SCS Common Core
Leadership Course ELA #2
Agenda
Session
Shift #2 Citing Evidence
Close Reading Lesson Exemplar
Video: Getting Ready to Write: Citing
Evidence
Feedback on Student Writing
PARCC Assessment
TN Writing Assessment
Instructional Practice Guidelines
Bridge to Practice/Closing
Objectives
1.
To better understand daily practice citing
evidence in conversation, writing, and/or
research
2.
To review the structure of a Close Reading Lesson
3.
To recognize quality feedback on student writing
4.
To understand the alignment of classroom writing,
the Tennessee Writing Assessment, and the
PARCC Assessment
Activity 1
Turn and tell a partner how this year’s
writing assessment will be different from
last year’s assessment.
2013
2014
Instructional Shifts
1. Building knowledge through contentrich nonfiction
2. Reading, writing, and speaking
grounded in evidence from text,
both literary and informational
3. Regular practice with complex text
and its academic language
Transitioning to Common Core
requires specific instructional shifts
with action:
Shift One:
Develop Content
Knowledge
• Support deep content understanding
from deliberate analytical reading
• Develop strategies for reading content
Shift Two: Reading • Use annotations while reading
& Writing with
• Distinguish important vs. interesting WHILE
reading
Evidence
Shift Three:
• Develop strategies for reading fluently
and using metacognitive skills
Regular practice
with complex text • Engage in practice reading rigorous texts
Text-dependent questions
 The best way to accomplish shift #2 is through
the practice of citing evidence in reading,
writing, and speaking.
 “Text-dependent questioning” is an easily
observable quick example for Common Corealigned instruction, e.g. a close reading lesson in
grades 3 and above.
“Close reading” and “textdependent questions”
 Close Reading, from Shanahan on Literacy (Tim Shanahan’s
blog, March 13, 2013):
“Close reading is an outcome. You want students to
be able to read texts—without a lot of external
information from teachers or publishers—getting
what the text says, how it works, and what it
means…since we want our kids to be close readers,
it makes sense that in some of our reading lessons we
would have students engage in such practices; if you
never do it, how will you get good at it? The idea is to
engage students in such practices so that they will
carry the practices forward.”
http://www.shanahanonliteracy.com/
Close Reading Technique
Anatomy of a Close Reading Lesson
1. Selecting an appropriately
complex text
2. Reading and rereading the
complex text
3. Devising text dependent questions
4. Encouraging rich student
discussions
5. Informal, routine writing
6. Assigning a formal writing task
A Close Reading of
The Great Fire
1. Selecting an appropriately
complex text
This informational text is sufficiently
complex for 6th grade
A Close Reading of
The Great Fire
2. Read and rereading the complex
text
The lesson plan calls for students to
read and reread the excerpt
Part of rereading is annotation:
underlining key ideas, circling unknown
words, putting a question mark by
things they don’t understand.
A Close Reading of
The Great Fire
3. Devising text dependent questions
Students are asked a series of increasingly
higher-level text dependent questions
throughout the lesson.
Text-Dependent Question?
 Questions that can only be answered with evidence from the text
 Can be literal but can also involve inference, analysis, synthesis, and
evaluation
 Focus on word, sentence, and paragraph as well as larger ideas,
themes, or events
 Focus on difficult portions of text in order to enhance reading
proficiency
 There is no one right way to have students work with text dependent
questions.
 Providing for the differing needs of students means providing scaffolds
differentially - not asking easier questions or substituting simpler text
 Guide for Creating Text-Dependent Questions –
www.achievethecore.org
Text-dependent questions
In paragraphs 1-3, what details
does the author use to help the
reader build a personal
connection to the historical
figures in the story? (p. 9)
1. Do you know anyone whose
home has burned?
Sullivan has to shout, “FIRE! FIRE!
FIRE!” From this detail, what
can the reader infer about the
technology in Chicago at the
time? (p. 9)
1. In your neighborhood what
sounds might you hear to let
you know that there was a fire
nearby?
“Sullivan knew the O’Learys had
several animals in the barn.
Which of them was he able to
rescue from the fire? Which
were lost? (p. 10)
2. If you came upon a fire in a
barn, which animal would you
want to save first?
