Share and Compare


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40 Best-practices
Instructional Strategies
Procedures: After reading a selection, have students write a summary of the main ideas revealed in the text. After writing their summaries, have students “share and compare” their work with a partner. Post questions students can refer to during their sharing time: “How are the summaries alike and different?” “What ideas did I include or omit that is different from yours?” “Why did you omit this part that I included in my summary?” “Do you think I changed or omitted essential ideas?” “If we put our ideas together, how would the summary change?” “How did you organize the information in your summary?” “What text features did you use to help a reader: title, subtitle, headings, bold or italicized print, font choices, spacing, indenting, etc.?”

Example: After reading this article that describes the nesting habits of robins, list five key points revealed in the text. Share your five key points with a partner. Compare your lists. Which ideas are on both lists? Which ideas are different? Write a new list of key ideas with your partner. Come to a consensus about which ideas are essential for the list.

Variations: Invite students to use the “Share and Compare” technique to identify essential details in a selection read by the class. Use the strategy when students read different selections on the same topic.

Beading Strategies: Identify Main Ideas and Support Details, Summarize Information, Paraphrase Ideas, Synthesize Information, Make Generalizations, Make Connections, Build Vocabulary, Draw Conclusions, Activate Prior Knowledge