MAKING CONNECTION WITH TEXT

Making Connections with Text

Making connections with text is imperative to successfully comprehending a story. It makes reading real and encourages children to become independent and successful readers. There are three ways to make connections with text: text-to-text, text-to-self and text-to-world. Making text-to-text connections is when students relate the text they are reading with one they have previously read. Making text-to-self-connections is when students relate the text they are reading with their own personal experiences. Lastly, making text-to-world connections is when students connect the text they are reading with events going on in the world, outside of their own experiences.

At Jill Abrams Tutoring, we help students make connections by asking them specific questions that parents can also use at home to help students make connections.

When trying to get students to make text-to-text connections, we can ask questions such as:

• How does this story remind you of other stories you’ve read?

• Have you read about anything like this before?

• Is this story similar/different than other stories you’ve read?

When trying to get students to make text-to-self connections, we can ask questions such as:

• What does this story remind you of in your life?

• Has something like this ever happened to you or anyone you know?

• Can you relate to any of the characters in the story?

When trying to get students to make text-to-world connections, we can ask questions such as:

• What does this remind you of in the real world?

• Have you heard of any current events that are similar to this story?

• How does this story relate to the world around you?

Helping build connections at home while reading can be extremely useful to aiding students’ comprehension. Parents can use the questions above to help your child make reading real, help they enjoy reading, and help them make connections.