The Art of Inquiry and Cross-Text Connections:

Advocating for Engagement and Heart in Literacy NCTE Annual Convention

Atlanta, GA - November 2016 Pam Page & Liz Storey

“Motivation to read and reading achievement are higher when the classroom environment is rich in reading materials and includes books from an array of genres and text types, magazines, the Internet, resource materials, and real-life documents. It stands to reason that increasing the number of books and other reading materials in the classroom will have a positive effect on the amount and quality of the reading experiences of the students. Providing a rich variety of reading materials communicates to students that reading is a worthwhile and valuable activity and sets the stage for students to develop the reading habit.” (Linda Gambrell, 2011)

What are text sets? A collection of… ●  Books

●  Charts

●  Maps

●  Videos

●  Poems

●  Songs

●  Pamphlets/Brochures

●  Images

●  Quotes

●  Art prints

●  Speeches

●  Interviews

●  Letters/Journals

●  Magazine/Newspaper Articles

●  Websites

“When teachers make the transition from textbook only classrooms to multi-text classrooms, the focus of study becomes concepts rather than the content of one particular book. Students gain both a broad perspective and an in-depth sense of the subject matter from reading many texts on the same topic. I know of no one textbook that contains enough information to help a student become even mildly expert on any topic.” Gay Ivey (2002)

Why use text sets? ●  Increases students’ comprehension ●  Enables all students to be exposed to authentic

texts ● Helps students make cross-text connections ●  Supports multiple abilities and reading

proficiencies ●  Builds and activates prior knowledge ●  Increases engagement levels by sustaining

interest ●  Provides flexibility with limited resources ●  Invites inquiry, examining beliefs, and asking

why ●  Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: The danger of a single

story: http://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story.html

Organizing text sets One way to consider using text sets is by thinking about what texts you could use ● BEFORE students read a main text ● AS they read a main text ● AFTER they read a main text But, it’s important that teachers remain flexible enough to modify the texts based on the needs and interests of students.

Flexibility is the key.

Approaches ● Choose a book first and then select

the texts ● Choose a theme and then choose the

texts ● Choose a Common Core State

Standard(s) or unit of study and develop text sets that address that curricular requirement

Consider your students ●  What will interest them? ●  Are the various texts diverse enough to

capture the interests of all your students? Do you have enough variety?

●  Will students be able to pursue an interest through the various texts you have in the set?

●  Do you have texts that are accessible to all of your students (think about the various reading proficiencies in your classroom)

●  Can you strike a balance? Too many texts may be overwhelming. Too few may fail to capture students’ imagination.

As Ivey (2010) notes: “You can’t learn much from just one book . . . . What we really want students to be able to do is read across texts critically and analytically. We have become overly concerned with whether students can comprehend a particular text and not concerned enough about whether students can use multiple texts to grapple with big ideas.” (March 2010, Ed Leadership)

Building a text set around a novel

Things to consider: ● Time Period of the Novel ◦ What was happening in the popular culture of the time? ◦ What other works of literature, art, music, dance, etc., came out of that period?

● Content Area and/or Themes that are prevalent (science, history, biography, etc.)

● What primary documents will help students get a better feel for the period or content presented?

● Examples: ◦ One Crazy Summer, Salt to the Sea

Building a Text Set Around Content, Issues or Literary Themes Things to consider: ●  Content themes across the curriculum ●  Significant themes that impact students’ lives and their

interests ●  Themes that invite inquiry and a call to action - advocasy

or better yet activism ●  Books to meet diverse needs, other texts ●  Using primary sources ◦  http://www.loc.gov/teachers/usingprimarysources/finding.html ◦  https://www.commoncraft.com/video/primary-and-secondary-

sources

Examples *Snow *Water Conservation *Cultural Awareness

http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/freshwater/freshwater-101-quiz/#finished http://thewaterproject.org/water_stats.php http://www.miwaterstewardship.org

"Text sets help students develop critical literacy skills that move them beyond literal understanding to thoughtfully analyzing big ideas by questioning, examining, comparing, reflecting, and taking social action. By seeing topics through multiple lenses, students avoid stereotypical thinking, get exposure to nondominant views, and hear voices often silenced in the school curriculum"

(Barbara Moss, 2011, p. 47)

Companion Texts

● Fiction and Nonfiction ● Novel and Picture Book ● Multiple Perspectives

Companion Texts: Fiction & Nonfiction

More Companion Texts

Companion Texts Multiple Perspectives

Collecting Resources/Gathering Images

●  * Prezi * Weebly * Glogster * Thinglink * Padlet ●  Primary Sources – video clip ◦  Library of Congress (see next slide)

●  Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/debbiewiles/ ●  http://www.thinglink.com/scene/468482696574664705?

buttonSource=email

●  Image Search / Citing ●  Resources ◦  Tween Tribune, Dogo News, Read Works ◦  Newsela ◦  Time for Kids, Scholastic News ◦  Wonderopolis ◦  PBS Learning Media

