Reading Like a Detective: Finding Clues in the Text
Learning Goals:
- Learn new words to talk about reading carefully.
- Talk about how you can understand what you read better.
- Read a text about active reading and practice the skills.
- Write a summary of what you learned.
Key Words:
- Active reading: Reading carefully and doing things to help you remember what you read.
- Highlight: To use a bright color to mark important words or sentences.
- Annotate: To write notes or questions on the page as you read.
- Summarize: To tell the main ideas of a text in a few sentences.
Let’s Talk About It!
- When you read, do you just look at the words, or do you do other things?
- Have you ever highlighted or underlined parts of a book or article? Why?
- What are some things you do to help you remember what you read?
Let’s Read!
Active reading means being a detective! It means looking for clues in the text to help you understand it better. You can highlight important words, write questions in the margins, or summarize each paragraph. All these things will help you remember what you read and learn more.
Questions About the Reading:
- What does “active reading” mean?
- What are some ways you can be an “active reader”?
- How can active reading help you?
Talk with a Partner!
Choose a short article or story to read together. As you read, practice highlighting, annotating, and summarizing. Then, tell your partner what you think the most important ideas were.
Homework:
Write a short summary (3-5 sentences) of the article or story you read with your partner. Try to include the main ideas and the most interesting details.
Extra Fun:
Make a poster about active reading. Include the keywords we learned today and some pictures to show what active reading looks like.
