CL I CK
Creating
Literacy
In
Content
Knowledge
C h a nd l er U n
i fi ed S ch o o l
D i s tr i ct
S ec o n d a ry L
i te ra cy C o u n
ci l
CLICK Manual
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Updated CLICK Manual Table of Contents __________________________2-4
Content Literacy and the Common Core Standards ________________________ 5
Key Takeaways From the K-12 Common Core ELA Standards ____________________ 6,7
District Mission Statement _____________________________________________ 8
Content Literacy ___________________________________________________________ 9
Secondary Literacy Program ________________________________________________ 10
Components of CLICK _____________________________________________________ 11
Recommendation for Adolescents ____________________________________________ 12
Purpose of the Manual _____________________________________________________ 13
Implementation Years: 2002-2004 __________________________________
Comprehension Strategies ________________________________________ 15,16
Sequential Roundtable Alphabet ___________________________________________ 17-19
Purposeful Reading Demonstration ________________________________________ 20-22
K-W-L-H____________________________________________________________ 23,24,26
Anticipation Guide ______________________________________________________ 27-31
CLOZE Procedure ______________________________________________________ 32,33
Fix-up Strategies __________________________________________________________ 35
Vocabulary Strategies _______________________________________________ 36
Vocabulary Study and Content Learning _______________________________________ 37
Frayer Model __________________________________________________________ 38-40
Word Squares _________________________________________________________ 41-43
Words in Context _______________________________________________________ 44-46
Discussion Strategies ____________________________________________ 47,48
Think-Pare-Share Discussion Cycle __________________________________________ 49
Discussion Web ________________________________________________________ 51,54
Opinion/Proof – Theory/Fact ______________________________________________ 55,56
Panel Discussion _______________________________________________________ 57,58
Jigsaw _______________________________________________________________ 60,61
Writing Strategies ________________________________________________ 62,63
RAFT _______________________________________________________________ 64-66
Biopoem _____________________________________________________________ 67-70
Free Write _______________________________________________________________ 71
Eight Principled Practices for a Literate America _________________________________ 74
Implementation Years: 2004-2007 ________________________________ 76
QAR _________________________________________________________________ 77-83
Root Words ___________________________________________________________ 84,85
Root Word Square _________________________________________________________ 86
Vocabulary Notebooks _____________________________________________________ 87
Words in Context __________________________________________________________ 88
Summary Writing __________________________________________________________ 89
Tools for Teaching Content Literacy ___________________________________________ 90
The Cornell Note-Taking Format ___________________________________________ 91-93
Power Notes __________________________________________________________ 94-95
Power Notes and Concept Maps _____________________________________________ 96
Concept Maps ____________________________________________________________ 97
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Strategies for Teaching Note-Taking __________________________________________ 98
Strategies to Increase Student Engagement in Note-Taking ________________________ 99
Boil It Down: Incredible Shrinking Notes _______________________________________ 100
List, Group, Label, and Write____________________________________________ 101-104
Exchange / Compare Writing ___________________________________________ 105-108
Journal Writing __________________________________________________________ 109
Kinds of Writing __________________________________________________________ 110
See What I Found ________________________________________________________ 111
Written Conversation ______________________________________________________ 112
Quick Writes ________________________________________________________ 113,114
Implementation Years: 2007-2008 _______________________________ 115
Expressive Writing Examples for Content Areas ____________________________ 116,117
Expressive Writing Strategies and Examples ___________________________________ 118
Converting Literal Description to Expressive Language ___________________________ 119
More Strategies ______________________________________________________ 120,121
Using Sentence Combining Activities _________________________________________ 122
Useful Words for Sentence Combining ________________________________________ 123
Expository Paragraph Frames___________________________________________ 124,125
Text Frames ________________________________________________________ 126-128
Implementation Years: Fall 2008-2009 ____________________________ 129
Save the Last Word for Me _________________________________________________ 130
Making Inferences ____________________________________________________ 131,132
Coding Text _________________________________________________________ 133,134
Bookmarks______________________________________________________________ 135
Discussion Webs _____________________________________________________ 136-139
Making Connections / Say Something ________________________________________ 140
Implementation Years: Spring 2008-2009 _________________________ 141
Making Connections ______________________________________________________ 142
Double Entry Variations ____________________________________________________ 143
Full Circling Process __________________________________________________ 144,145
Activities That Promote Making Connections ___________________________________ 146
Making Connections Prompts _______________________________________________ 147
Word Chains ________________________________________________________ 148,149
Vocabulary Graffiti ________________________________________________________ 150
Word Posters ________________________________________________________ 151,152
Comic Books ____________________________________________________________ 153
Implementation Years: Fall 2009-2010 ____________________________ 154
Cognitive Demand Domains – Bloom’s and Webb _______________________________ 155
Comparison of Bloom’s to DOK _____________________________________________ 156
Depth of Knowledge (DOK) _________________________________________________ 157
DOK Levels – Guiding Questions ____________________________________________ 158
DOK Levels and Writing Test Items __________________________________________ 159
QAR and DOK ___________________________________________________________ 160
Implementation Years: Spring 2009-2010 _________________________ 161
Textmasters _____________________________________________________________ 162
Textmasters Role Sheets ______________________________________________ 163,164
Socratic Seminar _____________________________________________________ 165-167
Critical Questioning _______________________________________________________ 168
WORDLE ___________________________________________________________ 169,170
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Implementation Years: Fall 2010-2011 ____________________________ 171
Reading Between the Lines: Drawing Inferences ________________________________ 172
RAFT __________________________________________________________________ 173
Analyzing Editorial Cartoons ____________________________________________ 174,175
Every Picture Tells a Story _________________________________________________ 176
Riddle Me This __________________________________________________________ 177
Reading Data Tables __________________________________________________ 178,179
Questioning Strategies ____________________________________________________ 180
Thought-Provoking Questions _______________________________________________ 181
Drawing Conclusions (DTS) ________________________________________________ 182
Summarizing ____________________________________________________________ 183
Implementation Years: Spring 2010-2011 _________________________ 184
How to Read a Textbook ___________________________________________________ 185
Textbook Scavenger Hunt __________________________________________________ 186
Questioning the Author (QtA) _______________________________________________ 187
Questioning Circles ___________________________________________________ 188-190
Inquiry Chart (I-Chart) _________________________________________________ 191-193
Writing for Deeper Thinking (Writing and DOK) _________________________________ 194
SPAWN Writing __________________________________________________________ 195
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Content Literacy and the Common
Core State Standards
Mission –To provide students with the knowledge,
skills and attitudes necessary to be lifelong learners
and responsible citizens.
The Common Core State Standards for English,
Language Arts, Mathematics, and Literacy for Social
Studies, Science and Technical Subjects are
designed to prepare students for college and career.
http://www.azed.gov/standards-practices/core-state-standards/
http://www.corestandards.org/
 The Standards insist that instruction in
reading, speaking, listening, and language
be a shared responsibility within the school.

The Standards “define general crossdisciplinary literacy expectations that must be
met for students to be prepared to enter
college and workforce training programs ready
to succeed” (p.4).
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Key Take-Aways from the K-12
Common Core Standards in English
and Language Arts (1 of 2)
Reading

The standards establish a “staircase” of increasing complexity in what students
must be able to read so that all students are ready for the demands of collegeand career-level reading no later than the end of high school. The standards
also require the progressive development of reading comprehension so that
students advancing through the grades are able to gain more from whatever
they read.

Through reading a diverse array of classic and contemporary literature as well as
challenging informational texts in a range of subjects, students are expected to
build knowledge, gain insights, explore possibilities, and broaden their
perspective. Because the standards are building blocks for successful
classrooms, but recognize that teachers, school districts and states need to
decide on appropriate curriculum, they intentionally do not offer a reading list.
Instead, they offer numerous sample texts to help teachers prepare for the
school year and allow parents and students to know what to expect at the
beginning of the year.

The standards mandate certain critical types of content for all students, including
classic myths and stories from around the world, foundational U.S. documents,
seminal works of American literature, and the writings of Shakespeare. The
standards appropriately defer the many remaining decisions about what and how
to teach to states, districts, and schools.
Writing

The ability to write logical arguments based on substantive claims, sound
reasoning, and relevant evidence is a cornerstone of the writing standards, with
opinion writing – a basic form of argument – extending down into the earliest
grades.

Research – both short, focused projects (such as those commonly required in the
workplace) and longer-term in-depth research – is emphasized throughout the
standards but most prominently in the writing strand since a written analysis and
presentation of findings is so often critical.

Annotated samples of student writing accompany the standards and help
establish adequate performance levels in writing arguments,
informational/explanatory texts, and narratives in the various grades.
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Key Take-Aways from the K-12
Common Core Standards in English
and Language Arts (2 of 2)
Speaking and Listening


The standards require that students gain, evaluate, and present increasingly
complex information, ideas, and evidence through listening and speaking as well
as through media.
An important focus of the speaking and listening standards is academic
discussion in one-on-one, small group, and whole-class settings. Formal
presentations are one important ways such talk occurs, but so is the more
informal discussion that takes place as students collaborate to answer questions,
build understanding, and solve problems.
Language



The standards expect that students will grow their vocabularies through a mix of
conversations, direct instruction, and reading. The standards will help students
determine word meanings, appreciate the nuances of words, and steadily expand
their repertoire of words and phrases.
The standards help prepare students for real life experience at college and in 21st
century careers. The standards recognize that students must be able to use
formal English in their writing and speaking but that they must also be able to
make informed, skillful choices among the many ways to express themselves
through language.
Vocabulary and conventions are treated in their own strand not because skills in
these areas should be handled in isolation, but because their use extends across
reading, writing, speaking, and listening.
Media and Technology

Just as media and technology are integrated in school and life in the 21st century,
skills related to media use (both critical analysis and production of media) are
integrated throughout the standards.
From:
http://www.corestandards.org/assets/KeyPointsELA.pdf
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CLICK
Chandler Unified
School District
Creating Literacy In Content Knowledge
Secondary Literacy
District Mission Statement
Council
To provide students with the knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary to be
lifelong learners and responsible citizens.
Creating Literacy In Content Knowledge (CLICK)
Project Purpose
Our purpose was to implement a content literacy program in the Chandler Unified
School District secondary classrooms. Teachers incorporated research-based
instructional strategies related to their unique content. The program provided
ongoing training, support, and opportunities for reflections for secondary teachers
over a seven-year period. Expectations included:

Student improvement in content-area knowledge and skills

Student improvement in content literacy skills

Teacher responsibility for incorporating literacy into the content area

Teacher reflection and documentation of literacy lessons.
CUSD Secondary Literacy Council
In 2002-2003, Chandler Unified School District created a Literacy
Council (CLICK) consisting of teacher representatives from the
secondary content areas. Literacy Consultant, Josephine
Peyton Marsh, Ph.D., Arizona State University, facilitated training
for the council members (train the trainer model). In turn, the
Literacy Council developed district-wide professional
development workshops emphasizing strategies specific to
secondary content area needs. All teachers in the Chandler
Unified School District are expected to integrate the content
literacy strategies throughout their instructional practices.
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Content Literacy
What does content literacy mean?
Content literacy is usually defined as “the ability to use reading and writing for the
acquisition of new content in a given discipline”. (p. 184) [McKenna & Robinson, R.D.
(1990), Content reading and literacy: A definition and implications . Journal of Reading, 34, p.184-186].
In recent years, the ability to use oral language (small-and large-group
discussion) in mediating students’ learning has been added to this definition.
We also know those students’ interests and background knowledge influences
their abilities to use content literacy skills effectively. [Alvermann, D.E. & Phelps, S.F.
(2002) Content reading and literacy: Succeeding in today’s diverse classroom. (3rd ed.) Boston, Allyn and
Bacon]
Incorporating Literacy in the Content Areas
Rand (Snow, C. 2002), a major survey research group, recently found that

Strategy instruction that is embedded within subject-matter learning, such
as history and science, improves student’s reading comprehension

Effective strategies for teaching students to comprehend complex
materials include self-questioning, comprehension monitoring,
representing information using graphic organizers, making use of different
text structures, and summarizing

The more explicit teachers are in their strategy instruction, the more
successful low-achieving students are in their reading and learning
Exposing students to various genres of text (e.g., informational, narrative, poetry)
ensures that they do not approach all reading tasks with the same purpose in
mind. Snow, C. (2002) Reading for understanding: Toward an R & D program in reading comprehension.
Santa Monica, CA: Rand Education
Points to Ponder…
What do you think content literacy means?
How do you think content literacy will help your students learn, expand, and
retain their content knowledge?
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Secondary Literacy Plan
Year 1 (2002 – 2003) was an orientation year.

Strategies were introduced and two district-wide literacy in-services were
conducted.

Site-based application and reflection plans were developed.
Year 2 (2003-2004) was the application year.

Site-based application and reflection plans were implemented.

The literacy council conducted workshops and provided leadership for the
application of these strategies within different content areas.

Specific adaptations of literacy strategies for different content areas were
explored, shared, created and reflected upon by the teachers.
Years 3 - 5 (2004-2007) were integration years.

Literacy strategies were incorporated into all content areas.

Literacy strategies and their applications looked different in different classrooms
and content areas.

The literacy council continued to conduct application and reflection workshops.
Years 6 – 9 (2008 – 2011) workshops and meetings will continue to include:

Reflection and discussion of how to integrate CLICK literacy strategies into
content area lessons.

Integration of literacy strategies to promote cognitively demanding instruction in
content areas.
 Facilitation of deeper learning
through literacy.
Components
of CLICK
Components of
CLIC
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Components of CLICK
CUSD and the literacy council believe effective literacy programs for secondary
schools have several important components including

Support and commitment at both the district and site levels

Trained teachers who teach not only content, but also the process of
literacy learning

Guidance, support and materials from CLICK’s literacy council to aid
content area teachers in integrating literacy during instruction.
Points to Ponder…
What can CLICK council members do to help you meet the goals of CLICK?
Be specific.
What can your building principal do to facilitate the implementation of literacy into
all content classrooms?
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Recommendation for
Adolescents
By utilizing the CLICK manual, CUSD teachers should be able to implement the
International Reading Association’s recommendations for focusing on the literacy
needs of adolescent learners. These recommendations include providing the
students with the following

Access to a wide variety of reading material that appeals to their interest

Instruction that builds the skill and desire to read increasingly complex
materials

Assessment that shows their strengths as well as their needs

Expert teachers who model and provide explicit instruction across the
curriculum and understand the complexities of individual adolescent
readers

Reading specialists who assist students having difficulty learning how to
read.
Summary of Adolescent Literacy, A Position Statement for the Commission on Adolescent Literacy of the
International Reading Association, 1999).
Points to Ponder…
What are some ways you are already addressing the literacy needs of your
students?
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Purpose of the Manual
The Commission on Adolescent Literacy of the International Reading Association
concluded

Adolescents deserve instruction that builds both the skills and desire to
read increasingly complex materials.

