Narrative & Expository Comprehension

Let's Talk About Comprehension!

If you have been around Teachers Pay Teachers for any amount of time, you will see a list of resources for sale labeled as "comprehension" resources. Some TPT resources are "easy, print & go" while others are bundled together to create the best resources to aid in your students' understanding. While those things are not bad, sometimes it can be tricky to decipher between what is really beneficial for students and what is just being sold for sales.

So let's chat about comprehension....

"Comprehension is making sense of what is read and depends on good word recognition, fluency, vocabulary, world knowledge, and verbal reasoning."

-(Judith Birsch, Multisensory Teaching of Basic Language Skills)

Reading comprehension is the combination of techniques used for instruction including, comprehension monitoring, question generation, story structure, summarizing, and inferencing. Students can aid in both graphic organizers within narrative and expository texts, as well as a deep dive into vocabulary instruction.

Comprehension depends on accurate and fluent word decoding skills.

Comprehension depends on actively monitoring one's own understanding while reading.

Reading Comprehension is the GOAL of reading.

Let's discuss strategies to aid student's in reading comprehension...

-Previewing + Using Prior Knowledge

-Predicting

-Identifying the Main Idea

-Summarization (Somebody, Wanted, But, So, Then)

-Questioning

-Making Inferences

-Visualization

Narrative & Expository Text need graphic organizers to accomodate students' learning.

Narrative:

Story Maps, W-Chart (Who Where When Why How), Retelling Chart

(Graphic: Read Naturally)

Expository text also often uses one of five common text structures:

• Cause and effect

• Problem and solution

• Compare and contrast

• Description

• Time order (sequence of events, actions, or steps)

Reading Comprehension is the key for students with dyslexia to read effectively & understand what they're reading. Because we are in the field to promote support, advocate for students with dyslexia, and help support them, I have a list of incredible resources you might find beneficial. Every resource listed below is backed by evidence- based research and are resources I personally use in my Dyslexia Intervention Groups.

I can boldly say, these are the BEST resources:

Narrative Comprehension Ideas:

• Comprehension Mystery (Texas Scottish Rite Hospital)

• Rite Flight (Texas Scottish Rite Hospital)

• No Glamour Language Cards

• Florida Center for Reading Research

Expository Comprehension Ideas:

• No Glamour Expository

• Read Naturally Expository Passages

• Florida Center for Reading Research

(Graphic: University of Nebraska-Lincoln)