Analyzing and Using Evidence to Explore Texts Laura Walley & Tiffany Abbott Fuller Rome City Schools

2 Essential Question How do I support students in understanding and answering text-based questions that promote rigorous student thinking while exploring single and/or multiple texts?

3 Learning Outcomes Support students in answering text- dependent questions and tasks that involve increased rigorous student thinking. Support text-based writing opportunities. Use academic discourse to allow student practice with academic language with evidence.

4 Agenda Welcome and Introductions Reading: Equipping Students in Accessing Complex Texts and Engaging Students with Text-Dependent Questions Using Evidence from the Text Writing: Identifying Text Evidence & Using that Text Evidence to Support an Idea or Answer a Text Based Question Speaking and Listening: Using Discourse to Support Text Evidence and Develop Students’ Ideas Wrap-Up

Rome City Schools We are a mid size system-6031 Students 35% African American 29% Hispanic 28% White 8% Other Over 70% Economically Disadvantaged 7 Elementary Schools through 6 th Grade 1 Middle School Grades 7 & 8 1 High School Grades 9-12 Who Are We?

Close reading means… What is Close Reading? SHARE PAIR THINK What does close reading mean to you? Discuss your ideas with a partner. Be ready to share your ideas with the group.

What Is Close Reading? Deeper, more purposeful analysis of text Leads to greater understandings of text Requires higher-quality text at greater complexity levels 7

Elements of Close Reading Building Engagement With Essential Questions Facilitating Multiple Reads of Texts Asking Text-Dependent Questions Analyzing Craft and Structure Locating Text Evidence 8

Students who are college and career ready must show a steadily growing ability to discern more from and make fuller use of text, including making an increasing number of connections among ideas and between texts [and] considering a wider range of textual evidence. 9 Reading for Evidence Students who are college and career ready must show a steadily growing ability to discern more from and make fuller use of text, including making an increasing number of connections among ideas and between texts [and] considering a wider range of textual evidence. ―Common Core State Standards

Looking at a Resource

It is not new practice Texts that are worthy, not for all texts Texts should be complex enough to undergo repeated readings for deep comprehension Foremost, reader is focused on the author’s meaning Directed in all content classes Implemented for K–12 Six guiding practices for all close reading instruction, regardless of the content 3.3 Close Reading

Six Practices of Close Reading First Practice: Select Short, Worthy Passages Second Practice: Student Rereading Third Practice: Limited Frontloading Fourth Practice: Text-Dependent Questions Fifth Practice: Annotation Sixth Practice: After-Reading Tasks 3.12

First Practice: Select Short, Worthy Passages –Three to nine paragraphs in length –Deeply understood by the teacher in order to know where complex parts may inhibit student understanding –Do not need to be stand-alone texts Second Practice: Student Rereading –With a clear purpose, to locate evidence for a particular question –Accomplished independently, with peers and/or with teacher think-alouds –Decreases the need for frontloading –Improves fluency and comprehensio n 3.13

3.6 Third Practice: Limited Frontloading Limited pre-teaching or frontloading by the teacher Inquiry through rereading results in the discovery of the author’s meaning and helps develop metacognitive skills Too much limits students’ opportunities for inquiry and discovery; these are essential for becoming critical, independent readers Fourth Practice: Text-Dependent Questions Question types that are asked affect how a reader reads Allow students to provide evidence from the text rather than from their own experiences Help build foundational knowledge so students are equipped to then formulate meaningful connections and opinions Scaffold understanding from explicit to implicit Requires preparation by the teacher for thorough text discussion and analysis

Fifth Practice: Annotation Students play an active role in growing their knowledge and understanding Should be completed with each rereading guided by text-dependent questions Use student annotations as formative assessments Slows the readers down for deeper understanding, so it becomes a habit of mind Use universal annotation marks No wrong answer in annotating; the only wrong thing is not to annotate Sixth Practice: After-Reading Tasks –Necessitate students to refer to the text –Help students deepen their comprehension far beyond what they would be able to accomplish on their own –Instruction in writing a Prećis piece develops a deeper textual understanding 3.15

16 Let’s watch a close reading in action! Video 3.3: Close reading of historical information Under Chapter Resources – Chapter 3 videos – 9 min

ACTIVITY Using the short story “Stray” by Cynthia Rylant 1. Number Paragraphs 2. Break into meaningful chunks 3. Underline descriptions of weather and characters 4. Left margin – summarize chunks (Prećis) 5. Right Margin – Ask questions and draw conclusions about characters.

ACTIVITY Answer the following question about short story “Stray” by Cynthia Rylant: How does the author suggest internal and external struggles of Doris, what parts of the text most show this, and how does the author connect symbolism of the weather to the struggles the characters face?

