Childrens Literature and Literacy

Cognitive scientist, coming out of the strategy instruction from an information processing framework brought expert studies in from problem solving studies. Cognitive scientist studied expert and novice chess players. Could the same apply to expert readers?

Michael Pressley and Peter Afflerbach began to explore this question in the early nineties and this revelead reading to involve goal setting and highly interactive cognitive processes.

At the same time as this language has translated to the classroom constantly framing comprehensions in the question of , “What do good readers do?” also helps students success criteria with comprehension instruction and see themselves as reader.

Using verbal protocol analysis, or think alouds, researchers asked expert and novice readers to think aloud as

• Set a purpose
• Preview the text
• Predict what the text will say

• skim based on purpose
• re-read relevant parts
• take notes
• find mind ideas
• relate details to goals
• connect to prior knowledge
• make inferences
• summarize

• reread
• summarize
• reflect
• combine information
• Think about future uses

You can organize your learning activities with comprehension strategy instruction around Before, During and After. Have students plan how or use a strategy to preview the text, then have students think aloud, afterwards students can reflect on strategy use.

You also need to to do “think alouds as a teacher before, during, and after reading for your students.

Use the language of , “What do good readers do a lot” Create a culture where students want to see themselves as a good reader and will copy what we know makes good readers successful.