Comprehension

Tutor Handout: Teaching Comprehension
Tutor Handout: Teaching Comprehension Questioning

Why Teach Comprehension?

Prescriptive Approach for At-Risk Students

"Since Reading-Tutors.com is aligned with the 'Five Big Ideas' (phonemic awareness, phonics/alphabetic principle, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension) identified by the National Reading Panel, we are excited to pilot this prescriptive approach to tutoring at-risk students. The design of the tutoring packets empowers volunteers, older students, instructional aides, and teachers to provide directed practice on skills not yet mastered."

Nancy Lyon; Title I Teacher Facilitator; Amphitheater School District; Tucson, AZ

Typically, children go through specific stages of development as they progress from nonreaders to fluent readers. In leveled reading, books are written to various levels of difficulty, gradually introducing developing readers to new challenges. The goal is to challenge students, without causing frustration, by giving them developmentally appropriate materials to read--materials they can read with 80 to 90 percent accuracy. The stages of reading development are commonly separated as follows:

Developmentally appropriate materials are critical at every stage of learning to ensure reading success. Learning research suggests that students learn best when presented with material that is neither too challenging nor too easy. With leveled reading, books of graduated difficulty are used to meet the needs of a wide range of reading ability within any grade or age group.

Single-Session Comprehension Packets

Reading-Tutors provides 135 leveled reading packets spread over 27 levels of graduated difficulty. Grade level equivalents range from early kindergarten to grade 6. Each Leveled Reading packet includes the following materials for a 30-minute session.

  • Lesson Plan/Tutor Tips - Strategies and activities for building comprehension
  • Leveled Reader - Developmentally appropriate book
  • Graphic Organizer - Visual device that helps give meaning to what children read
  • Vocabulary Game - Motivating formats to promote vocabulary development

Multi-Session Comprehension Packets

Reading-Tutors provides 30 leveled reading packets spread over 6 levels of graduated difficulty. Grade Level equivalents range form early kindergarten to Grade 1. Each packet includes the following materials for a five-session lesson:

  • Lesson Plan/Tutor Tips - Strategies and activities for building comprehension
  • Leveled Reader - Developmentally appropriate book
  • Graphic Organizer - Visual device that helps give meaning to what is read
  • Vocabulary Game - Motivating formats to promote vocabulary development
  • Quick Check (except at Level aa) - Quiz to assess overall comprehension of what was read

Fluency & Comprehension Packets

The Fluency and Comprehension packets provide materials and instruction for five sessions. Students are presented with a leveled fluency passage that covers some of the same vocabulary and content as the companion leveled reader. After reading the fluency passage, the student, with the tutor, reads a portion of the leveled reader each day to build comprehension. The fifth, and last, session includes a final fluency read and the comprehension Quick Check (quiz).

Teaching Reading Comprehension

Reading-Tutors Leveled Reading packets are designed to build comprehension and vocabulary, and increase fluency. The leveled readers in the packets are carefully written to standardized leveling criteria for each of 27 levels (aa through Z). The packets include strategies and materials for use before, during, and after reading a leveled reader.

Assessment

A child's reading level is assessed by using benchmark books. One book for each of the 27 reading levels is used to assess the appropriate developmental reading level and determine readiness of a child to progress to the next level. Running record forms are used to record a child's reading behavior/progress as she or he reads from the benchmark book. Additional running record assessments can be found in an online format on Raz-Kids.com.