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Introduction
What actually happens when readers encounter a text for the first time? How do they make sense of it and what processes do their brains go through as they get further immersed in the literature? Why are some readers successful and others are not? More importantly, how does our teaching impact the success of readers?
 Dr.
Judith Langer spent more than eight years studying these questions.
She discovered that readers who have close transactions with
text take a journey in the text world as they read. She describes
the process these effective readers go through as envisionment
building. Competent readers build envisionments, or their own
understandings of the text, by moving through a variety of stances.
Stances are options that allow readers to gather information,
make personal connections, reflect upon their own lives, and
critique and analyze the craft of the author and their experiences
with the text. These options occur throughout the reading process,
in a random sequence.
In this second workshop program in the series of eight, Dr.
Langer defines the process of envisionment building, examines
the stances or positions readers take in relationship to the
text, and comments on the implications this research has on
classroom practices. Panelists also comment on their own reading
experiences and journeys with text as they build envisionments.
They celebrate these journeys together as they talk about the
ways their discussions helped them form closer, personal transactions
with a variety of literary texts.
For a complete guide to the workshop session activities, download
and print our support materials.
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