Opitz Chapter 10

            In order for a student to be a fluent reader, he/she must be able to comprehend the text. The text stated that without reading comprehension, there would be no reading. The text also discussed the term schema as to how students are able to comprehend a text better if they have background knowledge on the particular reading topic. Not only would the student have more background knowledge, the student would more likely to be interested in reading the text. I have found that when a student has background knowledge on a text, they are more willing to contribute to the class discussion and are anxious to read the book. The student is also able to provide the class with a personal insight into the reading. I really enjoyed reading about instructional strategies for intermediate grades. I am constantly trying to come up with more instructional strategies for the students that I am working with in order to best meet their needs. I am definitely going to incorporate the main idea/ supporting detail hand into my lesson if I change grade levels. I would have loved to be able to use this last year throughout my student teaching.

            Throughout my class, the two other teachers as well as myself constantly use the repeated reading strategy. Every time a new text is introduced, I read the text to the students first, then we choral read, next students take turns reading, and lastly I listen to the student read independently. By the end of the week they are confident in their reading ability and are provided the opportunity to go to the front office and read the text.