Reading
to Learn
Kimberly Barton
Rationale: Reading
comprehension is
one of the most important components to learning how to read. Children
not only
need to be able to read words but also understand what they are reading
and
what the words mean. A good way to help children learn this is to teach
them
summarizing skills, which allow them to retain only the important
ideas. During
this lesson students will learn how to develop a semantic map made of
stars,
and then compile a summary. They will practice summarizing the first
part of
the book, All About Frogs by
Jim Arnosky with modeling help by the teacher. Then the students will
compose
their own semantic map and summary for the second part.
Materials:
All
About
Frogs by Jim
Arnosky
Butcher paper
Markers
Star semantic
map handouts
Pencils
Summary
checklist
Procedures:
- I
will begin the lesson by explaining to the students how important it is
that we understand what we read. “Good readers are not only fluent when
they read, but they also understand what they read. This is called
comprehension (write the word on the board). When you comprehend
something that means that you understand it. So, in order to understand
what you read we are going to learn how to summarize, or write a
summary. Summarizing helps us pick out the important parts of what you
are reading.”
- Ask
the students “Who can tell me what a summary is? A summary is a short
description of something that you read. Writing summaries is a great
way to help you remember what you have read.”
- Book
talk: “I know we all have many questions about frogs. They are such
interesting creatures. Well, this book can answer all of our questions.
For example, what is the difference in a frog and toad? How do they
grow out of a tadpole? What all do they eat? Let’s read the book to
find the answers to these questions and learn more about frogs!”
- “I
am going to pass out a copy of the book to each of you and I would like
you to read the first chapter silently to yourself. You must not read
out loud or talk to your neighbors. As you read the first chapter, I
want you to write down the things that you think are the most important
in the story. For example, you can include where and when the story is
taking place, who the main characters are, what is the problem or
problems in the story, etc. You must remember these three key points of
summarization: 1) find the main point 2) delete any small details 3)
combine all ideas that are repeated.”
- As
the students begin to read the chapter silently, I will put the butcher
paper up on the board to draw a semantic map. When they finish reading
I will explain the concept of semantic mapping and how it helps us to
summarize. “We are now going to use this semantic map to sum up the
chapter we just read. I am going to show you how to create a semantic
map, so as I fill in this one, I would like you to fill in yours on
your desk. In the big star in the middle, I will write Sarah, Plain
and Tall Ch. 1. On each of the smaller stars that are connected to
the big star, I will write an important fact.” Complete the semantic map on the board as a
class, while students create the semantic map on their paper as well.
This will be a good model for them to look back on when they create
semantic map on their own for later summaries.
- Next I will explain to the
students, “Now we are going to use the semantic map we created to
summarize chapter one into a few sentences, or summary.” I’ll model how
to use the important details in the map to create a brief summary made
of a few sentences and tell the students to copy this on their own
paper so they can use it as a model for writing summaries in the
future. “When we summarize there are three important points to
remember: 1) you want to find the main points 2) delete any small
details, and 3) combine any repeated ideas.” I will remind students to
focus on using the information they put in the stars when writing their
summary. Have students contribute to this summary by volunteering what
they think is important or saying what they think is not important
(trivial information). I will make sure that all students are following
along and they understand the steps of semantic mapping and summarizing.
- The students will read part
two of All About Frogs silently. I
will instruct them to create a semantic map on their own using the
steps we just practiced together. I will explain that they must create
both a semantic map and then compose a summary in paragraph form (three
to five sentences long).
Assessment:
In order to
assess the students, I will
collect their semantic maps and summaries of chapter two and check to
make sure
the students have grasped the concept of summarization. The semantic
map must
include the main topic written in the center along with important ideas
in each
connected star. I’ll use a check list to make sure the students
remembered to
1) include the main points 2) delete small details 3) combine repeated
ideas.
References:
MacLachlan,
Patricia. Sarah, Plain and Tall. Harper Collins Publisher.
1987.
Williams,
Abby. “Let’s Sum It All Up.”
http://www.auburn.edu/academic/education/reading_genie/constr/williamsarl.html
Kimberly
Barton- bartokc@auburn.edu