You may modify any Guided Reading teaching plan to focus on any appropriate comprehension strategy. For example, you may wish to change the comprehension
focus for a first reading if you think students need practice with a particular strategy.
Changing the comprehension focus is an easy task. You need to modify the original lesson in three areas:
- Before Reading: Set a new purpose for reading that focuses on the comprehension strategy you have selected.
- During Reading: Add a prompt that focuses on the new comprehension strategy when you hear selected students read aloud for diagnostic purposes. You may
also wish to assess the selected strategy when you monitor.
- After Reading: When you revisit the purpose for reading, focus on the modified comprehension purpose you established in the Before Reading phase.
Example of a Guided Reading Lesson (First Reading) with a New Comprehension Focus
An example of a modified teaching plan with a new comprehension focus is provided. Read the original lesson and then look over the changes indicated in italics.Text: We Can Help (Level C)
Original Comprehension Focus: Evaluating
New Comprehension Focus: Making connections
| Making connections Print tracking/making connections Analyzing Analyzing/inferring Inferring Making connections/ synthesizing Visual literacy Text features Making connections/ comparing |
Activating and Building Background Knowledge Let’s look throught this comic together. What do you notice? How is a comic different from a storybook? What’s special about it? • Using your copy of thecomic, look through the pages with the students and invite them to talk about any comics they may have seen or read. In this comic you’re going to find out how two children help out at home. How do you help out at home? Share your ideas with a partner • Turn to the first page. Read the title out loud and use your finger to track print as you read.ELL Note: Ask students to raise their hands if they help do chores at home: wash the dishes, set the table, feed the dog, tidy up toys, and so on. Props such as cutlery or a dish towel can assist comprehension. Discussing Supports and Challenges • Hand out copies of the comic to each student. • Ask students to closely examine the illustrations on the first page, paying focused attention to the small details of the pictures. • Use prompts to discuss the comic’s content, purpose, and features: – In the first picture, do you see any clues that tell you these children want to help out around home? Why do you think that? – In the second picture, what clues do you see about how Mom is feeling as she shovels the snow? In the first two pictures you notice the lines the illustrator had drawn to show how excited the children are feeling and how Mom is shivering in the cold air. Keep looking at the pictures for clues as you read the comic. – How might the children help Mom feel better? What makes you think that?How do we know who’s talking in each of these pictuers? Yes, the children’s words look as though they’re coming out of their mouths in speaking balloons • Point out that speech bubbles contain the dialogue in a comic.Reading a comic isn’t quite the same as reading a book. On the first page we see two parts – one at teh top, and one at the bottom. Point to where we start reading. Run your finger under the words and stop at the last word on this page. • Reread the title, and ask students to identify where to start reading. After reading the first panel, have students identify where to read next. Discuss how a comic is read from top to bottom on each page.Setting a Purpose for Reading As you read, think about how you help at home and see if these children help in the same way. • Focus the readers on the comprehension purpose. |
| Making connections/ comparing Analyzing/inferring Evaluating Self-monitoring Predicting |
• Ask each student to read the text independently, keeping in mind the purpose for reading. ELL Note: When reading with the ELLs, use facial expressions and gestures to communicate the meaning of words like ‘sad,’ ‘hungry,’ ‘cold,’ and ‘tired’. Use such words when prompting ELLs so they gain more exposure to these words. For example, “Is Mom cold?” “Is the dog hungry?” The ELLs answer, “Yes, Mom is cold.” • Observe and listen to students as they read quietly, and assist them with navigating the comic’s features, word solving, vocabulary, and punctuation. Respond to students’ comprehension and word recognition queries as needed, and offer prompts to help them problem solve. Possible prompts: – Do you help when your Mom or Dad is cleaning the kitchen? Do you help in the same way as the children in the comic? – How did the children help their mother? – Why did the boy ask the dog “Are you hungry?” – Did that make sense? Reread that part and think what would make sense and sound right. • If students finish early, ask them to reread independently or with a partner. Ask them to discuss what else the children could do to help their family. • Note successful reading strategies and any remaining reading challenges. You may wish to assess the new comprehension strategy. |
Making connections/ comparing Synthesizing Evaluating/making connections Making connections Predicting Analyzing/making connections |
Did you think about how you help at home as you read? Do you do the same things to help as these children, or different things? Do you work as hard • Revisit the purpose for reading by comparing how the students help at home with how the children in thecomic help out. • Extend comprehension by offering prompts to initiate group discussion: – Why do you think the children are wearing cloaks? – Check out the pictures at the bottom of page 2 and the top of page 3. Who do you think built the tower of blocks? Why do you think that? – Who is talking in the bottom picture on page 4? How do you know? – If there was another page in this comic, what do you think the two children might do to help out next? Kyle did a great job noticing the clues in the last picture. Kyle said the children are smiling because the baby’s feeling better. The hearts show how much the children love the baby. The exclamation mark shows how happy the children are. • Comment on any effective reading strategies you observed. |
Teaching Tip:Many texts can be modified to fit a selection of comprehension strategies. However, choose your comprehension strategy carefully as some texts lend themselves to particular strategies, for example, a “How to…” text usually asks a reader to sequence information and a text that requires a reader to visualize may lend itself to a focus on inferring.
Use the Guided Reading Teaching Plan Outline to jot down changes you will make in modifying a lesson. It can also be used to jot down ideas for a Guided Reading lesson, using materials you already have in your classroom.