Readers Workshop Unit of Study
9th Grade – Independent Reading
Fiction
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
June 2014
Readers Workshop Unit of Study
9th Grade – Independent Reading
Table of Contents
Preface
Learning Progressions 6 - 8 .......................................................................................................................... 1
Learning Progressions 9 - 12 ........................................................................................................................ 2
Background Section
Abstract ......................................................................................................................................................... 3
Standards ...................................................................................................................................................... 6
Overview of Sessions – Teaching Points and Unit Assessments ................................................................... 7
Resource Materials Section
Session 1...................................................................................................................................................... 12
Session 2...................................................................................................................................................... 20
Session 3...................................................................................................................................................... 26
Session 4...................................................................................................................................................... 30
Session 5...................................................................................................................................................... 33
Session 6...................................................................................................................................................... 36
Session 7...................................................................................................................................................... 39
Session 8...................................................................................................................................................... 42
Session 9...................................................................................................................................................... 45
Session 10 ................................................................................................................................................... 48
Session 11 ................................................................................................................................................... 51
Session 12 ................................................................................................................................................... 53
Works Cited ................................................................................................................................................. 56
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Readers Workshop Unit of Study
9th Grade – Independent Reading
Preface
The following unit supports and aligns to the Common Core State Standards. This research-based work is the outcome of
a collective effort made by numerous secondary teachers from around the state of Michigan. Michigan Association of
Intermediate School Administrators (MAISA) initiated a statewide collaborative project, bringing together educators
from around the state to create and refine a K-12 English Language Arts model curriculum. The Independent Reading
unit is situated as the opening reading unit of study within a yearlong sequence of reading units. The unit emphasizes
students’ recognizing reading comprehension, reader independence, and reader identity. The foundation of a reading
identity and strategies to engage with text scaffold readers into the complexities of subsequent reading units that are
focused deeply within the three main types of writing. Each unit within the MAISA yearlong model curriculum presents
a string of teaching points that scaffold and spiral the content and skills. Units of study are structured to be studentcentered rather than teacher-driven. Sessions emphasize student engagement and strive to simultaneously increase
critical thinking and writing skills. Sessions are designed as a series of mini-lessons that allow time to read, practice,
respond, and conference. Through summative and formative assessments specific to each unit, students will progress
toward becoming independent thinkers and readers.
Significant input and feedback was gathered both in the initial conceptualizing of the unit and later revisions. Teachers
from around the state piloted and/or reviewed the unit; their feedback and student artifacts helped in the revision
process. Special thanks go to lead unit writers Linda Denstaedt, Leah Barnett, and Laura Mahler, who closely studied the
CCSS, translated the standards into curriculum and practice, and revised with a close eye to classroom teacher feedback.
Throughout the yearlong collaborative project, teachers who are reviewing units are finding how students’ habits of
mind have shifted from task-oriented to big-picture thinking, utilizing a critical literacy lens.
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
th
6
Developing the Identity of
the Reader
Interacting with Texts and
Self-Monitoring
Exploring Genre—Elements
and Structures
7th
8th
Engage in conversations about
books.
Utilize strategies to choose "justright" books.
Read with stamina and fluency.
Engage a community of readers through
sharing, critique, analysis, and
recommendations.
Select just the right book after
determining reading needs, interests,
purposes and goals.
Engage in conversations and continue to
create a community of readers through
sharing, critiquing, and analyzing while
making recommendations to others.
Select “just-right” book based on
reading needs, interests, purposes, and
goals.
Apply learning from unit to make
decisions about next book choice.
Make connections with the
characters.
Infer characters' attributes and
motivations.
Remain focused while reading.
Utilize selected reading tools, graphic
organizers, and conversation to identify
central ideas and character attributes.
Track the interacting and distracting
voice, while making personal connections
to the text.
Make connections about problems using
character conflicts (internal/external),
what characters say and do, character
thoughts, and their reactions to other
characters.
Identify scenes as the building blocks of
the story, depicting action and
conversations.
Identify the purpose of narration
throughout the story.
Track causes of rising tension across the
plotline.
Reflect on the text as a whole and
provide a well-thought-out critique, using
the information gathered during the
reading process.
Connect with the main characters by
forming opinions about various
characters’ points of views.
Analyze the impact of specific word
choices on meaning and tone.
Analyze character conflicts by citing
literal information and evaluating
dialogue related to conflicts.
Identify that stories are created
through scenes and narration.
Identify the rising tension in the
story.
Revise and refine thinking about
characters.
Notice and connect recurring
images or ideas that may point
toward the theme.
Analyze how scenes and narration
contribute to the rising and falling
tension of the story.
Identify the theme of the story.
Use all the information gathered during
the reading process to analyze the work
as a whole and provide a well-thoughtout critique.
Page 1
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
High School Independent Reading Unit Learning Progressions
th
Text
th
9 Grade
10th Grade
11th Grade
12 Grade
Fiction
Autobiography, Biography, Memoir
Creative Nonfiction
Multi-genre
Developing the
Identity of the
Reader
Set goals for reading.
Use strategies to find a “just-right” book.
Engage in discussion with other readers.
Develop preferences for texts and authors
through exploration of various fictional
works.
Set goals for reading stamina and
fluency.
Use strategies to find a “justright” book.
Engage in discussion with other
readers.
Develop preferences for texts and
authors through personal study
and discussion with peers.
Set goals to explore unfamiliar
nonfiction genres.
Use strategies to find a “just-right”
book.
Engage in discussion with other
readers.
Develop preferences for texts and
authors through personal study
and discussion with peers.
Set goals to read and explore
unfamiliar genres.
Use strategies to find a “just-right”
book and related texts.
Engage in discussion with other
readers
Develop preferences for texts and
authors through personal study and
discussion with peers.
Interacting with
Texts and SelfMonitoring
Develop fluency by connecting to
characters and the narrative voice.
Develop theories about author’s purpose
and identify central idea
Make connections to text, in order to
evaluate the actions and emotions of the
characters and narrator as they face
conflicts.
Develop fluency by connecting to
the narrative voice
Develop theories about author’s
purpose and identify central idea.
Make connections to text, in
order to evaluate the author’s
insights.
Develop fluency by connecting to
the style and structure of the text.
Develop theories about author’s
purpose and identify central idea.
Make connections to text, in order
to evaluate the insights and claims
the author reveals across the text.
Make cross-text connections.
Synthesize thinking across multiple
texts and multiple genres.
Evaluate the author’s insights.
Exploring Genre—
Elements and
Structures
Analyze, through examination of internal
and external events, how complex
characters develop.
Analyze, through examination of conflicts
and character choices, how complex
characters advance the plot.
Analyze, by tracking and confirming
theories about the novel’s central idea,
how complex characters establish theme.
Analyze the genre via the reading
experience.
Examine conflicts and character
choices, in order to analyze the
implications of how complex
characters advance the plot.
Analyze, by tracking and
confirming theories about the
novel’s central idea, how complex
characters establish theme.
Analyze the genre via the reading
experience
Analyze how different types of
evidence support the central idea,
claims, and insights expressed by
the author.
Analyze how the author
establishes and connects insights,
in order to influence a reader.
Analyze the counterclaims the
author introduces to influence a
reader.
Analyze the genre via the reading
experience
Analyze how the same theme is
expressed in multiple genres.
Analyze how different authors
establish and connect insights to
influence readers.
Analyze the differing claims the
authors introduce to influence
readers.
Analyze the genres via the reading
experience.
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Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Readers Workshop Unit of Study
9th Grade – Independent Reading
Abstract
WHAT IS AN INDEPENDENT READING UNIT?
The focus of this unit is to read independently to “…make it easier for individuals both to enter the [reading] zone and to
get their feet under them as opinionated, versatile, critical readers who have goals and plans…” (Atwell, 2007). Since a
major purpose of the unit is to help students become better readers, teachers should pay particular attention to helping
the students reflect upon their identities as readers, monitor their reading comprehension, and apply their knowledge of
the genre(s). Students choose texts that match their interests and readability levels. They apply strategies and monitor
their understanding to engage and manage reading in multiple genres and increasingly complex texts and challenging
texts. They track changes in their reading identities. The primary focus for teacher instruction and assessment is the
growth students make as readers which shifts focus away from content. As a result, preservation of uninterrupted
reading time during class periods is essential. This requires teachers keep mini-lessons and conferring to an absolute
minimum.
ASSESSMENT
Assessment will include both formative and summative tasks that provide a range of evidence that students create across the unit.
Mid-Unit Assessments: Growth of students as readers will be assessed in two ways: 1) written reflections; 2) teacher-student
conferences.
1. Reflections: Students will begin the unit reflecting upon their beliefs about reading. Periodically, they will stop and write
brief reflections on changes in their beliefs about reading and their identities as readers.
2. Conferring: One of the crucial formative assessment tools to be used by teachers is conferring with students at least twice
in each unit. Initial conferences will focus on ensuring that students are reading texts at appropriate reading levels,
matching students’ interests, and setting a reading goal. Follow-up conferences will monitor student growth over time in
areas identified by the teacher or student in the reflective writing process.
Post-Unit Assessments: Students will write an on-demand response that ask them to reflect upon their identities as readers, reading
strategies, and what they have learned about the elements of a genre and the impact of those elements on a reader. They make
claims about characteristics of the genre and use evidence from their texts to support their claims.
STUDENT OUTCOMES
This unit continues the use of a workshop approach, which develops reading, writing, and thinking skills that will be resonant
throughout the school year. Students will identify texts that match their reading level. This enables students to increase their
reading level by reading texts. Dick Allington, in What Really Matters for Struggling Readers: Designing Research-Based Programs,
states: “…replacing whatever went on in classrooms with added reading time was just as effective as, or more effective than,
traditional instruction in enhancing reading comprehension performance.” He goes on to say: “All students who are highly engaged
in reading achieve reading literacy scores that are significantly above the international mean, whatever their family background.”
Students will:
1. Develop positive identities and habits as readers
2. Become familiar with basic elements of a genre and how these genre elements function to create meaning and central
ideas
3. Self-monitor reading comprehension
4. Develop speaking and listening habits while discussing their reading with others
5. Develop critical-thinking skills
TEACHER DECISIONS FOR UNIT IMPLEMENTATION
This unit serves as a single model of an independent reading unit. It provides strategies for selecting topics, researching, organizing,
and writing an informational essay. The unit is designed to follow the launching unit, and can kick off students’ independent reading
for the year. The unit itself can be returned to throughout the course of the school year as students read independently. We
recommend that teachers study and understand the intent of the lesson series. The lessons have a purposeful sequence, but they
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Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
may require that teachers make adjustments in pacing or decisions about extension activities. Teachers are encouraged to gather
their own classroom library that reflects a range of reading levels and student interests. (Friends of Public Library book sales and
PTSA donations are ways to collect a library cheaply.) Please see the resources section for other sources to deepen your
understanding of independent-reading instruction.
UNIT ORGANIZATION
The unit weaves together three concepts that accelerate independent reading. The concepts are interrelated and recursive, rather
than appearing as separate parts of the unit. Students continually reflect on their thinking and interactions with texts and with other
readers, as they set goals and monitor their reading. The unit is intended to take approximately two weeks. Some sessions may take
several days. The primary purpose of this unit is for students to read a significant number of pages in and out of school daily. To
prioritize volume of reading, in-class reading time must be 30-35 minutes daily. The three concepts are:
Developing the Identity of the Reader
Interacting with Texts and Self-Monitoring
Exploring Genre—Elements and Structures
The work in this unit is vertically aligned and extends prior learning with the expectation that students understand the repertoire of
decisions taught in previous grades.