Adolescents deserve expert teachers who model and provide explicit
instruction in reading comprehension and study strategies across the
curriculum. Moore, D., Bean, T., Birdyshaw, D., & Rycik, J. (1999) Adolescent literacy: A
position. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 43, 93-112.
CLICK’s Manual is intended to assist classroom teachers as they become better
prepared to deliver the quality instruction students deserve. In agreement with
the Adolescent Literacy Commission of the International Reading Association
(Moore, Bean, Birdyshaw, & Rycik, 1999) CLICK recognizes that:
1. Adolescent literacy is a continuum.
2. The ongoing literacy development of adolescents is just as important, and
requires just as much attention as that of beginning readers.
3. Adolescent readers will face huge demands for reading as they cope with
the ever-increasing flood of information.
Making it CLICK for You and Your Students
The CLICK manual contains information about content literacy, literacy strategies, and helpful
hints from CUSD teachers and professional resources.
Teachers are encouraged to use the CLICK manual as a resource for incorporating literacy into
their content lesson plans. In addition, teachers can contact a member of the CLICK council (see
first page for list of council members) for further assistance.
*** All activities were gathered from sources listed in reference sections.
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REFERENCES
Allen, J. (1999). Words, words, words: Teaching vocabulary in grades 4-12.
Portland, ME: Stenhouse.
Alvermann, D. E., & Phelps, S. F. (2002). Content reading and literacy:
Succeeding in today’s diverse classrooms (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
McKenna, M. C. & Robinson, R.D. (1990). Content literacy: A definition and
implications. Journal of Reading, 34, 184-186.
Moore, D.W., Bean, T. W., Birdyshaw, D., & Rycik, J. R. (1999). Adolescent
literacy: A position statement: Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 43,
97-112.
Snow, C. (2002). Reading for understanding: Toward a R&D program in reading
comprehension. Santa Monica CA: Rand Education.
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Comprehension
Strategies
Helping students understand what they read,
view, and hear.






Sequential Roundtable Alphabet
Purposeful Reading Demonstration
K-W-L-H
Anticipation Guide
CLOZE Procedure
Fix-up Strategies
REFERENCES AND RESOURCES
Alvermann, D. E., & Phelps, S. F. (2002). Content reading and literacy:
Succeeding in today’s diverse classrooms (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Bormuth, J. (1968) Cloze test readabilitity: Criterion referenced scores. Journal of
Educational Measurements 5, 189-196.
Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning (2nd ed.). Newark, NJ:
International Reading Association.
Herber, H. (1978). Teaching reading in the content area (2nd ed.), Englewood Cliffs, NJ:
Prentice Hall.
Ogle, D. (1986). K-W-L: A teaching model that develops active reading of expository text.
The Reading Teacher, 39, 564-570.
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Comprehension is…
Comprehension is the construction of meaning. It is a complex interaction
between the text and the reader’s background knowledge and experience,
purpose for reading, and interest and motivation to read.
CLICK strategies were selected based upon the
beliefs that:
1. What a reader brings to the page is more important to comprehension
than what is actually on the page.
2. Teachers must be cognizant of a student’s background knowledge as
comprehension is a mental construction of what is on the page based
on what the student knows.
3. Students will succeed in reading when
 Teachers prepare them to read by building and activating
background knowledge
 Set a purpose for reading
 Provide opportunities for them to actively engage in constructing
meaning.
Alvermann, D. E., & Phelps, S. F. (2002). Content reading and literacy: Succeeding in today’s
diverse classrooms (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning (2nd ed.). Newark, NJ: International
Reading Association.
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Sequential
Roundtable Alphabet
Definition
A graphic organizer used for detecting prior knowledge (pre-assessment of
student knowledge), brainstorming a unit with student participation, reviewing for
a unit, or recalling information after reading text.
Procedure
1. Hand out a grid with 26 boxes with letters of the alphabet listed in order.
2. Students fill in concepts or ideas that correspond with the letter in the box.
3. Students fill out in groups or as a class.
Notes
 Useful for acquiring and using new vocabulary in relative contexts
 Can be done individually, in groups, or as a whole class activity
 Can be used in all content areas
 Useful as a tool to reinforce vocabulary and concepts
 Useful as a tool for reviewing a unit
 Can be used with Think-Pair-Share.
Helpful Hints and Comments From Teachers
“Students took all the terms from the alphabet sheet and explained the uses of
each machine or tool and what types of woods or materials were used.”
(Industrial Arts teacher)
“A great way to review after the break!” (Math teacher)
“Students showed excitement and enthusiasm while participating in this
experience.” (PE teacher)
Adapted from: Beuhl, D. (2001). Classroom Strategies for interactive learning (2nd ed) Newark, NJ:
International Reading Association.
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Post Points to Ponder…
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Sequential Roundtable Alphabet
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
Classroom Strategies for Interactive Learning, (2nd ed). by Doug Buehl 2001. Newark, NJ, DE: International Reading Association.
Adapted from Ricci, G., & Wahlgren, C. (1998 May). The Key to know “PAINE” know gain. Paper presented at the 43rd annual convention of the International
Reading Association, Orlando, Fl.
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Purposeful Reading
Demonstration
Definition
Setting a purpose for reading is an essential strategy for activating students’ prior
knowledge. The House activity should not be used in and of itself. It should be
a model to reinforce another activity that is related to the content area course to
show how important it is for readers to set and know the purpose for which they
are reading the passage.
Procedure
1. As the students read the passage, instruct them to circle whatever they
think is important.
2. Reread the passage again, this time underline in yellow places in the text
that they think a robber would find important.
3. Reread the passage one more time and underline in pink all the places
that would be important to a real estate agent or a prospective
homebuyer.
4. Discuss what students notice about the circles and highlighted words.
5. Using an overhead, the teacher writes what was important to the robber
and homebuyer. The teacher can use a T-chart to visually plot words.
6. Reflect on why it is important to set a purpose for reading.
7. Follow up with an activity that reinforces setting a purpose for reading in
your content area.
Notes
 Reading The House should not be used in and of itself
 Follow up activity should be content-related text used to reinforce setting
up a purpose for reading
 Strategy helps students see different perspectives in text, which helps
them determine why they are reading and what to look for in the text.
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Helpful Hints and Comments From Teachers
“After using The House with my students I realized that a passage on the
structure of a network from the perspective of a hacker, networker, and user
would help the kids understand different purpose for reading.”
(Technology teacher).
Post Points to Ponder…
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The House
The two boys ran until they came to the driveway. “See, I told you today was
good for skipping school,” said Mark. “Mom is never home on Thursday,” he
added. Tall hedges hid the house from the road so the pair strolled across the
finely landscaped yard. “I never knew your place was so big,” said Pete. “Yeah,
but it’s nicer now than it used to be since Dad had the new stone siding put on
and added the fireplace.”
There were front and back doors and a side door, which led to the garage,
which was empty except for three parked 10-speed bikes. They went in the side
door, Mark explaining that it was always open in case his younger sisters got
home earlier than their mother.
Pete wanted to see the house, so Mark started with the living room. It, like
the rest of the downstairs, was newly painted. Mark turned on the stereo, the
noise of which worried Pete. “Don’t worry, the nearest house is a quarter mile
away,” Mark shouted. Pete felt more comfortable observing that no houses could
be seen in any direction beyond the huge yard.
The dining room, with all the china, silver, and cut glass, was no place to
play so the boys moved into the kitchen where they made sandwiches. Mark
said they wouldn’t go to the basement because it had been damp and musty ever
since the new plumbing had been installed.
“This is where my Dad keeps his famous paintings and his coin collection,”
Mark said as they peered into the den. Mark bragged that he could get spending
money whenever he needed it since he’d discovered that his Dad kept a lot in the
desk drawer.
There were three upstairs bedrooms. Mark showed Pete his mother’s
closet, which was filled with furs, and the locked box, which held her jewels. His
sister’s room was uninteresting except for the color TV that Mark carried to his
room. Mark bragged that the bathroom in the hall was his since one had been
added to his sisters’ room for their use. The big highlight in his room, though,
was a leak in the ceiling where the old roof had finally rotted.
Pichert, J.W., & Anderson, R.C. (1977). Taking different perspectives on a story. Journal of Educational
Psychology, 69, 309-15.
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K-W-L (H)
Definition
K-W-L (H) is a three-step process that is used for assisting students in learning a
new concept while activating students’ prior knowledge.

What do I know?

What do I expect to learn?

What have I learned?

How am I going to find the information?
or, How did I learn this?
Know
What
Learned
(How)
Procedure
1. In column one (Know), students brainstorm their prior knowledge on the
topic.
2. In column two (What), students brainstorm ideas of what they want to find
out about the subject or what questions they have about the topic.
3. In column three (Learned), after teaching the subject, or after students
read information about the topic, teacher and/or students list what facts
they learned or questions that may have been answered for them.
4. If students do not have or enough or any prior knowledge of the concept
being introduced, the teacher may have to incorporate building knowledge
into the lesson before using the K-W-L strategy. Some teachers may use
a video or other means to introduce the concept.
5. After completing the L section and the reading, the information can be
organized into categories in small-groups or whole-class discussions.
Once the information is divided into categories, a concept map or web can
be created. This process can lead to writing summaries that are
organized and well developed.
Optional: Students may list ways they can locate additional information on
the topic and fill in a fourth column (How); as a self-reflection activity, students
may complete this column by stating How they learned the material.
Adapted from: Ogle, D. (1986). K-W-L: A teaching model that develops active reading of expository text.
The Reading Teacher, 39, 564-570.
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Notes
 Useful for activating prior knowledge and set a purpose for reading
 Useful for introducing new concepts
 Useful for discussion activities in small groups or as a whole class.
Helpful Hints and Comments From Teacher
“I used this with a student to direct possible choices for what do to after high
school. It helped him to narrow his choices.” (Counselor)
“The KWL allowed the students to take leadership in relating where they are and
what they still need to learn.” (English teacher)
“KWL helped the students remember more pertinent details about each artist.
They also had those charts to use as reviews for tests and the upcoming final.”
(Foreign Language teacher)
“The KWL helped me to realize what the students were lacking in prior
knowledge and enabled them to articulate what they did and did not know.”
(Math teacher)
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Post Points to Ponder…
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K-W-L-H
K
W
L
H
K – Stands for helping students recall what they KNOW about a subject.
W – Stands for helping students determine what they WANT to learn.
L – Stands for helping students identify what they LEARN as they read.
H – Stands for HOW we can learn more or HOW they learned (reflection).
Adapted from: Ogle, D. (1986). K-W-L: A teaching model that develops active reading of expository text. The Reading Teacher, 39, 564-570.
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Anticipation
Guide
Definition:
An anticipation guide is a pre-reading and pre-discussion strategy for introducing new
concepts based on students’ prior knowledge and opinions.
Procedure:
1. Teacher creates yes/no or agree/disagree questions for students to answer before
reading and classroom discussion.
2. Teacher keys students into focusing their attention and creating a mind set/purpose
for reading. (Teacher prompts students, creating a mind set, a purpose for reading).
3. After reading passage, students reevaluate their answers and are given the
opportunity to change their answers.
4. Whole classroom discussion follows.
Notes:
 Could be used in lieu of K-W-L
 Triggers students’ awareness of purposeful vocabulary
 Especially useful in concepts that foster bias and prejudice
 Helps teacher identify student misconceptions
Helpful Hints and Comments From Teachers
“I would try to exclude myself from the conversation more. I would like my students to
discuss issues and questions like this with each other more.” (Special Education
teacher)
“Students were more focused on the needs and purpose of reading. They understood
what they needed to do rather than random highlighting.” (Science teacher)
“The discussion from the anticipation guide unearthed major misconceptions that the
students had.” (Science teacher)
Herber, H. (1978). Teaching reading in the content area (2nd ed.), Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
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Post Points to Ponder…
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Sample Anticipation Guide Formats
Example 1:
ALGEBRA Anticipation Guide
Whether it’s rockets, buildings, or phone calls, if you add four and five of the same thing,
you get nine of them. The equation 4 + 5 = 9 works for all objects. That’s why
mathematics is so useful.
But mathematics alone will not put people into space, nor will it build skyscrapers or route
telephone calls. For that we need a way to describe things that change, a precise way that
will help us predict whether a rocket will escape Earth’s gravity, whether a skyscraper will
stay up, or whether your friend’s call will get through to you. We need algebra.
Place a “+” sign if you agree with the following statements. Place a ”– “sign if you do not
agree with the following statements. Write down your reasons for agreeing or disagreeing.
+/_____ Algebra uses letters to represent numbers.
_____ Algebra is like solving a mystery.
_____ There is always only one correct mathematical answer in algebra.
_____ Formulas are not used in algebra.
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Example 2:
Anticipation Guide: POPCORN
Directions: Popcorn is an American favorite. The passage you are about to read is about
the history of popcorn. Below are several statements about the history of popcorn. In
groups, discuss the statements below. Then on your own, put a check under likely if you
think the statement is true and put a check under unlikely if you think the statement if false.
Likely
Unlikely
1. The average American eats almost 50 quarts of
popcorn a year.
_______
_______
_
_
2. Scientists believe that popcorn has been around
for over 80,000 years.
3. Columbus was greeted by the Indians trading
popcorn jewelry.
4. Popcorn was a popular food served during Mayan
festivals to the gods.
5. The first steam-powered popcorn machine was
invented in the 20th century.
________
_______
6. Popcorn became popular during the Great Depression.
Now read the passage Popcorn. If what you read supports your choices, place a check in
the Yes column. If the text does not support your prediction, place a check in the No
column. For each item, write in your own words what actually was written in the passage.
Yes
No
In your own words
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
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Example 3:
The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant
By W.D. Wetherell
DIFFICULT CHOICES
AGREE
DISAGREE
_______
_______
A teenage boy or girl should give up their
favorite hobby for a new girlfriend or boyfriend.
_______
_______
People should cover up their true feelings or
interests to impress someone else.
_______
_______
It is OK to lie if you can get a popular boy or
girl to hang out with you.
_______
_______
Girls will change their minds about relationships quicker than boys.
From these statements, what can you guess the story is about?
Make a list of positive qualities you feel are important to have in a good friend, possibly
later leading to becoming a boyfriend or girlfriend.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Now, turn to page 35 and check out the photo and the statement, “I never made this
mistake again.” Write a few sentences sharing your predictions about this statement.
Finally, what other information does the title suggest to you? Orally predict with a partner
what the main idea of the story might be and what inferences about the outcome are
suggested by the title.
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CLOZE Procedure
Definition
This procedure is a quick check to see whether or not the student understands the reading
material. It is primarily used as a diagnostic tool to estimate about how students will do
with the reading material. Validity of this tool is questionable, but the teacher can create
variations to use as a literacy activity rather than an assessment.
Procedure
1. Construct a CLOZE from a passage from a text you are interested in using in the
classroom.
2. Select a 250-300-word passage.
3. Leave first sentence intact.
4. Delete a word at random from the second sentence of the passage (the first and
last sentences should stay intact to give additional context to passage.)
5. Delete every 5th word until you have 50 deletions.
6. Leave a blank space for each deleted word (blanks should be equal length.)
7. Give students a copy of the CLOZE passage and instruct them to read through it
before they do anything else. Tell them that you do not expect 100%, that a more
reasonable score would be 50%.
8. Instruct students to go back and fill in the blanks with words they think make sense.
Encourage them to make guesses. No time limit is set.
9. After they are finished, give credit to words that are exact replacements for deleted
words (or close spellings of the word).
10. Score and determine the percentage of the correct answers.
Alvermann, D.E., & Phelps, S.F. (2002). Content reading and literacy: Succeeding in today’s diverse
classrooms (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Bormuth, J. (1968) Cloze test readability: Criterion referenced scores. Journal of Educational Measurement 5, 189-196.
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Interpretation:
60% or better correct means the student can read and understand
material independently.
40%-60% means the student can understand the passage with classroom
instruction.
40% and below means the student will find the material frustrating and may need
more background knowledge or for the teacher to use another passage. Close
examination of the replacement words is recommended to analyze why the passage
is too difficult for the student.
IMPORTANT: CLOZE scores are only an estimate about how well students will do with
the reading material. Anyone scoring 40% or better can read with understanding the
material you are planning to use in your classroom.
Notes
 Use as an activity rather than as an assessment tool by creating your own passage
and having students fill in the blanks with vocabulary words
 Use as an activity to see what synonyms students will choose instead of the deleted
word
 Useful for focusing on determining parts of speech (like Mad Libs) and filling in the
word accordingly.
*NOTE: If teachers administer the CLOZE procedure as an assessment, please
proceed with caution since the validity of the tool is questionable
Helpful Hints and Comments from Teachers
“I used a Cloze with linear equations…it helped me realized that not all strategies are effective in
each curriculum area.” (Math teacher)
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Post Points to Ponder…
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Fix-up Strategies
Definition
These student-centered strategies are extremely useful in helping students comprehend
written text.
* Below are some strategies that teachers can give students:
Procedure
1. If you stumble on a word, try to figure out the meaning by using context clues,
sounding it out, asking a friend, or looking it up in a dictionary. DO NOT ask a
friend if it is during a test, if you are being assessed on your own knowledge, or
if it disrupts other students around you.
2. If you get to the end of a paragraph or page and realize you don’t know what you
just read, read and reread or seek help.
3. If you have trouble understanding a sentence or if a paragraph does not make
sense, read aloud quietly to yourself.
4. If your eyes jump to a different line or you lose your place, put a blank index card
above the line you are reading and scroll down as you read. This process will
help keep your eyes focused on the line you are reading.
5. If in the process of reading, you wonder, “What is it I just read, STOP and ASK
yourself, “What do I understand about the book or literary piece? What is
happening? What do you think will happen next? Why do you think this will
happen?”
Notes
 Useful strategies to assist students in becoming self-starters and problem-solvers
 Useful in helping students monitor their own reading and allowing them to be
conscience of their reading process and behavior
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Vocabulary
Strategies
Helping students learn and use
new words.



