Lettura ad alta voce interattiva e ripetuta: il modello R.I.R.A. a supporto della comprensione del testo nella scuola dell’infanzia

Repeated-interactive Read Aloud, or the RiRA model (McGee, Schickedanz, 2007) is a structured read aloud technique aimed at developing emergent literacy in children aged 3-6 years to support text comprehension, vocabu- lary development, and reasoning. The model assumes that some of the most effective methods for supporting text comprehension while reading aloud are those in which teachers model good reader behavior while reading and prompt children to ask and answer questions and make predictions. RIRA, applicable in the exclusive context of the small group, provides a timely pro- tocol for conducting repeated reading activities on the same text with spe- cific actions in each session aimed at supporting the process of vocabulary acquisition and consolidation and the exercise of inferential skills. To achieve these two goals, the application of the model requires teachers to carefully select texts and work on them in advance. A research group at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia has translated, reworked and experimented with students in the undergraduate program in Primary Education the model (RIRA) (Mc Gee & Schickedanz, 2007), practiced in several U.S. school settings. The proposal took the form of a try-out carried out as an internship project, involving ten fifth-year students and their host tutors. The students participated in a training with university researchers on diffe- rent models of functional instructional design strategies to support reading and text comprehension. This training led to a greater awareness with respect to the stimuli that the teacher can offer to support different aspects of text comprehension.