3rd Grade Reading Strategies

 

 

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Derives Meaning/ Extends Listening Skills

How to Teach Reading Lesson Plans: Derives meaning from text and extends meaning beyond the print.

1) Determines cause and effect
Find historical events depicted in art that can be used to describe the sequence in a series of events (e.g., western scenes of Frederic Remington, family scenes of Mary Cassatt, sea scenes of Winslow Homer, neighborhood scenes of Lawrence Jacobs).

2) Reads for more than one purpose
Have the students read a story silently or orally in small groups, the students will determine the author’s purpose (to inform, entertain, describe or persuade). The groups present their point of view with supporting evidence from the story to the class.
Demonstrate through movement or act out vocabulary words. Example: Yell for the word yell; creep for the word creep, etc.
Display the lyrics to a song, aria (a popular song from an opera), or chorus on a musical chart showing divided measures. The music may be in 4/4 time (four beats to a measure), double time (2 beats to a measure), or triple time (3 beats to a measure). Make sure the strong beat comes on the first beat of each measure. Recite the music while conducting the correct beats or accents. Students will practice conducting the song with the class.

3) Utilizes picture/context cues
Assist students to create background illustrations (backdrops) to illustrate a story. Assign each student or group of students a task for creating the background (e.g., drawing the sketch of the scene or objects in the backdrop, coordinating the color scheme, etc.).

4) Recognizes synonyms, antonyms, contractions and compound words
Have students read sentence from text containing a contraction. Write contraction on board. Ask for two (2) words that make up the contraction (e.g., I’m—I am). Elicit that the apostrophe replaces the letter missing. In groups of three (3), have students skim other parts of the story to find other contractions. Ask students to make a list and write the two (2) words from which each is formed. Differentiate between contractions and possessives. Have volunteers suggest other examples and use them in sentences. Have students call on classmates to identify the two (2) words that make up each contraction.
Guide students to make a flip book from contractions found in a story. Have students write contractions on front flap, then lift flap to write the two words that make up the contraction.
Have students make word-search puzzles. To begin, have students brainstorm a list of compound words from a selected poem, story, song, lyrics, etc. Talk about compound words and other words that are used together. Group students to make word-search puzzles with compound words from the selected material. Then have groups exchange and solve each other’s puzzles.
Demonstrate compound words. Example: Be a door. Be a knob. Be a doorknob.
Divide students into pairs and create movements to demonstrate antonyms.
Have students create a song using synonyms.
Have students create a song using antonyms.

5) Draws conclusions from reading
Have students create story map and character map from a reading selection. Present the events of the story, relationships of characters, and elements of story, etc.
Story Map Example: Problem caused by Villain Resolution…Conclusion
Character Map Example: Hero attributes, emotions, Why? What?, etc.

6) Recalls details
Guide students to make a puzzle using details from the book (story). Exchange the puzzle with other students to solve.
Have students read a book (story). Make a timeline or calendar to recall important events/details of the story.
Have students prepare a list of questions to determine whether others have read book carefully.
Have students read a book. Have students make a list of ten (10) important facts found in the book.
Have students make a diorama showing a main event from the book. Then, have students recall and retell details about the event.
Have students draw several illustrations that include story details to accompany the book. Then, student will retell the story to the class using pictures as aids.
Have students recall details from a story. Create drawings to illustrate the details of the story.
Read a story. Ask students to choose one event of the story and rewrite it from a first person perspective. Recall as many details as possible.

7) Makes and revises predictions
Have students use cues from story and personal experience about similar situations to predict what might happen. Ask students to list and explain predictions. Later, have them explain their reasoning. Finally, discuss whether or not they predicted the events that did occur. Have students write a predictions using details from the story.
Have students use cues from a story to create a drawing that illustrates their prediction of the story’s ending. After completing the drawings, students may share their illustrations and predictions. After the teacher reads the entire story, the students will compare their predictions to the actual ending.
Play or sing the beginning of a new song. Students will take turns predicting the outcome (or the next melody line) of the song.

7) Compares and contrasts
Use visual organizers to compare and contrast:
Examples:
T-Chart Venn Diagram Y-Chart
T Y
Evaluate by questioning. Can students discriminate the two more clearly? Can students use different criteria to make comparisons and contrasts? Can students identify and describe significant relationships?
Read a book that has been made into a movie (e.g., Charlotte’s Web). Use a Venn diagram to compare and contrast the movie and the book.
Divide students into groups to create different dance movements or musical compositions to interpret a poem or story ending. Each group will perform their creative interpretations. Groups will compare and contrast the endings, describing the qualities that they liked, disliked, etc.
Guide students to compare and contrast different story authors and illustrators. Describe things that are similar, and describe things that are different.
Guide students to analyze the use of contrast in the visual arts (e.g., foreground/ background, hard edge/soft edge, dark/light, etc.).
Guide students to learn musical terms that describe contrast. Refer to the Music Glossary of the Mississippi Fine Arts Framework or other music reference for assistance. Example: Demonstrate terms that describe varying or contrasting tempi, such as tempo allegro for fast, and tempo largo for slow, etc.

8) Uses title page, table of contents, index, and glossary as information sources
Pick a selected chapter title and create an activity to introduce that chapter before reading it (e.g., Chapter VI, The Rainforest Creatures). The students will collect pictures of rainforest creatures, listen to music that uses instruments of the rainforest, etc.

Extends listening skills

1) Follows directions
Have students listen to movement directions and physically execute them (e.g., take three steps right, three steps left, then jump in place four times, etc.). Music may be played to accompany the activity.

2) Listens to oral reading
Have students listen to a selection of poetry (e.g., The Creation, by James Weldon Johnson). Create visual interpretations of the poem. The poem should be read several times by the teacher, or by the students taking turns reading aloud. The students may discuss the imagery that comes to mind as they listen to the poem.
Select a poem to interpret through a performance. The poem may describe nature (e.g., thunder, lightning, rivers, flowers, etc.), or a place or time. Students may use dance, music, or drama to interpret the poetry.