Comprehension Strategies

What 'Comprehension' Means

Comprehension is to do with: 1) Knowledge - What facts do you know or can you find in the text and 2) Understanding - Have I understood the information and clues within the text well enough for me to answer questions that involve making sensible guesses, rather than copying from the text.  For example, if the passage says:

"Bob was sweating heavily. It dripped down his crimson red face and dropped heavily to the floor. When he tried to speak, it was only a whisper as he rapidly panted. 

Question might be: 'What season was it?' or 'What was the weather like?' or How was Bob feeling?

The text did not say that it was summer or the sun was shining brightly, or that Bob longed for water because he was dehydrated, tired and very hot, but a sensible guess is that all of this is true. 

General Rules 

You should always be able to point to the sentence(s) in the text that led you to giving your answer. If you get very stuck on a question, move on and come back to it at the end.

Order of the Answers
The answer to the first question is usually in the first section of the text so look there for the answer. The answer to the second question is probably in the second section of the text so look there for the answer. The answer to the third question is probably in the next section of the text so look there for answer and-so-on. If you can’t find an answer, use this strategy to help you to find the section of the text where you are more likely to find the answer. Remember that it is not certain that all the answers can be found in the order they appear in the text but it is a good starting point. You might need to look in more than one section of the text to find the answer. Some questions require the whole text to have been read and some answers ask for your opinion, and so, quoting may not be possible, or only offer some, but not all of the marks available. Some questions will test your vocabulary. Look carefully to see if the question refers to the meaning of a word in a particular line. This is because, the word lemon in the text might refer to the flavour or the colour. You need to know what is being sought.

Read Each Question Carefully 

 If the question says ‘which word’ – choose one word. However, if the question says ‘which words’ – write two or more words. If the question says: ‘tick one’, make sure you tick just one. If the question says ‘which two…’, do this. Read all parts of the question – from the question number to the next question number. Does the question say ‘Why’? If it does, you will need to give your opinion. You will need to infer to work out the answer to some questions. The word 'because' is your friend. Use it often! Imagine you were in a scene of the topic being discussed. For example: If the text is about World War II – imagine what it might have been like to have been living during that time. Think about how you would be feeling and why. If the question is about the layout – for example, if the reader is asked why something is written in boxes, the reason for this is probably because it helps the reader to navigate the text quickly and easily because each box contains information about the same topic.

How Many Marks are Available?
Check how many marks are available for each question. Make at least one point for each mark available. Where there are two or three marks available, try to give one extra point per answer. Make sure your answers specific and detailed. Avoid pronouns e.g. it’s, he’s, she’s, they, etc. The marker does not want to guess who you are talking about. Always be specific.

Skim Read 

If the question asks for a number or amount, quickly look for digits. Look at the subtitles. Each subtitle tells you the topic of the paragraph(s) below it. The first sentence of every paragraph tells you the topic of the remainder of the paragraph. Look for the exact word, numbers or words in the question and highlight them when you find them. To find a particular answer, expect to have to read the sentence that highlighted words are in, but also read at least the sentence before and after a highlighted word. You may need to read the whole paragraph. If you are looking for names, look for capital letters.

Highlight all words written in italics (words such as this one) and all words written in bold  because this has been done to show that they are important and a lot of expression should be used when reading them. They are often accompanied by an exclamation mark.

Copying

If the question asks you to copy, make sure you copy exactly. Do NOT use you own words. You may be asked to copy a sentence; if you are, copy the copy WHOLE sentence.

Use What You Know
Use what you know about the topic to check your answers are sensible. If you can’t find the answer, just use what you know about the topic. Some questions can be answered based on what you already know about the topic.

Banning the words 'it,' 'it's,'  'they' and similar pronouns. The marker does not want to have to guess who or what you were referring to when you use a pronoun so instead, use the noun itself. This will involve some repetition but that is okay. For example: 

Q. What items of clothing were the children's favourite and why? 

A. Because it was warm and snug. This answer does not state the items of clothing e.g. gloves and so will not be awarded the mark.  

Look for Clues
Unless the question asks you to copy, or says something like: ‘What words does the writer use…’ or ‘given an example…’ you will need to look for clues in the text and to write your answers based on the clues.

Predict Based on the Text
You will not know what is going to happen but you can make a sensible prediction (guess) what will happen next. Like an estimate, base your guess on the information you have been given.

Use Pictures
Pictures can give you useful clues. They often appear very close to the text that they are about. Looking for pictures can help you to quickly find the part of the text you need.

Word Choices

Think carefully about why the author chose the words that they did. Expect to have to comment on why particular words were included and to give reasons explaining why you think they were well (or indeed badly) chosen.

Be Prepared to Calculate
You may need to add; subtract; multiply or divide to answer questions. Skim read to find the numbers you need to answer the question.

COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES IN BRIEF 

• Read the questions before reading the text.

• Read part of the text, then answer some questions. Avoid reading all the text at once. • Make one point for each mark available.

• Read the whole question carefully and do exactly what is asked. Remember that you will need to give an opinion to answer some questions.

• Skim read – looking at subtitles, first lines of paragraphs and for exact words in the question. Highlight these.

• Pictures might give you a clue as to where to look in the text to find the answer • Look for clues in the text.

• Check your answers are sensible.