Library of Congress Collections

SLJ and Common Core Resources ●  Inquiry and Integration Across the Curriculum: Global

Citizenry ●  http://www.slj.com/2013/11/standards/curriculum-

connections/inquiry-and-integration-across-the-curriculum-global-citizenry/

●  Lincoln: A Multifaceted Man | Inquiry and Integration Across the Curriculum

●  http://www.slj.com/2014/04/standards/curriculum-connections/lincoln-a-multifaceted-man-inquiry-and-integration-across-the-curriculum/

●  Our Ecological Footprint | Inquiry and Integration Across the Curriculum

●  http://www.slj.com/2014/05/standards/curriculum-connections/our-ecological-footprint-inquiry-and-intergration-across-the-curricululm/

More Resources ●  Library of Congress ●  NASA ●  National Geographic ●  Smithsonian Museums ●  Teaching Books.net ●  http://www.loc.gov/teachers/usingprimarysources/

resources/Analyzing_Political_Cartoons.pdf ●  http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/

primarysourcesets/ ●  Finding primary sources:

http://www.loc.gov/teachers/usingprimarysources/finding.html

●  Digital Public Library: https://dp.la ●  Kids Click: http://www.kidsclick.org ●  Awesome Library: http://www.awesomelibrary.org

Connecting to CCSS ● Key Ideas and Details ●  Integration of Knowledge and Ideas ● Research to Build and Present

Knowledge ● Depending on how text sets are used,

you can teach common core standards from Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects

Reading Standard for Literature ●  Key Ideas and Details: ●  1. Cite several pieces of textual evidence when useful to support

analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

●  2. Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text; provide an objective summary of the text.

●  9. Compare and contrast a fictional portrayal of a time, place, or character and a historical account of the same period as a means of understanding how authors of fiction use or alter history.

●  Integration of Knowledge & Ideas ●  9. Analyze how two or more authors writing about the same topic

shape their presentations of key information by emphasizing different evidence or advancing different interpretations of facts.

●  Research to Build and Present Knowledge ●  9. Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support

analysis, reflection, and research. a. Apply grade 7 Reading standards to literature (e.g., “Compare and contrast a fictional portrayal of a time, place, or character and a historical account of the same period as a means of understanding how authors of fiction use or alter history”).

Anchor Standards Anchor Standard 1: What the Text Says Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text. Anchor Standard 2: Central Idea Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas. Anchor Standard 3: People, Events & Ideas Analyze how and why individuals, events, or ideas develop and interact over the course of a text. Anchor Standard 4: Word Meaning & Choice Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone. Anchor Standard 6: Point of View/Purpose Assess how point of view or purpose shapes the content and style of a text.

Books We Used for our Text Set

Examples

Breakout Groups ● We invite you to join us in breakout

groups to see how we created text sets from two recent novels.

● We will rotate after 12 minutes. ● We will wrap up at

12:10 for final

comments http://www.online-stopwatch.com

I’m excited! What do I do??? ● Creating your own text sets ● Check: ◦  Back matter supports text sets

● Resources… The Classroom Bookshelf: http://www.theclassroombookshelf.com/, Library of Congress

● Use your expertise! ● Staying up-to-date

●  Thanks for coming and sharing with us! ◦  pagep@gvsu.edu ◦  storeyL@gvsu.edu

“So Matilda’s strong young mind continued to grow, nurtured by the voices of all those authors who had sent their books out into the world like ships on the sea. These books gave Matilda a hopeful and comforting message: You are not alone.” ● ― Roald Dahl, Matilda

“Classroomcommuni.esareessen.albecausestudentscareaboutwhatother

studentsthink.”PennyKi;le

Sources ● Gambrell, L. (2011). Seven Rules of Engagement; What’s Most Important to Know About Motiavtion to Read. The Reading Teacher, Volume 65, Issue 3. ● Ivey, G. (2002). Getting Started: Manageable Literacy Practices”. Educational Leadership 60 (3):20-23. ● Ivey, G. (2010). Texts That Matter. Educational Leadership.

●  Johnson, N., Giorgis, C. (2007). The Wonder of It All; When Literature and Literacy Intersect. Heinemann, Portsmouth, ME

●  Kittle, P. (2013). Book Love; Developing Depth, Stamina, and Passion in Adolescent Readers. Heinemann, Portsmouth, ME

●  Moss, B. (2011). Boost Critical Thinking: New Titles for Thematically Based Text Sets. Voices from the Middle, Volume 19, Number 1.

●  Tovani, C. (2004). Do I Really Have to Teach Reading? Content Comprehension, Grades 6-12. Stenhouse Publishers.

●  Teaching with Text Sets – The Classroom Bookshelf, October 1, 2012: http://classroombookshelf.blogspot.com/2012/10/teaching-with-text-sets.html

●  Teaching with Text Sets Blog: http://www.teachingwithtextsets.blogspot.com

●  Sharon McElmeel: Best Teen Reads, updated yearly