Teacher's Book Cornprehension Reading Co pre e sion Teacher's Book 1-2 Louis Fidge ACMll lA N FOUNDATIO S Kil lS Contents Page Introduction Teacher's Book Teacher's Book Skills, scope and sequence chart Teaching notes and answ ers 10 High frequency words check-up 19 Comprehension tests 21 Answers to comprehension t ests 27 Skills, scope and sequence chart 30 Teaching notes and answers 32 Comprehension tests 42 Answers to comprehension test s 48 Introduction Evaluat ing What is Rea ing Comprehension? Here, t he reader is required to evaluate a text, by comparing the ideas presented in the text with external criteria (such as other sources of information), or internal criteria (such as drawing on his or her own experiences, know ledge or values) Q ualit ies of accuracy, acceptability, desirabilit y etc are involved when using evaluative comprehension Comprehension is an active process It involves the reader making meaning f rom: • the visual information on the page (the print, th e punctuation and the pictures); • th e non-visual informat ion (such as backgro und know ledge based on past experiences with language and the world) S Appreciating Comprehension involves a range of skills, movi ng from the easy to the difficult in terms of the demands they place on the reader Five categories may be identified In order of difficulty, these are: This involves the subjective response of the impact of the text on th e reader It requires an emotional response to th e content, characters or incidents, or to the author's use of language or imagery Literal comprehension These five categories may be summarised as: • reading the lines (using literal com prehension); • reading between the li nes (reorganising and inferring); • reading beyond the li nes (evaluating and appreciating) This focuses on ideas and information explicitly stated in the text itself The tasks may involve recognising or recalling details from the actual text Reorganising At this level, children are expected to analyse and/or reorganise ideas or information explicitly stated in th e text For example, tasks may involve classify ing, outlining or summarising This series was developed with th e above developmental framework of comprehension skills in mind Througho ut the series, the activities encourage children to use the whole range of compre hension skills Inferring This requires children to use explicitly stated information or ideas, along with int uit ion and personal experience, as a basis for making inferences The child is required to use thinking and imagination that go beyond the printed page Teach ing features of Boo Related activity for individu al children to complete Unit number and title ~ T-shirts Wha t is yo ur favourite co lour? What are the colours o f the rainbow? red 0 0 blue yellow green a red T-shirt I!:\ 1J a blue T-shirt a yellow T-S [ rt ? _h _ , ia blue T-shirt a green T-shirt Key vocabulary in bold typ e : 'V a yellow T-shirt ~ a rainbow T-shirt I ~ i a red TOShOirt I • I .- A I I . , ' a gree" T·shirt Match the r-sbtrts Text for reading and discussion with the class This may be completed at a ny appropriate time of the year ._ a block T-shirt Alphabet check-up (Book r pages 68-9 ) black Further practice activity for each unit (p ages 48-67) Match the wa,ds EJ i/ ~ High frequency wo rds check-up (Teacher's Book, pag es 19-20) This may be photocop ied and completed at any approp riate time of the year 48 Tackling the texts the text might continue (thus encouraging them to be actively involved in listening and reading); - to ask questions such as 'What did you th ink of that character's behaviour?' • The text may then be read through again as a class or by inviting different children to contrib ute as appropriate • Alternatively the children could be asked to read the text silently or read it aloud in pairs or in groups • At the re-reading stage unfamiliar words may be identified and tackled, encouraging children to use contextual cues to help them w ork out their meaning Key vocabulary words are printed in bold type t he first time they appear in a text and in the teaching notes Additional words are defined in the Teacher's Book, and can be explained to pupils if necessary Before reading the text There are many useful activities which may be undertaken before the text is read Here are just a few : • On the basis of the title, pictures, ty pe of language used etc encourage children to predict what sort of text it is going to be e.g story, information, play, poem, and what might happen • Analyse the way the text is organised What helpful headings does it have? How is it set out and structured? Are there any diagrams or useful pictures? • Provide links with children's background know ledge and previous experience What we already know about the subject? • Stimulate questions What we hope we may fi nd out about the subject from