Instructional Sequencing, Scaffolding, and Pacing:
Daily pacing of the unit’s sessions is based on a 50-minute class period. Individual teacher pacing will change based on the duration
of the class period, student population, familiarity with content, process, and/or instructional practices.
Instruction scaffolds students through a four-tiered process.
1. Teaching Point: Teacher models the strategy, process, skill, or habit of mind using a mentor text written by the
teacher, students, and/or published writers—or other materials.
2. Active Engagement: Students rehearse the writing, thinking and/or critical reading or viewing just modeled by the
teacher.
3. Independent Practice: Students complete a mini-task independently or in small collaborative groups. During
independent practice, the teacher confers with individuals or small groups to assess student performance,
differentiating the lesson and task. The teacher may stop the independent practice to adjust the mini-task and/or
session teaching point, or for planned teaching points that extend or deepen student performance.
4. Share: Students share in order to read, examine, analyze, and/or reflect on the range of other students’ responses.
Sharing also enables students to self-monitor effective strategy. The teacher may also share an exemplar to reinforce
or enhance the session’s teaching point(s) and student enactment.
Using the Mini-task Performance Continuum for Informational/Explanatory Assessment
During the independent practice, the teacher should monitor student progress through observation, one-to-one conferences, or
small group conferences. The teacher may do any of the following with this information:
Compliment a student on current performance by explicitly naming and pointing to evidence in student work
Teach or reteach a strategy to enable a student to raise the quality of current performance
Identify a student exemplar to share with the class
Gather a snapshot of the range of performances in the room in order to adjust and differentiate instruction
Classroom Assessment Prompt
After students have engaged in focused work to develop explicit skills, strategies, or habits of mind, they will assess their work to
identify strengths and weaknesses and set one or more goal(s) that will facilitate future learning and task engagement. This [these]
goals will raise the quality of the learning and the product developed across time in the remainder of the unit.
Description of the Unit
This unit requires students to select and read at least two works of fiction. A focus of this unit is appropriate book selection, both in
personal interest and reading level. Students will use a monitoring chart to track how well they are meeting their reading goals. They
will also use tools such as Collecting Text Bookmarks, and they will create entries in their readers’/writers’ notebooks.
Unit Philosophy
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Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Student choice of text is of utmost importance in this unit, as is finding a text at the appropriate reading level. Students
should be allowed to choose from a variety of fiction genres. This could include classic literature, short story collections,
young adult novels, or graphic novels.
Teachers should not be concerned if students select books that the teacher has not read. There will be an opportunity for
teachers to read some selections during the workshop, and the lessons do not require the teacher to have intimate
knowledge of each book.
Students are expected to read at least two texts during the course of this unit, but if they finish a text before the
established deadlines, they should select another book and continue. This should not affect their ability to take part in the
mini-lessons. Likewise, if students abandon a text that was initially chosen, they should choose another, shorter text to
meet the same deadlines.
Student-to-student discussion is imperative in this unit, so we highly recommend that students are grouped in reading
partnerships or clubs (small groups). These groups might be reading the same text, texts with similar themes, or texts of the
same genre.
The teacher conference is key to success in this unit. A rubric and monitoring chart are included, as is a list of suggested
interventions. We recommend that the teacher conferences with each student at least once per book, even more if
possible, to evaluate progress and to use the interventions.
The focus of this unit is reading fiction independently to “make it easier for individuals both to enter the [reading] zone and
to get their feet under them as opinionated, versatile, critical readers who have goals and plans” (Atwell, 2007).
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Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Standards
Common Core Standards: Informational/Explanatory: The following College and Career Readiness (CCR) anchor
standards apply to reading and writing in narrative template tasks. Refer to the 6-12 standards for grade-appropriate
specifics that fit each task and unit being developed. The standards numbers and general content remain the same
across all grades, but details vary.
Number
1
2
3
10
Number
2
4
9
10
CCR Anchor Standards for Reading
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.
Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key
supporting details and ideas.
Analyze how and why individuals, events, and ideas develop and interact over the course of a
text.
Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.
CCR Anchor Standards for Writing
Write informative/explanatory text to examine and convey complex ideas and information
clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis content.
Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are
appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and
shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of tasks, purposes, and
audience.
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Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Overview of Sessions: Teaching Points and Unit Assessments
Developing the Identity of the Reader
Unit Title: Independent Reading – Fiction
Unit Description (overview):
In this unit, students will select a range of fiction texts to read independently or in small groups. The books will be of interest
to the student and will not be read by the whole class. Students will keep a Reader’s Log in which they track their reading
progress, collect key lines from the text, practice effective discussion skills, make predictions, and engage in activities that ask
them to consider elements of fiction, such as character and conflict. They will meet in small groups to discuss meaning,
author’s purpose, and make predictions and theories. They will discuss their opinions about the selected books and share
suggestions. (Students will work with the teacher to set personal reading goals. Student goals include reading longer or more
difficult books and exploring new genres or authors to assure continuous growth.)
Essential Questions:
What reading and thinking habits do I have or will I learn by stretching my reading in fiction?
What strategies do I use to engage in reading, in order to explore central ideas and arguments posed in fiction?
What are the basic elements and structures of fiction?
How can I use knowledge about these elements and structures to enable myself to engage increasingly complex texts, while
also identifying an author’s multiple purposes in a text?
Pre-Unit Assessment Task
What preferences do I have when reading independently and how will I stretch or extend my reading habits while reading
fiction? After creating your Reading Memories Timeline and completing Reading Fiction Survey, write a reflective paragraph
that compares your reading in and out of school. Imagine how you might increase the amount of reading you do out of school,
and what kinds of texts you might read. Set a goal for increasing your reading.
Teaching Points
1. 1.1 Readers acknowledge who they are as readers and as part of a reading community. They set goals for their reading.
1.2 Readers use strategies to find the book that is right for them.
2.
2.1 Readers develop fluency as they get acquainted with the narrator’s voice and connect to the
characters.
2.2 Readers develop fluency by noticing important details as they read.
3.
3.1 Readers acknowledge who they are as readers and as part of a reading community. They talk about
their books together.
3.2 Readers practice positive discussion behaviors.
4.
Readers learn about characters through their internal and external stories.
5.
Readers notice details and lines to stay connected to characters or problems in the
novel. They create theories about the author’s purpose and begin to predict the plot. They notice and connect details and
actions and identify central idea(s) as they continue reading.
6.
6.1 Readers evaluate what they read.
6.2 Readers consider what they’ve read and how it affects them.
6.3 Readers make decisions about what to read next.
Mid-Unit Assessment Task
How has your reading, identity as a reader, or preferences for reading changed? Review your Collecting Text Bookmarks and
revisit the goal you set before beginning the unit. Reflect upon and identify one way you have grown as a reader. Write a
reflective paragraph that states how you have changed. Provide specific evidence from your reader’s notebook and the text
you are reading to explain how and why this change occurred.
7. Readers develop fluency as they get acquainted with the narrator’s voice and connect to the
characters. They examine the author’s choice of narrator or main character.
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Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
8.
Readers make judgments about characters.
9. Readers notice details and lines to stay connected to characters or problems in the novel. They create theories about the
author’s purpose and begin to predict, notice, and connect details, actions, and ideas as they continue reading.
10. Readers notice details and lines to stay connected to characters or problems in the novel. They create
theories about the author’s purpose and begin to predict the plot. They notice and connect details and actions and identify
central idea(s) as they continue reading.
11. Readers share their ideas about the novels as they read with others. They consider which types of
books they prefer and choose another book to read based on that knowledge.
12. Readers reflect upon how books change the way they see the world and how their identities as readers develop.
Post-Unit Assessment Task
How did reading in and out of school impact your view of yourself as a reader and your ability to read fiction? After reading
two novels, collecting details from across both novels, and talking to other readers, identify two ways your reading has
improved. Write two paragraphs to compare your attitude toward reading before and after this independent reading unit. Use
specific examples from lessons and/or the novels you read or discussed that caused you to change how you read or how you
see yourself as a reader.
Teaching-Point Alignment with Sessions
Developing the Identity
of the Reader
Interacting with Texts and Self-Monitoring
Exploring Genre—Elements and
Structures
1, 2, 11, 12
2, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10
4, 6
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Teacher Resource
QUESTIONS FOR CONFERRING DURING READING WORKSHOP
Conference serves several purposes:
1. a check point for volume, fluency, and comprehension
2. a teachable moment based on the student’s strengths or instructional needs
3. an opportunity to engage students in conversations about their novel with another reader
These questions open conversations with students so they can explain
1. the ways they are monitoring their reading
2. how they are applying the mini-lessons
3. the decisions and/or evaluation of the novel to develop an identity as a reader and personal taste
4. the ways the novel is engaging them
Identity as a reader
Why did you decide to read this book?
Why did you decide to re-read this
book?
What do you like/dislike about the
genre/author’s style?
How does this book compare with other
books you’ve read/other books by this
author/other books in this genre?
Is this a page-turner or a literary novel?
Why?
What do you notice?
Are you considering
abandoning this book?
Reading another by the same
author?
Reading another in the same genre?
Now that you’ve finished this, what will
you rate this book?
author
genre
What’s another book you’ve been
considering?
I think you might like________.
Self-monitoring
What strategies are you using to be an
interactive reader?
Why are you using this/these
strategies?
Which strategy is most effective?
Why?
Are you rereading?
when you are reading words but
can’t remember what you’ve read
when you need to clarify a question
when you stop to summarize
when you want to develop a fluent,
expressive voice
when you find yourself distracted
What encourages you to keep reading?
Is this book drawing you in? Are you able
to read without a lot of effort?
Are you staying on target with your
reading goals?
How much did you read yesterday?
When are you finding time to read?
What challenges keep you from
meeting your goals?
How will you address these
challenges?
Are you making a connection with this
book? What do you like?
book/narrator
plot or action
ideas
genre
Are you skipping or skimming sections?
too much unnecessary description
unimportant action
How did today’s mini-lesson help you
focus your reading?
Engagement with
narrator/characters, plot, or ideas
Who’s the narrator? Is this story told in
first person?
Do you like/dislike the narrator/the
way the story is told?
What do you have in common with
the narrator?
What’s happening now?
How does this affect your view of the
story?
Are you still interested? Why? Why
not?
Any surprises so far?
Any theories about the novel?
What evidence prompts you to
believe this theory?
So how’s your theory about
_________ going? Any evidence
emerging to support your thinking?
Have you developed any new
theories? What evidence is
encouraging you to add this theory?
Do you approve or disapprove of the
character’s
views or actions?
reactions and treatment of other
characters/animals/etc.?
Which character is most like you? Most
unlike? Why?
Which character do you want as a
friend? Why?
Additional conferencing questions in Nancie Atwell’s The Reading Zone. P.92 2007
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Teacher Resource
Developmental Stages of Independent Reading—Fiction
Please note:
Emphasize and reward personal growth during the course of the unit. It is not necessary to assess a student in all
three categories in each conference or sharing lesson. Review each student’s reading surveys from lesson one to
determine which characteristic of an effective reader (Identity as a Reader, Self-monitoring, or Engagement) you want to
begin with. As a result, you may choose to focus only on Identify as a Reader for students who face challenges with
readability and attitude; whereas you may choose to assess all three characteristics for stronger readers. It is important
to confer with each student multiple times during the unit to look for growth. Each conference should take no more than
2-4 minutes to assess a student’s current progress, to get to all students, and to maximize student reading time. A
handout with suggested interventions that you might employ follows.
