CORE Assessment Module
Module Overview
Purpose and Usage:
This assessment module is a performance activity to assess how well students can examine
complex text and then demonstrate their understanding through writing. All modules were developed by
practitioners for practitioners. Since the reading expectations are rigorous, some might find the text
selections challenging. Please note, however, that the text exemplars that are used as the basis for each
module are taken directly from Appendix B of the Common Core State Standards for targeted grades.
The expectations of the CCSS call on teachers to instruct around complex text so students read
closely to accomplish essential skills, such as make inferences, determine themes, and analyze
development of ideas. They do so using textual evidence from a targeted complex text. Much like
teachers engage students in the writing process to create optimal written products, teachers would
likewise plan and conduct a series of comprehensive lessons to help students meet these rigorous reading
standards. These lessons would align to specific reading standards, include a myriad of instructional
strategies and formative assessments (e.g., read silently, discuss, listen to, take notes, engage in discussion
with peers, write informally and formally, etc.), and center on text-dependent activities and tasks to illicit
deep understanding of targeted texts. This assessment module does not replace a formalized series of
lessons around complex text as just described, but rather provides a “dipstick” to get a sense of how well
students read complex text independently and proficiently. The results are meant to inform teachers about
future instruction.
Teachers should use their professional judgment and their district’s recommended guidelines to
administer this module as a pre-assessment or formative assessment in order to gather information about a
student’s ability to read complex text carefully and construct an organized writing piece that is grounded
in evidence from the text. Some teachers might decide to use two modules – one as a preassessment and
another as a formative assessment to check for understanding during the formalized instructional process
around complex text.
We encourage teachers to administer this assessment with colleagues and discuss results together
to ascertain next steps in an instructional plan. Teachers can employ additional instructional strategies
beyond what is included in this module when administering the assessment. However, discuss with
colleagues which ones you choose to use so you are conducting this assessment under similar conditions.
Scoring:
At this time, use the Smarter Balance rubrics available at this link:
http://www.smarterbalanced.org/wordpress/wpcontent/uploads/2012/05/TaskItemSpecifications/EnglishL
anguageArtsLiteracy/ELARubrics.pdf.
Smarter Balanced does not have a rubric for each grade for all three writing types; however, later, a more
detailed rubric for all grades and types will be considered.
Content Area
English Language Arts
Text
From Seed to Pumpkin by Wendy Pfeffer
Grade Level
Grade 1
Target Area
Text-dependent Questions, Performance Writing Task (Informative/Explanatory)
ELA Common
Core State
RI 1.1 Ask and answer questions about
RI 1.2 Identify the main topic and retell key details of a text.
key details in a text.
Module Overview
1
Standards
RI 1.4
W 1.2
W 1.8
*SL 1.1
*SL 1.2
*SL 1.6
L 1.4
Ask and answer questions to help determine or clarify the meaning of
words and phrases in a text.
Write informative/explanatory texts in which they name a topic, supply
some facts about the topic, and provide some sense of closure.
With guidance and support from adults, recall information from
experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a
question.
Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about
grade 1 topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.
Ask and answer questions about key details in a text read aloud or
information presented orally or through other media.
Produce complete sentences when appropriate to task and situation.
Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning
words and phrases based on grade 1 reading and content, choosing
flexibly from an array of strategies.
Students can read closely and analytically to comprehend a range of
increasingly complex literary and informational texts.
Students can produce effective and well-grounded writing for a range of
purposes and audiences.
SBAC
Assessment
Claims
Claim 1:
Task
Overview
This assessment task will be completed in three parts. The first two parts involve
reading, drawing visual images, and literature discussion. Additionally, students will
complete a graphic organizer, engaging in discussion with peers, in order to write
individual responses to text-dependent questions. In part three, students will be
asked to write an informative/explanatory text.
1) Directions to Teacher
2) From Seed to Pumpkin Text Passage
3) Sketch Sheet
4) Text-Dependent Questions and Peer Discussion
5) From Seed to Pumpkin Graphic Organizer
6) Independent Writing Task
Module
Components
Claim 2:
*Standard addressed but not explicitly assessed.
Module Overview
2
From Seed to Pumpkin
Directions to Teacher
This Common Core-aligned ELA Performance Task can be given over two to three days
depending on class schedules. The directions below outline the steps to follow for a three-day
administration.
Text: Pfeffer, Wendy. From Seed to Pumpkin. Illustrated by James Graham Hale. New
York: HarperCollins, 2004. (2004)
Materials
 From Seed to Pumpkin Text Passage
 From Seed to Pumpkin Sketch Sheet
 Visual Prompts for Literature Discussion
 From Seed to Pumpkin Question List
 Text-Dependent Questions Graphic Organizer
 Writing Task
 Lined Paper
DAY 1
1. Reading
(Approximately 15 minutes)
Distribute a copy of the text passage From Seed to Pumpkin. Read it aloud to the
students inviting them to follow along as you read. Then have them engage with the text
by working in partners to read sections of the text, sketch what is memorable, and share
with their partners. Distribute the From Seed to Pumpkin Sketch Sheet for this exercise.
If you have not used this strategy in the past, model for students how to sketch
memorable points quickly from a text passage. Invite a few partners to share their
sketches with the class.
2. Speaking and Listening Exercise (*SL 1.1, *SL 1.2, *SL 1.6)
(Approximately 15 minutes)
In pairs have students respond to the following questions one at a time. Teachers can
instruct students to turn and talk with a neighbor to discuss answers to each question.
Encourage them to speak in complete sentences and use the text as the source for their
information. Invite some students to share their answers with the whole class.
 Why does the author title her book From Seed to Pumpkin?
 The author states, “When spring winds warm the earth, a farmer plants hundreds of
pumpkin seeds.” What does she mean by the phrase “spring winds warm the earth”?
 In the sentence “Like us, plants need food to grow,” who is “us”?
ELA Grade 1: From Seed to Pumpkin
3



