Description:
This McREL Institute publication, written by Rachel Billmeyer, Ph.D. and Mary Lee Barton, M.Ed., is intended to be a resource to assist teachers in expanding and refining their repertoire of teaching strategies. It can also serve as a guide for instructional planning and decision making when teaching reading in the content areas. It is meant to be a resource for teachers as they consider their curriculum objectives, the nature and needs of their students, and their personal teaching styles.

This manual encourages teachers to explore the dynamics involved in being an effective reader, understand what learning environment will open doors to create readers, consider what must happen in the mind of the learner for reading comprehension to result, and determine what teaching strategies will help to develop readers who can learn from a wide variety of print materials. This is a resource for teaching strategies, instructional planning, and decision-making.

The following four major areas comprise the contents of this publication:

1. The three interactive elements of the reading process that influence comprehension.
2. Strategies: Forty popular teaching strategies that can be adapted for students from elementary through high school and that are appropriate for student in all content areas.
3. Strategic teaching: This section shares a framework for instructional planning.
4. Six assumptions about learning: The research on learning serves as the foundation for this publication and can serve as the introduction or as the conclusion to the publication.

This publication can be ordered from ASCD (http://shop.ascd.org_ for $27.95 plus shipping and handling. Blackline masters are also available
.
Services Available Through SCOE:
The Curriculum and Instruction Department is prepared to facilitate discussions focused on the strategies found in Teaching Reading in the Content Areas. These discussions can also be tied to professional development focused on student involvement in the classroom assessment process.

Contact:
For more information, call or e-mail Karen Holmes at 842-8414.

Updated for school year 2007-08.