comprehension TEKS talk image

Knowledge and Skills Statement

Comprehension skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking using multiple texts. The student uses metacognitive skills to both develop and deepen comprehension of increasingly complex texts.

This can be assessed by observing students during authentic discussions about books. This can happen during whole group read-alouds or small-group reading instruction. Ask students questions. As students respond, keep track on a checklist or sticky note if they mastered the skill or if they need more support.

Examples:

  • What do you think will happen in this story? Look at the pictures to help.
  • Were your predictions correct? How did you know?

 

Genre is a term that defines a category of literature characterized by convention of structure and content. In first grade, literary genres include realistic fiction, poetry, folktales, fables, and fairy tales. Nonfiction genres include biographies, procedural texts, expository texts, flyers, menus, magazines, and instructions.
a form of inference in which the reader examines details surrounding the title, illustrations, subtitles, etc. of a text before reading it in order to anticipate and foresee forthcoming events and information
Text structure is the pattern or structure an author uses to construct and organize the author's ideas for the audience (e.g., cause and effect, problem and solution, description, order of importance, etc.); it is also referred to as organizational pattern.
Text features help readers focus on important ideas and concepts. When students use text features, they can make connections within the text, become familiar with the text's organization, and access important background knowledge related to the content. (e.g., bullets, bold/italicized words, headings, captions).

Research

What Works Clearinghouse. (2010). Improving reading comprehension in kindergarten through 3rd grade: practice guide summary. Washington, DC: Institute of Education Science. Retrieved from https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/PracticeGuide/14#tab-summary

Summary: The goal of this practice guide is to offer educators specific evidence-based recommendations that address the challenge of teaching reading comprehension to students in kindergarten through 3rd grade. The guide provides practical, clear information on critical topics related to teaching reading comprehension and is based on the best available evidence as judged by the authors.