the text? Reading the text After reading the text - tackling the related activities One of the most productive ways to tackle the stimulus text is to use it for shared reading with the class as a whole or with a group How this is done obviously depends very much on the type of text , the teacher's aims and the level of reading ability of the class • One way is for the teacher to read the whole text to the class straight through without stopping to explain unfamiliar vocabulary, whilst the children follow it in their own books Reading the text to the class gives the children a general overview and enables them to gain the gist of the text It doesn't matter at this point whether they understand every word In any case, the understanding of many unfamiliar words will be helped by a greater understanding of the context of t he passage as a whole • During the reading the teacher could pause at certain places: - to ask children to recall details or to summarise the main ideas so far; - to ask children to predict how they think • After reading, the text should be discussed to ensure children have a good grasp of the literal meaning of the text and any vocabulary they may not have met before • Children could be asked to re-tell stories in t heir own words The main events could be mapped and sequenced on the board • The related Text Level activiti es (which encourage a wide range of responses at all the levels of comprehension) may initially be done verbally as a class to help children reflect on the texts, and then converted into written responses They could be tackled individually or in pairs, or even in small groups as appropriate from time to time to promote purposive discussion • The related activities at Text, Sentence and Word Level may be used systematically or selectively as desired (However they are used, it is suggested that prior to working any activity the pupils are helped to understand exactly what is required of thern.) Readi Compre ension Teacher's Book Word Level b u c i h n a b i z b s g n h I d I j r c g i x e q d j f x e Sentence Level The girl climbs the tree A frog hops g P f v You smell with your nose The lady likes to dance j P Word Level pop dog jog 11 not Follow the leader stop log hot shop fog 10 lot 12 got The text Bedtime This simple story, consisting of pictures and captions, contains predictable language It is based on the children's game 'Simon Says' which requires all the children to follow the actions of the leader In the pictures they all this until they get tired out and want to stop After reading the text to and with the class, you might w ish to play the game with the class The text In th is story told in pictures and words, various animals all get into the same bed until at last, when the elephant gets in, the bed breaks and they all fallout again Look at and discuss each picture as you read the story to and with the class After reading , discuss bedtimes with the class What time they go to bed? Are they ever allowed to stay up late? Key vocabulary point, touch, wave, dance, hop, stop band a group of people with musical inst ruments Key vocabulary The activities crash, broke Text Level: sentence completion requiring literal comprehension fell out fell from in the bed onto the floor The activities Sentence Level: punctuation using capital letters Text Level: questions requir ing literal comprehension and full stops Word Level: eve words with short medial o Sentence Level: reorder ing words to compose sensible sentences Answers: Word Level: cvc words w ith short medial e Text Level hand Answers: toes band nose shop stop Text Level the cat the lion the crocodile the hippo the elephant The bed broke and they all fell out 34 Sentence Level Answers: It was time for bed The bed broke The sun shines Dogs can bark Fish swim in water Text Level Four glass bottles, some water; some hen, ten, pen paints and a stick Put some water into the glass bottles Make the level of the water different in each bottle Make the water in each bottle a different colour Put some paint into each bottle Tap the glass bottles with the stick net, get, wet Sentence Level Word Level red, fed peg, beg, leg How to make a When is your birthday? Where you live? Who is your teacher? What number comes before five? Word Level glass xylophone pack - sack; neck - peck; rock - lock; duck - suck a sock b peck The text This simple instructional text explains to children how to make a xylophone from glass bottles It is set out in two sections: 'What you need' and 'What you do' The final section is sub-divided into four numbered steps each with a picture and a caption After reading and discussing the text together with the class, why not try making a glass xylophone by following and carrying out the instructions? c duck d neck Shadows Key vocabulary glass, bottle, stick The text xylophone a musical instrument you tap