Identity as a
reader
Selfmonitoring
Engagement
with the
narrator,
characters,
plot, or ideas
Stage 1
Stage 2
The reader makes ineffective attempts
to find a text that is appropriate to the
reader’s skill level or interests. The
reader is unaware of reading preferences
when selecting a fiction text. The
reader rarely engages in conversations
with other readers.
The reader makes reasonable attempt(s)
to find a text that is appropriate to the
reader’s skill level and interests and can
explain the process used. The reader is
developing a sense of preferences (likes
and dislikes) in this and other fiction.
The reader is developing ways to talk
about a text with other readers.
The reader applies some reading
strategies in order to comprehend text.
The reader is meeting reading goals.
The reader rarely applies reading
strategies in order to comprehend text.
The reader is not meeting individual
reading goals.
With support, the reader attempts to
develop theories about the text and
provide support from the text. With
support, the reader takes a position
about a character’s choices or actions.
The reader makes no personal
connections or makes connections that
may be distractions from the story.
The reader is independently beginning to
create theories about the text, but may
struggle to provide textual evidence for
support. The reader attempts to evaluate
a character’s choices or actions. The
reader makes personal connections to
the story which may be distractions from
the story.
Sta
The reader purposel
is appropriate to the
and interests and can
used. The reader sta
inform the reader’s k
text and other fictio
engages in substantiv
other readers.
The reader consciou
strategies in order to
The reader is meetin
individual reading go
The reader develops
text that are suppor
the text. The reader
from various parts o
a theory. The reade
character’s choices o
reader makes person
enhance his/her unde
story’s purpose.
Teacher Resource
INTERVENTIONS TO MOVE STUDENTS TO STAGE 3
Identity as a Reader: If the student needs help in the identity as a reader category, the teacher might:
Suggest that the reader find another book.
Use a formal assessment to more accurately learn the student’s reading level. (Possible resources
include the Columbia Teacher’s College website at:
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http://rwproject.tc.columbia.edu/assessments/reading. This website offers relatively quick reading
assessments to determine a student’s reading level.)
Review the reader’s reading history to learn more about struggles and likes and dislikes to help him or
her find a more suitable book.
Self-monitoring: If the student needs help in the self-monitoring category, the teacher might:
Review the reader’s individual reading goals to determine if they are appropriate.
Ask the reader to read aloud to learn about what s/he is doing when there is difficulty.
Recommend an appropriate reading strategy to help.
Engagement: If the reader needs help in the engagement with the narrator, characters, plot, or ideas
category, the teacher might:
Ask the reader to look at the “Collecting Text” bookmarks in an attempt to find connections across
several days’ reading.
Ask the reader to do a quick entry in the reader’s/writer’s notebook that compares a main character or
narrator and the student.
Ask the reader to do a quick entry in the reader’s/writer’s notebook that details whether s/he
approves or disapproves of the character’s actions or decisions.
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Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Session 1
When I worked on my game, that's what I thought about. When it happened, I set another goal, a
reasonable, manageable goal that I could realistically achieve if I worked hard enough. I guess I
approached it with the end in mind. I knew exactly where I wanted to go, and I focused on getting
there. - Michael Jordan
Any book that helps a child to form a habit of reading, to make reading one of his deep and
continuing needs, is good for him. - Maya Angelou
Concept
Preparation
Teaching Point 1.1
Active Engagement
Independent Practice
Share
Never read a book through merely because you have begun it. - John Witherspoon
Developing the Identity of the Reader
A few days in advance of starting this unit, suggest that students look through books they have
at home, do an online search about interesting book titles, or ask friends for book suggestions.
If they have some books they would like to consider, they should bring them to class.
Prepare copies of the handouts Student Fiction Reading Survey and Memories of Reading-A
Timeline. (See attached sheets.)
Fill out the survey and the timeline about your own reading attitudes, memories, and habits
and be prepared to share with students.
Review book lists and websites to learn about book titles that are at high school interest levels
and a variety of reading levels to accommodate your students’ various needs. Helpful websites
that show Reading Equivalence Levels and Interest Levels include:
http://www.booksource.com/Departments/Leveled-Reading.aspx
http://bookwizard.scholastic.com/tbw/homePage.do
Consult with a media specialist to select a variety of popular fiction texts at a variety of reading
levels to point out to students.
Prepare copies of Independent Reading Contract. (See attached sheet.)
Prepare copies of the Reading Log. (See attached sheet.)
Optional: Prepare copies of the inspirational quotes.
Readers acknowledge who they are as readers and as part of a reading community. They set goals
for their reading.
Review the teaching point.
Distribute the research handouts Memories of Reading—A Timeline and Student Fiction
Reading Survey.
Teacher models and thinks aloud:
Model your reading memories by thinking aloud as you complete a timeline with your students.
Tell a few stories that “add-up” to your identity as a reader. Try to include a memory when reading
was hard for you or not interesting (if possible).
Students complete the timeline and survey. Provide turn-and-talk time to encourage students to
discuss their memories and determine why and how they have developed their current attitude
toward reading.
Provide time for students to complete the timeline. Monitor this work and talk to students
about their memories.
Turn-and-talk
Ask students to tell their reading stories to a partner.
Provide more time for students to answer the question at the bottom of the timeline to identify
their sense of being a reader.
Students complete the rest of the survey.
Students report out in pairs or small groups. Determine a way to numerically or graphically
represent the information from the student surveys. As they share their survey results, chart the
information to determine percentages or graphically show their reading attitudes and habits. When
they have had ample time to share all of the survey results, seek some volunteers to share some
anecdotes from their discussion. What reading memories surprised you? What are some strategies
that you use when you are faced with difficult reading? How does reading affect you? How has
Page 12
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Assessment
reading something changed you?
Mini-task Performance Continuum
Task
Analyze self as a
reader by
completing
reading history
and survey to
determine
reading goals
Teaching Point 1.2
Active Engagement
Homework/Extension
Proficient
Completes
reading survey
and sets
individual,
appropriate
reading goals to
deepen learning
Developing
Completes
reading survey
and sets
reasonable goals
for learning
Attempting
Struggles to
complete reading
history and survey
and sets goals
that are too basic
and will not push
for reading
growth
Readers use strategies to find the book that is right for them.
Review the lesson connection and teaching point.
Explain to students that choosing the right book is very important not only to a reader’s
enjoyment, but also in making him/her a better reader. Students should be selecting books that
sound interesting and are at appropriate reading levels.
Reading is a personal and social experience, therefore it is ideal for each student to have a book
partner or small book club, where all members read the same book. However, it is not
essential. If you choose not to require students to choose common books, try to form logical
groups based on student reading levels, common themes, or chosen genre.
Teacher models and thinks aloud
Point out that going to a library or bookstore and searching for a book is a very enjoyable
experience for many people. Model your thinking as you browse through a section of books.
Show students how you make decisions as you investigate the books.
Invite students to browse the books. Encourage them to inspect the book jackets, flip through
pages, and read portions to get a sense of the narrator and story. Have students repeat this
process until they find three potential books.
Explain that you will be timing students to approximately judge if a book’s reading level is
appropriate for them. They will take part in the timed reads for at least three different books.
Reiterate the importance of finding the book that is right for them. Choosing books that are too
difficult will lead to frustration and, worse, may cause the student’s reading to deteriorate. The
book they choose should be something the student thinks s/he will enjoy and is at a level that
works for him/her.
Ask students to look over their reading times. Ideally, the student should read one page/
minute. (Teacher’s College 21). If they were unable to get close to five pages, the book should
be saved until later in the semester or school year.
Walk around and help students who are unsure of what book to choose. Use their
comprehension rating to help find the right book. NOTE: Some students will have an
overinflated sense of their reading abilities. If you sense that the book is too difficult, ask
students to read 100 consecutive words from the book aloud. You will be able to hear their
fluency. Ask them a few beyond-the-text/ “not right there” questions about their reading. If they
get more than one question wrong and if their reading was choppy, it is probably best to
suggest that they hold that book until later in the year.
Distribute the Reading Log and explain that they will be recording their reading progress on this
chart.
Students will read their independent novels for a minimum of 30 minutes and will fill out the
Reading Log.
Page 13
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Assessment
Mini-task Performance Continuum
Task
Proficient
Developing
Attempting
Select an
Selects a text that is Selects a text that
Unable to choose
appropriate text
appropriate, neither might be too
an appropriate text,
too hard nor too
difficult or too easy
even with teacher
easy and is
assistance
interesting to the
student
Read the survey results closely to have a better understanding of your students as readers.
It is important to regularly check reading logs to be sure students are meeting their one
page/minute goal. If they are not, it may be best to switch to a more suitable book. Abandoning a
book is an appropriate option, but students must realize that their due dates for completion remain
the same. Therefore, they may need to choose a shorter book to be able to finish with their
classmates.
Pre-unit assessment task:
What preferences do I have when reading independently and how will I stretch or extend my reading
habits while reading fiction? After creating your Reading Memories Timeline and completing
Reading Fiction Survey, write a reflective paragraph that compares your reading in and out of
school. Imagine how you might increase the amount of reading you do out of school, and what
kinds of texts you might read. Set a goal for increasing your reading.
Page 14
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 1
MEMORIES OF READING—A TIMELINE
Directions: Create a timeline that captures memorable reading experiences in your life.
Recall moments in your life that capture your reading experiences. Start with your youngest memory and end with your most recent memory. Take a moment to
determine which experiences are most important to you. What did the event teach you about being a reader?
Place 4-5 important moments on the timeline below. Title and date each experience. Also indicate your age.
Review your timeline. 1) How did these events impact your view of reading? 2) What impression did it leave with you on your ability to read? 3) What impression did it
leave with you on your interest in reading?
Talk to a partner about your memories. Then answer the question at the bottom of the page.
Do you see yourself as a reader? Why or why not?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
Page 15
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 1
Independent Reading
Student Fiction Reading Survey
IN-SCHOOL READING
1.
In a typical week, how many pages of reading is required by your teachers? ____________
2.
What percentage of the required reading do you do? 0-25%___ 25-50%___ 50-75%___ 75-100%___
3.
In which subject(s) do you actually read the required reading?
4.
Do you ever get to choose what you read for a class? Yes ____ No ____
OUTSIDE-OF-SCHOOL READING
1. In a typical week, how many pages do you read that are not required by an instructor? _________
2. What do you choose to read outside of school? Please list reading you have done in the last year. Include titles of
books, magazines, newspapers, internet sites or other readings.
Books
Magazines/Newspapers
Internet Sites
Other
3. Please list your favorite genre(s) and/or author(s) and/or title(s):
4. When and where do you find time to read?
5. What do you prefer—fiction or nonfiction? ___________________________________ Why?
Page 16
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
6. Do you finish what you start reading? Yes____ No ____ If no, why do you stop reading?
7. Do you have strategies that you use as you read? Check all the strategies you use.
Predict ___ Question ___
Summarize ___ Clarify ___
Reread ___
Visualize ____
Other ______________________________________________________________
8. How does reading literature affect you? In what ways has it changed/could it change your life?
After reviewing my Memories of Reading- a Timeline and my Student Fiction Reading Survey results, I think
that appropriate goals for me in reading are:
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__.
Page 17
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 1
Independent Reading--Fiction
Independent Reading Contract
For the next few weeks, we will be reading at least two works of fiction that you will select. You will be expected to pick
a book that is right for you, monitor your reading comprehension and progress, consider how your story matches with
what we have learned about fiction previously, and discuss your book with your teacher and classmates.
Student
I have chosen________________________________________________________________by
(title)
__________________________________________________________________for my
(author)
1st/ 2nd/ 3rd text for this unit. The reasons I want to read this book are:
1. _______________________________________________________________________
2. _______________________________________________________________________
I have never read this book before.
