Complete Comprehension by Jennifer Serravallo
Whole-book comprehension just got a whole lot simpler thanks to Jennifer Serravallo’s Complete Comprehension.
It uses an intuitive Assess→Evaluate→Teach framework to deeply understand any child’s comprehension and plan strategies-based instruction to support their progress.
With assessments based on the independent reading of authentic, full-length trade books that children love and instruction grounded in reading strategies that teachers love, it’s a simpler, more powerful way to differentiate comprehension instruction without sacrificing valuable instructional time.
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Complete Comprehension by Jennifer Serravallo
Research Summary for Complete Comprehension
With Complete Comprehension, Jennifer Serravallo operationalizes top-quality, peer-reviewed research, simplifying instruction and increasing clarity for classroom teachers. This research summary describes six key findings from more than 30 research studies and meta-analyses that Serravallo was informed by in the creation of Complete Comprehension's instructional model.
Why Complete Comprehension?
“What Serravallo has developed is the first complete system for monitoring and developing students’ comprehension of whole books.” Richard Allington
Complete Comprehension helps answer three questions:
- How do I know if a reader’s whole-book comprehension matches what a short-text assessment tells me?
- How do I evaluate a reader’s whole-book comprehension?
- How do I turn an evaluation into strategy-based, goal-directed instruction?
Who is Complete Comprehension for?
- Students reading chapter books in levels J-W, especially those whose predicted instructional level doesn’t match their whole-book comprehension
- Teachers who want to provide progress-oriented instruction driven by a more comprehensive understanding of children’s comprehension
- Schools that use any approach to curriculum and instruction
How does it work?
Jennifer Serravallo provides a simple, accessible, and effective framework for reading instruction:
- Assess readers in authentic trade books with prompts placed at key moments across the text.
- Evaluate students with Jen’s rubrics and determine what reading goal to teach toward.
- Teach with more of the strategies that made The Reading Strategies Book a bestseller.
What are the components?
- Three resource guides: Assess, Evaluate, and Teach
- 28 trade books, two per levels J–W
- Labels to place in the trade books that cue the reader to answer a comprehension prompt
- Custom response forms for each trade book
- Evaluation rubrics for analyzing student responses
- Stickers to place on the outside of the trade books to indicate they are not part of the classroom library
- Additional online resources, including classroom video
- An online-only expansion pack with all the forms and teaching materials for nine additional trade books (separate purchase required)
Will Complete Comprehension save time or require more of it?
- No instructional time is required for the assessment: Readers answer prompts on their own during independent reading time.
- The evaluation takes just moments.
- The strategies Jen shares are easily incorporated into existing instruction—especially if you’re already using The Reading Strategies Book.
Where do I learn more?
Talk with your Heinemann representative to learn more.