Reading and Writing Grounded in Evidence from Text Presented by Sara Hall and Lisa Zekanis, Peterson Elementary

Instructional Shifts From the Crosswalk of Common Core Instructional Shifts: ELA/Literacy

Text-based Answers: Students have rich and rigorous conversations which are dependent on a common text. Teachers insist that classroom experiences stay deeply connected to the text on the page and that students develop habits for making evidentiary arguments both in conversation, as well as in writing to assess comprehension of a text.

Writing from Sources: Writing needs to emphasize use of evidence to inform or make an argument rather than the personal narrative and other forms of decontextualized prompts. While the narrative still has an important role, students develop skills through written arguments that respond to the ideas, events, facts, and arguments presented in the texts they read.

Shift in Writing Expectations From Appendix A The Special Place of Argument in the Standards

While all three text types are important, the Standards put particular emphasis on students’ ability to write sound arguments on substantive topics and issues, as this ability is critical to college and career readiness. English and education professor Gerald Graff (2003) writes that “argument literacy” is fundamental to being educated. The university is largely an “argument culture,” Graff contends; therefore, K–12 schools should “teach the conflicts” so that students are adept at understanding and engaging in argument (both oral and written) when they enter college.

He claims that because argument is not standard in most school curricula, only 20 percent of those who enter college are prepared in this respect. Theorist and critic Neil Postman (1997) calls argument the soul of an education because argument forces a writer to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of multiple perspectives. When teachers ask students to consider two or more perspectives on a topic or issue, something far beyond surface knowledge is required: students must think critically and deeply, assess the validity of their own thinking, and anticipate counterclaims in opposition to their own assertions.

Shifts in Reading Comprehension Expectations(From www.readinga-z.com Bringing the Common Core Standards to Life in the Classroom by Dr. Catherine Thome)Text dependent questions What is it?

An important ELA Common Core Standard focuses on students’ ability to ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for their answers. Eighty to 90 percent of the reading standards in each grade require text dependent analysis.

The relevant reading standard requires students to “reading closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it. They must also cite pertinent textual evidence when writing/speaking to support conclusions drawn from text. They no longer can rely solely on prior knowledge or personal experience.

In the nationally developed “Publishers’ Criteria” publishers are being asked to use …text-dependent questions [that] can only be answered by careful scrutiny of the text...and do not require information or evidence from outside the text or texts. Coleman & Pimentel, p. 5

What does it mean for teachers?

Questions that are text dependent require close reading of text. Students have to demonstrate the ability to use what the text says and provide pertinent text-based evidence to make inferences rather than just relying on their prior knowledge or personal experience. Although using prior knowledge and personal experiences can demonstrate students’ ability to synthesize across sources, it is equally important that students be able to answer question by referring explicitly back to the text they are using.

Teaching with Text in MindExploring Anchor Text

Priority Standards

FocusSkill

Anchor Text

Teaching Strategies

Anchor Text as an Instructional

Tool Notes

Priority Standards

W.3.3 W.3.10 

Focus SkillsInference

Descriptive Writing

TextThe Hunt

Claude Monet, 1876

Teaching StrategiesChoose a piece of art that is vague enough to spark the imagination.

There is no right or wrong.Repeat what is said to clarify.

Let go and let them write.

Writing in the K- 2 Classroom

KWL Oreo Somebody Wanted but So Then Sentence Strips Modeling & Plagiarism

Writing in the 3-5 Classroom

KWL Somebody Wanted But So Then Something’s Purpose But Then So Visual Thinking Strategies Music Integration Fractured Fairytales

Reading in the K-2 Classroom

Because Button QAR Stem Questions Reading 3-D questions Reading A-Z

Visual Thinking Strategies Choose a

somewhat vague piece of art.

Chart details and noticings on circle map.

No wrong answers.

Reading in the 3-5 Classroom

Thinking Codes Because Button QAR Stem Questions Reading 3-D questions Reading A-Z Fact, Question, Response (FQR) F.L.I.P.

F.L.I.P.Frame and number your

paragraphs.Look at the questions.Investigate the passage.Prove your answers!

Contact Information Sara Hall – sara.hall@robeson.k12.nc.us Lisa Zekanis –

lisa.zekanis@robeson.k12.nc.us