Modeling Reading Strategies: Think Aloud

Think Aloud is an explicit modeling strategy designed to demonstrate and share with students how the content area expert makes sense out the text he or she reads. Using this strategy will show students how to set a purpose for reading different types of text, and the processes good readers go through as they are actively reading.

Step 1: Have the conversation.

Invite students to share the different types of reading they engage in: reading a CD jacket, a food label, the sports page, comics, magazine articles, novels, biology or math books. Discuss the different reasons for reading (pleasure, information, deeper meaning, academic), and the expectations for learning that come with each type of reading in which students engage. You may have students do this in small groups or by simply jotting down notes during class discussion.

Step 2: Select a short piece of text.

Use a selection that will show the students a mental process you go through as you read a novel or course textbook. Use a transparency of the passage or have the passage projected from a computer so you can point to the words as you read and give students copies of the passages you use so they can follow along.

Step 3: Foresee difficulty.

Consider what parts of the text might be confusing or challenging for the students. Anticipate obstacles with content, vocabulary, text structures, or graphics. Figure out how you would tackle the problem and share your thinking with students. (Make sure not to overwhelm them with too many suggestions.) Your content area dictates what you would model. Activating background knowledge can be applied to any text. Charts and graphs should be integrated with the text. A math teacher might connect information taught in chapter 1 to new information found in chapter 2. A social studies teacher may use the chapter layout to explain a cause/effect text structure. It is up to the content area expert to decide what to model for students.

Step 4: Read the text out loud and stop often to share your thinking. 

As you read, look at the words on the screen. When you pause, explicitly tell your students what you are doing: “Good readers look at the graphs and connect them to what they’ve just read.” Capture what you do as a good reader and communicate that to your students.

Step 5: Point out the words, phrases, or graphics that trigger your thinking. 

Be explicit with students about how you get the meaning you do. Here are some examples: When I read [words from text], I wonder _______. Good readers ask questions when they read in order to help them make inferences. I notice that this piece is organized like this: [specify]. I am going to use _____ [cause/effect, compare/contrast] to help me understand the text.

Once you “think aloud” with your students a few times, they can begin to do this in class.