Essential Features of Close Reading:

  • Short, worthy text, multiple (ideally three) readings with one being a teacher read aloud
  • High-quality text-dependent questions that dig deeper with each reading (global to granular)
  • Many opportunities for student interaction (Accountable Talk)
  • Short writing piece in which students support thinking with evidence from text.

Worthy Texts:

  • Demand rereading
  • Are short; well-chosen excerpts from short stories, articles, speeches, novels, primary sources, etc. are ideal for teaching the process
  • Are complex for the students intended to use it (all students should struggle)
  • Contain rich and challenging vocabulary
  • Do not require muchfront-loading of conceptual knowledge

The “most” worthy also strive to:

  • Lend themselves opposing views and deep discussion
  • Allow for cross-curricular connections
  • Encourage students to think more globally

Step / Name / Notes
1 / Set purpose / Reading for big ideas / identifying confusion
2 / First Reading / Stumble through
3 / First Discussion / Big ideas / confusions
4 / Set Purpose (Text-dependent Q) / Read for style/craft moves, academic language/vocab, argument/info
5 / Second Reading / Teacher read-aloud / think along
6 / Second Discussion / Find textual evidence to support thinking
7 / Set Purpose (Text-dependent Q) / Read for deeper understanding
8 / Third Reading / Students read independently/partner
9 / Third Discussion / Opinion plus support
10 / Written Response / Codifying the above

Close Reading IS NOT:

  • Everyday reading of content material (textbook, novel, etc.)
  • Quickly planned or taught
  • A rigid recipe

Ten Step Guide to Close Reading

Close Reading Step 1: Set the Purpose for Reading and Thinking

Teacher:

Give a very basic overview of their purpose for reading the text and what they are expected to get from reading.

Students:

Students need to understand that they are doing a “stumble through” the text, getting the general idea and identifying confusing words/concepts.

Example/Teacher Talk:

We have been learning about cells, what they are made of and what they do. Today we are going to read about specific kinds of cell called stem cells. As you read, I would like you to think about two things, “Why are stems cells important and why are they controversial?”

Rationale

Fisher et al. write“the point of Close Reading is to encourage students to investigate the text, not to build so much background knowledge that the need to read is significantly diminished”(123).

In the example given above, students already have a working knowledge of cell parts, formation and replication. Students can attend to the complexities and controversy of stem cells.

Variations/Alternatives:

  • As you read the text, notice/mark any words (ideas/ sections) that are confusing.
  • As you read, notice how the author describes the setting. Think about the mood these descriptions create.

Close Reading Step 2: First Reading (the Stumble Through)

Teacher:

Set a time limit. Let students know that it is fine if they don’t finish the entire as long as they are reading the whole time.

Circulate and observe. Notice if/where students mark the text. These observations are crucial for guiding discussion as well as the second reading.

Students:

Students read independently to understand the central idea…the gist of the text.

Students may be marking the text, identifying words/ideas that are unfamiliar, confusing, and/or wondrous.

Rationale:

By having students read for general understanding (rather than answering detailed questions right off the bat), they can attend to the big ideas. This is like making a file folder in which they can then store the supporting details. Without having a firm grasp of the broader topic, students may simply remember a seemingly random set of ideas.

Variations:

Reading:

  • Partner read
  • Teacher Read Aloud
  • Teacher Read-Aloud (Cloze Reading)

Marking the Text:

  • Number the paragraph
  • Simple reading response codes (e.g., checkmark, question mark, exclamation point)
  • Underline/circle interesting, unknown, confusing areas of text

Step 3: First Discussion/Accountable Talk (Assessing for Understanding and Confusions)

Teacher:

Before discussion: Set time limits/expectations/roles, provide text-dependent questions, and sentence frames.

During partner discussion: Monitor not just for “on-taskness” but also for quality of conversation. Notice students pointing to the text while talking (demonstrates their use of text to support their thinking). Secretly choose students to “Cold Call” to share salient points or prime students who are reluctant to publicly share.

After partner discussion: Cold Call just a few students before moving on to the next step.

Students:

Students will share with peers before sharing with the whole group. Students are encouraged to use sentence frames to propel academic language and accountability. Students will point to support their thinking.

Example:

Students, talking and listening is an important part of learning. Research has proven that when we talk while we learn, we learn more deeply.

You are going to have a discussion with your partner(s). Decide who is partner A and B. A’s, raise your hands.

Ok, B’s are going to go first. B’s using evidence from the text, talk about why stem cells are important. Here are some sentence frames you can use to guide your discussion:

I think stem cells are (Important/crucial/vital) because the text said ______.

…

A’s will share what is controversial about stem cell use….

Rationale:

Structured Oral Practice routines help students internalize newly learned language patterns and content-specific vocabulary through multiple opportunities to practice in engaging and supportive settings. This ongoing practice supports student use of increasingly precise and varies language to communicate their understanding. These routines lo allow teachers to organize the classroom for maximum engagement and accountability. Each student is compelled to practice using newly learned language in small groups or partners –actively listening to and speaking to one another, rather than the one-way, often passive communication that occurs when the whole class listens to a few individual volunteers offering their ideas or responding to teacher questions.(Levy and Dutro 3.2)

Step 4: Set purpose for reading (TDQ)

Teacher: Set the purpose for reading by posing text-dependent questions (TDQ)

Example/Teacher Talk:

Now that we have a basic understanding about what stem cells can do, we are going to dig deeper as we reread the text. The first things we are going to look for are the most important similarities and differences between embryonic stem cells and adult stem cells. After you record important textual evidence comparing embryonic and adult stem cells we going to share our evidence with our partners and then class.

