Content Area Literacy Strategies Descriptions
1. Think Alouds
•The Think Aloud is a literacy strategy designed to help students monitor comprehension
and direct their thinking as they work through the problem solving process. This literacy
strategy can be implemented effectively in many content areas. It is used, for instance, to
demonstrate the thinking that goes into solving a math problem. Through teacher
modeling, students are “talked through” the thinking processes. The teacher should keep
in mind that the comments must exemplify metacognitive awareness so that each step in
the process is modeled for the students. Questions are to be encouraged after the problem
is solved.
•Students turn to the assigned problems for the day.
•Teacher thinks aloud through 2 or 3 examples, pointing out to the students how the
Think Aloud reveals how to attack and solve the problem.
•Students solve each sample problem after the teacher does the Think Alouds.
•Next the children try Thinking Aloud with a partner on several problems. The teacher
circulates and listens to the interaction, offering suggestions and modeling for those who
are having difficulty.
•Finally, students work on the assigned problems using Think Aloud “silently” as they
work.
2. SQRQCQ
•SURVEY First, the students survey the problem rather quickly to get a general idea or
understanding of it.
•QUESTION Then they come up with questions — what they believe the problem is
asking for.
•REREAD The third step is to reread the problem to identify facts, relevant information,
and details they will need to solve it.
•QUESTION Now another question is formulated that focuses on what mathematical
operation(s) to apply.
•COMPUTE The students actually compute the answer — solving the problem.
•QUESTION The question to be asked at this point involves the accuracy of the answer.
Is it correct? Does the answer make sense?
3. SQ3R
•Survey By surveying the chapter titles, introductory paragraphs, bold face, italicized
headings, and summary paragraphs, the reader gets an overview of the material.
Surveying also gives enough information to generate individual purposes for reading the
text.
•Question Purpose questions are often provided at the beginning of the chapter. It not,
the reader can turn section headings into questions. The main objective is to have
questions for which answers are expected to be found in the passage.
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•Read The student is to read to answer the purpose questions formulated in Step 2,
Question.
•Recite Student should try to answer questions without referring to the text or notes. This
step helps in transferring information from short-term to long-term memory.
•Review Students review the material by rereading parts of the text or notes. Students
verify answers given during Step 4, Recite. This helps retain information better and gives
immediate feedback.
4. Concept Maps
•Concept mapping, among many other things, allows teachers and students to organize
concepts and determine the relations between concepts. This enables a teacher or student
to work with concepts and propositions as opposed to the rote memorization of facts.
•Concept maps are both evocative and generative. That is they help evoke prior
knowledge and help generate or construct new knowledge. Concept mapping is
particularly useful in the science classroom. There are several steps in the construction of
Concept maps.
Steps in Concept Map Construction
1. Select several concepts from the content material (8-12 preferable).
2. Write each concept on a separate post-it or card.
3. Select an organizing concept or main idea concept to be placed at the top of the map.
4. Arrange the other concepts in a distinct hierarchy under the organizing concept.
5. Draw lines between related concepts adding linking words that explain relationships.
6. Review and Reflect. Once satisfied with the arrangement of the concepts on the map,
construct a final map.
5. Jigsaw
•The Jigsaw strategy is designed for cooperative learning. The idea is analogous to a
jigsaw puzzle in that “pieces” or topics of study are researched and learned by students
within groups and then put together in the form of peer teaching between groups.
•Students work in groups of three to six to become experts on a particular topic, which is
based on an overall theme or unit of study. The group members are charged with learning
everything they can about their assigned topics. Each group member participates in the
research efforts and becomes an “expert” on his or her particular topic. The students then
leave their groups to join “expert groups” to teach about their assigned pieces of the
puzzle. Then, the original group comes back together to teach each other what they have
learned. Each student listens and takes notes, and at the end of the unit, is accountable for
the information shared throughout the class. Instructional technology can easily be
incorporated into the jigsaw strategy. Research can be accomplished via the internet online encyclopedias. Presentations can be developed with various software packages and
enhanced with video camera pictures, student voices, music, and moving illustrations
from other sources in to the presentations.
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How to Set It Up
1. Divide class into 4-6 member groups; each member becomes an expert on a different
topic/concept assigned by teacher.
