Weekly FrameworkStep 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4 Step 5 Weekly
Read-Aloud Routinefor Building Vocabulary and Comprehension Skills in Kindergarten Through Third Grade
AcknowledgmentsRead-Aloud Routine for Building Vocabulary and Comprehension Skills was de-veloped with funding from the U.S. Office of Special Education Programs, grant H326M110003.
The Meadows Center for Preventing Educational RiskCollege of Education
The University of Texas at Austin
Development Team
Leticia Romero Grimaldo
Sharon Vaughn
Denise Knafelz
Design and Editing
Matthew Slater, Editor
Carlos Treviño, Graphic Designer
About This ToolSteps 1–5 of the routine take place in one 25- to 30-minute lesson for one pas-sage from a story. The weekly framework is an overview of what will take place over the course of reading the whole story. The routine focuses on language, vocabulary, and comprehension development.
Adapted from: Hickman, P., Pollard-Durodola, S., & Vaughn, S. (2004). Story-book reading: Improving vocabulary and comprehension for English-language learners. Reading Teacher, 57(8), 720–730.
Step 1: Select a Story and Vocabulary Words
Select a story.
• Usetextthatisonetotwogradelevelsabovestudents’independentreadinglevel.• Searchforastorythatisbothengagingandcontentrich.• Selectatextthatisculturallyrelevantandmeaningfultostudents.
Prepare.
• Thestorywillbereadover3to5days.Dividethestoryinto200-to250-wordchunks.Increasethesizeofthechunksasstudents’readingprogresses.
• Choosethreetofivevocabularywordsperchunkoftext.• Thinkofanonlinguisticrepresentation(e.g.,picture,gesture)ofeachwordtoshare
withstudents.• Createvocabularywordcardswithstudent-friendlydefinitionsandpictures.
Sample Vocabulary Card
BEFOREREADING
Sample Books
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HELPFULHINTSONWORDSELECTION• Focusonhigh-utilitywordsthatareusedacrosscontextsandcontentareas.Will
studentshearandseethewordsinmath,science,socialstudies,andextracurricularactivities?
• Usewordsthatmoststudentsdonotknow.• Usewordsthatwillhelpstudentsconnecttotheirownexperiences.
examineTo look at something carefully and thoroughly because you want to find out more about it
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Step 2: Introduce and Preview the Story
Preview and activate background knowledge.
• Showandreadthefrontandbackcoversofthestory.• Activatestudents’priorknowledgebymakingconnectionsbetweenwhatstudentsknow
andwhattheyneedtoknowtounderstandthestory.• Havestudentspredictwhatthestoryisaboutandbrieflydiscussconceptsrelatedto
thestorytopic.
Briefly introduce the new vocabulary words.
• Sayandshoweachwordandhavestudentsrepeatit.• Provideastudent-friendlydefinitionandnonlinguisticrepresentation(e.g.,picture,
gesture)ofeachword.• Askstudentstolistenforthevocabularywordswhileyouread.• Askstudentstogivea“thumbs-up”whentheyhearavocabularyword.• Makethewordsvisiblebydisplayingthemonapocketchart,vocabularywordwall,or
bulletinboard.
HELPFULHINTSONDEFINITIONS• Definitionsshoulduseeverydaylanguageandbeeasyforstudentstounderstand.• Resourcesforstudent-friendlydefinitionsincludetheLongmanDictionaryof
ContemporaryEnglish(www.ldoceonline.com)andMerriam-Webster’sLearnerDictionary(www.learnersdictionary.com).
Step 2 Step 3 Step 4 Step 5
BEFOREREADING 5–7minutes
Student Thumbs-Up SignalShowing the Front Cover
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Step 3: Read the Passage
Tell students to listen carefully while you read because they will have to answer questions.
Thistechniquesetsthepurposeforreadingandincreasesstudentengagement.
Read the passage WITHOUT STOPPING, focusing on intonation and enunciation to provide a good model for students.
Readingtheentirepassagewithoutinterruptionsallowsstudentstofocusonmeaning.
Guide students in discussing and retelling the passage.
• Askstudentstoturnandtalkwithaneighbortoretellwhathappenedinthepassage(focusonwho,what,when,andwhere).
• Encouragestudentstousethenewvocabularywordsduringtheretell.• Usethestudentresponsestowriteamainideastatementontheboard.• Askstudentsaninferentialquestionthatfocusesonsynthesizinginformationnot
directlypresentinthestory(e.g.,Howdoyouknow_______?Whatcluesledyoutobelieve________?).Askstudentstoexplaintheirthinkingandjustifytheiranswers.
