It Doesn't Make Sense

For third graders who need practice with comprehension.

Children often are reluctant to admit they don't understand something they are reading. Sometimes, they are not even aware they don't understand. Children need to be taught how to monitor their comprehension by asking questions, summarizing, or rereading parts of a text that just don't seem to make any sense. Using these techniques when you read to children lets them know than even good readers make sure they understand what they read.

"I need to stop for a minute. I didn't understand that last sentence in the story. I think I was trying to look at the picture as I read. I had better reread it to make sure I understand."

"Let me think for a minute about what has happened this far in the story. I want to make sure I know what is going on. One way to do that is to think of the characters and what has happened to them up until now."

Encourage children to stop reading after every couple of pages and see if they can tell you the main events or the main facts of the text. If they feel they don't know, ask them to reread those pages, looking for information that will help them summarize.

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Copyright © 2005 by the National Center for Family Literacy. Produced by the National Center for Family Literacy (NCFL) (325 W. Main Street, Suite 300, Louisville, Kentucky 40202-4237).