The other article I read, Kindergartners Can do it, too!, showed how to implement this process for younger children. The teacher did a wonderful job guiding her kindergartners to understanding the texts. She presented comprehension methods in a very simple way that the children would be able to understand; she did not "dumb down" the material. I loved the way she used handshapes to get the students engaged. She included three different hanshapes: C for connection, V for visualization, and wiggling index for meaning construction. The students would raise one of the handshapes in the air and the teacher would ask them what connection or visualization they had. This was all intended to activate their schema. I also loved how she explained the importance of a schema with the "Velcro Theory." The "Velcro Theory" stated it is easier to remember pieces of information if we can stick it onto something that is already in our heads. I feel that is something that kindergartners can definitely understand and use in the classroom.
Monday, March 5, 2012
Early Comprehension
In Gill's article, The Comprehension Matrix, she highlights the importance of knowing how you individually comprehend. Comprehension is not being taught in schools, and in order for teachers to effectively teach lessons that support comprehension, they must know their own comprehension tendencies. By asking yourself when do you comprehend best or worst, you can come to recognize the three major factors that affect comprehension: the reader, the text, and the situation. The article also includes how to teach comprehension to your student. This is done by the Comprehension Matrix. There are three parts to the matrix: prereading, during, and postreading. The prereading process includes getting students interested and activating background knowledge. The during stage is designed to help students use text structures and understand vocabulary. The last stage, postreading, allows for student's to deepen their understanding of the reading through discussing, writing, or visual representations.
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I felt that you pointed out some very important aspects of these articles. I find it interesting how we think of how we think. It is the psychology of our metacognition, I suppose, but I find it intriqueing. I believe that it is importatnt to consider all aspects that affect our reading comprehension so that we can adjust things to make ourself more opt to remember those things that are truly important.
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