Independent Reading

Reading

Writing

Thinking

Silent Reading Expectations

Have students silently read at least two days per week
Set up a time to bring your SMART/Advisory to the library
Teachers should actively monitor the students reading
Teachers should ask students about what they are
reading
Celebrate reading as a school

Why?
At every grade level for all ability groups, individual schema-based learning,
conceptual learning, and transactional learning produced the highest
comprehension scores.
Debbie Miller & Barbara Moss
Common Language in NUA, PBIS, and Reading. Common language for reading,
writing, thinking and collaborating about text.
Good readers have a repertoire of thinking strategies they use to comprehend
texts. Reading strategies (ex. close reading, signposts) are a FRAMEWORK for
thinking.
Prior knowledge is the main determinant of comprehension.

Close Reading
Short, complex passages.
Repeated readings.
Annotations.
Collaborative conversations about the text, including argumentation.
Text-dependent questions.

The Phrases of Close Reading

What does the text say? (literal)
How does the text work? (vocabulary, text structure, authors craft)
What does the text mean? (authors purpose, inferences)
What does it inspire you to do?

Signposts
Notice & Note: Strategies for Close Reading
Kylene Beers & Robert E. Probst

Reading Nonfiction
Kylene Beers & Robert E. Probst

Signposts, when used as a process of noticing and noting as we read, uses the
comprehension process of visualizing, predicting, summarizing, clarifying,
questioning, inferring, and making connections.
Signposts help us understand the plot, how characters are developing, how the
conflict arises and is resolved, and even a theme the writer is exploring.

Reading Fiction

Contrasts and Contradictions

The Signposts and Definitions

The Clues to the Signposts

Contrasts and Contradictions (CC):

A sharp contrast between what we
would expect and what we observe
the character doing; behavior that
contradicts previous behavior or
well-established patterns.

A character behaves or thinks in a

way we dont expect, or an element
of a setting is something we would
not expect.

The Question that Follows

Why is the character doing
that?

As I think about this question, I

wonder if it might be .

The answers could help you make a prediction or

make an inference about the plot and conflict.
Character development

Internal Conflict

Theme

Relationship between setting & plot

Contrasts and Contradictions

Name of signpost

Anchor question

The
generalizable
language to use
when teaching
the lesson.

Aha Moment!
The Signposts and Definitions
Aha Moment (Aha): A characters
realization of something that shifts
his actions or understanding of
himself, others, or the world around
him.

The Clues to the Signposts

The Question that Follows

Phrases, usually expressing

How might this change things?
suddenness, like:
Suddenly I understood...
It came to me in a flash that. Now that this character realizes
In an instant I knew...
this, I think that

If your character figured out a problem, you

probably just learned about the conflict.
If the character understood a life lesson, you
probably just learned the theme.
Character development

Internal Conflict

Plot

Aha Moment!

Name of signpost

Anchor question

The
generalizable
language to
use when
teaching the
lesson.

Tough Questions
The Signposts and Definitions

The Clues to the Signposts

The Question that Follows

Tough Questions (TQ): Questions a Phrases expressing serious doubt

What does this question make me
character raises that reveal his or
or confusion:
wonder about?
her inner struggles.
What could I possibly do
to...?
I couldnt imagine how I could
cope with..
How could I ever understand
why she...

The answers will tell you about the conflict and

might give you ideas about what will happen later
in the story.
Internal Conflict

Theme

Character Development

Tough Questions

Name of signpost

Anchor question

The
generalizable
language to use
when teaching
the lesson.

Words of the Wiser

The Signposts and Definitions
Words of the Wiser (WW):
The advice or insight a wiser
character, who is usually older,
offers about life to the main
character.

The Clues to the Signposts

The Question that Follows

The main character and another are Whats the life lesson and how
usually off by themselves, in a quiet, might it affect the character?
serious moment, and the wiser
figure shares his wisdom or advice
in an effort to help the main
character with a problem or
decision.

Whatever the lesson is, you probably found a theme

for the story.
Theme

Internal Conflict

Relationship between setting & plot

Words of the Wiser

Name of
signpost

Anchor question

The
generalizable
language to use
when teaching
the lesson.

Again and Again

The Signposts and Definitions
Again and Again (AA):
Events, images, or particular words
that recur over a portion of the
novel. (often foreshadow)

The Clues to the Signposts

A word or idea is repeated,
sometimes used in an odd way,
over and over in the story.

The Question that Follows

Why does this keep happening
again and again?

An image reappears several times

during the course of the book.