Where are you in this process? 19 Novice (1) Expert (4) Progressing (2) Advancing (3)

Knowledge Building: Demonstrate comprehension, make inferences that follow what is stated, and build content knowledge from text. Text-Based Analysis: Answer questions that require careful reading and textual evidence to support inferential thinking. Reading Task and Purpose: Set and adjust a purpose for reading based on stated task. 20 Why Text-Dependent Questions and Tasks Matter

What is a Good Question? Based on what the text says Refers to the text Requires a student to go back to text to find answer Uncovers layers of meaning that lead to deeper comprehension Develops students’ capacity to observe and analyze 21 Handout page

Whole Question Types Across Text Entire Text Segments Paragraph Sentence Word Part 3.22 Opinions, Arguments Intertextual Connections Inferences Author’s Purpose Vocabulary and Text Structure Key Details General Understanding Standards 8, 9 3, 7 6 4, 5 2 1

Examples of Text Dependent Questions Handout page

24 FAT P is an on demand writing routine. It is an acronym – each letter stands for something F = format A = audience T = topic P = purpose

F = Format First you decide the format for your writing. Are you going to write a letter? Will you write a story? Do you have to write a speech, or a report, or an essay?

A = Audience The second step is to determine who your audience is going to be. Who is actually going to read your paper? You must always consider who will read your paper and write in a way that will appeal to that person or persons.

T = Topic Next I need to be sure what topic I am writing about. Am I writing about dogs to give people information? Am I writing about my family trip to the mall? Perhaps I am writing a story about the monsters who ate my homework!

P = Purpose What is the main purpose of the writing? Is it to inform, explain, describe, entertain, persuade, or tell a story?

Give it a Try Think about a game you enjoy. You have a friend who has never played the game but wants to learn. In a report to your friend, describe the game and explain how it is played. Be sure to explain the rules, the equipment, the number of players, and anything else your friend might need to know to play the game.

How to Answer a Constructed Response: R-Restate the question. Use the words of the question to start your answer. A-Answer the question directly. Address all parts of the question. C-Cite evidence from the text. Use specific examples or quotes to prove your point. E-Explain the evidence you used. Put quotes or examples in your own words. R-Review your main point. Wrap up your answer neatly.

31 Writing About Reading Question: How did the author use symbols to represent the obstacles Esperanza faced and the changes Esperanza’s character made throughout the book? -Esperanza Rising Question: How did the author use symbols to represent the obstacles Esperanza faced and the changes Esperanza’s character made throughout the book? -Esperanza Rising Think about one of the key Common Core Shifts: Writing To Sources

Writing to Sources Routine Writing – short & frequent writing such as quick writes, summaries, short answer that is completed in a short time within a period of the day End of Unit Culminating Writing – longer writing that has gone through the writing process over the course of a few days

Identifying Evidence EvidenceSourcePage NumberSummary 33

Let’s Look at Some Student Work Samples 6 th Grade Esperanza Rising – How did the author use symbols to represent the obstacles Esperanza faced and the changes Esperanza’s character made throughout the book? 34

The Importance of Academic Discourse 35 “Whatever their intended major or profession, high school graduates will depend heavily on their ability to listen attentively to others so that they are able to build on others’ meritorious ideas while expressing their own clearly and persuasively.” Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, p. 48

Writing in RCS Implemented Writing Workshop in 2007 system-wide Every school has min each day for writing in the schedule Writing instruction is a priority The Art of Writing by Lucy Calkins Writing Workshop the Essential Guide by Ralph Fletcher In Pictures and Words by Katie Wood Ray

“…doing this work in the company of each other is an illuminating experience and provides wells that you and your colleagues draw upon when you teach.” Writing Pathways (chapter 3, page 29) Norming Student Work

Payoffs Developing a school culture using learning progressions, benchmark pieces, and rubrics helps teachers form close-knit grade-specific cohorts to work with each other and their students to accelerate progress. Conducting norming work together helps create a plan for scoring student work that informs teaching. Writing Pathways (chapter 3, page 31)

General Norming Guidelines Become familiar with rubric(s) before norming begins. Set aside two-period block of time for first meeting. Understand protocol for how meeting will run. Collect and bring recent on-demand writing pieces that match writing of norming meetings. Make sure collection reflects varied levels of student work. Choose pieces that keep everyone engaged. Make sure pieces are kept anonymous (white out students’ names). Writing Pathways (chapter 3)

Norming: Series of Steps

Today’s Practice: Step 1

More Practice: Step 2

Complete the Norming Community (Writing Pathways, Chapter 3, pp )

Revisiting the Guiding Question How do I support students in understanding and answering text- based questions that promote rigorous student thinking and writing while exploring single and/or multiple texts? Your thoughts... 44

Revisiting Learning Outcomes 45 Support students in answering text- dependent questions and tasks that involve increased rigorous student thinking. Support text based writing opportunities. Use academic discourse to allow student practice with academic language with evidence.

Today’s “Takeaways” What two new ideas are you “taking away” today? Two ideas I am taking away today are ______ and ______. Share one idea with your partner.. STEP 2 STEP 1 STEP 3 46