Definition
Prediction activities can be very important in helping a student comprehend complex text. According to Ryder & Graves (2003), "prediction serves to aid comprehension by activating schemata, thus making text more familiar" (p. 134). In other words, it helps students integrate new knowledge into their background knowledge by reminding them of what they already know about the topic.
An anticipation guide is a specific prediction, or pre-reading, strategy that asks students to provide an opinion about big ideas or themes that are present in the text (Beers, 2003). After reading, students return to the same statements and identify whether they agree or disagree with that statement. This activity is similar to the comprehension strategy guide (Miller & Veatch, 2011), except it adds a pre-reading element to the task.
It's important to note that statements based on completely new material or statements that are purely factual in nature might create frustration in students (Ryder & Graves, 2003). This is not a True/False assignment. Two effective ways of using an Anticipation Guide are shown below.
Examples
Prediction activities can be very important in helping a student comprehend complex text. According to Ryder & Graves (2003), "prediction serves to aid comprehension by activating schemata, thus making text more familiar" (p. 134). In other words, it helps students integrate new knowledge into their background knowledge by reminding them of what they already know about the topic.
An anticipation guide is a specific prediction, or pre-reading, strategy that asks students to provide an opinion about big ideas or themes that are present in the text (Beers, 2003). After reading, students return to the same statements and identify whether they agree or disagree with that statement. This activity is similar to the comprehension strategy guide (Miller & Veatch, 2011), except it adds a pre-reading element to the task.
It's important to note that statements based on completely new material or statements that are purely factual in nature might create frustration in students (Ryder & Graves, 2003). This is not a True/False assignment. Two effective ways of using an Anticipation Guide are shown below.
Examples
An anticipation guide could be used in literature to help students form opinions about main ideas or concepts, as shown here. This example is geared toward high school students, but it could be modified to a work of literature for a middle school student as well.
This example of an anticipation guide includes a page number notation and reflective component, both of which are fantastic additions. The page number notation allows students to record where they found information in their science textbook and the reflective component allows students to use their metacognitive skills (if they are middle-school aged or older) to evaluate their thinking.
Link to Writing
This strategy can be linked to Grades 6-8 Writing Standard 2 Benchmark a in which students need to "introduce a topic; organize ideas, concepts, and information, using strategies such as definition, classification, comparison/contrast, and cause/effect; include formatting (e.g. headings), graphics (e.g. charts, tables), and multimedia when useful to aid in comprehension" (National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010, p. 42). If students can gain this information from other texts, they will learn how to convey the same types of information in their writing. This strategy also aligns with Grades 6-8 Writing Standard 8 because students are using sources to gather relevant information (National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010, p. 44).
Video Examples
This strategy can be linked to Grades 6-8 Writing Standard 2 Benchmark a in which students need to "introduce a topic; organize ideas, concepts, and information, using strategies such as definition, classification, comparison/contrast, and cause/effect; include formatting (e.g. headings), graphics (e.g. charts, tables), and multimedia when useful to aid in comprehension" (National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010, p. 42). If students can gain this information from other texts, they will learn how to convey the same types of information in their writing. This strategy also aligns with Grades 6-8 Writing Standard 8 because students are using sources to gather relevant information (National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010, p. 44).
Video Examples
This video shows a science teacher utilizing an anticipation guide in his classroom. He keeps students engaged during the explanation of each stage, particularly through his varying use of partners and independent work.
This video is a great example of utilizing this strategy with younger students. This instructor uses the anticipation guide to help students get excited about the story. Since they already have ideas about what might happen, they're more engaged to find out what actually does happen.