Pre-reading strategies are learning exercises that help a reader to build background information, structure, and context of the book, before actually reading the book.
Research shows that how you approach a book is crucial for comprehension, decoding, and an overall successful reading experience. While some readers pick up anything and everything with little to no difficulty digesting the material, many readers could greatly benefit from implementing pre-reading strategies.
Good readers naturally implement pre-reading strategies. For young readers and even many adults, a little practice of these pre-reading strategies can go a long way to better reading comprehension.
3 Simple Pre-Reading Strategies
To make it easy to remember, we can call these strategies the 3 P’s: preview, purpose, and predictions.
1. Preview Your Text
Whether you are reading a magazine, a novel, or a poem, there is something very important about previewing what you are about to read. For children, this can be an exciting practice. Look at the title, author’s name, and front cover illustrations. Make connections, ask questions and point out anything that you find valuable for the child to know in these details. Beyond the cover, take time to peruse the text, looking at other illustrations, chapter titles, and anything else notable in the text.
Depending on the age of the child, you can tailor this task to meet their needs. For young children, illustrations are an easy way to engage them in what is to come. For older children, you can discuss genre, the structure of the text, and any important vocabulary. Regardless of the age of the child, asking questions that allow the child to make connections between themselves and what is being read is extremely powerful.
2. Evaluate Purpose
Children are famous for asking “Why do I need to know this?”…and rightfully so. Learning without the understanding of why and how the learning can be applied can lead to giving up when it gets difficult. Walking with your child through why they are reading a book is beneficial for them to understand the purpose.
With younger readers, it can be as simple as discussing if a lesson is being taught, or if it is simply for enjoyment. For older readers, you can discuss the three types of writing: argument, informative, and narrative. Simply put, these three types are writing to persuade, writing to explain, and writing to real or imagined experiences. Either way, determining the purpose of what you are reading is important for the reader to identify.
3. Make Predictions
Our mind engages in a unique way when making predictions. Making predictions requires you to bridge prior knowledge with the text and use higher-level thinking. Your brain continues to think ahead and revise once predictions are made.
For younger readers, making predictions can start with looking at a book cover and the illustrations. This is a great way to encourage forming opinions based on evidence, which is a life-long skill. For older readers, predict what will happen with a character, how the story will end, and what they will learn from the text. You can help the reader make general predictions or specific ones as they arise in the text.
How Do You Implement the 3 P’s?
There are many different pre-reading activities that can help you and your child preview, evaluate the purpose, and make predictions. Here are some effective ways.
Skimming:
As a child, skimming was frowned upon as a form of cheating because you were not fully reading the text word for word. The ironic thing is that while it was frowned upon to do this, skimming is a very useful pre-reading strategy that requires attention and focus. Skim for important information such as headings and any information that is highlighted or pulled out of the main text, as they are often keys to focus on.
Review Vocabulary:
Based on the reader’s vocabulary, determine which words may be unknown or difficult for the child. Explicitly teach these words and their meanings. Use the word in a sentence to show the word in context or if you have time, play a word game to learn new vocabulary.
KWHL Chart:
A KWHL or KWL chart is a simple chart that can be made by making a column for each letter. The “K” stands for what the child already knows about the subject. This could also include what they already know about the book itself or the author.
The “W” stands for what the child wants to know. Model asking a question about the book or text if the child is struggling to engage their curiosity.
Once you’ve gathered the information for the “K” and the “W” columns, it’s time to read the book or text.
The “H” and “L” columns are to be completed after the text has been read. The “L” stands for what they learned and the “H” stands for how they can learn more about what they’ve learned.
If you plan to do KWL orally, these stationary cards are great for remembering what each letter stands for. Additionally, this reusable and magnetic KWL chart is also a great option.
Consider Title and Author:
There is so much to learn about a text by taking a moment to study the title as well as doing a little research on the author. Make predictions on how the title plays into the purpose or meaning of the text. Looking into the author more helps to give a background on what they have already published as well as their style of writing.
Pre-teach Concepts:
Pre-teaching concepts help the reader to fully grasp the context of what is being read. This may look like highlighting a moral theme that can be found throughout the book. It may be explaining a particular culture or values that are held by characters in the book.
Be Flexible With Pre-Reading Strategies
There are so many different pre-reading strategies that you can implement. Each one can range in time, so consider how much time you have to cover pre-reading and reading the actual text. Consider the child and what they may need beforehand to best understand a text. Some children may need more intense pre-reading help and others may benefit from a simple, quick oral activity. Have fun exploring which exercises are most beneficial for your child and watching them excel in reading.
Reading Recommendations:
If you are needing some motivation to read aloud to your child, check out 7 Reasons to Read Aloud to Your Kids.
If you have a beginning reader and are not sure how to best support them, we got you! Check out one of our favorite reading programs that are extremely effective in building a confident and strong reader.
