This document discusses strategies for supporting reading comprehension. It explains that comprehension is an active process that involves cognitive effort on the part of the reader. Teachers must provide explicit instruction in comprehension strategies and ensure students have experience with a variety of texts. Affective factors like metacognition, motivation, beliefs, and self-efficacy also influence comprehension and must be considered in instructional plans. The document outlines specific comprehension strategies like inferring, summarizing, and think-alouds that teachers can model and students can practice. It stresses the importance of differentiation, scaffolded instruction, and incorporating collaborative learning activities to meet diverse student needs.

1. Supporting Comprehension
By: Edica Liebl
Reading and Literacy Growth (Read – 6707)
Walden University
Victoria Spera

2. Supporting Comprehension
• The primary goal of reading is to understand what we read.
Comprehension is not just word recognition. Instead,
comprehension is a multifaceted process that involves active and
intended cognitive effort on the part of the reader, during
reading. Meaning is formed by the reader in relationship to the
text with purposeful reading (Hollenbeck & Saternus, 2013, p.
559). It is imperative that students receive meaningful
experiences with a variety of texts. Teachers must provide
explicit instruction in cognitive strategies that students need to
use to understand the text, and the essential elements necessary
for effective comprehension instruction (p. 559). This
presentation will offer instructional strategies teachers use to
support students on the road to becoming competent readers
and research-based strategies students use to assist in
comprehension.

3. Supporting Comprehension Cont.
• There are factors that influence reading comprehension,
in addition to cognitive aspects such as fluency. Crucial
features of comprehension strategies are the affective
aspects including metacognition, motivation and
engagement, epistemic belief, and self-efficacy (Afflerbach,
Cho, Kim, Crassas, & Doyle, 2013, p.441). These features
must be considered within instructional plans for reading
comprehension. How can each feature inform instruction?

4. Metacognition
• Thinking about thinking. Metacognition influences
students’ reading achievement. As students proactively set
goals, select and use strategies, and self-monitor they take
control over their act of reading (Afflerbach, Cho, Kim,
Crassas, & Doyle, 2013, p.441-442). Teachers guide
students in developing thinking that is more deliberate by
assisting them to realize how they are processing material.
Readers can analyze their thinking process using techniques
such as visualizing, questioning, and by synthesizing
material. When teachers scaffold instruction and guide
students through practice, these skills lead students to text
understanding.

5. Motivation and Engagement
• Students are more motivated to read when teachers
create meaningful and engaging instruction that supports
student’s confidence. Teachers help students build
confidence in their ability to comprehend by providing a
learning environment that promotes students'
independence and instruction on how reading strategies
can be useful. Motivated readers choose to invest time and
effort in the reading process—for information gathering,
knowledge building, or personal enjoyment (Afflerbach,
Cho, Kim, Crassas, & Doyle, 2013, p.443).

6. Motivation and Engagement

7. Epistemic Belief
A Students level of knowledge about a topic is often related
to prior knowledge. Prior knowledge provides the schema
and a framework for comprehension. By making literacy
experiences more relevant to students' interests and
everyday life, teachers are building reading comprehension.
Instruction that allows students to study the knowledge
they bring to reading and the knowledge they gained from
reading builds comprehension and critical thinking
(Afflerbach, Cho, Kim, Crassas, & Doyle, 2013, p.445).
Instruction should involve student epistemic beliefs to
encouraging interest and comprehension.

8. Self-Efficacy
• Self-efficacy relates to students’ judgments of their
ability to perform at particular levels of achievement
(Afflerbach, Cho, Kim, Crassas, & Doyle, 2013, p.445). If
teachers emphasize student improvement and set realistic
goals, students may feel more confident as readers.

9. The Teacher
• To ensure every child becomes fully literate, teacher
address the needs of all learner whether struggling or
advanced learners (Reutzel & Cooter, 2016). Effective
teachers have the ability to adjust their instruction to meet
the needs of the learners. Although comprehension
strategies may focus on the same skills, knowledgeable
teachers understand that instructional plans support
students at their instructional level and is delivered in a way
to motivate students to engage in learning. Dynamic
teachers know their students, are aware of their differences
and provide the supports needed for all students to be
successful.

10. Instructional Strategies/Methods
• “The persistent challenge in using standards as a tool for
educational reform is that standards alone do not yield
change in instructional practice” (Hollenbeck & Saternus,
2013)
• Instructional strategies are the methods teachers use to
guide students’ learning. Models of research-based
instructional activities feature graphic organizers,
questioning, teacher modeling of “thinking aloud” and story
maps. Teacher modeling is an essential element for student
understanding of strategies they use as independent
readers (Hallenbeck & Saternus, 2013).

11. Think Aloud
• “Think Aloud,” the first phase of a gradual release of
responsibility, is a research-based instructional strategy that
is critical to explicit comprehension instruction (Hollenbeck
& Saternus, 2013). The teacher models how to use a
particular strategy in a flexible and dynamic way to problem
solve while reading, using language that assist students in
hearing the inner language one has while reading (2013).

12. Graphic Organizers
• Graphic organizers provide a visual demonstration of the
teacher's thinking (Hollenbeck & Saternus, 2013). Graphic
organizers can be adapted for many strategies. They may
be used to build comprehension skills before, during, and
after reading. Using graphic organizers is a powerful
routine for teachers to use during guided practice within
the gradual release model (Reutzel & Cooter, 2016). Graphic
organizers are useful tool to organize information from non-
fiction text or to summarize a fictional text.

13. Instructional Strategies/Methods cont.
• Teachers must provide explicit teaching with clear and
concise instructional methods. Using a carefully structured
approach to introducing new skills, modeling new skills and
allowing ample practice for students to demonstrate
mastery of new learning. Comprehension instruction is
scaffolded with a gradual release of responsibility allowing
students time to build specific literacy concepts and skills
(Reutzel & Cooter, 2016).
•

14. Instructional Strategies/Methods cont.
•

15. Informing Instruction
• When designing comprehension instruction it is vital to
consider student reading levels, as well as the affective
aspects. Appropriate instructional strategies lead the
learner in discovering meaning while reading. Considering
the affective behaviors, engage students and allow them to
see their capabilities in using the strategies to comprehend
progressively difficult text.

16. Comprehension Strategies
• For Students to become confident, strategic readers, they
need to understand the advantages of comprehension
strategies (Hollenbeck & Saternus, 2013, p. 563).
Comprehension strategies support the reader in making
sense of what they have read. Teachers use Instructional
strategies, explicit instruction, and guided practice to teach
the reader how to use comprehension strategies, providing
opportunities for students to adopt these strategies in the
reading process. The Common Core State Standard
indicates summarizing and inferring as comprehension
strategies used in grade four through grade six (Common
Core State Standards Initiative, 2012).

17. Comprehension Strategies cont.

18. Infer
• While reading, students use textual information as well
as prior knowledge to aid them in understanding the text. A
research-based practice that supports inferring is the
Reading Response Journal (SDEL, 3013). This practice
encourages the use of inferring strategies while reading and
allows students to express their thoughts during the
reading process. A Reader Response Journal will provide
evidence of student use of the strategy based on individual
prior knowledge and connections made with text. The
Reading Response Journal affords students a chance to self-
monitor their comprehension during reading, a critical skill
for students (Laureate Education, 2014).

19. Infer

20. Summarize
• Summarizing is a key comprehension strategy that becomes
more critical and more difficult in the intermediate grades (SDEL,
2013). In the intermediate grades text become progressively
more challenging and reading purpose shifts to reading for
knowledge, in the content area. Reading in the content areas
demands solid reading comprehension skills. Vast amounts of
information to remember and process makes summarizing a
valued comprehension skill. A variety of tools can assist in
summarizing. The SEDL suggested using graphic organizers and
jigsaw strategies in collaborative groups (2013) The National
Reading Panel recommends collaborative group activities to
increases comprehension, motivation and engage students in
learning (Laureate Education, 2014).

21. • One size does not fit all! Teachers work with children
from diverse backgrounds, with a range of learning needs.
Differentiated instruction, an accommodating specific
approach to instruction is critical to student success. When
a teacher alters her teaching to design the best possible
learning experience for her students, she is differentiating
instruction.
Differentiated Instruction

22. • Both comprehension and instructional strategies are
easily modified for every unique learner’s needs. With
additional support for struggling learners and
differentiating text levels, all students will benefit. Students
have different needs, and teachers need to adjust
instruction to meet those needs.
Differentiated Instruction cont.

23. Differentiated Instruction

24. • Collaborative Strategic Reading (IRA, 2014a) is an
instructional model where students, practice using
comprehension tools in cooperative learning groups. The
strategies used are: preview (predict), click and clunk
(identify challenges and apply fix-up strategies), get the gist
(find the main ideas), and wrap up (review new learning).
Within the instructional structure, each process or strategy
is taught explicitly, with teacher modeling and scaffolded
instruction. Teachers guide the students through practice
using the comprehension tools before using the combined
approaches in independent student application.
Lesson Overview

25. • There are many factors that are vital in supporting
learners in developing a toolbox of comprehension
strategies. These factors focus on the purpose for reading
using appropriate activities and explicit, scafoldded
instruction to teach comprehension. The consideration of
instructional methods that keep critical components in
mind will benefit the student’s abilities to enhance
comprehension.
Conclusion

26. • Afflerbach, P., Cho, B.-Y., Kim, J.-Y., Crassas, M. E., & Doyle, B. (2013). Reading: What else matters besides strategies and skills?
The Reading Teacher, 66 (6), 440–448.
• Common Core State Standards Initiative. (2012b). English language arts standards: Reading: Foundational skills:
Kindergarten. Retrieved from http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/RF/K
• Hollenbeck, A. F., & Saternus, K. (2013). Mind the comprehension iceberg: Avoiding titanic mistakes with the CCSS. The Reading
Teacher, 66(7), 558–568.
• International Reading Association (IRA) and National Council of Teachers of English. (2014a). ReadWriteThink. Retrieved from
http://www.readwritethink.org/search/?grade=13&resource_type=6&learning_objective=8
• Laureate Education (Producer). (2014). Conversations with Ray Reutzel: Supporting comprehension
[Audio file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.
• SEDL. (2013). Cognitive elements of reading. Retrieved from http://www.sedl.org/reading/framework/elements.html
References