Five Simple Strategies to Help Your Child Improve His Reading Comprehension and Do Better in School

Sadly, when public school teachers assign comprehension questions to
a particular reading passage or chapter, they think they are using a
teaching strategy to help their students learn the content. WRONG!
Asking students comprehension questions determines whether students
know the answers to questions pertaining to the passage(s) they have just read. This is an assessment tool, not a teaching strategy.

Textbooks

Textbooks in content areas such as, science, history, etc. give
information. Textbooks are called expository texts. An expository text
presents information in the form of facts and concepts.

Typically, in lower elementary grades children are taught
comprehension lessons in a narrative text. A narrative text tells a story.
Children have trouble comprehending and completing assignments in
expository texts because we teach them to read and develop
comprehension skills in narrative texts. Therefore, when children start
reading to learn, rather than learning to read, they struggle with content
area (history, science, etc.) assignments.

When your child comes home with an expository reading assignment, sit
down with him and follow these five strategies to help him improve
reading comprehension and thus get better grades in school:

1. REVIEW THE TEXTBOOK AND DISCUSS HOW IT IS ORGANIZED

Each subject area textbook will be organized differently. Review with
your child how the textbook is organized. Spend time looking to see
what content is covered, how each chapter is organized, where learning
aids -such as graphics, glossaries, summaries, definitions, tables of
contents, and the index - are located.

Students unfamiliar with their textbooks look for answers only within the
written text. They are unaware that information can be found in other
places, too. Many students don't realize that the graphs, sidebars,
headings, and pictures provide answers.

2. READ THE TEXTBOOK ALOUD TO YOUR CHILD

Teachers usually call students together, get their attention, and read
narrative texts aloud. Because the teacher is modeling a reading
strategy aloud for narrative texts, children develop an ear for how stories
sound. They come to learn that stories have characters, settings,
problems, and solutions. However, teachers seldom read textbooks
aloud. Textbooks are usually assigned to be read independently. With
such little modeling reading these kinds of texts, it's no wonder children
are confused and cannot comprehend their textbooks and have difficulty
completing assignments.

If we want children to develop an ear for expository passages we need
to begin reading textbooks aloud to them. Point out that not all reading is
the same. For example, say, "I'm going to read this CHAPTER aloud on
the history of the Spanish Conquest. As I read, we are going to be
looking for information." This will make your child aware that this is a
different kind of text. Over time, he will begin to develop an ear for how
expository texts sound, and start using a different reading strategy for
them.

3. SET A PURPOSE FOR READING

Prior to reading your child's assigned reading passage, you and your
child need to read the assigned questions at the end of the passage. By
setting a purpose for reading, you and your child will be more likely to
recognize the answers when you see them in the passage.

4.TALK ABOUT WHAT YOUR CHILD ALREADY KNOWS ABOUT THE
SUBJECT

In order to learn a concept, we must attach it to something we already
know. Reading comprehension is closely related to prior knowledge.
Help your child become aware of any prior knowledge he has about the
topic in the textbook. This will improve his comprehension because he
will have a frame of reference for the new information he reads in the
text.

5. HAVE YOUR CHILD TAKE NOTES AS YOU READ

As you read the text together, have your child make notes about
important facts and concepts in the passage. This will help him answer
comprehension questions, as well as provide him with summary
information he may need later for reports and essays.

Reading is a complicated process. It will take your child several
sessions to learn these strategies well enough to be able to use them
independently. Guide your child through these five strategies each time
he has an expository reading assignment until he seems to have
mastered them. When he starts using these strategies automatically, let
him try working independently. You should begin to see noticeable
improvement in his reading comprehension, his assignments, and his
grades. In fact, you'll probably find that you now have an easier time
understanding expository texts,too.

Five Simple Strategies to Help Your Child Improve His Reading Comprehension and Do Better in School

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