Reading Comprehension in the Primary Grades

This month I'm teaming up with my friends at I Teach K-2 to bring you some awesome freebies and a chance to win one of 3 $50 Teachers Pay Teachers gift cards. It's the perfect way to get ready to go back to school! Check out this post for some tips on reading comprehension (and a FREE reading comprehension activity!) Scroll to the bottom to check out the other awesome freebies and to enter for your chance to win the gift cards. Good luck and happy back to school!

As I transitioned into first grade one of the biggest differences I have noticed is the emphasis that must be put on comprehension. In kindergarten the focus is much more on learning how to read and decode. In first grade, when assessing students' reading levels I noticed that those who did not pass a level usually failed the comprehension portion of the test (in kindergarten it was usually the accuracy component). Those students who may have been at the top of the class in kindergarten sometimes did not progress as quickly due to comprehension deficits. This experience served as a reminder of the effort we must put into reading comprehension. We need to make sure students are remembering what they read as well as interpreting certain information or events correctly. This is the purpose of reading, after all.

It is also important to remember that there are different types of comprehension and some students may struggle with a one type, but not another. The ability to respond to text-based, inference, and critical response questions is vital to reading success.

This past year, I had a student who decoded perfectly. He could read any text I gave him. However, during reading level assessments, he would stare at me blankly, particularly when asked a text-based question. He could not remember basic facts from the story. When asked a text-based question, he simply had no idea how to respond. I realized that, as he read, he was not thinking about the story at all. He was proud of his fluency, the way he used is voice, and the accuracy with which he read. But the basics of the story were lost. He performed better on inference or critical response questions, because for these, you can almost fake it, even if you don't remember the facts from the story. You can use thinking skills and common sense to come up with reasonable answers. But for text-based questions you have to remember what you read. There's no faking it.

I worked with this student's parents to come up with a plan to help improve his ability to answer text-based questions. Before reading a book at home or school, we would give him a list of text-based questions he would need to answer when he was through reading. This way, he would know what he needed to look for in the story. This kept him thinking about the text as he read. We would also walk through the text before reading, getting excited about certain parts of the story. This all helped to get the student invested the text, rather than just reading the words. Furthermore, when the student was stumped on a text-based question, we would guide him back to the text and have him locate the information. These strategies can't necessarily be used during a reading level assessment, but using them regularly helped him to perform better during assessments. During an assessment I would also remind him, right before he read, that I would be asking him about facts from the story and to pay close attention to details. We saw very good improvement in this student's comprehension.

During the same year, I also had a student who had the opposite problem. She could rattle off any fact from the story and knew any answer that was explicit in the text. But inference questions? Nope. She could remember what she read, but using outside information or strategic thinking to make inferences was difficult. This can be a harder problem to solve. You can use some of the strategies for text based questions, such as a pre-reading walk through, or giving the questions before the book is read, but the student really needs to gain more insight and experience about the world around her. I met with this student's parents and encouraged them to constantly ask her questions about why she thought things were happening the way they were. I do this often with my own five-year-old son. I may say, "Why do you think so many people are in this movie theatre on such a hot day?" or "Why do you think Piper (our puppy) always sits near cousin Jack's high chair when we have dinner at Grandma's?" I was thrilled when I asked him why some people thought it was funny that there are lifeguards at the pool during the swimming portion of the Olympics and he said, "Because the racers are really good swimmers. They won't drown." Yes! It's all about making connections and understanding how certain facts and events are related.

Critical thinking questions are usually the easiest for my students to answer. They are often asked to relate the story to some aspect of their own lives or give an opinion. They usually enjoy talking about themselves :) so this comes pretty naturally to most. But, again, life experiences are important here. The student has to be able to think critically about a situation and form an opinion or relate to an event. Parents and teachers need to talk with students often as they read stories together. Ask how certain events in the book may relate to something that happened in the student's own life. Ask the student how he or she would react in a given situation. Challenge them to give reasons for their answers. Every time a story is read aloud there are so many opportunities for discussion.

Another piece of advice I give to parents can also be very helpful in developing critical thinking skills. I usually use this approach with my students who are reading at a higher level, but it can be used with any student who is able to read with accuracy on their own. I have the parent and the child choose a story that they will read at the same time (but not together). The student can read on their own time (perhaps when the parent is making dinner, or while waiting for a sibling at soccer practice). The parent will also read the same book on their own time - this can even be after the child has gone to bed. The parent and child will read to a set part in the book (a certain page or chapter) and then make time to come together to discuss what is happening - like a mini parent/child book club. At each meeting the parent should ask the child what he/she thinks of the story. What do you think will happen next? How did you feel when...? Did this event remind you of when we...? The child should also be encouraged to ask similar questions to the parent. I've had a lot of positive feedback from parents who have used this approach with their child. Not only do we see an increase in reading comprehension, but it is great bonding time and also a way to develop a love and excitement for reading.

As I'm getting ready to begin my second year of first grade, I am more aware than ever of how important reading comprehension is to student success. I created a reading level packet that I plan on using with my students this year. Ten passages are included. Because students will enter my classroom with a wide range of reading levels, each text is written at two different levels. This way, students at different reading levels can read and discuss the same content. It also allows you to use the passages at different points during the year as the kids' reading progresses. Each passage comes with a comprehension check in, which includes text-based, inference, and critical response questions, and an extended response page. Click below for a FREE sample:

Or grab the entire packet here:

I hope that you can find these useful when teaching reading comprehension this year. Feel free to contact me with any questions or comments. I'd love to hear your ideas about teaching reading comprehension too!

-Kendra