to make musical sounds musical instrument something you play to make music level height of water in the bottle tap a small sound note a musical sound This simple information text, consisting of pictures and captions, describes how a child's shadow changes according to the position of the sun After reading the text with the class, why not check out the length of children's shadows at different times during the day? The activities same, middle Text Level: questions focusing on the features comes up rises goes down sets and content of the text Key vocabulary Sentence Level: punctuation - capital letters and question marks Word Level: short words ending with -ck 35 The activities Sentence Level: choosing appropriate adjectives Text Level: questions requiring literal to complete sentences comprehension Word Level: cvc words with short medial i Sentence Level: demonstrating understanding of Answers: adjectives by making a drawn response Text Level Word Level: consonant digraph sh (open) Answers: Sentence Level Text Level green long straight yes It is long yes It is short yes yes Sentence Level Word Level (drawn response) him pit Word Level fish wish shop crash sheep rush shoe shell brush words with sh at the beginning: ship, shop, sheep, shoe, shell words with sh at the end: wish, crash, rush, brush blue wet fig bib lid The lion and the mouse The text This is a simplified version of a well-known Aesop fable It shows how size does not matter - even the small and insignificant have something to offer Before reading the story with the class, ask the children to suggest ways in which a small mouse might help a big lion Our family comes from round the world The text Key vocabulary This" lovely poem encourages children to think of everyone in the world as part of one large family Before reading it allow the children to talk about their families Discuss in what way the school can be considered as a large family Introduce the poem by explaining that the people of the world can also be thought of as one large family Read the poem to the class several times straight through, to allow them to get the gist of it Encourage them to join in the chorus and then to join in as and when they are able to net let go allow to escape got away escaped The activities Text Level: sentence completion, focusing on the two main characters Sentence Level: verbs - animal noises Word Level: cvc words with medial vowels a and u Key vocabulary round the world, straight, curled, skins The activities Text Level: questions requiring literal and appreciative comprehension 36 Answers: The dinosaur painted a picture The dinosaur went home Text Level One day a lion was sleeping The mouse woke the lion up The lion let the mouse go The mouse saw the lion in a net The mouse bit the net The lion got away Sentence Level song ladder hair ball spade Sentence Level squeaks moos croaks Word Level b tape e shape h wave Word Level mud put but quacks buzzes bug fun cut rug run 10 bun elate f game gave d make g gate j take Mrs Wilson's week The text A dinosaur came to school Before reading the story to and with the class, ask children to say the days of the week in order This humorous story tells how Mrs Wilson used a different form of transport each day of the week to get into town Use the pictures to help children understand any unfamiliar words The text Before reading the story to and w ith the class, ask children to volunteer what they know about dinosaurs What would it be like if a friendly dinosaur spent the day at your school? Ask the children for some suggestions and then read the story ' Key vocabulary (names of the days of the week) bike short form of bicycle have a rest sit quietly, no work Key vocabulary dinosaur, lunch, picture The activities The activities Text Level: sentence complet ion requiring literal comprehension Text Level: matching sentence beginnings with endings to re-tell the story Sentence Level: proper nouns (beginning each with a capital letter) Sentence Level: multiple choice sentence completion choosing the best noun Word Level: months of the year Answers: Word Level: a-e words (using the 'magic' or modifying e) Text Level on her bike on her horse in her balloon in her car in her helicopter on her skates Answers: Text Level The dinosaur sat on a chair The dinosaur read a book The dinosaur ate some lunch 37 Sentence Level Jill Goldilocks Mrs Wilson Hussein Sentence Level Snow White Mr West Sam Ali 10 M r Shah Word Level January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December ears birds tree cat sock Word Level b a a a bell fill call bull b pill b fall b full Our class trip My eyes can see The text The text This rhyme is about parts of our bodies and what they can Before reading it talk about parts of our bodies and what we use them for After reading the rhyme several times, encourage children to act it out or point