This document provides techniques for improving reading comprehension, including making connections to personal experiences, visualizing content, avoiding boredom, paying attention, listening to others' ideas, asking questions, annotating texts, and using double-entry diaries. It discusses connecting texts to oneself, the world, and other texts. It also describes interacting and distracting inner voices that readers may experience and encourages developing an interacting conversation voice. Questioning throughout the reading process can improve comprehension by interacting with the text and clarifying or inferring beyond the literal meaning.

1. How to keep engaged with your reading to
improve comprehension:

2. Making connections helps
readers!
 Remember the following techniques to make
connections:
• Relate to characters.
• Visualize.
• Avoid boredom...if you start to get bored, take a short break.
• Pay attention, take your reading seriously.
• Listen to others’ ideas about the reading.
• Read actively and read with intention.
• Ask questions.
• Use an Annotation Method, mark your text, or utilize Double-
Entry Diaries.

3. Text-to-Reader Connections:
How to relate to your reading
 Text to self: Connections between the text
and the reader’s experiences and memories.
The more experiences and memories a
reader has about a topic, the easier the
material is to read.
 Text to world: Connections the reader
makes between the text and what he knows
about the world (facts and information).
 Text to text: Connections the reader makes
between two or more types of texts. The
reader may make connections relative to
plot, content, structure, or style.

4. Voices: What you “hear” when
you are reading
 Reciting Voice - The voice a reader hears when he is only
reciting the words and not drawing meaning from the text.
 Conversation Voice - The voice that has a conversation
with the text. It represents the reader’s thinking as he/she
talks back to the text in an interactive way. It can take two
forms:
 Interacting Voice - This voice encourages the reader to
infer, make connections, ask questions, and synthesize
information.
 Distracting Voice - This voice pulls the reader away from
the text.
 Your goal to make the most effective
use of your reading is to strive for the
Interacting Conversation Voice!

5. Questioning/I Wonder…
 Questions can be more powerful than
answers. Good readers ask questions
throughout the reading process: before,
during, and after reading. Readers who ask
questions when they read assume
responsibility for their learning and improve
their comprehension in four ways:
 By interacting with text.
 By motivating themselves to read.
 By clarifying information in the text.
 By inferring beyond the literal meaning.

6. An Annotation Method
Use one of the annotation methods to clear
up confusion and make connections while
reading:
• Sticky Notes
Place sticky notes next to passages that
cause confusion so that you can return to
them.
• Highlighters
Use highlighters to mark places you
understand (pink) and places that are
confusing (yellow).

7. Good Highlighting:
 This represents an example of a
good highlighting technique.
Focusing on key ideas and
terminology.

8. Bad Highlighting:
 Just because you are highlighting the
text doesn’t mean you are doing it
effectively. Do not highlight everything.

9. Marking Text
Marking text helps readers pay attention and
remember what they read. Try this marking
method as a way to increase reading
comprehension:
• Assign codes to the types of thinking in which
you engage. As you read, mark these codes next
to the passages in the text that trigger these kinds
of thinking and explain the connection.
o C = connection reader makes to own life and
text
o ? = questions reader has about text
o I = inference or conclusion reader draws
from text

10. Double-entry Diaries (DED)
DEDs are similar to taking notes.
But are a good Comprehension Technique. Try some of the
following DED strategies:
• Divide page in half with questions and main ideas on the
left and specific information on the right.
• Divide page in half with direct quote from text and page
number on the left and thinking options on the right (reader’s
reactions). A sample of this type of DED is on the next slide.
• Divide page in half with facts or details on the left and
author’s message on the right.
• Divide page in half with confusing part in text on the left
and reader’s attempt to get unstuck on the right.
• Divide page in half with new/confusing vocabulary on the
left and reader’s knowledge on the right.

11. Here is a sample DED:

12. Sources:
 “Academic Support Guides: Reading
Comprehension.” Cuesta College.
http://academic.cuesta.edu/acasupp/as/300IN
DEX.HTM
 Krieg, Elaine G. Strategies for College
Readers. New York: Longman, 2008. Print.
 “Study Skills Activities: Reading as a Study
Skill.” Montana State Literacy Resources: A
Service of the National Institute of Literacy.
http://www.nwlincs.org/mtlincs/pilotproject/stu
dyskills/studyskillsindex.htm