Session 2: Informational Text
Audience: K-5 Teachers
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Become familiar with the K-5 CCSS Informational Text
Reading Standards
Identify a few of the standards that may be new (or a
new emphasis) for Oregon teachers
Become aware of relevant resources in K-12 Teachers:
Building Comprehension in the Common Core, a
resource aligned with the CCSS and the Oregon K-12
Literacy Framework.
◦ http://www.ode.state.or.us/teachlearn/subjects/elarts/readin
g/literacy/have-you-ever.pdf
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Informational
Text
Literature
Informational
Text
Literature
Science,
Biographies,
Social Studies,
History, Arts,
Directions,
Forms, etc.
Short
Stories,
Myths,
Legends,
Poetry,
Drama
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The Standards follow NAEP’S lead in balancing the
reading of literature with informational texts, including
texts in history/social studies, science, and technical
subjects.
Grade
Literary Text
Informational Text
4
50%
50%
8
45%
55%
12
30%
70%
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Literary nonfiction and historical, scientific, and
technical texts. Includes
◦ Biographies and autobiographies;
◦ Books about history, social studies, science, and the arts;
◦ Technical texts, including directions, forms, and information
displayed in graphs, charts, or maps; and
◦ Digital sources on a range of topics
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Emphasis is on text structure other than narrative
◦ Cause and effect; chronological/sequential
◦ Compare/contrast; enumeration and description
◦ Opinion and supporting arguments
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Read through the K-5 continuum of several of the
Reading Informational Text standards (#1 – 10) on the
Handout “CCSS Reading Informational Text Standards K-5.”
Remember that each “step up” in task difficulty is
matched by a “step up” in text complexity.
Identify the “step up” in task difficulty at each grade K5 for several standards. (Begin with Standard 9.)
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1st – omitted “With prompting and support”
2nd – added “most important” points
3rd – added “and key details”
4th – added “Integrate” … “in order to write or speak
about the subject knowledgeably”
5th – added “several” texts
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Identify grade-specific standards that are new at your
grade(s) or represent a new emphasis in classroom
instruction at your grade(s).
Think about the instructional strategies and
approaches that you will apply to these standards.
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Some of the additions or changes
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Standard 2, grades K-3 (main idea & details)
Standard 3, grades K-5 (development & interaction)
Standard 5, grades 4- 5 (text structures)
Standard 6, grades 1-5 (point of view/purpose)
Standard 8, grades K-5 (analyze argument)
Standard 9, grades K-3 (compare texts)
Complete “Crosswalks” are posted on the ODE website
at http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?id=3356
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Standard 3: Development and interaction
◦ Asks students to describe the connections, relationships,
interactions among individuals, events, ideas, procedures,
steps, concepts, etc.
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Standard 6: Point of view and purpose
◦ K, 1, 2 focus on role (author, illustrator) and purpose
◦ 3, 4, 5 require students to conceptualize two or more points of
view on an event or topic
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Standard 8: Analyze argument
◦ Requires students to differentiate between main points and
the reasons/evidence that support them; logical connection
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The Common Core State Standards tell us WHAT all
students should know and be able to do.
The Oregon K-12 Reading Framework suggests HOW
districts and schools can succeed in helping all students
read well. Its purpose is to ensure students are
◦ Reading grade-level text or above by the end of first grade
◦ Developing grade-level or above reading skills K-12 across all
classes
◦ Receiving intensified instruction to help them read at grade
level, if they are not.
http://www.ode.state.or.us/teachlearn/subjects/elarts/reading/literacy/chapter-3instruction.pdf
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Explicit comprehension instruction should not be
delayed until students are able to read grade-level text
independently.
Read-alouds and the use of text-based discussions are
opportunities to help students learn from complex
informational text, especially when students are just
learning to read or if students struggle to read
informational text independently
(Beck & McKeown, 2001; Snow, Burns, & Griffin, 1998).
– From K-12 Teachers: Building Comprehension in the Common Core
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Students who struggle with reading can successfully
handle informational text when instruction includes
◦ explicit teaching of text structure,
◦ procedural facilitators such as think sheets, prompt cards, and
mnemonics, and
◦ the use of teacher modeling and guided feedback
(Gersten & Baker, 2000, 2001; Williams, 2008)
– From K-12 Teachers: Building Comprehension in the Common Core
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When discussion followed the read-aloud, students
seemed to prefer informational text.
When no discussion followed the read-aloud, the
students preferred narrative text.
Research also suggests that students are more likely to
select informational for independent reading if their
teacher used the informational text in a read-aloud
Dreher & Dromsky, 2000; Duke, Bennett-Armistead, &
Roberts, 2003).
– From K-12 Teachers: Building Comprehension in the Common Core
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Time spent with informational texts
Books on a wide variety of topics that interest
elementary grade children
Informational texts and stories grouped in a thematic
unit (see http://commoncore.org/free/ )
Graphic organizers
Explicit comprehension strategy instruction
Teachers and students using a core set of questions
More at K-12 Teachers: Building Comprehension in the Common Core,
including specific examples of organizers, strategies, questions, etc.
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Teacher and student-initiated questions about the text
Teacher-facilitated read-alouds and text-based
discussions
Use of before-during-after reading components to
discuss the text and apply comprehension strategies
Students retelling what they learned from an
informational text with a partner
Teachers and students using content language and
text-related academic language
More at K-12 Teachers: Building Comprehension in the Common Core,
including hyperlinks to resources in Oregon K-12 Literacy Framework
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What will be the percentages of informational text and
literature in your grade(s)?
What are some text structures students may encounter
in informational text?
What is one standard new or new in emphasis at your
grade(s) that will impact your instruction?
What is one strategy, approach, or classroom context
that supports learning to read informational text?
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Check out the resources on informational text in K – 12
Teachers: Building Comprehension in the Common Core
on the ODE website.
Follow one of the hyperlinks in the above document to
the “Instruction” chapter in the K-12 Oregon Literacy
Framework to see more concrete examples and
resources.
Cross-grade level groups select one standard and
develop a short lesson at each grade level, illustrating
the K-5 progression.
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