to the various parts of their bodies as they are mentioned Before reading this recount of a school visit to a museum to and with the class, ask the children to talk about their experiences and memories of class trips Key vocabulary trip, museum, picnic, wind The activities Key vocabulary Text Level: true/false statements smell, bite , hug Sentence Level: opposites, using adjectives The, activities Word Level: consonant blends at the beginning Text Level: reading for meaning and correcting of words deliberate mistakes in sentences Sentence Level: pluralising regular nouns Answers: Word Level: short words ending with -II Text Level Answers: true false Text Level Sentence Level long/short hot/cold open/shut I can talk with my mouth lotcan hear with my ears " can walk with my feet I can smell with my nose I can bite with my teeth false false big/small wet/dry Word Level cr words: crop, crab fr words: from, frog, fr ill gr words: grab, grip , grass pr words: pram, prod, press tr words: trip, trap, trick 38 true true The gingerbread A tree boy The text The text This information text consists of statements about trees, accompanied by a labelled diagram, which w ill help children understand many of the 't ree-relat ed words ' used in the text This is a very simple re-telling of the trad itional story of the gingerbread boy wh ich has a clear, repetitive storyline and lots of predictab le language in it Before sharing the story w ith the class, ask if any of the children have read or been told the story before Key vocabulary Key vocabulary plant, trunk, branches, twigs, roots, insects, wood, fruit lady baked The activities gingerbread a kind of biscuit Text Level: sentence completion requiring literal comprehension The activities Sentence Level: using commas correctly in lists Text Level: sentence completion requiring literal comprehens ion Word Level: vowel digraphs ee and 00 Answers: Sentence Level: match ing sentence beginnings and endings Text Level trunk Branches twigs Leaves roots water Word Level: s + consonant blends at beginning of words Answers: Text Level lady man horse cow duck fox Sentence Level pink, red, blue and yellow cat, dog , mouse and rabbit apple , banana, pear and orange plate, cup, saucer and bowl Sentence Level The apple fell from the apple tree The cat is sleeping under the chair The man came down the ladder The girl put the money in her bag The boy put the hat on his head Word Level b sweet f smash j stick (open) Word Level b see c need d seed a root b cool c moon a need b root c keep c snake d sniff e smile g spill h spell i sting 39 Jack and the beanstalk Mark's mask The text The text This is a story about how Mark made a monster mask It explains what he did At the end when he wears his monster mask, he frightens his mother Before reading the story together, ask children to explain in their own words what a mask is and why people wear masks Key vocabulary This is a simple re-telling of the well-known traditional story Before reading the story to and with the class, ask children what they know about giants Have any of the children read the 'Jack and the Beanstalk' story? Ask them to tell the others about it and then compare their version with the one in the book mask, cardboard box, stuck, wool Key vocabulary cry shout top, castle, giant, gold The activities beanstalk bean plant chop down cut down Text Level: re-ordering sentences to tell the story in sequence The activities Sentence Level: demonstrating understanding of ordinal numbers by drawn responses Text Level: sentence completion requiring literal comprehension Word Level: o-e words (using the 'magic' or mod ifying e) Sentence Level: categorising nouns by selecting the odd one out in"each set Word Level: learning some high frequency words Answers: Text Level Mark got a cardboard box He cut out some eyes Then he painted the mask green Next he painted a mouth w ith sharp teeth After this Mark painted a nose Last of all he stuck some long wool on for hair Answers: Text Level some seeds a castle Jack hid to sleep ran away Sentence Level (drawn responses) Sentence Level bag sun Word Level ose words: rose, close ope words: hope, rope, slope oke words : woke, joke, smoke ole words: hole, pole, stole cup book Word Level b they c them d there e then a what b that a where b there a what b when c where d who 40 Here is the ostrich Gorillas The text The text Before reading th is informat ion text to and w ith the class, ask children to volunteer what they already know about go rillas This action rhyme describes features of various animals The pictures accompanying the text show how the se actions may be done by the children Read the poem to and w ith the class several times to ensure understanding After a few readings , you may w ish to encourage the children to join in with the words and actions Key vocabulary gorillas, apes, leaves, live, rainforests , stay together, groups, gentle, nests, ground apes anima ls such as gorillas, monkeys, chimpanzees Key vocabulary The activities nods, slithers along, flaps, crawls, web , peep Text Level: questions requiring literal comprehension hissing sound noise made by snakes wing a bird uses its Wings to fly Sentence Level: spacing words in sentences The activities Word Level: short words ending in -nd Text Level: questions requiring literal comprehension Answers : Sentence Level: subject/verb agreement using the verbs is/a re Text Level They are big apes They eat leaves They live in hot rainforests yes They make thei r nests from leaves Word Level: i-e words (using the 'magic ' or modifying e) Answers: Text Level the ostrich a bird the children Sentence Level It eats leaves It has thick skin It has a trunk An elephant has big ears t he long snake a spider Sentence Level are is is are Word Level and words: hand , grand, band, sand, stand end words: mend, blend, send, bend, lend a send b sand c bend d band e hand Word Level smile - crocodile; nine - fine; kite - white; dive - drive a ride b smile c kite d dr ive e nine 41 Book I_ Comprehension Test: _ Fiction _ _ _ _1 The day Ben went shopping Ben's mum asked Ben to go to the shop for her She gave him a bag She gave him a list of the things to get She wanted some bread, some eggs and some apples Ben went to the shop and got all three things On the way home Ben fell over He dropped the bag All the things fell out The eggs broke The apples rolled down a hill A car ran over the bread Poor Ben! © Copyright Ma cmillan Education Ltd 2002 42 Book Test:_ Fiction _ _ -.11 I Comprehension Name - - - - - Date - - - - - - Who asked Ben to go shopping? What did Ben's mum give him to put the shopping in? What three things did Ben's mum ask Ben to get? What did Ben on the way horne? What happened to the eggs? What happened to the bread? Marks: © Copyr ight Macmillan Education Ltd 2002 43 D out of Book I Comprehension Test: Non-fiction The elephant An elephant is a very large animal It eats leaves of trees and plants It has a thick, grey skin It has a long nose called a trunk An elephant uses its trunk for picking up things Its tail is very short An elephant has two big ears It also has two long teeth called tusks An elephant walks slowly © Copyright Macmillan Education Ltd 2002 44 I Book I Comprehension Name Test: Non-fiction - I Date - - - - - - Read each sentence Write if it is true or false An elephant is a smell animal An elephant eats leaves of trees An elephant has grey skin An elephant's nose is called a tusk An elephant has a long tail An elephant walks slowly Marks: © Copyright M acmillan Education Ltd 2002 45 D out of Book I Comprehension ' Test: Poetry Six little cats Six little cats were learning to dive, One jumped in the water, then there were five Five little cats were playing near a door, One ran outside, then there were four Four little cats were under a tree, One ran after a bird, then there were three Two little cats were playing in the sun, One ran after a butterfly, then there was one One little cat was looking for some fun, He went to get some milk, then there were none © Copyright Macmillan Education Ltd 2002 46 Book Comprehension Test: _ _ Poetry _ _ _ _1 I Name - Date Choose the correct word to fill in each gap Six little cats were learning to _ (dive, drive) little cats were playing near a door (Four, Five) Four little cats were under a - (sea, tree) little cats were sitting near a shoe (Two, Three) Two little cats were playing in the _ (shoe, sun) little cat was looking for some fun (One, Two) Marks: © Copyright Macmillan Education Ltd 2002 47 D out of Answers to Comprehension Fiction: The day Ben went shopping Ben's mum asked Ben to go to the shop Ben's mum gave him a bag to put the shopping in Ben's mum asked Ben to get some bread, some eggs and some apples Ben fell over The eggs broke A car ran over the bread Non-fiction: The elephant false false true false true true Poetry: Six little cats Six little cats were learning to dive Five little cats were playing near a door Four little cats were under a tree Three little cats were sitting near a shoe Two little cats were playing in the sun One little cat was looking for some fun © Copyright Macmillan Education Ltd 2002 48 .. .Reading Co pre e sion Teacher' s Book 1-2 Louis Fidge ACMll lA N FOUNDATIO S Kil lS Contents Page Introduction Teacher' s Book Teacher' s Book Skills, scope and sequence... five categories may be summarised as: • reading the lines (using literal com prehension); • reading between the li nes (reorganising and inferring); • reading beyond the li nes (evaluating and... and in the teaching notes Additional words are defined in the Teacher' s Book, and can be explained to pupils if necessary Before reading the text There are many useful activities which may be