For a student with a learning disability struggling with comprehension, which strategy should a teacher try first to support reading comprehension?

Providing explicit instruction in story elements using a graphic organizer is an effective strategy for supporting reading comprehension, particularly for students with learning disabilities. This approach helps students to visually organize and represent the components of a story, such as characters, setting, plot, conflict, and resolution. By breaking down complex texts into more manageable parts, students can better understand the structure and key elements that contribute to the overall meaning.

Graphic organizers facilitate active engagement with the text, allowing students to make connections and synthesize information in a coherent manner. This structured method can enhance their ability to recall details, infer meanings, and improve overall comprehension skills. Visual aids can also cater to various learning styles, particularly for those who benefit from visual representations of information.

While other strategies like repeated oral readings, vocabulary practice, or reading short sentences can be beneficial, they may not directly address the overall structure and understanding of the narrative or informational texts as effectively as using graphic organizers does. Thus, starting with explicit instruction in story elements provides a strong foundation for developing comprehension skills.