To encourage my young students to reflect on and talk about the mystery stories they are reading, I plan to use the following strategies suggested by Linda Hoyt in her book entitled Revisit, Reflect, Retell.
Oral Retelling
Because there is a significant correspondence between oral language and reading comprehension, teachers need to encourage their students to talk about the stories they are reading. By conversing about what they have read, young readers can better reflect on the meaning of a given passage, measure their own understanding of what they have read, clarify their thoughts and, equally important, consider the perspectives that other readers in their group bring to the discussion.
The first strategy is called "V.I.P." (Very Important Points). As the students read the story (or the chapter) they are to mark points of interest or confusion with thin strips of sticky note paper. For our purposes, as we are reading mysteries, I would add the challenge of marking the clues as they find them in the story. At the post-reading session the students in the group would refer to the points they have marked and talk about why they marked them, comparing and clarifying ideas with the others. This strategy will aid them in reflecting on and summarizing what they have read.
A second activity that encourages young readers to reflect on their reading is entitled "Alphaboxes." In this strategy students select words from the text that represent important points in the story. They work in pairs as they gather these words and later insert them under the appropriate letter (A-Z) laid out on a form (worksheet or large chart). A discussion ensues in which readers talk about the selected words and their relation to the story.
To gain a better understanding of character development and, for our purposes, what attributes a good detective has, there are a number of strategies offered by Linda Hoyt. One of them is entitled "Evaluating Attributes." As a before-reading activity, the teacher will ask the students to list the attributes of a good detective and list them on chart paper. After reading the story, students will evaluate whether or not the detective in the story possessed these traits and mark + or - next to each listed trait. A final charting of Nate the Great might look like this:
The Good Detective's Checklist
Before Reading
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After Reading
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Takes notes
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-
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Watches carefully
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+
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Considers all clues
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+
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Is not afraid of danger
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+
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Doesn't give up easily
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+
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Works with a trusted partner
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-
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A second related activity entitled "My Character and Me" asks the students to select a character from the story and compare him/her to themselves. A Venn Diagram (two linking circles) could be used as they list and compare the similarities and differences in their traits, interests, and ways of doing things. A discussion about how they may have handled particular situations in the story differently could also take place.
Continuing our look at character development, a strategy called "Just Like" calls upon the students to extend their comparisons beyond themselves to other people. In this activity he/she considers the traits of a selected character. They consider whether a particular trait of the character is possessed by themselves, by someone they know or by another story character. Included in this activity could be a comparison of other detectives they have read about. A sample following this format might look like this:
Nate The Great
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4
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Traits
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Like Myself?
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Like someone I know?
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Like a
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story character
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I know?
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Observant
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+
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my mom
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Sebastian
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Curious
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+
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my baby brother
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Meg
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Patient
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-
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my teacher
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The Fox
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that ate the
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Ginger-
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bread Man
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A final strategy under the heading of oral retelling is called the "Storytelling Glove" and involves the oral retelling of the story focusing on its main elements: characters, setting, problem, events, solution and theme. These elements can be written on a white garden glove and the wearer retells the story being sure to include all these points.
Written retelling
Writing after and in response to reading increases a young reader's understanding of what he/she has read and helps develop his/her long-term memory. Similar to oral retells, they also serve as instructional and assessment tools. Both are essential components of an effective reading/writing program.
Interactive journals offer both the emergent and more fluent writer the opportunity to write or draw about what they think of a story they have read. Students work in pairs and after completing their entry they talk about it and then trade journals. On the following blank page they are to respond to their partner's work. This can take the form of sharing thoughts, adding new ideas or expressing a different opinion. Together they can then talk about their responses.
A second written strategy entitled "My Character Says" helps young readers step into the shoes of a story character and take on their point of view. Again, this activity is done in pairs. One student begins by writing a question for his/her partner who has 'become' the story character to answer. He/she writes a response and back and forth they go writing, not talking, about the story's events as seen through the eyes of one of its characters.
A third strategy involves groups of three or four and is entitled "Pass Around Retells." In this activity a signal is given and each member of the group begins writing a retell of the story on his/her own paper. When the timer rings, the papers are passed to the right and each student reads what has been written so far and then continues the story's retelling from that point. This process continues until sufficient time has been given for complete retellings to be written.