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Discussion webs are considered “a special kind of graphic aid for teaching students to look at both sides of an issue before concluding.” They help students of all ages to organize thoughts, see other points of views and help them to grasp a deeper understanding of the text. They can use the text as well as thoughts or even things that the teacher has spoken about. In this approach, students are asked a question, a yes or no question, but they don't stop at just answering yes or no. They, however, have to fill in both sides of why it could be yes or why it could be no. They have to see both sides before they can finish with a conclusion. In a normal think-pair-share setting some students dominate the sharing. This approach allows:
•     Students will think about both sides of the question individually. Looking up information in the text to support opinions.
•     They will then partner up with another student and discuss their opinions and conclusions.
•     Then the partners pair up with another set of partners. They work as a group of four to eliminate contradictions and inconsistencies in their thinking as they come to a consensus and decide upon one idea that a spokesperson for the group will share with the class. (There'll be plenty of time during the classroom discussion for dissenting opinions to be heard.) (Education World) These small groups encourage active discussions by those that wouldn't converse in a conversation with during a whole group discussion.

This strategy can be used for all grades as well, from Kindergarten to high school. It can be utilized in all subjects. To complete the web students are reading, writing, listening, and speaking each time they use this strategy.
I particularly loved this portion of a paper that Swafford presented at the World Congress of Reading in 1990; she suggested some possibilities for using Discussion Webs including:
•    Social Studies. Swafford provides the example of the famous Lincoln-Douglas debates. Students can use the Discussion Web format, substituting "Lincoln" and "Douglas" for "Yes" and "No." In the box where the question usually goes, the word "Slavery" could be substituted. Then students can use their texts and other resources to research the stances taken by each of the men and to complete the diagram.
•    Science. Students can use the Discussion Web format to support possible explanations for scientific hypotheses. Instead of labeling the columns "Yes" and "No," in this case the columns could be labeled "Hypothesis 1" and Hypothesis 2." (Sample question: Why is acid rain harmful?)
•    Literature. Read Edgar Allan Poe's The Tell-Tale Heart. One possible follow-up discussion would focus on the narrator: Is the narrator of the story sane or insane? Students write their thoughts in the appropriate columns.
•    Math. Teachers might provide for students a math word problem such as:
The two children, 9-year-old Susan and 11-year-old Mario, delivered three dozen cookies to their neighbor. If the cookies sold for 90 cents a dozen, how much money should Susan and Mario collect? Students label one side of the Discussion Web "relevant" and the other side "irrelevant." Then they sort the number facts presented in the problem into two categories -- that information needed to solve the problem and that information that is unneeded. (For example, in the problem above, the numbers two, 9 and 11 are irrelevant numbers; the numbers 3 and 90 are the relevant numbers.)
Another possible literature-related use for Discussion Webs from Alvermann's article: Students might use the Discussion Web to analyze an author's perspective. For example, after reading E.B. White's Charlotte's Web, students might be asked to respond to the question Did E.B. White believe in animal rights?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTto_5TDFfI

Why use discussion webs?
•    Engage students in a meaningful text-based discussion by encouraging them to use supporting evidence in their arguments.
•    Stimulates small group critical thinking.
•    Help students to consider different sizes of an issue in discussion before concluding.
I genuinely think this web is a great way to get students to be more understanding of others perspectives and that both sides of an argument can have evidence from a text. It helps them to argue their side better as well if they know where the opposing team is going to get their conclusion from.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jV0pxOU172U

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Think-Alouds are used to verbalize your own thought processes while reading. Think-alouds are used to model various comprehension strategies (e.g. making predictions, creating mental images, sharing analogies, monitoring comprehension, and regulating comprehension).
The teacher will model how to use the strategy aloud as she/he reads a text. There are five steps used during this strategy.
1. The teacher will select reading material to read aloud. The text should contain difficult points, ambiguities, contradictions, or even unknown words.
2. As the teacher reads the text aloud and models her thought process, the students should follow along reading silently, listening to how problem spots are thought through or worked out.
3. Have students work with partners, practicing think-alouds by reading short passages and sharing their thoughts.
4. Have students practice independently. Reading and monitoring their comprehension strategies. Encourage students to make connections between analogies form mental images, and make connections.
5. Lastly continue to encourage the use of think-alouds across content areas.  As well as continuously using it to decipher through difficult text as a class.
Modeling comprehension should and can be used with all ages or grades.

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Question-answer relationships (also known as QARs) help students gain awareness of the relationships between the question asked, the text, and the reader's prior knowledge. There are four QAR categories:
1. Right There (located in the text)
2. Think and Search (located in different parts of the text, not in the same sentence)
3. Author and Me (what you know, what the author says, and how they fit together)
4. On Your Own (think about what's already known and answer in your own words)

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About QtA

Questioning the author is a comprehension strategy that models for students the importance of asking questions while reading.

This strategy shows students how to read text closely as if the author were there to be challenged and questioned.

Through this strategy, students learn that authors can make mistakes and may not always express ideas in the easiest way for readers to understand.

Questions to See if the Author Makes Sense

What is the trying to say here?

What does the author mean?

So what?

What is the significance of the author’s message?

Does this make sense with what the author told us before?

Does the author explain this clearly?

Planning a QtA Lesson

A three-stage process

1. Teacher must identify major understandings and potential problems with a text prior to use in class

2. Segment the text into logical stopping points for discussion

3. Develop questions that model and demonstrate how to “question the author.”

Guiding the QtA Discussion

Marking: Draw attention to certain ideas by showing support to the important stuff the students say.

Turning back: Make the students turn back for clarification of the text.

Revoicing: Help students as they give ideas. Filter the important ones and help those students who struggle with ideas by rephrasing their statements.

Modeling: Think aloud on the issues that students just can’t grasp.

Annotating: Provide additional information that’s isn’t in the text to help students better understand.

Recapping: Can be done by student or teacher. A brief summary of the main idea. A signal to move on.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8oKqfjrTSp4

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Reciprocal Teaching by Bronson Freeman

ReQuest and Reciprocal reaching are the same thing. This was originally designed as an one on one procedure but is now used in content learning classrooms. This strategy encourages students to ask their own questions about the materials being studied. This helps students establish reasonable purposes for reading. Both the teacher and students will read the same text. It can be broken down into small sections and then pause, the students are to ask questions at the end of each section. The teacher closes the book and is questioned. Then the teacher queries the students about the text. Then the next section will be read and the same steps will be followed. Next, the students will be asked to predict what will happen next. The students will read the remaining text independently. The teacher facilitates a follow up discussion.

The main goal of this strategy is to teach students how to ask deep, thoughtful, meaningful questions as they read.