A Close Reading of
The Great Fire
4. Encouraging rich student
discussions
Teacher asks the class to discuss a series of
text-dependent questions, with answers in
the form of notes, annotations to the text,
or more formal responses, based on
student learning needs.
A Close Reading of
The Great Fire
5. Informal, routine writing
At the end of day, the students could do a
quick write, such as a journal entry of one
of the text dependent questions.
A Close Reading of
The Great Fire
6. Assigning a formal writing task
After several days of reading, rereading,
and discussing the text students are
assigned an argumentative writing
assignment
For other resources for Text Dependent
Questions and Close Reading can be
found at
www.achievethecore.org
A few concluding thoughts
about Close Reading….
•
Listening and speaking should be built into any
sequence of activities along with reading and
writing.
•
There should be one Close Reading lesson at least
every three weeks.
•
•
Close Reading lessons may span from 1 to 5 days.
•
Students must: “Re-read it, think it, talk it, write it”
The CCSS require ALL students to read and engage
with grade appropriate complex text regularly. This
requires new ways of working in our classrooms.
18
Activity 2
Take out your Writing Samples
 What do you notice?
 What areas did the teacher focus on?
 What are the most common pitfalls you are seeing in
your teachers’ grading?
 How would you talk to your teachers about this?
 Why is it important to provide students with regular
feedback on their writing?
Quality Feedback
 Align comments to the expectations of the rubric.
 Feedback should be grade-appropriate.
 Be specific.
 Emphasize content.
 Balance feedback positive reinforcement and
suggestions for improvement.
 Don’t give them the answers.
Transition from Reading to
Writing
 Teaching Channel Video
Getting Ready to Write: Citing Textual Evidence
Grades 6-8, ELA, Child Labor
https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/teachin
g-about-textual-evidence
PARCC will have two summative
components
Performance
Based
Assessment
(75%)
End of
Year/ End
of Course
(90%)
PBA
EOY
3 Parts Literacy
• Research Simulation
• Literary analysis
• Narrative writing
2 Parts Math
• Short and extended
response questions
• Focus on conceptual
knowledge and skill
and modeling and
reasoning standards
PARCC ASSESSMENT
2 Parts Literacy
• 4-5 texts (literary and
informational including
social science, scientific,
and technical texts at
grades 6-11)
• Short-answer
comprehension and
vocabulary questions
2 Parts Math
• Short-answer questions
focusing on conceptual
knowledge, skills, and
understandings
PARCC Summary ELA
3 Parts Literacy on PBA
 Research Simulation
 Literary analysis
 Narrative writing
2 Parts Literacy on EOY
 4-5 texts (literary and
informational including
social science,
scientific, and
technical texts at
grades 6-11)
 Short-answer
comprehension and
vocabulary questions
What are the differences between PARCC and TCAP?
Understanding the Research Simulation Task
• Students begin by reading an anchor text that introduces the
topic.
• Evidence Based Selected Response (EBSR) and Technology
Enhanced Constructed Response (TECR) items ask students to
gather key details about the passage to support their
understanding.
• Students read two additional sources and answer a few questions
about each text to learn more about the topic, so they are ready
to write the final essay and to show their reading comprehension.
• Finally, students mirror the research process by synthesizing their
understandings into a writing that uses textual evidence from the
sources.
2014 TN Writing Assessment Sample Grade 7
Research Simulation Task
Part 1: Analytic SUMMARY
Prompt:
Based on the information in the text “Biography
of Amelia Earhart,” write an essay that
summarizes and explains the challenges Earhart
faced throughout her life.
Remember to use textual evidence to support
your ideas.
2014 TN Writing Assessment Sample Grade 7
Research Simulation Task
Part 2: Analytic ESSAY
PROMPT:
You have read three texts describing Amelia Earhart. All three include
the claim that Earhart was a brave, courageous person. The three
texts are:
•“Biography of Amelia Earhart”
•“Earhart's Final Resting Place Believed Found”
•“Amelia Earhart’s Life and Disappearance”
Consider the argument each author uses to demonstrate Earhart’s
bravery.
Write an essay that analyzes the strength of the arguments
about Earhart’s bravery in at least two of the texts.
Remember to use textual evidence to support your ideas.
What is an
Analytic Summary?