Frayer Model
Word Squares
Words in Context
REFERENCES AND RESOURCES
Allen, J. (1999). Words, words, words: Teaching vocabulary in grades 4-12. Portland, ME: Stenhouse.
Alvermann, D. E., & Phelps, S. F. (2002). Content reading and literacy: Succeeding in today’s diverse
classrooms (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning (2nd ed.). Newark, NJ: International
Reading Association.
Eeds, M. & Cockrum, W. A. (1985). Teaching word meaning by expanding schemata vs. dictionary work
vs. reading in context. Journal of Reading, 28, 492-497.
Frayer, D., Frederick, W. and Klausmeir, H. (1969). A schema for testing the level of cognitive master
(working paper No. 16). Madison, WI: Wisconsin Research and Development Center.
Hopkins, G. & Bean, T. (1999). Vocabulary learning with the verbal-visual word association strategy in a
Native American community. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 42(4), 274-281.
Readence, J. E., Bean, T.W., & Baldwin, R. S. (1998). Content area literacy: An integrated approach
(6th ed.). Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt.
.
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Unified School District
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Vocabulary Study and Content Learning
What Works, What Doesn’t?
Vocabulary knowledge is strongly related to successful text comprehension,
and it is especially important in teaching English language learners. Teachers
can be more effective by increasing certain strategies and decreasing others
when teaching vocabulary (Allen, 1999).
Teachers should increase:
 Time for reading
 Use of varied, rich texts
 Use of concrete contexts when possible (pictures, artifacts, realia)
 Opportunities for students to use words in meaningful ways
 Opportunities for students to connect new words/concepts to those already known
 Study of concepts rather than single unrelated words
 Finding the word or concept that will have the biggest impact on comprehension
rather than “covering” many words).
Teachers should
Tea decrease:
 Looking up definitions as a single source of word knowledge
 Asking students to write sentences for new words before they’ve studied the word in depth
 Notion that all words in a text need to be defined for comprehension
 Using context as a highly reliable tool for increasing comprehension
 Assessments that ask students for a single definition
Allen, J. (1999). Words, words, words: Teaching Vocabulary in grades 4-12. Portland, ME: Stenhouse.
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Frayer Model
Definition
Frayer Model is a strategy that focuses on essential characteristics, nonessential
characteristics, examples, and non-examples of a word. This strategy is excellent for
beginning a unit or when a vocabulary word is difficult for a student to comprehend.
Procedure
1. Have the students write the focus word or title, theme, concept in the
center oval.
2. In the top left hand corner, instruct students to list the essential characteristics of the
focus word.
3. In the top right hand corner, instruct students to list the nonessential characteristics
of the focus word.
4. In the bottom left hand corner, instruct students to list examples of the focus word.
5. In the bottom right hand corner, instruct students to list the non-examples of the
focus word.
Notes
 Students can list as many ideas that they can fit into the box, or the teacher can
have a set amount of items for students to reach (depending on objective)
 Strategy can be used instead of the Words in Context or Word Squares strategies
 Strategy can be used either individually, in pairs, small groups, or as a whole class
activity.
Adapted from Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning (2nd ed.), Newark, NJ:
International Reading Association.
Frayer, D., Frederick, W., & Klausmeier, H. (1969). A schema for testing the level of cognitive mastery (working paper
No. 16). Madison, WI: Wisconsin Research and Development Center.
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Helpful Hints and Comments From Teachers
“I thought this activity was very successful. I would use it again for this subject as well as
others. A very good critical thinking exercise.” (Science teacher)
“Students may need prompting while determining the non-essential characteristics.”
(PE/Safety Ed teacher)
Post Points to Ponder…
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Frayer Model
Essential Characteristics
Nonessential Characteristics
Focus Word
Examples
Non-examples
Frayer, D., Frederick, W., & Klausmeier, H. (1969). A schema for testing the level of cognitive mastery
(working paper No. 16). Madison, WI: Wisconsin Research and Development Center.
Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning (2nd ed.). Newark, NJ: International
Reading Association.
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Word Squares
Definition
Word Squares are useful for a new vocabulary list, unit, or lesson introduction. It may also
be a good strategy to use for challenging vocabulary words by incorporating pictures and
concrete examples.
Words Square
Procedure
1. Have students write the focus word in the top left hand box. What would they list if
you were using it for a unit/lesson?
2. Students will then write the definition of the word/concept in the top right box.
3. Students will provide an example of the word/concept in the bottom left box.
4. Students will then draw a picture of the word in the bottom right box.
Notes
 The teacher can either provide the students with templates or have students create
their own on index cards
 A word square might not be needed for each word in a vocabulary unit; students
may only need to do certain words that are difficult for them to understand
 The teacher may choose to use parts of speech, prefixes, root words, suffixes, etc.
(depending on the objective)
 Each of the four squares can be used for different purposes (depending on the
objective)
 The strategy is a good tool to help students understand the root word and variations
 Strategy can be done individually, in pairs, or in small groups
 Strategy can be used for homework practice
 Good warm-up activity (as an overhead) with the entire class
Hopkins, G. & Bean, T. (1999). Vocabulary learning with the verbal-visual word association strategy in a Native
American community. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 42:4, 274-281.
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Helpful Hints and Comments From Teachers
“Rather than use squares, students were taught to make a note card with visual clues, or
pronunciation cues or visual clues as needed. Students were then taught ways to study
with cards (e.g., flash, query with partner, concentration, etc.)” (Foreign Language
teacher)
Post Points to Ponder…
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Word Squares
Vocabulary Word
Example
One or two word definition of the word
Pictorial representation
Hopkins, G. & Bean, T. (1999). Vocabulary learning with the verbal-visual word association strategy in a Native
American community. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 42(4), 274-281.
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Words in
Context
Definition
Definition:
Words in Context is a graphic to use when students are introduced to new terms in a unit
or lesson. It may also be a good strategy to use for certain vocabulary words that may be
difficult for students to grasp. The strategy focuses on synonyms, antonyms, examples,
and non-examples.
1. Note that each Words in Context template focuses on one word at a time.
2. Handout the Words in Context template.
3. Put the focus word in the top middle box.
4. Put the definition below it in the second box.
5. On the left hand side of the middle box are three ovals that focus on what the word
IS NOT. Have students place three words that are the antonyms or opposite
meaning of the focus word.
6. On the right hand side of the middle box are three rectangles that focus on what the
word IS. Have the students place three words that are the synonyms or same
meaning as the focus word.
7. In the row of rectangles have the students write three different examples of the
focus word.
8. In the row of ovals have the students write three different non-examples of the focus
word.
Notes
 Middle boxes that display the focus word may be arranged differently. Boxes
could display the word in the top and definition in the second box or vise
versa
 Parts of speech may be displayed in one of the two focus boxes instead of
the definition
 Strategy may be done individually, in pairs, small groups, or as a whole class
activity
 Strategy may be done for practice as a homework assignment
 Strategy can be used instead of Frayer Model or Word Squares.
Allen, J. (1999). Words, words, words: Teaching vocabulary in grades 4-12. Portland, ME:
Stenhouse
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Helpful Hints and Comments From Teachers
“
“New tools are beneficial for my growth as a teacher.” (Science teacher)
“Students were able to obtain a clearer understanding because they
made up the examples and non-examples.” (Special Education teacher)
Post Points to Ponder…
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Words in Context
©Janet Allen
Allen, J. (1999). Words, words, words: Teaching vocabulary in grades 4-12. Portland, ME: Stenhouse.
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Discussion
Strategies
Helping students discuss and
reflect on content knowledge.





Think-Pair-Share Discussion Cycle
Discussion Web
Opinion/Proof or Theory/Fact
Panel Discussion
Jigsaw
REFERENCES AND RESOURCES
Alvermann, D.E., (1992). The discussion web: A graphic aid for learning across the curriculum. The
Reading Teacher, 45, 92-99.
Alvermann, D. E., & Phelps, S. F. (2002). Content reading and literacy: Succeeding in today’s
diverse classrooms (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning (2nd ed.). Newark, NJ: International
Reading Association.
Lyman, F. T. (1981). The responsive classroom. The inclusion of all students. In A.
Andeson (Ed.) Mainstreaming Digest (pp.109-113). College Park, MD: University of Maryland Press.
Readence, J. E., Bean, T.W., & Baldwin, R. S. (1998). Content area literacy: An integrated approach
(6th ed.). Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt.
Slavin, R.E. (1991). Student team learning: A practical guide to cooperative learning.
National Education Association.
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Discussion Strategies
Discussing, like writing, is another way for content teachers to encourage
students to think about what they have read or they are about to read. It provides
students opportunities to brainstorm what they already know about the content.
Through discussion, students integrate reading, thinking, content knowledge, and
oral language to develop new understandings and think beyond the text.
CLICK discussion strategies were selected based upon the beliefs that:
1. The ability to discuss content readings does not happen naturally.
2. Students need discussion models, teacher support, and practice to
become effective discussers.
3. Discussion is an essential component of content learning and teaching.
Post Points to Ponder…
Alvermann, D. E., & Phelps, S. F. (2002). Content reading and literacy: Succeeding in today’s diverse classrooms
(3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
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Think-Pair-Share
Discussion Cycle
Definition
Think-Pair-Share is a strategy to facilitate student discussion about content topics.
Procedure
1. This literacy and discussion strategy begins with students first
thinking on their own about the ideas they want to discuss based on either
their background knowledge or interactions with a text. A written
list/reflection can be individually made.
2. Each student pairs up with a peer partner to discuss his or her ideas.
3. After the partner discussion takes place, partners team up with another set of
partners to discuss multiple perspectives, compare ideas, resolve
differences, and/or work toward a consensus.
4. The final phase of this discussion cycle consists of the two sets of partners
selecting a spokesperson to share their ideas with the class.
Notes
 Useful for broad topics of discussion
 Useful for discussing any form of literature
 Provides set up for opinion or debate activities
 Useful for pre-reading or warm-up activity.
Helpful Hints and Comments From Teachers
“Students were surprised to discover that their perceptions of the information
could vary so much from each other.” (English teacher)
Adapted from: Lyman, F. T. (1981). The responsive classroom. The inclusion of all students. In A. Anderson (Ed.)
Mainstreaming Digest (pp.109-113). College Park, MD: University of Maryland Press.
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Post Points to Ponder…
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Discussion Web
Definition
Discussion Web is a reading and note taking strategy to help students organize factual
supporting evidence for particular points of view on a T-chart.
Procedure
1. The left side of T-Chart focuses on one perspective; the right side focuses on an
opposite perspective.
2. Ways to introduce Discussion Web to students:
a. Students read beginning of text to formulate opinions. Teachers could use
the Discussion Web for students to predict outcomes.
b. Students read an entire fictional piece and debate outcomes.
c. Students analyze an historical account and debate facts.
d. Students read articles and formulate debate issues based on the concept.
3. Each perspective should be represented equally.
Notes
 Use R A F T (see Writing Strategies) with Discussion Web to reinforce
comprehension
 Useful for debates and discussions to formulate opinions
 Facilitates purposeful reading
 Helps students see all sides of a problem.
Alvermann, D.E., (1992). The discussion web: A graphic aid for learning across the curriculum. The Reading Teacher.
45, 92-99.
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Helpful Hints and Comments From Teachers
“For the ELL students, it helped them fully understand what had happened and gave them
a chance to predict what would happen in the next book.”
(English teacher)
“Students enjoy this strategy. They can work in groups to share ideas.
(Social Studies teacher)
Post Points to Ponder…
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Sample Discussion Web
“The Lottery”
When a small town gathers every June 27th for the last 77 years to draw
white slips of paper from an old black box, it seems the people are anxious to
participate. We are led to believe that the tradition represents the willingness
of everyone to join in. When Mrs. Adams suggests that other villages are
talking about giving up the lottery, Old Man Warner reports, “Nothing but
trouble in that! Pack of young fools!”
List 10 good reasons the lottery has lasted 77 years in the left column,
and 10 reasons to discontinue the practice. Consider facts and details
from the above passage.
Reasons to keep the tradition of lottery Reasons to discontinue the lottery
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Helpful Hints and Comments From Teachers
“For the ELL students it helped them fully understand what had happened and gave them
a chance to predict what would happen in the next book.”
(English teacher)
“Students enjoy this strategy. They can work in groups to share ideas.
(Social Studies teacher)
Post Points to Ponder…
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Opinion/Proof
Theory/Fact
Definition
Opinion/proof is a reading and note taking strategy for students to differentiate between
opinion and factual information on a T-chart.
Procedure
1. Create a T-chart using an overhead transparency or chart paper.
2. On the left side of the chart, students will list opinions about a particular topic,
subject, and concept before engaging in the reading material.
3. On the right side, students will write down factual information from the reading
material (facts, statistics, illustrations, and quotes) to either prove or disprove written
opinions.
4. Students may fill in the T-chart while they are reading or they can go back and fill in
the chart after they have read (entirely up to the teacher).
5. Students may do this activity in small groups, in pairs, or individually.
6. Each perspective should be represented equitably.
Notes
 Can be used in place of the Discussion Web
 Useful for debates and discussions to formulate opinions
 Useful for fostering student centered discussion and evaluation of each other’s
knowledge
 Useful in organizing factual information for writing an essay, preparing a speech,
outlining a presentation, or assessing student knowledge and/or comprehension
 Can be used as a pre-writing graphic organizer to brainstorm ideas and create the
paper’s focus
 Can be used to predict outcomes.
Adapted from Project CRISS a program developed in the Kalispell School District, Kalispell, Montana,
under the directions of Carol Santa.
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Helpful Hints and Comments From Teachers
“The Opinion/Proof activity was a good pre-writing activity for my students. They listed
supporting evidence for their opinions. This helped them write cohesive paragraphs.”
(Reading teacher).
Post Points to Ponder…
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Panel
Discussion
Definition
This strategy is a discussion forum that allows students to present and argue different
perspectives of a topic based on factual information. (Students assume the point of view of
the reading material despite personal opinions).
Procedure
1. Teacher obtains relevant articles that support different viewpoints of a concept or
subject (minimum two different articles per perspective).
2. Teacher will pose a statement that can be proved or disproved equally.
3. Teacher will break up class into small groups (size of groups depends on number of
articles and viewpoints presented).
4. Students will read their articles and highlight key facts that will support the
perspective of the author and their side of the statement being proposed.
5. Each group selects key facts that support the perspective of the author.
6. After students read their article, each group will assign a spokesperson that will sit
in one chair of the panel in the front of the room. Each spokesperson’s role is to
present a 30-second to 2-minute defense for his or her group’s position.
7. The remaining students act as the audience.
8. The audiences’ role is to run up to the two side chairs and interrupt or challenge the
perspective of the panel speaker. The panel speaker may not talk when the
audience is speaking. If the audience is not in one of the two chairs they may not
speak. The audience needs to give the panel time to answer.
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Classroom Setup
In small groups of five, students read their articles, and then present information.

