Close reading isn’t a
skill that comes naturally to students. When our students get a new reading
assignment, often
their first
instinct is to race to the finish line rather than
engage deeply with a text.
Getting students to slow down, engage
with the text in different ways, and reflect as they read are challenges for
every teacher, and are the goals of close reading. There’s no magic way to turn your class into
top-notch readers overnight, but there are specific close reading skills you
can teach that will help your students now and
in the future.
I created an assignment that requires
students to reread and engage with their book each day. Each
day students need to reread
the book or a part of the text, and complete a different assignment. Each
assignment is worth
25 points, and since there are 4 assignments, it is worth up to 100 in the
grade book. Friday all 4 assignments
are due, so I give students about 20 minutes to edit (or finish for those who need a little extra time) their assignments before handing it in.
At the beginning of the year, I have students solely use this assignment
with the story of the week. (I have one
assignment sheet for fiction and another for nonfiction.) This way I can monitor and allow students to
work together. One of my favorite ways
to model is to complete the assignment as
students are working on theirs. Then
we come together and compare and discuss how
to make everyone’s response better (mine too!).
I do this for about one or two months depending on the group of students
I have. Teaching and modeling close reading is SUPER IMPORTANT, and it’s
not something to rush.
Once your
students have a good handle on what you expect for each assignment, you can
start sending them home to be completed as close reading homework. As homework, each assignment is worth 20
points because the additional 20 points comes from their parent or guardian’s signature. Sometimes the assignments come from the weekly reading story, other times the assignments are based on their leveled reader, and other times, I allow students to choose fiction or nonfiction texts from the library and complete a close reading assignment from their preferred text. No matter what, students are practicing and are actively engaged in their books.
Parent’s tell me in conferences year after
year how much they love this homework assignment because it is meaningful. They are talking to their child about what they
are reading, and their children are not only becoming better readers, but they
are also getting positive attention from their parents.
If you love it, please leave feedback. I truly do love reading how my resources help others. "Teamwork makes the Dream Work," & we are all in it together!
If you have any other ideas for close reading strategies, please leave a comment below. Stay tuned for another post about close reading in math!
Enjoy those books!
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