Learning Opportunities

Overview of the Sessions:
Supporting Deep Thinking, Learning and Comprehension Across the Disciplines Developing strong readers requires more than surface-level understanding, it requires students to actively construct meaning as they read. This series of sessions is designed to support teachers in building students’ ability to move from word-level understanding to deep comprehension, and ultimately to engaging thoughtfully with ideas, perspectives, and evidence in text. Across the three sessions, participants will explore how comprehension develops, what can interfere with it, and how intentional instruction can support students in becoming more strategic, independent readers.

Session 1: Understanding Fluent Comprehension In Session 1, we focus on developing a clear understanding of fluent comprehension, with an emphasis on how students build meaning at the word and sentence level. Participants will explore how word-level knowledge and sentence-level connections, including the use of anaphors (referencing words) and transition words, support students in tracking meaning across a text. We will examine common challenges that interfere with comprehension and introduce practical instructional strategies that help students read more smoothly while strengthening their ability to construct meaning.

Session 2: Deep Comprehension Through Inference Making In Session 2, we shift to deep comprehension, focusing on the essential skill of inference making, the ability to use textual clues and background knowledge to understand what is not directly stated. Participants will explore the processes involved in making inferences, including identifying key details, connecting ideas, and constructing meaning from those connections. The session will also address common roadblocks and introduce high-impact instructional supports such as attending to word meanings and identifying clue words and textual features.

Session 3: Using Discussion to Deepen Thinking and Interpretation In Session 3, we examine how structured discussion supports deep comprehension by helping students engage with diverse perspectives, evaluate ideas, and support their interpretations with evidence from the text. We will explore how to create a classroom environment that values collaboration and accountability and will learn practical strategies such as questioning, structuring discussions, and requiring evidence-based responses.