Investigative Reading

When we ask students to read in pairs, we want them to do more than just hear each other read. We want them to investigate together an author's message, purpose, argument, text structure, and various other features in written discourse. We could also ask them to examine how genre, point-of-view, or audience shapes how the text is written. "Investigative Reading" is a collaborative strategy that asks students to read and discuss the texts we assign.

Take a few minutes to explore the different features on this page. The "Literacy TA Process" and "School-wide" sections provide important details about how to teach the strategy. Once you are familiar with the content, think about how you might use the different elements provided on this page to enhance the teaching of this strategy.

Assessing the Skill

When assessing students' ability to work in collaborative groups, teachers could...

• walk around the room and listen to what students are saying, paying attention to how they are seated and engaged in the work.
• use the strategy rubric below to assess students' ability to work productively in small groups.
• ask students to write a brief reflection at the end of class that explains how collaborative work helps them learn new concepts.
• assess how well students carry out their individual group roles.

Assessing Content Knowledge

If we are going to invest time teaching speaking and reading strategies, we should have some idea of how the strategy is improving students' comprehension of course concepts. When assessing students' knowledge of the content, teachers could...

• develop a short series of multiple choice questions that assess students' knowledge of the content. The questions should focus on the topics you asked students to discuss in their groups.
• craft short answer prompts that ask students to articulate--in writing--their knowledge of the ideas in the text. Short answer prompts should also focus on the ideas you asked students to discuss in their groups.
• ask students to create an academic poster that accounts for the main ideas they discussed throughout the class period.
• ask students to take a quiz in pairs in order to evaluate the impact collaborative work has on student achievement.
• engage students in a formal conversation like a Socratic seminar, assessing students' knowledge through verbal performance.

Developing a Speaking Purpose

Before we ask our students to engage in the "Investigative Reading" strategy, teachers should read the text first to understand what it has to offer. Knowing what the text says and what the author does will help teachers know what types of questions a reader should ask in order to increase comprehension. Some texts demand clarification. Others require the reader to make connections. Teachers will have students read collaboratively for a variety of reasons. A few reasons are listed below.

• Students must learn how to work collaboratively with others.
• Students benefit from reading in small, non-threatening environments.
• Students' comprehension increases when they have a chance to talk about their reading.
• Students need to practice talking about texts.
• Students can share ideas in a safe, comfortable environment.
• Student engagement and retention of new ideas increases when they teach others.
• Students can help each other comprehend complex ideas.

Pacing and Supporting the Lesson

When introducing the "Investigative Reading" strategy, explain the metacognitive work that good readers do while reading. Proficient readers will assess what they know, make connections, predictions, and engage in various other cognitive work. This cognitive and metacognitive work should be modeled for students, making transparent what good readers do.

Start with the prepared questions on the Strategy Slides below. These simple questions will help model for students how to think about a text they are reading. Students should work in pairs or small groups as they work to answer questions from the list. Below are a number of tips to help you pace and support "Investigative Reading."

• Make transparent how mature readers think through texts.
• Set high expectations for this type of collaborative work.
• Have students use the questions listed on the Strategy Slides until they can ask their own questions about their reading.
• Model how to use the list of questions to improve comprehension.
• Ask students to write down their questions and answers in their notes. 
• Ask students to reflect on the purpose and value of the strategy.
• Walk around the classroom while students are sharing ideas and coach groups when necessary.
• Give students ample time to learn and master this strategy.
• Use this strategy once or twice a week.

Learning the Skill

Here are a few ways to help introduce the "Investigative Reading" strategy.

• Go over the "IR" questions either on the strategy slides or on the handouts, and show how these types of questions help readers think through a text.
• Model how to use the strategy while reading.
• Identify one or two questions that could be asked of each paragraph and provide those questions for your students.
• Strategically group students so that every group has a nice mix of talent and personality.
• Establish a clear purpose for the reading.
• Project the strategy slides in the classroom so that all students can see the "IR" questions.
• Work through one paragraph at a time until students feel comfortable using the strategy.
• Use a timer to hold students accountable for their time on task.
• Project the strategy rubric and go over your expectations.
• Coach students along the way, giving them feedback and suggestions.

Developing the Skill

As students develop their ability to read actively, consider using the following strategies.

• Increase the amount of time students work together.
• Ask students to pose and keep track of their own questions as they read through a text.
• Have students apply the strategy to multiple paragraphs at a time.
• Walk around the room while students work in groups and provide feedback.
• Talk to the whole class about your expectations. Strike a nice balance between coaching and praising.
• Ask students to evaluate their "Investigative Reading." What questions helped with comprehension?

Mastering the Skill

Mastery of any skill takes time, lots of practice, and a solid understanding of the strategy. Consider applying some of the following approaches when developing students' mastery of "Investigative Reading."

• Expect groups to monitor their own behavior and productivity. We recommend using the "Group Norms" strategy slide.
• Expect students to produce more in a shorter amount of time.
• Explore ways this strategy could be used across the content areas. What types of questions should we ask while reading a science textbook? How are these questions different or similar to the questions we would ask while reading a novel in the English classroom?
• Have students share their thought process with the rest of the class. What questions did they ask while reading? Why did they ask these questions?  
• Challenge students by removing scaffolds like prepared "IR" questions and digital timers.

School Wide

In order to make a strategy transferable through a department and across a school, the name of the strategy must stay the same and it must be implemented and talked about in the same way. Although reading purposes may change from class to class, unit to unit, the work behind a strategy must be predictable and consistent for our students. When a set of effective literacy strategies are implemented throughout the school day, students gain a deep knowledge of how to use the strategy, when to use it, and most importantly, why to use it. The goal for school-wide literacy, therefore, is to develop students' mastery of a select set of strategies so that they can independently and strategically employ them in rigorous academic and professional environments.

English Description

"Investigative Reading" is an active reading strategy that challenges students to think about and explore the texts they read. This strategy works well with fiction, non-fiction, and poetry. See the "Strategy Slides" or "Investigative Reading" handout for sample questions students could ask while reading in English.

Math Description

In the math classroom, students could investigate an equation or word problem. Hand students a problem that has already been solved and ask them to explore the given solution. Students might ask, "How do we isolate the variable?" or they could ask, "What is the first step to solving this problem?" The point of this strategy is to get students analyzing what they're reading or seeing and talking about that analysis. You could give students a graph and have them write as many questions as they can about the graph like "What does this graph tell us?" or "At what point do the two lines intersect?" See the "Strategy Slides" for sample questions students could ask while reading in math.

Science Description

"Investigative Reading" works well in a science classroom because it gets students questioning, analyzing, and discussing the dense texts we ask them to read. Students could do this work independently, but we want them talking about the ideas in the text so that the concepts become clearer. To help focus their investigations, we should provide a list of questions for students to use while reading. Over time, students will be able to develop their own questions. Providing a list in the beginning is helpful because they learn what types of questions proficient readers ask while reading a science text. See the "Strategy Slides" or "Investigative Reading" handout for sample questions students could ask while reading in science.

Social Science Description

In the social science classroom, students could investigate how sections in a textbook are organized, how images are used to illustrate ideas, or how arguments are developed and supported in a text. Simply stated, "Investigative Reading" challenges students to think about and explore the texts they read in a collaborative setting. See the "Strategy Slides" or "Investigative Reading" handout for sample questions students could ask while reading in social science.

Standardized Exams Description

The goal of the "Investigative Reading" strategy is to teach young (or inexperienced) readers a variety of text and cognition-based questions that they could use to increase their comprehension of written text. While rehearsed in collaborative environments, "Investigative Reading" should be done every time our students read in class, at home, or during exams.