40 Strategies for Guiding Readers through Informational Texts

I. Getting Started Strategies

Strategy 1. Planning a Lesson with Informational Text

Strategy 2. Understanding and Evaluating Informational Texts

Strategy 3. Assessing Text Complexity

Strategy 4. Shared Reading and Text Feature Search

II. Building Background Strategies

Strategy 5. Anticipation Guide

Strategy 6. KWHL: K = (What I Know), W = (What I Want to Know). H = (How I Will Find Out), L = (What I Learned)

Strategy 7. KLEW: K = (What I Know), L = (What I Learned), E = (What Evidence Do I Have for My Learning?), W = (What Additional Questions or Wonderings Do I Have?)

Strategy 8. Table of Contents Prediction

Strategy 9. Imagine, Elaborate, Predict, and Confirm

III. Vocabulary Strategies

Strategy 10. Word Map

Strategy 11. SLAP: S = (Say the word and write it here.), L = (Look for context clues. List them here.), A = (Ask myself what it means and write it here.), P = (Put the synonym in the sentence and write it here. Does it make sense? If not, start over with steps 3 and 4.)

Strategy 12. Root Wheel

Strategy 13. List–Group–Label

Strategy 14. Word Sort

Strategy 15. Semantic Feature Analysis

IV. Reading Closely Strategies

Strategy 16. Close Reading

Strategy 17. Close Thinking

Strategy 18. Text Annotation

Strategy 19. Text Dependent Questions

Strategy 20. Thinking Aloud

Strategy 21. Sticky Notes Bookmark

V. Comprehension Strategies

Strategy 22. Study Guide

Strategy 23. Four Box Comment Card

Strategy 24. I Chart

Strategy 25. CAATS: Creator, Assumptions, Audience/User, Time and Place, Significance

Strategy 26. Text Structures

Strategy 27. Interactive Notebook

VI. Discussion Strategies

Strategy 28. Discussion Web

Strategy 29. 4–3–2–1 Discussion

Strategy 30. Intra Act

Strategy 31. Talking Points

Strategy 32. Three Step Interview

Strategy 33. 3 Minute Pause

VII. Writing Strategies

Strategy 34. Readers' Theatre

Strategy 35. Paragraph Writing Frames

Strategy 36. I Used to Think . . . but Now I Know . . .

Strategy 37. Summary Writing

Strategy 38. CLIQUES: CL, Claim; I, Introduction of Quotation; QU, Quotation; E, Explanation of Quotation; S, So What?

Strategy 39. EPIC: E, Evidence; P, Patterns; I, Inquiry; C, Claims

Strategy 40. Two Column Journal

Appendix. Recommended Materials