Jacob’s Ladder Reading Comprehension Program Nonfiction: Grade 5
Joyce L. VanTassel Baska, Ed. D. and Tamra Stambaugh, Ph.D.
Students submerged into today’s educational system are confronted with all types of critical writing assessments. Students schooling for more than 12 years and preparing for college entrance exams need an easy to use reading comprehension program to practice their writing skills. “Jacobs Ladder Reading Comprehension Program targets are reading comprehension skills in high ability learners by moving students through an inquiry process from basic understanding to critical analyses of texts using a field-tested method developed by the Center for Gifted Education at William & Mary.” This type of inquiry process develops the reader and writer within every student, preparing a child for the future.
This book is divided into parts. Part I is the teacher's guide. Part II includes reading and student ladder set with four sections divided into subjects: science, math, social studies and the arts. The third part is reading and student ladder sets for fiction and nonfiction comparisons. Lastly, the pre and post assessments with scoring rubrics, record keeping forms and standard alignments bring closure to the workbook.

This book was sent to me as part of a books for blogging program by the Librarything.com. The opinions expressed are my own. ( )

I was pleasantly surprised by this book as it provides teachers with a consistent delivery model for Guided Reading or whole class instruction that students can eventually complete independently or in partners. It focuses in on 18 categories of reading comprehension and thinking that are essential. The nonfiction articles are concise and organized by subject area (so they can be incorporated into content area units or implemented as reading instruction). The model is able to be replicated by the teacher if need be, although my one complaint (request?) might be to include a list of generic questions that could fit into each of the 18 categories so teachers have an easier time creating their own. If I take the time to collect all of the questions from each lesson and categorize them, I would have a decent start, but that sounds a bit tedious. I can envision this being used once per week throughout the year (or semester/trimester) or as a reading unit that comes to completion once the lessons are complete. My twist on this is that I would have my students work in partnerships to read each article and then create videos explaining their answers to each question, rather than make them write anything out (although the "organizer" would be very helpful when they begin to organize their thoughts before recording). In our classroom, we have a "one-take" rule, so students need to be organized before beginning and need to be OK with any mistakes that may happen. That works well to ensure that most students have a plan before pressing "Record".

Disclaimer: I received a copy of "Jacob's Ladder Reading Comprehension Program - Nonfiction Grade 5" from LibraryThing. ( )

I am always looking for books to help with Reading Comprehension in my Homeschool setting with my children. Jacob's Ladder Reading Comprehension Program Nonfiction fits the bill. I do not use it excusively but find it very helpful for me to help guide my children with explicit direction. I received this book as part of the LibraryThing Early Reviewer Program. ( )

I received this book via Early Reviewers. As a fifth grade literacy teacher, I am always looking for different ideas/lessons to incoporate into my classroom. Although I would not use this whole system, this book is nicely organized with ideas on how to build comprehension. ( )

This is a reading comprehension book for advanced fifth graders, but it can be used for students in much higher grades. Since reading comprehension is a skill that is often missing with the use of DIBELs, this is an invaluable tool to have if you really want your students to learn comprehension. ( )