Creating Text-Dependent Questions for Close Analytic Reading
Initial Planning
Identify the Core Understandings and Key Ideas of the Text
As in any good backward mapping process, teachers should start by identifying the key insights they want students to
understand from the text. Keeping the major points to be made in mind is crucial for crafting an overarching set of successful
questions. This step is also critical for creating a means to check for student understanding.
Identify Lesson Focus: (Review Qualitative Measures)
Knowledge Demands: (Briefly describe the knowledge demands the text requires of students.) Very Complex.
Life Experiences: Very to Moderately to Complex
 Student population may not have the experience of pitching a baseball, gender exclusion in sports activities, and/or attitudes
towards females, simply based on their gender.
Intertextuality and Cultural Knowledge: Exceedingly Complex
 P. 165, Unfamiliarity with Legendary Baseball Players & Teams: Babe Ruth, Tony Lazzeri, and Lou Gehrig, New York
Yankees and the Brooklyn Dodgers.
 American History: The depression (1929-1939) impacted American culture turning to baseball for their entertainment. Money
was scarce, so people did what they could to make their lives happy.
Text Structure: (Briefly describe the structure, organization, and other features of the text) Moderately Complex
Organization: Moderately to Very Complex:
Time shifts
 P. 165 - Present day: “It was April 2, 1931, and something amazing was about to happen.”
 P. 168 – Flashbacks: Memories of her father: “Jackie had played ball with her father. She knew girls weren’t supposed to. All
the kids at school, all the boys in her neighborhood told her that.” “She remembered what her father had told her: “Go out
there and pitch just like you pitch to anybody else.”
 P. 169, Time shifts: “Day after day . . .”, “By the time she was eight years old”, “She practiced pitching until it was too cold and
dark to stay outside.”
 p. 170, Time shifts: “…finally going to have her chance.”
Use of Graphics: Slightly to Moderately Complex
 Flashbacks , p. 167-168, p. 171-172, p. 178-179 - Pictures of Jackie then (as a young girl) and now (as a young woman).
CCSS Focus Standards:
1st Read: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.2: Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text; summarize the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.3: Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the
text (e.g., a character's thoughts, words, or actions).
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.4.4: Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grade
4 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.4.4.a: Use context (e.g., definitions, examples, or restatements in text) as a clue to the meaning of a word or
phrase.
Close Read: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.1: Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and
when drawing inferences from the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.4.5: Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.4.5.a: Explain the meaning of simple similes and metaphors (e.g., as pretty as a picture) in context.
1st Read: p. 165-172 – Day 1, p. 173-179 – Day 2
Close Read: Select portions of text: Day 1-p. 166, 169, 173-174, 177; Day 2: p. 165-169, 170, 173.
Use shorter text or excerpts of longer texts
Created by: Osvaldo Avelar & Elizabeth Banueloz, Group #14
Supporting Student Needs
Considerations for Reader and Task
To really understand a complex text, the reader will have to read it more than once, to make sense of what the author is saying
and to glean the details at both the explicit and implicit levels. First and foremost, close reading demands a willingness to
return to the text to read part or even all of it more than once, ultimately instilling habits of mind in approaching text.
Planning for multiple reads as well as multiple purposes for reads is essential in order to support all student needs.
Potential Challenges this Text Poses:
Strategies/Lessons to access complex text: Pre teach
Meaning: (Conceptual Understanding Examples, pg. #)
Language Features: (Briefly describe the conventions and
clarity of the language used in the text, including the complexity
of the vocabulary and sentence structures.)
Conventionality: Very Complex: Extensive use of figurative
language:
 P. 166, “…swing a mean lipstick“ (metaphor)
 P. 166, “…might as well have a trained seal behind the
plate.”
 P. 169, “. . . “You throw like a girl” (simile/irony)
 P. 169, “ . . . her arm knew.” (metaphor)
 P. 173, “Jackie held the ball, like it was part of her arm.”
(simile)
 P. 173, “Iron Horse” (metaphor/historical reference)
Language Features: Vocabulary: Very/Moderately Complex
 P. 166, sneered
 P. 169, insult
 P. 169, callused
 P. 170, muttered
 P. 173, delicate, gaped, flinched, snickering
 P. 174, fluke
Language Features: Sentence Structure: Very Complex
 P. 166, 169, 174, Clauses: Throughout
Dashes: used to indicate an interruption, particularly in
character thought, narrator’s thought, and author’s affect.
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P. 165, “…with famous players—Babe Ruth, Lou… “
P. 169, “…it was an insult—everyone knew . . .”
P. 173, “…was Babe Ruth—Babe Ruth…”
P. 173, “a big mountain of a man—and Babe . . .”
P. 173, “Girls …can throw—show them!”
P. 179, “She’d shown the world how a girl could throw--as
hard and as fast and as far as she wanted.”
