Raise your hand if you’ve ever heard a teacher say, “I need more for my students to do. We just never have enough to fill the day.”
Yeah, I didn’t think so! Teachers everywhere have the exact opposite problem, too much to do and too little time!
So when you find an activity that really packs a punch learning-wise but also doesn’t take a lot of time…it’s a win-win!
Task cards are one of these golden ticket activities. I especially love to use them for reading comprehension.
They’re super versatile, make it easy to focus on a specific skill, and are quick enough to squeeze into any jam-packed day.
Here are some of the reasons that I love using task cards for reading comprehension.
They’re…
- Focused- no matter which reading skill your students are working on, you can find task cards that target that skill or strategy.
- Short- because task cards are just a short amount of text and a few questions, they’re less overwhelming for kids than a whole page of text or questions. (This makes them especially great for struggling readers.)
- Engaging- Task cards are a lot more fun than a plain old worksheet. Your students will enjoy doing something a little different.
- Able to be Reused- Another awesome thing about task cards is that you can reuse the same cards for different skills. This is a great way to get students to reread a text for a new purpose.
- Easy to Differentiate- I also love how east task cards are to meet the needs of kids at different abilities. All students can be working on the same activity, just switch out the cards to each student’s appropriate reading level.
Ways to Use Task Cards for Reading Comprehension
There are so many different ways that you can use task cards to work on reading comprehension. Like I mentioned, they’re quick to use and can be squeezed into a busy day.
Once you teach students the task card routine, they can be self-sufficient with this activity.
You can use task cards for:
- Bell Ringers
- Reading Centers
- Independent Work
- Whole-Class Instruction
- Partner Work
- Reading Groups
- Exit Tickets
- Intervention
- Spiral Review/Test Prep
- Homework
There are SO MANY reasons that you should be using task cards to boost reading comprehension! From easy planning for you to valuable practice for your students, task cards are where it’s at!
Getting Started
Hopefully, by now you’re convinced that task cards are worth it for reading comprehension! The next step is figuring out where to start.
Never fear! I’ve got several task card resources ready to go for your 3rd-5th grade classroom.
Check out these Making Inferences Task Cards. You’ll get 2 sets of 32 task cards that focus on Making Inferences and will help your students practice this important reading skill. The Making Inferences task cards give your students fun, focused practice using pictures and riddles to make inferences.
If your class is working on nonfiction, you could try these print and digital Text Evidence Task Cards. They may be used as part of a whole-class discussion, for centers, for one on one, as exit slips, and more!
And, if one day you feel ready to fully commit to using task cards all year, you may want to check out this bundle! Reading Task Card Bundle Print and Digital for 3rd – 5th Grades. It has 14 sets of reading task cards (448 task cards altogether!) in both print and digital. Your students practice a variety of important reading strategies using these cards.
You might also like these posts:
10 Dos and Don’ts for Using Games in the Classroom
The Best Test Prep Tips for Upper Elementary
Thanks so much for stopping by!
