PAIRED TEXTFICTION AND NONFICTION

Mary WheatleyCLIP February 11, 2010

The Facts about Reading Aloud …The single most important activity for

building the knowledge required for eventual success is reading aloud to children.

-Anderson, R.C., Hiebert, E.H., Scott, J.A., & Wilkinson, I.A.G. (1985). Becoming a nation of readers: The report of the

Commission on Reading. Washington, DC: National Academy of Education, Commission on Education and Public

Policy.

Choosing What to Read Aloud

Most choose fiction books

Favorite classic fiction picture books are plentiful in classroom libraries and school library

Nonfiction Overlooked Studies have revealed the scarcity of

nonfiction reading and writing in primary schools

Children engaged in informational text on average of 3.6 minutes per day

-Reading Research Quarterly Nell Duke, Michigan State

It Takes TwoConnects the curriculum to books by pairing fiction and nonfiction books

Provides an authentic way of introducing content material

Boosts students’ understanding and enjoyment of reading

Why use paired texts:

1. To meet state standards and school curricular goals.2. Students become excited about what they are learning and retention is increased.3. Develop students' background knowledge and create more meaningful connections while reading4. Improve student reading comprehension5. Increase student vocabulary6. Improve critical thinking / higher order thinking skills7. Enhance student writing8. Meet two goals at once: expose students to high quality literature and present students content area informationList adapted from: Camp, D. (2006). Pairing fiction & nonfiction: Strategies to build comprehension in the content areas. New York City, NY: Scholastic.

Build Background It Takes Two: Teaching with Twin Texts of

Fact and Fiction

Break into 5 Strategy Groups (groups of 4) Venn Diagram K-W-L DR-TA/DL-TA Webbing Activating Prior Knowledge

Read and Respond All: Read pages 400 through 402,

through and including subheading Classroom Applications of Twin Texts

All: Read page 407 subheading Helping Students and Teachers Meet Challenges

Strategy group: Find your section within article and read

Strategy Group Response: Strategy Chart

In your strategy group summarize the following:

Definition of strategy General Procedures for Implementation Additional Comments

Applying the Strategies

Reading aloud Fiction and Nonfiction:

Little Penguin

Watch Me Grow

Strategy GroupBut will it work?

How could you apply your strategy forLittle Penguin

Watch Me Grow

Wiki of Ideas

Read aloud tips and resources Pairs of titles (grouped by subject) Nonfiction text instructional resources Teaching strategies for paired text

Paired Fiction and Nonfiction Texts Wiki

It Takes TwoClassroom Teacher & Librarian

Read twin texts in the classroom

Read twin texts in the library

Read twin texts in the classroom & library

Together we can make it happen!