Grade by Grade
A. Literacy Connections and Applications / C. Comprehension · Understanding What We Read and See

While I Read: Asking Questions and Making Pictures in My Mind

C2.4 C2.7 C3.8 C1.1 A1.1 A1.2About 35 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can ask who, what, where, when, why and how questions about a text.
  • I can make a picture in my mind while I listen or read.
  • I can reread or look at pictures when something does not make sense.
  • I can tell which reading strategy helped me.

Words to know

question word
A word that starts a question: who, what, where, when, why, how.
visualize
To make a picture in your mind of what the words say.
reread
To read a part again to understand it better.
strategy
A way or a trick that helps you do something, like rereading.

Good readers stay awake in their minds!

Reading is not only saying the words. Good readers think while they read. They ask: "Does this make sense?"

Today you will learn three reading strategies (helpful tricks):

  1. Ask questions.
  2. Make a picture in your mind (visualize).
  3. Fix it up: reread, or look at the pictures, when something is confusing.
Question wordIt asks about…Example
Who?a person or animalWho lost the mitten?
What?a thing or what happenedWhat did Omar lose?
Where?a placeWhere did he look?
When?a timeWhen did he lose it?
Why?a reasonWhy was he sad?
How?the way something happensHow did he find it?
The question words. Count them on one hand plus one more finger!
What?Where?When?Why?Who?How?+ 1 more finger+
Six question words: one for each finger on one hand, plus one more finger.

Read-aloud: The Lost Mitten

It was a cold day in January. At recess, Omar played in the snow. He made a snow angel. He climbed the big snowbank.

When the bell rang, Omar looked at his hands. One hand was pink and cold. His red mitten was gone!

Omar felt sad. His grandma had knitted that mitten for him.

After school, Omar and his friend Lily looked everywhere. They looked by the slide. They looked in the snowbank.

Then Lily pointed. "Look, Omar! On the fence!"

Someone had found the red mitten and hung it on the fence. Omar smiled a big smile. His hand was warm again.

Worked example

Let's ask and answer questions

Ask questions about The Lost Mitten and find the answers in the story.

  1. Who is the story about? Omar (and his friend Lily).
  2. When did it happen? On a cold day in January, at recess.
  3. What did Omar lose? His red mitten.
  4. Why was Omar sad? His grandma had knitted the mitten for him.
  5. Where did they find it? On the fence.
  6. How did it get there? Someone found it and hung it on the fence.

Asking questions helps us check that we understand the whole story.

Just for fun

Why did Omar's red mitten wait on the fence?

It just wanted to hang out! 🧤

Worked example

Let's visualize and fix up

Close your eyes. Listen: "He climbed the big snowbank." What do you see? Then: what if you didn't know the word snowbank?

  1. Picture it: a big, tall pile of snow by the school yard. Omar climbing up in his boots.
  2. Not sure what snowbank means? Reread the sentence. Think of the two small words inside: snow + bank (a pile, like the side of a river).
  3. Look at the picture, if there is one. Ask, "Does a big pile of snow make sense here?" Yes!

A snowbank is a big pile of snow. Rereading, looking at word parts and checking the picture helped us.

Fix-up strategies

When something does not make sense, stop. Then try a fix-up strategy:

  • 🔁 Reread the sentence.
  • 🖼️ Look at the picture.
  • 🧩 Think about what would make sense.
  • 🙋 Ask someone.
Reading...Does itmake sense?yesKeep reading!noRereadthe sentenceLook atthe pictureThink: whatmakes sense?Asksomeonetry one fix-up, then ask again: does it make sense?
When something does not make sense, stop and try a fix-up strategy. Then check again.

Learning skills we use when we read

When you ask questions, you are being curious and thinking critically. When you talk about a book with a friend, you are communicating and working together. When you choose a book you like and tell why, you are using your voice. These skills help you in every subject, not just reading!

Hands-on activity

Question cube

You need: a small empty box (like a tissue box) or paper, and a marker.

  1. With your grown-up, write Who? What? Where? When? Why? How? on the 6 sides of the box (or on 6 small papers in a cup).
  2. Read a short story together.
  3. Roll the box (or pull a paper). Ask a question about the story that starts with that word.
  4. The other person answers. Then switch!

After: Tell your grown-up which strategy helped you most today: asking questions, making pictures in your mind, or rereading.

Your turn

1

Who helped Omar look for the mitten?

2

When did the story happen?

3

What colour was the mitten?

4

Why was Omar's hand pink and cold?

5

Close your eyes and visualize Omar making a snow angel. Tell what you see.

6

What can you do if you read a word and the sentence doesn't make sense?

7

Make up your own how question about the story.

More practice: warm-up

1

Which question word asks about a place?

2

Which question word asks about a person?

3

What does visualize mean?

4

What did Omar lose?

5

Where was the mitten found?

More practice: on your own

1

Read: "The bell rang." Ask a when question about the story and answer it.

2

How did Omar feel at the start and at the end of the story? What clues tell you?

3

Mia reads: "The cat ate the moon." But the book says "The cat sat by the moon." What should Mia notice and do?

4

Why is it a good idea to ask why questions while reading?

5

Which strategy would you use if you couldn't picture what a toboggan looks like?

Challenge

1

The story doesn't say who hung the mitten on the fence. Make a smart guess and explain.

2

Think of today's lesson. Which strategy helped you understand the story best: asking questions, visualizing, or rereading? Why?

3

Write (or say) a question about the story that the story does not answer.

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

Which question word asks about a reason?

2.

What does it mean to visualize?

3.

You read a sentence and it doesn't make sense. What is a good first step?

4.

Who knitted Omar's mitten?

5.

Which question asks about a place?

6.

Which is a reading strategy?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Grade 1 readers learn to monitor their understanding: ask questions, visualize, and use fix-up strategies (rereading, using the pictures, asking) when meaning breaks down. They also begin to name which strategy helped them.

How to help at home:

  • When your child misreads a word and the sentence doesn't make sense, wait a moment before correcting. Ask "Did that make sense?" so they learn to notice.
  • Take turns asking who/what/where/when/why/how questions after a story.
  • Ask "What picture do you see in your mind?" during a descriptive part.

Common difficulties:

  • Reading words without thinking about meaning. Pause often to talk about what is happening.
  • Mixing up question words (answering "where" with a time). Use the table in this lesson as a reminder.
  • Expecting every question to be answered. Explain that some questions are "wondering" questions, and that is good thinking.

This lesson also builds the transferable skills of curiosity, critical thinking, communication and collaboration, which the curriculum asks children to use in every subject.