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STRATEGIES

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Dancing Definitions

GLOSSARY OF COGNITIVE STRATEGIES FROM NUA

The mission of the National Urban Alliance is to help students build knowledge, develop concepts, refine reading and thinking abilities, and fully develop their capacities as learners. The strategies listed here are based on current research in cognitive psychology and the principles of learning. They are tools for accomplishing the mission.

Some of these strategies are primarily learning tools teachers use to guide students independent learning. Others are primarily teaching tools used by teachers when they are instructing. One type of tool is not better than another; they are simply used for different purposes. In this document, a (T) designates a teaching tool, and an (L) designates a learning tool. Those strategies that are marked with both (T) and (L) may be used for both purposes.

As a glossary, this document presents only brief descriptions and is best used for reviewing the basic features of the strategies. Readers may wish to consult the professional literature for additional information.

Anticipation Guide (T)
This teaching strategy promotes active involvement and enhances comprehension. The teacher prepares several declarative statements about the topic that being studied. Before reading, students discuss the statements in small groups or as a whole class, agreeing or disagreeing with them and supporting their views with reasons. Speculating and hypothesizing are encouraged at this point in the lesson. The teacher remains a neutral facilitator; encouraging debate and asking probing questions that require students to think carefully about their views. The discussion arouses students' curiosity and prepares them to assimilate the new information. After reading, students discuss the statements again, revising their responses in light of what they learned. Anticipation guides can be designed to create a mismatch between what the learner knows or believes and what is presented in the text, a situation that can lead students to think more critically about the information.

Concept Attainment Activities (T)
Students attain concepts by generalizing from specific examples. To help students do this; the teacher first presents examples and non-examples of the concept, identifying each item as an example or non-example. While presenting additional examples and non-examples, the teacher invites students to generate a tentative definition of the concept. As needed, the teacher reminds students to compare and contrast, look for patterns, and draw conclusions. Students are given plenty of time for the analytical and inductive thinking that is required. After the students have correctly identified the concept (with more or less teacher direction, as desired) the teacher then asks students to categorize new items as examples or non-examples. Finally, the teacher guides students in generating a definition of the concept based on the essential characteristics they have identified. Variations of this strategy exist. For example, the teacher might display the items in one column and include YES and NO columns for checks to indicate if the item is an example or a non-example. Pictures or other manipulatives may also be arranged in example and non-example piles for consideration. The game called "Tillie Williams" is yet another variation on the concept-attainment theme (see Tillie Williams).

Graphic Organizer/ Thinking Maps (T) (L)
This strategy involves arranging information in a graphic display so as to show key points and illuminate relationships in ways that enhance comprehension. A teacher can use graphic organizers to help students see how various facts and concepts are connected. Students can use them to display what they learned in ways that can be more memorable than traditional study notes or formal outlines. Graphic organizers can be used before instruction to organize prior knowledge and provide a conceptual framework for assimilating new information. During instruction, they can be used as bases for note taking. After instruction, they can be used to summarize, reconstruct, and synthesize information. The graphical form of the organizer is determined by the way the information is structured, e.g., sequences of events may be organized into time-lines while comparisons and contrasts may be displayed in Venn diagrams or a Double Bubble Map.

Highly Recurring Phonic Patterns (T) (L)
After students have quickly learned, through recitation, repetition, and oral and written practice activities, the names of the letters of the alphabet and the sounds of consonant letters, they are introduced to a set of 46 highly recurring phonic patterns. These sound symbol relationships are learned first through recitation (introduction of the sounds, letters and reference pictures by the teacher) and intensive practice of 3-5 new patterns every 2 days.

During and after students have engaged in intensive recitation practice of all sound symbol relationships (approximately two school months of intensive practice through direct teaching), teacher continually refers to the sound reference cards whenever she introduces a word that includes one or more of the highly recurring phonic patterns.

Students learn to use their knowledge of these patterns in decoding words in their readers and content area texts, in words that they see on the street "street Phonics" and in words that are grouped in lists by common phonic pattern.