Panel of 5 chairs at the front of the room facing the audience.

On each side of the panel, 2 chairs will be on either side facing inward (see
diagram).
Panel
Panel
Panel
Panel
Panel
Audience
Chair
Audience
Chair
Notes:
 Excellent strategy for expanding knowledge, and developing an open mind for a
variety of theories
 A good technique for students to see all sides of an issue.
Helpful Hints and Comments From Teachers
“When reading Othello, students were given a quote by Aristotle that defines a tragic hero.
Class was divided in half and assigned to one side of the issue “Does Othello fit the
definition of a tragic hero?” This helped students to stay focused on a particular point of
view. (English teacher)
“Helps students to see both sides of situations. If students have to take a side they don’t
agree with, it broadens their understanding as they have to defend their position.” (Social
Studies teacher)
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Post Points to Ponder…
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Jigsaw
Definition
Jigsaw is a strategy that creates student accountability and promotes individual
participation in a cooperative learning exercise. The Jigsaw process is great for giving
students the responsibility of learning and for teaching any body of information that can be
segmented.
Procedure
1. Students work in small groups created by teacher depending on the reading
material and class size.
2. Students in each group will be instructed to read one section of the reading
material.
3. After students have read their section, they will discuss their section and summarize
key points, principles, and concepts.
4. Students will form new groups and act as the expert or spokesperson for their
section. Each individual will be responsible and accountable for the information
he/she is to relay about his/her section to the larger group.
5. Teacher brings the class together for final classroom discussion or assessment of
understanding.
Notes
 Useful for introducing new concepts
 Fosters student relationships, communication, discussion, responsibility, and
accountability
 Serves as an assessment of student comprehension
 Provides peer intervention techniques for students who need assistance in reading.
Adapted from Slavin, R.E. (1991). Student team learning: A practical guide to cooperative learning. National Education
Association.
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Helpful Hints and Comments From Teachers
“The Jigsaw is a great strategy for adding student involvement and zest to the learning
process.” (Business Education teacher)
“I like this strategy because you can cover more information in a shorter period of time. It
also gives students a chance to be ‘the expert’ and makes them accountable.”
(Economics teacher)
Post Points to Ponder…
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Writing
Strategies
Helping students write for
understanding and reflecting on
content knowledge.



RAFT
Biopoem
Free Write
REFERENCES AND RESOURCES
Alvermann, D. E., & Phelps, S. F. (2002). Content reading and literacy: Succeeding in today’s
diverse classrooms (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning (2nd ed.). Newark, NJ:
International Reading Association.
Readence, J. E., Bean, T.W., & Baldwin, R. S. (1998). Content area literacy: An integrated
approach (6th ed.). Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt.
Santa, C., Havens, L. & Harrison, S. (1996). Teaching secondary science through reading,
writing, studying and problem solving. In D. Lapp, J. Flood., & Farnan (Eds.). Content area
reading and learning: Instructional Strategies (2nd ed., pp. 165-180) Boston: Allyn and
Bacon.
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Writing Strategies
Writing is a good way for content teachers to facilitate student thinking about
what they read or what they are about to read. It provides opportunities for
students to assess their understanding of new concepts and content knowledge.
Writing also helps students think beyond facts in the text.
CLICK writing strategies were selected based upon the beliefs
that:
1. Writing is a form of thinking.
2. Writing when combined with reading is a powerful tool
for learning and reflecting across the curriculum.
3. Writing is an essential component of content learning
and teaching.
Alverman, D.E., & Phelps, S.F. (2002). Content reading and literacy: Succeeding in today’s diverse
Classrooms (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Post Points to Ponder…
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RAFT

Definition
R A F T is a strategy that can be used when students are actively listening to a lecture,
video or guest speaker. The format reviews the material in different ways to help the
student study the material later on and at the same time organize the material while
actively listening. Students can brainstorm key concepts and vocabulary in any group
setting - large or small.
R=Role
What role you assume as writer?
A=Audience
To whom are you writing?
F=Format
What form will your writing take? (poem, letter, speech etc.)
T=Topic
What topic have you chosen? Be sure to use strong verbs.
Procedure
1. Explain that all writers need to consider four components of every writing:
role of writer, audience, format, and topic.
2. Brainstorm ideas about a topic. Select several from those identified.
3. Write R A F T on the board, and for each topic list possible roles, audiences,
formats.
4. Have the students choose one of the examples for writing.
Notes
 Useful for all content areas
 Can be used as a review activity
 Can be used as an extension activity.
Adapted from Santa, C., Havers, L. & Harrison, S. (1996), Teaching secondary science through reading, writing, studying
and problem solving, In D. Lapp, J. Flood. & N. Farnan (Eds.). Content area reading and learning: Instructional
Strategies (2nd ed., pp. 165-180). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
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Helpful Hints and Comments From Teachers
“They seemed really interested in the major characters and wrote very heartfelt letters that
clearly demonstrated their knowledge of the main character and main themes.” (Special
Education teacher)
Post Points to Ponder…
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Ideas for R A F T
R: Numerator
A: Denominator
F: Letter
T: Why the numerator is the most important part of the fraction.
R: Denominator
A: Numerator
F: Letter
T: Why the denominator is the most important part of the fraction.
R: Plant
A: Sun
F: Thank you note
T: Sun’s role in the plant’s growth
R: Constituent
A: U.S. Senator
F: Letter
T: Need for civil rights legislation in the 1950’s
R: Comma
A: Ninth-grade students
F: Job Description
T: Use in sentences
R: Square root
A: Whole number
F: Love letter
T: Explain relationship
R:
A.
F:
T:
Baseball
Fans
A silly poem
What’s it like to go flying into the stands
Alvermann, D. E., & Phelps, S. F. (2002). Content reading and literacy: Succeeding in today’s diverse classrooms (3rd
ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon
Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning (2nd ed.). Newark, NJ: International Reading Association.
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Biopoem
Definition
A Biopoem is a conceptual pattern poem consisting of 10 lines that can be used in every
content area to assess and/or extend students’ knowledge.
Procedure
1. Teacher establishes concept for the focus of the Biopoem.
2. Teacher hands out Biopoem template for students to follow.
3. Teacher may adjust lines for clarification of specific concept.
Notes:
 Appropriate for all content areas
 Biopoem allows students to fill in the blanks with concepts learned in class to
create a poem
 Adaptable to any subject area to reinforce writing, reading, and conceptual
comprehension
 Strategy can be used as an extension activity, assessment tool, summarization tool,
or application tool
 Students may create Biopoems in groups, in pairs, or individually.
Helpful Hints and Comments From Teachers
“I modified the Biopoems to fit a state description and my students enjoyed it.
It gave them the opportunity to learn about Arizona as most had just moved to Arizona.”
(Social Studies teacher)
“Great to use at the beginning of the school year or with a poetry unit.”
(English teacher)
“I used it to help the student self-evaluate themselves as math students.”
(Math teacher)
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Post Points to Ponder…
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BIOPOEM
A formulaic poem structure designed to demonstrate and extend knowledge of a concept.
Teachers can change the directions for each line to better fit their subject area and topic.
Historical Biopoems
Line 1:
Line 2:
Line 3:
Line 4:
Line 5:
Line 6:
Line 7:
Line 8:
Line 9:
Line 10:
First name of subject
Four adjectives to describe the subject
Resident of …
Lover of … (3 people, places, things)
Who believed … (1 or more ideas)
Who used … (3 methods or things)
Who wanted … (3 things)
Who said … (give a quote)
Who gave … (3 things)
Last name of subject
Science Biopoems
Line 1:
Name of a concept
Line 2:
Four adjectives to describe the concept
Line 3:
Resident of …
Line 4:
Lover of … (3 related concepts, things, places, and elements)
Line 5:
Who needs … (1 or more items or things)
Line 6:
Who used … (3 things)
Line 7:
Who fears … (3 things)
Line 8:
Who gives … (3 things)
Line 9:
Who would like … (1 or 2 things or ideas)
Line 10:
Name of concept
Alverman, D.E., & Phelps, S.F. (2002). Content reading and literacy: Succeeding in today’s diverse
Classrooms (3rd ed., p. 350). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
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Sample Biopoem
This Biopoem, created by a 10th grade student, was a pre-reading activity that focused on
looking at stereotyping and perceptions.
GQ
Fast, Fit, Fancy, Expensive
Resident of a middle class man’s closet
Lover of money, women, possessions
Who needs male interest and cash flow
Who used articles, advertisements, and fashion
Who fears balding, getting laid off, and not finding a date
Who gives eye candy to the opposite sex, time to those who matter, and
lusting looks at sports cars as they drive by
Who would like a new black suit and even more?
GQ
Glamour
Beautiful, attractive, desirable, elegant
Resident of the table in a waiting room
Lover of Carmen Elektra, Tyra Banks, Cindy Crawford, and Faith Hill
Who believed in outer beauty
Who used lipstick, eye shadow, and mascara
Who wanted health, beauty, and confidence
Who said, “Steamy little secrets to boost your bliss.”
Who gave tips on how to do makeup?
Glamour
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Free Write
Definition
Free Write is a strategy that is used for students to brainstorm prior knowledge. It is a prediscussion or pre-reading activity that will help students focus on what they already know
about a topic. It can also be used as a post reading activity to synthesize and extend what
students learned.
Procedure
1. Give the student a concept, term, or idea that you want them to write about.
2. Set a time limit (e.g., 10 minutes).
3. Tell students to write continuously for the entire time limit.
4. Tell the students, “If you can’t think of anything to write, write I can’t think of
anything to write, until you think of a response.”
Notes
 Can be used as a warm up
 Can be used in all content areas
 Can be used to see how much prior knowledge the students have and to introduce
a new concept.
 Can be used in conjunction with Think-Pair-Share.
Helpful Hints and Comments From Teachers
“It helped students explore themes before reading a story.” (English teacher)
“Students were surprised to discover how much information they knew.” (Vocational
Education teacher)
“I used this to determine prior knowledge of my math students with respect to functions
and their graphs.” (Integrated 2 Math teacher)
Adapted from: Elbow, P. (1973). Writing without teachers, NY: Oxford University Press.
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Post Points to Ponder…
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Research
Articles
CLICK
Additional research
resources for teachers.
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The Research Says…
Eight Principled Practices for a Literate
America
The Carnegie Corporation of New York recently commissioned a knowledgedevelopment paper entitled Principled Practices for a Literate America: A
Framework for Literacy and Learning in the Upper Grades. The paper focuses
upon a strategic plan for providing the administrative and instructional support
structures necessary for implementing and maintaining literacy instruction
across various subject areas.
The research literature identifies eight principles that describe what students are
able to do when their teachers implement instruction that appropriately supports
their literacy and learning development across content areas.
The literacy strategies contained in the CLICK manual are built upon and
supported by these principles. When using these strategies in the CLICK
manual, teachers will be more successful when their students:
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
Engage with print and non-print texts for a variety of purposes
Generate and express rich understandings of ideas and concept
Demonstrate enthusiasm for reading and learning
Assess their reading and learning competencies and direct their future
growth
Participate in active learning environments that offer clear and facilitative
literacy instruction
Connect reading with their life and their learning inside and outside of the
school
Develop critical perspectives toward what they read, view, and hear
Participate in a respectful environment characterized by high
expectations, trust, and care.
Alvermann, D., Boyd, F., Brozo, W., Hinchman, K., Moore. D, Sturtevant, E. (2002). Principled Practices for a literate
America: A framework for literacy and learning in the upper grades. Final report submitted to the Carnegie
Corporation of New York.
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Janet Allen
CLICK
Selected strategies from Janet Allen’s
presentation for CUSD
October 21, 2003
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Implementation:
Years 2004 - 2008
Strategies
Helping students to develop content-specific
strategies for reading, writing, thinking, and talking.














