What is Smedley, really?

In the past, I have had teaching partners say, "Tell them about Smedley and how it works." Or I have had a co-worker ask that I explain what real reading is and the way I teach it to kids. I always kind of chuckle and start with, "Well, it has something to do with the 'little voices' you hear in your head."

But today, my daughter, who is in her final year of college and preparing to student teach, asked, "How do you teach Smedley?" She continued by saying, "I want to teach Smedley to my student I am tutoring this summer and need to know how you 'taught' it to your students when you got started.  I think it will help her as we work on her comprehension this summer."

As I reflect on that question now, I guess I am a little curious at how she knew about Smedley? I know she has heard me discuss my craft with my colleagues as well as our family. I guess I just never knew she was listening closely enough to pick out this strategy as one to apply with her own students in the future. I  actually considered it a compliment that she wanted to know!  After I explained how I introduce "Smedley" to my students, she asked, "Did you just make this up or where did you get this idea? Is it research based?"

Actually, as I explained in Smedly Who?, the inspiration for Smedley's name came from my students as we initially talked about personal revision during the writing process, and then I applied the idea of Smedley to their reading as well.  Today, I began to wonder what research supports Smedley, and what is Smedley, really?  I consider Smedley to be analogous to "metacognitive reading."

I went back to Marzano, Principles of CRISS, Ellin Keene & Zimmerman (Mosaic of Thought), Cris Tovani ( I Read It, but I Don't Get It), Fountas & Pinnell, Harvey & Goudvis (Strategies that Work). These people all discuss the research that supports metacognition in reading, and the one common strategy they speak of to "teach it" is through the use of "think alouds" or modeling what is going on in the teacher's mind during the reading process.  Using explicit, scaffolded instruction with a gradual release of responsibility allows students to eventually make the abstract reading process more concrete.

So...how do I know what to say during my "think aloud?"  First, I have to be aware that someone is speaking to me when I am reading and understand where that voice is coming from. I have to recognize Smedley's voice, what he is saying to me, and what to do with that information. That is metacognitive reading!  Now, how do I teach "Smedley" to others so they can be metacognitive readers as well?

Metacognition is "thinking about your thinking." Metacognitive awareness is an individual's ability to consciously recognize when the brain in signaling him or her to affirm, question, connect, predict, or infer about the information the brain is receiving.   Being a metacognitive reader, then, requires a reader to consciously recognize, throughout the reading process, the interactions occurring between the text and the brain.  What is important is that the reader is cognizant of when the reading process is occurring fluently and when the process breaks down.  It is then that the reader must be highly metacognitive. The reader must think about their interactions with the text and bring the initially subconscious interactions to consciousness so the reader can determine how to proceed with the reading process.

If the brain is affirming or connecting with what is being read, then the reader can continue without adjustment. However, if the brain is questioning, predicting, or making inferences with regard to what is being read, then the reader has to briefly stop, monitor the interaction, and make a decision as to how to proceed.  Is clarification needed? Can the reader continue on to verify a prediction or inference? Or has the reading process broken down so completely that a "fix-up" strategy is required?

With proficient readers, metacognitive reading appears to happen automatically. There is a seamless flow of input, interaction, self-monitoring, and decision making throughout the reading process. The proficient reader is clearly aware of how to continue so he or she understands what is being read. The non-proficient reader, however, is often unaware when the reading process breaks down. This reader may be able to read the words correctly, but can't remember what was read, has trouble getting a mental picture of the scene or character, or may be incapable of making a logical prediction or clear inference.  The non-proficient reader does not recognize when "Smedley" is speaking or does not understand how to monitor Smedley's interactions or even know what to do with what Smedley is saying. Often the non-proficient reader will just continue to plow through the text because, in the mind of this student, the definition of reading is saying all the words and getting to the end.

So, what is Smedley, really? Smedley is the concrete name given to the little voice in your head that speaks to you as you interact with the text. It is the voice speaking to you from your brain which is affirming, questioning, connecting, predicting, or inferring what is being read.  Metacognitive Reading is the ability to listen to Smedley and know how to react throughout the reading process.

Smedley Who?

When I started teaching sixth grade language arts many years ago, I would encourage my students to listen to the little voice in their heads that would speak to them as they initially revised their writing - that little voice that said: "What does that mean? That doesn't make sense. Is that spelled wrong? I need a comma there. This is good!" 

Then, to make their conversations more concrete, they moved to drawing nondescript faces on the chalkboard so they had someone looking back at them, and they could imagine having a real conversation. As my students got more comfortable with their imaginary "revising partners", we discussed how that little voice in our head can help us pay attention to what is important in our reading as well. 

Well, as you can imagine, sixth graders are very creative and have wonderful ideas! Someone suggested during one of our class discussions that we should name that little voice in our head.  Several names were tossed out in a breath of suggestions and one of those was 'Smedley'.  The students kind of laughed and then someone commented "I like that!" The class agreed and Smedley was born!

As I reflect on that day and try to remember more clearly the students I had that year, I wish I had had the presence of mind to take note of who made the suggestion. Twenty-four years of teaching have passed, and Smedley has followed me from school to school, class to class, student to student...in fact, if I did the math correctly, I would estimate over 1000 students have been introduced to and had conversations with Smedley.

Smedley has become the voice of reason, confusion, enlightenment. Smedley is our (and my) Aha! 

I have learned a lot from Smedley, and it will be here that I will share what I continue to learn from my Smedley Connections.