I have read this before. The reason I want to re-read it is _________________________
_______________________________________________________________________You are expected to re-read no
more than one book in this unit.
I understand that to finish my book by the deadline of ____________, I must read ________
pages a day. I agree to read this many pages and to participate in other activities associated with this unit.
_______________________________________________________ Date _______
(student signature)
Parent/ Guardian
I have reviewed my student’s selection and give my permission for him/her to read it.
______________________________________________________Date_____________
(parent/guardian signature)
Page 18
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 1
Independent Reading-Fiction
Reading Log
Book Title & Author:
Time reading in
Date workshop
Pages
read in
workshop
Time
Pages read
reading
out of
out of
workshop
workshop
Reflecting on your reading
(Comment on your reading speed,
how well you stayed focused and
managed distractions.)
Page 19
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Session 2
Preparation
Concept
Connection
Teaching Point 2.1
Active Engagement
Independent Practice
Assessment
Teaching Point 2.2
It is not enough to simply teach children to read; we have to give them something worth
reading. Something that will stretch their imaginations--something that will help them make
sense of their own lives and encourage them to reach out toward people whose lives are quite
different from their own. - Katherine Paterson
Note that this lesson will span several days of teaching and independent reading.
Prepare copies of the Collecting Text bookmarks, preferably on cardstock. (See attached
sheet.)
Prepare copies of the handout Connecting with the Narrator. (See attached sheet.)
Using a book students should all be familiar with, prepare a teacher model of the handout
Connecting with the Narrator that has the first few questions answered.
Prepare copies of the Assessment for Stages of Independent Reading chart. (See
attached sheet.)
Optional: prepare copies of the inspirational quote.
Interacting with Texts and Self-Monitoring
In the last lesson, students spent time considering their lives as readers and choosing books
that are right for them. In this lesson, they will attempt to make connections with the narrator
or main character and begin collecting interesting or important details from the text.
Readers develop fluency as they get acquainted with the narrator’s voice and connect to the
characters.
Review the lesson connection and teaching point.
Explain that the goal is to increase fluency, which means to read and understand
larger portions of the text. To accomplish this, students will analyze their relationship
with the 1st-person narrative voice.
Distribute the handout Connecting with the Narrator.
Teacher models and thinks aloud
Using the teacher model of the handout Connecting with the Narrator, show students
how you thought about answering the first few questions about a book they are all
familiar with.
Have students work in small groups to answer the rest of the questions on a familiar book.
Students report out their answers and the teacher facilitates a discussion that might
address any misconceptions that arise.
Students who have read the same book work in small groups to complete the handout.
*Circulate around the room to monitor student work, noticing if anyone is having difficulty
connecting to the narrator or main character. It might be advisable to recommend that the
student switch to a different book if s/he does not feel a connection to the narrator or main
character.
Task
Proficient
Developing
Attempting
Examine the Clearly understands
Understands who the Struggles both to
narrator
who the narrator is
narrator is, but
understand the
and realistically
struggles to theorize
narrator and name
theorizes about the
why this narrator
why this point of view
choice of narrator
might have been
was chosen
chosen
Readers develop fluency by noticing important details as they read.
Page 20
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Active Engagement 2
Independent Practice 2
Share
Homework/Extension
Assessment
Another way to increase fluency is to make meaning as you read. Explain that students
will collect important passages to try to make meaning as they read.
Distribute the Collecting Text bookmarks.
Teacher models and thinks aloud
Model reading aloud a short excerpt from a novel, such as The Giver, and think aloud as
you choose a line that seems important. Important passages might include actions,
dialogue, or descriptions that reveal an event, character, or motivation. Using the model
that you’ve created or the one provided, demonstrate how you jot down the page
number and the passage on your Collecting Text bookmark. Students will collect 3-5 lines
per reading session in this fashion each time they read. They may choose to simply place
post-it notes on pages to mark lines they want to add to their Collecting Text bookmarks
later.
Have students practice with a section of text from The Giver or another text they are
familiar with. Have them work with a partner to identify and discuss which line(s) might
be important in the section.
Have students report out their choices and thinking. Keep in mind that many different
ideas will emerge and should be seen as valid.
Students will collect 3-5 lines per reading session in this fashion each time they read. They may
choose to simply place post-it notes on pages to mark lines they want to add to their
Collecting Text bookmarks later.
Students read independently for the rest of the class period. They continue to track progress
in their Reading Logs and fill out their Collecting Text bookmarks.
*Circulate during the reading time and ask a few of the suggested questions from the
Questions For Conferring During Reading Workshop handout. Advise students to choose a
new book if they seem to have chosen a novel that doesn’t suit their abilities and/or tastes. Use
the Assessment for Stages of Independent Reading chart to record student progress.
Students share a few lines that they found interesting and explain why they think they are
important.
Next, students discuss with their partners how fluent their reading is so far. Have them
answer three types of questions:
1) Engagement with the main character: How engaging is the main character? Do
you care about the main character as a person?
2) Fluency with the narrator’s voice: Who is telling the story? Does this narrator’s
voice help you read or create confusion?
3) Metacognitive: Do you have to re-read constantly? Do you frequently find yourself
confused about what’s going on? Are you imagining yourself being right there with
the characters and a part of the story? Do you care about the narrator as a person?
*Circulate around the room to monitor how students are doing with fluency and engagement.
Advise students to choose a new book if they seem to have chosen a novel that doesn’t suit
their abilities.
Students read for a minimum of 30 minutes and record pages read in their Reading Log. They
also fill in their Collecting Text bookmarks.
You might collect their Collecting Text bookmarks to quickly see students’ choices and if the
choices seem to reveal something important about the book.
Performance Continuum
Task
Proficient
Developing
Attempting
Identify key
Identifies 5 or more Identifies at least 3
Struggles to identify
details/events
key details and
details and events
anything that might
events from the
from the story
be important in the
story
story
Page 21
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 2
Independent Reading-Fiction
Session 2: Connecting with the Narrator
Readers develop fluency as they get acquainted with the narrator’s voice and connect to the characters.
In order to increase fluency, readers need to work to understand the narrator. To do this, please answer the following
questions with your partner(s).
1. How do you learn about the main character? Does he tell his own story? Does a narrator provide insights? Do
other characters report information to the reader?
2. What kind of a person is the main character? (In some books, the story is told by the main character. In others,
an outside narrator tells the story.)
3. What makes you describe the main character this way? Please copy a few lines from the text that support your
view.
4. If you find the main character strange or hard to connect to, does this make you want to choose another book,
or are you compelled to keep reading to figure this person out?
5. Why do you suppose that the author chose to tell the story from this person’s point of view?
Page 22
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Collecting Text Bookmarks
Collecting Text Bookmarks
Name_________________
Name_________________
Book Title_____________
Book Title_____________
Date__________________
Date__________________
Pg#
Pg#
_____________________________
_____________________________
Pg#
Pg#
_____________________________
_____________________________
Pg#
Pg#
_____________________________
_____________________________
Pg#
Pg#
_____________________________
Pg#
_____________________________
Pg#
Page 23
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 2
Independent Reading-Fiction
Lesson 2: Collecting Text Bookmarks Model
1. Read an excerpt from The Giver (or other novel of your choosing). (The following comes from pages 15 and 16 of
Lois Lowry’s novel The Giver.)
Jonas nodded. During the past year he had been aware of the increasing level of observation. In school, at
recreation time, and during volunteer hours, he had noticed the Elders watching him and the other Elevens. He had seen
them taking notes. He knew, too, that the Elders were meeting for long hours with all of the instructors that he and the
other Elevens had had during their years of school.
“So I expected it, and I was pleased, but not at all surprised, when my Assignment was announced as Nurturer,”
Father explained.
“Did everyone applaud, even though they weren’t surprised?” Jonas asked.
“Oh, of course. They were happy for me, that my Assignment was what I wanted most. I felt very fortunate.” His
father smiled.
“Were any of the Elevens disappointed, your year?” Jonas asked. Unlike his father, he had no idea what his
Assignment would be. But he knew that some would disappoint him. Though he respected his father’s work, Nurturer
would not be his wish. And he didn’t envy Laborers.
2.
Demonstrate how you might take a line from the passage to put on a Collecting Text bookmark. Remind
students that they are only collecting 3-5 key lines from one reading session.
Collecting Text Bookmarks
Name ____ Teacher Model__________
Book Title ________The Giver_______
Date ________3/15/10_______________
Page # 15
And he didn’t envy Laborers.
__________________________________
Page 24
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 2
Notes
Engagement
Selfmonitoring
Identity
Notes
Engagement
Selfmonitoring
Identity
Notes
Engagement
Date
Selfmonitoring
Student Name
Identity
Assessment for Stages of Independent Reading
Page 25
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Session 3
…[A] community of readers [is] one of a company of friends who encourage and sustain one another.
-Nancie Atwell
Concept
Preparation
Connection
Teaching Point 3.1
Active Engagement
Independent Practice
Share
“For most people, what is so painful about reading is that you read something and you don’t
have anybody to share it with. In part what the book club opens up is that people can read a
book and then have someone else to talk about it with. Then they see that a book can lead to
the pleasure of conversation, that the solitary act of reading can actually be a part of the path to
communion and community.” -Bell Hooks
Developing the Identity of the Reader
Prepare copies of the Novel Conversation Preparation Card to be taped or glued in students’
Reader’s Notebooks. (See attached sheet.)
Prepare copies of an excerpt (about 500 words) from a novel you will model in class.
Read and be prepared to discuss the excerpt from a novel. Pay particular attention to the Novel
Conversation Preparation Card questions.
Optional: make arrangements to record one or more groups in their discussions. This could be
used to analyze discussion behaviors for teaching point 3.2.
Prepare copies of the Positive Discussion Behaviors in a Community of Readers handout. (See
attached.)
Optional: prepare copies of the inspirational quote(s).
So far in this unit we’ve worked on choosing the right book and really connecting to the book, but we
also want to connect to each other as a community of readers. In order to do that, we need to
discuss with others what we’re reading to deepen our understanding, to clear up confusions, and to
enjoy the experience of sharing what we’re reading. We will also focus on positive ways that readers
behave in a book discussion.
Readers acknowledge who they are as readers and as part of a reading community. They talk
about their books together.
Review the lesson connection and teaching point.
Hand out the Novel Conversation Preparation Card for students to glue or tape in their
notebooks.
Teacher models and thinks aloud
Read the chosen excerpt aloud to the class. Do a think-aloud as you read a short passage and
stop to clarify. For example, you might read from the first page of The Giver. “At first, he had
been only fascinated. He had never seen aircraft so close, for it was against the rules for Pilots to
fly over the community.” You might show students how you would stop and clarify. For example,
why wouldn’t pilots be able to fly over the community? What kind of community is this? Why is
the “P” in “Pilots” capitalized?
Model how you would respond to the questions and sentence starters on the Novel
Conversation Preparation Card. Where might a reader be confused? What are you discovering
about characters? How do you feel about the characters? Who do you know who’s like a
character in the novel?
Emphasize the parts where you think a student would benefit from discussion with others, like
clarifying questions or trying to identify the ideas and themes present in the story. Model writing
your thinking in your reader’s/writer’s notebook.
Using an excerpt from The Giver or another work they are familiar with, students practice and
discuss this work with a partner.
Choose a few partners to share their thinking with the class.
Students spend approximately 10 minutes filling in their readers’/writers’ in response to the Novel
Conversation Preparation Card and prepare for discussion with their partner(s).