Journals (L)|
A journal is a written record, maintained over time, that may contain information, observations, feelings, questions, reactions, or any other kind of commentary that the writer chooses to include. Some journals are like diaries, used for recording daily experiences; others are like learning logs, used to summarize and react to classroom learning experiences. A key feature of a journal is that teacher and students recognize the writing as first-draft work. The work does not need to be corrected or revised and is not judged for the clarity or completeness of its information or for the accuracy of spelling, punctuation, and other aspects of language usage. (See also Dialogue Journal, Double Entry Journal, Learning Log, and Reader Response Journal)

Key Word Strategy (T)
This strategy is used before reading to focus attention, activate prior knowledge, stimulate thinking, arouse curiosity, and set purposes for learning. From the text, the teacher selects several words or numbers that relate to the topic and that can be associated with one another in different ways. The teacher shows these to the students and asks them to speculate on how they’re related to the topic. Students form hypotheses, explain their reasoning, and justify their thinking, then read to confirm, refute, or revise their hypotheses.

List-Group-Label (T) (L)
This strategy is used to present vocabulary and concepts before reading so as to activate prior knowledge, stimulate thinking, and set purposes for learning. The students start with an array of words and work cooperatively to group (categorize) them and then label the categories. Students are thus using lesson-related words in the familiar context of their own experiences. This provides a foundation for encountering the words in the lesson, which is ordinarily a less familiar context. The teacher may prepare the list of words for students to work with, or the teacher may give students the topic, have them brainstorm words that they associate with the topic, and work with that list. In either case, groups are encouraged to discuss and compare their categories before reading (which will most likely be different from group to group) and then confirm or revise their thoughts after reading.

Lists of Words with Common Phonic Patterns (T)
Teachers and students compile lists of words that contain one or more of the highly recurring phonic elements.

For example: _er_ (larger, mother, nervous, personal, pitcher, shelter, several, superintendent, monster, permit, oyster, pattern, perhaps, serve etc).

Students and teacher begin and add to these lists as they identify words with common phonic patterns in the readers and content area texts, in their Street Phonics processes, and in the 1,000 Word List.

The teacher uses large easel chart paper to record and store the word lists for continual use by students as they refer to them to complete writing assignments, for spelling practice and for exercises that practice locating synonyms, antonyms, words with more than one of the highly recurring phonic elements, etc. Students are also asked to create stories using 10- 15 of the words from a particular list.

1,000 Most Common Words in English Written Material (T) (L)
There is great power in mastering the 1,000 most common words in English as the first 25 of these words make up about a third of all printed material and the first 100 make up about half of all printed material.

Using their knowledge of the Highly Recurring Phonic Patterns, students learn to decode these words through teacher lessons and continual practice. The teacher leads inquiry-based discussions and explanations of definitions of any of the words that are not understood by students.

Possible Sentences (T)
This pre-reading strategy introduces students to key concepts and vocabulary in a way that activates prior knowledge and primes students to comprehend the selection. First, the teacher prepares a list of words related to the topic or concept to be studied. Familiar and unfamiliar words may be included. The teacher presents the list of words, and explains that they all relate to the concept. Next, the teacher asks students to make sentences with the words that they think might be in a story about the topic. Each "possible sentence" may include one, two, or more of the words on the list. Students may work individually or in small groups to compose sentences. When everyone is finished, the teacher records some or all of the sentences on the board exactly as dictated by the students--whether or not the sentences contain accurate information. After students read the selection, they evaluate the accuracy of their initial sentences and revise as needed to reflect the way the words were actually used in the selection.

Prediction (T) (L)
Prediction, a powerful aid to comprehension, is an integral part of a number of teaching strategies on this list. What is loosely called "predicting" includes predicting outcomes or results, speculating, and hypothesizing, all of which require students to use what they know to draw tentative conclusions on the basis of limited information. After this initial thinking, students read (listen, view) to confirm or revise their first ideas in light of the new information. Prediction encourages students to take risks (by suggesting what may turn out to be an incorrect idea) while allowing multiple opinions and perspectives into the pre-reading discussion. Prediction channels the use of prior knowledge, stimulates curiosity, establishes a purpose for reading, promotes discussion, and increases comprehension of new content. When teachers elicit predictions from students regularly, many students begin to internalize the process of thinking ahead as they read and find that their attention and comprehension improve as a result. (See Anticipation Guide, DRTA, and Possible Sentences for some examples of strategies that use prediction.)

