Reading+

Graphic Organizers

Comprehension

Rachel ZegasJanuary 17, 2011

High School and Reading

• Problem 1: Being in high school does not mean one can read– Reading does not just mean

sounding out words!

• Problem 2: High school teachers are trained in content specific knowledge and not reading– This is compounded by intense

curricular demands

Traditional Reading Strategies

• Outline

• Highlight

Outlines vs. GOs

• Outlines– “…have linear

format that discourages learning relationships among concepts.”

• GOs– “…use a spatial

format to convey concept relations.”

(Robinson and Kiewra 1995)

Highlighting vs. GOs

• Highlighting– “…when students

do not actively think about what they are reading and they highlight material that is unimportant, little comprehension of the material occurs.”

• GOs– “…enable

students to organize data into segments or chunks that they can comprehend and manage.”

(Montoya and Kreiner 2010)(Gregory and Parry 2006)

This does not mean never highlight, but do

it correctly.

Why Do GOs Work?

• Both the right and left hemispheres of the brain are active

Why Do GOs Work?

• Try to memorize the string of numbers below - you will have 5 seconds

• What was the number?

• Was this easier?

201181217761945201 1812 1776 1945

Man is a chunker!

Categories of GOs

• Sequence

• Problem/Solution

• Compare/Contrast

• Description

• Cause/Effect

There are countless

types of GOs and numerous

ways to categorize them. You

need to decide what works

best for each assignment.

Please see “Graphically Organized Reading Notes” and Tradepost for samples.

Sequence

Date Event

1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue!

Description

Main Idea

WhoWhat

Where

WhenWhy

How

Cause/Effect

Cause

Effect/Cause

Effect/Cause

Effect/Cause

Effect

Problem/Solution

Problem

Steps Being Taken

Desired Solution

Problem

Solution

What

Why

AttemptedSolution1.

2.

Results

1.

2.

End Result

Compare/Contrast

Apples Oranges

Warm-Blooded Animals

Cold-Blooded Animals

Differences

Similarities

Differences

Picking the Right GO• Step 1: Read the text

• Step 2: Reread, note what you want students to recognize

• Step 3: Compare notes to GOs and select the best fit

• Step 4: Structure the GO to be specific to your text

• Step 5: Review GO with students

The Best Fit

• Biography - Time Line

• Vocabulary - Word Map/Web

• Maps - Main Ideas/Details (Quad)

• Graphs - Venn Diagram, Y Chart

• Historical Ref - Case and Effect

• Fiction - Fishbone, Story Map

• Newspaper Article - 5Ws Pyramid

Sample• “‘I Hate

School’ Extreme Edition” (The Wall Street Journal)

Sum It Up

• “Graphic organizers are effective tools for supporting thinking and learning in four major ways: (1) abstract information is represented in a concrete format, (2) relationships between facts and concepts are depicted, (3) new information is connected to previous knowledge, and (4) thoughts are organized for writing and for problem solving.”

(Ronis 2006)

Your Task

• You are going to select a reading that a GO will enhance

• Create a GO for the reading based on the information you want your students to learn

• At the end of the session everyone will come back and share what they have created