Language: (Syntax, Vocabulary Examples, pg. #)
p. 166, sneered (preteach, context clues are limited)
p. 169, insult, callused (context clues)
p. 170, muttered (context clues)
p. 173, gaped (apposition)
p. 173, flinched (preteach, context clues are limited)
p. 173, snickering (context clues)
p. 173, Iron Horse (close reading, context clues are limited)
p. 173, Sultan of Swat (context clues, prior knowledge)
p. 174, fluke (apposition)
Created by: Osvaldo Avelar & Elizabeth Banueloz, Group #14
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American history during this time frame.
Baseball – legendary teams and players
Picture walk.
Review of vocabulary strategy usage (specifically
contextual clues and apposition).
 Preteach vocabulary terms: “sneered” and “flinched”
 Address “Iron Horse” reference in reading. Preteaching it
could cause potential confusion.
CCSS Focus Standards:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.4: Determine the meaning of words
and phrases as they are used in a text, including those that
allude to significant characters found in mythology (e.g.,
Herculean).
Pre teach
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Activity/Lesson
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History of Baseball
Significance of the time frame in U.S. History
Legendary players, teams, and societal attitudes
Clarify unfamiliar vocabulary
Identify overarching theme
Explicit interpretation of text
Interpret time shifts, figurative language
Implicit interpretation of text
First Read:
Close Reads
Create Coherent Sequence of Text-Dependent Questions
Create Coherent Sequences of Text-Dependent Questions – Start Small to Build Confidence
The opening questions should help orient students to the text, and be specific enough to answer so students gain confidence.
The sequence of questions should not be random but should build toward more coherent understanding and analysis to ensure
that students learn to stay focused on the text to bring them to a gradual understanding of its meaning.
Think of ways to maximize student engagement.
Close Read I
Learning Focus: Vocabulary Focus CCSS: ELA-Literacy.L.4.4: Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and
multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grade 4 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.4.2: Paraphrase portions of a text read aloud or information presented in diverse media and formats,
including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.4.1: Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led)
with diverse partners on grade 4 topics and texts, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.
Text-Dependent Questions
Evidence-Based Answers/Pg. #
Let me reread p. 166. Why did the author decide to use a
p. 166, “ . . . made people sit up and take notice.”
woman pitcher as the main character, when women did not and
“…everyone knew that girls didn’t play major league baseball.”
still do not play major league baseball?
“She was a pitcher, a mighty good one.”
How many major league baseball players are mentioned?
p. 165, “…famous players—Babe Ruther, Lou Gehrig, and
Tony Lazzeri.”
Reread paragraph #1 on page 169 – “insult…” I don’t
p. 169, The line . . .“Everyone knew girls couldn’t throw” follows
understand how “throwing like a girl” could be an insult. After all, this. Even though she is a girl, she doesn’t throw like one. This
she was a girl. What is the author saying here?
is ironic that they yell this at her.
On page 165, the players are referred to as “legendary”. What
makes them “legendary”?
p.165, “famous”, they are part of a “legendary team”
Reread paragraph #3 on page 166 – “The Daily News . . .
sneered…”? Why would they sneer at Jackie?
p. 166, “swing a mean lipstick” instead of a bat. Jackie shouldn’t
be playing baseball, she should stick to things girls do.
They are sneering because they don’t seem happy about her
playing baseball. They are poking fun at her (ridicule).
Reread paragraph #3, page 170 – “It is my game,“ she muttered
to herself and bit her lip.” Here she is in front four thousand
spectators, who came to see her pitch against legendary
Yankee baseball players, and they’re all waiting for her to make
a mistake—and she knew it. Why is she muttering, or talking to
herself?
Reread paragraph #2 and 3 on page 173, Why did Babe Ruth
gape after strike one?
p. 170, Jackie is talking to herself, convincing herself that
baseball is her game. She was coping with all the negative
comments the crowd was saying and feeling.
Reread last paragraph on page 173, “snickering”. ” Why is Babe
Ruth snickering at her?
Created by: Osvaldo Avelar & Elizabeth Banueloz, Group #14
Evidence: “It is my game.”
p. 173, “he couldn’t believe it.”
Babe Ruth couldn’t believe that Jackie was striking him out.
“He was determined not to let a girl make a fool out of him.”
p. 173, “The crowd was hooting and jeering.” These must be
similar to snickering. Babe Ruth joined in, because he felt the
Reread last paragraph on page 174, “fluke”. Why is her striking
out Babe Ruth considered a fluke?
Reread paragraph #3 on page 177, “glared”. Why is Lou
Gehring glaring at Jackie?
Created by: Osvaldo Avelar & Elizabeth Banueloz, Group #14
same way about her. He thought a girl shouldn’t be on the
baseball field.
p. 174, “…mistake, a fluke.” Apposition: the comma is the clue
that a fluke is a mistake. It must be a mistake because he is a
famous baseball player and she is just a girl.
p. 177, “…then dug in his heels…” He’s angry. Lou Gehrig is
angry that Jackie had thrown a strike.
Close Read II.
