What is Reciprocal Style Teaching?

Reciprocal teaching is a strategy that allows the students to become the teachers in a small group setting. Each student is given a job to do while reading an assigned piece of text to help facilitate and guide the discussion.

The four areas in which students become teachers are:

• The Summariser – summarises the text at the end
• The Questioner – creates and asks questions before, during, and after the reading
• The Clarifier – clarifies anything students might be confused about
• The Predictor – makes predictions throughout the reading

Reciprocal teaching can be used across many content areas to help students identify important ideas, develop questions, and summarise information from a piece of text. Using common comprehension strategies gets students more involved throughout the reading process, helping them stay engaged and improving their overall comprehension skills.

Reciprocal teaching follows the common “I do, we do, you do” formula we all know primary students need. First, you demonstrate how the strategies work; then, students work together in small groups to better understand the process. After some practise, your students will be able to use these strategies on their own.

How to Use the Reciprocal Teaching Cards in Your Classroom

After you have spent some time teaching your students each of the four components involved in the strategy and what the role entails, divide your students into small groups of four and give each group a set of role cards. Each student chooses a role for the assigned reading and reviews the content on the card. Then, each student will play the role of instructor for the strategy they have chosen.

Students should be rotating roles each time so that they can have the opportunity to practise all four skills instead of honing in on just one.

Easily Download & Print

Use the dropdown icon on the Download button to choose between the PDF or editable Google Slides version of this resource. 

One download includes a complete set of role cards. Print on cardstock for added durability and longevity. Cut out each set of cards and store them in an envelope to easily pass out to each group.

Create one set for your guided reading centre! Punch a hole in the top left corner of each card and hold them together using a binder ring to use with your guided reading group.

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This resource was created by Lindsey Phillips, a teacher and Teach Starter Collaborator.

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