Online Extras :
Top-Level Structures - Prediction Skills
By Faye Bolton
Here are some tips to use when involving students in predicting by using their knowledge of top-level structures. Be sure to select texts where the author uses signal words that help readers identify how the information is organized. Your students will need background knowledge of words that signal each of the four top-level structures to complete this activity successfully.
To read Faye Bolton's related article Top-Level Structures click here
Predicting using signaling words
- Explain and model how thoughtful readers usually skim a text before reading to predict what it might be about and scan factual texts for words that signal top-level structures.
- Introduce a text with a topic familiar to your students, and model how to scan one or two paragraphs for words that signal the top-level structure. If available, encourage your students to refer to their charts of words that signal each structure.
- Make a note of the signaling words in the text and ask your students to predict the top-level structure.
- Then explain and model how you use your background knowledge of the topic to predict what the author will write about and how you integrate this with your knowledge of top-level structure to predict how the author's ideas might be organized.
For example, if the text was about animals and their shelters, if you identified signal words like, because, as a result and effect, that signal the top-level structure cause/effect, model how you predict the piece might be about how the different animal shelters are built or used, or why they are built as they are.
However, if you identified signal words like question, trouble, crisis and challenge that signal the top-level structure problem/solution, model how you predict the piece might be about the problems animals face in relation to their shelters because of pollution or changes made to their environment.
- Read the paragraph to your students and ask them to help you confirm or reject your prediction of the top-level structure in light of the facts the author presented.
- Remind your students that authors may not always use signal words to clearly signal a top-level structure, and if necessary model and explain how they can impose a top-level structure to organize the author's ideas, using previous suggestions.
- Repeat this process with other paragraphs in the text, and chat with your students about how using their knowledge of signal words and top-level structure helps them predict before and while they are reading, and how this helps them comprehend what they are reading.
To read Faye Bolton's related article Top-Level Structures click here
Faye Bolton is the author of several books and articles on literacy. She also recently co-authored two books with Diane Snowball.
March, 2007, Vol.37, No.6
