Question 1
In reading comprehension, the strategy in which a reader moves the eyes quickly over a text to locate a specific fact such as a date, a price or a name is called
Strand 2 · Reading
English Language Year 3 Learner Material, Section 1: Stress and Disyllabic Words, Text Comprehension Strategies
They are methods that help you understand, remember, and respond to what you read. These strategies are especially helpful when reading stories, articles, or passages.
Text Comprehension Strategies are necessary for effective reading and understanding.
They help readers to actively engage with text and to apply knowledge, leading to better learning, critical thinking, and overall success in various aspects of life.
Importance of Text Comprehension Strategies
1. Text Comprehension Strategies enhance your understanding.
2. They help you to easily recall what has been read.
3. They help you to analyse information, which enhances critical thinking.
4. They ensure purposeful reading.
Comprehension Text Strategies
1. Skimming: This is generally a fast reading to get the general idea of a text.
2. Scanning: This involves looking for specific facts or details.
3. Prediction: This deals with guessing what might happen next, based on the clues in a text.
4. Inferring: It is reading between the lines using clues provided by the author or your knowledge of the subject and experiences.
5. Making Connections: This is linking what you read to
a. Your life (text-to-self)
b. Another book or story (text-to-text)
c. World issues (text-to-world)
6. Clarifying: It involves stopping to look at the context in which words or phrases have been used to make the meaning clearer.
How to Use These Strategies
1. Before Reading
a. Skim the text Quickly glance through the headings, subheadings and any pictures to get a sense of what the text is about. This helps your brain prepare for what you’re going to read.
b. Predict what it might be about Think about what you expect to learn or see in the text based on the title and clues.
Making predictions sets a purpose for reading and keeps you curious.
2. While Reading
a. Use scanning to find key points Move your eyes quickly across the text to pick out important names, dates or facts.
Scanning saves time and helps you locate specific details.
b. Infer meaning from clues Look for hints in the text, such as context words or examples, to figure out meanings you don’t know. This helps deepen understanding beyond what is directly stated.
c. Clarify confusing parts Pause to reread tricky sentences or look up unfamiliar words. Doing this prevents misunderstandings and keeps your reading smooth.
3. After Reading
a. Summarise the main ideas Briefly restate the most important points in your own words. Summarising shows you understood the text and can explain it simply.
b. Make connections to your life or knowledge Think about how the text relates to things you have experienced, studied, or heard about. Making these links strengthens memory and understanding.
c. Answer comprehension questions Respond to questions to check how well you understood the text. This step also helps you reflect on what you have read and fill any knowledge gaps.
Activity 1.4 Discussing the Importance of Text Comprehension Strategies In groups of three, discuss what text comprehension strategies are.
1. Discuss why Comprehension Text Strategies are important.
2. Share your ideas with members of a different group.
3. Do any members of the group have any other recommendations which might be useful?
Activity 1.5 Analysing Text Using Text Comprehension Strategies
In groups of four, do the following
1. Write down some Text Comprehension strategies on a sheet of paper and fold them.
2. Take turns picking the sheets and explain each of the strategies you pick.
3. Now, analyse the passage below. Each member of the group should pick a specific role:
a. The predictor
b. The Inferred
c. The summariser
d. The clarifier
4. Share your ideas on what the passage is about based on the specific roles you have with the class.
Passage: "A Day at Kejetia Market" Ama had always heard stories about the Kejetia Market in Kumasi, but she had never been there. One Saturday morning, her mother finally agreed to take her. As they boarded the trotro from Bantama, Ama’s heart raced with excitement.
When they arrived, Ama was amazed. The market was bigger than she had imagined— rows and rows of shops, stalls, and tables stretched out in every direction. Sellers called out in Twi, Ga, and Hausa, advertising tomatoes, yams, fish, and beautiful kente cloth.
Ama’s mother took her to buy fresh ingredients for Sunday’s fufu and light soup. At one stall, they bought red, juicy tomatoes. At another, a woman with a broad smile sold them fresh tilapia. Ama was surprised to learn that her mother could bargain so well—she managed to reduce the price of everything!
As they left the market, carrying heavy baskets, Ama felt tired but happy. She had not only helped her mother, but she had also learned something new about Ghana’s culture and how important markets like Kejetia are in people’s daily lives.
Now answer the following questions
a. Where is Kejetia Market located?
b. How did Ama and her mother get to the market?
c. What surprised Ama about her mother at the market?
d. Why did Ama feel happy at the end of the day?
e. Mention two languages spoken by the traders at the market.
f. Share your work with members of a different group and get feedback.
English Language Year 3 Learner Material, Section 7: Exploring Interviews, Speech Delivery Styles and Answering Comprehension Questions
Types of Comprehension Questions
It helps to establish the nature of the question being asked.
1. Literal Questions: These questions focus on facts directly stated in the text.
Example: What time did the event start?
2. Inferential Questions: These require the reader to read between the lines. You must make logical guesses based on the information given. Example: Why do you think the character left the house in a hurry?