Weekly FrameworkStep 3 Step 4 Step 5
DURINGREADING 7–8minutes
Turn and TalkReading the Passage
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Step 4: Reread the Passage
Read the passage a second time, focusing on vocabulary words.
• Reviewwordsandmeaningswithstudents.• Tellstudentstogiveyouasign(e.g.,thumbs-up,handonhead,fingeronnose)when
theyhearavocabularyword.• Stopateachvocabularywordandaskstudentstorepeatitandexplainwhatitmeans
intheirownwords.Havestudentsturnandtalktoexplainthewordtoapartner.• Guidestudentsincreatingsentencesthatusethevocabularyword.Havestudentsturn
andtalkaboutthesentenceswithapartner.• Usesentencestemsasscaffoldsifnecessary.• Continuereadingthepassageuntilallvocabularywordshavebeenidentifiedand
studentshavediscussedtheirmeaningsandcreatednewsentences.
Step 4 Step 5
DURINGREADING 7–8minutes
Sample Sentence Stems
examineI would like to examine _____________________
because ____________________.
expertA/An ______________________ is an expert at ___________________________.
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Step 5: Extend Language and ComprehensionExtend comprehension, focusing on deep processing of vocabulary knowledge.
• Havestudentsturnandtalktoaneighboraboutthestory,connectingittotheirownexperiences.Usepromptssuchas,“Talkaboutwhenyoufeltlikethemaincharacter.”
• Encouragestudentstousethevocabularywords.• Serveonlyasafacilitatorofthisconversation.• Extendcomprehensionbyhavingstudentswriteinareader’sresponsejournal.Use
promptssuchas,“Whatdoyouthinkwillhappennextinthestory?Writeapredictioninyourjournal.”
Summarize what students read and learned.
• Brieflyreviewthetitleandauthor,maineventsandideas,andnewvocabularywords.• Challengestudentstolistenforandusethenewvocabularywordsthroughouttheday.
EXTENDTHELESSONTHEFOLLOWINGDAY• Beginthefollowingdaybyreviewingwhatwasreadandlearnedthedaybefore.• Emphasizekeywordsandhavestudentssummarizethetextbystatingthemain
eventsandreviewingthemainideastatement.• Reviewthevocabularywordsandbrieflygiveastudent-friendlydefinitionofeach.• Askstudentswhethertheyusedorheardthewordsoutsideoftheclassroom.• Encouragestudentstocontinueusingthenewwords.
Step 5
AFTERREADING 5–7minutes
Students Discuss the Story Reviewing and Summarizing
Introduction Day• Introducethestory.• Introducethreetofivenewvocabularywordsfromtheday’spassage.• Readthepassage.• Havestudentsturnandtalktoaneighbortoretellwhatthepassageisabout(who,what,when,and
where).• Basedonstudentresponses,writeamainideastatementontheboardfortheday’spassage.• Reviewthenewvocabularywords.
• Rereadthepassage,stoppingateachvocabularywordtoreview,clarify,andcheckunderstanding.
Subsequent Days• Reviewcontentandvocabularywordsfromthepreviousday’sreading.• Introducetheday’spassage.• IntroducethreetofiveNEWvocabularywordsfromtheday’spassage.• Readthepassage.• Havestudentsturnandtalktoaneighbortoretellwhatthepassageisabout(who,what,when,and
where).• Basedonstudentresponses,writeamainideastatementontheboardfortheday’spassage.• Reviewthenewvocabularywords.
• Rereadthepassage,stoppingateachvocabularywordtoreview,clarify,andcheckunderstanding.
Wrap-Up Day• Choosefourorfivevocabularywordsfromthepreviousdays’lessonsthatwerechallengingfor
studentsordifficulttoremember.• Reviewthewords.• Iftimeallows,readtheentirestorytostudents.• Leadanactivitythatreinforcesthemeaningofthechosenvocabularywords,suchasactingoutthe
meaningofwordsthroughcharadesorusingprops.• Placevocabularywordsonawordwallandrevisittheirusethroughoutthedayandinfuturedays.• Reviewthepriordays’mainideastatements.Usethestatementstocreateasummaryoftheentire
story.• Extendlearningbyhavingstudentsusethevocabularywordstocreateanewstoryoranewending
forthestory.
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WEEKLYFRAMEWORK