STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESS

Important Reading Comprehension Skills and Activities To Promote Them
Part II

By Michelle Kahen, Associate Executive Director

MAIN IDEA

Recognizing and identifying the main idea of a story is key to understanding the central point of the story and remembering important details.

Heirarchical Organizer - Click here
Story Map - Click here
Literary Element Map - Click here

Main Idea Booklist:
A Chair for My Mother by Vera Williams
Fables by Arnold Lobel
The Great Pumpkin Switch by Megan McDonald
The Keeping Quilt by Patricia Polacco
The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Who is the Boss? by Jose Goffin

COMPARE AND CONTRAST

Comparing characters, objects, problems, events or ideas and evaluating their similarities and differences gives you more insight and understanding of the story while sharpening thinking skills.

Venn Diagram-Graphic Organizational Tool for
Comparison  - Click here
Comparison Organizer - Click here
Compare and Contrast Tool Kit - Click here

MAKING PREDICTIONS AND INFERENCES

Good readers often make predictions as they read through a story, using both their personal knowledge and what they can derive from the text, illustrations, titles and headings. Students should learn the skill of making inferences based on the facts and reasoning. Readers should identify all of the clues to come up with the most suitable conclusion.

Prediction Wheel - Click here
Think Aloud Strategy - Click here
Drawing Conclusions - Click here

SUMMARIZING - When readers summarize a story, they determine the main idea and important information and use their own words to demonstrate a real understanding of the text.

Reading Summary Diary - Create a reading diary with the headings: Date, Title of Book, Author, and Summary. Keep a log of the books your student has read and have him/her write a brief summary (no more than a few sentences) next to each entry.