Students take approximately 20 minutes to share their thoughts and questions with their reading
partner(s). Visit student discussions and determine if students have difficulty keeping the
conversation going. If so, direct them to return to their Novel Conversation Cards and try another
Page 26
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Practice 2
Homework/Extension
Assessment
sentence stem or answer another question.
Students read independently for the rest of the class period. They continue to track progress on their
Reading Log and fill out their Collecting Text Bookmarks.
*Circulate during the reading time and ask a few of the suggested questions from the Questions For
Conferring During Reading Workshop handout. Mark your observations on the Assessment for
Stages of Independent Reading chart.
Students read for a minimum of 30 minutes and fill out the Reading Log. Students also fill in their
Collecting Text Bookmarks.
Mini-task Performance Continuum
Task
Proficient
Summarize
events/details
in the story
Identify key
quotations to
support
theories about
central idea(s)
Teaching Point 3.2
Active Engagement 2
Share
Independent Practice
Homework/Extension
Assessment
Accurately
summarizes the major
events in the story so
far
Theorizes about a
central idea using key
lines to support
theory
Developing
Attempting
Summarizes most of
the major events in
the story so far
Struggles to
summarize anything
that happened so far
Names key lines, but
struggles to create a
theory about a central
idea(s)
Struggles to name key
lines or to create a
theory.
Readers practice positive discussion behaviors.
Review the teaching point.
Distribute and review the Positive Discussion Behaviors in a Community of Readers handout.
Model and think aloud:
If you recorded the previous section’s discussions, you could show the clips and point out the
positive behaviors that you see.
If you did not record the previous section’s discussions, ask a strong partnership to come to the
front of the class and begin a 3-minute discussion. Classmates and the teacher watch and find
the behaviors that this partnership did well.
Using their Novel Conversation Cards, students work with their partner(s) to discuss the reading
for approximately 20 minutes.
At the end of the discussion, students fill out the Positive Discussion Behaviors in a Community
of Readers.
Students read independently for the rest of the class period. They continue to track progress on their
Reading Log and fill out their Collecting Text Bookmarks.
*Circulate during the reading time and ask a few of the suggested questions from the Questions For
Conferring During Reading Workshop handout. Mark your observations on the Assessment for
Stages of Independent Reading chart.
Students read for a minimum of 30 minutes and fill out the Reading Log. Students also fill in their
Collecting Text Bookmarks.
Performance Continuum
Task
Work collaboratively
to find meaning in
texts
Use direct
quotations to
support analysis
and/or summarize
events/details in the
story
Proficient
Participates in a manner
that encourages others to
join in
Supports thinking with
summary of events and/or
direct evidence from the
text
Developing
Participates in discussion
and listens intently
Participates in the
discussion and uses some
evidence to back up
thinking
Attempting
Struggles to make a small
addition to the conversation
or conversation is off topic
Attempts to find key details
or summarize what
happened but retelling may
be inaccurate or can’t find
direct evidence to support
analysis
Page 27
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 3
Novel Conversation Preparation Card
1. What has happened in the novel so far?
2. Who are the characters in the novel, and what do you know about them?
3. What ideas about the world do you think are being expressed in the novel? What makes you think
this?
4. Which part(s) do you find confusing?
5. Which lines seem to be important to the novel so far in your reading? (Remember to look at your
Collecting Text bookmarks for these.)
Use the following sentence stems to help you in your conversation:
I like…
I dislike…
I can’t believe…
I wonder…
I know someone like…
I’ve always been interested in…
(Predict) Later in the novel I think...
Novel Conversation Preparation Card
1. What has happened in the novel so far?
2. Who are the characters in the novel, and what do you know about them?
3. What ideas about the world do you think are being expressed in the novel? What makes you think
this?
4. Which lines seem to be important to the novel so far in your reading? (Remember to look at your
Collecting Text bookmarks for these.)
Use the following sentence stems to help you in your conversation:
I like…
I dislike…
I can’t believe…
I wonder…
I know someone like…
I’ve always been interested in…
(Predict) Later in the novel I think...
Page 28
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 3
Independent Reading-Fiction
Lesson 3: Positive Discussion Behaviors in a Community of Readers
As you participate in your discussions about books, there are certain behaviors that facilitate good
conversations. As you work with your partner(s) today, please put a checkmark next to the behaviors that you
exhibit. At the end of the discussion, spend a few minutes reflecting on your positive behaviors. Set a goal
about how you will improve your discussion skills the next time you meet.
A good reading community member:
_____ makes eye contact with partners.
_____ listens without interrupting.
_____ stays focused on the conversation.
_____ asks relevant and interesting questions.
_____ points to specific lines in the text for support.
_____ invites partner(s) to participate equally.
_____ politely offers an alternative when s/he disagrees.
My Positive Discussion Behavior goal for the next discussion is:
Page 29
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Session 4
Preparation
Concept
Connection
Teaching Point
Active Engagement
Independent Practice
Share
Homework
Assessment
The character that lasts is an ordinary guy with some extraordinary qualities. -Raymond Chandler
Prepare copies of the handout Understanding Characters through Internal and External
Stories. (See attached sheet.)
Prepare a copy of the handout that all can see.
Read through a section of a suitable novel to discover how the character is revealed. We will
use The Giver as our model.
Optional: prepare copies of the inspirational quote.
Exploring Genre—Elements and Structures
In previous lessons, students participated in a reading community discussion. They talked about
what they liked and disliked about their books and made predictions. They became aware of
positive discussion behaviors. In this lesson, students will review the different ways we learn about
the character’s internal and external world.
Readers learn about characters through their internal and external stories.
Review the lesson connection and teaching point.
Distribute the handout Understanding Characters through Their Internal and External
Stories.
Using the handout, review the ways readers can get to know their characters.
Teacher models and thinks aloud, using handout on the overhead or projector
Read the excerpt from your chosen novel aloud as you do a think-aloud.
Write a couple examples of how the text reveals character. See the model.
Students read independently and find examples of how the character is revealed in their text, until
15 minutes remain in the period. They fill out their handout as they go.
*Circulate during the reading time and ask a few of the suggested questions from the Questions
For Conferring During Reading Workshop handout. Use the Assessment for Stages of Independent
Reading chart to record student progress.
Students share their findings with their partner(s). Volunteers should contribute their findings to a
brief class discussion. What do the details they have collected say about the character?
* You may notice that some examples may fall under more than one category. Be sure to explain
that that is fully possible.
Students read for a minimum of 30 minutes and fill out the Reading Log. Students also fill in their
Collecting Text Bookmarks.
Mini-task Performance Continuum
Task
Proficient
Developing
Attempting
Identify
Identifies important
Identifies a few details Identifies details that
motivations
details, both internal
that reveal what kind
don’t reveal character
and conflicts
and external, that
of person the main
or struggles to identify
of the major
reveal what kind of
character is, but they
any details
character(s)
person the main
might be only internal
character is
or external
Page 30
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 4
Independent Reading--Fiction
Understanding Characters through Internal and External Stories
Readers learn about characters through characters’ relationships with others. Actions, thoughts, descriptions,
and dialogue show the internal and external world of the character. Consider the different ways your author
gives you insight into who your character is. Jot down page numbers and quotes, if possible.
INTERNAL WORLD
-THOUGHTS
What are some of the thoughts the character has in the book that might give some insight into
whether or not s/he can be trusted?
-BACKSTORIES
What do we learn about the character’s past that might give us insight into what kind of person s/he
is?
EXTERNAL WORLD
-DIALOGUE
What is said to and about the character that gives us some insight into what kind of person s/he is?
-ACTIONS
What action does the character take that shows us something about what kind of person s/he is?
Page 31
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 4
Independent Reading--Fiction
Understanding Characters--Novel #1
MODEL- The Giver
Readers learn about characters through their relationships with others. Actions, thoughts, descriptions, and
dialogue show the internal and external world of the character. Consider the different ways your author gives
you insight into who your character is. Jot down page numbers and quotes, if possible.
INTERNAL WORLD
-THOUGHTS
What are some of the thoughts the character has in the book that might give some insight into what
kind of person s/he is?
“Jonas felt a terrible ripping sensation inside himself, the feeling of terrible pain clawing its way forward to emerge in a
cry.” p. 151
Jonas feels angry as he comes to understand the society he lives in.
-BACKSTORIES
What do we learn about a character’s past that might give us insight into what kind of person s/he is?
“Jonas was careful about language. Not like his friend, Asher, who talked too fast and mixed things up, scrambling words
and phrases until they were barely recognizable and often very funny.” p. 3
Jonas is a thoughtful boy, different from his peers. He is apprehensive about the upcoming Ceremony of Twelve, but he
searches for the right word to define his feelings. In this society that values sameness and order, it is unique that he is able
to carefully analyze his words and feelings.
EXTERNAL WORLD
-DIALOGUE
What is said to and about the character that gives us some insight into what kind of person s/he is?
“’Courage,’ she went on. ‘Only one of us here today has ever undergone the rigorous training required of a Receiver. He,
of course, is the most important member of the Committee: the current Receiver. It was he who reminded us, again and
again, of the courage required.’” p. 62
This is said about Jonas at the Ceremony of Twelve. He is selected because of his extreme courage.
-ACTIONS
What action does the character take that shows us something about what kind of person s/he is?
“Jonas reached the opposite side of the river, stopped briefly and looked back. The community where his entire life had
been lived lay behind him now, sleeping.” p. 165
Jonas flees with Gabriel. This shows he will not tolerate the disciplined and cold society he has grown up in.
Page 32
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Session 5
Preparation
Concept
Connection
Teaching Point
Active Engagement
Independent Practice
Homework/Extension
Assessment
What is wonderful about great literature is that it transforms the man who reads it towards the
condition of the man who wrote. -E.M. Forster
Prepare a few Collecting Text bookmarks for the novel you are reading. Our model will be on
the book The Giver.
Prepare copies of the Making Connections handout. (You may choose to have students do this
instead in their readers’ notebooks.) [See attached sheet.]
Optional: prepare copies of the inspirational quote.
Interacting with Texts and Self-Monitoring
In the last lesson, students worked to find out what kind of people their characters are. In this
lesson, they will try to make connections and create theories about the author’s purpose.
Teaching Point: Readers notice details and lines to stay connected to characters or problems in the
novel. They create theories about the author’s purpose and begin to predict the plot. They notice
and connect details and actions and identify central idea(s) as they continue reading.
Review today’s lesson connection and teaching point.
Teacher models and thinks aloud:
Show students the model Collecting Text bookmarks you prepared for the story you have
chosen.
Cut the bookmarks to create individual bookmarks, each containing one quote.
Show students how you might manipulate the cards as you search for connections between the
lines. What do the lines have in common? Are there details about the character that connect?
Do they show the problem the character faces? Do the lines reveal an overriding message about
life or a theme? Do some lines seem to fit in more than one category? What might the
significance of that be? Think aloud as you identify the connection between the quotes, labeling
what the lines all seem to be about. The connections could be related to theme, character
development, or author’s intent. Show your model or the model below from The Giver.
*Be aware that students are invited to create theories of author’s purpose during this lesson,
but will get more instruction and practice in session 10. Their theories may be faulty or
superficial on this initial attempt. This activity should help them to be more aware of author’s
purpose while reading their second text.
Students work with their book partner(s), sorting the lines they collected on the Collecting Text
bookmarks into categories. They may find connections related to theme, character
development, or author’s intent. They may find that some lines fit into several categories.
Have several partnerships report out a pair of their bookmarks and the category they think they
both belong to. Discuss how they are connected.
