Building Interpretive and
Critical Thinking
•Reading Comprehension
•Critical Thinking
•Writing
•Speaking and Listening
•Activating Schema
•Comprehension Strategies
•Asking questions
•Making connections
•Visualizing
•Vocabulary Development
•Idea
–
generating and clarifying ideas about a story’s
meaning
•Evidence- supporting and checking these ideas,
based on what is in the story
•Response- considering alternative ideas and
adjusting an interpretation
•Speak to experiment with ideas and clarify their
thinking
•Listen to evaluate and learn from others
•Use both agreement and disagreement in a
collaborative effort to construct meaning
•See and hear the validity of divergent perspectives
•Responding to Literature –
Explain interpretations
•Essay development
•Expository and persuasive writing
•Creative Writing –
Extend interpretation
•Other writing forms- letters, poems, stories
a distinctive method of learning in which
participants search for answers to
fundamental questions raised by a text
•Interpretive reading and discussion
•Questions of genuine doubt
•Textual support for interpretations
•Focus on reading comprehension and
critical thinking
Factual – Factual questions have one right
answer that can be supported by the text.
Interpretive – questions have more than one
right answer that can be supported by the text.
Evaluative – questions have more than one
right answer that can be supported by our own
values, knowledge, or experiences of life.
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Overview
 Focus on interpretation and discussion of
literature
 Each unit consists of:
- Story Introduction
- Two readings of the story
- Questioning and note-taking activities
- Shared Inquiry discussion
- Writing activities
INTRODUCTION
 Before Reading Strategy
 Connect to story, genre, background knowledge
 Introduce important vocabulary
 How would you introduce this story?
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FIRST READING
 Read aloud
 Appropriate expression
 Levels the playing field for students
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SHARING QUESTIONS and
INITIAL REACTIONS
 Clear up misunderstandings
 Get help with vocabulary
 Set the selection more firmly in mind
 Pose interpretive or evaluative questions
 Starting point for interpretive thinking
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SECOND READING
with DIRECTED NOTES
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Texts are complex.
We want students to be very familiar with events
and ideas in the story.
Use post-it notes to mark places in the story
related to specific ideas or characters
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Interpreting Through Art and
Writing
 My favorite part
 Something that the story reminds me of
 Something from the story that scared me
 A part of the story I thought was funny
 A sentence form the story that I liked and why
 Why I like/do not like this story
 A part of the story I’m still wondering bout
 A note to the main character
Vocabulary
 Place the word in context
 Define the word
 Use the word
 Ask a question about the story using the word
 Add to Curious Words
Conducting Shared Inquiry
Arrange seating in a circle
 An arrangement in which the leader and students can see, listen
to, and talk directly to one another encourages genuine
interaction and stimulates discussion.
 Having the leader be part of the discussion group and sit at eye
level helps to avoid the teacher being seen as the authority on
the story’s meaning. It communicates the kind of respect,
responsibility, and empowerment desired.
Prepare a Seating Chart
 During discussion, leaders take note of ideas and keep
track of participation with the help of a seating chart.
 Placing checkmarks beside students' names as they
participate can help ensure that everyone has had the
opportunity to join in the discussion.
 Notes give you some record of the ideas expressed and
can help you formulate follow-up questions.
Guidelines for Shared Inquiry
Review the Guidelines
1. Read the story carefully before participating in the
discussion.
2. Discuss only the story everyone has read.
3. Support your ideas with evidence from the story.
4. Listen to other participants and respond to them
directly.
5. Expect the leader to only ask questions.
Pose an Interpretive Question
 Interpretive questions can be validly answered in
more than one way.
 Shared Inquiry focuses on a question that can be
adequately answered in more than one way, and
that calls for supporting evidence and reasoning.
 An interpretive question is most likely to generate
a lively discussion.
 They allow the leader and students to unlock the
meaning of the text together through close and
careful reading and discussion
Building Your Answer Form
 This form is a place for students to write down the
focus question they will discuss and their answer
to that question.
 Before discussion even begins, it is important for
students to understand that there can be more
than one good or valid answer to the question. This
will help them feel free to try out ideas and explore
an issue in depth.
Reflect and Write
Give students ample time to reflect and write an answer
 People think in different ways and at different rates. It is
too easy to jump into discussion before everyone is truly
ready.
 Writing helps students think; it demands that they
articulate their ideas in words and sentences. After writing,
students are in a much better position to contribute
constructively to the discussion.
 Students who have written are also in a better position to
listen to and appreciate the ideas of others. They don’t have
to worry that they will forget their idea, and they have an
established viewpoint from which to consider other
alternatives.
Shared Inquiry Discussion
Lead discussion by asking questions
 Explain themselves
 Understand another student's idea or answer
 Back up ideas with evidence from the text
 Express agreement or disagreement
 Talk directly to one another
 Pursue implications and answers
 Use follow-up questions
Follow-Up Questions
 The leader asks follow-up questions that invite
students to explain their comments, revisit the
text, and develop their ideas.
 They encourage students to…
 Support their idea with evidence
 Respond to one another’s ideas
Reflective Thinking
 Shared Inquiry is a reflective process.
 In a discussion, interpretive questions provide the
problem, while students’ ideas and the leader’s
follow-up questions move each person toward an
individual solution.
End Discussion After…
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When students begin to range well outside the
scope of the question, it can be a signal that
their curiosity for that question has been
satisfied.
When the same answer seems to be repeated
with little or no development, it can be a sign to
move on.
Closing Activity
 Did you change your answer?
 Did you hear an idea you especially liked?
 What different answers to the question did you
hear?
 Are there other questions about the story we have
not explored?
Writing
• Responding to Literature –
Explain interpretations
• Essay development
• Expository and persuasive writing
• Creative Writing –
Extend interpretation
• Other writing forms- letters, poems, stories
Additional Activities Supporting Shared
Inquiry Discussion
 Teacher's Editions and Leader's Guides contain suggested activities
designed to help students prepare for Shared Inquiry Discussion and to
continue their exploration of meaning.
 Art
 Dramatization
 Text Openers
 Multiple readings
 Note taking
 Generating and sharing questions
 Extended writing
In a Shared Inquiry discussion students
learn to…
- Think for themselves
- Concentrate on interpretation
- Develop ideas and implications thoroughly
- Use factual information from the text to support their
ideas
- Recognize and respond to competing answers and
interpretations
- Consider, evaluate, and use the insights of others