This strategy is useful when students are confronted with a short information text followed by questions, and they struggle with where to begin finding answers. My students at times seem unaware of the fact that an answer might very well be contained within the text, but other times it may not be.I also have found this strategy useful in preparing students to take standardized tests because if the standardized test is a multiple choice test, there is a good chance the answer to many of the questions can be found within the given passage.Also, with the QAR strategy, students begin considering if they should just scan the text for the answer, or if it was necessary to use their own background knowledge to construct an answer.
Courses in which it could be implemented:
This strategy can easily be used in any subject area. I have found I use the strategy most in language arts and science, because these are the areas where my students need the most practice in deciding where to find the answer to a question either in their homework or on a test.
Diverse learners:
The students who most like this strategy most are ones who were frustrated before because they think all answers could only come from what they had remembered from what they read; they hadn’t thought of re-reading to find information. They also like the cue the teacher can give about whether or not it is in the text or if it’s something they need to connect to knowledge learned elsewhere.
Procedure:
This is an example of how I used QAR in a language arts lesson at the beginning of the year. This lesson prepared the students for future content area reading.
1. First, we classified our shoes, to demonstrate how things could be grouped according to specific characteristics.
2. Then, I made a poster with the students that had a book on one side (for in the book), and a head on the other side (for in the head). We then divided the In the Book section into two parts: Right There and Think and Search. The In the Head part was divided into two parts as well: The Author and Me and On My Own
3. I created questions based on a story we had just finished in our basal, and we sorted the questions based on the categories on our poster. We also sorted questions on a “book test” from the basal series (and found most of them were Right There questions!)
4. We then applied our sorting skills to questions in our science book that follow each lesson. After we sorted the questions, we answered them.
5. After LOTS of practice, the students came up with their own science test questions, and were required to have an assortment of questions that fit into the four categories.
6. To continue using this strategy, I made small cards with the question categories from QAR and put them on a metal ring for each child.If I feel the students need a refresher on the QAR categories, I create questions to go along with text we are about to read, and I have the students hold up the card that corresponds to the type of question I asked. Click for Blacklines
Potential Issues:
If students struggle with this strategy, it could be because there is too much text, or too much presented at once. I would suggest starting with short passages and only doing the Right There questions first until the student has mastered it. I would then add one section of QAR at a time.Also, it may be easier to begin with a familiar fiction text until the students are comfortable with the strategy. Then students may be better prepared to transfer the strategy into the content area.Another possibility would to find an easier non-fiction text to use, possibly from the internet, a magazine, a newspaper, or tradebook.
|| || Raphael, T., & Au, K. (2005, November 1). QAR: Enhancing Comprehension and Test Taking across Grades and Content Areas. Reading Teacher, 59(3), 206-221. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. EJ738005) Retrieved April 19, 2009, from ERIC database. || ||
Rationale:
This strategy is useful when students are confronted with a short information text followed by questions, and they struggle with where to begin finding answers. My students at times seem unaware of the fact that an answer might very well be contained within the text, but other times it may not be. I also have found this strategy useful in preparing students to take standardized tests because if the standardized test is a multiple choice test, there is a good chance the answer to many of the questions can be found within the given passage. Also, with the QAR strategy, students begin considering if they should just scan the text for the answer, or if it was necessary to use their own background knowledge to construct an answer.Courses in which it could be implemented:
This strategy can easily be used in any subject area. I have found I use the strategy most in language arts and science, because these are the areas where my students need the most practice in deciding where to find the answer to a question either in their homework or on a test.Diverse learners:
The students who most like this strategy most are ones who were frustrated before because they think all answers could only come from what they had remembered from what they read; they hadn’t thought of re-reading to find information. They also like the cue the teacher can give about whether or not it is in the text or if it’s something they need to connect to knowledge learned elsewhere.Procedure:
This is an example of how I used QAR in a language arts lesson at the beginning of the year. This lesson prepared the students for future content area reading.1. First, we classified our shoes, to demonstrate how things could be grouped according to specific characteristics.
2. Then, I made a poster with the students that had a book on one side (for in the book), and a head on the other side (for in the head). We then divided the In the Book section into two parts: Right There and Think and Search. The In the Head part was divided into two parts as well: The Author and Me and On My Own
3. I created questions based on a story we had just finished in our basal, and we sorted the questions based on the categories on our poster. We also sorted questions on a “book test” from the basal series (and found most of them were Right There questions!)
4. We then applied our sorting skills to questions in our science book that follow each lesson. After we sorted the questions, we answered them.
5. After LOTS of practice, the students came up with their own science test questions, and were required to have an assortment of questions that fit into the four categories.
6. To continue using this strategy, I made small cards with the question categories from QAR and put them on a metal ring for each child. If I feel the students need a refresher on the QAR categories, I create questions to go along with text we are about to read, and I have the students hold up the card that corresponds to the type of question I asked.
Click for Blacklines
Potential Issues:
If students struggle with this strategy, it could be because there is too much text, or too much presented at once. I would suggest starting with short passages and only doing the Right There questions first until the student has mastered it. I would then add one section of QAR at a time. Also, it may be easier to begin with a familiar fiction text until the students are comfortable with the strategy. Then students may be better prepared to transfer the strategy into the content area. Another possibility would to find an easier non-fiction text to use, possibly from the internet, a magazine, a newspaper, or tradebook.References: || || || || Dennis-Shaw. (n.d.). Guided Comprehension: Self-Questioning Using Question-Answer Relationships . Retrieved April 19, 2009, from Read Write Think: http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=22 ||
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