Nicole Smith Ball Western Michigan University Teaching Grammar in High School: How to Use Mentor Texts with Common Core Standards Nicole Smith Ball Western Michigan University

Session Overview What grammar concepts should be taught at the high school level (Common Core)? What are mentor texts? How can we use mentor texts to teach these concepts? How can we pair exemplar and popular YA titles with Common Core?

Teaching Grammar in High School Common Core standards for high school ELA are broken down into two levels: 9-10 11-12 Grammar concepts can be found under the “Language Standards” (L)

Teaching Grammar in High School What should be covered at the 9-10 level? Parallel structure Types of phrases (i.e., participial, prepositional) Semi-colons Colons What should be covered at the 11-12 level? Contested usage in context Resolving complex/contested issues, using references Hyphens

Teaching these issues in context Grammar is best taught in the context of real writing. Grammar books & worksheets are not effective, as they tend to separate grammar & writing. Instead, grammar & writing should be integrated using student writing & mentor texts.

What are mentor texts? “Any text that can teach a writer about any aspect of writer’s craft, from sentence structure to quotation marks to ‘show don’t tell.’” -Jeff Anderson, Mechanically Inclined

Examples of Mentor Texts Passages from novels & short stories Children’s picture books Poems & song lyrics Magazines & newspapers Advertisements

Ways to Use Mentor Texts in the Classroom “Sentence Stalking” Be on the hunt for good sentences. Share these sentences with students to prompt discussion. Ask, “What do you notice?” Teach grammar as students point out different concepts. Focus on one sentence per day. Use as a 5-10 minute opening activity. (Spandel, Anderson, Noden)

Try It! I studied the blinding, white-snow sky who stood at the window of the moving train. --Markus Zusak, The Book Thief

Ways to Use Mentor Texts in the Classroom Imitation Students imitate mentor texts Students write with different subject matter but follow author’s style/structure Helps internalize the structure Students are more apt to use these techniques later (Noden)

Try It! --Amy Tan, The Joy Luck Club As I peered into the sack, I quickly fingered the remaining presents, testing their weight, imagining what they contained. I chose a heavy, compact one that was wrapped in shiny silver foil and a red satin ribbon. It was a twelve-pack of Life Savers and I spent the rest of the party arranging and rearranging the candy tubes in the order of my favorites. --Amy Tan, The Joy Luck Club

Ways to Use Mentor Texts in the Classroom Mad-Lib Poetry Show students a short poem as your mentor text. Give them a copy with some words/phrases omitted. Have students fill-in-the blanks with their own word choice. Discuss types of phrases/functions of words

Try It! What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up Like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore— And then run? Does it stink like rotten meat Or crust and sugar over — like a syrupy sweet? --from “A Dream Deferred” by Langston Hughes What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up Like a ? Or — And then ? Does it stink like Or and — like a ?

Choosing Mentor Texts Almost any form of writing can serve as a mentor text. However…pairing the literature used in class can help students internalize grammar concepts while looking more closely at required literature. “More bang for your (Common Core) buck!”

Common Core Exemplar Texts Paired with Grammar Concepts* Parallel Structure The Great Gatsby The Joy Luck Club Types of Phrases Fahrenheit 451 Of Mice and Men Contested Usage Their Eyes Were Watching God *See handout for more examples.

Using Young Adult Literature as Mentor Texts More and more teachers are bringing young adult (YA) literature in the classroom. Introduce students to popular YA titles while reinforcing grammar concepts. Students may relate to these books and their writing styles.

YA Novels Paired with Grammar Concepts* Exemplar Texts Parallel Structure Wintergirls (Laurie Halse Anderson) Hyphen Usage A Great and Terrible Beauty (Libba Bray) Contested Usage Looking for Alaska (John Green) *See handout for more examples.

Final Thoughts Thank you for your consideration and participation! Questions? Please see handout for all references. Nicole Ball ballni@homerschools.net