Hey! What about Prediction?

“Make a prediction about what is going to happen in this book.”  This has probably been the most popular pre-reading routine in schools for time eternal. But in a recent HIP TIP on “TIP 5 PRE-READING STRATEGIES,” prediction was nowhere to be found. What?

Don’t get me wrong: I LOVE prediction.  In fact, it may very well be my favorite comprehension strategy! Predicting requires the reader to make connections to prior knowledge, ask questions, draw inferences, self-monitor and synthesize. (Remember the Fantastic Five Comprehension Superpowers?) But I think we’re missing its impact if we only use prediction before reading. Good readers are constantly predicting, anticipating, wondering – then confirming or revising their predictions as they read.

That’s not to say there’s anything wrong with predicting before reading. But remember that a prediction is an educated guess. Before reading, the reader doesn’t have much background knowledge to go on, so the prediction is too often superficial. If we want Predicting and Confirming/Adjusting to truly help our students become active readers, it is is most effective as a during-reading strategy.

Read more about The Power of Pre-Reading here.