Working on Reading Comprehension

•By definition, Reciprocal Teaching is

an instructional strategy that involves
guided practice of reading
comprehension using four concrete
steps.
• RT helps students learn to monitor
their own reading, learning, and
thinking, with or without a teacher
present.
Why Reciprocal
Teaching?
 It is a research-based process through
which students can raise their reading
comprehension proficiency by using the
strategies that good readers use most
often.
 Can be modeled
 Lays the foundation for metacognitive
techniques that:
○can be personalized by each
student ○improve reading
comprehension
•  The role of the teacher is to provide modeling,
scaffolding, feedback, encouragement, and
opportunities for students to practice the
strategy in a classroom setting.

•  Often, students will do RT only with the most

challenging sections of a book or chapter. The
teacher is the reading expert who carefully
determines when to use RT and to scaffold the
process by chunking text, identifying potential
problems and providing learning opportunities.
• Good times to use RT might include:

* the beginning of a chapter or book

* passages that introduce important
concepts or vocabulary
* transitional material
* confusing or ambiguous sections
* pivotal passages
Four Cognitive Strategies Structure
●Summarizing
●Clarifying
●Questioning
●Predicting

Some teachers have modified RT by

including the
strategies of visualization and making
personal
connections to the text.
The Summarizer

The
Summarizer
helps group
members
restate the
main ideas in
the reading.
Reminder:

Summaries are formed by the

reader; they are not found in
the text. They do not include
minor details. Summarizing
helps readers understand and
remember what they
have read.
A Summarizer might
say:
• What are the main ideas in this
chunk/passage?
• Can you use your own words to
state the main idea in one
sentence?
• Which parts could you leave out
and still get the point across?
• How can we combine our ideas
into one summary?
Clarifier
The clarifier
helps group
members find
parts of the
reading that
are not clear
and asks the
group to help
find ways to
clear up these
difficulties.
Reminder:

Good readers look for the parts of a

text that are confusing to them and
use fix-up strategies such as
rereading, scanning ahead, adjusting
reading rate, visualizing, identifying
unknown vocabulary words, using
print conventions and prior
knowledge to help them understand
a text.
A clarifier might say:

• Which parts of this were

confusing or unclear as you
read?
• Can anyone else help us
clarify this part?
• What else can we do to
understand this?
• What strategies did you use
to clarify this part of the
passage?
The Questioner
 The questioner
helps group
members ask all
sorts of questions
about the text.
Reminder

Good readers ask questions

as they read to help them
understand and remember
what they read. Questions
also help build interest and
set purposes for reading.
A questioner might
say:
● What questions did you have
as you read?
● Can anyone else help answer
that question?
● What kind of question was
that? What did we do to find
answers?
● Are there any other questions
you wonder about?
The Predictor
The predictor helps
the group connect
sections of the text
by (1) reviewing
predictions from the
previous sections,
and by (2)
identifying clues
about what they will
read in the next
section.
Reminder:

Good readers predict what will

happen next by using
information from the reading.
Doing this helps readers stay
engaged in their reading and it
helps them check their
understanding as they
read.
A predictor might say:

• What were some of the hypotheses we

posed last time about what we just
read?
• Were any of them correct?
• What information did you use to
predict?
• What do you think we will read about
next?
• What do you think will happen next?
What are the 4 roles?
Steps for Teacher-Lead
RT:

1. Have everyone (students

and teacher) silently read a
given portion of text. In the
beginning, use only a
paragraph.  After the silent
reading is completed, direct
the class through the four
steps, modeling the strategy
for them.
2. Take the lead and direct the
discussion. Select a new
leader and assign another
portion of the text for silent
Steps, continued
3. At the conclusion of the reading, the new leader will
carry on the discussion modeling what the teacher
did with the previous section. As the teacher, assume
the role of student and respond as a student would
respond.

4.  At first, if students have difficulty assuming the role

of leader, prompt the leader with questions.  After
the leader has completed the four steps involved in
the monitoring process, have the group read the next
portion silently and resume the leadership role.

