A resource site for teachers
Students not only tell the answer, but they also show which sentence or sentences helped them locate their answers. Click Here To Access It
These task cards are fun to use. Main idea, cause an effect, and inferences are included in one bundle. Click Here To Access It.
Use it as a reading strategy intervention. Use it as a literacy center station activity. Use it for test prep.
Research has now become a product that can be used in the classroom! Click here to access it. We all know the formula:
text details + background knowledge = inference
What if a student does not have background knowledge? They will know that they should have details to support their answer, but they just won’t know which details are important.
Why We Need Something New
Unlike math that is organized with a sequence of skills that should be taught in a certain way, for example: #1 identify a fraction, #2 know what is the numerator and denominator, #3 add fractions, etc., reading is — less organized. Students are told to just “infer”, but there are different categories of inferences. Even with these categories, there is not a sequence of which inferences should be taught at each grade level or even an inference teaching sequence within each grade level.
The Problem With Background Knowledge
Robert Marzano in his book The Art and Science of Teaching: Teaching Inference and E.D. Hirsch in the book Why Knowledge Matters both explain how important background knowledge is for comprehending text and specifically for making inferences. Strong readers read many books. These same strong readers gain background knowledge about characters, settings, cause and effect, historical patterns, and scientific knowledge as they read many books. This process is cumulative and occurs over months and years. When this is added to rich life experiences, strong readers bring a wealth of insight to the table when they read. Strong readers intuitively make inferences because they notice patterns that repeat across texts. They can quickly predict what event will happen next in a plot because they have seen similar events play out in other books. They can infer character traits in a new book because strong readers know how kind, jealous, curious, or loyal characters behave because they have read many stories about characters that have these same patterns of behavior.
This is not the case with students that struggle in reading. Struggling readers lack background knowledge because they have read fewer books. Plus, the books they have read have primarily focused on decoding.
A New Resource for Teaching Reading
We know that students should learn their basic facts. When they know their addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division facts, they can quickly process information in math. These basic skills form a knowledge building block that serves as the base for math in the upper elementary grades and later on in high school.
Comprehension facts flashcards use a similar principle. Important patterns that are seen in fiction and nonfiction texts have been compiled into flashcards. For a few minutes each day, students learn the common types of details that help them infer, plus they go farther. Students are taught how to interpret what they have read and build background knowledge. Nonfiction and fiction passages are included. An answer key is on each card. Full directions and lesson plans are included. Click here to access it.
This mega bundle contains 35 weeks (175 different passages) of quick, daily reading comprehension practice. There is a passage for each school day of each week. In just a few minutes a day, students review close reading, inferences, character analysis, vocabulary and more reading skills. https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Daily-Reading-Practice-Grade-3-35-Full-Weeks-2784487
Nonfiction, poetry, realistic fiction, plays, historical fiction, biographies, and more genres are included. The comprehension skill/strategy is written next to each question to make it easier to monitor student progress across the weeks. This is a great way to keep reading skills sharp and build comprehension as students learn about animals, the water cycle, rocks and minerals, mummies, and more topics. A full answer key is also included.
WHAT MAKES THIS DOCUMENT UNIQUE AND IMPORTANT? This document provides steady and targeted practice. Students review relevant informational text and literature topics plus reading comprehension skills in manageable daily doses to keep skills sharp.
***SPECIAL NOTE—-This is a modified version of my grade 3 Full Year of Common Core document. All references to Common Core have been removed.*******
A full answer key is included. Multiple choice and close reading questions are included.
Inferences, main idea, author’s purpose, theme, compare and contrast texts, figurative language, and more skills are covered at different levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy to promote deep understanding
Topics and Genres Include:
Animal Facts
Habitats
Folktales
Poetry
Plays
Realistic Fiction
More Nonfiction Topics