2. Members of the teams with the same topic meet together in an expert group with a
variety of resource materials and texts available to explore their topic. Also, a single
reading from the textbook or another source could be used to complete the assignment.
3. The students prepare how they will teach the information to others.
4. Everyone returns to their jigsaw teams to teach what they learned to the other
members.
5. Team members listen and take notes as their classmate teaches them.
6. All students are given a quiz or exam on the overall topic which as been taught in
sections within each jigsaw group.
6. Cubing
•This strategy was originally intended to be a writing strategy to explore topics or
subjects from a variety of dimensions. A concrete visual of a cube is used to consider
these multiple dimensions.
•It is best to introduce the activity with a familiar topic, going through each of the steps to
model their application to that particular topic. Then, students can work individually or in
groups to go through each side of the cube.
• The Six Sides of the Cube
1. Describe it (including color, shape, size (if applicable)—How would you describe the
issue/topic?
2. Compare it (what it is similar to or different from)—“It’s sort of like”
3. Associate it (what it makes you think of)—How does the topic connect to other
issues/subjects?
4. Analyze it (tell how it is made or what it is composed of)—How would you break the
problem/issue into smaller parts?
5. Apply it (tell how it can be used)—How does it help you understand other
topics/issues?
6. Argue for/against it (take a stand and support it)—I am for this because/This works
because/I agree because
7. KWL
•We know that successful learners link prior knowledge to new information, and then
reorganize it to create their own meaning and learning. KWL helps students do this—it
provides a framework that students can use to construct meaning from new material. It is
a literacy strategy that teachers can easily modify to meet students’ learning needs at any
level and in any content area. The letters stand for the knowledge construction process
that takes place:
•K — What I KNOW begins with students’ prior knowledge—brainstorm and record
•W — What I WANT to learn/know students articulate their own questions
•L — What I LEARNED students record what they have learned
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8. Journals
•Allowing students to write in journals gives them the opportunity to express their own
thoughts and opinions in a non-threatening arena. While the activity allows them to
organize their ideas with some freedom, guidelines for how the journal is to be set up and
utilized is basic to successful use of journals. Presenting a general format to follow will
help to eliminate writer’s anxiety and give structure to journaling assignments.
•Students are often motivated to go beyond the basic requirements of an assignment and
explore other perspectives and possibilities for solutions to problems. Journal entries can
be inspired by teacher prompts or student-selected topics. The information recorded in
the journal can serve as a study guide or resource for other projects.
Observation Journal (Field Journal)
•The students and the teacher should negotiate about what observations are to made, and
what guidelines are to be established for recording in the journals. The format for entries,
information to be included, when to record, etc., are topics that should be included in the
preliminary planning for the observation journals. The students then visit the experiment
and record their observations into the journal (or field notebook).
•It is important to remember that journal entries do not always have to be charts or
narrative writings. The use of illustrations in the journal is an effective way for students
to clarify what they are reporting and is an excellent way to address different learning
styles represented by students in every classroom.
Dialogue Journal
•Dialogue journals offer an opportunity for two-way communication between teacher and
student: on-going learning can take place through use of this process.
Assessment Journal
•Students respond to teacher prompts, experiences, or self-selected topics. Illustrations
may also be included. Students exchange journals between each other and critique them
in a positive manner. This helps the students further understand the concepts being
presented as they have an opportunity to see other student’s work, ask questions of
classmates, and offer positive suggestions to each other. Peer assessment of journal
writing also helps foster communication between students.
9. GIST
•GIST is helpful for teachers to use when students fail to read problems carefully before
attempting to solve them. The task is to write a summary of the problem in 12 words or
less. The student identifies the 12 most important words needed to solve the problem. The
words capture the “gist” of the problem. A chart may be prepared with the word problem
at the top and 12 blanks below to be completed by the students.
•This strategy helps students to recognize information that is not essential to solving the
problem. The teacher can model the strategy, then ask students to line out information
that is not necessary to solve the problem. Through the use of this strategy, the students
learn to distill the essence of the problem.
