Metacognition

Good readers are actively engaged when reading and learning. They monitor their comprehension by knowing when comprehension is occurring and they use fix-up strategies when they don't understand. This kind of thinking about thinking is called Metacognition.

Metro ECSU, Strategic Teaching and Reading Project packet.

Classroom Poster | Student Bookmarks

• What is the purpose for reading the text?
• What do I already know about the topic?
• Is it narrative or expository?
• Is there a graphic organizer that would help me organize the main ideas?

Monitor: During reading students need to consider these things

• Can context clues help me understand new vocabulary?
• Can I connect the author's clues to what I already know in order to make inferences?
• What will I do if I don't understand? (reread, adjust the pace, clarify questions, summarize)

Evaluate: After reading students should consider

• Reflection
• Summarize
• Discuss with others
• Analyze what reading strategy(s) helped me to comprehend

Self-Monitoring Approach to Reading and Thinking. (SMART) From Doug Buehl's book Classroom Strategies for Interactive Learning.

1. As students read a text they lightly mark with a "?" in the margins or you could have them use sticky notes.
2. At the end of the section, the student needs to summarize what he/she has just read.
3. Students then return back to their "?s" to see if they now understand what they did not understand while reading the passage. They should be able to identify why they were not able to understand the first time ...unfamiliar vocabulary, confusing language, lack of prior knowledge?
4. Use a "fix-up" or help strategy- use the glossary or dictionary for unfamiliar terms, examine pictures, diagrams, summaries that might give more information.
5. Ask for help from someone else- peer, teacher, parent, tutor, etc....

The purpose of this activity is to help students think and connect with the text while they are reading.

Before Reading: teacher models the use of the code for the class on a transparency. Read the text aloud, marking symbols, and even giving a guideline as to the approximate number of times that each symbol should be used.

During Reading: Students mark lightly in the margins of the text or use sticky notes to code the assigned reading.

After Reading: in small groups or with a partner, students compare their method of coding the assigned reading. the social interaction and discussion enriches understanding and promotes active reflection.

Source: Hoyt, Linda. Revisit, Reflect, Retell. Published by Heinemann, 1998. 1-800-519-8370. http://www.heinemann.com

These are ideas to help students think about what they are reading while they are reading:

• Make a prediction about the reading based on pictures or graphs.
• Comment on the ideas in the story
• Personalize the story ...connect it to prior knowledge
• Ask questions as you read
• Guess the meaning of a word based on contextual clues
• Make inferences (predictions) as you read
• Go back and reread when it does not make sense
• Make a picture in your mind, or even better on paper of what you are reading ...a personal form of Pictionary.

Phrases to help students with metacognition skills:

• Connect: "This reminds me of....." or "I liked...."
• Predict: "I think I know what is coming next..."
• Question: "I wonder what it means to...."
• Summarize: "The most important thing I've learned so far is...."
• Infer: "This must mean that..."