The Reading Comprehension Blueprint

About the Author

Nancy Lewis Hennessy, M.Ed., Educational Consultant, The Consulting Network, Kitty Hawk, North Carolina

Ms. Hennessy is an experienced teacher, diagnostician, and administrator who currently works as a literacy consultant. Nancy has worked across grade levels K–12 with both general and special educators. While in public schools, she provided leadership in the development of innovative curriculum for students with special needs and a statewide revision of special education code, and she led a state-of-the-art professional development program for all teachers. She has also developed professional development offerings on reading instruction for the AIM Institute of Learning & Research and on dyslexia for the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.

Preface

“Learning is the Work.”—Fullan, 2011

I recognized early on that I did not possess the necessary knowledge base and skills to meet the needs of my students in general and then special education. This realization continued as I moved from teaching students to teaching their teachers. It prompted me to find answers and continue learning. It also led to a realization that change would be a constant in my professional life. This book is a result of that realization.

Dimensions of Skilled Reading

Connecting to Educators’ Critical Background Knowledge

“Skilled reading [is] the fluent execution and coordination of text comprehension and word recognition.” —Scarborough (2001, p. 98)

• What challenges do your students encounter as they read complex texts?
• In what ways are current initiatives in your setting supporting student and professional proficiency?
• What do you know about models of skilled reading?
• What is the connection between language and literacy?

The Nature of Reading Comprehension

THE BLUEPRINT INVENTORY OF READING COMPREHENSION KNOWLEDGE

The knowledge and skills you bring to the design and delivery of instruction matter. As a proficient reader, you consistently gain access to and connect what you know with information presented in print.

CONNECTING SKILLED READING TO THE CLASSROOM

Consider what students need to know to read various texts:

• Lily, an incoming ninth grader, had a summer reading assignment that included Animal Farm and related articles on the Russian Revolution.
• Will, a seventh-grade student, is reading the article, “The Founding of American Democracy.”
• Matt, a fifth grader, is wrestling with the novel, Tuck Everlasting.
• Kayla is reading about mummies in Grade 4.
• Jermaine, a third-grade student, is reading about activists such as Benjamin Banneker.
• Antonio is listening to The Velveteen Rabbit with his first-grade class.
• Maria, a kindergarten student, is listening as her teacher shares Frog Goes to Dinner.

1. The Blueprint for Reading Comprehension Instruction

Connecting the Blueprint to the Classroom

• The Challenge of Change
• The Blueprint
• Unpacking the Blueprint's Components
• Summary: An Instructional Framework

2. The Blueprint for Vocabulary

Vocabulary Defined

• Connections to Reading Comprehension
• Designing and Delivering Comprehensive Instruction
• Assessing Students' Vocabulary Knowledge

3. The Blueprint for Syntax and Sentence Comprehension

Syntax and Sentence Comprehension

• Connections to Reading Comprehension
• Designing and Delivering Comprehensive Instruction

4. The Blueprint for Background Knowledge

Connecting Background Knowledge to the Classroom

• A Perspective on Knowledge

5. The Blueprint for Levels of Understanding and Inference

Levels of Understanding

• Connections to Reading Comprehension
• Inference Defined

Appendix: Instructional Tools and Templates

• The Vocabulary-Attuned Educator
• Choosing Words: Fuzzy Problem Space
• Word Meaning Map: Noun
• Word Meaning Map: Adjective

6. References

Excerpts

Excerpts from DEAR BENJAMIN BANNEKER by Andrea Davis Pinkney, Text copyright © 1994 by Andrea Davis Pinkney.
Excerpt(s) from THE MIGHTY MISS MALONE by Christopher Paul Curtis, copyright © 2012 by Christopher Paul Curtis.

Educational Context

Educators are well aware of the increasing demands for student achievement reflected in policy, standards, and educational initiatives. Reading proficiency is a high priority.

Overall Results

• The average score for students in the nation in 2019 was lower than their average score in 2017.
• The percentage of students performing at or above the NAEP Proficient level was 34 percent in 2019.

The Reading Rope

In order to deepen understanding, consider the work of Hollis Scarborough, which illustrates the development of skilled reading through the strands of word recognition and language comprehension. Each strand contributes to overall reading proficiency.