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10. Vocabulary Study
•Vocabulary knowledge is in constant change as students encounter different uses of
terminology in different contexts. In order for students to solve word problems they need
to understand the vocabulary used in the problem. Some words are best learned through
direct and visual experience and by making connections. An understanding of the words
contained in word problems is essential to finding a solution. This literacy strategy can
easily be incorporated into mathematics teaching whenever word problems are being
studied.
•The teacher selects words in the problem to review with the students. Words are
decoded, and their use within the context of the problem is recognized. The teacher
guides the students through the problem, asking questions that require the students to
think about what the problem is asking. This strategy promotes the higher level thinking
necessary to interpret word problems.
11. Knowledge Rating
•The Knowledge Rating literacy strategy can easily be incorporated into instruction in
any content area (Blachowicz, 1986). It is a pre/during/and post-reading activity. Students
begin with a list of vocabulary words and corresponding columns (see sample Knowledge
Rating charts). Before reading, students analyze each word and note whether the term is
familiar. If the student knows the meaning of the word, a short definition is written in the
appropriate column. This pre-reading activity sets the stage for further clarification of the
words through discussion or reading.
•Next, students skim the text to locate the words in context. The location of the word is
noted for later reference (with highlighters, removable sticky strips, underlining, etc.). It
is permissible to have the students highlight a form of the word, if the exact word is not
found first.
•After reading the text completely, the words are revisited in context, and definitions are
noted for each word. Such active participation in processing vocabulary is necessary to
understand the text and to help students construct meaning.
12. Writer’s Workshop
•Writer’s Workshop involves use of an instructional strategy by which students are
engaged, encouraged, and developed as writers and readers. Within the context of
Writer’s Workshop, a variety of organizational patterns for instruction are used. A whole
class session, a small group mini-lesson, or a student-teacher conference are examples of
the various intraclass organizational structures. The Writer’s Workshop is devoted to
supporting student learning in writing. What students need to learn during a Writer’s
Workshop is based upon their present writing competencies and the English language arts
standards and benchmarks for each grade level. For the majority of the time in Writer’s
Workshop, students will be engaged in actual writing. This strategy may be employed
over a period of several days, and has several “sub parts.”
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Mini-lesson
A mini-lesson (Calkins, 1986) provides direct instruction by the teacher that will
help students independently engage in their own writing. It is a short, focused lesson
about a specific writing technique that is often thought of as an opportunity for the
teacher to explain and demonstrate a specific technique for improving a piece of writing.
It is an invitation for students to try a particular technique in their own writing. Selection
of the topic for the mini-lesson is based on students’ writing needs.
A variety of topics may be selected based on the identified need in student writing
as the teacher helps the writer to further refine a piece of writing. The minilesson may
involve revising a piece of writing based on a need for organization and clarity, while
another mini-lesson might focus on helping students generate topic ideas for one’s
writing.
Teachers may use the writing from one of the students in the class as the text used
to discuss the mini-lesson topic. Using your student’s own writing to help other students
develop their writing skills helps to build a community of writers. It is important to
remember to value student ownership and seek permission to use the student’s writing
prior to using it in a minilesson.
13. Goal Setting and Peer Conferences
•Goal Setting Conference: A goal setting conference is designed to support student
literacy achievement during Writer’s Workshop by helping students take responsibility
for determining what they will address in their writing and for improving that aspect of
their writing. It may also serve as a management technique. It is a useful strategy or
technique that is helpful in developing student accountability and responsibility.
•Peer Conferences: Conferences between students are a powerful means of building
community in the Writer’s Workshop setting. They serve to foster independence and
student responsibility. Peer conferences may address prewriting, the content of the
writing selection, necessary revision, editing needs, or just about any aspect of writing.
Structuring time for peer conferences is an important part of Writer’s Workshop.
14. Symbols
•The idea of using symbols as a literacy strategy has it roots in dual coding theory. The
dual coding theory attempts to give equal weight to verbal and nonverbal processing.
Human cognition is unique in that it has become specialized for dealing simultaneously
with language and with nonverbal objects and events. Moreover, the language system is
peculiar in that it deals directly with linguistic input and output (in the form of speech or
writing) while at the same time serving a symbolic function with respect to nonverbal
objects, events, and behaviors. Any representational theory must accommodate this dual
functionality.