Students should then continue to sort their bookmarks until they are all in categories.
Students then complete the Making Connections handout with their current thinking.
Students read their books to completion and record pages in their Reading Log. They also fill in their
Collecting Text bookmarks.
Performance Continuum
Task
Proficient
Developing
Attempting
Examine multiple
details/events across
the text to determine
theme(s) or central
idea(s)
Create a theory and
select supporting
details to promote one
or more central idea(s)
or theme(s)
Connects multiple
details or events
across a work and
names the connection
Connects two or more
details or events, and
attempts to name the
connection
Sees no connection
between events or
details
Theorizes about a
logical central idea(s)
or theme(s) using key
lines to support theory
Names key lines and
creates a theory about
a central idea(s) or
theme(s)
Names key lines, but
struggles to create a
theory about a central
idea(s) or theme(s)
Page 33
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 5
Independent Reading-Fiction
Lesson 5: Making Connections
Look over the lines you selected on your Collecting Text bookmarks. Do you notice things in common between
some of the lines? Do some lines seem to fit into more than one category? Jot down the lines you have
selected and put them into categories below. You might find connections related to character development,
theme or author’s intent. (NOTE: You may not be quite sure at first what the categories are. You may just
sense some connection between them. That’s ok. Keep sorting your lines and talking to your partner(s) until
you can create some theories.)
ALL THESE LINES SEEM TO BE ABOUT _________________________________.
ALL THESE LINES SEEM TO BE ABOUT __________________________________.
Now I realize…
Page 34
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 5
Independent Reading-Fiction
Lesson 5: Making Connections
MODEL-The Giver
Look over the lines you selected on your Collecting Text bookmarks. Do you notice things in common between
some of the lines? Do some lines seem to fit into more than one category? Jot down the lines you have
selected and put them into categories below. You might find connections related to character development,
theme or author’s intent. (NOTE: You may not be quite sure at first what the categories are. You may just
sense some connection between them. That’s ok. Keep sorting your lines and talking to your partner(s) until
you can create some theories.)
ALL THESE LINES SEEM TO BE ABOUT ____Pleasure vs. Pain__________.
"You will be faced, now, with pain of a magnitude that none of us here can comprehend because it is beyond our
experience. The Receiver himself was not able to describe it, only to remind us that you would be faced with it, that you
would need immense courage.” pp. 62--3
"Our people made that choice, the choice to go to Sameness. Before my time, before the previous time, back and back and
back. We relinquished color when we relinquished sunshine and did away with difference. We gained control of many
things. But we had to let go of others.” p. 95
"[T]hey were satisfied with their lives which had none of the vibrance his own was taking on. And he was angry at himself,
that he could not change that for them.” p. 99
ALL THESE LINES SEEM TO BE ABOUT ________Sameness/ Order___________.
"No one mentioned such things; it was not a rule, but was considered rude to call attention to things that were unsettling
or different about individuals." p. 20
"How could someone not fit in? The community was so meticulously ordered, the choices so carefully made." p. 48
"He was so completely, so thoroughly accustomed to courtesy within the community that the thought of asking another
citizen an intimate question, if calling someone's attention to an area of awkwardness, was unnerving." p. 69
Now I realize…
Lowry is criticizing the society’s attempt to keep everything so orderly. It may seem fine that people don’t experience real pain, but
it’s terrible that they never experience real pleasure.
Page 35
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Session 6
My test of a good novel is dreading to begin the last chapter. -Thomas Helm
Concept
Preparation
Connection
Teaching Point 6.1
Active Engagement
Independent Practice
Share
Assessment
Teaching Point 6.2
Active Engagement 2
Independent Practice
Share
Assessment
When you sell a man a book, you don’t sell him just twelve ounces of paper and ink and glue—you
sell him a whole new life. -Christopher Morley
Exploring Genre—Elements and Structures
Over the course of this lesson, students should research possible titles to read next. This might
include: talking with someone else; exploring their local library, bookstore, or home
bookshelves; reading online reviews from Amazon.com; or exploring sites such as
www.boysread.com and/or www.goodreads.com. They should come to class with three or four
books, or at least their titles, that they might be interested in reading. Announce this to them
ahead of time so that they have time to explore before their day in the media center.
Prepare the handout Evaluating the Novel and Choosing another Novel. (See attached sheet.)
Complete a model of the handout from your own reading to share with the class.
Make arrangements to use the media center, so students can check out a second novel.
Optional: prepare copies of the inspirational quote.
In the last lesson, students made connections across the text and created theories about the
author’s purpose. In this lesson, they make judgments about the novel and use that information to
help them decide what to read next.
Readers evaluate what they read.
Review the lesson connection and teaching point.
Distribute and explain the handout Evaluating the Novel and Choosing another Novel.
Teacher models and thinks aloud
Show your teacher model of Part 1 Evaluating Your Novel and think aloud as you review it.
Students complete Part 1: Evaluating Your Novel.
Students share their reviews with their reading partner or group. Ask students who rated their
books as a 4 or 5 to read their reviews to the class.
Performance Continuum
Task
Proficient
Developing
Attempting
Summarize
Accurately summarizes Summarizes a few
Attempts to evaluate
and
the key plot events
events or details;
the novel but may lack
paraphrase
and theme(s) in a book identifies a theme;
any plot summary or
the text to
review that evaluates
evaluates the book
theme identification
support
the novel
analysis
Readers consider what they’ve read and how it affects them.
Review the teaching point.
Teacher models and thinks aloud:
Show a teacher model of Part 2: Planning for the Next Novel. Think aloud as you review your
responses.
Students complete Part 2: Planning for the Next Novel.
Students should share their plans with a partner and then turn them in for assessment. You might
also give them an opportunity to take a look at books that classmates have described to see if they
are something they might be interested in.
Performance Continuum
Task
Proficient
Developing
Attempting
Write to identify and
describe the reader’s
development
Consider the effect
literature has on a
reader and make a claim
Identifies growth over
time and provides
examples
Names a way in which
the reader sees the
world differently and
Identifies growth
over time and
provides an example
Names a way in
which the reader
sees the world
Writer attempts to
identify growth over time
but may lack examples
Struggles to name a way
in which the reader sees
the world
Page 36
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
about how books
change the way the
reader sees the world
Connect details in the
explanation and decide
upon the implications in
a conclusion
Teaching Point 6.3
Active Engagement 3
Independent Practice
Share
Assessment
Homework
differently and
provides an example
differently/unable to
provide an example
Synthesizes
information from the
work in the unit to
clearly name the
future implications of
their learning in this
unit
Synthesizes
information to assert
an implication of
their learning in this
unit
Attempts to name an
implication of their
learning in the unit. May
only be able to name what
has changed
Readers make decisions about what to read next.
Review the teaching point.
Explain that students may form different book partnerships for this second text. The goal is to
find the appropriate text, not to find a text that a particular partner would read.
Explain that students need to have at least three books in hand within approximately 20
minutes. They might use the media center computers for suggestions, going to the sites
recommended in the preparation section.
Remind students to allow enough time to do five-minute reads of each book and make their
selections.
Let them know you will be conferring with individual students about their choices throughout
the period.
* It is important for you to circulate and discuss choices with each student. Use the Assessment for
Stages of Independent Reading chart to help students select a second text that will challenge but
not overwhelm. You might also suggest partnerships based on what you know about students’
interests and abilities.
Students look for books. They read each of the three selected books for a five-minute span to help
determine which book is best suited for their reading abilities and interests. Once they make their
choices, they begin reading their books.
Students share their book choices with a classmate and explain why they made that choice.
Performance Continuum
Task
Choose an
appropriate novel
based on
information
Assessment
provides example(s)
Proficient
Finds a novel that is at
an appropriate reading
level and meets several
goals from the Planning
for the Next Novel
Handout
Developing
Finds a novel that is at
an appropriate reading
level and meets at least
one goal from the
Planning for the Next
Novel Handout
Attempting
Attempts to find a
suitable novel, but may
be resistant or may not
settle for any titles
within a reasonable time
Mid-unit assessment task:
How has your reading, identity as a reader, or preferences for reading changed? Review your
Collecting Text Bookmarks and revisit the goal you set before beginning the unit. Reflect upon and
identify one way you have grown as a reader. Write a reflective paragraph that states how you
have changed. Provide specific evidence from your reader’s notebook and the text you are reading
to explain how and why this change occurred.
Students read for a minimum of 30 minutes and fill out the Reading Log. Students also fill in their
Collecting Text Bookmarks.
Page 37
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 6
Independent Reading-Fiction
Lesson 6: Evaluating the Novel
Part 1: Evaluating Your Novel
Meet with your book group or partner to discuss the following:
How did the book end?
Was the problem resolved in a satisfactory way? Why or why not?
Would you recommend it to a friend? Why or why not?
Write a one-paragraph book review. In it, please give a brief description of the plot without giving away
the ending, discuss the major themes, and include the book’s positive and negative qualities. (This might
include the genre, suggestions of how the book could be improved, how realistic it is, etc.) Then, give it a
rating on a scale of 1—5, 1 being low, 5 being high.
Part 2: Planning For the Next Novel (Classroom Assessment Task)
After reviewing your independent novel and gathered quotes from the bookmarks, what do you realize about
the author’s purpose for writing the novel? How will this affect your next book choice? Write a two page
response about the author’s purpose for writing the novel and how this influences your next book choice.
How have you grown as a reader so far in this unit? Refer to your reading log and goal setting work
for examples.
What did you decide was the author’s purpose in writing this novel?
How has reading this novel changed the way you see the world? Provide an example.
Do you want to read something with similar themes or different ones?
Do you want to read something by the same author or someone new?
Do you want to read something of the same genre or something different?
Do you want to read something of the same difficulty level or something easier or more difficult?
What point of view would you prefer your next novel to be told from? (For example, do want the
narrator to be male or female, adult or adolescent, mature or immature?)
Have you heard any titles that fellow students have read that you want to consider reading?
Be sure that your concluding sentence points out the implications of your learning from this
reading. What do you now know about yourself as a reader that you didn’t before?
Page 38
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Session 7
Preparation
Concept
Connection
Teaching Point
Active Engagement
Independent Practice
Share
Independent Practice 2
Homework
Assessment
Nothing’s beautiful from every point of view. -Horace
Prepare copies of the Collecting Text bookmarks.
Prepare copies of the handout Examining Point of View.
Optional: prepare copies of the inspirational quote.
Interacting with Texts and Self-Monitoring
In the last lesson, students discussed their new texts. With this second novel, they will improve
fluency by examining the author’s choice of narrator or main character.
Readers develop fluency as they get acquainted with the narrator’s voice and connect to the
characters. They examine the author’s choice of narrator or main character.
Teacher models and thinks aloud
Review the lesson connection and teaching point.
Distribute and explain the handout Examining Point of View.
Think aloud as you recall the story Cinderella. How different the story would be if it were told from
the point of view of the step-mother?
With partners, students continue considering how Cinderella would be different if it were told from
another point of view. Discuss the following questions. How would the story be different if it were
told from the point of view of the step-sister or the prince? How would this change affect the story?
Why did the author choose to tell it from Cinderella’s point of view?
Students complete the handout Examining Point of View, using their independent novels.
Students share their work with their partner(s). They should conclude by developing a theory about
why the author chose this narrator or main character.
Students read their texts independently for the remainder of the period.
*Circulate during the reading time and ask a few of the suggested questions from the Questions For
Conferring During Reading Workshop handout. Mark your observations on the Assessment for
Stages of Independent Reading chart.
Students read for a minimum of 30 minutes and fill out the Independent Fiction Reading Log.
