Grasping the meaning of a text enables K-8 students to appreciate its language and structure through close reading, which in turn leads to deeper comprehension. This book explains the relationship between comprehension and close reading and offers step-by-step guidelines for teaching both of these key elements of literacy. Reproducible lessons are shared for eight engaging texts (excerpts from fiction, nonfiction, and poetry), complete with discussion tips, queries that scaffold comprehension, close reading activities, and connections to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). The authors model lesson development and guide teachers in constructing their own lessons. Ten additional text selections are provided in the Appendix. Purchasers get access to a Web page where they can download and print all 18 texts in a convenient 8 1/2" x 11" size.

Grasping the meaning of a text enables K-8 students to appreciate its language and structure through close reading, which in turn leads to deeper comprehension. This book explains the relationship between comprehension and close reading and offers step-by-step guidelines for teaching both of these key elements of literacy. Reproducible lessons are shared for eight engaging texts (excerpts from fiction, nonfiction, and poetry), complete with discussion tips, queries that scaffold comprehension, close reading activities, and connections to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). The authors model lesson development and guide teachers in constructing their own lessons. Texts for 10 additional lessons are provided in the Appendix. Purchasers get access to a Web page where they can download and print all 18 texts in a convenient 8 1/2" x 11" size.

In Guided Highlighted Reading, teachers of grades 4-12 learn an easy and effective text-based strategy that scaffolds all students to return to a complex or difficult text for four different reading purposes. This resource uses prompts--not questions--to build competency with difficult and complex text for four close-reading purposes for any content area: Reading comprehension; Author's craft; Tier II vocabulary acquisition; and Answering multiple-choice questions on high-stakes assessments Sample passages from ELA Appendix B of the Common Core State Standards are prepared for student use for all purposes, along with how-to directions, rubrics for assessing mastery of reading comprehension and author's craft, and an alignment of the four purposes to the CCSS. Guided Highlighted Reading is a go-to resource for teachers to help students navigate complex texts and meet the rigorous requirements of the CCSS.

The Common Core State Standards have put close reading in the spotlight as never before. While middle and high school teachers want and need students to connect with, analyze, and learn from both literary and informational texts, many are unsure how to foster the skills students must have in order to develop deep and nuanced understanding of complicated content. Is there a process to follow? How is close reading different from shared reading and other common literacy practices? How do you prepare students to have their ability to analyze complex texts measured by high-stakes assessments? And how do you fit close reading instruction and experiences into an already crowded curriculum? Literacy experts Barbara Moss, Diane Lapp, Maria Grant, and Kelly Johnson answer these questions and more as they explain how to teach middle and high school students to be close readers, how to make close reading a habit of practice across the content areas, and why doing so will build content knowledge. Informed by the authors’ extensive field experience and enriched by dozens of real-life scenarios and downloadable tools and templates, this book explores • Text complexity and how to determine if a particular text is right for your learning purposes and your students. • The process and purpose of close reading, with an emphasis on its role in developing the 21st century thinking, speaking, and writing skills essential for academic communication and college and career readiness. • How to plan, teach, and manage close reading sessions across the academic disciplines, including the kinds of questions to ask, texts to use, and supports to provide. • How to assess close reading and help all students—regardless of linguistic, cultural, or academic background—connect deeply with what they read and derive meaning from complex texts. Equipping students with the tools and process of close reading sets them on the road to becoming analytical and critical thinkers—and empowered and independent learners. In this comprehensive resource, you’ll find everything you need to start their journey.

Close-reading strategies help students develop the critical-thinking skills essential for the rest of their lives. Close Reading in the Secondary Classroom offers high school and middle school educators extensive guidance on how to introduce close reading to students and help them improve their reading comprehension skills and critical thinking. Learn how to select close-reading examples and passages, elicit deeper question formation, facilitate positive classroom discussion, and assess your students' reading comprehension and literacy progress. Understand the importance of close reading, prereading, and post-reading activities. Learn how to choose appropriate literary or informational texts for close reading. Pass on tools necessary for literary analysis and annotating text. Develop thought-provoking questions and discussion that deepen text analysis and reading comprehension. Assess students' critical and creative thinking skills. Contents: Introduction Chapter 1: Research and Theory Chapter 2: Prereading Chapter 3: Reading Twice and Annotating Chapter 4: Generating Questions and Reading Analytically Chapter 5: Discussing as a Class or Analyzing Individually, and Using Processing Activities Chapter 6: Planning and Assessing Close Reading Epilogue Appendix A: Answers to Comprehension Questions Appendix B: Extended Examples of Close Reading

This practical K–12 teacher resource explains the "whats," "whys," and "how-tos" of using Questioning the Author (QtA), a powerful approach for enhancing reading comprehension and engagement. Thorough yet concise, the book shows how to plan lessons using both narrative and expository texts, formulate open-ended Queries, and guide class discussions around them. The authors discuss how QtA has evolved over many years of classroom application and include innovative ideas for integrating vocabulary instruction and writing prompts into QtA lessons. Also provided are steps for gradually transitioning from teacher-led instruction to independent reading. The book features extended examples of teachers implementing QtA, as well as four complete texts that can be downloaded and printed for classroom use.

The Common Core State Standards encourage teachers to use close reading as a means to help students access complex text. Many literacy experts believe close reading has the power to create strong, independent readers. But what does that really mean, and how does it work in the classroom?This book is your must-have guide to getting started! It provides step-by-step strategies and scaffolds for teaching close reading and improving students’ comprehension of complex texts. You will learn how to teach close reading based on text type, how to transition students through increasingly challenging texts, and how to use close reading as a springboard for close writes and close talks. Special Features: • An easy-to-use framework for creating a close reading lesson • Close reading strategies for a variety of literary and informational subgenres • Ideas for teaching close reading to meet specific comprehension objectives based on the Common Core, including analyzing text structure and evaluating argument • Suggestions for helping students read with increased levels of rigor • A clear explanation of what text complexity really means and how it varies by student • Scaffolds to help students at all ability levels do a close reading • Guidelines and procedures for close talks—purposeful, focused discussions about text • Procedures for close writes that vary based on genre and student ability level In addition, each chapter includes study guide questions to help you apply the ideas in the book to your own classroom. With this practical book, you will have all the tools you need to make close reading a reality!