Constructing Meaning Written by Nancy Boyles Southern Connecticut State University

1. ConstructingMeaningWritten by Nancy BoylesSouthern Connecticut State University Created for Parkview Elementary School Teachers Mary Cooper, Literacy Specialist

2. What we don’t want our students thinking reading is …

3. Instead… “If our students are to become good readers, if they are to improve as readers, we must teach them to think about how they think while they read.” Found on pg. ix

4. Welcome! Goals for this presentation: • Find out what kids say about these strategies • Have an understanding of the kid-friendly comprehension strategies in Nancy Boyles’ book, Constructing Meaning • Understand the importance of teaching all the comprehension strategies in an integrated fashion • Recognize the ways our integration of these strategies will help all teachers and students

5. What do kids Parkview students say about these strategies? • “I like it when we use these strategies.” 2nd grader • “I’m going to tell you how I combined three of these strategies all at once!” 3rd grader • “I never knew what I was supposed to be thinking about when I read. Now I really get it.” 3rd grader • “These strategies really charge my brain.” 4th grader

6. Kid-friendly Comprehension Strategies The next six slides will define each of Nancy Boyles’ kid-friendly comprehension strategies

7. Connecting Finding something that is connected: • To my life • To another book • To things in the world

8. Picturing or Visualizing If I close my eyes, • I can see. . . . • I can hear. . . . • I can feel. . . . • I can smell. . . . • I can taste. . . .

9. Wondering or questioning What questions pop into my mind, such as: • What might happen next? • How will [the story] end? • Why did the author write this? • What else do I want to know?

10. Guessing or predicting • What might happen next? • How will [the story] end? • What is the author trying • to tell me?

11. Noticing • What are the important clues? • Have I guessed right or wrong? • Is there something I don’t understand? • Has the author done something crafty?

12. Figuring Out • How do all the clues fit together? • When did that “little light bulb” go on in my head? • What do I understand better after this reading?

13. Why integrate comprehension strategies? (as opposed to teaching each in isolation) • “Real readers don’t read by isolating a single strategy” • “Real readers don’t use just one strategy while reading to construct meaning from everything they read for six or seven weeks.” • “Competent readers have a repertoire of reading strategies available, strategies that they mix and match while they read.” Found on pg. xii and xiii

14. How will we help our students if we all use these strategies? • Enhance student participation and engagement • Improve student reading comprehension • Teachers and students will share a common language • The language won’t change year to year—learning picks up where it left off the year before

15. Not an “Add On” “Teaching reading comprehension strategies should not be something you “add on” to your regular curriculum.” Rather, teaching these strategies can and should be an important part of what happens every day in your classroom during: • Shared reading • Guided reading • Independent reading • Whether reading fiction or nonfiction Found on pg. xiv

16. Special thanks to Nancy Boyles, who gave permission to use her materials for this slide show. If you’d like to email Nancy Boyles with your questions or comments, you can email her at boylesn1@southernct.edu