Strategies to use while reading nonfiction text

The book listed a variety of strategies that teachers can teach children to use while reading expository text. In my last blog I discussed the importance of general reading strategies to help students make meaning along with strategic instruction to ensure that students are becoming lifelong learners. The remaining portion of this chapter discussed specific ideas teachers could incorporate when working in specific content areas.

The first one is the universal KWL chart. The authors shared the importance of using a KWL chart because we, as educators, do know the importance of the student’s background knowledge in facilitating an understanding of what is to be learned. The authors discussed research on schema theory and that people will understand what they read as it relates to what they already know. Prior knowledge becomes crucial to the successful construction of meaning for learners. The authors continued to share two types of prior knowledge.

1.      Overall prior knowledge- This is all the knowledge that student’s possesses. This develops from student’s experiences at home (primary Discourse) and at school (secondary Discourse).

2.      Text specific knowledge- This is the specific information needed to understand a particular topic or theme developed through types of text and about the topic. Learning this knowledge comes from extensive reading, viewing programs, field trips, discussion and demonstrations. (usually secondary discourse for many students)

This where the importance of a KWL chart comes in when reading nonfiction text, because this graphic organizer can help guide a student while reading and organize information they do in fact know, the questions they have, etc.

In my experiences with nonfiction text, I have read a lot of work by Tony Stead. He suggests that you take the traditional KWL further because he feels the more traditional graphic organizer limits learners in their thinking and experiencing nonfiction text. He calls his chart the RAN chart. (reading and analyzing nonfiction) There are five categories that are connected and lead into the next. This organizer is designed to help prompt the reader to locate new content within the text which examines, strengthens and clarifies their background knowledge. Tony Stead believes that when children come with many misconceptions about the content, write them in the Know column, there usually is not an opportunity to clear them up. So he created this chart. You can organize it in columns just like the KWL chart.

1.      What I think I know (think being the key word)

2.      Confirmed (or yes, you were right)

3.      Misconceptions

4.      New information learned

5.      Wonderings  (questions)

I have found this chart to be extremely beneficial in assisting the students in organizing their thinking as well as any misconceptions they had and how to clear them up. There are many other strategies listed that I may briefly touch on in my last blog along with writing in expository text.