AVReading May
"Comparing Texts" Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take. Common Core Reading Standard #9 is another indicator of how our standards for reading have become more complex. Whereas traditional reading has emphasized the comprehension of a single text as a “stand alone,” today’s standards are asking students to read “across” texts to analyze, synthesize, and evaluate ideas. The good news is that this practice challenges students to think more deeply about their readings. The bad news is that it requires a considerably more complex cognitive task-- namely that readers will have to hold two ideas in their heads at one time: the text they are currently reading and the text of the other reading. For the struggling reader, this will be pretty difficult, and teachers will have to help them navigate between the two texts. So the question is how can we do this? For starters, reader...