Often times too much focus is on facts and summary rather than on motivation and engagement. Developing students’ ability to think critically about what they read is an important literacy goal for all state curriculum standards and aspirations. Today almost every state requires students to be evaluated on the higher level thinking processes of synthesis, analysis, evaluation or application as they move through elementary and middle school. To meet today’s educational demands, Patricia Cunningham and Debra Renner Smith present teachers with a framework based on years of reading research to help students attain higher-level thinking skills. Their “Thinking Theme” lesson framework allows teachers to pose “The Big Question” and support students as they think about “The Big Idea.” 

We all want our students to be motivated and engaged in whatever we are teaching them. When children read, we want them to “enjoy” their reading and appreciate the wonderful world created by an author. With the guidance of Pat and Debra, teachers will find their students will be able to formulate thoughtful answers to the big question and will move from proficiency to literacy achievement!