FASE Reading Is More Than a Reading Routine

FASE reading is not just a reading technique. It is a multifunctional platform. I use it to hold students accountable for their attention, make reading a more social exercise, and help students improve their fluency. More importantly, it gives me a way to support students in conceptually chunking new information as we read it together.

That last part is the piece I have become increasingly intentional about.

The Problem With “Just Read It”

When students encounter a text filled with unfamiliar information, they are not just reading words. They are trying to decode the text, maintain what they have already read, connect new information to prior knowledge, determine what is important, and construct some kind of coherent mental model of what they are reading.

Working memory is limited. When students are novices in a particular domain, they also have fewer existing schemas to help them organize and make sense of the new information.

So rather than expecting students to read a text from beginning to end independently with little support or guidance, I deliberately chunk the information during FASE reading as we encounter it.

I want students to encounter meaningful chunks of information rather than a scattered collection of facts and details because it will aid their recall and retention of the new information. As we read, I make the conceptual chunks of the text clear and explicit so students can see how individual details fit together into larger ideas. In doing so, I am helping them build a more organized and deeply connected schema of the content and strengthening the encoding of that knowledge into long-term memory.

What This Looks Like in Class

Today, we were reading about an Ugandan woman, Saajjabi, who started a microenterprise in Kalerwe Market in Kampala, Uganda. Kalerwe is also known as the “Poor Man’s Market.”

As we moved through the text, I previewed the conceptual purpose of each section before students continued reading:

“Next, we’re going to read about how Saajjabi was able to ladder her business. In other words, how she was able to grow and expand it. Marcus, pick up there.”

Then:

“Next, we’re going to read about the challenges Saajjabi faced accessing money to start her business and how she created an effective solution to overcome that challenge. Olivia, continue.”

And finally:

“Last, we’re going to read about how Saajjabi’s microenterprise created a ripple effect throughout her family and community. Ethan, continue reading.”

Those statements are doing more than telling students what they are about to read. They give the upcoming information a conceptual framework.

Students know what they are looking for and, more importantly, how the information fits into the larger structure we are building.

Memory Is the Residue of Thought

As we read each conceptual chunk, I also use “call and respond” questions to check for listening and attention while deliberately directing students toward the key details I want them to remember:

• What did Saajjabi get her start selling? Banana!

• What kind of school did Saajjabi build? Elementary!

• What is the term for an item of value used to secure a loan? Collateral!

• What did Saajjabi create to help women secure financing for their micro-enterprises? A savings club!

The principle is fundamental: Memory is the residue of thought. If I want students to remember something, I need to create opportunities for them to actively think about it rather than simply encounter it in a text.

So after a chunk of reading, I don’t move on to the next chunk. I make students do something to think about and with the information they just read using a turn and talk-all hands up-cold call progression.

For example:

“Think to yourself first, then talk to your partner: What did Saajjabi do to ladder her business? 3-2-1, go.”

After students have processed the question with a partner:

“3-2-1, all hands up! What is one example of how Saajjabi laddered her business? Lauren?”

Then we repeat the process with the next conceptual chunk:

“Think to yourself first, then talk to your partner: What challenges did Saajjabi face securing financing, and how did she overcome them? 3-2-1, go.”

Then:

“3-2-1, all hands up! What was one challenge Saajjabi faced securing financing, and how did she overcome it? Maya?”

And again:

“Think to yourself first, then talk to your partner: How did Saajjabi’s microenterprise create a ripple effect throughout her family and community? 3-2-1, go.”

Followed by:

“3-2-1, all hands up! What is one example of the ripple effect Saajjabi’s microenterprise had on her family and community? Calvin?”

There is a deliberate sequence here: Read → think → talk → retrieve → articulate.

Why Partner Talk?

I use turn-and-talk to give students an opportunity to process and elaborate on each conceptual chunk before bringing the class back together.

Partner talk gives every student a low-risk opportunity to process the information, organize their thinking, and put the new concept into their own words. Hearing a partner’s thinking also gives students another opportunity to make connections, clarify their understanding, and refine their own thinking before being asked to respond publicly.

That makes the partner conversation more than an engagement strategy. It is another opportunity to think about the content. And because the question is tied directly to the conceptual chunk we just read, the conversation is doing the cognitive work that I want students to do.

The Bigger Picture

I love FASE reading. My students love FASE reading. The engagement and oracy is powerful. It makes reading dialogic.

In addition, the reading itself becomes an opportunity for students to continually organize, connect, retrieve, and make sense of new information.

Perhaps most importantly, by using FASE reading I am helping students see the conceptual structure of the text while they are reading it rather than asking them to independently construct that structure after the fact. The concrete details students retrieve become examples attached to larger conceptual structures:

• How did Saajjabi ladder her business?

• How did she overcome the challenge of securing financing?

• How did her microenterprise create a ripple effect throughout her family and community?

Those are not three disconnected comprehension questions. They are the conceptual framework through which I want students to think about and organize what they learned because memory is the residue of thought.

That is what makes FASE reading more than a fluency or accountability routine in my classroom. It is a way of managing cognitive load, directing attention, conceptually chunking new information, strengthening encoding in long term memory, and creating repeated opportunities for students to think about the relationships among concepts and examples.