Learning Focus: Time shifts & Figurative Language
Focus CCSS: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.1: Refer to
details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.4.5: Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.4.5.a: Explain the meaning of simple similes and metaphors (e.g., as pretty as a picture) in context.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.4.1: Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led)
with diverse partners on grade 4 topics and texts, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.4.3: Identify the reasons and evidence a speaker provides to support particular points.
Text-Dependent Questions
Reread paragraph #3 on page 166 – What does the author
mean, that Jackie could “swing a mean lipstick”?
Evidence-Based Answers/Pg. #
p. 166, Analogy to swinging a bat. Comparing two unlike things.
She is a girl, so she should be good at makeup, but not good at
baseball.
Reread paragraph #3 on page 166 – “a trained seal”
Hmmm, can seals actually throw baseballs? Can they pitch
them over the plate and strike someone out? What do you think
they are saying about the way Jackie pitches? Why? Explain.
Seals throw clumsily. They are funny to watch. They are
entertaining. People wouldn’t take a seal, pitching a baseball
seriously. The author is comparing Jackie to a seal. She’s not
even thought of as human.
Reread pages 165-170. Do you see any words and/or
illustrations indicating time changes? Why do you think the
author decided to include them?
p. 165 – April 2, 1931.
p. 166 -- “only seventeen years old”
p. 167 – 168 – the pictures show Jackie as a little girl and as a
young woman.
p. 169 – “Day after day”, “8 years old”
p. 170 – “finally”
The author wants show she’s been working at being a baseball
pitcher since she was a little girl.
She remembers her father supporting her.
She remembers meeting Dazzy Vance, the star pitcher for the
Brooklyn Dodgers.
I notice the author uses dashes between thoughts. For example,
on page 173, paragraph 5, it states, “Girls can throw—show
them.” When you read and come to a comma, a period, or a
dash, what do you normally do? Why does the author use these
dashes?
p. 173, You normally pause when you come to a comma, a
period, or a dash. The author is pausing to make the reader
think about the words. It might help to organize our thoughts
and be more aware of what’s happening in the story.
Reread the last paragraph on page 169, “But it didn’t matter, her
arm knew.” What does the author mean, her arm knew? Can
arms think for themselves?
Personification – the author is giving human qualities to a body
part, as if it had a brain.
I notice that the author uses quite a bit of figurative language in
the selection. Does she ever compare Jackie to anyone or
anything?
p. 166 – “might as well have a trained seal.” (simile, comparing
Jackie to a seal).
p. 169 – “you throw like a girl.” (simile, comparing Jackie to a
bad pitcher).
p. 173 – “Jackie held the ball like it was part of her arm . . .”
(simile, comparing her grasp of the ball to her body).
Society thinks of her, not as a baseball player, but as someone
or something strange. (seal, bad pitcher, body part).
Why do you think she’s compared to other things?
Why do they think of Jackie, in this way?
What if women were allowed to play professional baseball
Created by: Osvaldo Avelar & Elizabeth Banueloz, Group #14
They have never seen a famous woman baseball pitcher before
(unfamiliar). Woman didn’t play professional sports during this
time. Even the Daily News (newspaper at the time), makes fun
of her.
Various. . .
today? How would people react? How would the news media
react? Explain, citing evidence from the story.
p. 116, “Daily News sneered. . .”
p. 169, “You throw like a girl!”
p. 179, “The crowd, so ready to boo her before.”
They would not be happy with having a woman play
professional baseball. The newspapers would make fun of her.
Spectators would tease and boo her.
Checking for Understanding
How will you know that learning has occurred? Planning for a means to check student understanding is crucial. Refer back to
the Lesson Focus to plan intentionally to check for student understanding.
Describe how you will check for student understanding:
1st Read:
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Chart of Big Theme (Key Ideas) & Vocabulary (1st Read)
Inquiry during readings.
Provide students with opportunity to Think, Pair, Share their understanding prior to reading.
Use popsicle sticks to ensure a fair amount of eager participants and inactive participants remain part of the discussion.
Close Read:
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Graphic Organizer (Matrix of Information for Note taking): Time shifts, Vocabulary, Figurative Language (Close Read)
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Revisit / Chart Responses to these Key Ideas / Have students reference and reread from chart accordingly:
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What is the big idea? Theme? How do you know? Add to charted Big Theme Ideas
STUDENTS FIGURE OUT
THE MEANING
sufficient context clues
are provided in the text
TEACHER PROVIDES
DEFINITION
not enough contextual
clues provided in the text
Vocabulary
KEY WORDS ESSENTIAL TO
UNDERSTANDING
Words addressed with a question or task
WORDS WORTH KNOWING
General teaching suggestions are provided in
the Introduction
p. 166, Sneered
p. 170, Muttered
p. 173, Flinched
p. 173, Fluke
p. 174, “Iron Horse”
p. 165, Legendary
p. 169, Insult
p. 173, delicate
p. 174, Fluke
p. 177, Glared
p. 169, Callused
p. 173, Gaped
p. 173, Snickering
p. 174, “Sultan of Swat”
Created by: Osvaldo Avelar & Elizabeth Banueloz, Group #14