1. The process of comprehending
Lorraine Madden
K-5 Literacy coach

2. Lorraine Madden Literacy Coordinator, K-5 Cranford Public Schools

3. What’s essential for Literacy learning
Cognitive Strategies:
Six processes people use to read, write, speak, and listen effectively

4. Deep Structure Surface Structure Semantic Graphophonic Cognitive
Strategies
Schematic
Lexical
Syntactic
Pragmatic

5. Structure systems Surface Structure Systems Deep Structure Systems
Set of skills that help readers/writers identify words and read fluently
Deep Structure Systems
Set of skills and strategies that help readers/writers comprehend literally to grasp plot, comprehend deeply to probe ideas, and extend and apply their understanding

6. Reading Practices Read Aloud Notebooks Turn and Talk Book Clubs
Partnerships
Jots
Conferring
Notebooks
Book Clubs
Mentor Texts
Notice and Name
Small Groups

7. Graphophonic system Letter/Sound Knowledge Alphabetic Principle
Phonemic Awareness
Decoding

8. Lexical System Visual word recognition
Based on frequent visual exposure to words
Visual memory for all words

9. Syntactic system
Understanding (usually auditory) and use of language structures at the word, sentence, paragraph, and whole-text levels

10. Semantic system Understanding word meanings from literal to subtle
Discussing or writing about associations related to words
Precision and word choice in writing

11. Organize these words in a meaningful way
Ecstatic
Melancholy
Discouraged
Satisfied
Elated
Delighted
Somber
Depressed
Content
Jubilant

12. Schematic system
Constructing meaning at the whole-text level (can be literal or inferential understanding of themes, ideas, and concepts)
Storing and retrieving relevant knowledge
Connecting the new to the known

13. Youtube: french Roast Animated Short film

14. Pragmatic system Multiple experiences with ideas we’ve read or learned
Sharing and applying meaning
Constructing meaning (through oral, written, artistic, dramatic means)

15. Pragmatic system continued
Writing for specific audiences and purposes
Revising thinking based on interactions with others
Adopting the habits and mores of readers and writers

16. Read the following and take stock in what is going through your mind
Cupcakes Brownies Boy scouts Alligator Vodka Crayon Baseball Pies Meatloaf
Kahlua Guitar Belt Soccer Stew Hand Bread Hairbrush Scotch

17. Food. Music. Memory.
She says: Cupcakes. Brownies. Pies. She says:
Remember this. Bread. Stew. Sauce. She says:
All that time. She says: Singing. All I taught
you. She says: Crayons, Alligator. Boy Scouts.
She says: Baseball. Soccer. Track. She says:
I was there. Remember?

18. I say: Shouting. Silence. Shouting. I say:
Remember this: Scotch. Vodka. Kahlua. I say:
Cupcake. Meatloaf. Sauce. I say: Singing. All
you would not tell me. I say: Crayon. Dancing.
Guitar. I say: Belt, Hairbrush. Hand. I say:
I was there. Remember?
By Susan Marie Scavo (1999)
From What Reader’s Really Do: Teaching the Process of Meaning Making,
by Dorothy Barnhouse and Vicki Vinton (2012)

19. Takeaways:
Make Thinking Visible
Reading is Making Meaning
Talk, Talk, Talk

20. Comprehension strategies
Monitoring Meaning
Using Relevant Prior Knowledge, or Schema
Asking Questions
Inferring
Evoking Sensory and Emotional Images
Determining Importance
Synthesizing

21. Resources:
To Understand: New Horizons in Reading Comprehension By Ellin Oliver Keene What Reader’s Really Do: Teaching the Process of Meaning Making By Dorothy Barnhouse and Vicki Vinton