If there is one teaching tool that almost every religious education in a Catholic school or parish religious education program receives, it is the textbook. The challenge is, however, that most children aren’t very good at reading for comprehension. With the increase of use in technology in almost every aspect of their lives, reading comprehension will be an increasing challenge in the years to come.
So, we need to be equipped with the best teaching strategies possible to help our students use the textbook as an effective learning tool. The first step is to change our mindset about reading. We shouldn’t expect anyone (including ourselves!) to just read and understand. Instead, reading includes:
- Preparation (pre-reading)
- Engagement (reading)
- Reflection (post-reading)
We should include and encourage these three stages every time we encourage class reading.
For today’s exercise, refer to the reading strategies on pages 131-133 of 31 Days to Becoming a Better Religious Educator and select one to incorporate into the next textbook reading session. You can also reference the following resources here at The Religion Teacher:
- The Religion Teacher’s Guide to Lesson Planning
- The Religion Teacher Graphic Organizers
- SQ3R Reading Guide‘
- The KWL Chart
- 7 Pre-reading Strategies that Will Increase Comprehension
