PR-6218IRE Reading for Success - Book 3

Comprehension
Generating questions
Literature circles
Literature circles are a good way for pupils to generate questions about the stories they are reading.
Materials:
• several copies of the same children’s book • several packs of adhesive notes
1. Place pupils into groups of three or four.
2. Provide each pupil in the group with the same book to read and a pack of adhesive notes.
3. Instruct the pupils to read the story on their own and think about questions they have about the
storyline, the characters, the setting, etc.
4. Each time a pupil thinks of a question, have him or her write it down on an adhesive note and attach
it to the page that relates to the question.
5. Encourage the pupils to generate critical thinking questions by providing a list of question starters
such as the ones below.
6. After each pupil in the group has finished reading the book, have them meet to discuss the story and
ask their questions.
Critical thinking question starters
• What do you think …? • What would have happened if . . .?
• Why do you think (this event) happened? • I wonder …?
• What would you do if (this event) happened to you? • What is your opinion about …?
• Can you figure out why (this character) did …? • Have you ever thought about …?
Be a reporter
Have fun question-generating by having your pupils imagine that they are reporters. Instruct them to think
of questions they would ask the main character of a story they have recently read. Have pupils use the
form on page 150 to get them started. After generating these questions, designate other pupils to pretend
to be the character and allow them to have a question-answer session. After this session, instruct pupils to
use the information they gathered to write news stories to present to the class. Consider combining the
articles into a class newspaper to share with parents.
Viewing sample
Comprehension game board
This activity will help your pupils to reflect their understanding of a story. Photocopy pages 151 and 152
for each pupil to assemble into a game board. The pupil then writes questions about the story on index
cards. When pupils have completed their game boards and question cards, have them swap games with
other pupils to check their comprehension. The instructions for playing the game are on page 151.
Prim-Ed Publishing – www.prim-ed.com 149 Reading for success