Learning to pay attention to your mind while you read allows for deeper understanding and deciphering of complex text.

http://www.readwritethink.org/

When you read, your mind is constantly making decisions. If you don't 'get it' your mind will stop and question the problem, allowing you to apply FIX IT strategies.

When you do 'get it', your mind SPARKS - or makes predictions, connections, visualizations, questions, and inferences.

Look into your crystal ball and predict what might happen in the future.

Hypothesize.

Test-to-self connections create a personal bond and include the senses.

Text-to-world connections relate to what you know from history, current events, media, or research.

When you connect the current text to another text, you can discriminate differences and build a repertoire of experiences.

Descriptive writing allows us to create a picture in our minds.

When you utilize multiple senses and experiences, a movie is actively playing while you read.

Reporter questions answer knowledge base questions- who - what- when- where- why- how.

Author's craft questions beg an understanding of inspiration, stylistic choices, and structure variations.

Inferential questions indicate a higher level of thinking, stretching understanding.

"Text clues" + background knowledge = inference

Inferences take the reader beyond what is explicitly stated and allow us to decipher connotations, mood and motivation.

A good summary includes all parts of a plot, the themes and motifs, and the style choices the author made.

A summary does NOT include your opinion.

Synthesis allows us to start with the summary of text and analyze discussion, research, media input, cultural values, symbolism, and purpose to create our own understanding - an idea that is fully unique to every reader.