{The teacher would use this opportunity to guide students through the decision-making process of what is and what is not important information.}

Rationale:

“The purposes of text-dependent questions are to prompt rereading, encourage the use of textual evidence to support answers, and deepen comprehension using analytic processes. To aid in this analysis, initial questions should be designed to highlight the explicit meaning of the text. However, it is important not to stop there, but to progress toward a more challenging and implicit meaning” (Fisher et al. 125).

From Text Dependent Question Worksheet from the California Department of Education, 2012, Suggestions for FramingText-Dependent Questions:

  • Focus on why the author chose a word/phrase
  • Focus on testing comprehension of ideas and arguments
  • Focus on noticing what is missing/understated
  • Focus on defining academic vocabulary
  • Focus on locating “pivot points” in a paragraph/passage
  • Focus on analyzing challenging portions of the text
  • Focus on examining the impact of sentence structures
  • Focus on tracking down patterns across sections of text
  • Focus on investigating the beginnings and endings of texts

Step 5: Second Reading (Teacher-Modeled Reading and Thinking)

Teacher:

Judiciously use this reading as an opportunity to do some of the following:

  • Model fluency, strategies, and thinking processes
  • Quickly explain important vocabulary (context, structure, new use of an otherwise familiar word)
  • Clarify key concepts
  • Point out how the author uses language to make an argument or a mood

Students:

Read along silently, perhaps marking the text or taking notes

Example/Teacher Talk:

Students while I read the text aloud, you need to follow along. I’ll know you are following along because your finger will be moving across the text like this. From time to time, I am going to stop reading to explain my thinking as I try to understand the confusing parts using structural and contextual clues.

Rationale:

“This practice supports the engagement of all students, especially those who struggle with reading the text independently, and reinforces the primacy of the text throughout Close Reading lessons” (Brown and Kappes 3).

Alternatives/Variations:

  • “Cloze Reading”:
  • This can be especially effective when a challenging word is repeated throughout the text. The teacher can model proper pronunciation the first time and then have the students responsible for reading it aloud when next encountered in the text.
  • If you read aloud the first time, this could be an independent or partner reading opportunity. Students may need text-dependent questions to guide their thinking on this reading.

Step 6: Second Discussion: See Step 3

Rationale:

“Close Reading cannot be reserved for students who already are strong readers; it should be a vehicle through which all students grapple with advanced concepts and participate in engaging discussions regardless of their independent reading level” (Brown and Kappes 2).

Step 7: Set Purpose (deeper TDQ, read for deeper understanding, narrow text, prepping for writing)

Teacher:

This reading sets students up for the writing task. During this reading, you may want to narrow the text to highlight particularly important, controversial, and/or illustrative passages of text. A graphic organizer or note-taking protocol could be helpful at during this reading, as well.

Example/Teacher Talk:

We are going to reread the article. The author claims that, “the promise of stem-cell research is hampered by controversy.” Reread the 7th through 9th paragraph to fill out the T-Chart describing why people are “for” stem-cell research and use and why people are “against” it. After you record your evidence on the chart, we are going to share the information.

Rationale:

“An effective set of text-dependent questions delves systematically into a text to guide students toward extracting the key meanings or ideas found there. Text-dependent questions typically begin by exploring specific words, details, and arguments, and then move on to examine the impact of those specifics on the text as a whole. Along the way, they target academic vocabulary and specific sentence structures as critical focus points for gaining comprehension”(Liben and Liben 2)

Step 8: Third Reading (independent/partner)

Teacher:

Circulate and notice student note-taking. This formative assessment can provide insight into guiding the discussion.

Students:

Students will read and record supportive details in the text.

Rationale:

“The Common Core expects—and equity demands—that all students have the chance to productively struggle with complex texts. Especially for students with lower reading skills and gaps in background knowledge, Close Reading can be an important strategy to accelerate and deepen their own learning” (Brown and Kappes 2)

Alternatives/Variations:

  • Reading:
  • Partner
  • Note-taking/Writing:
  • Cornell Notes
  • Graphic Organizers to support text-structure:
  • Venn
  • Herringbone
  • Cause/Effect Chain
  • Hierarchy
  • IVF (Identify//Verb/Finish the thought from Step Up to Writing)

Step 9: Third Discussion (Opinion + Support)

See step 3 for Example

Step 10: “Write Now”

Teacher:

  • Provide models of writing style expected for response (argument), ideally prior to this writing opportunity
  • Provide sentence frames to support academic English use

Students:

  • Take a position on the topic based on information in the text (or their analysis of narrative text)
  • Locate evidence to support their viewpoint
  • Write a brief response to the text

Rationale:

“More than perhaps any other activity, writing enhances students’ ability to think, make connections, and achieve clarity, logic, and precision” (Schmoker86).

Works Cited

Brown, Sheila and Lee Kappes. Implementing the Common Core State Standards: A Primer on "Close Reading of Text". Washington, DC: The Apsen Institute, October 2013.

California Department of Education. "Text Dependent Question Worksheet." July 2012. October 2013 <

Fisher, Douglas, Nancy Frey and Diane Lapp. Text Complexity: Raising Rigor in Reading. Newark: International Reading Association, 2012.

Jago, Carol. "Closer Reading for Deeper Comprehension: Uncommon Sense About the Common Core." Close Reading and Reader Response. November 2012.

Levy, Ellen and Susana Dutro. "Constructing Meaning: Explicit Language for Content Instruction." Constructing Meaning: Explicit Language for Content Instruction, A Handbook for Secondary Content Teachers. E.L Achieve, 2008.

Liben, David and Meredith Liben. "Complete Guide to Creating Text-Dependent Questions ." September 2013. Achieve the Core. December 2013 <