QAR
Words in Context
Vocabulary Notebooks
Root Words
Root Word Squares
Strategies for Teaching Note-Taking
Summary Writing
The Cornell Note-Taking System
Cornell Note-Taking Format
Power Notes
Power Notes and Concept Maps
Tools for Teaching Content Literacy (GIST)
Boil It Down
List, Group, Label & Write












Exchange Compare Writing
Journals & Learning Logs
See What I Found
Written Conversation
Quick Writes
Coding Text
Save the Last Word
Making Inferences
Bookmark
Discussion Webs
Making Connections/Say Something
Save the Last Word for Me
REFERENCES AND RESOURCES
Allen, J. (2004). Tools for teaching content literacy. Portland, ME: Stenhouse Publishers.
Allen, J. (1999). Words, words, words: Teaching vocabulary in grades 4-12. Portland, ME:
Stenhouse.
Alvermann, D. E., & Phelps, S. F. (2002). Content reading and literacy: Succeeding in today’s
diverse classrooms (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Bear, D., Invernizzi, M., Templeton, S. Johnson, F. (2004). Words their way: Word study for
phonics, vocabulary, and spelling instruction. (p. 266-267) (3rd ed.). OH: Pearson.
Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning (2nd ed.). Newark, NJ: International
Reading Association.
Hidi, S. & Anderson, V. (1986). Producing written summaries: Task demands, cognitive
operations, and implications for instruction. Review of Educational Research. 56, 473-494.
Raphael, T. (1982). Question-answering relationships, revisited. The Reading Teacher, 39, 516522.
Wood, Karen D. and D. Bruce Taylor. (2006). Literacy strategies across the subject areas
(2nd ed.) Boston: Pearson Publishing.
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CUSD
HINTS FOR RECOGNIZING
DIFFERENT KINDS OF
QUESTIONS
In the book QARs
CLICK
Creating Literacy
In Content
Knowledge
In my head QAR
RIGHT THERE
THINK & SEARCH
RIGHT THERE
AUTHOR & YOU ON MY OWN
AUTHOR & YOU
Answers found in a single sentence.
Answers require you to look beyond the
text and use your background
knowledge.
Questions usually being with
Who is…?
What is…?
When is…?
Name…
List…
THINK & SEARCH
Questions usually begin with
How could you tell…?
If
, then
?
Why did…?
Who does
remind you of and why?
ON MY OWN
Answers will be found in more than one
sentence.
Answers are not in the text, but require
your background knowledge.
Questions usually begin with
Questions usually begin with
Summarize…
What caused…
Contrast…
Compare…
Explain…
What do you think…?
Have you ever…?
Why has…?
Have you ever had a similar
experience? Explain.
Adapted from: www.readingquest.com
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I can’t find the answer!
QAR is the answer
QAR
QUESTION
Four Kinds of QARS
 Right There
ANSWER
You will find the answer in a
single sentence in text.
 Think and Search
You will have to look in several
places in the text to find the
answer.
 Author and You
The answer is not in the text,
BUT you need information that
the author has given you to
answer the question. You have
to combine the information from
the text with what you already
know to answer the question.
 On my Own
The answer is NOT in the text;
you must rely on what you
already know to answer the
question.
RELATIONSHIP
QAR provides a strategy for identifying different types
of questions. It encourages students to be strategic
about looking for answer to questions and to become
aware of the different kinds of thinking that questions
elicit.
QARs

Help students become aware of the different ways
to answer questions and where to find the answers.

Make students aware that responses to text can
range from literal to open-ended.

Provide teachers a means to analyze the gaps in
student comprehension (i.e., Is it lack of background
knowledge or inability to locate answers in the text?)

Prepare students for answering comprehension
questions on tests like the SAT and AIMS.
Alvermann, D. & Phelps, S. (2002). Content reading and literacy: Succeeding in today’s diverse classrooms. Boston:
Allen and Bacon.
Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning. DE: International Reading Association.
Raphael, T. (1982). Question-answering relationships, revisited. The Reading Teacher, 39, 516-522.
www.readingquest.org
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Question-Answer Relationships (QAR)
Procedure for Teaching
1. Explain the four QARs and demonstrate them with relatively simple
examples. Discuss with the students how to go about answering the
different kinds of questions.
2. Once students appear to have grasped the relationships, give them
several questions labeled Right There, Think and Search, Author and You,
or On Your Own, and have them develop answers.
3. As students become competent with this type of practice, begin posing
questions without labels and instruct students to develop answers and
decide which QAR applies.
4. Ask students to write QAR questions in lieu of responding to your
questions. These can be exchanged with their classmates, who answer
and classify the student-produced questions.
5. Provide additional practice with content area passages or text.
Keep in mind…

While the QAR taxonomy appears simple, it is not precise. For example,
sometimes a questions can be answered as an Author and You or an On
Your Own.

The QAR taxonomy does not imply that comprehension is a linear process
moving from Right There to On Your Own. Sometimes these different
kinds of comprehension happen simultaneously and interdependently.

Use all the different kinds of questions REGARDLESS of the age of
students or the level of reading ability.
References/Further Reading
Alvermann, D. & Phelps, S. (2002). content reading and literacy: Succeeding in today’s diverse
classrooms. Boston: Allen and Bacon.
Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning. DE: International Reading
Association.
Raphael, T. (1982). Question-answering relationships, revisited. The Reading Teacher, 39, 516522.
http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/readquest/strat/qar/html
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QAR: Why Must I Learn Math?
“Everybody uses math, whether they realize it or not. Shoppers use math to calculate
change, tax, and sales prices. Cooks use math to modify the amount a recipe will make.
Vacationers use math to find time for arrivals and departures to plan their trips. Even
homeowners use math to determine the cost of materials when doing projects.” (Mark
Karadimos, excerpt from: www.geocities.com?karadimosmd/whymath.html).
Math
Mathematics is the key to opportunity. Not longer just the language of science,
mathematics now contributes direct and fundamental ways to business, finance, health,
and defense. For students, it opens doors to careers. For citizens, it enables informed
decisions. For nations, it provides knowledge to compete in a technological economy.
To participate fully in the world of the future, Americans must tap the power of
mathematics.
Communication has created a world economy in which working smarter is more
important than merely working harder. Jobs that contribute to this world economy
require workers to be mentally-fit workers who are prepared to absorb new ideas, to
adapt to change, to cope with ambiguity, to perceive patterns, and to solve
unconventional problems. It is these needs, not just the need for calculation (which is
done mostly by machines) that makes mathematics a prerequisite to so many jobs.
More than ever before, Americans need to think for a living; more than ever before, they
need to think mathematically.” Excerpt from: Everybody Counts: A Report to the Nation
on the Future of Mathematics Education (1989).
Reality: Over 75 percent of all jobs require proficiency in simple algebra and geometry,
either as a prerequisite to a training program or as part of a licensure examination.
Excerpt from: Everybody Counts: A Report to the Nation on the Future of Mathematics
Education (1989).
Using Math on the Job
Account
Agriculturists
Lawyers
Managers
Politicians
Carpenters,
electrician
Nurses
Technician
Military personnel
Use formulas for measuring interest and figuring taxes.
Use math to determine proper amounts of fertilizers, pesticides and
water to produce bountiful crops.
Use reasoning and problem solving to argue complicated cases.
Use math to maintain schedules, regulate worker performance, and
analyze productivity.
Use math for problem solving and deciding what are important political
issues, and polling.
Use math to estimate job costs and make specific technical
calculations.
Adjust intravenous drip rates, dispense medicine, and assist in
operations.
Maintain and repair computers, TV, refrigerators. Diagnose system
problems and understand information in repair manuals.
Carry out various tasks ranging from aircraft maintenance, locating
geographic coordinates on a map, following detailed procedures.
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Using Math on the Job
For questions 1-5, decide the QAR category and tell why you think so.
1. Question: How do shoppers use math?
Answer: They use math to calculate change, tax, and sales price.
QAR category:
________________
Why did you pick that QAR?
_____
2. Question: Explain how math is the key to opportunity for all Americans.
Answer: It opens doors to careers, enables informed decisions, provides
technological knowledge, and prepares workers to be mentally fit.
QAR category:
Why did you pick that QAR?
3. Question: How do accountants use math?
Answer: They use formulas for measuring interest and figuring out taxes.
QAR category:
Why did you pick that QAR?
_____
________________________________
________________________________________________________________
4. Question: Why do you think so many students believe that there is no
algebra in their futures?
Answer: One reason students might believe that algebra is not relevant is
because connections have not been made between real world experiences
and the math classroom.
QAR category:
Why did you pick that QAR?
_____________________
___________________________________________________________
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5. Question: How do lawyers use math differently than carpenters?
Answer: Lawyers use math to reason arguments, carpenters use math to
estimate jobs and to calculate measurements.
QAR category:
Why did you pick that QAR?
6-10. With a partner, write and answer a Right There, Think and Search,
Author and You, and an On My Own questions. Be sure to tell why
you believe the question fits into the QAR category.
6. Question:
Answer:
_____
QAR category:
Why did you pick that QAR?
7. Question:
Answer:
QAR category:
Why did you pick that QAR?
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8. Question:
Answer:
QAR category:
Why did you pick that QAR?
9. Question:
Answer:
QAR category:
Why did you pick that QAR?
10. Question:
Answer:
QAR category:
Why did you pick that QAR?
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Root Words
Why study word parts--root words and affixes (prefixes, and
suffixes)?
 Helps students understand content knowledge
 Improves AIMS and other standardized test scores
 Provides students with tools to uncover the meaning of
unfamiliar words
 Encourages vocabulary study in all content areas
 Improves students’ overall vocabulary awareness and
comprehension abilities
Teaching students about root words, prefixes and suffixes helps them
uncover the meaning of unfamiliar words and increases their
vocabulary. Since the majority of English words are made up of root
words (80%), teaching students about roots makes sense. There is
research evidence to support that the teaching of specific roots,
prefixes, and suffixes enables students to unlock the meaning of
words, which will increase their vocabulary and comprehension
(Alvermann & Phelps, 2005).
What is a root?
A root is the part of the word that contains the basic meaning of
the word. It is the base element of the word, not necessarily a
word on its own. Root words are nestled within a word and
serve as an anchor to which affixes (prefixes and suffixes) are
attached.
What is a prefix?
A prefix is a word element that is placed in front of a root. It
changes the meaning of the root or makes a new word.
What is a suffix?
A suffix is a word element placed after the root. It changes the
word meaning as well as its function/part of speech.
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Common Prefixes and Suffixes
Bear, D., Invernizzi, M. Templeton, S. & Johnson, F. (2004). Words their way: word study for phonics,
vocabulary, and spelling instruction. (3rd ed.) Columbus, OH: Pearson.
PREFIX
MEANING
Mono
Bi
InterIntraSuperCounterExForePostProCo-/com/con
SubPreAntiDemiSemiQuadr
Pent
one
two
between
within
over; greater
opposing
out
before
after
in front of, forward
together, with
under
before
against
half
half
four
five
SUFFIX
-crat/-cracy
-emia
-ician
-ine
-ism/-ist
-logy/-logist
-pathy/-path
-phobia
-able
-cide
-er
-est
-less
-ly
-ment
-ness
-or
-er, eer
MEANING
rule (democracy)
condition of the blood (Leukemia)
specialist (physician)
chemical substance (chlorine)
belief in, one who believes (capitalism)
science of, /scientist (psychology/psychologist)
disease, one who suffers from a disease
abnormal fear (claustrophobia)
able to (curable)
cut or kill (genocide)
more (wiser)
most (wisest)
without (fearless)
having the quality (manly)
state, quality, act (excitement, statement)
state, quality (kindness)
one who (donor)
one who (employee, volunteer)
Bear, D., Invernizzi, M. Templeton, S. & Johnson, F. (2004). Words their way: word study for phonics, vocabulary and
spelling instruction. (3rd ed.) Columbus, OH: Pearson.
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Root Word Square
Root word
Definition
Tract
Draw or pull
Variations of the root
Where I might find these
words
Tractor
Attractive
Traction
Contract
Subtract
Farming manual
Novel or magazine
Science book
Business textbook or law
book
Math book
Procedure:
1. Write the word name in the upper left box.
2. Write the definition of the word in the upper right box.
3. Write a synonym in the lower left box.
4. Draw a picture of what the word means to you in the lower right box.
Article created by Kevin Krohenbuhl, Hamilton High School.
Hopkins, S.G. & Bean, T. (1999). Vocabulary learning with the verbal-visual word association in a Native American
community. Journal of Adult and Adolescent Literacy. 42 (4), 274-281.
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Vocabulary Notebooks
1. While reading, place a question mark above words you find difficult, and place
a question mark in the margin for easy reference. When you are through reading
or studying, go back to your question marks. Read around the word and think
about possible meanings.
2. Write the word, followed by the sentence in which it is used, the page number
and an abbreviation for the title of the book. (If sentence is too long, write
enough to give a clue of the word’s meaning).
3. Look at the different parts of the word – prefixes, suffixes, and root word.
Think about the meanings of the affixes and the roots.
4. Think of other words that are like that work and write them underneath the
part of the word that is similar.
5. Look word up in the dictionary, read various definitions, and in a few words
record the meaning (the one that applies to the word in the book you are reading)
in your notebook. Look for similar words (both in the form and meaning) above
and below the target word, and add them to the list you started in step 4.
6. Look at the origin of the word and add it to your entry if it is interesting.
Example
Directions
1. Collect the word
Example
ORTHOGRAPHY
2. Record the word and the sentence
“English orthography is not crazy,
it carries the history of the word
with it.” P. 22, Sounds of
Language.
3. Look at the word parts
ortho graph (may have something to do with writing)
4. Record related words
ortho, orthodontist, orthographer
5. Study word from dictionary
6. Review the words
Bear, D., Invernizzi, M. Templeton, S. & Johnson, F. (2004). Words their way: word study for phonics, vocabulary, and
spelling instruction. (3rd ed.) Columbus, OH: Pearson.
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Words in Context
Target word in context
Other words I know with these word parts
Definition by analysis
Allen, JanetChandler
(1999). Unified
Words,School
words,
words: teaching vocabulary in grades 4-12. Portland, ME: Stenhouse.
District
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Summary Writing
 Writing summaries is part of Cornell Notes and Power
Note-Taking strategies.
 It allows/requires students to return to their notes, to review,
revisit and reflect.
 It helps students synthesize information.
 It increases comprehension and understanding.
 It highlights and incorporates key vocabulary and concepts.
In order to write a summary, students must be able to (Hidi &
Anderson, 1986; Alvermann & Phelps, 2005):
1. Select and delete information
2. Condense information by combining or substituting a general
term for a group of specific terms (e.g., farm animals instead
of horses, goats, pigs)
3. Transform the information into writing.
Alvermann, D., & Phelps, S. (2005). Content reading and literacy: succeeding in today’s classrooms (4th ed.). Boston: Allen and
Bacon.
Hidi, S. & Anderson. V. (1986). Producing written summaries: task demands, cognitive operations, and Implications for instruction.
Review of Educational Research, 56, 473-494.
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TOOLS FOR TEACHING CONTENT LITERACY
Janet Allen 2004 Stenhouse Publishers
EVALUATE, EXTEND, AND TRANSFER CONTENT KNOWLEDGE
GIST (Generation Interactions Between Schemata
and Texts)
What is GIST?
GIST (Cunningham 1982) is an acronym for
Generating Interactions between Schemata and
Texts. This strategy was developed to help
students learn to write organized and concise
summaries of their reading.
Why Would I Use This Instructional Strategy?
Using this instructional strategy will assist readers
and writers as they organize notes for class
discussion, research, essay writing, and exam
preparation.
GIST – Adaptations for Paraphrasing and
Summarizing
As a summarizing tool following Cornell Notetaking:
1st) Summarize or list key ideas in 8 words.
2nd) Paraphrase main idea in ONE 15-word
sentence.
3rd) Restate critical ideas in summary
paragraph format.
How Does It Work?
1. For modeling of this strategy, find a short,
expository/informational paragraph that details
a concept, event, time period, description,
problem or sequential instructions.
2. Read the first sentence to the class, then ask
students to work together to write a summary of
the contents of the first sentence in fifteen
words or less.
3. Write the group summary on the board. Then,
read the second sentence of the paragraph and
ask students to write a summary of the first two
sentences in fifteen words or less.
4. Write the group summary on the board and read
the next one or tow sentences in the paragraph.
Continue until the paragraph is read and then
ask students to write a summary of the entire
paragraph in fifteen words or less.
5. After modeling the strategy, ask students to
apply the strategy to a chapter of their textbook,
a research source, or an article they are
currently reading. (See Appendix for GIST
organizer form.)
As practice finding main ideas in text materials.
As a format for paragraph writing working from
main idea topic sentences to including supportive
facts and details.
As a study practice for restating key concepts
learned.
As practice for note taking from orally read
material, or from orally driven instruction.
Allen, J. (2004). Tools for teaching content literacy. Portland, ME: Stenhouse Publications.
Research/Origins
Alvermann, D.E., and S.F. Phelps. (2004). Content reading and literacy: Succeeding today’s diverse classrooms (4th ed.),
Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Cunningham, J. (1982). Generating interactions between schemata and text. In J. Niles and L. Hariss, eds., New Inquiries in
Reading Research and Instruction. Thirty-first Yearbook of the National Reading Conference, pp. 42-47. Washington, D.C.:
National Reading Conference.
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The Cornell Note-Taking System
(Key Terms/Major Concepts)
(Notes)
1st Summarize or list key ideas
in 8 words.
2nd Paraphrase main ideas in
ONE 15-word sentence.
3rd Restate critical ideas in
summary paragraph format.
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The Cornell Note-Taking System
Research/Origins
Pauk, W. 1974. How to study in college. Boston: Houghton-Mifflin.
www.CollegeBoard.com listserve
www.clt.cornell/edu/campus/learn/LSC%20resources/cornellsystem.pdf.
2.Reduce or Question
(After Lecture)
• Write key words,
phrases or questions
that serve as cues for
notes taken in class
• Cue phrases and
questions should be in
your own words
1.Record (During Lecture)
•
Write down facts & ideas & phrases
•
Use abbreviations when possible
3. Recite
• With classroom notes
covered, read each key
word or question
• Recite the fact or idea
brought to mind by key
word or question
4. & 5. Reflect and Review
•
Review your notes periodically by reciting
•
Think about what you have learned
(After Lecture)
•
•
Read through your notes
Fill in blanks and make scribbles more
legible
6. Recapitulation (After Lecture)
• Summarize each main idea
• Use complete sentences
http://www.CollegeBoard.com listserve
http://www.cit.cornell/edu/campus/learn/LSC%20resources/cornellsystem.pdf
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Variation of The Cornell
Note-Taking Format
Cornell Notes






