Rationale: The goal of
reading is comprehension. For students to be able to comprehend
what they are reading, they must be able to visualize the text in their
minds. During this lesson students will practice constructing
mental images from their reading.
Materials:
*Class set of Frindle by Andrew Clements
*Pencils
*Paper (Journal)
Procedure:
1. To begin the lesson, review with students the concept of
silent reading. Explain: Today we will be reading
silently. Can someone remind us what it means to read
silently? Yes! That is correct. Silent reading involves
reading the words without voicing them out loud. When we read
silently can anyone hear us reading? No, because we say the words
we are reading in our head. How many of you like to read
silently? Well when you are reading silently are you able to
picture the characters and their actions in the story? If you
can’t that’s okay because we are going to practice reading silently
today so that we can better comprehend stories.
2. When we are reading a book it is very important to visualize
the events that are taking place. It is easy to see or visualize
what is happening when a story includes pictures but you will find that
many books do not have pictures so we have to create our own.
This is why we need to practice making visual pictures as we
read. Let’s practice. Are you ready? I want for you
to close you eyes, get very still, and visualize what I am about to be
reading to you. (Teacher will read the first couple of pages of
Frindle) Keep your eyes closed and think about what you just had
read to you. (Give students a minute to think about and visualize
the text). Okay, can anyone share with us what you saw as the
story was being read to you? (Allow students a few minutes to
share)
3. Now I am going to read the next page of our book. You
may keep your eyes open this time. Listen carefully. Who
would like to share what you visualized?
4. Remember, we talked about how we sometimes have to read
stories that have few or no pictures at all. We practiced
visualizing the story because this helps us understand the story and it
also helps us remember the story. Whenever you read a story you
should visualize the characters and events that are taking place.
5. We will now be reading independently from our story. We
will be reading this story silently so remember to make visualizations.
6. Have students state what they visualized after reading a few
pages of the story.
7. Now we will finish reading the first chapter. After
completing the first chapter, have students pair up with a partner to
discuss the events of the story.
8. Assessment: Have
students read the next chapter and create an illustration that depicts
the chapter. Students may draw several scenes or choose their
favorite. Students will also write why they think that scene is
important. (Teacher will use illustrations to check students’
comprehension.
References:
McClellan, Jennifer. “What Do You
See?”
http://www.auburn.edu/rdggenie/chall/mcclellanrl.html
Andrew Clements. (1996). Frindle. Scholastic, Inc.
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