What "Good" Readers Do - The Ten Dimensions of Reader Response

Adapted from the writings of Jeffrey D. Wilhelm

1. Entering the Story World: 
You prepare to read and start thinking about what the reading will be like. You think about knowledge you already have that will help you read.

2. Showing Interest in the Story Action:
You understand the literal meaning of the plot and become interested in it as you read. You make predictions and form expectations about story action.

3. Relating to Characters:
You create characters and take up relationships with them. You often become a presence in the story and make judgements about characters.

4. Seeing the Story World:
You notice clues for creating mental images and envision characters, settings, and situations.

5. Elaborating on the Story World:
You build up clues from throughout the story to create meaning.  You play detective, fleshing out clues, and filling in sto stary gaps, often creating meaning that goes well beyond that suggested by the text.

6. Connecting Literature to Life:
You make explicit connections between personal experiences and character experiences, often looking for ideas that can inform how you could solve problems or think about situations in your own life.

7. Considering Significance:
You ask how the text works to create meaning and think about the significance of various events and behaviour and how this contributes to the meaning of a story.

8. Recognizing Literary Conventions :
You notice that the author made particular kinds of conventional moves that you have to respond to, and you use previoius experiences with conventions from your reading, viewing, or talking to figure out how to do so.

9. Recognizing Reading as a Transaction:
You recognize the author and the choices of the author in telling the story. The author might be embraced or rejected as a person to converse and agree with. You see that YOU create meaning with the author and his or her text.

10. Evaluating the Author (and Self) as a Reader:
You consider the author's agenda, and your own. You think about the author's effectiveness as a writer. You consider your own reading processes and how these relate to your personal identity.