Tompkins Comprehension Skills

I really found Tompkins' chapter on Facilitating Student's Comprehension very interesting and understandable. I loved how Tompkins discussed how important it is for students to understand the different factors of texts in order to develop better comprehension. These text factors included reading, phonics, strategies, vocabulary, writing, and spelling. For example, by having a good vocabulary and content knowledge students will be able to understand and better comprehend what they are in fact reading. When I work with my focal student, Sarah, in field she understands what she reads because she has acquired a strong vocabulary through extensive reading and writing. In the past I have worked with students who did not read often or write on their own, when they would read they would come to a lot of words they did not understand. They would omit these words and then over time as they read, they would omit so many they could not comprehend what was being said or told. I think by having students develop these skills they will have better overall comprehension. In my field classroom the students read and write everyday. They peer edit stories, read aloud to their peers, are read to, and are constantly practicing these skills.