Questioning the Author

Who?

• Questioning the Author (QtA) can be used at all grade levels.

• READ: Seventy Strategies to Support Reading Success suggested using the strategy in 3rd grade and above. However, with scaffolding, this strategy can be used in grades as young as kindergarten.

What?

• QtA is a comprehensive reading strategy that allows the teacher and students to prose queries to the author to gain greater understanding of the text.

• QtA also encourages students to be active learners, rather than passive extractors.

Why?

• The purpose of QtA is to encourage:

  • Collaborative discussion

  • Utilization of strategies proficient readers use

  • Promoting an active search for meaning

When?

• QtA is to be used during reading. QtA was created for whole group discussions, but it can also be used in small groups.

How?

• Select a passage that is both interesting and can spur a good conversation.

• Identify the major ideas of the text.

• Identify the questions and strategies needed to obtain determined ideas.

• Identify potential problems that may arise while trying to acquire meaning.

• Decide appropriate stopping points where you think your students need to delve deeper and gain a greater understanding.

• Create queries (questions to encourage critical thinking) for each stopping point.

  • Ex. What is the author trying to say?

  • Ex. Why do you think the author used the following phrase?

  • Ex. Does this make sense to you?