advance, provide appropriate levels of scaffolding and
accommodations, select texts carefully, observe their
students during the read aloud, and adjust their teaching
accordingly.
The quality of the texts used for read alouds matters.
Informational texts are rich in content, contain both
domain-specific and general academic vocabulary,
and are interesting to young children. Narrative texts
contain an abundance of general academic vocabulary,
are entertaining, and provide multiple opportunities for
students to make inferences. They tell great stories,
promote reflection and conversation about ideas and
events, lend themselves to rich retellings, and are so
engaging that children want to experience them over and over again (Beck and McKeown 2001).
Questions posed during and after teacher read alouds not only focus on literal comprehension
(e.g., Who are the characters? What is the setting?), they also promote deeper student thinking and
extended discussions and provide opportunities for children to retell, infer, and elaborate (e.g., How
does Lilly feel about her little brother after he is born? How do you know?). Teachers observe how
students use comprehension strategies and how they develop understandings about content and
language during read aloud experiences.
When teachers read aloud texts that contain complex grammatical and discourse structures and
academic vocabulary, young children are provided access to language and content that they are
not yet able to interact with in written form themselves. Children who are not yet fluent readers
are then free to focus their mental energy on the language and ideas presented in the text. They
learn vocabulary, grammatical structures, and discourse practices as they gain familiarity with high-
quality literature and acquire content knowledge. These experiences help prepare them to read rich
and complex texts independently as they progress through the grades. Figures 3.5 and 3.6 present
examples of the rich language found in many high-quality literary and informational texts.
Figure 3.5. Selected Academic Vocabulary and Complex Grammatical Structures from
Rumpelstiltskin by Paul O. ZelinskyGeneral Academic
Vocabulary Complex Grammatical Structuresencountered
impress
passion
slightest
delighted
rejoiced
scarcely
piteously
inquiries- Now, the king had a passion for gold, and such an art intrigued
him. - There sat the poor miller’s daughter, without the slightest idea
how anyone could spin straw into gold. - So he led the miller’s daughter to a larger room filled with straw,
and he ordered her to spin this straw too before dawn, if she
valued her life.
To ensure that read alouds
are optimally beneficial for all
children, teachers plan high-
quality lessons in advance, provide
appropriate levels of scaffolding
and accommodations, select texts
carefully, observe their students
during the read aloud, and adjust
their teaching accordingly.144 | Chapter 3 Transitional Kindergarten to Grade 1