 An analytic summary is a condensed work of an article, chapter, essay, story, or other work. It is
written in the writers own words and includes certain information essential to the major
idea/ideas of the text.
 State the author’s name, the title of the text being summarized, and the main idea of the work.
 State the supporting details of the work used to build the argument. (To develop the
argument, find relationships among the points given within the supporting details.)
 Finish with a concluding sentence; a restatement of the author’s main idea (thesis).
 Present tense should be used for this type of writing.
 Write in third person
 When finished, does the writer effectively represent the key ideas of the original article, essay,
research, etc. The writer does not offer an opinion of the text. The writer summarizes the text
that was read.
 Recommended Literacy Strategies: Double Entry Notes: T-Charts or Cornell Notes; the outline,
What is an
Analytic Essay?
In general, an analytic essay is a short piece of writing about a specified subject or
matter written with a beginning, middle, and end. This type of essay must show a
clear connection of the evidence to the central idea. The writer demonstrates the
ability to take a subject, break it into parts, and then examine the parts. The
analytical essay is adaptable to most any topic or writing direction and can be
contracted or expanded to fit various time frames. Components of the analytical
essay:
1. Thesis – the “what” and the “how”. The thesis states the main ideas addressed
in the paper.
2. Explanation of the significance of the posed problem or question.
3. A strong introduction
4. Evidence to orient the readers to the problem or to the argument.
5. Essay Structure (e.g., compare/contrast)
6. A firm conclusion that sums up the points made in the paper.
The number of paragraphs will correlate to the component parts being discussed
throughout the paper.
2014 TN Writing Assessment
 Each writing assessment will consist of two
complex texts (stimulus passages) and two items
(essay prompts).
 Texts will cover social studies or science topics in
order to demonstrate the range of informational
reading possible in a Common Core curriculum
 Students will write two essays:
One essay about the first text. The essay will be an
analytical summary (informational/explanatory).
One analytical essay about both texts. The essay will
be information/explanatory or opinion/argument
2014 TN Writing Assessment
 The assessment will have a time limit of 2.5 hours.
 The assessment in all grades will be scored centrally at
Measurement Incorporated.
 The administration window for all districts:
February 3-13: required grades 5, 8, 11
February 18-21: grades 3, 6, 9
February 24-28: grades 4, 7, 10
 The 2014 TCAP Writing Assessment will continue to have no
impact upon district or school level accountability.
Prepare for the
2014 TN Writing Assessment
 Students’ writing summaries and essays in response to a text
they have read closely is the best preparation for the
February assessment.
 Shelby County Schools has suggested writing calendars to
guide writing in January.
 Some of the guidance comes from the TNCore Literacy
Portal.
Activity 1
Turn and tell a partner how this year’s
writing assessment will be different from
last year’s assessment?
2013
•
•
•
•
1 Text
1 Prompt
1 Essay
Paper and Pencil
Option
2014
•
•
•
•
2 Pieces of Text
2 Prompts
2 Essays
No paper and pencil
option/all online
Reflection
Are students receiving daily practice
citing evidence in conversation, writing
and/or research?
 What is the impact if the answer is ‘no?’
 Do I have the information to answer this question
for my building (or district)?
 What would I need to collect or learn in order to
answer this question?
 What actions can I take or have I taken as a
leader that would move us toward answer ‘yes?’
CCSS Instructional Practice
Guides
Bridge to Practice Through the
Eyes of A child.
This bridge to practice assignment is designed to give
you a snapshot of the student experience of a day
and to specifically provide evidence to reflect on
how often students are engaging in reading and
citing evidence across a day.
Step One: Collection Ask students to document their
day. “Please take these sheets to every class today. I
would like you to describe your activities and work in
each class. Not just page numbers of what you work
on but a brief description of what the in class
activities are, what objectives of the lesson is, and any
homework that is assigned. Please make a copy of
any text us use in the class or worksheets you are
given.”
Bridge to Practice (cont.)
 Also send an e-mail to teachers explaining that
students may be bringing this template to class to
complete and to assist you in making copies of
texts or giving you an extra copy of any materials
you use.
 Collect student responses across multiple grades
and experiences. The purpose of this exercise is
not evaluative in any way- it is purely to capture
trends in the experience a student is having in a
given day to be used for reflection.