Putting it all together….

1. Putting it all together…. March 10, 2008 Class # 8

2. Agenda • Review/discussion of During Reading Lesson Plan • Synthesis • Video (Chris Tovani) • After Reading • Reading/Writing Connection • What’s Next (or what’s “the end”?)

3. Synthesis Also [affectionately] known as the “SO WHAT?” (Who Cares?) factor

4. Synthesis …is the process of ordering, retelling, and recreating into a coherent whole the information with which our minds are bombarded every day. …It is the process by which we forsake much of what we learn in order to make sense of that which we determine is most pivotal for us. Synthesis is about organizing the different pieces to create a mosaic, a meaning, a beauty, greater than the sum of each shiny piece. [Mosaic of thought, Keene & Zimermann, p. 169]

5. Synthesis When students are asked to “TRANSFER KNOWLEDGE“, they must first synthesize their learning

6. Best Practice for After Reading Adapted from Janet Allen w/ C. Landaker, 2005

7. Best Practice for After Reading

8. After Reading All reading strategies (before, during and after) should also provide formative assessment. However, this is especially true of “after reading” strategies. They should provide both teachers and students with an immediate understanding of what students do and do not understand.

9. After Reading…. • SPAWN • Questioning: ReQUEST or QtA • Reformulations/Recasting • Scales • Connecting the Words (graphic representations) • RAFT+ [for reading] • 4-3-2-1

10. Bonnie’s comments - • Spawn is good for differentiating instruction; special powers is “easier” than “problem solving.” Teachers can also provide some students with “ideas” while others must go it alone. • ReQuest – can help reinforce Essential Questions…to keep kids from asking all low level questions, tell them they must be able to say why their question is an important one.

11. Questioning

12. Reformulating/Recasting/Owning the Text [Beers/Burke/Allen] • Turn text to story • ABC picture book • Fortunately/Unfortunately • If …then… sequence story • Write the newscast • From one side of the argument to another • NIH [NSF, etc.] funding chair, explaining why continued research will or will not be funded • Write the diary entry from a peripheral participant ‘s point of view [Sacco’s and Vanzetti’s boss; Madame Curie’s lab assistant; Stanley Livingston's guide; Lady Macbeth’s chamber maid; the mayor of Oklahoma City at the end of the Cherokee Trail of Tears; the cook traveling with Lewis & Clark]

13. SCALES (Likert) Strongly Agree Disagree Strongly agree disagree 1 2 3 4 Example: Florida should allow its earlier primary election results to be counted. • After reading, students first enter their own rankings. Then, they share their responses with a group, defending individual ratings by citing text. Groups must come to consensus. One group member reports out to class. Subsequent debates must be supported by text. • 4-6 items usually sufficient.

14. SCALES (Semantic Differential) Fair Unfair 1 2 3 4 5 6 Examples: The American system of primary elections (caucus/primary) is - The electoral college system is - • After reading, students first enter their own rankings. Then, they share their responses with a group, defending individual ratings by citing text. Groups must come to consensus. One group member reports out to class. Subsequent debates must be supported by text. • 4-6 items usually sufficient for a moderate sized chunk of text.

15. Connect the Words (Jeff Zwiers): • Create a list of key words/phrases from the text [at first, teacher provides the list; later, students can generate the list themselves]. • Students must work with a partner to graphically represent the relationship of those words to “show” the main idea(s) of the text [most kids end up creating a flow chart of sorts].

16. Searches for 3 in each pyramid Archaeologist Antechamber A room in the tomb w/ hieroglyphics that tell about KT’s life Discovered tomb in 1923 Priests put things mummy would need in afterlife Study preserved artifacts to learn about culture & beliefs King Tutankhamun Was embalmed so he could “live forever” Became leader of Egypt at age 10 Was buried w/ possessions to enjoy afterlife Afterlife Pharaoh Adapted from Zwiers, p. 121

17. RAFT + • RAFT is normally a writing protocol in which teachers/students generate rhetorical specifications based on writer’s role, audience, writing form, and topic. • RAFT is even more valuable as a reading comprehension tool – asking students to analyze (RAFT) and evaluate (+) the writing.

18. + • Writer’s Purpose • Writer’s Perspective [and by default, recognition of whose perspective is missing] • Location, date, circumstances for production/publication • Student’s use of material (note if different from original, intended use)

19. Prompting Questions for + • ID the author’s perspective • Whose story is being told? Is the author privileging one side of the story? • RAFT • Evaluate author’s identification of his/her perspective • Is the author aware of bias? Is this openly revealed? Where/how?

20. Why Write? Research about writing instruction: Research confirms that writing instruction actually enriches reading comprehension (Farnan, Flood, & Lapp, 1994; Stotsky, 1983). [In addition] many technical writing skills, such as punctuation, grammar, and spelling, actually reinforce reading skills (Reading Next, 2004).

21. Reasons to Teach Writing in the Content Area - • Good writers of expository text are good critical thinkers • Good writers are good readers (the opposite is not necessarily true) • Writing can be the best assessment of students’ understanding.

22. What kind of writing? • Writing to show learning [essay questions] • Writing to learn [e.g., journals] • Writing to become a member of a discourse community [Learning to write]: Students do not need to become good writers of essays; students need to become writers • of mathematics • of social studies • of science

23. Effective Writing Tasks Our time is best spent devising great assignments and working with students as they are engaged with those assignments.

24. Purposeful writing… What kinds of writing assignments will help students understand better how that content area material is put together? We need to help students deconstruct [demystify] content-specific text, and give them opportunities to write “like a mathematician,” “like a scientist,” “like a geographer/economist/ historian/civic leader,” etc.

25. Content-Specific Reading/Writing Modes

26. What’s the medium? • PowerPoint presentation with handout • Entry in learning log • Printed report with tabular information • Web page • Report with oral briefing • Contribution to class e-bulletin board • Computer tutorial Stephen Bernhardt, University of Delaware, with permission

27. Project-Based Learning • Case studies • Original research • Change initiatives • Service learning or client projects • Coop and internships • Lab and field work • Problem solving Stephen Bernhardt, University of Delaware, with permission

28. RAFT for Writing Role (writer’s role) Audience (who is the audience?) Form (writing genre or form) Topic (subject of the writing) • These rhetorical specifications can be manipulated to address DI needs • RAFT can provide students with some choices

29. The “real” test of a writing assignment: WRITE a response to your own writing assignments! (I’m not kidding) Ask yourself: Did I enjoy and/or learn something from writing this piece? Would I want to read it?

30. For March - Select a selection of content-specific text that your students will read. Create an assignment that will give your students an opportunity to use that content-specific reading as a model to follow to complete that writing assignment. Include a rubric that clearly describes what top responses will look like. Bring one or two to class in April to share.

31. What’s Next? • BEFORE April 2 class, watch/listen to your assigned video/tape – cover this in your “response journal.” • April 2 – last class [Assessment – bring one!] • April 14 – Portfolios DUE