Semantic Map or Web






Can be used to provide an outline of the course,
chapter, or lecture
Organized by main ideas and details
Can be as detailed as necessary
Sequential – take notes as they are given by
instructor or text in an orderly fashion
After class, write a summary of what you learned
to clarify and reinforce learning and to assist
retention
Can be used as a study tool
1. Define terms or explain concepts
listed on the left side
2. Identify the concept or term based
on its definition on the right side
Can be used to provide a “big picture” of the
course, chapter, or lecture
Organized by main ideas and sub-topics
Limited in how much detail you can represent
Simultaneous – you can use this method for
instructors who jump around from topic to topic
After class, you will probably need to “translate”
notes into a Cornell format
Can be used as a study tool – to get a quick
overview and to determine whether you need
more information or need to concentrate your
study on specific topics
Summary:
There are a couple of ways that you can take notes. The Cornell method is best when the
information is given in a sequential, orderly fashion and allows for more detail. The semantic
web/map method works best for instructors who skip around from topic to topic, and provides
a “big picture” when you’re previewing materials or getting ready to study for a test.
Adapted from: www.collegeboard.com listserve.
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POWER NOTES
“Separate the wheat from the chaff”
 sorting information
 categorizing information
 classifying information
 subdividing information
Advantages:
 Students become aware of text structure as they read and write.
 Power Notes offer an easy-to-understand strategy for classifying
information.
 Students learn to read actively and to prioritize main ideas from
supportive details as they study.
 Students are prompted to look for relationships within material they are
studying.
 Power relationships can guide students in taking coherent notes from
textbooks or classroom presentations.
 Power Notes can be integrated into a number of other strategies to
help students perceive how information is interconnected.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 Start by modeling Power Notes using categories familiar to students.
Power 1 = MAIN IDEA
Fruit
Power 2’s = ELABORATIONS OF POWER
bananas, peaches, apples
Power 3’s = EXAMPLES OR ELABORATION OF POWER
(apple) varieties such as Macintosh,
Delicious, Granny Smith
Power 4’s = CHARACTERISTICS
red-skinned, great for pies, tart
Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning. DE: International Reading Association.
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 Illustrate how powers relate to each other
1. Football Penalties
2. On Offense
3. Holding
3. Clipping
2. On Defense
3. Off Sides
3. Pass Interference
3. Grabbing Face Mask
2. On Special Teams
 Provide students with practice using Power Notes to categorize information
and relationships found in factual material.
 To help students organize their writing, have them use a simple 1-2-2-2 outline
to construct a well-organized paragraph
1.
2.
3.
4.
Healthy Methods to Lose Weight
Set Realistic Goals
Eat Few Calories
Develop Regular Exercise Program
EXAMPLE:
You
You should follow healthy methods if you want to lose weight. First, you should
set realistic weight-loss goals. Next, you should plan a diet that involves eating
fewer calories. Finally, you should develop a regular program of exercise in
addition to your diet.
Students can further elaborate each point by adding power 3 and 4 details to
their outline. Power Notes give students a means to analyze their writing in
terms of structure and development of ideas.
Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning. DE: International Reading Association.
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POWER NOTES AND CONCEPT MAPS
To enhance comprehension and learning
 Model Concept Mapping using Power Notes with students
a. Stress that only power 1 ideas can emanate from the center
b. Each power 1 idea is further defined with power 2’s,
and power 3’s elaborate on the power 2’s on the map.
 Have students work to create Concept Maps from a new selection.
Directions for Concept Mapping:
1. Create the central image.
 Write the name (in capitals) and illustrate with an image.
 Make the central image colorful and large enough to see the subject at a glance.
2. Brainstorm main ideas.
 Draw images or symbols around the central image.
 Connect the main ideas to the central image with branches, arrows, spokes, etc.
 Use key words on or around the main idea or on the connecting lines to identify the main ideas.
 Alternately, draw lines radiating out of the main image, with a key word on each line describing
the main idea.
3. Add Details.
 Using colors, images, symbols, and words, draw related details branching out of each of the
main ideas.
Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning. DE: International Reading Association.
Kagan, S. (1998).
intelligences:
ChandlerMultiple
Unified School
District The complete MI book. Kagan Cooperative Learning.
96
CONCEPT MAPS
Steps to Show How to Create a Concept Map
1. Create the central image. Make it large enough so you can see the subject of the map
at a glance, but small enough to add main ideas and details radiating out of the central
image.
2. Brainstorm the main ideas relating to the central topic (brain-based).
3. Uses Multiple Intelligences (Intrapersonal)
4. Target the Main Idea and branch off to make connections to other concepts.
5. Use White Space, Images, Symbols, and Color to identify concepts.
6. Connect Small Details to the main idea using branches, arrows, spokes, etc.
7. Use Key Words on or around the main idea, or on the connecting line to identify the
main ideas.
8. Why is it a useful strategy? (“Get the big picture”, visual & linguistic clues aid memory,
make own content connections, learning is embedded in a more meaningful context,
helpful for Special Needs/EL students, etc.)
9. Uses include visual note taking during a lecture, text note-taking, organize thinking,
brainstorming, outlining, closure/summary of lesson, etc.
10. Fun to construct because they are unique and individually created .
Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning. DE: International Reading Association.
Kagan, S. (1998). Multiple intelligences: The complete MI book. Kagan Cooperative Learning.
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Strategies for Teaching Note-Taking
Note Taking: Scaffolding the Process
1. Start off with partially completed notes, and then
gradually take pieces away until students can do them
independently.
2. Include directions on where to find the missing
information (i.e., page numbers, specific paragraphs,
diagrams, charts, etc.)
3. Have the main words with pictures posted in your room; refer to the
words and pictures throughout the class discussion.
4. Audiotape/videotape discussion notes for students to take home.
5. Give students a “viewing guide” to complete while watching a video.
6. To help students process the information after a discussion, have them
“map” their notes.
7. Use double-entry journals where students write a response about the
discussion and you or a student write a response back.
8. Have students create a pictorial dictionary for new terms that will be
used during the class discussion.
9. Chunk and Chew: think-pair-share, individual reflection, quiz a friend,
test question generator
Jensen, E. (1998). Teaching with the brain in mind. VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Kagan, S. (1994). Kagan cooperative learning. Resources for Teachers, Inc.
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Strategies to Increase Student Engagement in Note Taking
According to Eric Jensen, brain research indicates that constant attention without
time for reflection inhibits opportunities for students to make meaning. There are three
reasons for this problem. First, much of what is said or presented occurs too quickly for
the brain to absorb all of it in one sitting. Time is needed to process information.
Second, the learner makes meaning as they internally examine new information.
Students need “internal time” to make meaning from new information. Finally, after new
experiences, students need time to imprint these ideas and incorporate them into
existing learning (Teaching with the Brain In Mind, 1998, ASCD).
A rule of thumb to follow when presenting direct instruction is to keep information
chunked into 12-15 minute segments. These should be followed by short reflective
opportunities (3-5 minutes) to assist students in processing new information and provide
feedback. Teachers can focus student learning through providing specific questions
about material presented and feedback on student output. Below is a list of active
engagement strategies that can be used for this purpose.
Strategy
Pairs Compare
Think-Pair-Square
Showdown
Pairs Check
Paraphrase
Passport
Triad Interview
Mix-Pair-Discuss
Rotating Review
Corners
Line-Ups
What it Looks Like
Question related to notes is posed. Students generate answer in pairs;
compare their answer with another pair of students. Check to see what new
understandings they have generated as a team.
Students think about their response to a question, discuss answers in pairs and
then share partner’s answer with the team.
Teammates each write an answer on paper/whiteboard/slate, and then there is
a “showdown” as they show their answers to each other. Teammates verify answers.
A problem is given, related to the topic presented. Students work in pairs doing
a problem – receiving coaching and praise from their partner. Pairs check after every
two problems.
Question related to notes is posed. In pairs, students share their ideas with a
partner. Students report to the class – sharing his/her partner’s idea first, before
his/her own.
Question is posed to the class. Student A shares response, Student B is asked
to agree/disagree with first response, Student C is asked to agree/disagree with
previous two comments. Initial student refines original response based on feedback
from class.
Students walk around the room (Mix). At a teacher-initiated cue (e.g., bell
ringing, music stopped), they are asked to pair up and discuss an answer to a given
question.
Teams discuss topic; chart their thoughts; rotate to the next chart to discuss
and chart their thoughts.
Teacher announces corners related to notes issue. Students think and write
their corner choice on a slip of paper. Students go to corners and discuss their reason
with a partner.
Teacher provides a topic on which opinion ranges from “strongly agree” to
“strongly disagree”. Students take a place on the line in relation to their opinion.
Strongly Agree
Neutral
Strongly Disagree
Students discuss with ad-hoc teams how they feel and why.
Jensen, E. (1998). Teaching with the brain In mind. VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Kagan, S. (1994). Kagan cooperative learning. Resources for Teachers, Inc.
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Boil it Down:
Incredible Shrinking Notes
Materials needed:
3x5 sticky note or index card
3x3 sticky note or index card
1x2 sticky note or card
Brief article to read or listen to
Directions:
This can be used as a listening activity or a silent reading activity.
1. Tell students that this activity will involve three writing assignments; each
successive one will require them to write less. Tell them that the purpose
of the activity is for them to practice writing notes that include the most
important information from a passage. It will be important for them to write
using the same size handwriting for each assignment.
2. Read aloud (or they could read silently) the passage. During this reading,
students do NOT take notes, they should listen carefully and consider
what details may end up being important
3. Read the passage again, students should jot down notes on the 3x5 note
card and fill up the entire card using normal handwriting.
4. Give students the medium size card; tell them to eliminate some of the
information they included on the first card and fill up the medium size card
with important information.
5. Hand out the smallest card; students are to list only the most important
information on this card…tell them to make careful judgments about the
most important facts or themes.
Follow-up things to do:
Use notes to study for tests
Write a summary using notes
Adapt this strategy to newspaper stories, movies, and Internet sites
Other…
Adapted from: www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/03/lp322-02.shtml
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List, Group, Label, and Write
Why
To help students use their prior knowledge to improve their vocabulary,
comprehension, and writing.
What
Students will be asked to categorize or group terms or concepts based on their
common elements. List, Group, Label, and Write is a brainstorming strategy in
which students recall as many terms as possible on a given topic and then group
these terms according to their similarities. It can be used before and after reading
a selection.
Who
All students (elementary and secondary)
How
Before Reading
1. Ask the class to think of all the words that come to their minds on the topic
to be studied. The topic could be anything about which they have some
prior knowledge. Then display these terms on the board or an overhead
transparency. The teacher may chose to introduce significant terms at this
time as well.
2. Either as a class or in small, heterogeneous groups, have students group
the terms displayed. They may need to explain why they choose to put
certain words/phrases in a particular category.
Reading
3. After engaging the class in any other background building activities related
to the topic (e.g. watching a brief video clip, viewing pictures,
demonstrations, reading a picture storybook), have the students read
selection.
Wood, Karen D. and D. Bruce Taylor. (2006). Literacy strategies across the subject area (2nd ed.). Boston:
Pearson Publishing.
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After Reading
4. Ask the students to brainstorm what they have learned from the reading.
Display these associations as in the first step. Some of the terms
mentioned previously may be repeated to validate what hey knew before
reading.
5. Again, have the students group and classify the terms displayed, justifying
the categories if needed.
6. Ask the students to work individually or in pairs to choose a group of terms
about which to write a brief paragraph. Students should look at the
categories or groups they developed in the second step. It may be
necessary to model the composition of one or more of the paragraphs with
the entire class before releasing the responsibility to the students. They
can be encouraged to use the terms displayed and to refer to the selection
whenever necessary.
Wood, Karen D. and D. Bruce Taylor. (2006). Literacy strategies across the subject area (2nd ed.) Boston:
Pearson Publishing.
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List, Group, Label, and Write
Mathematics
Topic
Geometry
Free Association
point
line
diameter
arc
protractor
acute
chord
circumference
semicircle
center
vertex
pi
right
obtuse
radius
compass
ray
sides
endpoint
ratio
Grouping and Labeling
(by students as a class, in pairs, or in small groups)
Sample Writing Exercise
(by students in groups or pairs)
Wood, Karen D. and D. Bruce Taylor. (2006). Literacy strategies across the subject areas (2nd ed.). Boston:
Pearson Publishing.
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List, Group, Label, and Write
Before reading
1. With your partner or partners, list all the terms or concepts that come to
your mind on the topic of
___________________________________________________________.
2. Now, with the aid of your group members, group and label the terms or
concepts
3. Read the selection
After Reading
4. With the aid of your partner or partners, write down as many new terms or
concepts as you can.
5. Group and label these new terms
6. Combine the terms and concepts from the Before Reading AND the After
Reading sections to create a summary of what you read below.
Wood, Karen D. and D. Bruce Taylor. (2006). Literacy strategies across the subject areas (2nd ed.). Boston:
Pearson Publishing.
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Exchange Compare Writing
Why
Assist in prediction and reinforcement of key vocabulary.
What
Students use teacher-selected, key vocabulary to predict the outcome of a piece
of literature, chapter, or other passage to be studied. Students work
cooperatively to reinforce their understanding of vocabulary while writing.
Who
All students (elementary and secondary)
How
Preparation
1. Choose ten to fifteen words (or less, depending on grade level) important
terms from a piece of reading. The reading can be content based,
textbook section, short story, newspaper article, anything). Write or type
these words on the attached form. Put students into groups of four or five.
Before Reading
2. Display terms. Have students pronounce the words after you in case some
of the terms are in heir listening, but not reading vocabulary. Explain that
they will use these terms to predict the content of a piece of reading.
3. Working in small groups, instruct students to guess how the words may be
used to logically tell the meaning of the selection they are to read. Have
the students collaboratively create a small paragraph containing all the
words.
4. Provide assistance as necessary. An optional step is to help the students
with the context clues or have them look up an unknown word in the
dictionary.
5. Have the student groups share their small paragraphs with the rest of the
class as a means of stimulating their interest in the selection to follow.
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Reading
6. Ask the students to read the assigned passage silently, out loud, or in a
combination of both methods. Have the students focus on the way the
key vocabulary is used in the reading.
After Reading
7. Lead the students in a discussion on how the terms were actually used in
the selection. An optional activity is to have the students use the new
words to re-summarize or reflects on the passage.
Wood, Karen D. and D. Bruce Taylor. (2006). Literacy strategies across the subject areas (2nd ed.). Boston:
Pearson Publishing.
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Exchange Compare Writing Form
Group members—
1.
3.
2.
4.
Predict how the terms below might be used in the selection to be read—
1.
6.
11.
2.
7.
12.
3.
8.
13.
4.
9.
14.
5.
10.
15.
Write your predicted passage in the space below—
Read the selection and use the terms again in another passage—
Wood, Karen D. and D. Bruce Taylor. (2006). Literacy strategies across the subject areas (2nd ed.). Boston:
Pearson Publishing.
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Exchange Compare Writing Example
Group members—
1.
3.
2.
4.
Predict how the terms below might be used in the selection to be read—
600 million years ago
glaciers and ice sheets
oceans
Great Lakes
New York
horse
camel
elephant
southward
moraines
arctic musk oxen
woolly mammoths
died out
change in climate
Write your predicted passage in the space below—
The Ice Age started over 600 million years ago when glaciers and ice sheets
took over the oceans. There were no glaciers on the Great Lakes or in New
York. Arctic musk oxen and woolly mammoths died out when the ices melted
and caused a change in climate. They went southward to the moraines. Later,
the horse, camel, and elephant appeared on the Earth.
Read the selection and use the terms again in another passage—
The earliest period in the Earth’s history, when glaciers and ice sheets covered
the Earth, began over 600 million years ago. As the glaciers melted, low areas
filled with water. That is how the Great Lakes and the oceans were formed.
Some of the soil and rocks left behind formed ridges called moraines.
The modern horse, camel, and elephant appeared during the Ice Age. When
the ice melted, the animals went southward. Arctic musk oxen and woolly
mammoths lived as far south as Michigan and New York. Some scientists thin
the change in climate caused some of these large mammals to die out. Others
think that they were killed by human beings.
Wood, Karen D. and D. Bruce Taylor. (2006). Literacy strategies across the subject areas (2nd ed.). Boston:
Pearson Publishing.
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Journal Writing
Writing in journals helps students reflect, assess, and extend their learning.
Journal writing helps students verbalize concerns about their learning and
understand where they are having trouble understanding a concept or idea.
Journals kept by students can be read and responded to by the teacher or other
students (Richardson, Morgan, & Fleener, 2006). Journal and learning logs can
also encourage personal narrative writing.
Possible prompts for journal writing:
Name two ideas you learned yesterday during the field trip. How can you apply
these ideas to your life?
Tell how you feel about your progress in geometry this week. Also explain how
you can use the concept of _____________discussed in geometry this week in
your life.
What is the next step in the lab? What makes you think so?
What do you think will happen in the novel we are reading? Why do you think
this?

