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Narrator:  Before her students read a chapter in their science textbook, teacher Tina Madrid previews selected words.  She teaches them a word identification strategy called multisyllabic chunking to help them read more challenging content area words.

Tina Madrid:  So today we're going to practice a strategy for those long words called "chunking," and in that you're going to figure out one chunk of the word at a time, and then you're going to put those chunks together to make the word.

Narrator:  She first models how to use the strategy.

Tina Madrid:  Di--vi--sion.  Then I can put those chunks together, di-vi-sion, and then I can finally say the whole word, division.  OK, let me show you one more, and then we can practice them together.  Di--vi--sor.  Di-vi-sor.  Divisor.

Narrator:  Ms. Madrid then provides opportunities for students to practice blending the parts together to read multisyllabic words.

Tina Madrid:  OK, let's try another one.  Good job.
Students:  Liq--uid.  Liq-uid.  Liquid.  Sol--id. Sol-id.  Solid.

Narrator:  After practicing the strategy, the students read the science chapter.  Ms. Madrid calls on individual students to read aloud and use the chunking strategy to pronounce difficult words they encounter.  As they read, she monitors and provides feedback.

Student:  "Yet they are all matter.  Everything in the u-ni...verse that..."
Tina Madrid:  Let's go back to that word.  I want to see you practicing your chunking strategy.
Students: u--ni--verse
Tina Madrid:  So now go back and put it in a whole word.
Student:  U-ni-verse.  Universe.
Tina Madrid:  Ok, good job.

Narrator:  Ms. Madrid continues to monitor as students practice the strategy.

Student:  "In the...in-ves-ti-ga-tion.  In the investigation..."
Tina Madrid:  Good job.
Student:  "...you saw that air takes up space."

Narrator:  Let's watch Tim Shaw use multisyllabic chunking with his fourth graders.  Mr. Shaw focuses on multisyllable words that contain prefixes.  First, he models and explains how to separate the prefix from the base word.

Tim Shaw:  Now, you see how I've broken the word apart into its two separate chunks?

Narrator:  Then, students are given opportunities to practice the strategy.

Tim Shaw:  I'm going to give each of you your own word.  It's got a prefix in it, and what I want you to do is I want you to separate the prefix...

Narrator:  Across content areas when students read independently, multisyllabic chunking is one strategy they can use to help them read and understand unfamiliar and challenging words.

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