6 Effective Scaffolding Ideas for Struggling Readers

This article is the second in a four-part blog series to unlock the power of instructional scaffolds for reading intervention.  Read the first part  Unlocking Potential: Supporting Struggling Readers with Scaffolds, to learn what instructional scaffolds are and what research tells us about them. This article delves into six specific scaffolding ideas for struggling readers to improve instruction.

In this article, we delve into six specific instructional scaffolding techniques that teachers can use to enhance reading intervention for their students. By implementing these techniques, educators can provide targeted support and scaffolding to struggling readers during high-impact tutoring. By incorporating these techniques into their teaching, educators can help struggling readers develop the skills and confidence they need to become proficient readers.

1. Explicit Instruction: Explicit instruction involves breaking down complex reading skills or processes into smaller, more manageable parts. Teachers can use explicit instruction to give students clear, step-by-step directions on completing a reading task or skill. For example, a teacher might use explicit instruction to teach students how to identify the main idea of a text by modeling the process of identifying and summarizing key details.
2. Graphic Organizers: Graphic organizers are visual tools that help students organize and connect information. Teachers can use graphic organizers to help struggling readers make connections between different text parts, such as the main idea, supporting details, and text features. For example, a teacher might use a graphic organizer to help students identify a story’s problem, solution, and characters.
3. Think-Alouds: Think-alouds involve the teacher modeling their own thinking processes as they read a text. Teachers can use think-alouds to demonstrate how they monitor their understanding of a text, make predictions, ask questions, and draw inferences. Think-alouds can help struggling readers develop their metacognitive skills and become more aware of how they process information as they read.
4. Chunking: Chunking involves breaking down larger reading assignments into smaller, more manageable sections. Teachers can use chunking to help struggling readers build their stamina for reading longer texts or to provide opportunities for students to practice specific reading skills. For example, a teacher might chunk a longer text into smaller sections and provide explicit instruction and support for each section.
5. Sentence Starters: Sentence starters are prompts that help students begin writing or speaking responses to a text. Teachers can use sentence starters to provide struggling readers with a scaffold for expressing their thoughts and ideas. For example, a teacher might use sentence starters like “I think the main idea is…” or “One detail that stood out to me was…” to help students get started with a writing or discussion task.
6. Peer Collaboration: Peer collaboration involves pairing students to work together on reading tasks or activities. Teachers can use peer collaboration to provide struggling readers additional support and scaffolding while promoting social interaction and collaboration. For example, a teacher might pair a struggling reader with a more proficient reader to work on a shared reading task or have students work in pairs to complete a graphic organizer or discussion task.

These are just a few examples of instructional scaffolding ideas for struggling readers that teachers can use during high-impact tutoring. Teachers can help struggling readers develop the skills and confidence they need to become proficient by providing targeted support and scaffolding.

Read the third article in the series:

5 Supports for Readers in Virtual Learning Environments