Which reading-related action is most effective for developing perspective-taking skills after reevaluation for a student with a reading disability?

• A. Reading texts and asking the student to predict how characters feel
• B. Asking the student to summarize the plot
• C. Having the student memorize a list of events
• D. Focusing on decoding unfamiliar words

Answer: (A)

Develop perspective-taking through reading by having the student infer and discuss characters’ emotions based on textual evidence. When you read a passage and ask, “How might this character feel right now, and why?” the student must consider the character’s perspective, motivations, and the clues the author provides—dialogue, actions, and description. This intentional focus on mental states and viewpoints builds the ability to read others’ minds in social situations as well as in text.

For a student with a reading disability, this approach is especially effective because it ties emotion understanding to concrete cues in the text and can be scaffolded with guided questions, prompts, and short, manageable passages. It supports gradual independence in drawing inferences about characters, which in turn strengthens overall comprehension and engagement with the story.

In contrast, summarizing the plot emphasizes recall and sequence rather than interpreting emotions or viewpoints. Memorizing a list of events is rote and doesn’t train how a character feels or why. Focusing on decoding unfamiliar words targets word recognition but not the social-cognitive skills involved in perspective-taking.