How to promote interactive reading in classroom

Reading is an active process in which readers construct meanings of words. Good readers use contextual knowledge and experience to make connections with the text. They make predictions about what is going to happen next in the text, so when they read they have the motivation to find out whether they are right or wrong.

Every reader uses his/her experience or background knowledge to a text. If a teacher is able to bring out the students’ background knowledge first in the classroom, students will be able to understand the reading better. The teacher needs to provide it somehow. Teacher needs to provide activities that help students use his/her experience driven concept and information (data driven from the text) together.

Three Basic Steps to Teaching Reading

1. Pre-reading goals

i. To build or activate students’ knowledge about a topic.

ii. Assist in language preparation, give new vocabulary.

iii. To build interest – look at pictures, titles, captions etc.

2. Reading goals

i. To help students understand content

ii. To help them understand different patterns and structures, as well as main ideas and details in the text.

3. Post-reading goals

i. To discuss the content and make sure students understand what they have read and can summarise what they have read (both oral or written).

ii. In next class, work on vocabulary and grammar.

iii. Integrate the content of the reading with their knowledge of the topic, by increasing the experience through discussion or writing.

Choosing Texts

• Is the level suitable?

• Is the topic appropriate to your students – interest, culturally sensitive etc.

• How long is it ? Should be intriguing, a little challenging but something they can succeed at.

• where will they read it- class/outside or both ?

• How much grammar and technical terms is there?

• Are there pictures? Graphs ? Maps?

• Different formats should be there – poetry/prose, fiction/non-fiction.

INTERACTIVE READING ACTIVITIES

READ, TELL, LISTEN, TELL

Give a short story or paragraph to each student. They read the story individually to themselves. Now, in pairs, they tell each other their story in their own words and then listen carefully to the partner’s story. They do not read their partner’s story. Now two pairs sit together, so there are 4 students. Now students tell their PARTNER’S STORY. The partner can listen to make sure it’s correct, and correct if necessary. In whole class, ask which story they liked and if they want they can tell that story reading classes.

READING WITH HALF THE WORDS

Provide each student with a text. Ask them to fold the page in half and read one half of the page that is visible without looking at the other half. After as much speculation as possible, they can read the whole story and see if the story matched with what they thought.

STORY STRIPS

Make groups of 4 students. Give them a story cut up into strips and ask them to assemble it. Then read the story while they listen and check theirs. You may give them the text for checking further and comprehension.

These are few basic steps to teaching reading in a class with no or limited resources. The best resource is the teacher itself.

HAPPY READING!