Strong reading skills are essential for success, both in school and beyond, yet many students struggle to comprehend grade-level texts — especially in content-heavy subjects such as science, social studies, and math. According to recent data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress, fewer than one-third of fourth- and eighth-grade students are performing at or above the “Proficient” level in reading.
When students cannot confidently assess written material, learning gaps widen, motivation drops, and classroom participation declines. However, with the right strategies, teachers can support struggling readers and build the critical literacy skills students need to thrive across all subject areas.
Let’s take a closer look at how teachers can support student reading comprehension and how innovative tools such as THINKING PRO can make a transformational difference.
Why Supporting Struggling Readers Matters
Literacy is more than decoding words on a page. It’s the foundation that allows students to analyze information, think critically, and communicate effectively. When students fall behind in reading, they face cascading challenges across academic disciplines.
Struggling readers often face:
- Difficulty understanding academic vocabulary, especially in subjects with specialized terms.
- Low reading comprehension and trouble making meaning from grade-level material.
- Avoidance of reading tasks because of fear, frustration, or lack of confidence.
- Limited ability to express ideas, both orally and in writing.
- Gaps in critical thinking, including making inferences, summarizing, and drawing conclusions.
These challenges can affect performance in classroom assignments and standardized tests, long-term academic progress, and personal and career achievements in life beyond school. Studies show that poor reading ability is associated with lower rates of employment, life satisfaction, mental well-being, and more. Supporting struggling readers early and consistently helps prevent persistent learning barriers that have long-lasting negative impacts.
Challenges Students Face in Reading Across Content Areas
Reading in English language arts (ELA) class looks very different from reading in science or history. Content area literacy requires students to apply reading skills in unfamiliar and often complex contexts.
Common hurdles for students who struggle with reading include:
- Dense informational texts that require close reading and analysis.
- Subject-specific vocabulary that can overwhelm students who already struggle with decoding.
- Complex sentence structure and academic language not frequently used in everyday conversation.
- Limited background knowledge, making comprehension more difficult.
- Difficulty transferring literacy strategies learned in ELA into other content areas.
Without explicit instruction in how to tackle these challenges, students may read without understanding or disengage entirely.
How Teachers Can Help Struggling Readers Build Literacy Skills
Teachers play a critical role in helping students build the skills they need to make meaning from text. Incorporating explicit literacy instruction in every subject helps bridge the gap for struggling readers.
Here are five effective approaches that work across grade levels and content areas:
1. Teach Academic Vocabulary Intentionally
Introduce key vocabulary before students begin reading. Use visuals and student-friendly definitions, and present opportunities to apply new words in context. Encourage students to interact with new language through having discussions, writing, and completing hands-on activities.
2. Model and Practice Close Reading Strategies
Show students how to break down a text by modeling annotation, questioning, and identifying key ideas. Then, allow them to practice in pairs or independently. These reading comprehension strategies give struggling readers a road map for how to approach challenging material.
3. Use Graphic Organizers and Visual Tools
Visual frameworks help students process information and make connections. Organizers such as concept maps, cause-and-effect charts, and sequencing diagrams can make complex text more accessible.
4. Incorporate Discussion and Collaborative Learning
Talking through ideas helps students clarify their understanding and internalize content. Structured discussions, partner work, and think-pair-share activities allow students to build comprehension through peer interaction.
5. Provide Reading Scaffolds — and Gradually Release Them
Offer supports such as sentence starters, chunked text, text-dependent questions, and read-alouds. Gradually remove scaffolds as students build independence and confidence.
How THINKING PRO Strengthens Content Area Literacy
One of the most effective ways to support struggling readers is by teaching them how to think critically as they read — not just in ELA but in every subject. THINKING PRO is a powerful system that helps students build the metacognitive skills needed to understand, analyze, and communicate ideas from text.
THINKING PRO equips students with practical tools to:
- Identify key ideas and extract essential information.
- Make connections between concepts and prior knowledge.
- Think critically about evidence, rather than memorizing facts.
- Engage in academic conversations that deepen understanding.
By incorporating THINKING PRO into daily instruction, teachers help students strengthen their comprehension skills that directly impact success in reading, writing, math, science, and social studies. The system provides clear frameworks and routines that teachers can apply across all content areas, making literacy support consistent and meaningful.
The Power of THINKING PRO in the Classroom
Teachers using THINKING PRO report higher student engagement, improved academic outcomes, and stronger literacy skills among students. Because THINKING PRO is accessible and adaptable, it supports students at all levels — including multilingual learners, struggling readers, and advanced students who need deeper thinking challenges.
To meet diverse instructional needs and maximize student engagement, THINKING PRO offers three flexible versions. Each is grounded in the same research-based framework but varies in structure, duration, and level of teacher support. Here’s a breakdown to help identify the best fit:
- Essentials: Best for integrating directly into current lessons without replacing them. Students complete self-paced interactive videos, reinforcing reading, reasoning, and writing skills without interrupting instructional flow.
- Short Curriculum Unit: Ideal for a five- to six-week classroom unit (extendable) that replaces or complements an existing unit. This version includes teacher-led discussions, writing tasks, and a culminating capstone project. Interactive videos focus on building critical thinking skills.
- Intensive Curriculum Unit: Designed for longer, high-impact interventions such as academic recovery, GED readiness, or pull-out support. Spanning approximately 10-12 weeks, this unit includes full teacher guidance, scaffolded tasks, and a robust capstone experience. Interactive videos build both reading comprehension and critical thinking skills.
Supporting struggling readers is not just an English teacher’s responsibility; it’s a shared commitment across grade levels and subject areas. With tools such as THINKING PRO, educators can bridge learning gaps, empower students with confidence, and strengthen literacy skills to last a lifetime.
Here at Thinking Habitats, we use thinking tools to empower young people to lead successful lives and contribute to the well-being of their communities. Our online platform has helped students improve their critical thinking, reading comprehension, and news media literacy, and has had significant individual and community impacts. Get THINKING PRO today, and enable students to feel more empowered in decision-making, more mindful of their news engagement, and more connected to their local community!
Mulcahy, E., Bernardes, E., LKMco – The education and youth “think and-action” tank, & Baars, D. S. (n.d.). [The relationship between reading age, education and life outcomes]. In The Relationship Between Reading Age, Education and Life Outcomes. https://cfey.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/The-relationship-between-reading-age-education-and-life-outcomes.pdf
NAEP Reading: Reading results. (n.d.). https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/reports/reading/2024/g4_8/?grade=4