3. Critical Level Questions: These go deeper to ask you to analyse, evaluate, or judge parts of the text.
a. Figures of Speech Questions: Test your understanding of similes, metaphors, personification, and so on.
Example: What figure of speech is used in the phrase ‘time is a thief’?
b. Vocabulary Questions: Ask you to find the meaning of words or phrases in context.
What does the word ‘grumbled’ mean in this sentence?
c. Literary Questions: Focus on literary elements like setting, theme, plot, or character.
Example: What is the main theme of the passage?
d. Attitudinal Questions: Explore the writer’s or character’s attitude or stance in the passage.
Example: What is the author’s attitude toward the government?
Revision of Comprehension Text Strategies and How to
Use Them
₁. _(Skimming): This means reading quickly to get the main idea of the text. You don’t read every word. Use skimming when you want to know what the passage is about in a short time.
2. Scanning: Scanning is when you move your eyes quickly over a text to find specific information. You don’t need to understand everything; just locate what you’re looking for. Use scanning when you are answering questions or searching for facts.
3. Prediction: This is when you guess what will happen next or what the text is about, using clues from the title, pictures, or what you’ve read so far. It helps prepare your mind to understand the story better.
4. Inferring: ‘Inferring’ means using clues in the text to figure out what is not directly said. You read between the lines and make smart guesses. Use inference when you need to understand a character’s feelings or the writer’s hidden message.
5. Summarising: This means taking the main ideas of a passage and writing them in your own words, in a short form. Do not copy whole sentences. Use summarising when you finish reading and want to show your understanding quickly.
6. Making Connections: This is when you connect the text to your life, other texts you’ve read, or things happening in the world. It helps you understand and remember what you read. Use it when a story reminds you of something familiar or personal.
7. Clarifying: This means stopping to make sure you understand what you are reading. You may re-read, ask a friend, or look up a difficult word. Use clarifying when you are confused by a sentence or a word in the passage.
Activity 7.6 Know Your Question Type
1. In a group of three, review and discuss comprehension question types.
2. In the same group, read the passage “Ama’s Journey Home” and the sample questions. Then, work together to:
a. Decide what type of comprehension question each one is.
b. Write one new example of your own for each type of comprehension question using the same passage.
c. Share your group’s answers and examples with the class.
Ama’s Journey Home
Ama walked slowly through the quiet village square, balancing a heavy basket of ripe mangoes on her head. She held the basket tightly with both hands to keep it steady. The afternoon sun beat down fiercely, and the heat made the air thick and uncomfortable.
Her feet ached from the long walk to the market earlier that morning, and the soles of her sandals were worn thin. Despite the discomfort, Ama pressed on, her eyes focused on the dusty path ahead.
All around her, the village was alive with familiar sights and sounds—children laughing in the distance, chickens scratching the earth near mud houses, and elders sitting in the shade, telling stories. But Ama wasn’t distracted. She had one goal in mind: to get home to her little brothers. They had been waiting all day for her return, and she knew how excited they would be to see the mangoes she had brought for them.
As she neared the small compound where they lived, a tired but proud smile spread across her face. She imagined their joyful cheers and couldn’t wait to share the fruit with them. In that moment, Ama knew that every step she had taken was worth it.
Comprehension Questions
a. What was Ama carrying on her head during her walk through the village?
b. How do you think Ama felt about bringing the mangoes home to her brothers?
c. What do Ama’s actions tell you about her personality?
d. What can we learn from Ama’s journey and attitude?
e. Which sentence in the passage shows that Ama was determined?
f. How would you describe the setting of the story?
Activity 7.7 Using Comprehension Strategies to Understand Texts
1. Choose a partner and review the different comprehension strategies listed at the beginning of this section.
2. Explain how each of the strategies helps you understand a text better.
3. In your group, explain how using comprehension strategies helps you to answer comprehension questions more accurately.
4. In your group, read the comprehension texts below.
5. Discuss the main idea and what type of comprehension questions might be asked for each text.
6. Share your answers with the class.
Text Reading is more than just a school requirement—it is a lifelong skill that shapes the way we think, speak and learn. People who read regularly often develop a better understanding of language, gain new vocabulary, and become better at expressing their thoughts both in speaking and writing. Reading books, articles, or even short stories can spark creativity, improve imagination, and increase general knowledge.
Through reading, we are able to travel beyond our immediate environment. We can learn about people, places, and situations we might never experience ourselves. Books can take us into history, science, and faraway countries without ever leaving our seats. For example, by reading a novel set in ancient Egypt, a student may learn about pyramids, culture, and life in that time. In this way, reading builds cultural awareness and empathy for others.
Students who read frequently tend to perform better in class because they understand questions more easily and are better at explaining their answers. Reading also helps in subjects like social studies, science, and even mathematics, where understanding word problems is also important. It develops thinking skills such as analysing, predicting, and comparing.
In addition, reading helps build concentration, patience, and focus—skills that are useful not only in school but in life. Spending just 15 to 20 minutes reading every day can lead to great improvement in academic progress. Whether you’re reading for fun or for schoolwork, building a reading habit is one of the best things any learner can do to prepare for a successful and confident future.
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