Students also fill in their Collecting Text Bookmarks.
Performance Continuum
Task
Proficient
Developing
Attempting
Consider how
the story would
be different if it
were told by a
different
narrator
Identifies a different
narrator and gives
multiple examples of
how a different
narrator would change
the story
Identifies a different
narrator and gives one
example of how the
story would be
different with that
narrator
Identifies a different
narrator, but does not
provide an example of
how the story would
be different with that
narrator
Develop a
theory about
why the author
chose this
narrator
Develops a logical
theory about why the
author chose this
narrator
Develops a theory
about why the author
chose this narrator
Attempts to develop a
theory about why the
author chose this
narrator
Page 39
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 7
Independent Reading--Fiction
Lesson 7: Examining Point of View
Readers develop fluency as they get acquainted with the narrator’s voice and connect to the characters.
In order to increase fluency, readers need to work to understand the narrator. To do this, please answer the following
questions about your independent novel.
1. Who is the narrator or main character of your text?
2. Imagine if the story were told by another narrator. For example, the story might be told from another
character’s perspective or a different, outside narrator. Describe your imagined narrator.
3. How would the story be different if the story had this imagined narrator?
4. Why do you think your author chose the narrator that s/he did?
Page 40
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 7
Independent Reading-Fiction
Lesson 7: Examining Point of View
Readers develop fluency as they get acquainted with the narrator’s voice and connect to the characters.
In order to increase fluency, readers need to work to understand the narrator in particular. To do this, please answer the
following questions about your independent novel.
1. Who is the narrator or main character of your text?
Jonas is the main character, but the story is told by a third person narrator.
2. Imagine if the story were told by another narrator. For example, the story might be told from another
character’s perspective or a different, outside narrator. Describe your imagined narrator.
My imagined narrator is Jonas’ father. He cares for newborn babies. At first glance we think he is very
compassionate, but later we learn that he is emotionally distant like all of the people in their society.
3. How would the story be different if the story had this imagined narrator?
If Jonas’ father were to tell the story, we would not see Jonas’ struggle to decide between the controlled society
and a freer society where people experience pain and pleasure.
4. Why do you think your author chose the narrator that s/he did?
I think that Lois Lowry chose the third-person narrator to show a contrast between Jonas and all of the other people in his
society. The narrator describes Jonas’s internal conflict and we see that other characters do not experience the same
internal anguish.
Page 41
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Session 8
Preparation
Concept
Connection
Teaching Point
Active Engagement
Independent Practice
Share
Homework/Extension
Assessment
Nothing is as important as a likeable narrator.
Nothing holds a story together better. Ethan Canin
Prepare copies of the Understanding Character handout. (See attached sheet.)
Optional: prepare copies of the inspirational quote.
Interacting with Texts and Self-Monitoring
In previous lessons, students explored the author’s choices of narrator and characters. In this lesson,
students will rate how much they like, believe, and agree with a character.
Readers make judgments about characters.
Teacher models and thinks aloud
Review the lesson connection and teaching point.
Distribute the Understanding Character handout and model how you would rank your book,
giving specific examples from the text. See model below.
Students discuss their attitudes about the main character in their novel, using the Understanding
Character handout.
Students read independently for the remainder of the period.
*Circulate during the reading time and ask a few of the suggested questions from the Questions For
Conferring During Reading Workshop handout. Mark your observations on the Assessment for Stages
of Independent Reading chart.
Students share their attitudes with their book partner(s) and explain how their attitudes may have
changed after reading this section of their novel. Students should explore why their views of the
characters might be different.
Students read for a minimum of 30 minutes and fill out the Independent Fiction Reading Log.
Students also fill in their Collecting Text Bookmarks.
Mini-task Performance Continuum
Task
Proficient
Developing
Attempting
Make
Ranks the character in Ranks the character in Ranks the character in
judgments
terms of believability,
terms of believability,
a haphazard way and
about
likeability, and
likeability, decisions
provides no evidence
characters
decisions and uses
and locates one
evidence from the text example as evidence
to support judgments
in the text to support
judgements
Consider how
Demonstrates
Adjusts view of a
Demonstrates
learning more
flexibility by
character as s/he
reluctance to adjust
about the
considering how
changes throughout
attitudes about
character
attitudes about a
the novel
characters throughout
changes our
character change
the novel
attitudes about throughout the novel
him/her
Page 42
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading
Lesson 8: Understanding Character/ Judging How Much We Can Trust the Character
LIKEABILITY
How much do you like the character? What characteristics do you like about the person? If s/he is telling the story, is
there something in particular that you like or dislike about his/her storytelling? Explain below and provide examples
from the novel.
Dislike
Dislike
Intensely
Somewhat
Not Sure
Like
Like
Somewhat
Very Much
BELIEVABILITY
Is your character a believable character? Could you imagine a real person who is like this character? Explain below and
provide examples from the novel.
Very
Somewhat
Unbelievable
Unbelievable
Not Sure
Somewhat
Very
Believable
Believable
AGREEMENT
Do you agree with the decisions your character makes? Why or why not? Explain below and provide examples from the
novel.
Disagree
Strongly
Disagree
Somewhat
Not Sure
Agree
Somewhat
Agree
Strongly
Page 43
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 8
Independent Reading
Lesson 8: Understanding Character/ Judging How Much We Can Trust the Character
LIKEABILITY
How much do you like the character? What characteristics do you like about the person? If s/he is telling the story, is
there something in particular that you like or dislike about his/her storytelling? Explain below and provide examples
from the novel.
x
Dislike
Dislike
Intensely
Somewhat
Not Sure
Like
Like
Somewhat
Very Much
I mostly like Jonas so far, but think he might be too fragile for my taste. What’s he so worried about? Is he always like
this?
BELIEVABILITY
Is your character a believable character? Could you imagine a real person who was like this character? Explain below and
provide examples from the novel.
Very
Somewhat
Unbelievable
Unbelievable
x
Not Sure
Somewhat
Very
Believable
Believable
I’ve never known an eleven-year-old boy to be so conscious of everything around him. He seems too mature to be a kid.
He’s definitely unique, but I’ll have to learn more about him to know if I could envision him as a real person.
AGREEMENT
Do you agree with the decisions your character makes? Why or why not? Explain below and provide examples from the
novel.
Disagree
Strongly
Disagree
Somewhat
Not Sure
x
Agree
Somewhat
Agree
Strongly
Although he hasn’t made many decisions so far, I agree with the way he is so sure that he will remain friends with Asher.
The society seems to have many expectations, and remaining friends after the Ceremony doesn’t seem to be one of the
expectations, but Jonas wants to be different.
Page 44
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Session 9
Preparation
Concept
Connection
Teaching Point
Active Engagement
Share
Independent Practice
Homework/Extension
Assessment
Choose an author as you choose a friend. -Sir Christopher Wren
Prepare copies of the handout Connecting Details to Make Decisions. (See attached sheet.)
Optional: Prepare copies of the inspirational quote.
Interacting with Texts and Self-Monitoring
In the last lessons, students made judgments about characters. In this lesson, students will notice
lines about the characters and problems to compare them to those of their first novel. They will
make decisions about what they like or dislike about each of the novels.
Readers evaluate lines about the characters and problems to make decisions about what they
like or dislike about each of the novels.
Teacher models and thinks aloud
Review the lesson connection and teaching point.
Distribute and explain the handout Connecting Details to Make Decisions.
Take your own cut-apart Collecting Text bookmarks and place them in two piles, one for each
novel.
Show students how you would read through all the lines to find ones that best capture the
character, the problem, and central ideas.
Students cut the bookmarks apart.
Students work with their reading partner(s) to find lines that best represent the categories on
the handout. When they finish, they should compare the columns. Which book did they
prefer? Why? Did they find the character in their preferred book more likable, believable, or
understandable? Which problem was more compelling? Why?
Students share their reasons for their preferences with their partners/book clubs. If time allows,
they may write one great line from their preferred novel on the board for the entire class to see.
Students should spend the remainder of the period reading their novel.
*Circulate during the reading time and ask a few of the suggested questions from the Questions
For Conferring During Reading Workshop handout. Mark your observations on the Assessment for
Stages of Independent Reading chart.
Students read for a minimum of 30 minutes and fill out the Independent Fiction Reading Log.
Students also fill in their Collecting Text Bookmarks.
Performance Continuum
Task
Proficient
Developing
Attempting
Review
Sorts quotations to
Sorts quotations to
Sorts quotations
quotations to
make meaning about make meaning about randomly
make connections character or
character or
problems and makes
problems
a connection
between them
Consider literary
Supports literary
Supports literary
States literary
preferences
preference with
preference with
preference without
relevant quotations
relevant quotations
support of relevant
and effectively
from the text
quotations
contrasts it with
evidence from a
second text
Page 45
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 9
Independent Reading: Fiction
Connecting Details to Make Decisions
1. Choose your favorite of the two books you have read.
2. Choose one of the following categories to explore as you support your opinion.
______Character
______Conflict/problem
3. Sort through your “Collecting Text” bookmarks to find lines that support your opinion in your chosen category.
4. In order to support your opinion, select your 3 best examples from each novel.
5. Write a paragraph below which states your opinion about which book you prefer and why. Include evidence
from each text to support your position.
Page 46
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 9
Independent Reading: Fiction
Connecting Details to Make Decisions
1. Choose your favorite of the two books you have read. The Giver
2. Choose one of the following categories to explore as you support your opinion.
__X__Character
______Conflict/problem
3. Sort through your “Collecting Text” bookmarks to find lines that support your opinion in your chosen category.
4. In order to support your opinion, select your 3 best examples from each novel.
o
o
o
“I feel a little sorry for him,” Jonas said, “even though I don’t know him. I feel sorry for anyone who is in a
place where he feels strange or stupid.” p.6
He wept because he was afraid now that he could not save Gabriel. He no longer cared about himself. p. 173
His thoughts continued. If he had stayed, he would have starved in other ways. He would have lived a life
hungry for feelings, for color, for love. p.173
5. Write a paragraph below which states your opinion about which book you prefer and why. Include evidence
from your chosen text to support your position.
I preferred The Giver because I connected with the main character. I liked Jonas almost immediately because he
seems different from others. He is a compassionate boy, noticing injustices and daring to question them. He is
compassionate when he feels sorry for the boy from another community who unknowingly breaks the rules. He
is also compassionate in the end when he decides to abandon the community and his only priority is saving
Gabriel. He is willing to give up everything he knows and is familiar to help another. I also admire Jonas since he
wants to experience life fully.
Page 47
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Session 10
Preparation
Concept
Connection
Teaching Point
Active Engagement
Independent Practice
Share
Independent Practice
Homework/Extension
Assessment
Books can be dangerous. The best ones should be labeled
‘This could change your life.’ -Helen Exley
Prepare a few Collecting Text bookmarks for the novel you are reading.
Prepare copies of the Creating Theories About Author’s Intent handout. (You may choose to
have students do this instead in their readers’/writers’ notebooks.) (See attached sheet.)
Prepare a copy of your own model of the Creating Theories About Author’s Intent handout.
(See attached sheet.)
Optional: prepare copies of the inspirational quote.
Interacting with Texts and Self-Monitoring
In the last lesson, students made judgments about their novels. In this lesson, they will try to make
connections and create theories about the author’s purpose.
Readers notice details and lines to stay connected to characters or problems in the novel. They
create theories about the author’s purpose and begin to predict, notice, and connect details,
actions, and ideas as they continue reading.
Teacher models and thinks aloud:
Review today’s lesson connection and teaching point.
Distribute and explain the handout Creating Theories About Author’s Intent.