According to the text, how are people and pumpkin plants similar?
According to paragraph seven, how do plants make food?
Explain the process a seed goes through to become a pumpkin.
DAY 2
1. Rereading
(Approximately 10 minutes)
Instruct students to reread From Seed to Pumpkin independently. Review the symbolic
summaries from the first day. Review the answers to the questions from the speaking and
listening exercise around text-dependent questions.
2. Model Responding to Text-Dependent Questions (RI 1.1, RI 1.2, RI 1.4, W 1.8, *SL
1.2, *SL 1.6, L 1.1)
(Approximately 15 minutes)
Model the process for how to respond to text-dependent questions using textual evidence. To
do so, show the sheet Visual Prompts for Literature Discussion on a document camera,
reproduced on chart paper, in a handout, or on an interactive board. Then lead a classroom
discussion using one or more of the questions on the sheet From Seed to Pumpkin Question
List (also reprinted below). If students are having difficulty speaking in complete sentences,
model how to take information off the Visual Prompts sheet using language frames, such as
“Today I learned ________.” and “Another thing I learned was ____.”









Key Details – Soil is another word for dirt. What happens to the baby plants in the
moist soil?
Key Details – How does the author describe how water travels through the roots?
Word Meaning – The word shoot has two meanings: When the word shoot is used as
a verb, it means “to fire or launch something.” When shoot is used as a noun, it means
“a bud or young leaf.” What does the word shoot mean in paragraph four?
Word Meaning – The text says, “Two leaves, called seed leaves, uncurl on each
stem.” The word uncurl has the prefix “un-“ (meaning not or the opposite of). What
does the word uncurl mean in this sentence?
Word Meaning – In paragraph eight, the text says, “Soon broad, prickly leaves with
jagged edges unfold on the stems.” What does the word unfold mean in this sentence?
Central Ideas – What is a seedling? What details from the text help you with the
meaning of the word seedling?
Central Ideas – Sunlight gives leaves energy to make food. People and plants both
need food to grow. How do people and plants use food differently?
Central Ideas – According to the text, how are the tubes in the pumpkin stems and
roots important?
Reasoning/Evaluation – What would happen if the weeds took all the water from the
soil.
ELA Grade 1: From Seed to Pumpkin
4
3. Note-taking Around Text-Dependent Questions (RI 1.1, RI 1.2, RI 1.4)
(Approximately 20-30 minutes)
Distribute From Seed to Pumpkin Question List. Explain to students that they will
individually select at least three questions to answer from this list and record their
answers on the Text-Dependent Questions Graphic Organizer. Explain that they will
complete the “My Responses” and “Evidence From the Text” sections only. Remind
them to use complete sentences and review any sentence frames used in the speaking and
listening exercise, if needed. Encourage students to expand their thinking beyond literal
responses. Distribute at least three Text-Dependent Questions Graphic Organizer
sheets to each student for this exercise.
4. Speaking/Listening Exercise (*SL 1.1, *SL 1.2, *SL 1.6)
(Approximately 20 minutes)
 In pairs or groups of three, give students time to discuss their responses to the
questions on their graphic organizers along with textual evidence.

