Reading Tools: Comprehension Part I

What's it all About?

That IS the question.  Reading the words on the page is only part of being a proficient reader.  In order to help our little ones develop better comprehension we need to be active listeners, asking questions and sharing ideas.  Comprehension involves the following areas:

Contextual Clues: Hints an author gives to define a difficult or unusual word.  So your reader struggled with the word ""experimental," (but wait!)  the author writes, "This project is experimental, something new we're trying."  Now your reader has not only decoded an unfamiliar word, but knows what it means.  

Working Memory: This is the exercise of holding several important details in your mind as you solve a problem. A reader must hold the details of a complex sentence in mind at the same time as they are decoding the rest of the sentence.  This skill especially comes in handy with math word problems and science. 

Making Connections: Readers connect their background knowledge to the text they are reading. By doing this readers comprehend better by thinking actively about their knowledge of the book's topic, their own experiences, and the world around them.  Maybe you are reading a book about fish and your reader remembers that he saw a blue tang at the zoo last week.