Reading Strategies

Chapter 2 of Subjects Matter really started me thinking of techniques of effective reading and how I could get my students ignited in the practice of effective reading. What stands out the most to me is the idea of activating prior knowledge. This is something I have always known should be applied before starting any new type of lesson. Connecting the base of something new to something already understood, a very Vygotsky idea of scaffolding. This led me to start thinking about different lessons that are started inside of an English classroom, and maybe the students would have to be working on something that they have never been introduced to yet.

With this wonder in mind, I began thinking about different ways to introduce topics. Possibly a game with some highlights about a specific subject before students started a book. This way when the reading is done for homework, the students will be able to make a little connection. For example, when reading "The Crucible", the day before it is assigned for homework, create and execute an activity/ lesson on puritans and the witch trials. At the end out the unit, this would be something excellent to reflect to also. I used "The Crucible", because I remember many students in my 10th grade English class having no real idea what was going on in the play, because they were given no context for it, and of course did not read the textbook's introduction.



Here is some more information on activating prior knowledge. http://www.thinkport.org/career/strategies/reading/activate.tp