In planning a reading lesson, a teacher decides to begin by asking students to…

Concept. In reading-lesson design, the Into-Through-Beyond framework sorts instructional moves by their position relative to the act of reading: what prepares the reader before the text is opened, what supports meaning-making while the text is being read, and what extends understanding after it. The first of these three phases carries all the readiness work: activating relevant prior experience, setting a purpose for reading, and reducing the lexical load that would otherwise stall comprehension.

Application. Both teacher moves described in the item occur before the learners meet the text. Inviting students to share personal stories tied to the theme activates existing schema and builds an affective entry point into the topic. Introducing challenging vocabulary front-loads the words that would otherwise interrupt fluency in the middle of reading. Because both moves build readiness rather than support or extend reading, the sequence belongs to the Into (preparation) phase.

Cross-check with the other phases:

• Through (during reading): guided reading, questioning while reading, annotation and comprehension monitoring as the text unfolds.

• Beyond (after reading): application, synthesis, creative response and connection of the text to wider contexts.

• Content sequencing alignment: a curriculum-design decision about the order of topics and objectives across a unit, not a segment within a single reading lesson.

Result. The preparatory sequence described is the Into (preparation) phase of the reading lesson plan.