“The semantic impressions strategy has been shown to improve comprehension across a wide variety of grade levels and is particularly effective with low-achieving readers.” (Jennings, Caldwell, & Lerner, 2014).
What are Semantic Impressions?
Semantic Impressions is a strategy that works with predicting and activating prior knowledge. In this strategy, students create their own stories from words that they will encounter later on in a piece of text or lesson. "By writing or dictating their own stories, they are actively employing story grammar, using specific vocabulary, and drawing on their own background knowledge." (Jennings, Caldwell, & Lerner, 2014).
Semantic Impressions Strategy
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1) Before students read a story, write important words from it on the board. The words should be written in the order they appear in the story.
2) Have students use the words in the order in which they appear on the board to compose their own story. Words can be reused. You may have the students dictate their stories or they can write their own. 3) After the students have written their stories, have them read the published version, and then compare the two versions. (Jennings, Caldwell, & Lerner, 2014). |
How does this strategy help struggling readers?
This strategy is a pre-reading or pre-lesson strategy. It helps students activate their prior knowledge. The strategy is a prediction strategy, which struggling readers often lack making predictions before reading. By using this strategy, students have to “think like authors.
If semantic impressions is a predicting strategy, then what does it mean to predict?
A prediction is making an educated guess/ anticipation about a certain set of outcomes. Students will learn how to predict by using the information from the text, visual, or experiences in order to anticipate what they are about to read. This in turn will improve and increase their comprehension. When students are able to predict, they will also be able to learn the sequence of the information or novel. Predicting does not always have to occur just at the beginning of the text. It can occur throughout the text or lesson. When students are able to make accurate predictions, the teacher should be able to tell that they are comprehending the material.
Content Area Examples- Lessons
Reading: By clicking here you will be directed to a lesson plan where students use the semantic impressions strategy to active their prior knowledge and predict what is going to happen in the story Chicken Sunday.
Social Studies: An activity with semantic impressions in social studies could even be out of a video the students are about to watch. Take out specific events, or places, or things and use those as vocabulary words. Students then have to create the "story" about the words, watch the video, and compare their story with the actual history.
Social Studies: An activity with semantic impressions in social studies could even be out of a video the students are about to watch. Take out specific events, or places, or things and use those as vocabulary words. Students then have to create the "story" about the words, watch the video, and compare their story with the actual history.
References
Jennings, J., Caldwell, J., & Lerner, J. (2014). Reading problems assessment and teaching strategies. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.
Johnson, D. (2014, October 7). STRATEGY: PRE-READING, SEMANTIC IMPRESSION. Retrieved October 13, 2015, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4orHyzYIps
Johnson, D. (2014, October 7). STRATEGY: PRE-READING, SEMANTIC IMPRESSION. Retrieved October 13, 2015, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4orHyzYIps