Fill in other possible prompts that different subjects might be able to
use
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Wood, Karen D. and D. Bruce Taylor. (2006). Literacy strategies across the subject areas (2nd ed.). Boston:
Pearson Publishing.
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KINDS OF WRITING
Exploratory: Reflection and connection
 Discover or relate to self
 Making connections between new information and
existing (prior) knowledge
Summary: Condensing
 Not transforming (changing) but compacting knowledge
 Mental review
Analytical: Analyzing (breaking it down) and synthesizing (Blending)
 Extending the text using critical thinking skills
Wood, Karen D. and D. Bruce Taylor. (2006). Literacy strategies across the subject areas (2nd ed.). Boston:
Pearson Publishing.
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See What I Found
1. Think of an object or item of significance that was part of the passage
read.
2. Write the word/object you chose on the first line.
3. Tell something about it on the second line.
4. Tell where you might find it on the third line.
5. Tell what purpose(s) that object has on the fourth and fifth lines.
6. Say anything you would like about it on the sixth line.
Exit slips or exit passes: 3x5 cards 3-4 sentence summary of what went on in
class on one side and on the back write a question relevant to the material
covered like something you want to know more about, some assumption they
want to challenge, something that needs to be clarified. Exit slips/passes are
collected as students leave the class. Teachers can use them to help them
assess what students learned and what is still a bit unclear.
Wood, Karen D. and D. Bruce Taylor. (2006) Literacy strategies across the subject areas (2nd ed.) Boston:
Pearson Publishing.
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Written Conversation
Working in pairs, two students have a silent conversation on paper. They share
a booklet or sheet of paper and a pencil to “talk” about the
topic/reading/video/textbook together. They are encouraged to “listen” to each
other’s comments and respond back to them. No talking allowed.
Rationale






Encourages meaning exploration
Supports reading comprehension and extending meaning
Provides a venue for exploring a content topic and brainstorm ideas in a
small, intimate setting
Enables interaction with language in meaningful ways
Supports cultural understandings
Promotes social and integrated learning
Procedure



Students work in pairs.
Students share one pencil/pen.
If this is done with a written text, the teacher prepares the text by placing
numbered sticky notes on specific pages of the text. The teacher orally
reads the text to the whole class and stops at the sticky note. At this time,
students are to have a written conversation about the text. They are to
write about their understandings, questions, and concerns about the text.
After reading the entire text, they reflect on what they just read and on the
written conversation they just had in writing. No Talking!
Bintz, W. & Shelton, K. (2004). Using written conversation in middle school: Lessons from a teacher
researcher project. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 47 (6), 492-507.
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QUICK WRITES
Quick
Question
This activity encourages students to engage with the content by
writing the answers to questions such as the ones below and
then sharing their writings with the teacher, in small groups or
with the entire class.
After discussing/reading/viewing:
1. I know….
2. I don’t know…And I’d like to know because…
3. The main question I have is…
4. The author or producer of the text (book, movie, music,
lecture) assumes that everyone knows….
5. People are likely to agree with the author because…
6. People are likely to disagree with the author because…
7. One thing I got out of class today is…
8. One thinks I hope we cover next class is…because…
One-Minute
Paper
After a lecture, class discussion or reading, ask the students to
take one minute and write a summary about what they think is the
most important/interesting/surprising point covered. They could
also write one lingering question they have about the topic. After
writing, ask students to share their writing in class. It is a good
way to get all students to speak up in class.
From: Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, CT.
The Muddiest
Point
Ask students to write a short paragraph describing what they
think was the muddiest or most unclear point covered in class
and say why. This encourages them to make sense of what they
just heard and it encourages them to ask questions for
clarification.
From: Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, CT.
What-if
Analysis
Take an actual event and ask students to write about how the
outcome might differ if one crucial condition were changed.
Students in science can speculate about the scientific elements
of an event, students in ethics courses could examine the
balance of worldwide patterns of food production vs. individual
production, students in political science could speculate on
government funding or social issues.
Source: Kate Kiefer and Colorado State University 1997-2006
http://wac.colostate.edu/intro/pop5q.cfm
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Thinking on
paper
Students “think out loud” on paper to explain how they are solving
a math problem or other sort of problem. They explain the
problem to themselves as they solve it. Alternative directions
would be to do this activity in groups of three. One student
explains the process of solving the problem as he/she solves it.
The second student writes down the explanation. The third
student evaluates/reflects on the oral and written explanations.
Power Writing
Ask student to write as many words as they can, and as fast as
they can, on a topic in one minute. This is a structured freewriting activity designed to see how many words a student can
write on a particular topic. This provides students with a way to
build fluency and gives them material to revise. These lists
should be read and edited either by other students or the teacher.
Results can be recorded. This is especially good for ELL
students because it helps them to see an increase in their English
word knowledge.
)
Source: Fisher, D. & Frey, N. (2003). Writing instruction for struggling
adolescent readers: A gradual release model. Journal of Adolescent and
Adult Literacy, 46(5), 396-405.
Other Ideas
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2007-2008
Implementation
Not every teacher is a teacher of writing, but every
teacher can teach with writing....
Content Area Writing: Writing to Assist Learning (October 16, 2007)






Expressive Writing Examples for Content Areas
Three Words
Personification
Converting Literal Description to Expressive Language
Fact Sheets
Sentence Combining and Activities
 Expository Paragraph Frames
REFERENCES AND RESOURCES
Daniels, H., Zemelman, S., Steineke, N. (2007). Content-area writing: Every teacher’s
guide. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Graham, S. & Perin, D. (2007). Writing next: Effective strategies to improve writing of
adolescent s in middle and high schools – A report to Carnegie Corporation of New
York. Washington, DC: Alliance for Excellent.
Strong, W. (2006). Write for insight. Empowering content area learning, grades
6-12. Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.
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Expressive Writing Examples
For Content Areas
Health and Physical Education
1. Write a biographical sketch of a favorite athlete—or adopt that athlete’s
voice.
2. Write to convince a friend or family member to become physically fit.
3. Keep a journal of your calorie intake, exercise regimen, or athletic training.
4. Make up new games, and write descriptions of them, giving strategies and
rules.
5. Analyze and critique a gymnastics event, basketball game, or other
sporting event.
6. Write a self-assessment of your performance from watching video
playback.
7. Compare another team’s performance, style, or strategy with your own.
Family & Consumer Sciences
1. Create recipes and write them for others after sharing cooked samples.
2. Work with others to create handbooks on good grooming, choosing a
wardrobe, proper foods for good health and so on.
3. Evaluate products and publish findings of those that do what they claim to
do and those that do not.
4. Write newsletters about ideas for budget management or comparative
shopping.
5. Take notes and write up observations in childcare classes; expand these
into papers on child behavior or human growth and development.
6. Write and deliver consumer announcements for radio and TV spots.
7. Write letters about consumer issues such as pricing, quality, unfair, or
unethical business practices.
Fine Arts
1. In music, write lyrics that may be set to music or read with
accompaniment.
2. Write assessments of performances or artifacts.
3. Analyze music with regard to tone, mood, expression, or other element.
4. Write a critique of your own artistic performance.
5. Explain your motivation for performing or creating a particular work.
6. Write imaginatively from an artist’s or composer’s point of view.
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Mathematics
1. Explain the steps involved in solving a problem for someone else.
2. Write a story problem like those in the text or given out as models, swap.
3. Write a description of your own strengths and weaknesses in math and
offer suggestions for improvement.
4. Write about how a math skill just studied relates to the one now under
study.
5. Create real-life sequences in which math is used to solve a problem.
6. Keep a math journal about your insights and frustrations.
7. Study a numerical graph and translate its meaning into sentences.
8. Write a letter to parents explaining what you learned in math.
English and Drama
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Create character biographies and summaries.
Distill and/or analyze the central message in a literary work.
Write from the point of view of a literary character.
Write about the sensory experiences that parallel those in literature.
Create works in the same form as those under study.
Write diaries (from author’s point of view) about intention.
Transform fiction or poetry into other literary forms.
Science
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Keep journals of lab experiments.
Write imaginative diaries related to scientific achievements.
Write imaginative accounts from inside organisms.
Explain a scientific principle to someone who can’t hear.
Describe on paper your process of thinking about an application problem.
Interview a scientist about his/her research and prepare a report.
Compare alternate theoretical explanations for an event.
Social Studies
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Write about a single event from different points of view.
Explain what tow or more events have in common historically.
Conduct field research (interviews and polling) and write up the results.
Become an historical figure and create a diary.
Keep a journal recording news references to a particular topic.
Extrapolate into the future from present social trends.
Create a case study illustrating a psychological principle.
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Expressive Writing Strategies and
Examples
Three Words (Mitchell, 1996 as cited in Strong, 2006)
1. Choose three words that best describe what was just read or the topic just studied.
2. Write a short paragraph telling why those three words represent the essence of the
reading or topic studied.
a. What three words best describe the Bill of Rights?
b. What three words describe the problems in the American diet?
c. What are three best words to describe_______________?
Personification
Using personification, students become an object and write from that frame of reference.
This sort of writing allows teachers to assess students’ understandings of concepts and
topics being studied. It allows students to develop their understandings of key concepts
and to summarize their understandings in a creative way.
Ideas for personification writing from (Mitchell, 1996 as cited in Strong, 2006)
I am a muscle, and I’ll tell you what I like and don’t like about my life.
I am a decimal point. Here’s what my life is like.
I am an electron. Come with me as I describe my journal through the GM cranking
circuit all the way back to the battery.
I am an irregular verb. I will explain the advantage to being this kind of verb.
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Converting Literal Description to
Expressive Language
1. Make scientific observations on a single object—describe its texture,
composition, colors, patterns, or specific characteristics. Discuss or list
these observations.
2. Have students write a literacy description of the object.
3. Convert the literal description into a poem, advertisement, radio talk show
or another form of expressive writing. (Share models with students)
Samples from Strong (2006. p.40)
The abalone shell is about five inches long and sort of oval shaped. Its gleaming
inner part is called mother of pearl. Its surface are colors like silvery white,
green, gray, pink, blue, and lavender, they are all blended together. Mother of
pearl feels smooth and hard, like enamel paint. Little holes are found along the
shell’s outer rim.
Dreaming of
Milk-white surf
an abalone shell
on a brown desktop
its smooth curve
gleams with
ocean pastels
blended by
lavender light
mother of pearl
from our mother
the sea
**Sea Coral
Write a 4-sentence description of the piece of coral.
In small groups, write a poem about the sea coral.
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More Strategies…
Fact Sheets
After completing a unit of study, student work in small groups and list facts they have
learned about the topic. Then as a whole class, a fact sheet is created on an overhead
with all the facts that have been listed. Students are asked to select phrases or facts
that make sense together. The phrases are then combined to form sentences. Finally
the sentences are put together as a paragraph at the levels listed on the fact sheet.
Fact Sheets: Earthquakes
Sentence Combining: “The San Francisco Earthquake”
http://grammar.about.com/od/tests/a/scsearthquake.htm?p=1
Combining Ideas to Write Descriptive Paragraphs
http://esl.about.com/library/lessons/blwriteparagraph.htm?p=1
1906 San Francisco Earthquake
http://history1900s.about.com/cs/sfearthquake/p/sfquake.htm?p=1
The San Francisco Earthquake of 1906
http://geology.aout.com/od/historicearthquakes/a/aa_frisco06.htm?p=1
Facts gathered from jigsaw reading activity in class:





