1. LEARNING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER © 2013 University of Pittsburgh The CCSS & Close Reading 1

2. LEARNING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER © 2013 University of Pittsburgh Close Reading “The Common Core State Standards place a high priority on the close, sustained reading of complex text, beginning with Reading Standard 1. Such reading focuses on what lies within the four corners of the text. It often requires compact, short, self-contained texts that students can read and re-read deliberately and slowly to probe and ponder the meanings of individual words, the order in which sentences unfold, and the development of ideas over the course of the text. Reading in this manner allows students to fully understand informational texts as well as analyze works of literature effectively” (Coleman & Pimentel, 2011, p.4). 2

3. LEARNING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER © 2013 University of Pittsburgh Close Reading Discussion How do Coleman and Pimentel define close reading in the quotation from the Publishers’ Criteria? What are they saying about the benefits of close reading? Based on your experience, what does close reading look like with students? How do your ideas about close reading conflict and/or coincide with Coleman and Pimentel? 3

4. LEARNING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER © 2013 University of Pittsburgh Using the unit outline, discuss the following questions with a partner: –How did you see close reading being used in this unit? –How are these uses of close reading similar to your prior understanding? To other close reading instructional materials? To the Publishers’ Criteria? –How are they different? Close Reading 4

5. LEARNING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER © 2013 University of Pittsburgh Review of Key Shifts in ELA/Literacy CCSS 1.Complexity: Regular practice with complex text and its academic language. 2.Evidence: Reading, writing and speaking grounded in evidence from text, both literary and informational. 3.Knowledge: Building knowledge through content- rich nonfiction. *Excerpted from A Strong State Role in Common Core State Standards Implementation: Rubric and Self-Assessment Tool, p. 6, Table 1, Key Instructional Shifts of the Common Core State Standards, by the Partnership of Readiness for College and Careers Transition & Implementation Institute, 2012, Washington, DC: Achieve. 5

6. LEARNING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER © 2013 University of Pittsburgh Making Connections Working with a partner, discuss your responses to the following questions: What evidence of the CCSS’s key shifts do you see in the work of this unit? What CCSS are addressed in this unit? How does the work of this unit scaffold students toward being successful (“know and do”) on the Writing Research Simulation Task? How does the work of this unit address what we noticed as implications for the kinds of instruction demanded by the CCSS? Be prepared to share your responses with whole group. 6

7. LEARNING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER © 2013 University of Pittsburgh Rigorous ELA Teaching and Learning TextTalkTask 7

8. LEARNING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER © 2013 University of Pittsburgh Module 2: Takeaways Instruction aligned to the CCSS: (1)requires reading rich, complex texts multiple times for varying purposes. (2) utilizes sequenced, text-dependent questions and tasks that simultaneously develop students’ reading, writing, speaking, listening, and thinking skills. Module 2 Takeaways (white book, white, p. 57) 8

9. LEARNING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER © 2013 University of Pittsburgh Bridge to Practice Before the next study session, take a text from a textbook or current offerings and design a lesson around it using the strategies from Module 2 (multiple reads and questions focusing on main idea). Try out with students.