Why it matters
- As students get older, schoolwork requires more than just reading—it requires sophisticated thinking including synthesizing across sources of information, developing and supporting arguments with evidence, and analyzing information to display complex understanding. Talking about what they read can support them in developing these higher-order thinking and reasoning skills.
- “Text-based discussion” means students talk together about books, articles, or classroom texts to share ideas and make sense of what they read.
- These conversations help children improve their vocabulary, oral language, comprehension, writing, and confidence.
How you can support this at home
- Ask open-ended questions: Try asking questions that invite multiple perspectives or interpretations such as “What do you think the author was trying to say?” or “Why do you think that happened?” Discuss the answer together.
- Encourage your child to explain their thinking — not just what happened, but why they think it matters. Having your student reference text as they defend or explain their thinking is extremely important here.
- Talk about text-based vocabulary — ask them to show you new words they’ve learned in science, history, or stories. Providing additional opportunities for your student to hear and use novel words reinforces their understanding.
- Connect reading to writing: After a conversation, ask your student to write a few sentences about their opinion or what they learned.
- Praise effort over perfection: Celebrate your student sharing ideas, using evidence from the text, or asking questions—even if their answer isn’t “right.”
Watch for signs of growth
- Your student is asking more questions while reading.
- They are using words from class in conversations.
- They share ideas or opinions about what they read.
- They are more confident discussing schoolwork.
Conversation starters
Try using these prompts during homework or reading time:
- “What was the big idea of what you read?”
- “Did anything surprise you or remind you of something?”
- “What’s a question you still have?”
- “Can you show me where in the text you got that idea?”
Text-based discussion is a simple but powerful way to help your student become a stronger thinker, reader, and communicator—both at school and at home.
The content in this summary is based on our white paper, Text-Based Discussion Intervention Outcomes for Adolescents in Grades 4-9: A Systematic Review.