The answers will tell you about the theme and

conflict, or they might foreshadow what will
happen later.
Plot

Setting

Symbolism

Theme

Character Development

Conflict

Again and Again

Name of signpost

Anchor question

The
generalizable
language to
use when
teaching the
lesson.

Memory Moment
The Signposts and Definitions
Memory Moment (MM):
A recollection by a character that
interrupts the forward progress of
the story. (flashback)

The Clues to the Signposts

The Question that Follows

The ongoing flow of the narrative is Why might this memory be

interrupted by a memory that comes important?
to the character, often taking
several paragraphs to recount
before we are returned to events of
the present moment.

The answers will tell you about the theme,

conflict, or might foreshadow what will happen
later in the story.
Character development

Internal Conflict

Theme

Relationship between setting & plot

Memory Moment

Name of signpost

Anchor question

The
generalizable
language to
use when
teaching the
lesson.

Reading
Nonfiction

Contrasts and Contradictions

The Signposts and Definitions
Contrasts and Contradictions (CC):
A sharp contrast between what we
would expect and what we observe
happening.
A difference between two or more
elements in the text.

The Language or Other Text

Clues to the Signposts

The Question that Follows

Phrases such as on the other hand, What is the difference and why
by contrast, however, and another
does it matter?
viewpoint provide direct signals of a
contrast.
Other times, the contrast or
contradiction is internal as the
reader thinks we dont live like this
or our government isnt that way or
this isnt what Ive thought.

Reading Skills: Compare & Contrast, Generalize, Identify main idea,

infer, see cause-and-effect relationships, understand authors purpose
or bias.

Absolute or Extreme Language

The Signposts and Definitions
Absolute or Extreme Language:
Language that leaves no doubt
about a situation or an event, allows
no compromise, or seems to
exaggerate or overstate a case.

The Language or Other Text

Clues to the Signposts

The Question that Follows

Phrases such as on the other hand, What is the difference and why
by contrast, however, and another
does it matter?
viewpoint provide direct signals of a
contrast.
Other times, the contrast or
contradiction is internal as the
reader thinks we dont live like this
or our government isnt that way or
this isnt what Ive thought.

Reading Skills: Draw Conclusions, Generalize, Identify authors point

of view, identify main idea, infer, recognize hyperbole, see cause-andeffect relationships, understand authors purpose or bias.

Numbers and Stats

The Signposts and Definitions

The Language or Other Text

Clues to the Signposts

Number and Stats: Specific

quantities or comparisons to depict
the amount, size, or scale. Or the
writer is vague and imprecise about
numbers when we would expect
more precision.

Numerals such as 90% or 3,400 or

2 or ninety percent, three thousand
four hundred, or two.
Stats and numerals in comparison:
1 out of every 10; four times as
many.
Also, indefinite quantities should be
seen as Numbers and Stats; many,
most, some taller than, older than.

The Question that Follows

Why did the author use these
numbers or amounts?

Reading Skills: Draw conclusions, find facts, generalize, Identify

details, infer, make comparisons, recognize evidence, understand
authors purpose or bias.

Quoted Words
The Signposts and Definitions

The Language or Other Text

Clues to the Signposts

Quoted Words: Opinions or

conclusions of someone who is an
expert on the subject (Voice of
Authority), or someone who might
be a participant in or a witness to an
event (Personal Perspective). Other
times the author might simply cite
others (Others Words) to provide
support for a point.

The person may be quoted or his

ideas may simply be referred to.
If an expert, credentials are likely to
be offered.

The Question that Follows

Why was this person quoted or
cited and what does this add?

Reading Skills: Compare and contrast, draw a conclusion, identify the

authors point of view, infer, see cause-and-effect relationships,
separate facts from opinions, understand authors purpose or bias.

Word Gaps
The Signposts and Definitions

The Language or Other Text

Clues to the Signposts

Word Gaps: Vocabulary that is

unfamiliar to the reader. THis might
be because it is a word with multiple
meanings, a rare or technical word,
a discipline-specific word, or one
with a far-removed antecedent. .

Some clues are obvious - the word

is in italics, bold-faced font, or
highlighted. Other times, the author
follows a less-known word or
concept with the phrase is like. For
instance, she might write, Plucking
the cotton from the boll is like
pulling stickers from your socks.
Many times, though, the clue is
simply that the reader is confused.

The Question that Follows

Do I know this word from
someplace else?
Does it seem like technical talk
for this topic?
Can I find clues in the sentence
to help me understand the
topic?

Reading Skills: Compare and contrast, draw a conclusion, identify the

authors point of view, infer, see cause-and-effect relationships,
separate facts from opinions, understand authors purpose or bias.