Many students have difficulty with reading comprehension simply because they do not know the words in a story or understand what they mean. Focusing on specific words that are used in a text before the youngsters actually read a story helps with comprehension. Some teachers tests students on the vocabulary words that were drawn from the story. Context clues can also be used to help children figure out what an unfamiliar word means. For instance, second graders may not be familiar with the word "physician." But, in a sentence such as, "The nurse told the physician that his patient was ready to have an examination," most children know the words, "nurse," "patient" and "examination." Therefore, they can use those words as clues to figure out that a "physician" must be a "doctor."
To help second graders boost their comprehension skills, teachers and parents should periodically ask questions before, during and after children read a story. Doing this will help parents and teachers determine whether the child is understanding what he or she is reading. The questions asked as a child reads can relate to whatever is going on in the story. Sample questions can include: "What is happening?" "What do you think will happen next and why?" "What did you learn from reading the story?"
Sequencing also helps in building comprehension. Sequencing is showing second graders what is happening at the beginning, middle and end of a story and asking them to tell the story in that order after they have read it. This method looks at putting details of a story and the succession of events in a larger context. This is similar to retelling a movie or TV show episode to a friend. Some of the "connecting" words used when sequencing an event include, "later," "afterward" and "at the end of the story."
Not only should teachers and parents track comprehension, but students should learn how to monitor their own reading comprehension. Monitoring one's own reading comprehension means being aware of what one does and does not understand while reading a particular text. Students can be taught, for instance, to read the text over again until they understand it. Or, tell them to read a story or a passage within a story aloud, then ask them to explain the sequence of events. Ask them, "When did the story shift from the beginning to the middle of the story? What events took place that led to the end of the story?" This gives students an opportunity to see whether they really understood what was going on in the story. Doing this will help teachers or parents know in what areas students need further instruction.