~SMEKENS - Teach Reading with Explicit, Whole-Class Instruction (K-12) - Presented by Shona Lansdell

Before asking students to dive into discussions about texts, teachers need to do the heavy lifting by delivering focused mini-lessons on specific comprehension skills. This is the first step in gradual release—I do; you watch and listen. The teacher must explain which text details are relevant for a particular comprehension skill. The teacher must model how to put thoughts together via think alouds. The teacher must demonstrate the inference process—all without the help of the children.