Whole Book Comprehension: Research-Informed Practices for Every Grade
A Full-Day Workshop with Jennifer Serravallo
Description: Comprehension is far more than answering questions at the end of a chapter — it is a rich, dynamic process shaped by dozens of interacting cognitive factors happening simultaneously as a reader moves through a text. In this full-day workshop, literacy expert Jennifer Serravallo draws on the landmark Active View of Reading framework (Duke & Cartwright, 2021) to unpack the complex web of skills, knowledge, and processes that underlie comprehension in any text — and to examine what it truly means to support readers as they navigate the unique demands of whole books.
While much classroom comprehension instruction centers on short, contained passages, whole book reading introduces a distinct set of cognitive challenges. Across this workshop, we'll explore how extended texts place greater demands on working memory, require readers to hold and revise interpretations over time, and call on sustained attention to character, theme, and structure in ways that short texts simply do not. Understanding these differences is essential for designing instruction that meets students where they are and moves them forward.
From research to practice, this workshop is designed to be immediately actionable. Participants will explore how to plan comprehension lessons that integrate three essential components: building background and content knowledge, developing rich vocabulary understanding, and teaching transferable reading strategies. Whether you teach first graders falling in love with their first chapter books or middle schoolers wrestling with complex narrative and informational texts, you'll leave with a clear, grade-adaptable framework for planning lessons that grow deep comprehenders.
Throughout the day, we'll ground our learning in practice by watching and analyzing example videos of comprehension instruction across a range of lesson formats — shared reading, read aloud, close reading, and structured conversation lessons. You'll see what research-aligned comprehension instruction looks like in real classrooms, notice how teachers respond to student thinking in the moment, and identify concrete moves you can bring back to your own students the very next day.
Participants will leave able to:
Articulate the key cognitive and linguistic factors that shape comprehension, as described in the Active View of Reading
Explain how whole book comprehension differs from short text comprehension and why those differences matter for instruction
Plan lessons that intentionally address knowledge, vocabulary, and strategy components of comprehension
Analyze classroom video to identify high-leverage instructional moves across multiple lesson formats
Design and sequence comprehension instruction that is responsive to the needs of readers across grade levels
Appropriate for classroom teachers, reading specialists, instructional coaches, and literacy leaders in grades 1–8.