Reading comprehension help for 6th grader

[Foofy Coffee Lover]

My dd can read aloud just fine, but she expressed to me recently that her comprehension is not very good. I knew this had been the case when she was younger, but all indications were that she had improved in this area. I obviously didn't read that right! Of course, it frustrates her, and she really does desire to improve and enjoy reading more. Ideas to help her become a more successful reading so she can enjoy all the wonderful things out there to read?

[Kathleen in VA]

My dd can read aloud just fine, but she expressed to me recently that her comprehension is not very good. I knew this had been the case when she was younger, but all indications were that she had improved in this area. I obviously didn't read that right! Of course, it frustrates her, and she really does desire to improve and enjoy reading more. Ideas to help her become a more successful reading so she can enjoy all the wonderful things out there to read?

 

One of my college roommates was from Raytown!

 

Ok, now for your question. Well, first you might want to post this on the K-8 Board, too, for more input.

 

The question that popped into my head when I read this was how does she know she is not comprehending? Did you ask her questions about her reading and she was unable to recall facts? Does this occur with pleasure reading or just "school" reading?

 

Sometimes difficult words may be a hindrance to comprehension. If she is just skipping over those and not looking them up, I would have her circle in pencil any unfamiliar words she encounters and have her look those up. Very often authors use many new words in the first few chapters and then repeat them throughout the book. If you look them up at the beginning that increases comprehension for the whole book.

 

Sometimes if the author introduces a lot of characters at the beginning of a book it can be difficult to keep track of them. We have written down names, ages, relationships, etc. on a separate piece of paper that we could then refer to if we forgot someone or how they related to another character. I remember having to do that with The Hiding Place when I taught 8th grade English.

 

There are workbooks designed to help improve reading comprehension. I have used Jane Ervin's Reading Comprehension in Varied Subject Matter with success. I bought mine at Rainbow Resource Center.

 

HTH

[Foofy Coffee Lover]

Thank you for your suggestions. She actually has the problem in any type of reading. In thinking this through more, I think there are two main problems, both just being a "lazy" learner (though she is not a lazy person in general):

1. She is definitely skipping over unfamiliar words.

2. She tries to hurry and reads words incorrectly based on the first few letters she sees.

 

I like your idea of circling unfamiliar words, and also think I will check for some workbooks. She also asked if she can read aloud to me more, which I will definitely have her do.

 

Thanks so much for your suggestions. Where did you go to college? Close to the KC area?

[Kathleen in VA]

I went to James Madison University in Harrisonburg, VA. My roommate's parents moved from Winchester, VA to Raytown right before her senior year in high school so she wanted to come back to VA to be with all her old friends.

[Laurie4b]

Based on what you've written here, she might benefit from the REWARDS program. The general REWARDS teaches a decoding strategy for multisyllabic words. The program is by Sopris West publishing. The TM is expensive, but has excellent resale value. It's scripted, so you'll know just what to say. The workbook that the student uses is about $10. I believe I'm recalling correctly that the average student jumped two grade levels using REWARDS. (The program takes about 2 months to go through. ) My oldest son jumped 4 grade levels and never looked back. He had mild dyslexia. My son with more serious dyslexia needed the next book as well, REWARDS Plus.

[Foofy Coffee Lover]

Based on what you've written here, she might benefit from the REWARDS program. The general REWARDS teaches a decoding strategy for multisyllabic words. The program is by Sopris West publishing. The TM is expensive, but has excellent resale value. It's scripted, so you'll know just what to say. The workbook that the student uses is about $10. I believe I'm recalling correctly that the average student jumped two grade levels using REWARDS. (The program takes about 2 months to go through. ) My oldest son jumped 4 grade levels and never looked back. He had mild dyslexia. My son with more serious dyslexia needed the next book as well, REWARDS Plus.

 

Thank you! I've never heard of it but will definitely check it out!