FIX-UP STRATEGIES Thinking About How You Read Metacognition: Thinking About How You Think Before you can truly improve your reading skills, you need

FIX-UP FIX-UP STRATEGIESSTRATEGIES

Thinking About How You ReadThinking About How You Read

Metacognition:Metacognition:Thinking About How You Thinking About How You

ThinkThink

Before you can truly improve Before you can truly improve your reading skills, you need your reading skills, you need

to understand what happens in to understand what happens in good readers’ minds while good readers’ minds while

they read. You may even do they read. You may even do these things already. You just these things already. You just

don’t know it…yet.don’t know it…yet.

More About MetacognitionMore About Metacognition

Good readers have developed good Good readers have developed good habits when they read. We call these habits when they read. We call these

habits strategies. Strategies help habits strategies. Strategies help readers understand, connect to, and readers understand, connect to, and determine the importance of what determine the importance of what

they are reading. They also visualize, they are reading. They also visualize, ask questions about, and read ask questions about, and read

between the lines of what they read. between the lines of what they read.

Why Use Strategies?Why Use Strategies? Strategies create a plan of attack. Strategies create a plan of attack.

Then you can solve any reading Then you can solve any reading problems yourself.problems yourself.

Strategies help you learn Strategies help you learn HOWHOW to to understand. If you know understand. If you know HOWHOW to to understand, then you are more understand, then you are more likely likely TOTO understand. understand.

Strategies help you realize Strategies help you realize HOWHOW you are thinking so that you can you are thinking so that you can think more deeply and more think more deeply and more consciously.consciously.

Fix-Up StrategiesFix-Up Strategies

Make sure you are understanding Make sure you are understanding what you are reading by using what you are reading by using clarification strategies to help you clarification strategies to help you figure out what you don’t figure out what you don’t understand. understand.

Signs that you are not Signs that you are not comprehending the textcomprehending the text

The pictures inside your mind stop forming or moving.

Your questions and inferences are not getting answered.

Your mind wanders from the text; you read it but are thinking about something else.

The current page has nothing to do with what you thought the big picture or author’s purpose was for the text.

You cannot summarize the last few paragraphs or pages.

Characters appear and you cannot remember who they are.

Two Fix-up Strategies Two Fix-up Strategies AreasAreas

•Word Attack strategies:Word Attack strategies:

These strategies help students These strategies help students read unknown words.read unknown words.

• Comprehension Fix-up Comprehension Fix-up strategies:strategies:

These strategies help students These strategies help students read and understand the read and understand the meaning of unknown phrases and meaning of unknown phrases and text.text.

Word Attack Fix-Up Word Attack Fix-Up StrategiesStrategies

☻Look at the pictures - Look at the pictures - use the use the pictures to get information that may pictures to get information that may help you figure out the wordhelp you figure out the word

☻Sound blending (look at the Sound blending (look at the beginning letters, look at the ending beginning letters, look at the ending letters, chunking)letters, chunking)

☻Use a DictionaryUse a Dictionary

☻Read AloudRead Aloud

☻Ask for HelpAsk for Help

Comprehension Fix-Up Comprehension Fix-Up StrategiesStrategies

Make a ConnectionMake a Connection Make a PredictionMake a Prediction Stop and Think about what you have already readStop and Think about what you have already read Ask a Question Ask a Question Reflect in WritingReflect in Writing VisualizeVisualize Use Print ConventionsUse Print Conventions Retell what you’ve readRetell what you’ve read RereadReread Notice Patterns in Text StructureNotice Patterns in Text Structure Adjust Your Reading RateAdjust Your Reading Rate


Make a ConnectionMake a ConnectionAs you read you should be thinking As you read you should be thinking

about how the information fits with about how the information fits with what you know about yourself, what you know about yourself, what you’ve read in other texts, what you’ve read in other texts, and how things operate in the real and how things operate in the real world. This will help you remember world. This will help you remember what you read.what you read.


Make a PredictionMake a PredictionAs you read, think about what might As you read, think about what might

happen next. You will be making happen next. You will be making inferences and drawing conclusions inferences and drawing conclusions about the characters and plot.about the characters and plot.

When an event doesn’t match a prediction, readers rethink and revise their thinking.

Predicting keeps readers on track. It keeps them involved so they aren’t surprised by incorrect conclusions.


