The CATESOL Journal

The goal of this action research is to increase student awareness of context clues, with an emphasis on student use of visual cues in making predictions. Visual cues in the classroom were used to differentiate according to the needs of student demographics (Herrera, Perez, & Escamilla, 2010). The purpose of this intervention was to improve students’ prediction-making skills as well as to ensure active reading and thinking skills. The research team focused on the research question: What is the relationship between the use of visual cues and predicting skills as a readingcomprehension strategy for 3rd- and 9th- grade English language learners (ELLs)? Our team conducted research in 2 schools, focusing on 1 group of elementary school students and 1 group of high school students. Data collection occurred for approximately 6 weeks in each school. Triangulation of data sources was used to attain a more cohesive understanding of how visual cues relate to students’ ability to make predictions during reading