In a Think Aloud, teachers model their thinking process out loud. Students see and hear the connections made, questions asked, and vocabulary used to figure out a new word, concept, or problem. In the following example, the teacher is using the Think Aloud strategy to figure out the meaning of the word “habitat”:

“I think it has something to do with where the animals live.  And it looks like habitats can be different for different animals. Some animals need water, and some need ice. Maybe some other animals might need someplace hot or dry. I wonder what my habitat is.”

Ask students to make connections to the word, and see if anyone can give more examples. After students have shared, define the word together.