"Reading is the process of constructing meaning from text weather it be written, graphical, paper-based or digital (G. Winch, p.4 2010)" WHY ITS SIGNIFICANT?
Reading comprehension is the product of word recognition skills and listening comprehension skills. Recognizing (reading) the words on the page is vital to reading comprehension; if a child cannot read the words, then they will quite obviously be unable to extract meaning from the written word. Once written words are recognized they can be understood as long as they are in the child's oral vocabulary. Unfamiliar words that are not already in the child's oral vocabulary start to acquire aspects of their meaning from the context within which they have been read; that is, reading gradually becomes a major source of vocabulary development.
8 STEPS TO TEACH STUDENTS TO BECOME EFFECTIVE READERS
1. Place meaning at the core of all reading. 2. Teach students to recognize the interaction between reading and writing. 3. Emphasize the importance of context in reading. 4. Place equal emphasis on the development of semantic, grammatical, phonological-graphological and visual/pictorial knowledge throughout explicit and systematical teaching. 5. Recognize the importance of students developing effective strategies for processing both paper based and digital text. 6. Provide for instruction across a range of fictional and factual text types including public and electronic texts. 7. Promotes a balance of Shared, Guided and Independent Reading opportunities. 8. Bases instruction on effective assessment of students needs and abilities. (G.Winch, 2010)
APPROPRIATE TEXTS
Choosing the right text is crucial to being an effective reader, when we read we need to consider both the context within which a text was written and the purpose for which it was written. Teaching students this knowledge will help to make their reading experience more effective. The text types we know and use today have evolved over time to meet the social purposes we wanted these texts to perform. When we teach students reading comprehension it is important to integrate a variety of text types that are current and evolving as opposed to the traditionally taught children's literature.
Here are some examples of modern text types which you may want to include in your reading lessons.
MULTILITERACIES
Young children are increasingly exposed to multimodal texts in the modern world therefore it is essential that we equip our students with the ability to navigate and comprehend these texts. Multiliteracies refers to two things; first the variation in communication within different cultural and social contexts, and secondly, the multimodal nature of making meaning through the interface of written-linguistic modes with visual, audio, gestural, and spatial forms to create new types of literacy (G. Winch, 2010). "As teachers it is our duty to build on what children know about multilitracies when they come to school, to extend and develop their knowledge and skills (G. Winch, p.21 2010)."
Below is an example of a classroom activity that can be used to comprehend a multiliterate text.