In his book What Really Matters for Struggling Readers*, a famous professor of reading describes six strategies that improve reading comprehension performance in schools. Although most teachers primarily rely on simple recall, these are the most effective comprehension strategies for students who need help understanding what they read, according to Professor Richard Allington.
1. Activating prior knowledge—It is important that students ingrain the habit of thinking about what they already know about a subject so they can relate that to what they will be reading. For a more detailed analysis of this strategy, see my previous post:
How Important is Prior Knowledge, Really?
2. Summarizing—Students need to have specific lessons in how to select the most important points in the text, and they need to be able to retell them in correct time order. For unique and fun lessons in sequencing, see Reading Spotlight’s
Charlotte’s Web Story Sequencing Cards
The Trumpet of the Swan Sequencing Events
(Teachers can easily develop this effective and enjoyable system for any novel.)
3. Story Grammar Lessons—What is considered adequate is a recitation of the key elements of the setting, characters, plot (problem-solution). This involves more than simple recall; students must be able to make inferences about character traits and sort out important and unimportant parts of the plot. My lesson in adjectives and character traits is great for encouraging class cooperation; it is not only for Valentine’s Day.
Adjectives & Valentines: Little Love Letters
4. Imagery—This involves fostering internal visual images of the setting, characters, and events. For a fun way of fostering visualization, check out this previous post:
A second part of this strategy involves helping students develop a mnemonic image of a character or setting to help them remember.
5. Question generating—Students have to be taught how to develop questions that their teacher might ask and how to initiate author-purpose questions.
6. Thinking aloud—A key part of this technique seems to be to promote an internal dialogue to make connections to other texts read and other experiences. For a simple explanation of this strategy, see my previous post:
This is a quick summary of the most important factors in helping struggling comprehenders from a well-known thinker 0f reading strategies. I have believed in their effectiveness throughout my career as a reading specialist, as you can see from the free posts and inexpensive resources I have developed over the years.
*Allington, Richard L. “Chapter: Students Need to Develop Thoughtful Literacy.” What Really Matters for Struggling Readers, Third Edition. Pearson Publishers, 2012, p.136.
© Reading Spotlight 2025
Here are some other interesting posts from my friends at TBOTEMC:
