Have you ever worked with a student who can read smoothly and accurately but still struggles to explain what they just read?
They decode every word.
They finish the chapter.
But when you ask, “What happened?” the response is vague, incomplete, or completely incorrect.
These reading comprehension problems are incredibly common in upper elementary classrooms — and they’re often misunderstood.
For many students, the issue isn’t decoding at all.
It’s executive functioning.
Reading Comprehension Problems Aren’t Always About Reading Skills
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When students struggle with reading comprehension, we often assume they need more phonics practice, more fluency work, or more exposure to grade-level texts.
But many reading comprehension problems come from something else entirely: the brain’s ability to manage information while reading.
This is where executive functioning comes in.
Executive functioning is your brain’s management system. It helps students plan, stay focused, remember information, and organize their thinking as they read.
A simple way to explain it to students is this:
Your brain is like an airport, and executive functioning is the air traffic control tower.
It helps thoughts land and take off without crashing into each other.
When executive functioning skills are weak, reading comprehension breaks down — even when decoding skills are strong.
Executive Functioning Skills That Affect Reading Comprehension Problems
Strong readers use executive functioning skills automatically.
Students with reading comprehension problems often have to work very hard to use them.
Here are the key executive functioning skills involved in reading comprehension:
Planning and Organization
This skill helps students make a plan for what to pay attention to while reading.
Example:
A student thinks, “I need to watch the characters and the problem in this chapter.”
Without this skill, students may jump into reading without a plan and quickly feel lost — a common cause of reading comprehension problems.
Working Memory and Reading Comprehension Problems
Working memory allows students to hold information in their minds while new information is added.
Example:
Remembering who Marcus is while learning what Jake just did in the story below:
Marcus walked into the gym early, and he picked up a basketball right away. When Jake arrived a few minutes later, he saw Marcus practicing and decided to join him. The coach noticed them and told Jake that he wanted him to help Marcus warm up. As they practiced, Jake passed the ball to him, and Marcus thanked him for the assist. Later, the coach called Marcus over and reminded him that he needed to focus during the game. Jake listened nearby and told him that he would support him if he needed help. By the end of practice, Marcus felt more confident because he knew Jake was on his side.
When working memory is overloaded, students forget characters, events, or details from just a few sentences ago, leading to major reading comprehension problems.
Cognitive Flexibility and Reading Comprehension Problems
Cognitive flexibility helps students adjust their thinking when the text changes.
Example:
Realizing that a sentence is now referring to a different character. The coach was added to the paragraph. Readers need to now add a third person into their visualization of the story.
Without cognitive flexibility, students may cling to their first interpretation, even when the text gives new clues — another frequent source of reading comprehension problems. Students might continue to read and visualize the story as though there are only two characters in the scene, when there are now three.
Self-Regulation
Self-regulation helps students control impulses and stay focused while reading.
Example:
Reading carefully instead of rushing to finish the page or skipping confusing parts.
When self-regulation is weak, students may rush, shut down, or disengage — behaviors often mistaken for lack of effort.
Ignoring Distractions
This skill allows students to focus on what matters and block out distractions.
Example:
Staying focused on the story despite classroom noise or interesting visuals.
Difficulty ignoring distractions can cause students to lose the thread of the text, contributing to reading comprehension problems.
Social Understanding
Social understanding helps readers understand characters’ thoughts, feelings, and motivations.
Example:
Understanding why a character is upset, even when the author doesn’t say it directly.
Without this skill, stories feel confusing or flat, and deeper comprehension suffers.
Why Pronouns Cause Reading Comprehension Problems for Many Students
Pronouns are a major source of reading comprehension problems, especially for struggling readers.
Pronouns replace nouns — usually characters or important ideas — and students must track them carefully for the text to make sense.
In stories, students encounter many types of pronouns, including:
- Personal pronouns (he, she, they)
- Possessive pronouns (his, hers, their)
- Reflexive pronouns (himself, herself)
- Demonstrative pronouns (this, that, these, those)
- Relative pronouns (who, which, that)
- Indefinite pronouns (someone, everyone, nobody)
Strong readers automatically connect pronouns to the correct character.
Students with reading comprehension problems often don’t — and many don’t even realize there’s a decision to make.
Marcus walked into the gym early, and he picked up a basketball right away. When Jake arrived a few minutes later, he saw Marcus practicing and decided to join him. The coach noticed them and told Jake that he wanted him to help Marcus warm up. As they practiced, Jake passed the ball to him, and Marcus thanked him for the assist. Later, the coach called Marcus over and reminded him that he needed to focus during the game. Jake listened nearby and told him that he would support him if he needed help. By the end of practice, Marcus felt more confident because he knew Jake was on his side.
A Simple Strategy to Reduce Reading Comprehension Problems
One of the easiest ways to support executive functioning and reduce reading comprehension problems is color-coding characters and pronouns.
Assign each character a color.
Highlight the character’s name and every pronoun that refers to them using the same color.
This strategy:
- Reduces working memory demands
- Makes invisible thinking visible
- Helps students clearly track who is doing what
Simple supports like this can have a big impact on reading comprehension.
Ream More to Support Reading Comprehension Problems and Executive Functioning
Final Thoughts on Reading Comprehension Problems
When students experience reading comprehension problems, it’s rarely because they aren’t trying.
Often, their brains simply need clear supports that reduce cognitive load and help them organize information while reading.
By supporting executive functioning — especially working memory, attention, and flexibility — we can help students move from frustration to understanding.
And that’s where real reading growth happens.