•Symbols support a quick recognition system that allows for fast translation of presented
information. Symbols further allow for economy in the amount of information presented.
•Imagine a weather map where all the important information about fronts and
precipitation is represented. If that information were written out, the map itself would be
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obliterated by textual material. The important information would be obscured. Symbols
have always been part of human culture and constitute a common visual language.
Subject
Use of Symbols
Language Arts
punctuation, mythology
Mathematics
operational and relational signs
Science
periodic chart, weather symbols
Social Studies
map symbols
Health and Safety
warning symbols
15. World Wide Vocabulary
•An online dictionary can be used to discover and learn new vocabulary in many different
content area classrooms. To help students feel more comfortable with the technology, it is
important for the teacher to demonstrate how to locate sites that will enhance the lesson
as well as how to navigate around the sites. It is also important that students recognize the
author of the web sites that will be visited or the source of the information found.
•Information software is another way to incorporate vocabulary activities. Packages that
focus on particular subject areas, encyclopedias, and software programs that accompany
textbooks give students an opportunity to search for word meanings in a different and
exciting way. Online word games, word searches, and puzzles can reinforce the learning
of new words and their definitions. Students often enjoy constructing their own word
puzzles and games using the computer.
•A guide sheet can be helpful for students to use with an online vocabulary activity or
with a computer software program. Each student can be assigned particular vocabulary
words to find. The words can be known words, unknown words, or a combination of
words students may or may not be familiar with in the context of the lesson. Students
could also work in pairs or small groups of three depending upon the availability of
computers, a student’s knowledge of technology, etc. Assignments can vary in terms of
finding definitions, using the words in sentences, and restating the meaning of words in
context.
16. Directed Reading – Thinking Activity (DR-TA)
•The Directed Reading-Thinking Activity engages students in a step-by-step process that
guides them through informational text. It is designed to move students through the
process of reading text. Questions are asked and answered, and predictions are made and
tested throughout the reading. Additionally, new questions and predictions are formulated
as the student progresses through the text. While the teacher guides the process, the
student determines the purpose for reading. To introduce the strategy, the teacher gives
examples of how to make predictions. A preview of the section to be read is given by
having the students read the title and make predictions.
•Independent thinking is encouraged as knowledge from previous lessons is incorporated
into the predictions. All student predictions should be recorded by the teacher, even those
that will later prove to be inaccurate. Misconceptions are clarified by the reader through
interaction with the text and in post-reading discussions.
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•After reading small selections, the teacher prompts the students with questions about
specific information. It is important for the teacher not to interrupt too often. The amount
of reading is adjusted depending on the purpose and the difficulty of the text.
•The reading is broken into small sections, giving the students time to think about and
process information. The teacher makes sure students can identify and understand
important vocabulary. Words are explained in context.
•This literacy strategy allows students to ask questions or make predictions using their
own words in a non-threatening environment. Everyone is on the “same page” and has
the information right in front of them. New concepts and ideas are connected to those
learned in previous lessons.
•As the reading continues, questions are answered and predictions are confirmed, revised,
or rejected. The predicting-reading-proving cycle continues throughout the lesson. The
format can be varied with different activities and by integrating technology.
•Predictions made at the beginning of the lesson should be revisited at the end of the
lesson as a closing activity. This review offers a comprehension check. Questions such
as, “Were you correct?” and, “What do you think now?” help students examine the proof
of their predictions.
17. The Pre-Reading Plan (PReP)
•The PreReading Plan, or PReP (Langer, 1981), is a before-reading strategy that helps
teachers assess student’s prior knowledge. How students’ prior knowledge is organized
can be determined as well as the quality and quantity of language that students use to
express their knowledge about a particular topic. There are three phases in the PReP
procedure:
•Phase One: The Initial Associations with the concept Students brainstorm what they
know about the topic or a key vocabulary term and hear their classmates’ associations.
This activity helps students think about what they already know and sets the stage for
more critical analysis of content.
•Phase Two: Reflections on the Initial Associations Students are asked to reflect on
their Initial Associations with questions such as, “What made you think of…?” or “Why
did this response come to mind?”
