Techniques for Mastering Reading Comprehension

By Charlotte Watson

Charlotte Watson is a qualified teacher, author and consultant with over 20 years of school experience. She now runs her own award-winning tuition service (Wonderlearn) to provide engaging and successful English courses to prepare students for the 11+ and GCSE exams.

I remember learning to speak, read and write French. At first, it was the most exciting and wondrous experience – one that opened doors to a whole new world of information and opportunity. However, as I climbed the ladder of difficulty, it soon became a very stressful and scary experience. Suddenly, I didn’t know what all the words meant, and I couldn’t maintain the thread of the subject that I was trying to decode.

That is how reading comprehension can feel to some children: even if they can decode the words through their knowledge of phonics and sight vocabulary, they don’t necessarily understand what they are reading, let alone answer complex questions about the text.

Start With What You Know

The golden rule I always follow when I’m teaching comprehension is to start with what you know. Underline key words and phrases that seem to link the text together. Make notes at the side of the text about the main ideas – what is happening and what is being described. Don’t fret about new vocabulary – you can revisit this once you’ve read the whole text and use the context of the sentence it appears in to decipher its meaning.

Looking for Evidence

Tell your child they are like detectives looking for clues from the text to answer each question. This may sound obvious, but many children treat comprehension almost like a memory test – they do not go back to the text to find the answers. My students are encouraged to scan the text for information that relates to the question – can they find synonyms or alternative phrases for one of the answers provided in the original text? Can they find clues that match one of the answers? An example might be looking for bodily reactions like crying which might answer the question about how a character is feeling. Always reinforce to your child how important referring back to the text is.

Attempt Every Question

No matter how difficult a question might be, I always insist that my students attempt them all. I remind them that even if they get answers wrong, they will learn something from their mistakes, but you learn nothing from a blank answer. The important thing to do is to go over the incorrect answers with your child and ask them for the evidence that led to them choosing a certain answer. You can then start with that evidence to work out why that might not be the correct information. You can then look together for the correct clues in the text. They will be less likely to make the same mistake in the future if there has been a thorough review of their mistakes. It also helps them to view mistakes as a learning opportunity rather than an indication of failure.

Enjoy!

Don’t forget to enjoy the text on its own. Ask your child after reading the comprehension text what they enjoyed about it, what they learnt from it and whether they would read the whole book that the comprehension came from. You could also write down new vocabulary and figurative language to use in their own writing. Definitely approach the experience with a positive attitude!

For more information about Charlotte's services, check out https://wonderlearn.co.uk/