Stop and Think About What You Have Stop and Think About What You Have Already ReadAlready Read Every so often as you read, you should Every so often as you read, you should

stop and think about what you have read. stop and think about what you have read. If you don’t remember anything you have If you don’t remember anything you have read, why continue? Pause and read, why continue? Pause and summarize in your head.summarize in your head.

Stopping and thinking gives readers time to synthesize new information. It allows them to ask questions, visualize, and determine what is important in the text.


Ask a QuestionAsk a Question If you ask questions as you read, you will If you ask questions as you read, you will

be more actively engaged with the text. be more actively engaged with the text. You will be looking for answers to your You will be looking for answers to your questions, and will remember what you questions, and will remember what you read.read.

Readers who ask questions and know where the answers to their questions are to be found are more likely to have a richer read, to infer, to draw conclusions, and regain control of their reading.


Reflect in WritingReflect in WritingWriting down what they think about

what they’ve read allows readers to clarify their thinking. It is an opportunity to reflect. Readers better understand their reading when they have written about it. The writing may be a summary or a response. Sometimes just jotting down a few notes will clarify meaning.


VisualizeVisualizeWhen meaning breaks down, good readers

consciously create images in their head to help them make sense of what the words are saying. They use movies, television, and life to help them picture what is happening. When a reader can visualize what is happening, comprehension improves. Encourage your students to make a mind movie in their head. If they can “see it”, they often understand it.

Use Print ConventionsUse Print ConventionsKey words, bold print, italicized words, capital letters, and punctuation are all used to enhance understanding. Conventions of print help the author convey intent. They help the reader determine what is important and what the author values. Conventions of print give the reader insight into voice inflections and how the author wants the piece to sound. Pointing out conventions will not only improve reading comprehension but also help students use these same conventions to convey meaning when they write. For expository text, the reader also needs to be aware of pictures, illustrations, charts and graphs.

RetellRetell

Taking a moment to retell what has been read helps the reader reflect. It activates background knowledge and also provides a check on whether the reader is understanding. When readers can’t retell what they read, it is an indication that their mind has wandered and confusion has set in.

RereadReread

It is OK to reread text that you’ve It is OK to reread text that you’ve already read.already read. An important aspect to remember is that a student doesn’t have to reread everything for the strategy to be helpful. Sometimes rereading a portion of the text – a sentence, or even just a word – can enhance comprehension. Struggling readers tend to think that rereading means they have to reread everything.

Notice Patterns in Text Notice Patterns in Text StructureStructure

Narrative and expository texts have specific organizational patterns. Recognizing how a piece is organized helps readers locate information more quickly. It helps them determine what is important. When meaning breaks down, readers can stop and think how the text is organized and see whether there is something in the organizational pattern that will help them understand the piece.

Adjust Your Reading RateAdjust Your Reading Rate

Good readers adjust their rate to meet the demands of the task. Good readers slow down when something is difficult or unfamiliar. They realize that in order to construct meaning, their rate must decrease. They also know that it’s okay to read faster when something is familiar. Good readers select a rate based on the difficulty of the material, their purpose in reading it, and their familiarity with the topic.

Ask for HelpAsk for Help

When you are not understanding When you are not understanding what you are reading, and you what you are reading, and you do not know which fix-up do not know which fix-up strategy to use, ask someone. strategy to use, ask someone. You might ask a friend or you You might ask a friend or you might need help from a teacher might need help from a teacher or parent.or parent.

How do you teach it?How do you teach it?

http://www.u-46.org/roadmap/video/?vid=Fix-it_Tools_1.wmv

REMEMBER:REMEMBER:

You may be using some or all You may be using some or all of these strategies already. of these strategies already. You just may not know it. You just may not know it. However, as you learn to read However, as you learn to read more complicated materials, more complicated materials, you WILL NEED to use these you WILL NEED to use these strategies purposefully. strategies purposefully.

SO PRACTICE!SO PRACTICE!

“In Vygotskian terms, the internalization of comprehension strategies involves long-term practice with the strategies, including opportunities to reflect on strategies used with others.”

~ Farstrup and Samuels

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FIX-UP STRATEGIES Thinking About How You Read Metacognition: Thinking About How You Think Before you can truly improve your reading skills, you need