The STOP TO THINK program develops comprehension strategies to create lifelong readers. This is done by developing independence through:

Teacher Modeling - Read Aloud Whole Class

Guided Practice - Whole Class Guided Reading Strategy Lessons

Independent Practice - Small Group Partner Reading

• To develop the students' ability to think during reading and create meaning.
• To develop the students' ability to read in short intervals, stopping when they have lost focus in order to fix comprehension.
• To develop the students' ability to use flexible thinking while solving problems during reading.
• To provide a visual model for internalizing comprehension strategies fostering independent reading.
• To provide a model to help students focus and develop their talk about the text.
• To connect the students to the text, generating interest and enthusiasm resulting in rich discussion.

The STOP TO THINK program develops the students' ability to think independently during reading and construct meaning from the text using all genres. The program internalizes basic strategies skilled readers use to think during reading in order to understand and remember the author's messages creating lifelong readers.

The following strategies are taught through the program:

Predict, Ask, Connect, Define, Reread, Describe, Retell, Summarizing

The STOP TO THINK program can be incorporated into any curriculum with reading material used in the classroom. The strategies should be practiced with fiction, nonfiction, poetry and other genres. With daily practice this program can be introduced in your classroom in six to eight weeks.

STOP TO THINK can be used just as effectively in the home setting by parents. The program is extremely effective in the home school environment and many parents have learned the program and implemented it into their home school curriculum with great success. For parents with children in school, but wish to give their child some added support and practice at home, STOP TO THINK is easy to learn and teach. Though STOP TO THINK was designed for classroom use, the principles taught through the program will give your child the tools to a lifetime of reading comprehension. For more information on use of Educational Associates products in the home, click on the link below.