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Introduction to Lesson # RDG A-01
"Introduction to Reading with Comprehension"


By Kathy Moeller,
Founder, BRAIN BOOK® System,
Copyright 2001, BRAIN BOOK® System, All Rights Reserved. Duplication (paper) or transfer (electronic) without written permission of the copyright owner is prohibited.

Description of Lesson
This is the first of a series of lessons on effective reading following a brain injury. For those of us who have had a brain injury - even a so-called "mild" brain injury - chances are that we do not process language, including written language, in precisely the same way we did before our brain cells got rearranged. This lesson will help those who find reading problematic as a result of memory and other cognitive impairment. The lesson demonstrates a reading method for writing SUMMARY STATEMENTS for each paragraph. It also demonstrates how to use these SUMMARY STATEMENTS to review materials and study for tests.

The principles can be apply to a wide range of non-fiction reading material - from a simple, short newspaper article to a longer professional article or college textbook.

How This Lesson Relates to Recovery from Brain Injury
Brain injury often affects the way a person processes language

For example, we may struggle with understanding oral language (what others say to us). We may know the words but miss the overall meaning. We may get the details but miss the "big picture". We can know this is happening if others routinely tell us that we are not "getting it" (what they are trying to communicate).

Or, we may have difficulty finding words to describe what we want to communicate (this is often referred to as having "word-finding problems"). If, in our pre-injury lives, we were used to understanding others and communicating effectively with them, all this new "feedback" can be disturbing. We may not even trust that others are telling us the truth!

Truth be told, if many/most of the people whom we trust tell us that following our brain injury, we sometimes misunderstand (or "mis-hear") what they tell us, chances are that the problem lies with our brain not working the way we expect it to. Often, our new brains are playing cruel tricks on us.

The same kind of thing can occur when we try to read again.

Particularly if we do not have problems decoding written language (we know what the words mean), when we get to the end of a chapter or article and cannot tell others (or ourselves) what we read, we begin to wonder. If we can stop expecting our brains to work they way they used to, and instead, learn some new strategies, we can start to read again - with both understanding and retention.

People who use the method described in this lesson report to us that they can effectively read newspapers, magazine articles and even complex college textbook material.

Introduction to Lesson # RDG A-01
"Introduction to Reading with Comprehension"


Preparation: Getting your tools ready
It is important to prepare carefully before starting on this exercise. We recommend that you print the documents listed below, and have a pencil and eraser ready to use. Also, it is best to be in a well, naturally lit area with no visual distractions (incandescent light or natural light is best).

We are defining "tools" as follows:
· 20 sheets of tan-colored paper
· 20 sheets of yellow-colored paper
· printout of the reading material (on tan-colored paper)
· printout of "Teacher's SUMMARY STATEMENTS" for reference (on yellow-colored paper)
· writing instrument (pencil and eraser).


Click here to print out the reading material (print on tan-colored paper)

Click here to print out Teacher's SUMMARY STATEMENTS (print on yellow-colored paper)

"Effective Reading" defined
 For the purpose of this lesson, we define "effective reading" as the ability to effectively perform the following processes:

(1) decode written language (by recognizing letters and words and knowing what they mean);

(2) understand meanings of words and sentences (by knowing what the writer intended to say when he or she wrote a particular sentence);

(5) ability to tell someone else what the writer intended to say and support interpretation with examples;

(6) ability to retrieve significant information about the written material at a later time (typically referred to as "remembering what you read")

BRAIN BOOK® System Method: Writing SUMMARY STATEMENTS
The method we teach is a structured, mechanical method for writing SUMMARY STATEMENTS after reading paragraphs of selected material. These SUMMARY STATEMENTS provide the anchor for the person to navigate the material in order to both comprehend and retain it.

For this method to be successful, while still in the learning phase, it is recommended that non-fiction reading material that is no longer than 12-15 paragraphs in length be selected.

Objective of Lesson
 After completing this lesson, you should be able to apply the steps to reading a wide range of non-fiction materials. When you have mastered the method, you can expect to be able to read non-fiction material up to 25 paragraphs in length (for example, a chapter in a typical college-level textbook), and tell others what you have read. Using your Summary Statement notes to prepare, you can be expected to be able to discuss the material (and possibly pass tests on it), after some time has passed.

To actually do this exercise, the following steps are
suggested:

1. Using tan-colored paper print out the reading selection so you can read it on paper, but also follow instructions on the screen.

2. Take your time and do each step without pressure to finish quickly.

This exercise can be expected to take up to several hours.


To do this lesson properly, please read from the text you printed out tan paper. The following is for reference only.

Step #1: Read the first paragraph from "How I Spent My Summer Vacation"

Paragraph #1
"How I Spent My Summer Vacation"
By Kathy Moeller
The summer of 1972 was perhaps my best summer ever! In May of 1972 I was a Sophomore in college. I had worked part-time during my first two years of college, and had moved back into my parent's home that Spring so I could save extra money for my first trip to Europe. I had spent a lot of time planning the trip and was very excited! My plan was to go to the Goethe Institute in Passau, Germany, spend six weeks there improving my German and then spend the rest of the summer traveling in Germany and Austria. I had also arranged to go to Salzburg, Austria, to attend another school and visit the Salzburg Music Festival later that summer.


