Determining Importance in Non-Fictional Texts is one difficult task for my students. They have been taught how to determine main idea and supporting details; yet, they continue to struggle with determining the most important ideas within a text.  I often ask myself: Why do we drill the same skills such as main idea, over and over in our students? Why do students have to master this skill? According to Harvey and Goudvis, students must learn how to determine important information because “nonfiction fuel kids’ curiosity, enticing them to read more, dig deeper, and search for answers to compelling questions. When kids read and understand nonfiction, they build background for the topic and acquire new knowledge. The ability to identify essential ideas and salient information is a prerequisite to developing insight” (2007, p 156).  This is skills we teach our students on a daily basis, especially those who with less privilege households.

As I explored chapter ten in our course text, I realized I had already been using the strategies for teaching non-fiction texts to our students. The book recommends focusing on text features such as captions, visuals, vocabulary, headings, and titles (Harvey & Goudvis, 2007). Some of the tips suggested are: “Looking carefully at the first and last line of each paragraph, noticing signal words and phrases, illustrations and photographs, among others “(Harvey & Goudvis, 2007).  I utilize a strategy called THIEVES which I learned in my first year of teaching that focuses on “stealing” information in order to make predictions as to what the chapter or book is going to regard. Each letter stands for one text feature and reminds students what to look for as they begin a new chapter on their content area textbooks or personal book.  T: TITLE, H: HEADING, I: INFORMATION, E: EVERY FIRST SENTENCE IN EACH PARAGRAPH, V: VISUALS AND VOCABULARY, E: END OF CHAPTER QUESTIONS, and S: SUMMARY.  I have made bookmarks for students to utilize when reading to assist them referring to it as needed. Prior to utilizing this strategy, I introduce it to the students by explaining and modeling each initial. Next, students and I practice how to use THIEVES and make predictions about the text. The more we do it, the more students get comfortable with the strategy and also any text. At the beginning I devote my guided reading and whole group instruction on any content area to scaffold by doing with the students.  As they become proficient, I listen and observe how they use it in their daily practice, especially during centers or guided reading.  

 While this method could be used with elementary students, it can be certainly implemented with middle and high school students. I have only used it with fifth graders during reading intervention time as well as in Social Studies and Science. I find THIEVES to be effective as it helps students organized their thinking process. Additionally, it guides them in learning information step by step. Even those struggling students have been successful with THIEVES as it allows them to at least make predictions about the text.

Two of the lessons I really enjoyed learning about in this chapter were: Building Background Knowledge of Non-fiction Features and Becoming Familiar with the Characteristics of Nonfiction Trade Books. Both of these lessons promotes the mastery of identifying and utilizing text features such as captions, graphics, photographs, in order to determine important information within the text. While these lessons are too basic for my fifth grade students, I can use them to scaffold the process of becoming familiar with text features, especially in the primary levels. When students create their own learning artifacts such as their own non-fiction text, they easily store and thus, recall that knowledge. Students acquire real information by creating captions, illustrations, as well as comparing and contrasting through images and real pictures.

Harvey, S. & Goudvis A. (2007) Strategies that work: Teaching Comprehension for Understanding and Engagement (2^nd Ed). Porstmouth: NH. Stenhouse Publishers.