Dazed and Confused

From the desk of Amanda…

I got an email yesterday…

It was from a teacher.

It was a question.

The question was about a lesson idea.

 

I am SO excited.  I love it when we can be smarter together.  It made me think, “I bet other people have this same question.”  So I decided to write about it.

The gist of the question was this:

“I want to teach my students the monitor/fix up strategy.  Here’s what I’m thinking of doing…Am I on the right track and by the way, how does this strategy help the kids?”

I love the honesty of this question because basically she’s saying, “OK.  I know I should teach this, but honestly, I not sure how to teach it or why I am teaching it.”

Here’s the cool part.  If don’t know ask, you don’t find out.  So thanks for asking.  Here’s some thinking about monitoring and fixing up comprehension.

How do I use the strategy?

The first step in understanding any comprehension strategy is to ask yourself how you use the strategy yourself.  For this strategy you need to be aware of 2 things:

• How do I know I’m confused?
• What do I do when I realize I am confused?

Knowing you’re confused (MONITORING COMPREHENSION)

Here’s an example.  Just yesterday I was reading Classroom Discussions:  Using Math Talk to Further Understanding in the K-6 Classroom.

Important reading? Yes.

A page-turner? No.

As I finished a particular paragraph, I realized I had no idea what I had just read.  I thought, “Amanda, you totally missed that.  You were thinking about whether you could get Abigail out of her car seat and into the house without waking her because you really, really want a nap as badly as she does.”

My eyes were following the words, but my mind was on something else. Of course I didn’t understand or remember what I read, but I was aware I was off track.  That’s monitoring comprehension.

How do we teach kids to do this?  Simple.  We recreate a scenario just like the real one that happened to me.  We literally say out loud what we are thinking inside our heads when we realize we are off track.

FIXING IT (It’s not always easy!)

Once I realized I was not remembering my reading, I knew I needed to do something to fix that.  I needed to apply a strategy  (that’s what a strategy is—something we do on purpose to solve a problem).

I decided to reread.  So I went back to the last spot where I remembered “getting it” and started there.  Guess what?  I still didn’t stay focused.  Rereading was not going to be enough.  So I needed to do something more than reread.

The third time I read this paragraph, I stopped myself after every couple of sentences to make sure I was on track and would sort of summarize those sentences to myself.  This worked for me.

This isn’t the only fix up strategy.  There are other things good readers do when they know they’re in trouble.  Here are some examples:

• They ask questions and read with the purpose of finding the answers.
• They work really hard to get a picture in their minds as they read.
• They try to substitute a different word in a spot where there is a word they don’t know.

What’s the benefit to students?  Here are three that immediately jump out of my head and onto this page:

1.  They learn that reading is about making meaning, comprehending and learning.  Not just about reading words.

2.  They learn that even good readers like YOU get confused, so it gives them hope and helps them know it’s OK to be confused.

3.  They learn that when you are confused, you don’t have to stay confused.  There are things you can do to help yourself.

Try teaching monitor and fix up as a series of lessons.  As you complete the lessons, create an anchor chart that stays up.  On the left put, “Why I got confused,” and make a list of reasons the students get confused when reading.  On the right put, “How I fixed my confusion,” and record the strategies you teach them.

Happy (un)confusion!