•Phase Three: Reformulation of Knowledge After the discussion and before reading,
ask for new ideas. Students have the opportunity to verbalize associations that have been
elaborated or changed. This discussion helps students understand how others are
constructing meaning.
There are three levels of responses to these questions:
Responses at the first level indicate students have “much prior knowledge” about
the concept or topic being discussed. Student responses during the three phases will be of
main idea-type concepts, definitions, analogies, or linkages of one concept to another.
Responses at the second level indicate “some prior knowledge” about the concept
or topic. Students are able to discuss the concept in terms of examples, attributes, or
characteristics. Students responding at this level and the first level should be able to
successfully comprehend text with some guidance by the teacher.
Responses at the third level indicate “little prior knowledge” of the concept or
topic being discussed. The students do not have the prior knowledge needed to establish
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connections to the topic. Responses exemplify low-level associations such as words that
sound like the targeted word, or unrelated experiences. Students responding in this
manner will need additional information to fill in gaps in prior knowledge to make sure
they are understanding the text.
18. Listen-Read-Discuss
•The literacy strategy Listen-Read-Discuss helps students comprehend text. Before
reading, students listen to a short lecture delivered by the teacher. A guide or graphic
organizer can be used to help students follow the information.
•The students then read a text selection about the topic. This explanation is compared
with the information from the lecture. The passage from the textbook should cover the
same information introduced in the lecture. Long reading assignments that bring in other
topics are not appropriate. The teacher should let the students know that the purpose for
reading is to experience another explanation of the topic and to compare it to the
information they have just heard.
•After reading, there is a large group discussion or students engage in small group
discussions about the topic. Questions should be encouraged. Students may be asked to
complete an information sheet or a writing activity to further develop understanding.
19. Reaction Guides
The Reaction Guide is a post-reading strategy that serves as a review of the learning.
Post-reading reactions to the same statements from the Anticipation Guide allow students
an opportunity to reassess their original responses.
20. Discussion Groups
•Teachers need to model the process of how a small group should function. To introduce
the roles within the group, a small group should be formed for the entire class to observe.
The teacher and students can assume assigned roles within the group and demonstrate the
process, with the teacher’s direct guidance. Examples of how a discussion can be used to
solve a problem, answer questions, or accomplish a task can be modeled.
•Groups should be made up of five, four, or three students. It is important that group
members have specific responsibilities in order to complete the assignment and to know
exactly what is expected of them. For instance, roles can include: facilitator, recorder,
clerk, and manager.
21. Vocabulary Self-Collection Strategy (VSS)
•The purpose of the Vocabulary Self-Collection Strategy is to help students generate a list
of words to be explored and learned and to use their own prior knowledge and interests to
enhance their vocabulary. This strategy can be used to stimulate growth in word
knowledge. Because the list is self-generated, an internal motivation is utilized. This
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strategy can help students become fascinated with language and thus, increase their
enjoyment of the subject.
•Students are put into cooperative groups and asked to go through the assigned reading
(for example a chapter in their book) to identify words that they think ought to be studied
further. Students are to find words that are important to understanding the content of a
particular text selection. The meaning and importance of the words can be discussed in
cooperative groups prior to sharing them with the whole class.
•Next, a class list of words is developed. Each team submits one word from their list to
the class, giving its meaning and why they consider it important. The word is recorded
for display. Each other group then submits a different word. This action is repeated until
all selected words are on display. The teacher can also submit a word to the list. The
teacher then leads a discussion for clarification and expansion of the meanings of the
terms. A dictionary or the index of the text can be checked for word meanings when
necessary. Students’ prior knowledge is applied in the discussion.
22. Three-Level Study Guides
•The three-level study guide is one form of a study guide that helps students develop
multiple levels of understanding when reading a text. This literacy strategy is extremely
useful in helping students become critical thinkers as they develop independence in
reading comprehension. The following steps facilitate developing and using a three-level
study guide:
•Step 1: Analyze content and identify major concepts & important details
•Step 2: Develop questions at multiple levels of understanding
EXPLICIT LEVEL - Right on the Page
IMPLICIT LEVEL - Think and Search
EXPERIENCE-BASED - On Your Own
•Step 3: Assign the study guide and engage students in small group discussions
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