Reading Comprehension
1.3 Students read for meaning, demonstrating both initial understanding and personal response to what is read. This is evident when students:
a. Comprehend grade-appropriate materials;
b. Analyze and interpret features of a variety of types of text; and
c. Make connections among various parts of a text, among several texts, and between texts and other experiences in and out of school.
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d. Make extensions/applications of a text;
e. Identify the textual structure and/or the technical, artistic, and literary conventions of text; and
f. Explain the meaning of various forms of representation (e.g., narrative, graphical, cartographic, symbolic, mathematical).
RK: 7 Uses comprehension strategies (flexibly and as needed) while listening to literary and informational text.
EXAMPLES of reading-comprehension strategies might include:
• using prior knowledge;
• predicting and making simple text-based inferences;
• generating clarifying questions;
• constructing sensory images (e.g., making pictures in one’s mind); or
• making connections (text to self, text to text, and text to world)
RK: 8 Demonstrates ability to monitor comprehension and adjust strategy use for different types of text and
purposes during read-alouds by…
• Recognizing problems with understanding and asking questions as needed
Reading Strategies
1.1 Students use a variety of strategies to help them read. This is evident when students use a combination of strategies including:
a. Sounds, syllables, and letter patterns (e.g. phonological, phonic, and graphic knowledge);
b. Syntax
c. Meaning in context
d. A range of cueing systems to discover pronunciation and meaning;
e. Self-correcting when subsequent reading indicates an earlier miscue;
f. Questioning; and
g. Prior knowledge of the topic and sense of story.
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h. Predicting
i. Skimming;
j. Following themes;
k. Previewing for book selection (e.g., for content, format, style);
l. Synthesizing across sources;
m. Using knowledge of word structure to extend vocabulary
n. Identifying transition words to help understand organization of text; and
o. Adjusting rate of reading and strategy use according to purpose of reading and type of text.
RK: 1 Applies phonological knowledge and skills by…
• Recognizing pairs of rhyming words and producing rhymes
• Blending and segmenting syllables and onset-rimes (e.g., “cup-cake,” “s-at”)
• Isolating phonemes in single-syllable words (e.g., “tell me the first sound in ‘mop’ ”; “tell me the last sound
in ‘mop,’” “tell me the middle sound in ‘mop’”)
RK: 2 Demonstrates understanding of concepts of print during shared or individual reading by…
• Distinguishing between printed letters and words
• Following text with finger-pointing (e.g., charts, simple books), demonstrating left-to-right and top-to-bottom
directionality
• Identifying the first and last parts of a word (beginning/end of the word)
• Identifying key parts of a book: front and back, print, illustrations
RK: 3 Applies word identification and decoding skills and strategies (leading to automaticity) by…
• Reading approximately 20 high-frequency words, including names, environmental print, sight words
(as appropriate to the child’s personal and classroom experiences)
• Recognizing and naming all upper - and lowercase letters
• Identifying the primary sounds represented by most letters (sound-symbol correspondence)
• Demonstrating a basic understanding of how the letters of phonetically regular words, going from left to
right, represent their sounds
RK: 4 Applies context and self-correction strategies by...
• Noticing when simple sentences fail to make sense (while listening to a read-aloud or reading a simple text)
• Using pictures, syntax, or repetitive language patterns to help predict upcoming words
RK: 5 Identifies the meaning of unfamiliar words by…
• Using strategies to unlock meaning (e.g., activating prior knowledge, using context clues, or asking questions during read-alouds)
RK: 6 Shows breadth of vocabulary knowledge, demonstrating understanding of word meanings or
relationships by…
• Identifying synonyms and antonyms (e.g., “big/large”; “hot/cold”) to connect new words to known words
• Organizing words by category (e.g., sorting pictures or objects into groups)
• Demonstrating knowledge of basic concepts (i.e., common words that describe position in space and time,
such as “over,” “between,” “after,” “behind”)
Responding to Text
5.13 Students respond to literary texts and public documents using interpretive,
critical, and evaluative processes. This is evident when students:
a. Make inferences about content, events, story, characters, and setting, and about the relationship(s) among them; and
b. Explain the differences between various genres
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c. Analyze the impact of authors' decisions regarding word choice and content;
d. Make inferences about themes and styles;
e. Describe how linguistic structures and the diverse features of language can influence interpretation of texts;
f. Identify the characteristics of literary forms and genres;
g. Explain the effects of point of view/bias; and
h. Evaluate literary merit.
Initial Understanding of Literary Text / Analysis and Interpretation of
Literary Text/Citing Evidence
All students need ongoing opportunities to apply and practice reading strategies with many different types of LITERARY texts. Recognizing a variety of literary texts and their characteristics will help students in meeting grade level expectations described in the Vermont GLEs. See Appendix for a list of suggested literary texts for instructional and assessment purposes.
RK: 10 Demonstrate initial understanding of elements of literary texts read aloud by…
• Identifying characters in a story
• Responding to simple questions about a book’s content (e.g., “What did that hungry caterpillar eat?”)
Initial Understanding of Informational Text / Analysis and Interpretation of
Informational Text/Citing Evidence
All students need ongoing opportunities to apply and practice reading strategies with many different types of INFORMATIONAL texts (expository and practical texts). Recognizing a variety of informational texts and their characteristics will help students in meeting grade level expectations described in the Vermont GLEs. See Appendix for a list of suggested informational texts for instructional and assessment purposes.
RK: 12 Demonstrate initial understanding of informational texts read-aloud (expository and practical texts)
by…
• Obtaining information, using text features such as title and illustrations (e.g., “From the picture on the cover, what do we think this book will tell us?”)
• Using explicitly stated information to answer questions
EXAMPLE: “So, what did we learn about what owls eat?”
RK: 13 Analyze and interpret elements of literary texts READ ALOUD, citing evidence where appropriate
by…
• Making predictions about what might happen next
• Identifying physical characteristics or personality traits of main characters
RK: 15 Generates a personal response to what is read aloud through a variety of means by…
• Comparing stories or other texts to personal experience, prior knowledge, or other books
RK: 16 Analyze and interpret informational text read-aloud, citing evidence as appropriate by…
• Telling what was learned
• Making basic inferences or drawing basic conclusions EXAMPLE: “From what we just read, do you think it is important to eat vegetables? Why?”