This section presents strategies to help your students to become successful readers - readers who go beyond decoding words and who focus on understanding the meaning of a text. The strategies in this section are most helpful in tutoring students in grade 4 and up who can read but have difficulty understanding what they read.
If you are working with
an older student who is
having trouble recognizing
words, you may need to
devote part of your time
to helping this student
learn “how to read” (see
Section 2 of this guide) as
well as helping this student
focus on making meaning
out of print.
Children learning to read go through several stages. Initially, children learn to decode written symbols i.e., how to recognize words and sound words out. Gradually, they learn to be fluent readers. Fluent readers are able to decode words, understand a text, and discuss what they have read.
Many children and youth who struggle with reading are able to read many of the words they see. However, they focus all their energy and attention on decoding individual words. This limited focus means that they have difficulty understanding or thinking critically about what they have read. In other words, they are still reading at the word level rather than at the text level. They are not beginning readers, nor are they successful or fluent readers.
As a tutor, your role is to help your students become “unglued” from the words and to focus on understanding the meaning of the text. By sharing your own ideas, experiences and strategies about how you make meaning out of print, you can help your students learn these critical skills.