5. After modeling each of the segments, gradually turn

over the reins to the students; however, provide
feedback and encouragement during the process.
How might it work for
you?
RT in a Fishbowl
Discussion Setting
• Select chunks of text for students to read &
ask that they read silently at their desks [or
ask students in the fishbowl to read text
aloud to class and to each other]
• When students complete the reading, select
3 students to participate in the fishbowl
with the teacher as the 4th member
• Give each member a book mark.
Recip rocal Te achin g F ish bowl
Mo del
Steps, continued
●Observers on outside may take notes
on how each person in center executes
his or her role, or how group members
encourage each other, or how the RT
members are understanding the
content & note any changes in
perceptions.
●Debrief the discussion with entire class
• Once students have the hang of it,
teacher should move out of center to
be replaced by another student
 Compare the 2
reciprocal teaching
activities.
Steps for student
groups using RT
1. Create heterogeneous groups of four.

2. Direct students towards selected

passages or chunks of text.
3. Students select the four roles of:
-summarizer
-clarifier
-questioner
-predictor
Steps, continued

1. Students read passage silently or

aloud.
2. When all group members are done,
each student starts participating by
either clarifying the information,
asking questions, predicting what
will come next or making a clear and
accurate summary
6. Trade roles and repeat procedure
with new chunks of text
RT, an effective way to
engage readers with
text
 This strategy is one that teachers don’t
seem to want to incorporate into their
lessons.
 The teachers who use it, however,
consistently report that it is the most
effective way to engage readers with
texts.
 Students also report that they read
and understand more when they use
reciprocal teaching than when they
read the text independently.
(Carter 2003)
Debrief
 How might this strategy impact
your classroom instruction?
 Compare the 3.
 Which would be the most
effective in your classroom
setting and why?
Questions?
Trivia: Urban Legends
Have you been fooled?
 1. Daily, we are
bombarded with warnings
of computer doom. Which
of the following was *not*
a hoax?
 Good Times
 Happy99
 It Takes Guts to Say Jesus
 Penpals
Senteo Question
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 2. What item was toy
company Coleco rumored
to send to the owners of
Cabbage Patch dolls who
requested one?
 A mink coat for their doll
 A death certificate
 A sequined outfit
 A divorce settlement Senteo Question
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 3. Despite all the
rumors, the acid-crazed
babysitter didn't...
 Jump out the first-story window
while attempting to fly
 Paint the ceilings in psychedelic
colors
 Cook the baby in the microwave
 Sing songs from Pink Floyd in Question
Senteo
church To set the properties right click and select
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 4. Nope, it's an urban
legend...you can't
exchange aluminum can
pull-tabs for...

 6-packs of soda
 Gold bars
 Kidney dialysis
 Fine jewelry
Senteo Question
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 5. Despite all the
rumors, this company
really isn't headed by
Satanists who are
involved in a plot to take
over the world.
 Colgate
 Palmolive
 Quaker Oats
 Procter and Gamble
Senteo Question
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 6. No, the cast member
did *not* hang himself
during the filming of...

 Gone with the Wind

 The Wizard of Oz
 Casablanca
 Miracle on 57th Street
Senteo Question
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 7. Unfortunately, it's not
true that John F.
Kennedy, in a speech
that was badly-
translated from English
to German, proclaimed 'I
am a...'
 jelly doughnut
 rubber duck
 Berliner
Senteo Question
 airliner To set the properties right click and select
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 8. Despite tales to the
contrary, the modern
image of Santa Claus
was not entirely
crafted by...
 Elves
 Pierre Cardin
 A cookie company
 Coca-Cola
Senteo Question
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 9. This family member
was never really
served up well-done in
Mexico.
 The baby
 The dog
 The mother-in-law
 Grandma
Senteo Question
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 10. 'Puff the Magic
Dragon' is *not* a song
about...

 Dragons
 Marijuana
 Innocence
 Children
Senteo Question
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Senteo Question Object->Properties...