Lesson Plan: Reading Comprehension
Grade Level
Grade 7
Duration
45 minutes
Objective
Students will enhance their reading comprehension skills by practicing strategies such as predicting, questioning, clarifying, and summarizing texts.
Materials Needed
- A selected short story or article (printed copies for each student)
- Interactive whiteboard or projector
- Markers and chart paper for group work
- Sticky notes
- Pencils
Standards Alignment
This lesson aligns with the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, particularly:
- CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.7.1: Analyze the interactions between individuals, events, and ideas in a text.
- CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.7.10: By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 6-8 text complexity band.
Introduction (10 minutes)
-
Engagement Phase
- Start the lesson with a brief discussion on the importance of reading comprehension. Ask students what they think comprehension means and why it is essential.
- Introduce the concept of "reading strategies" and list them on the board: predicting, questioning, clarifying, and summarizing.
-
Set the Objective
- Explain that the goal of today’s lesson is to practice these strategies while reading a selected text.
Direct Instruction (10 minutes)
-
Read Aloud
- Choose a paragraph from the selected text and read it aloud to the class, modeling how to use each of the reading strategies.
- While reading, pause to predict what might happen next and to ask questions about the content.
-
Discussion of Strategies
- Engage students in a discussion about their predictions and questions. Log their responses on the whiteboard.
Guided Practice (15 minutes)
-
Group Work
- Divide students into small groups and provide each group with a different section of the selected text. Each group will read their section and apply the four strategies:
- Predict: What do you think will happen next?
- Question: What questions do you have about your section?
- Clarify: Were there any parts you found confusing? How might you clarify them?
- Summarize: What is the main idea of your section?
-
Charting Responses
- Each group will use chart paper to record their findings and prepare to share with the class.
Independent Practice (5 minutes)
- Sticky Note Summary
- After groups share their findings, instruct each student to take a sticky note and write down one summary statement about the entire text.
- Have them post their sticky notes on a designated board as a summary visual.
Closure (5 minutes)
-
Review of Strategies
- Review the four reading strategies as a class. Discuss how utilizing these strategies can benefit their reading comprehension skills.
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Exit Ticket
- Ask students to write down one new strategy they plan to use when reading independently on an index card. Collect these as an exit ticket.
Assessment
- Observe students during group discussions and their ability to articulate their predictions, questions, clarifications, and summaries.
- Review sticky note summaries to assess understanding of the text as a whole.
Additional Notes
Consider providing a follow-up activity for homework, such as reading a different article and using the comprehension strategies independently.
{The image of a diverse group of students engaged in a collaborative discussion around a table, with one student writing on a chart paper and others looking at notes and sharing ideas.}
{The image of an interactive whiteboard displaying bullet points of reading strategies, with students gathered around it, pointing and discussing enthusiastically.}
{The image of a student looking thoughtful while writing on a sticky note, surrounded by peers in a classroom environment filled with colorful educational posters.}