It has happened to every intermediate grade teacher. That dreaded moment when you sit down with one of your little friends... and it's obvious that he/she is not comprehending. Your heart just sinks. It is certainly a difficult moment and your response can either turn this student around or lead to years of problems. But at that moment, all you feel like is a deer in the headlights. There are so many things you could do, but which is right?
1. Be honest... and proactive. Say, "It looks like you are missing a lot of the important information in this book. Let's see if we can figure out what the problem is. Are you willing to help me out or should be put aside this book for a later time?" I know this sounds heartless, but we just can't have kids continue to read a book they are not comprehending- no matter how popular it is, no matter how much they want to read it. The child needs to know that, if you can't figure out what the problem is and fix it together, reading this book is just not an option right now.
2. Check the books reading level against the child's. If the level is too high for the child, be brave and tell them they can't read it...YET. Go over to the bin that had the book and help them find a lower level alternative. This is why it is best to arrange your classroom library thematically, rather than by level. I put the child's independent level on the top of my conferring page so I always know it.
3. If the level is right, do a 1 minute fluency check. Have the child start at the top of the page and read for one minute. While they are reading, listen for their prosody (expression and use of punctuation). After they are done, count the words. I keep a piece of paper in my pensieve with all of the wpm goals for different reading levels. If they read too slowly or with lack of prosody, go back to step 2.
4. If the level and fluency are OK, back up and reread. Find the part of the book where the child had good comprehension. Mark it with a stickee. Have the child read from there. Make sure they commit to reading differently the second time, otherwise they will get the same result. This means they have to verbalize a strategy. Model if they need encouragement and write it on the stickee. Here's the important part: Check back with them at the end of the time period to see if comprehension has improved AND...
5. Have the child put a second stickee when they finished and hand it to you. Congratulations, teacher! You now have homework. Your homework is to figure out why this child is loosing comprehension. Read the story (preferably from the beginning) with a critical eye and see if you can come up with one strategy the child can do to improve their comprehension. At this point, the strategy will probably need to involve writing something down since just thinking wasn't enough. With one child, I found that the book had six completely different main characters. I had to write them down, along with a little blurb, to remember them all! I suggested she do the same. Once she did, she came to the conclusion on her own that the book was too hard. Another little friend of mine was having a hard time with a historical fiction book set at the time of the Revolutionary War. I realized he needed a better understanding of this time period to understand the events of the book. I suggested he take a break from the book and read "If You Lived During the Revolutionary War". He did and, when he went back to the book, he found his comprehension much improved.
6. Whether you are able to come up with some specific strategy or not, plan on meeting briefly every day with this child until their issues are resolved with this book or they choose a better book. How do you manage this brief, but intense, support? Have your regular reading group go to your group spot and read their choice book while they wait for you. Do a brief check in with your targetted child. Find out what page they are on and have them summarize the book so far. Also have them commit to a strategy. If all seems well, send them off to read. Run your small group. Check in with your targetted child once more, either during their reading or at the end of the reading time. Doing this will force them to become a more active reader because you are raising the level of accountability. With most children, I find three days in a row is enough. After that, gradually reduce the level of your support.
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