis ball is more likely to stick. If the velcro's sticky side is not facing out because there is not any background information or it hasn't been activated, the tennis ball will likely just bounce off and not stick.

Building background information can be done in any number of ways: watching a movie on the topic that is discussed in the book, or that is set during the same time period as a story; visiting museum exhibits, monuments, or locations discussed in a book; looking up pictures or videos online that relate to the story or topic; or, simply having a conversation with someone who is knowledgeable about the topic or the plot of the book. Having some background information prior to reading can help you to become more interested in what you're reading too, can help you to better visualize what's happening, and it can also help you with coming up with questions, making predictions, and making connections (which will all be discussed below).

2. Skim and Survey
Skimming and surveying a book only takes a few minutes at most. Basically, you'll want to look at and read the front and back covers or inside of any book jackets, then flip through the book to notice text features like the chapter titles or subheadings, and pictures or graphics. It's also helpful to note the length of individual chapters, the font size, and how many pages the book is overall, for planning and time management purposes. Skimming and surveying a book can help in that it can prompt you to activate background knowledge, and also because it will help you to come up with questions about the text, make predictions, and make connections.

3. Question the Text
Don't expect the text to answer you back out loud, but you'll certainly find many answers to your own thoughtful questions once you start to read. While skimming or surveying the book, come up with some questions you'd like to find the answers to while reading. You can turn chapter titles into questions. For example, if a chapter was titled "The Wicked Witch of the West," I might ask myself, Why is she wicked? What does she do that's wicked? What's her name? Is she from the west coast of the United States, or the western part of some other region?
Also, for example, if you skim Seedfolks, you will see a number of pictures and chapter titles that are names of people. So, you might ask a question like,  Is the title of the chapter the person's name whose picture is also on the page? Or, Why does this chapter have a picture of a packet of seeds, while that other page has a picture of a shovel? Or, Is there only one narrator for the whole story, or does it switch each chapter?

Questions can also be general, like the following:

• How does the picture on the cover relate to the story? 
• When and where is this book set?
• Who is the protagonist, and what is his or her problem?
• What is the main character going to learn over the course of the story?
• Why does the font change at different points of the book?

General or specific, asking questions is an important pre-reading strategy because it gives you a focus and purpose for reading- you're reading in order to answer those questions. It can also help you to enjoy the book more, and keep you reading, because you'll want to find out the answers to your questions. Not all of your questions will be answered, and you'll likely change some of your questions and come up with new ones while reading.

4. Make Predictions

Making predictions can get and keep you interested in the book you're reading. Make predictions about what sort of problem a main character may have, why the title of the book is what it is, and how the setting of the book might influence the action. It helps to have some background knowledge, and to have skimmed the book, before making predictions. Making predictions, like questioning the text, is another During-Reading strategy you should use.

5. Make Connections

Activating background knowledge is a form of making connections between what you already know, and what you anticipate reading. Many of the connections you can make to a book before you even read it, will fall into one of three categories: 

• connections to our own life or experiences
• connections to other texts we've read
• connections to what we know about the world around us

Making connections to the book based on its topic, title, pictures, chapter titles, or other features we see by skimming the book, can help us to be engaged in what we're reading, because we can relate to the story or topic in some way. It can also help is to better remember what we're reading, because the new information gets linked to what we already know (whether it's a fact or a personal memory).