After a designated period of time, instruct students to independently complete the
“My Thoughts Now” section of the graphic organizer. Remind them to use textual
evidence and write in complete sentences. Tell them they will respond to a writing
prompt and can use this graphic organizer along with their sketches while writing.
DAY 3
Performance Task (Writing Prompt)
(Approximately 20 minutes)
Distribute the writing prompt and lined paper. Let students know the amount of time they have to
respond to it. Encourage students to use their sketches and graphic organizers that include
responses to text-dependent questions to inform their writing.
ELA Grade 1: From Seed to Pumpkin
5
From Seed to Pumpkin Text Passage
When spring winds warm the earth, a farmer plants
hundreds of pumpkin seeds. Every pumpkin seed can become a
baby pumpkin plant. Underground, covered with dark, moist
soil, the baby plants begin to grow.
As the plants get bigger, the seeds crack open. Stems sprout
up. Roots dig down. Inside the roots are tubes. Water travels up
these tubes the way juice goes up a straw.
In less than two weeks from planting time, green shoots
poke up through the earth. These shoots grow into tiny
seedlings. Two leaves, called seed leaves, uncurl on each stem.
They reach up toward the sun.
Sunlight gives these leaves energy to make food. Like us,
plants need food to grow. But green plants do not eat food as we
do. Their leaves make it.
To make food, plants need light, water, and air. Leaves
catch the sunlight. Roots soak up rainwater. And little openings
in the leaves let air in. Using energy from the sun, the leaves
mix the air with water from the soil to make sugar. This feeds
the plant.
Soon broad, prickly leaves with jagged edges unfold on the
stems. The seed leaves dry up. Now the new leaves make food
for the pumpkin plant.
Each pumpkin stem has many sets of tubes. One tube in
each set takes water from the soil up to the leaves so they can
make sugar. The other tube in each set sends food back down so
the pumpkin can grow.
The days grow warmer. The farmer tends the pumpkin
patch to keep weeds out. Weeds take water from the soil.
Pumpkin plants need that water to grow.
Text copyright © 2004 by Wendy Pfeffer. Used by permission of HarperCollins Publishers
6
From Seed to Pumpkin Sketch Sheet
Text
Read one section of the
text at a time.
Quick Sketch
What do you find memorable about
this part of the story? Sketch it!
When spring winds warm
the earth, a farmer plants hundreds
of pumpkin seeds. Every pumpkin
seed can become a baby pumpkin
plant. Underground, covered with
dark, moist soil, the baby plants
1
begin to grow.
As the plants get bigger, the
seeds crack open. Stems sprout up.
Roots dig down. Inside the roots
are tubes. Water travels up these
tubes the way juice goes up a
straw.
In less than two weeks from
planting time, green shoots poke up
through the earth. These shoots
grow into tiny seedlings. Two
leaves, called seed leaves, uncurl
2
on each stem. They reach up
toward the sun.
Sunlight gives these leaves
energy to make food. Like us,
plants need food to grow. But
green plants do not eat food as we
do. Their leaves make it.
ELA Grade 1: From Seed to Pumpkin
7
To make food, plants need
light, water, and air. Leaves
catch the sunlight. Roots soak up
rainwater. And little openings in
the leaves let air in. Using
energy from the sun, the leaves
3
mix the air with water from the
soil to make sugar. This feeds
the plant.
Soon broad, prickly leaves
with jagged edges unfold on the
stems. The seed leaves dry up.
Now the new leaves make food
for the pumpkin plant.
Each pumpkin stem has
many sets of tubes. One tube in
each set takes water from the
soil up to the leaves so they can
make sugar. The other tube in
each set sends food back down
4
so the pumpkin can grow.
The days grow warmer.
The farmer tends the pumpkin
patch to keep weeds out. Weeds
take water from the soil.
Pumpkin plants need that water
to grow.
ELA Grade 1: From Seed to Pumpkin
8
Visual Prompts for Literature Discussion
QUESTION
MY THOUGHTS
EVIDENCE
MY THOUGHTS AFTER
DISCUSSION
ELA Grade 1: From Seed to Pumpkin
9
From Seed to Pumpkin
Question List
Directions: Choose some of these questions to respond
to on your graphic organizer.

Soil is another word for dirt. What happens to the baby plants in the
moist soil?

How does the author describe how water travels through the roots?

The word shoot has two meanings: When the word shoot is used as
a verb, it means “to fire or launch something.” When shoot is used
as a noun, it means “a bud or young leaf.” What does the word shoot
mean in paragraph four?

The text reads, “Two leaves, called seed leaves, uncurl on each
stem.” The word uncurl has the prefix “un-“ (meaning not or the
opposite of). What does the word uncurl mean in this sentence?

In paragraph eight, the text reads, “Soon broad, prickly leaves with
jagged edges unfold on the stems.” What does the word unfold mean
in this sentence?

What is a seedling? What details from the text help you with the
meaning of the word seedling?

Sunlight gives leaves energy to make food. People and plants both
need food to grow. How do people and plants use food differently?

According to the text, how are the tubes in the pumpkin stems and
roots important?

What would happen if the weeds took all the water from the soil.
ELA Grade 1: From Seed to Pumpkin
10
Text-Dependent Questions Graphic Organizer
Question
My Thoughts
Evidence From the Text
My Thoughts After Discussion
11
From Seed to Pumpkin
Writing Task
Directions:
Please write to the prompt below. You will use what you have read and
discussed about how water flows. You may use your text and graphic
organizers to help you with your writing. Write your response on the
lined paper or in a journal provided by your teacher.
Writing Prompt:
Think about everything you have read and discussed about how a
pumpkin seed becomes a pumpkin plant. Explain in detail how the seed
changes and what it needs to grow.
Be Sure To:
 State your topic.
 Write facts and details about your topic from the text passage.
 Include vocabulary from the text.
 Give an ending sentence.
 Use capital letters where you should.
 Spell words correctly.
 Use correct punctuation.
 Write in complete sentences.
ELA Grade 1: From Seed to Pumpkin
12