Read/Talk/Write (L)
This strategy encourages self-monitoring of comprehension, helps students focus their attention on what they are reading, and encourages them to use their own words when they are writing notes. Students work in pairs, taking turns as reader and listener. The steps are as follows: (1) READ. All students silently read the first one or two paragraphs of a given passage and then close their books. (2) TALK. Each student summarizes the ideas orally to a partner. The partner's responsibility is to listen attentively but not respond orally. (This ensures that one person will not take over the discussion and that each partner will have talk-time.) Students then switch roles as reader and responder and repeat step 2. (5) WRITE. Students write the information they have been reading and talking about. Using this strategy regularly helps students use their own words when they are writing about what they are reading rather than copying from the source material. When students are familiar with the strategy, they may use it when they are reading different materials as well as when they are reading the same selections. (D. Nessel)

Street Phonics (T) (L)
Using the Highly Recurring Phonic Patterns as a foundation, Street Phonics provides intensive practice in phonetic word analysis by encouraging students to use decoding skills when reading the hundreds of signs that they see daily in their neighborhood as they walk, ride in cars and on public transportation. This independent and continuous practice helps students to master essential sound/symbol relationships.

Older students who have not mastered word decoding require accelerated word analysis skills instruction and intensified practice. Street Phonics helps them acquire these skills without the stigma attached to using lower grade reading materials. (A.Mann)

Strip Story (T)
This teaching strategy helps students develop an understanding of the sequence of events or details presented in text (narrative or expository). The teacher writes key points from the text on paper strips. Students arrange the strips in a logical order and then discuss their orderings. Rereading can clear up disagreements between students as to the correct order. Sentences strips can be placed on the board for the whole class, on chart paper for a small group, or on notebook paper for individuals to use.

Team Webbing (T) (L)
This strategy results in the collaborative creation of a set of graphics. The process enables a large group of people to participate in idea-generation and to have easy access to the information shared. The focus is on written communication, talking is kept to a minimum. Each team has a large piece of paper at their table and a set of same-color magic markers. The team leader writes the topic in the center of the paper, and group members simultaneously write whatever thoughts, associations, and questions arise when they consider the topic. Group members may also respond (with notes) to one another's jottings. At the end of a designated time period, each group moves to the next table, taking their colored markers, and writes their ideas on that chart. The rotation from table to table continues until each group reaches its starting table. Time is provided for discussions of the information that has accumulated on the charts. Patterns are explored, conclusions drawn, and so forth.

Think-Aloud (T) (L)
The teacher models what an experienced reader might be thinking while reading. Such a demonstration takes the mystery out of comprehending text and suggests ways that students might think when they read. While students follow along silently, the teacher reads the selection aloud and pauses often to verbalize what he/she is doing to make sense of the words. For example, the teacher may make predictions, describe visual images suggested by the words, speculate on the author's intentions, connect prior knowledge to new information, make comparisons and contrasts, admit confusions, and clarify meanings. After modeling various approaches, the teacher guides students in identifying and discussing specific strategies the teacher demonstrated. After modeling several times, the teacher pairs students up to practice thinking aloud with one another. The teacher then provides independent practice in using think-alouds to complete silent reading assignments.

Think/Pair/Share (T) (L)
This is a structured approach to classroom discourse that aims to get all students actively involved in a discussion. First, the teacher asks the class a question and then signals time for individuals to THINK silently (teacher included) for several seconds. The teacher then signals students to PAIR up to exchange ideas. When pairs are finished, individual students SHARE with the entire class. Each phase can be initiated with a different cue, for example, a spoken word, a hand signal, or a colored card held up for all to see.

Write-to-Learn (L)
Write-to-Learn strategies, of which there are several, promote writing as a powerful way to learn--rather than just a way to demonstrate what has been learned. The strategies acknowledge composing as a way of thinking on paper to make connections, create new ideas, raise questions, and discover answers as well as aid retention of new information. The strategies focus on improved thinking and learning rather than on a polished written product. For examples, see Journals, Freewriting, Cubing, List/Group/Label, and Possible Sentences.