Looking into an LDC Classroom
Please note: Depending on the specific day of the classroom visit, not all of the bulleted items may be observable. Intentional planning should be evident in the classroom instruction.
Teacher:

Facilitating conversation
 Asking intentionally planned, probing questions

Focusing discussions
 Referencing teaching task and rubric

Referencing academic learning behaviors
 Referencing metacognitive strategies
Students:

Analyzing/deconstructing task

Analyzing rubric
 Planning/discussing timeline for task completion

Discussing/Demonstrating academic learning behaviors
 Discussing/Demonstrating metacognitive strategies
Classroom Environment:
 Teaching task posted

Evidence of LDC rubric
 Evidence of academic learning behaviors and metacognitive strategies
 Arrangement conducive to student discourse opportunities

Evidence of module materials being utilized
The teacher…
Cluster 1: Preparing for the task
The students… Questions, Comments, Talking Points

Please note: Depending on the specific day of the classroom visit, not all of the bulleted items may be observable. Intentional planning should be evident in the classroom instruction.
Teacher:

Facilitating conversation
 Asking intentionally planned, probing questions

Focusing discussions

Providing intentional standard-based instruction (ie. explicit and inferential comprehension, citing text based evidence, citing source, summarizing, etc.) using teacher think aloud, Close
Reading, instructive guided practice, annotating text, etc.)

Providing opportunities for frequent student discussions to monitor comprehension

Asking pre-planned text-dependent questions of high rigor

Requiring students to provide evidence from the texts in discussions

Providing scaffolds for striving students

Referencing teaching task and rubric

Referencing academic learning behaviors and metacognitive strategies
Students:

Actively engaged in reading and notetaking/annotation of text

Actively engaged in text-based discussions with partners and group

Showing evidence of rigorous thinking

Referencing teaching task and rubric

Demonstrating academic learning behaviors and metacognitive strategies
Classroom Environment:

Evidence of teaching task and rubric

Evidence of academic learning behaviors and metacognitive strategies

Arrangement conducive to student discourse opportunities

Individual copies of text(s)
The teacher…
Cluster 2: Reading Process
The students… Questions, Comments, Talking Points

Please note: Depending on the specific day of the classroom visit, not all of the bulleted items may be observable. Intentional planning should be evident in the classroom instruction.
Teacher:

Facilitating conversation

Asking intentionally planned, probing questions

Focusing discussions

Providing intentional standardbased instruction (i.e. refer to specific textual evidence, pose questions, connect current conversation to broader topic, etc.)

Providing opportunities for frequent student discussions to monitor understanding

Asking pre-planned text-dependent questions of high rigor

Requiring students to provide evidence from the texts in discussions

Providing scaffolds for striving students

Referencing teaching task and rubric

Referencing academic learning behaviors and metacognitive strategies
Students:

Actively engaged in text-based discussions with partners and group

Demonstrating synthesis of textbased information relevant to task

Showing evidence of rigorous thinking

Organizing notes and thinking

Referencing teaching task and rubric
 academic learning behaviors and metacognitive strategies
Classroom Environment:

Teaching task posted

Evidence of academic learning behaviors and metacognitive strategies

Arrangement conducive to student discourse opportunities

Evidence of rubric
The teacher…
Cluster 3: Transition to Writing
The students… Questions, Comments, Talking Points

Please note: Depending on the specific day of the classroom visit, not all of the bulleted items may be observable. Intentional planning should be evident in the classroom instruction.
Teacher:

Facilitating conversation

Asking intentionally planned, probing questions

Focusing discussions

Providing intentional standard-based instruction (ie. thesis statement, develop line of thought, write an introduction, body paragraph(s), closing, use transitional words, precise language, domain specific vocabulary, etc.)

Providing opportunities for frequent student discussions to improve writing

Requiring students to provide evidence from the texts in discussions

Providing scaffolds for striving students

Referencing teaching task and rubric

Referencing academic learning behaviors and metacognitive strategies
Students:

Actively engaged in planning, writing, revising and/or editing response to teaching task

Demonstrating synthesis of text-based information relevant to task

Showing evidence of rigorous thinking

Referencing teaching task and rubric

Referencing academic learning behaviors and metacognitive strategies
Classroom Environment:

Teaching task posted

Evidence of academic learning behaviors and metacognitive strategies

Arrangement conducive to student discourse opportunities

Evidence of rubric
The teacher…
Cluster 4: Writing Process
The students… Questions, Comments, Talking Points