Guided Highlighted Reading Strategy

What is it?

From: Guided Highlighted ReadingA Close-Reading Strategy For Navigating Complex Text Weber, Nelson, Schofield

“The Reading Between The Lines report helps us identify the definition of complex texts. It noted six aspects that contribute to increasing complexity within texts: relationships, richness, structure, style, vocabulary, and purpose (RSVP). Guided Highlighted Reading addresses each aspect of the complex text definition.

The importance of these aspects of complexity cannot be overstated or overemphasized, and every teacher should become familiar with them. The ACT report states that students who correctly answer questions based on complex texts can score potentially as many as 10 points higher on average than scores associated with correctly answering questions based on uncomplicated texts.

The report concludes, “…performance on complex texts is the clearest differentiator in reading between students who are likely to be ready for college and those who are not. And this is true for all genders, all racial/ethnic groups, and all family income levels.”

This research has implications for classroom teachers as they prepare all students for today’s complex world. Supporting students in the reading of complex texts can level the playing field; students have the potential to transcend socially constructed barriers.”

Guided Highlighted ReadingWeber, Nelson, Schofield

Reading Between The Lines ACT Report and Guided Highlighted Reading

Guided Highlighted Reading for three purposes

Vocabulary

Summary

Craft

3

4

GHR and the ACT’s Six Elements of Complex Text

Studentswork alone

to determine the correct

information.

Students work with partners to determine what is

important to the particular task: vocabulary,summary,

craft or multiple-choice questions.

Tell the students how many prompted responses in the entire passage and then

they determine what they think would have been prompted. When they are finished, read the prompts and have

them check their responses. Discuss the differences.

Tell the students how many prompted responses are in each paragraph or line and have them underline what

they think will be prompted and then read the prompts. Go through the passage line by line or

paragraph by paragraph.

Read students the prompts, have them highlight their responses, then show them the correct responses using a power point or elmo

or checking with peers. You might focus on all three elements or one at a time remembering that the intention is to read and respond to

complex text.

Scaffold for Guided Highlighted ReadingGuided Highlighted Reading / A Close-Reading Strategy For Navigating Complex TextWeber, Nelson, Schofield

1. Select text2. Determine purpose3. Number the paragraphs or lines4. Write prompts5. Ensure highlighters are available

(one or more than one color)

Checklist for GHR (Guided Highlighted Reading)

Selecting the textWhere: The text can be from multiple sources including the textbook/s you are using, supplementary materials, common core exemplars, newspapers, magazines or whatever fits with how you want to use it.

How: Whatever text you select it ought to be something that is complex and challenging enough to engage your students. Remember that you are training your students to read and respond to complex text.

When: • Starting a unit, chapter, novel or project

Determine the Purpose

1.…for summary2.…for writer’s craft3.…for vocabulary

In some schools, the same copy of the text will be used to explore all three purposes; in that case, students can use different colored highlighters for each purpose or they can combine underlining and circling text with highlighting for each successive purpose.

Number the paragraphs or linesNumbering paragraphs:

1.Tolerance is the word used most often when this kind of coexistence succeeds, but tolerance is a vanilla-pudding word, standing for little more than the allowance of letting others live unremarked and unmolested. 2. Pride seems excessive, given the American willingness to endlessly complain about them, them being whoever is new, different, unknown or currently under suspicion. 3. But patriotism is partly taking pride in this unlikely ability to throw all of us together in a country that across its length and breadth is as different as a dozen countries, and still be able to call it by one name.

Numbering lines:

1. The Inventory categorizes plants as High, Moderate, or Limited, reflecting the level of each

2. species negative ecological impact in California. Other factors, such as economic impact or

3. difficulty of management, are not included in this assessment. It is important to note that even

4. Limited species are invasive and should be of concern to land managers. Although the impact

Writing the prompts:…for vocabulary

If you only have a few potentially troublesome words, they can be included in summary or craft prompts. Tier II academic vocabulary words in a passage are rarely defined in context and thus need to be addressed before the student can do the close reading. In this case you can identify the words, find content-appropriate synonyms or short definitions, and build prompts. For example:

In paragraph #1, find and the highlight the word that means __________________orIn paragraph #3, find and highlight the word that fits the definition of ___________________

When students read to respond to mutiple-choice questions, analyze the questions to determine how you can prompt students to find the answers in the text. For example:

In paragraph #1, find and highlight another name for _____orIn paragraph #2, find and highlight the topic of the paragraph.

Writing the prompts…for summary

If you are reading for summary, you might want to write a short summary first to help you frame the prompts easily. Determine what essential points should appear in the summary, and write prompts to guide students to highlight the critical elements. Prompts for summary may look like the following:

In paragraph #3, find and highlight the effects of a tornado.orIn paragraph #1, find and highlight the thesis statement.orIn paragraph #2, find and highlight a concept that supports the author’s argument.

When students have completed their highlighting and had a chance to discuss their findings, then they write a summary.

Writing the prompts:

…for writer’s/author’s craft

If the student will be reading for author’s/writer’s craft, you will first analyze the text for elements of craft such as genre, organization, text features, point of view, mood, tone, figures of speech, and writing techniques like word choice. “How does the author say it?” For example, craft prompts might include:

In paragraph #1, find and highlight the question the author uses to pull his reader into the essay.orIn paragraph three, find and highlight the metaphororIn paragraph two, find and highlight the signal word that suggests a cause-and-effect structure.

Introducing and Discussing the Text

1. Students will need to have a copy of the text either a paper copy or a computer document.

2. Students will need to have a highlighter pen, or know how to use the computer highlighter.

3. If the text is part of an existing unit or chapter, and background has been established, have the students do a fly-over of the text, skimming for length of text, text features, topic of text, etc.

4. If the text is new to students, supply the necessary background knowledge.

5. When you read the prompts, students are encouraged to reread the text. At first you will read the prompts fairly slowly; after multiple practices, you’ll pick up the pace to build reading fluency and prepare students for multiple-choice assessments.

6. You can discuss the responses with students as a class, asking students to discuss them in small groups, or just provide the desired responses, depending on the time available.

Writing the summary

Your prompts should enable students to…

• Restate in their own words what the text says explicitly

• Make logical inferences

• Cite specific textual evidence to support conclusions drawn from the text

• Determine central ideas

• Summarize the key supporting details and ideas

Multiple-Choice Questions• GHR is also focused on assisting students in responding to questions about that text.

• Your questions should reflect the depth of thinking that students are capable of achieving.