Step #2: Look at the reading selection you printed out on tan-colored paper, and see the heading, "Write paragraph SUMMARY STATEMENTS here" (on right side of page)

Step #3: Under this heading, write a SUMMARY STATEMENT for Paragraph #1."

Step #4: Compare the SUMMARY STATMENT you wrote to the "Teacher's SUMMARY STATEMENT" which you printed out on yellow-colored paper (a copy is below):

Teacher's SUMMARY STATEMENT for Paragraph #1
Kathy's best summer was in 1972, when she went to Germany between her second and third year in college.


Step #5: Look at the SUMMARY STATEMENT you wrote for paragraph #1, compare it to the Teacher's SUMMARY STATEMENT for paragraph #1, and make adjustments to your SUMMARY STATEMENT, if warranted.

Step #6: Before reading Paragraph #2, re-read your SUMMARY STATEMENT for Paragraph #1, then…

Step #7: Read Paragraph #2

Paragraph #2
The trip started out well enough, though the flight was very long. When I got off the plane, I learned that I had a long train ride in front of me too. Prior to taking this trip, I had not had many opportunities to travel, so I did not plan the trip very well. Besides packing too many things, I had not anticipated such a trip without a rest stop. Between the plane trip and the train ride, I ended up traveling for over 24 hours straight! I also learned, the hard way, if you want to travel great distances with several large suitcases, they would be best equipped with rollers. Mine were not, and I only made it to Passau with the help of some very kind strangers. When I finally arrived at my destination, I collapsed in exhaustion.


Step #8: On your tan printout, write a SUMMARY STATEMENT for Paragraph #2 under "SUMMARY STATEMENTS" heading on right side of page.

Step #9: Look at the SUMMARY STATEMENT you wrote for paragraph #2, compare it to the Teacher's SUMMARY STATEMENT for paragraph #2, and make adjustments to your SUMMARY STATEMENT, if warranted.

Teacher's SUMMARY STATEMENT for Paragraph #2
In hindsight, Kathy felt she did not plan the trip well (too many of the wrong kind of suitcases, poor planning with the train ride)


Step #10: Before reading Paragraph #3, re-read your SUMMARY STATEMENT for Paragraph #1 and #2. Copies are on your screen for convience.

SUMMARY #1
Kathy's best summer was in 1972, when she had planned a trip to Europe (Germany) between her second and third year of college.
SUMMARY #2
In hindsight, Kathy felt she did not plan the trip well (too many of the wrong kind of suitcases, poor planning with the train ride)

Step #11: Now read paragraph #3.

Paragraph #3
The Goethe Institute is a language school that offers intensive instruction in German. The brochure stated that you would "live with a family" so you could be totally immersed in the language. Much to my surprise, the family I was assigned to ran a bakery downtown and they rented rooms to the school for its students. I did not live in their quarters and had virtually no contact with them! After recovering from the trip, I realized that I would be virtually on my own. Besides being disappointed, I was terribly homesick


Step #12: On your tan print out, write a SUMMARY STATEMENT for paragraph #3 under "SUMMARY STATEMENTS" heading.

Step #13: Look at the SUMMARY STATEMENT you wrote for paragraph #3, compare it to the Teacher's SUMMARY STATEMENT for paragraph #3, and make adjustments to your SUMMARY STATEMENT, if warranted.

Step #14: Read SUMMARY STATEMENTS #1, #2 and #3, then read paragraph #4 (on your tan print out)

Step #15: Follow the steps outlined above in order to write a SUMMARY STATMENT for paragraph #4.

Step #16: Follow the procedure outlined above for paragraphs #5 through #9

SUMMARY

After you have completed writing SUMMARY STATEMENTS for all nine paragraphs in this lesson, you should be able to read through all your SUMMARY STATEMENTS and know what the article was about. You should be able to summarize it, as well as know important details.

Some readers will need to refer to their SUMMARY STATEMENTS in order to do this. Others will not. The amount of information you retain will depend on many factors, including the severity of you short-term memory impairment.

Do not be surprised if it may take several repetitions before information “sticks.” Across-the-board, re-reading SUMMARY STATEMENTS is generally far more effective than re-reading the actual material. It also improves the odds for retaining information in an organized way. The reason is that each SUMMARY STATEMENT provides the basis (a kind of “grounding”) upon which subsequent material can be linked.

If you learn to read and take notes this way, you will be able to prepare more effectively for taking tests where you need to retrieve both the “big picture” and the detail from information you read. BRAIN BOOK students have reported to us that this reading method is effective for reading a wide range of materials, including newspaper articles, magazine articles and even complex materials such as college textbooks and medical books.

If you are a college student, or if your work requires you to read material that is more complex than this lesson, please e-mail Kathy Moeller and request additional assistance. BRAIN BOOK System has developed more sophisticated ways to organize complex reading material, and even though it could not be shared in this particular lesson, this information can be provided.




FEEDBACK

Your feedback on this lesson is welcome. So are suggestions for future lessons. Please send a personal e-mail message to Kathy Moeller at KathyM@brainbook.com. To send general feedback to BRAIN BOOK System, write to: FEEDBACK@brainbook.com.
By Kathy Moeller,
Founder, BRAIN BOOK® System,
Copyright 2001, BRAIN BOOK® System, All Rights Reserved. Duplication (paper) or transfer (electronic) without written permission of the copyright owner is strictly prohibited.