[mpuech]

Sorry. I guess I should have given more information. My class is small, only 9 students. I was refering to answering questions about stories they have read. I think it part of it is not understanding the story. Let me give you a specific example:
We (my team teacher and I) taught a short story (it was actually a letter about a girl's summer vacation) and I made up a sheet of 5 simple questions about the story for them to answer. They couldn't answer any of them. We even translated the main words like who, what, where, why, when and how. The next day, I made up another sheet with the same questions and answers. I turned it into a matching activity. I thought it would help but it didn't. Now, I am at a loss.