Reading Comprehension Skills Flashcards
6 cards from real KPA practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 Reading Comprehension Skills flashcards as text
A paraeducator is helping a 4th-grade student who is struggling to understand a chapter in a social studies textbook. Which of the following is the MOST effective first step for the paraeducator to take to help the student comprehend the text?
Answer: Ask the student to summarize the main points of each paragraph after reading it.
Asking the student to summarize is the most effective strategy because it actively engages them in identifying the main idea of each section, a core comprehension skill. This method allows the paraeducator to immediately check for understanding and address specific points of confusion, rather than passively listening or focusing only on isolated vocabulary.
When working with a student on a reading passage, a paraeducator notices the student can read the words fluently but cannot answer basic questions about what they just read. This difficulty is most likely related to which area of reading?
Answer: Comprehension
The student's ability to read words correctly (fluency) is separate from their ability to understand the meaning of the text (comprehension). The scenario describes a classic case where the student decodes well but struggles to make sense of the material, which is a comprehension issue.
Read the short passage below and answer the question that follows. 'The majestic bald eagle, once on the brink of extinction, has made a remarkable comeback. Due to conservation efforts, including the banning of the pesticide DDT and the protection of nesting sites, their populations have soared. These birds of prey are now a common sight in many parts of North America, a true symbol of wildlife restoration success.' What is the main idea of this passage?
Answer: Bald eagle populations have recovered thanks to conservation efforts.
The central theme of the passage is the successful recovery of the bald eagle population. The other options are details that support this main idea but do not encompass the entire message of the text.
A paraeducator is instructed to help a student identify the meaning of an unfamiliar word in a text. Which of the following strategies should the paraeducator encourage the student to use FIRST?
Answer: Look for clues in the sentences surrounding the unfamiliar word.
Using context clues is a primary reading comprehension strategy. The KPA emphasizes the ability to extract meaning from the text itself. Encouraging students to look at the surrounding words and sentences helps them develop this skill, which is more efficient and builds stronger comprehension than immediately resorting to a dictionary.
A middle school teacher asks a paraeducator to work with a small group of students to improve their inferential comprehension skills. Which activity would be most appropriate for the paraeducator to lead?
Answer: A discussion about a character's feelings based on their actions and dialogue in a short story.
Inferential comprehension involves understanding what is implied but not directly stated. Discussing a character's feelings based on their actions requires students to 'read between the lines' and draw conclusions from evidence in the text, which is the definition of making an inference.
Which of the following is a key component of literal comprehension?
Answer: Recalling specific details that are directly stated in the text.
Literal comprehension focuses on the information that is explicitly stated in the text. It is the ability to understand and recall facts, details, and sequences of events exactly as they are presented by the author, without making inferences or evaluations.