There are two ways to do close reading without a LOT of prep work.  One is to wing it, and the other is to find some good readings of a suitable length with activities already prepared for you.  Both ways can have their place – depending on  your teaching style and how much time and energy you have to spend.

If you’ve taught close reading for a while, you can probably come up with activities on the spot that you know your kids will benefit from, but it’s also nice to have those ready-to-use lessons that cover all the bases. And keep in mind that these lessons do use up a fair amount of your classroom time, so you’ll want some good materials.

Sometimes, finding just the right articles for the lessons  you have in mind can be a a job in itself.  That’s why I decided to work on creating some ready-to-use close reading resources for my store.  These are full-page original articles  with EVERYTHING needed for a full close reading lesson.

Each close reading set includes several articles, each article with all of the resources needed for a detailed reading comprehension lesson that incorporates three full readings of the article with specific skills focused on at each reading. This table of contents from one of the resources will show you what materials are included with each article:

First Reading Activities

• Text Dependent Questions (TDQs)
• Main idea and Supporting Details  – Graphic Organizer

Second Reading Activities

• Text Dependent Questions (TDQs)
• Vocabulary Graphic Organizer
• Text Structure Graphic Organizer

Third Reading Activities

• Text Dependent Questions (TDQs)
• Writing Prompt

As you can see, there are three sets of questions and several graphic organizers, plus a writing prompt.  The first reading activities focus on details and main ideas; the second reading activities focus on text structures plus vocabulary; and the third reading activities follow up and extend the lesson.

To check out sample pages for yourself, look at the preview of any of the sets. So far, I have these sets completed (and more to come):

Exploring the Solar System – six articles with reading comprehension passages about the solar system, planets, space exploration, and space technology

Election Mania – four reading comprehension passages on election topics including primaries, campaigns, and voting machines

Wild Winter – Five articles on fun and engaging winter topics

Freedom of the Press – five articles on topics  including the First Amendment, investigative journalism, and fake news

As an example, here are the four articles included in Close Reading – Election Mania  (Each one with all of the activities outlined above):

1. Make It or Break It Primaries
2. Love Those Campaign Buttons
3. The Best Voting Machines?
4. One Day on the Campaign Trail

Additionally, each full set also includes two close reading charts – a chart that shows students just what they need to do for each reading and a chart of the symbols for marking up the texts. There is a also a smaller version of these two charts for students’ notebooks.

If you would like to give one of these close reading lessons a try, here’s a FREE sample that you can download and use now.  It includes one article about the fight for women’s right to vote, with all of the related activities.