During Reading Activities

This week in class we discussed the importance of a During Reading Activity. These activities keep students engaged and focused on the reading. Good readers make predictions and inferences on the fly as they are reading; struggling readers need some extra help when it comes to the reading process. A during reading activity will help students make the internal reading process visual and help them become more active readers.

One during reading activity that I am certain to employ is annotation. Annotation forces students to slow down and consider what they are reading to make predictions and inferences while they are reading and considering the possibilities. I understand students will not be able to write in the books we read for class, but they will be able to write on sticky notes and post them to the pages. At the end of every class students would then translate their sticky annotated notes into their reading journal. This journal would help students create their own guide to understanding a text. Students would be able to reference this guide whenever they needed to to participate in class discussions or outlining a paper. Students would also keep track of examples of different literary terms and devices.

Once a week I would have students choose a passage or quote from the weeks reading and perform a reflection or reaction to the piece that they chose. In this activity students would be able to relate something in the text to their own lives. This activity would get the students engaged and hopefully further their thinking of the workings in the text.

During activities are possibly the most important activities because if the student does not get the intro they can still come to understand the text, but if the student does not understand the during we are all in deep trouble because there is no way they will understand it after. During activities provide the students with an opportunity to talk, share, and think through what they are reading.