What do successful readers do?
As teachers, we’re often guilty of testing our students’ reading abilities through comprehension questions, without actually supporting them to become better readers. But where should we start? How can you move beyond a comprehension focus and help students to become the best readers of English that they can be? What might be stopping them from developing? In this webinar, I’ll aim to answer all of these questions, by looking at what good readers do and demonstrating how to support students to build those skills for themselves.
Presented at the 30th PARK conference, Brno, Czechia
2024.03.23 What do successful readers do - Sandy Millin for PARK.pptx
1. http://sandymillin.wordpress.com/parksuccessfulreaders
What do successful readers do?
Sandy Millin
30th P.A.R.K. conference
23rd March 2024
http://sandymillin.wordpress.com/parksuccessfulreaders
sandymillin@gmail.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandymillin/
While you wait
Tell a new person you don’t
know:
- Your name
- What kind of learners you
teach
- What questions you have
about teaching reading
5. http://sandymillin.wordpress.com/parksuccessfulreaders
Context
Inside the classroom
Make the context clear
Where might you see this?
Provide visual clues
Reflect on the genre features:
What is the layout of the text?
What kind of grammar can they see? For example, are there lots of extended noun phrases?
Are there any typical tenses?
What lexical fields (areas of vocabulary) are featured?
What register is used? Formal? Academic? Scientific? Chatty, more like spoken than written
language?
22. http://sandymillin.wordpress.com/parksuccessfulreaders
Sound-spelling relationships
Inside the classroom
Low-pressure reading aloud = whole class, pair reading
One student reads to the whole class, on the spot, no practice before
Reading aloud once students can already read silently
Reading aloud with a clear focus to develop sound-spelling awareness
e.g. choral reading, teacher indicates sounds
As a transition stage > Aim = move towards silent reading
More on reading aloud: https://speakinggames.wordpress.com/2020/11/11/reading-aloud-what-its-really-
called-and-why-its-essential-to-formal-language-learning/
44. http://sandymillin.wordpress.com/parksuccessfulreaders
What do successful readers do?
Sandy Millin
30th P.A.R.K. conference
23rd March 2024
http://sandymillin.wordpress.com/parksuccessfulreaders
sandymillin@gmail.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandymillin/
While you wait
Tell a new person you don’t
know:
- Your name
- What kind of learners you
teach
- What questions you have
about teaching reading
Editor's Notes
7 things successful readers do + how we can help learners to do them
All slides at link
Always contextualised
Know what you’ve picked up e.g. book, food packaging
Know what you’ve clicked on e.g. email / facebook
Activating schemata – mental map
Think you’re reading something based on one context, then you’re actually reading something different – expect sth formal, then it’s informal, expect an important message, then it’s a joke
Coursebooks remove context – all texts look the same. Schemata = ‘texts I’ll see in the classroom’ / ‘texts in my coursebook’
Aim in mind. What questions do you have? = gives us focus
Aim in mind. What questions do you have?
Aim in mind. What questions do you have?
No questions = no motivation
Teacher told me to (texts and tasks) = no curiosity
Same types of tasks regardless of the genre, not reflective of most reading outside classroom
Ideas of what to read next
Success depends on our familiarity with that text type / situation
Schemata are activated = not reading ‘cold’
Not necessarily explicit, but can be e.g. children’s books
See something unexpected – pause, re-read, create new predictions
Consistently wrong = give up, can’t do it – reduce confidence = I’m an unsuccessful reader
Image / headline > first paragraph >
Basics of reading = connecting sounds and spellings
Single letters / sounds
CVC
Recognition words e.g. have, the
Mandated order: ‘Letters and sounds programme’ from UK Department for Education
Spelling tests
Much more common to have heard a word but never to have seen it written down
Teach common relationships
Not just YL phonics syllabus – all ages!
Not as many stages?
EF sound bank > Jana
Find the sound-spelling relationships after reading the text
Guess what it means from the context.
Look it up.
Ask somebody what it means.
Ignore it.
Too many unknown words = wading through mud – push forwards, don’t get anywhere. Not enough to understand from context. Give up!
Can’t understand definition, don’t get clear, succinct, relevant definition
Ignore it > Can’t understand wider text without this
Teach students the difference!
Read to read first, then read to improve vocab if you want to (but don’t foce this!)
>>> Know why you’re reading! If it’s the former, ignore lots of words (like me and Harry Potter in Polish). If it’s the latter, you might give up (like me and John Grisham in German!) >>> It’s OK not to understand everything!
Dictionary skills are still important – good learner dictionary
How to make the most of translation software
E-reader v. paper
Dark mode v. light mode
Larger text?
Sans serif?
Where you like to read – chair, table, computer desk
Amount of time you’re willing to spend
We know what works for us + we find strategies to work around formats we don’t like / don’t find easy to navigate
Unfamiliar/less comfortable format e.g. always read typed text / on a computer/phone
Unusual fonts / handwriting
Places / time periods learners are unfamiliar with / don’t like – feel pressured / rushed – might want to spend longer with a text
Reflect on reading habits outside the classroom – when / where / how they like to read, different for different genres / formats?
Experiment with:
Font, colours, sizes
Background – screen / paper
Take photo and enlarge
Masking a text/ using paper with a window
On computer, reduce window size / use assistive software to highlight relevant text
Confident, able to read more
Not just for fiction – all genres, including social media posts!
OK to read slowly!
But if it’s caused by lack of understanding, then…
Belief that they ‘can’t read in English’ > give up
Can be limiting - Lower level of literacy than needed = problem outside the classroom
Support and encourage them
Boost confidence with very short texts – get them into the virtuous circle
Opportunities to read: formats / topics that would work for them:
News in levels
ESL bits
Graded readers
Graphic novels
Magazines about things they’re interested in
Regularly talk about what reading, enjoying it? Recommend it?
Don’t force them! Extend comfort zone
Enjoyment = most important
‘We’re told to read, but my parents / my teacher is on their phone / computer – why do I have to read?’ > model it!