Developing Higher-Level Literacy in All Students: Building Reading, Reasoning, and Responding » (1st Edition)

Dr. Gunning has taught at every level and has been working with students for the past several years to develop their higher-level literacy skills. Dr. Gunning is the author of Creating Literacy Instruction for All Students (6^th ed.), Assessing and Correcting Reading and Writing Difficulties (3^rd ed.), and Building Literacy in the Content Area, all published by Allyn & Bacon and Basic Reading Skills (Continental Press) and Word Building (Phoenix Learning Resources).

Help your students develop higher-level literacy skills required by today’s demanding curriculum and high-stakes tests with Thomas Gunning!

Known for his practical, research-based approach, Dr. Gunning offers classroom teachers the tools to promote higher-level literacy in all students. In his new book, he presents assessment procedures in a step-by-step format to guide teachers in reading assessment and includes model lessons for all strategies and techniques.

Teachers rave about Thomas Gunning’s strategies to promote higher-level skills!

"I think this book would make an exceptional subject for an in-service workshop for all teachers of any school since the strategies can be applied at any grade level. I would enjoy participating or teaching a workshop of these ideas. The author seems to have created a knowledge base that is desperately needed in today’s educational environment…especially in the…world of high-stakes testing, merit pay, and low-performing schools."

-Sylvia Hoke, MacArthur Junior High School, AR

"I find the organization of the book logical, moving from an overview of specific issues, to assessment, to remedies and application. The writing style is personable and clear. The anecdotes and practical applications are, of course, the “good stuff,” and it is impossible to ever have enough of them."

-Polly Bill, Brandywine School District, DE

Take a look inside:

• Provides step-by-step lessons, examples, and practice materials for each higher-level literacy teaching strategy.

• Addresses the needs of struggling learners with examples of maximum scaffolding that is gradually reduced to help teachers instruct all students.

• Presents systematic specific instruction from easiest to complex and provides a comprehensive program for teaching students how to respond to higher-level constructed response questions.

• Aligns instruction with assessment of higher-level skills.

Chapter 1 Higher-Level Literacy Skills Needed in Today’s World and the World of the Future

Status of Higher-Level Thinking Proficiency

Tests Might Mask Abilities

Discussions with Students

Analysis of Literacy Programs

Analysis of Responses

Demands of Today’s Proficiency Tests

The Nature of Higher-Level Thinking Skills

Cognitive Dimensions of Reading

Locate and Recall

Integrate and Interpret

Critique and Evaluate

Other Strategies

Study Group Questions

Chapter 2 Assessing Higher-Level Skills Development

Diagnostic Conversations

Think-Alouds

Observation

Using Rubrics

Monitoring Progress

Study Group Questions

Chapter 3 General Approaches for Developing Higher-Level Literacy

Creating a Culture of Understanding

Developing Higher-Level Talk

Developing the Language of Thinking

Using Thinking and Language to Develop Self-Management Skills

The Role of Read-Alouds and Listening in Building Higher-level Skills

The Role of Graphic Organizers in Fostering Higher-level Literacy

Systematic Use of Graphic Organizers

Using a Coherent System of Graphic Organizers

Using Graphic Organizers to Foster Discussion and Writing

Intensive Teaching and Extensive Practice

Fostering Wide Reading

Maximizing the Benefit

Reading to Deepen Understanding

Building Background Knowledge

The Critical Role of Content Area Literacy

Importance of Academic Learning Time

Metacognition: Thinking about Thinking

Lessons from Experts

Differentiating Instruction

Matching Materials and Instruction with Achievement and Ability

Study Group Questions

Chapter 4 Using Strategies to Build Higher-Level Literacy Skills

Reflecting and Sharing

Approaches to Teaching Reading, Reasoning, and Responding Strategies

Taking a Deductive Approach

Taking an Inductive Approach

Need for Sustained Instruction

Study Group Questions

Chapter 5 Developing Specific Strategies and Skills

Locate and Recall (Forming a General Understanding)

Locating and Comprehending Details

Main Idea

Processing Main Ideas and Details

Determining Importance of Information

Asking Why

Themes

Summarizing

Study Group Questions

Chapter 6 Integrate and Interpret (Developing Interpretation)

Inferences

Using QAR

Using Writing to Develop Character Traits

Cloze

Making Inferences with It Says-I Say-And So

Inferring Word Meanings from Context

Learning New Words

Predicting

Using the DR-TA

Predict-O-Gram and Possible Sentences

Conclusions

Drawing Conclusions

Supporting Conclusions

Imaging

Comparing and Contrasting

Introducing Comparing

Making Connections

Text-to-Self Connections

Text-to-Text Connections

Text-to-World Connections

Making Varied Connections

Study Group Questions

Chapter 7 Making Judgments about Text

Critique and Evaluate

Critical/Evaluative Reading

Uses of Language

Biased Communication

Judging Sources

Detecting Assumptions

Using Evaluative Criteria

Teaching Students to Use Language with Care

Developing Aesthetic Judgment

Study Group Questions

Chapter 8 Integrating Higher-Level Literacy Strategies

Approaches That Integrate Multiple Strategies and Discussions

The Role of Questioning in Cooperative Learning

Introducing Question Generation

ReQuest

Reciprocal Teaching

Reading Seminar

Study Group Questions

Chapter 9 Using Talk to Build Higher-Level Literacy Skills

Accountable Talk

Accountability to the Learning Community

Accountability to Knowledge

Accountability to Rigorous Thinking

Discussion Approaches

Reading Seminar: Intensive Reading Instruction

Literature Discussion Groups

Fostering Higher-Level Discussions

Community Share

Debriefing

Writing

Demonstrating the Power of Discussion

The Role of Strategy Instruction

Using Discussions to Gain Insight into Cognitive Processes

Study Group Questions

Chapter 10 Using Writing to Improve Higher-Level Literacy Skills

Not All Writing Is Equal

Writing Requires Instruction

Minilesson

Guided Writing/Strategic Writing

Conferring

Determining Needs

Kinds of Conferences

Essential Writing Strategies

Writing-Intensive Reading Comprehension

Workshop Approach

Targeted Reading

Two-Handed Reading

Probable Passages

Dialogue Journals

Using Varied Writing Modes and Structures

Need for Extensive Writing

Use of a Common Rubric

Study Group Questions

Chapter 11 Preparing Students for High-Stakes Tests

Planned Program of Test Preparation

Building Cognitive Bridges

Students’ Performance on Higher-Level Tests

Questions on the Locate and Recall Level

Writing Text-Based Responses

Application

Teaching Activity

Including Sufficient Details, Reasons, or Examples

Justifying a Title (Main Idea)

Questions on the Integrate/Interpret Level

Explaining Why

Putting Pieces of Information Together

Providing Support

Questions about Character Traits

Teaching/Practice Passages

Connection Questions

Questions on the Critique/Evaluate Level

Analyzing Responses to Multiple-Choice Items

Providing Ongoing, Embedded Practice

Study Group Questions

Chapter 12 Developing a Whole School Program

Components of a Program for Developing High-Level Literacy

Staff Development

Building Ladders for the Short Kids

Helping Good Decoders Who Are Poor Comprehenders

Helping English Language Learners

Steps for Constructing a Higher-Level Literacy Program

Making an All-Out Effort

Study Group Questions

Appendix A: Reciprocal Teaching Lesson: Student Copy of Selection

Appendix B: Survey of Higher-Level Reading and Responding Skills

References

Index