Text-Dependent Questions, Grades K-5: Pathways to Close and Critical Reading

by Douglas B. Fisher, Nancy Frey, Heather L. Anderson

Fisher & Frey's answer to close and critical reading

No doubt since the cave paintings of prehistoric times, humans have asked questions to make sense of the message. So what could possibly be new about posing questions about text?

Plenty . . . and with TDQ, Doug Fisher and Nancy Frey reveal it all. After one quick read, you will have learned all the very best ways to use text-dependent questions as scaffolds during close reading . . . and the big understandings they can yield, especially when executed the Fisher and Frey way. But that's just for starters. Fisher and Frey also include illustrative video, recommended texts and questions, examples from across content areas, and an online professional learning guide, making the two volumes of TDQ a potent professional development tool across all of K-12.

The genius of TDQ is the way Fisher and Frey break down the process into four cognitive pathways that help teachers "organize the journey through a text" and frame an extended discussion around it. Step by step, this approach ensures that in every close reading lesson, students are guided to consider explicit and implied meanings, and deeply analyze and appreciate various aspects of a text, especially those that may be challenging or confusing.

Here's how the four inter-related processes play out, with every why and every how answered:


What does the text say? (general understandings and key details) How does the text work? (vocabulary, structure, and author's craft) What does the text mean? (logical inferences and intertextual connections) What does the text inspire you to do? (write, investigate, present, debate)


The cool thing? These questions ignite students' engagement and discussion because they strategically lead students to a place of understanding where explicit and implied meanings and interpretations can be debated. Far from being overly literal or teacher-led, the questioning framework Fisher and Frey advance enhances the quality of student talk and idea-generation. All in all, there's no better resource to cultivate students' capacity for independent reading and incisive thinking.

Also of Interest
[show covers for Rigorous Reading and other TDQ volume.]

Genres: Education, Teaching

248 pages, Paperback

First published September 9, 2014

Reviews

[Ludmila Kovaříková · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kniha o kladení otázek ke čtenému textu. (close reading = důkladné čtení, týká se složitých textů.) Zahrnuje čtyři roviny (O čem text je, jak je napsán, co znamená a k čemu nás inspiruje). Otázka je, jak se liší takové kladení otázek od toho klasického ve vyučování. Otázky v knize jsou mnohem promyšlenější, než na jaké jsme zvyklí, ve třídě probíhá diskuse ve skupinách, děti musejí pro své odpovědi podtrhávat důkazy, běžné je dohledávání informací nebo definic slov na iPadech, popř. další čtení na iPadech. Ze strategií je zmíněna vizualizace a vyjasňování slov. Knihu bych ocenila víc, pokud by vedla k tomu, aby se takové otázky naučili klást žáci sami.
Odkazy směřují k videím a prezentacím pro lektory. (zajímavé)

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've heard Fisher & Frey's research cited multiple times in the past few years, but I'd never made it a point to look into the source material. This is one of the best professional development texts I've read in years, because so much of what is addressed goes way beyond close reading; it transfers to many different areas in education, including and ESPECIALLY in math instruction. I imagine I'll be quoting and referring back to this book quite a bit in the next few years.

Also, it's highly readable!

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good book for understanding text-dependent questions. Has real-life middle school (and high school) examples that sound interesting. Appendices are good with more examples. Bottom line is that text-dependent questions are a scaffold for helping students become better readers of complex text, and these reading skills should lead to better, or at least, more conscious writing. Teachers should be the "trail guides" pointing out what to look for in reading so readers can do the work (and fun) of reading.

[Kristine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I realized today that I have a lot of teacher friends on good reads and never review professional literature. This was a really helpful resource on close reading and thinking about the standards when asking students questions.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great examples of text dependent questions in many forms.