Think-aloud as you model theories you have created on a novel of your choice.
Students review the quotations from their Collecting Text bookmarks and use the handout Creating
Theories About Author’s Intent to hypothesize about the decisions one of the authors made.
Students share their theories with their partner(s).
Students should spend the remainder of the period reading their novel.
*Circulate during the reading time and ask a few of the suggested questions from the Questions For
Conferring During Reading Workshop handout. Mark your observations on the Assessment for
Stages of Independent Reading chart.
Students read their book to completion and record pages in their Independent Fiction Reading Log.
They also fill in their Collecting Text bookmarks.
Mini-task Performance Continuum
Task
Proficient
Developing
Attempting
Make
Uses quotations to make
Uses quotations to Does not use quotations to
hypothesis
a reasonable hypothesis
make a reasonable support hypothesis about
about
about the author’s intent hypothesis about
author’s intent about
author’s
about theme and finds
the author’s intent theme and/or does not
intent about further evidence from the about theme
make a reasonable
theme
text
hypothesis
Make
Uses quotations to make
Uses quotations to Does not use quotations to
hypothesis
a reasonable hypothesis
make a reasonable support hypothesis about
about
about the author’s intent hypothesis about
author’s intent about
author’s
about character and finds the author’s intent character and/or does not
intent about further evidence from the about character
make a reasonable
character
text
hypothesis
Make
Uses quotations to make
Uses quotations to Does not use quotations to
hypothesis
a reasonable hypothesis
make a reasonable support hypothesis about
about
about the author’s intent hypothesis about
author’s intent about the
author’s
about the problem and
the author’s intent problem and/or does not
intent about finds further evidence
about the problem make a reasonable
the problem
from the text
hypothesis
Page 48
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 10
Independent Reading- Fiction
Lesson 10: Creating Theories About Author’s Intent
Choose your favorite of the two novels.
1. What is a major theme/lesson about life that the author tried to convey?
2. Explain why you think the author decided to create the character s/he did when s/he planned the text. How did
these characters contribute to the theme?
3. Explain why you think the author created the problem/conflict for the characters. How did the conflict
contribute to the theme?
Page 49
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 10
Independent Reading- Fiction
Lesson 10: Creating Theories About Author’s Intent
MODEL- The Giver
Choose your favorite of the two novels.
4. What is a major theme/lesson about life that the author tried to convey?
One theme from the novel is that memory allows humans to feel pleasure and pain. Our memories make us human.
5. Explain why you think the author decided to create the character s/he did when s/he planned the text. How did
these characters contribute to the theme?
Lois Lowry seems to have wanted to show a character who was unique from others who all accepted an orderly,
regimented life where people do not make decisions or feel strong emotions. Jonas can “see beyond,” which is a quality
very unlike other people in this fictitious society. His intelligence and sense of empathy for others make him different.
The author uses Jonas to prove her point about the value of memory.
6. Explain why you think the author created the problem/conflict for the characters. How did the conflict
contribute to the theme?
I think the author created the problem of Jonas’ understanding the injustices around him, while others felt nothing and
simply followed the rules to show what it is to be truly human. When he rejects his society, he accepts pleasures that
others will not experience, but he also has to deal with pain. This consequence is worth it to a wise person who sees the
value in memory.
Page 50
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Session 11
Preparation
Concept
Connection
Teaching Point
Active Engagement
Independent Practice
Share
Homework
Assessment
You know you've read a good book when you turn the last page and feel a little as if you have lost a
friend. -Paul Sweeney
Prepare the handout Evaluating the Novel and Choosing Another Novel. (See attached sheet.)
Optional: prepare copies of the inspirational quote.
Developing the Identity of the Reader
In the last lesson, students discussed their novel with partner(s) to decide what they believed were
the author’s intents as s/he created the themes, the character, and the problems as they connected
the details. In this lesson, they will share their thoughts about their novels with others. They will
also decide what kind of books they think they like and try to decide on another book to read.
Readers share their ideas about the novels they read with others. They consider which types of
books they prefer and choose another book to read based on that knowledge.
Teacher models and thinks aloud:
Review the lesson connection and teaching point.
Distribute and model how you would answer Part 1 of the handout Evaluating the Novel and
Choosing Another.
Students work with a partner to complete Part 1 of the handout Evaluating the Novel and Choosing
Another. They discuss their evaluations.
Students complete Part 2 of Evaluating the Novel and Choosing Another as they reflect on their
novels and make decisions about what they want to read next and why.
Students share their thoughts with a partner(s). Depending upon the time available, some or all
students might volunteer or be asked to present their thoughts to the class.
Students should be encouraged to find another novel to read.
Mini-task Performance Continuum
Task
Proficient
Developing
Attempting
Consider the end
Discusses specific
Discusses a detail
Discusses the book’s
of the novel to
details about the
about the novel’s end end in a general way;
decide if the book novel’s end and
and explains why the
offers opinion of the
was a enjoyable
explains why the
book was enjoyable
novel but does not
book was enjoyable
or not
explain why it was
or not
enjoyable or not
Make decisions
Selects criteria for the Selects criteria for the Discusses next novel
about what to
next novel and
next novel
without considering
read next
explains why these
why it would be a
criteria are important
good selection
to him/her
Page 51
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 11
Independent Reading--Fiction
Lesson 11: Evaluating the Novel and Choosing Another
Meet with your book group or partner to discuss the following:
Part 1: Evaluating Your Novel
How did the book end?
Was the problem resolved in a satisfactory way? Why or why not?
Would you recommend it to a friend? Why or why not?
Part 2: Planning For the Next Novel
Knowing what you know about the two novels you read recently, explain how this influences what you want to read
next.
Do you want to read something with similar themes or different ones?
Do you want to read something by the same author or someone new?
Do you want to read something in the same style or something different?
Do you want to read something of the same genre or something different?
Do you want to read something of the same difficulty level or something easier or more difficult?
What point of view would you prefer your next novel to be told from? (For example, do want the narrator to
be male or female, adult or adolescent, mature or immature?)
Have you heard any titles today that you want to consider reading?
Page 52
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Session 12
Preparation
Concept
Connection
Teaching Point
Active Engagement
It is what you read when you don't have to that determines what you will be when you can't help it.
-Oscar Wilde
Prepare your own reflective essay that describes your growth as a reader and addresses the
questions:
How do you identify and develop yourself as a reader?
How did the books you read in this unit change the way we
see the world?
Prepare copies of the sentence stems to be used in the Active Engagement portion of the
lesson. (See attached sheets.)
Optional: prepare copies of the inspirational quote.
Developing the Identity of the Reader
In the last lesson, students evaluated the novels and made decisions about the novels they would
read next on their own. In this lesson, they will consider their identities as readers and how the
books they read in this unit change the way they see the world.
Readers reflect upon how books change the way they see the world and how their identities as
readers develop.
Teacher models and thinks aloud
Review the lesson connection and teaching point.
Project a copy of your own reflective essay.
Read the essay and describe your thoughts and decisions in writing it.
Think-aloud as you consider how you might revise it.
Students use the sentence stems to prepare to generate ideas before they draft their reflective
essays.
Independent Practice
Next, they discuss their ideas with a partner.
Post-unit assessment: How did reading in and out of school impact your view of yourself as a reader
and your ability to read fiction? After reading two novels, collecting details from across both novels,
and talking to other readers, identify two ways your reading has improved. Write two paragraphs to
compare your attitude toward reading before and after this independent reading unit. Use specific
examples from lessons and/or the novels you read or discussed that caused you to change how you
read or how you see yourself as a reader.
Students draft this essay, which describes their growth as a reader.
Share
Homework/Extension
Assessment
*This should be written in first-person, take an informal tone, and be written with the teacher as the
audience.
Students share their drafts and make plans for revision.
Students revise and edit their essays and prepare to share them with classmates.
LDC Rubric (see attached sheet)
Page 53
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading 9: Session 11-
Independent Reading--Fiction
Active Engagement: Generating Ideas
Before I started this unit, I liked to read ___________________________________. After experiencing this unit, I
like to read ____________________________. The reasons for this preference include:
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________
Before I started this unit, reading was difficult for me when_______________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________
To solve these problems, I tried to use the following strategies in this unit:
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________
These strategies were ________________________________(not/ moderately/ extremely) helpful as I read my
book. Next time I read, I will ________________________(try different strategies/ use the same strategies)
because
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________
The book(s) I just read changed my thinking about_____________________________________.
I used to think _________________________________________ about this subject, but my attitude is now
different in the following ways:
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________
The most important change I experienced in this unit is
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________
Page 54
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Independent Reading
Summative Assessment Rubric*
Highly Proficient
Focus
Meets Expectations
Addresses all aspects of prompt
Addresses prompt with a
with a highly focused and
focused response.
detailed response.
Reading/
Accurately presents and applies
Presents and applies
Research
information relevant to the
information relevant to prompt
prompt with specific examples
with general accuracy and
from the research.
sufficient detail.
Development
Presents detailed information in Presents information in order to
order to answer questions and
answer questions and solve
solve problems. Concisely
problems. Explains key
explains key information with
information with some details.
details. Identifies reading shifts
Identifies a reading shift.
and supplies evidence.
Organization
Applies appropriate structure(s)
Applies a generally effective
to explain, examine, convey,
structure to explain, examine,
define, analyze, synthesize,
convey, define, analyze,
compare, or explain
synthesize, compare, or explain
cause/effect, problem/solution.
cause/effect, problem/solution.
Conventions
Demonstrates a well-developed
Demonstrates a command of
command of standard English
standard English conventions
conventions and cohesion;
and cohesion; employs language
employs language and tone
and tone appropriate to
appropriate to audience and
audience and purpose.
purpose.
*Designed by Literacy Design Collaborative. www.literacydesigncollaborative.org
Attempting to Meet
Expectations
Attempts to address prompt but
lacks focus or is off-task.
Attempts to present information
relevant to task but may lack
sufficient or relevant details.
Presents limited information.
Ideas do not include details or
examples.
Applies an ineffective structure;
text rambles or line of thought is
disconnected.
Demonstrates a weak command
of standard English conventions;
lacks cohesion; language and
tone are inappropriate to
audience and purpose.
Page 55
Copyright © 2010-2014 by the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and Oakland Schools
Works Cited
Atwell, Nancie. The Reading Zone. New York: Scholastic Books, 2007. Print.
Beers, Kylene. When Kids Can’t Read, What Teachers Can Do: A Guide for Teachers,
6—12. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann Publishing, 2003. Print.
Gallagher, Kelly. Readicide: How Schools Are Killing Reading and What You Can Do
About It. Portland, ME: Stenhouse, 2009. Print.
Harvey, Stephanie. Strategies That Work: Teaching Comprehension for Understanding
and Engagement, 2nd ed. Portland, ME; Stenhouse, 2007. Print.
Lowry, Lois. The Giver. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1993. Print.
Oczkus, Lori D. Reciprocal Teaching at Work: Strategies for Improving Reading
Comprehension. International Reading Association, 2003. Print.
Oliver Keene, Ellin and Susan Zimmermann. Mosaic of Thought: Teaching
Comprehension in a Reader’s Workshop. Portsmouth, ME: Heinemann, 1997.
Print.
Teacher’s College Reading and Writing Project. Summer Institute on the Teaching of
Reading. Middle School First-Year Section. Summer 2006. Upper Grade Summer
Institute Reading Packet. 2006. Print.
Tixier Herald, Diana. Teen Genreflecting: A Guide to Reading Interests, 2nd ed. Westport,
CT: Libraries Unlimited, 2003. Print.
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