Strategies Used by Proficient Readers.

Preview.

Good readers look at the book cover to get a better idea of what the book will be about. They read a few paragraphs to make sure the text is at their reading level.

Question.

Good readers ask themselves questions as they read. Sometimes it’s making sure they know the who, what, where, and why of the text or word definitions.

Make inferences.

Good readers take what is stated in the text and add their own experiences to figure out the implied message. It’s like reading body language to understand what a person is really feeling, not just saying, about something.

Determine importance.

Good readers can differentiate between the main ideas and details. They look for a theme or focus.

Summarize.

Good readers can take the main ideas from a text and use them to tell what the text is essentially about. The summary should follow the same organizational pattern as the text.

Make connections.

Good readers make text-to-self, text-to-text, and text-to-world connections. They relate the text to something they have experienced, to something else they have read, or to something worldwide.

Visualize.

Good readers “produce” images of the text in their minds. They incorporate all of the senses.

Make predictions.

Good readers can guess what will happen next based on the text and their own experiences. Sometimes the predictions come true; sometimes they don’t. Being actively engaged with the text is what counts.

Evaluate.

Good readers decide whether or not the text is accurate. They also decide whether or not they liked the text and why, often based on the author’s style and purpose.

Check for understanding.

Reread. Read a small portion at a time, looking for key ideas.

Keep on reading.Look for repeated ideas or key words to help with comprehension.

Read slower. Be aware that an expository text is more difficult to read than a narrative.

Use text features.Look for graphs, charts, headings, illustrations, chapter titles, et cetera.

Use prior knowledge.Connect to something familiar.

Use accountable talk. Talk over the ideas with someone else. Grapple with the text.

Use other resources. Use any of these:experts, other texts, encyclopedias,and the Internet.

Even the best readers need help with difficult texts.