Metacognition, or thinking about thinking, helps students to be more successful in reading, math and other academic areas. It teaches students to plan their work, reflect on what they are thinking and feeling as they work, and reflect on their thoughts and feelings once they complete a task. Students who can examine their own thinking are also more likely to plan and think their way through challenges outside of the classroom.
The best way to build metacognition in students is to model it during your teaching time. When you begin a new read-aloud take a minute to reflect on the cover and make a few predictions. When you model a new math strategy connect it to something students already know how to do. To help students learn to examine their own thinking, ask complex questions that do not have a yes or no answer. Help students to explain why they chose a certain action or respond to a book in a certain way.
Teaching metacognition during math time helps students become more successful problem solvers. In math, modeling problem-solving strategies is key to teach metacognition. When you solve a math problem, think through what you are doing out loud. Examine and make a plan for solving a problem. Talk about why you are using a specific strategy and check to make sure the answer makes sense when you finish. Model different math strategies including drawing a picture, looking for a pattern and making a table of information. Encourage students to plan and think through their math work and to learn from any mistakes they make.
In reading, metacognition includes making predictions before reading, monitoring comprehension during reading, and reflecting after reading. These strategies help students to understand what they are reading on a higher level than just knowing what happened in a story. Model metacognition when you read aloud by asking yourself questions before and during reading. This is especially important when you read nonfiction. Introduce the topic of a new read-aloud and ask students what they already know about that topic. Look at the cover of the book and make a prediction. Read the book aloud and compare it to what students already know. When you finish, ask each student to reflect and share one thing that he or she learned from the reading.