Close Reading of Informational Texts: Assessment-Driven Instruction in Grades 3-8

Abstract

The role of close reading in the 21st century has become a necessary component of reading comprehension more than ever. Given the extraordinary amount of informational texts presented in print and digital formats that students encounter in today’s classrooms, the need for students to engage in critical reading to determine what a text says explicitly is essential for students to become critical consumers of information. In addition, the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) place further emphasis on the importance of teaching students to engage in “close, attentive reading” as critical text analysis relates to 80% of the Reading standards at each grade level (International Reading Association Common Core State Standards [CCSS] Committee, 2012). Sunday Cummins’ (2013) Close Reading of Informational Texts; Assessment- Driven Instruction in Grades 3-8 offers teachers a wealth of tools to teach close reading wrapped in one book. According to Cummins, close reading is the process of understanding how the words on a page fit together to support the author’s central ideas. Students examine the text’s structure, key vocabulary to build conceptual meaning, and connect to their own prior knowledge to use the information and ideas drawn from texts as the basis to grasp meaning.

“The Best Thing I Can Do for Readers Is Read!”: How One Teacher Conducts Interactive Multimodal Read‐Alouds Using Nonfiction Picture Books

“…4 January/February 2024 literacyworldwide.org was discussing, and the bodily movements of the children were responses connected to the books (Shimek, 2023). Many scholars that examine read-aloud practices of informational texts emphasize text structures and close readings (Cummins, 2013;Nelson, 2019). While Mrs. Burnette emphasized these aspects in her teaching, the responses from the children show that reading nonfiction requires readers to continually negotiate multiple modes of information over time and with the discourses and opinions of others (Yenika-Agbaw et al, 2018).…”