Lessons in Comprehension: Explicit Instruction in the Reading Workshop

by Frank Serafini

Plumbing his file drawers for 64 of the most effective comprehension minilessons from his distinguished teaching career, Serafini has created a teaching treasure trove that contains nearly a year's worth of comprehension instruction plus an extensive list of children's literature that he has successfully woven into his own reading workshop. Lessons in Comprehension introduces and reinforces meaning-making concepts through eight broad thematic strands that scaffold understanding and responsibility for novice Within each strand, eight lessons take students deep into key comprehension strategies like visualization, journaling, and previewing texts. Tried, proven, and grounded in the latest scientific-based research, each substantial lesson offers a complete framework to take you and your students from theory through guided practice and beyond. And, unique among books on the reading workshop, each lesson also features Serafini's own classroom-honed language-the perfect model to adapt for explicit instruction in any reading classroom. These lessons fit seamlessly together and provide the instructional backbone for learners of every level and ability. "Effective teachers teach," writes Serafini, and in effective reading workshops explicit instruction provides an important link between the written word and an emerging reader's ability to both interact with texts and understand them. Read Lessons in Comprehension , trust Serafini, and help your students learn the strategies they need to comprehend a variety of texts.

Genres: Education

176 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2004

About the author

Dr. Frank Serafini is an author, illustrator, photographer, educator, musician, and a Professor of Literacy Education and Children’s Literature at Arizona State University.
Frank has published seven books with Heinemann, including: The Reading Workshop, Reading Aloud and Beyond, Lessons in Comprehension, and Around the Reading Workshop in 180 Days and Classroom Reading Assessments which will be available in 2010. In addition, Frank has published Reading the Visual (2014) and Beyond the Visual (2022) with Teachers College Press.
In 2008, Frank began writing and illustrating a series of non-fiction picturebooks focusing on nature with Kids Can Press. The Looking Closely series contains books about the desert, garden, pond, rainforest, shore and forest. In 2009, Looking Closely Along the Shore won an International Reading Association’s Teachers’ Choice Award, and Honorable Mention from the Society of School Librarians International.
A true “Renaissance Man,” Frank loves to travel, sing, play guitar, cook, draw, read, visit art galleries, and watch movies. His workshops are packed with important information and practical ideas, all delivered with a great sense of humor.

Reviews

[Margaret Boling · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you're looking for a book on using Readers' Workshop in the upper-elementary classroom, this is definitely one to start with! Frank has a personable voice and his ideas for mini-lessons are concrete. You won't get lots of the nitty-gritty of the overall structure, but you will get ideas for engaging kids with texts in critical and thoughtful ways.