Licenciado

Teaching Strategies
The Cornerstones Lesson Guide suggests instructional practices that will help
students benefit the most from a Cornerstones teaching unit. This supplement
explains the terms used in the Guide.

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Read Aloud/Think Aloud: Make Your Thinking Visible
Comprehension Questions
Shared Reading and Guided Reading
Story Grammar
Writing
Build WordKnowledge
Teach Words Conceptually
Classroom Visual Aids

The Cornerstones Lesson Guide recommends daily reading aloud, shared and/or
guided reading, and independent reading. The purpose of read-aloud is to foster
enjoyment of a story and comprehension on several levels. Shared reading and
guided reading are ways that the teacher can give students practice and feedback as
they learn decoding andcomprehension strategies. At the other end of the reading
continuum, students apply all that they know about reading when they read
independently. The ideal combination of these approaches depends on the difficulty
of the reading material and the reading skills of the students.

Read Aloud/Think Aloud: Make Your Thinking Visible
When you read aloud or present a video of the story, stop tomodel comprehension
strategies for your students. Let them see what effective readers do inside their
heads. For example, when the fox says, "Look at that beautiful bird!" you may be
thinking, Who is the fox talking to? Is the crow beautiful? Why would the fox say
that? Does the crow believe it? Would you? etc. These questions show the students
how you reflect on the story, words, pictures, orlanguage. They show how you
begin to make predictions about what will happen next.
When reading to young children, you may want to do such a think-aloud strategy
during each reading. Each time choose a different section to open up for
discussion, following the same order that concepts are presented in the Lesson
Guide. It is best to think aloud during reading (rather than when you havefinished
reading) at the actual point in the story that raises questions in your head.

Comprehension Questions
Implicit in the think-aloud process is the use of questions. Ask the children openended questions that start with Why and How, as well as Who, What, Where, and
Did/Do/Does. Encourage the children to ask their own questions, using a variety
of question forms.
There are three broad typesof questions, and students should be exposed to all
types:

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1) The answer is explicit in the text. You ask, "What did the crow have in her
beak?" The text says, "The crow had a piece of cheese in her beak."
2) The answer is implicit in the text and requires critical thinking. You ask, "Why
did the crow drop the cheese?" The children need to think about what happened
just before shedropped the cheese and what caused her to open her mouth.
3) The answer is not in the text but is in our experience. You ask, "How did the
crow feel about losing her cheese?" The word "unfortunately" provides a clue. Also,
maybe the children have lost something or had to give something up because they
were tricked. They can remember how they felt or imagine how they would feel in
such asituation.

Shared Reading and Guided Reading
You are aware of what the students know and you can use this information as you
read aloud. In shared reading, you invite them to apply their skills, setting them up
for success. Stop at particular points in the text and ask someone to help you read.
Emphasis here is on the print so point to what you are reading. Stop reading and
encourage children toread independently where you know they can be successful.
Also, encourage students to volunteer to participate in the reading. When students
come to a word they know, they can say or sign it aloud. Then you pick up with
reading aloud until you come to another section of text which the students or one
student can read independently.
In guided reading, the student takes the lead, reading as...