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Nonfiction Reading Power: Teaching Students How to Think While They Read all Kinds of Information
How can you help students find meaning in informational texts and become independent strategic readers and thinkers? Nonfiction Reading Power gives teachers a wealth of effective strategies for helping students think while they read material in all subject areas. Using the best children's books to motivate students, Adrienne Gear shows teachers how help students zoom-in, question and infer; find the main idea, make connections, and transform what's on the printed page. Key introductory concept lessons for each of the five reading powers provide valuable insight into the purpose of each strategy. The book also explores the particular features of nonfiction and offers lists of key books organized around strategies and subject areas.
160 pages, Perfect Paperback
First published October 30, 2008
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
December 11, 2012
This has been one of the best books I've read for school. It was really well organized and didn't repeat the same things over and over. It also gave really good lesson ideas as well as suggestions for how to change her lessons to meet the needs of your students. My students also really enjoyed the visual Gear created for Nonfiction Reading Powers. I'm excited to read her book about writing in the spring.
August 4, 2012
This book is my go to resource for non-fiction mini-lessons. The booklists are amazingly valuable.
August 17, 2018
Very useful for my reading comprehension task and for my daily reading activity with my pupils.
August 29, 2021
Read for work
March 7, 2010
This is a review I wrote for the Illinois Reading Council Journal -
Teaching for understanding of information text can be a difficult task. There are a lot of books out there with lists of “activities” for teaching in this area, but despite our best intentions and the “fun” of those activities our students still struggle. In this new text, Gear takes on what has backfired in her teaching with this kind of text and shares changes she made to her instruction as a result of her reflective practice. For example, the strategy of “making personal connections” is frequently difficult with content area texts; what is more important, as Gear points out, is that the students make connections to their background knowledge and recognize when they do not have any relevant knowledge on a topic. She describes teaching students how to think about “knew-new connections” as one way of addressing this issue during instruction.
The book focuses on five “reading powers”: the power to zoom-in, the power to question/infer, the power to determine importance, the power to connect, and the power to transform. Gear includes details about how to model these strategies for thinking effectively including “thinking aloud” for students and implementing the gradual release of responsibility. In addition, she introduces concrete activities for helping students understand these strategies conceptually. For example, when she describes the strategy of transforming (i.e., synthesizing), she describes a small group activity with Legos that challenges the students to think about how rearranging our thinking while reading is similar to rearranging Legos to make a different structure.
While this book is recommended, there is one cautionary note. Gear states that synthesizing is the “last strategy” she teaches. This point needs to be re-considered. As Gear notes, a proficient reader uses multiple strategies like making connections, asking questions, and so forth to “formulate a new perspective” or to transform their thinking in some way. Synthesizing is the ultimate goal of any reading and, as a result, this strategy should be taught from day one along side each of the other strategies.
Nonetheless, if you’re looking for a refreshing text on teaching the comprehension strategies with information text, this would be a good one to choose.
Teaching for understanding of information text can be a difficult task. There are a lot of books out there with lists of “activities” for teaching in this area, but despite our best intentions and the “fun” of those activities our students still struggle. In this new text, Gear takes on what has backfired in her teaching with this kind of text and shares changes she made to her instruction as a result of her reflective practice. For example, the strategy of “making personal connections” is frequently difficult with content area texts; what is more important, as Gear points out, is that the students make connections to their background knowledge and recognize when they do not have any relevant knowledge on a topic. She describes teaching students how to think about “knew-new connections” as one way of addressing this issue during instruction.
The book focuses on five “reading powers”: the power to zoom-in, the power to question/infer, the power to determine importance, the power to connect, and the power to transform. Gear includes details about how to model these strategies for thinking effectively including “thinking aloud” for students and implementing the gradual release of responsibility. In addition, she introduces concrete activities for helping students understand these strategies conceptually. For example, when she describes the strategy of transforming (i.e., synthesizing), she describes a small group activity with Legos that challenges the students to think about how rearranging our thinking while reading is similar to rearranging Legos to make a different structure.
While this book is recommended, there is one cautionary note. Gear states that synthesizing is the “last strategy” she teaches. This point needs to be re-considered. As Gear notes, a proficient reader uses multiple strategies like making connections, asking questions, and so forth to “formulate a new perspective” or to transform their thinking in some way. Synthesizing is the ultimate goal of any reading and, as a result, this strategy should be taught from day one along side each of the other strategies.
Nonetheless, if you’re looking for a refreshing text on teaching the comprehension strategies with information text, this would be a good one to choose.
July 19, 2013
"This learning program is a valuable, viable, common sense approach to teaching students, not only how to read nonfiction to maximize their learning and understanding…." - Resource Links
"…urges educators to teach skills about nonfiction texts before we assign research report[s]" - CM Magazine
"…gives teachers a wealth of strategies for helping students think while they read nonfiction material.." - Book News Inc.
"…urges educators to teach skills about nonfiction texts before we assign research report[s]" - CM Magazine
"…gives teachers a wealth of strategies for helping students think while they read nonfiction material.." - Book News Inc.
August 1, 2014
I thought this was a great resource for my 4th grade class. I found it a quick, easy-to-read book with lots of great tips, templates, and really usable ideas to help my students get the most out of their non-fiction books and the Common Core requirements. I am looking forward to using many of these strategies in my class in the coming weeks.
July 19, 2010
Since I love to read, I don't get how everyone can't love it too. Hopefully this book will give me some ideas how to help all my kids love to read nonfiction.
It was OK...not great and I wouldn't buy it...but OK.
It was OK...not great and I wouldn't buy it...but OK.
Want to Read
March 9, 2009Another book recommended by Tanya Shehan from Doha. She also provided a link to the whole boook online from Stenhouse: http://r.smartbrief.com/resp/oSuclvrG...
March 21, 2010
This is a great resource to have for teaching students how to read non-fiction text. There are step-by-step lessons as well as lists of books to use.
October 28, 2011
If you've read Strategies that Work, there's really no reason to read this book. The value is in the book lists by subject, strategy and general interest level for grades.
Read
August 19, 2012I am excited to work with teachers and have kids explore more non fiction!
September 3, 2013
More reading for my K-12 reading license program. Good stuff--useable across multiple disciplines for content area reading.
February 16, 2016
Excellent strategies for teaching metacognition and active comprehension.
September 2, 2016
Surprising number of typos. But interesting theory, even for a non-teacher.
Read
November 1, 2016excellent resource
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews