Signposts in Fiction

I have a weakness for buying professional books, which I think publishers like Heinemann and Stenhouse can sniff out a mile away. I have a lovely collection of these books, and each year I vow not to buy any more. I never quite make that a reality, but I have gotten my buying down to one or two books per year, and the rest I try to read online. How can I do this, you may ask? The publishers will usually publish a chapter or two on-line, and sometimes you can read the whole book for free. That’s what I did with Notice and Note: Strategies for Close Reading by Kyleen Beers and Robert E. Probst (Heinemann, 2013). http://www.heinemann.com/products/E04693.aspx

Close reading seems to be one of the new,  hot topics in reading, and I know next to nothing about what it entails, so I was happy to look through the sample chapters provided online.  Beers and Probst talk about reading a wide sample of grade level literature, and noticing some repeating patterns that writers use. They called them “signposts in fiction”, and I thought they were very helpful.  I typed them up for kids to glue into their reading notebooks, but I also had these signposts up on a flipchart everyday during our read aloud book. I tried to be aware of them as I read, so I could model how a reader might use these signposts to help them better understand the text.  Here they are, as copied right from Notice and Note:

1. Contrasts and Contradictions: Is the character suddenly doing something different from what we’ve come to expect? Ask why.

2. Aha Moment: When the character suddenly realizes something – what caused that realization?

3. Word to the Wise: Messages from older, wiser characters. What message are they giving?

4. Again and Again: What activities are repeated? Are there things characters say over and over? What is the author trying to tell you through these repetitions?

5. Memory Moment: When the character remembers something, what are they remembering? How does it help the story?

6. Tough Questions: When the character asks him- or herself questions about what they’re doing – it often reveals what their internal struggle is.

Using these signposts brought a new level to our reading discussions, and when I had kids independently use them in their own reading, I found their thinking being pushed as they tried to decide which signposts they were noticing, and how it helped their understanding of the book.

I’m taking a class in early August on close reading, so I will see how that adds to my understanding of the process, but I recommend trying out the signposts and seeing what you think!