Make Science Reading Fun and Meaningful in Middle School!

by Teresa Null, Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy Middle School, Cincinnati, Ohio

Ten years ago I was fresh out of college and excited to begin my first teaching job. I was full of new and innovative ideas about how I was going to change the world with my unique approaches to teaching science at the secondary level. You know the kind of ideas that make some veteran teachers cringe and say, "How sweet. We'll see how she feels by second semester." I am now myself an experienced teacher. I have taught all secondary grade levels in a wide variety of settings. My early idealism and the reality of the challenges of "real-world" teaching have blended into a love for helping children to learn that is as fresh today as the first day I stepped into the classroom.

One aspect of teaching science for which I was not really prepared is my role as a reading teacher. I suppose I assumed that the reading comprehension strategies learned by my students in language arts would miraculously reveal themselves while students read their science assignments. I definitely realized my students needed help when I became a SEPUP (Science Education for Public Understanding Program) teacher eight years ago. The SEPUP units that I teach are each based on a storyline that students build on during several weeks of learning. Students are expected to relate ideas and concepts throughout the entire unit in order to solve a problem or issue. There is much reading involved, both fictional and scientific. I have learned to incorporate various literacy strategies in order to help my seventh graders comprehend and remember what they have read.

One of my favorite methods is a variation of reciprocal teaching, which is a literacy strategy suggested by the authors of SEPUP. This method works especially well at the start of a unit when a scientific storyline is being established. It will also work well when beginning a traditional textbook chapter or when reading a scientific article. Whatever the case, the reading should be at least five to six paragraphs in length.

Each of my classes is divided into six cooperative learning teams during the entire school year. I begin the reciprocal teaching process by assigning a paragraph or two of the reading to each of the cooperative teams. It is their job to read the assigned paragraphs aloud within their team and to determine the following information about their part of the reading:

1. What is the main idea of the paragraph(s)?
2. Which words or phrases are confusing and need to be clarified?
3. Predict what you think will happen later in the reading or the unit of study.
4. Come up with one question that you want to have answered that is related to the reading.

This process will take at least 15 minutes, depending on the length and difficulty of the reading and also the ability level of the students. After all teams are finished, they come together as a class for discussion. Each team will quickly and informally present its information in the order of the assigned paragraphs. The teacher is the facilitator of the discussion and records important information on chart paper that will be displayed in the classroom for the remainder of that unit of study. I usually record two different pieces of information on two separate pieces of chart paper. One is for words and phrases that need clarification, and the other is for the questions that the students wish to have answered. I then display these on the wall of my classroom and refer to them often throughout the unit. Not all of the words are defined that day, nor are questions answered right away. As students participate in the activities and labs of the unit, many of the confusing words and phrases are clarified and student questions get answered. However, this reading strategy really sets the stage for the upcoming unit of study.

This process, of course, does not work perfectly the first time that students are asked to try it. It can be intimidating to the team reader(s), and many students are hesitant at first to admit that something may have confused them about the reading. What I now do is model the process for the students the first time or two that I want them to use this strategy. I "assign" myself the first section of the reading and use the strategy as I read it aloud in front of the class. I pretend I am on one of the teams and I am the reader. I then ask the class if someone would like to try the next paragraph and model reciprocal teaching for the class. There is always at least one brave soul in the class to give it a try! Once that first student tries it, a few others are usually willing to model the strategy for the class. By the end of first quarter, my cooperative teams are able to do this on their own. Of course, I always circulate throughout the room to encourage and guide my students during the process.

What have been the results of implementing this reading strategy? The greatest change I have observed is that students remember what we have read and so are better able to make connections and draw important conclusions throughout the unit. Many times during an activity or lab, one of my students will exclaim, "Mrs. Null, we just found the answer to that question we asked a couple of weeks ago!" The question is still posted on the wall from the time when we used reciprocal teaching to read the introductory material. This then generates rich and valuable class discussion. Also, what could have been a boring homework reading assignment, which too many students would have ignored, turns into an engaging experience with reading for both my students and me!

Teresa Null is a seventh grade science teacher at Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy Middle School. She has been a science teacher for 10 years. She has taught physical geology at the high school level and has taught both seventh and eighth grade science at the middle school level.

Return to top