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For students with disabilities, this material could be adapted by:

-Pre-teaching difficult vocabulary and concepts

-Providing study guides or worksheets to review

-Providing visuals aids

-Using flash cards

Having the student take notes and use colored markers to highlight vocabulary words

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Vocabulary Improvement Games & Classroom Vocabulary Games - Flocabulary

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After all the day's planned lessons have been completed, it is not uncommon to have a few minutes to spare before the bell rings. Or, sometimes you need to divide up a long lesson with a quick, energetic break. Use these time slots to invigorate students and enhance their vocabulary comprehension with mini games!

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This material could be adapted by:

-Providing differentiated textbooks that are aligned to the student’s instructional level

-Providing opportunities for repeated reading of material

-Providing sensory imaging activities

-Providing detailing activities such as using a graphic organizer describing places, events, setting, etc.

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There's a big difference between being able to read words and being able to comprehend the meaning of the sentences you read.

When teachers talk about developing your child's comprehension skills, they're also talking about kids being able to fully understand and follow information they are listening to and watching. Here are the skills your child needs to develop to understand what they are reading, viewing and hearing. When you are reading (or watching tv) with your child, try to ask questions that help them practise these skills.

1. Getting the main idea

Description:
The main idea is what the passage is about.
In paragraphs, it is often contained in the first sentence. In longer passages, the main idea may be in the title, chapter headings, proposed solutions to problems or in concluding statements.

Example:
Jupiter is the largest planet in our solar system with a diameter of approximately 142,000km, which is 11 times that of the Earth's diameter.
Saturn is the second largest planet with a diameter of 120,00km.
Uranus is the third and Neptune the fourth largest planets, with diameters of 51,000km and 49,500km respectively. The Earth and Venus are similar in size with diameters of approximately 13,000km.

The main idea is the relative size of planets in our solar system.

2. Identifying cause and effect.

Description:
Cause and effect is about how events relate to one another. Words which indicate this are:

Example
It rained heavily for three days (cause) and as a result the river burst its banks (effect).

3. Identifying fact and opinion

Description:
Facts can be verified from other sources. Opinions are personal judgements and are often expressed by comparisons (strongest, best) or adjectives (brilliant, untrustworthy).

Example:
Monet was the founder of French impressionist painting (fact).
Monet was the most brilliant artist of his time (opinion).

4. Making inference

Description:
Information is not clearly stated but is implied by the context.

Example:
He grabbed his raincoat and umbrella and ran from the house.
The inference is that it is raining or it might rain.

5. Comparing and contrasting

Description:
Comparing focuses on similarities:

Contrasting focuses on differences:

Note: For both we may need to draw on what we already know.

Example:
Just as weeds are seen to spring up everywhere in the summer, in the same way trees and plants put on growth spurts. (comparing)
In summer, the temperatures are warmer and plants grow rapidly. On the other hand, winter is cold and plants grow more slowly. (contrasting)

6. Sequencing

Description:
To understand and follow a passage well, the reader needs to know the order in which things happened.
Examples of words which indicate sequence are:

Example:
First he raced into the room, frantically searching for his sports shoes. When at last he had found them under the bed, he ran to the car, leapt in and was finally on his way to school.

7. Drawing conclusions

Description:
The aim is to consider all that has been said and interpret what it is about. This may include a summary statement at the end or the author's point of view throughout a passage.

Example:
Some people keep injured birds they find in the wild. They take them home, look after them and then keep the birds on as pets.
But is it good for wild birds to be kept in a cage all the time? Once the birds are strong enough, trained wildlife experts recommend that birds raised in the wild be introduced back into their natural habitat.

The conclusion is that wild birds live best in their natural environment.

Print this page of Reading and comprehension skills (PDF)

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There's a big difference between being able to read words and being able to comprehend the meaning of the sentences you read. When teachers talk about developing your child's comprehension skills, they're also talking about kids being able to fully understand and follow information they are listening to and watching.

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References

Click the "References" link above to hide these references.

Anderson, R.C., & Freebody, P. (1981). Vocabulary knowledge. In J.T. Guthrie (Ed.), Comprehension and teaching: Research reviews (pp. 77-117). Newark DE: International Reading Association.

Anderson, R.C., & Pearson, P.D. (1984). A schema-theoretic view of basic processes in reading. In P.D. Pearson, R. Barr, M.L. Kamil, & P. Mosenthal (Eds.), Handbook of reading research. White Plains, NY: Longman.

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Beck, I.L., & McKeown, M. (1991). Conditions of vocabulary acquisition. In R. Barr, M.L. Kamil, P. Mosenthal, & P.D. Pearson (Eds.), Handbook of reading research: Volume II (pp. 789-814). White Plains, NY: Longman.

Beck, I.L., Perfetti, C.A., & McKeown, M.G. (1982). Effects of long term vocabulary instruction on lexical access and reading comprehension. Journal of Educational Psychology, 74, 506-521.

Block, C.C., & Pressley, M. (Eds.). (in press). Comprehension instruction. New York: Guilford.

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Click the "References" link above to hide these references. Anderson, R.C., & Freebody, P. (1981). Vocabulary knowledge. In J.T. Guthrie (Ed.), Comprehension and teaching: Research reviews (pp. 77-117). Newark DE: International Reading Association. Anderson, R.C., & Pearson, P.D. (1984). A schema-theoretic view of basic processes in reading. In P.D. Pearson, R.

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This material could be adapted by:

-Providing differentiated organizers that have been edited, organizers may include headings or subheadings for easier comprehension

-Providing online organizers where students can increase font size or type information if needed

-Providing access to websites that include interactive online applications where students make and complete their own graphic organizers 5f�

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