Beginning in third grade, students need to learn strategies for answering multiple choice and fill-in-the-blank questions. Here is a five-part strategy which works.
First, read the questions, not the selection. That way, as you read the selection, you already know what the questions are and you might find answers.
Second, as you read the questions, circle key words. Now find those same key words in the selection and circle them there. Read the sentence or two before the circled words and the sentence or two after to be sure you have the right answer.
Third, underline the correct answer. Next to the underline write the number of the question in case you need to go back later to check.
Fourth, in multiple choice questions, cross out any wrong answers. Don’t let them distract you. Usually one or two are obviously wrong, and the two left are pretty close to the right answer. But one of those is usually better.
Fifth, figure out the main idea. Almost always one question asks for the main idea. The question might ask, “What was this reading passage about?” Or it might ask, “What could be another name for this story?” To find out, reread the title or headline. Reread the first paragraph, and especially if you are reading nonfiction, reread the last sentence of the first paragraph. Or sometimes the main idea can be found in the last paragraph where the passage might be summarized. Still don’t know? Look for key words throughout the passage, words that are repeated.
comicphonics for early readers 