From the nuclearity of the verb to reading comprehension: an investigative case in the 1st and 2nd CEB

Abstract

The knowledge that students are building about their own language is fundamental for reading comprehension, which corresponds to a complex phenomenon that involves different linguistic and cognitive processes. In the linguistic context, the contribution of the verb is important, which creates semantic and syntactic predictions about discursive entities, as subject and complements. Therefore, the knowledge of thematic roles that these entities can play are important in comprehension, providing information for character characterization and an understanding of action as a category of narrative. The verbal situations, which are associated with characters, contribute to their characterization and to a literal and inferential comprehension.

Thus, a study was developed in the 3^rd and 6^th grades, with methodological procedures characteristic of action research and composed of three phases that correspond to the application of a pretest; the intervention, with the implementation of activities during three Portuguese classes, in the 3^rd and 6^th grades; and the application of a posttest. The data collected and analyzed confirmed the need for students' linguistic knowledge for metalinguistic reflection and reading comprehension, thus requiring a consistent scientific knowledge of teachers in the design and orientation of activities.