At level
A
B
C
D
E
Students should be able to:
Use five facts in no more than four sentences.
Use ten facts in no more than six sentences
Use fifteen facts in no more that eight sentences.
Use twenty facts in no more than ten sentences.
Use twenty-five facts in no more than twelve sentences.
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Sentence-Combining
Sentence combining or building more complex sentences from simpler ones has been
shown to be effective as a means of enhancing quality of student writing. In fact, it may
even be better than free writing. [Hillcock, G. (1986). Research on written composition: New
directions in teaching. Urbana, IL: ERIC Clearinghouse on Reading and Communication
Skills and the National Conference of Research in English.]
Online Resources
About.com: Sentence combining exercises
http://grammar.about.com/od/tests/a/scsearthquake.htm
Sentence combining activity SS52
http://www.adolescentreading.com/index_files/reading.htm
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USING SENTENCE COMBINING
ACTIVITIES
Sentence combining activities may be used as measures of comprehension
following an audiotape, worksheet lesson. However, the exercises may serve
best for rehearsal or practice exercises after the usual comprehension exercises
have been completed.
Exercise: Combine the following short sentences into one longer sentence, and
then combine all of the sentences into one paragraph.
TRY IT, YOU’LL LIKE IT
Ben Franklin was a printer.
He began his own printing business.
Benjamin was 24 when he started it.
Benjamin Franklin was married.
Ben was married when he was 26.
Ben Franklin married Deborah Read.
Benjamin Franklin retired from business.
Ben retired when he was 40 years old.
When Benjamin was 40, he was wealthy.
Benjamin Franklin retired.
Ben worked after he retired.
After retirement he did scientific work.
After retirement he did public work.
Benjamin Franklin was a famous man.
Ben is called the “first American.”
Benjamin had many fine qualities.
Ben put God before himself.
Ben put his country before himself.
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
Using “Sentence Combining” exercises allows teachers to provide activities that
reverse the study of grammar (transformational). Rather than study the deep
structure that underlies or supports the kernel string, the deep structure is
identified and students are allowed to construct the kernel string. The words
presented may be given to the students for them to use to make more exacting
kernel sentences.
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USEFUL WORDS FOR SENTENCE
COMBINING
Words for Additional Ideas:
and
furthermore
moreover
similarly
likewise
also
who
whose
whom
which
that
Words for Contrasting Ideas:
but
though
however
yet
nevertheless
even so
although
still
even though
whereas
on the other hand
on the contrary
otherwise
instead
Words for Causes and Results:
so
therefore
because
for
since
as a result
consequently
thus
Words for Time:
earlier
previously
later
afterwards
immediately
now
thereafter
then
finally
subsequently
beforehand
meanwhile
at once
Words for Giving Specific Information:
in fact
indeed
Words for Choices:
either
neither
or
Words for Conditions:
If
unless
as if
provided
as though
as long as
Words for Purposes:
to
so that
in order that
nor
for
Words for Places:
where
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Expository Paragraph Frames
Description
Expository paragraph frames provide a structure for retelling information
presented in expository text. They are based on the principle that information in
exposition is structured in a way that is logical and serves to makes the
information clear to the reader. In effect, the organizational structure-- the
composition-- of the text provides the structure for its comprehension. If this is to
be true, however, the student needs to be familiar with the various structures that
authors employ and to have practice in utilizing those same structures in
comprehension. The purpose of expository paragraph frames is to teach
students the structures of text they can expect to encounter in what they have to
read. In addition, paragraph frames also teach students how to write using
different text structures.
There are five basic ways in which authors may choose to organize information
in expository text:
1. Description-- in which a topic is introduced and followed by its attributes;
2. Sequence-- in which a topic is introduced and followed by details that
need to be presented in an order;
3. Cause/effect-- in which an event or act and its effects are described;
4. Comparison/contrast-- in which the similarities and differences in two or
more things are presented;
5. Problem/solution-- in which a problem is presented, followed by one or
more solutions.
Procedure
Using a procedure such as paired reading, students are first asked to read and
retell the selection they are studying. Meanwhile, the teacher will have created a
paragraph frame for the text that students can work together to complete. The
frame is made of a series of incomplete sentences (or sentence starters) that the
students can complete by using information from the text. The resulting
paragraph should summarize (and simplify, where possible) the original passage.
For example, consider the following introductory paragraph from Microsoft’s
Encarta, a multimedia encyclopedia:
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The cell is the fundamental structural unit of all living organisms. Some cells
are complete organisms, such as the unicellular bacteria and protozoa; others,
such as nerve, liver, and muscle cells, are specialized components of multicellular organisms. Cells range in size from the smallest bacteria like
mycoplasma, which are 0.1 micron in diameter, to the egg yolks of ostriches,
which are about 8 cm (about 3 in) in diameter. Although they may differ widely in
appearance and function, all cells have a surrounding membrane and an internal,
water-rich substance called the cytoplasm, the composition of which differs
significantly from the external environment of the cell. Within the cell is genetic
material, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), containing coded instructions for the
behavior and reproduction of the cell and also the chemical machinery for the
translation of these instructions into the manufacture of proteins.
For this expository paragraph, the teacher would construct a descriptive frame
like the following:
All living things are made of cells. For example, ___________________,
__________________________, ______________________________,
_________________________, and __________________________are all
made of cells. Cells vary in size from ________________________________
to _______________________________________. All cells have 3 parts:
____________________, _______________, and ___________________.
Every cell's DNA has 2 functions: _______________________________,
and _____________________________________________________.
The cell is the fundamental structural unit of all living organisms.
References:
Thomas Estes, University of Virginia Course Syllabus
Olson, M. W. & Gee, T. C. (1991). Content reading instruction in the primary grades: Perceptions and
Strategies. Reading Teacher, 45, 298-307.
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Text Frames
Text Frame: Lab Report
Lab Activity Title
Date
The purpose of the lab is to…
My hypothesis of what the results will be is…
Data included…
The procedure was…
The data show…
After class discussion, I found my data was right/wrong. The reason it was
right/wrong was…
My conclusion is…
Text Frame: Character Analysis
_____________________________ is an important character in our story.
_____________________________ is important because __________________
_______________________________________________________________________.
Once he/she _____________________________________________________.
Another time, _____________________________________________________
___________________________________. I think that ___________________
______ is________________________________________________________
because _________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________.
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Text Frame: Math Reflection
I found the answer to the problem in three steps. First, _______________________
___________________________________________________________________.
Second, ____________________________________________________________
______________________________________. Third, ______________________
___________________________________________________________________.
Text Frame: Expository Summarizing
Title – Earthquakes
Earthquakes are ____________________________________________. They
are caused by ______________________________________________ and
___________________________. One of the worst earthquakes in our history
was ___________________________________________________. It lasted
_______________ and subsequently __________________________________
and ________________________________________________.
Title _____________________________________
The article “___________________________________” from _______________
Describes ________________________________. First, __________________
_________________________. Another ______________________________.
Last of all, __________________________________________.
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Construct a Text Frame for your content area.
References
Daniels, H., Zemelman, S., Steineke, N. (2007). Content-area writing: Every
teacher’s guide. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Graham, S. & Perin, D. (2007) Writing next: Effective strategies to improve
writing of adolescents in middle and high schools – A report to Carnegie
Corporation of New York. Washington, DC: Alliance for Excellent.
Strong, W. (2006). Write for insight. Empowering content area learning, grades 612. Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.
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2008-2009
Implementation
(October 14, 2008)
Content area literacy instruction must be a
cornerstone of any movement to build high-quality
secondary schools...
Engagement and Critical Reading






Save the Last Word for Me
Inferences
Coding Text
Bookmarks
Discussion Webs
Making Connections/Say Something
REFERENCES AND RESOURCES
Alvermann, D. (1992). The discussion web: A graphic aid for learning across the
curriculum. The Reading Teacher, 45, 92-99.
Daniels, H. & Zemelman, S. (2004). Subjects matter: Every teacher’s guide to contentarea reading. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Harvey, S. & Goudvis, A. (2000). Strategies that work. Portland, ME: Stenhouse.
L’Allier, S. & Elish-Piper, LK. (2007). “Walking the walk” with teacher education
candidates: Strategies for promoting active engagement with assigned readings.
Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 50 (5), pp. 338-353.
Porter, C. & Cleland, J. (1995). The portfolio as a learning strategy. Portsmouth, NH:
Heinemann.
Short, K., Harste, J., and Burke, C. (1996). Creating classrooms for authors and inquiries
(2nd ed.). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, pp. 506-511.
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Save the Last Word for Me
Overview:
“Save the Last Word for Me” provides a framework for a small group or wholeclass discussion of a text. It helps students make personal connections to the
text. The procedure is especially good for encouraging students to take the lead
in discussing their reading, not a defensive debate. The steps of the strategy are
as follows:
Procedure:
Step 1. After (or during) being assigned a reading to do independently, students
are given note cards and are asked to find three or four quotations that they
consider particularly interesting or worthy of comment.
Step 2. The students write the quotations they have found on the note cards.
Step 3. On the other sides of the cards, the students write comments about their
chosen quotations. That is, they say what the quotations made them think of,
what is surprising, important, or alarming about the quotations, and why those
chose them.
Step 4. The students bring their quotation cards to discussion groups. The
teacher or group leader calls on someone to read a card aloud.
Step 5. After reading the quotation on his or her card, the student invites other
student to comment on that quotation. (The teacher might need to help keep
comments on the subject of the quotation.) The teacher also may comment on
the quotation. The teacher may also set time limits—1 minute per student. There
may be a timer and recorder in each group if working in small groups.
Step 6. Once others have had their say about the quotation, the student who
chose it reads his or her comments aloud. Then there can be no further
discussion. The student, who chose it, gets to have the last word.
Step 7. That student can now call on another student to share his or her
quotation and begin the process all over again. Not all students will be able to
share their quotation if the whole class takes part in the activity, so the teacher
will need to keep track of who shared quotes and make sure other children get
chances to share their quotes the next time.
Short, K., Harste, J., and Burke, C. (1996). Creating classrooms for authors and inquiries (2nd ed.).
Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, pp. 506-511.
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Making Inferences
Overview:
To infer is to activate background knowledge when reading the text and make an
assumption about what the author means based on the details or information
provided. When we infer we:
 Are aware that the author may be giving hints about what he means or
what is to come without making an obvious statement in the text?
 Use a process of combining what is read with personal background
knowledge.
 Read between the lines; create a meaning that is not necessarily
stated in the text.
 Go beyond the words on the page with our thinking.
 Draw conclusions after considering what is read to deepen the
meaning of the actual words on the page.
 Make interpretations based on a blend of evidence and personal
experience.
 Elaborate on what was read.
 Analyze by questioning or agreeing/disagreeing with information
provided in text.
 Create a personal interpretation that is unique to the reader.
 Have an open-ended thought that may remain unresolved after reading
the selection.
Procedure:
Step 1: Explicitly name the strategy, describe it, and then tell when and why it is
used.
Step 2: Make a poster with this key information.
Step 3: Model with a passage or memorable book that easily forms an image.
Step 4: See below for suggestions of “Books to Stimulate Inferential Thinking”.
Step 5: Model building meaning by doing something with the text: examine
pictures and infer something about the character or topic based on what is seen,
interpret, draw conclusions, analyze or think critically about ideas or information
provided, search for evidence to check assumptions.
Step 6: Demonstrate how background knowledge is combined with stated
information in the text to make an inference.
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Step 7: Explain to students that proficient readers “lift ideas out of a book and
add their ideas to them” and doing this helps them remember/understand the
ideas in the text.
Step 8: Think aloud to demonstrate inferences you are making and that you are
applying background knowledge:
“I am beginning to think that…. must mean…”
“I have decided that.... means...”
“Based on what I know about…and what I see in the picture, I think that…”
“The author must mean….”
“This author must want me to realize…”
“Although the author hasn’t told me this, I think…”
“Based on what I know about…I think that….”
“I don’t know if I agree with…because…”
Step 9: Demonstrate an extended response.
Adapted from:
Harvey, S. & Goudvis, A. (2000). Strategies that work. Portland, ME: Stenhouse.
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Coding Text
Overview:
Students make notes as they read and after they read an assignment. They
note things that are important, interesting, and confusing. Codes are used to
make these notations and these codes are written on sticky notes or in the
margins of the text. Doing this helps students have a deeper understanding of
the text and be better prepared for class discussions and activities. In addition, it
helps students monitor their comprehension and stay focused in the text.
Procedure:
Step 1. Develop a set of codes based on desired responses and characteristics
of the assigned material. Codes may be symbols or letters, or students might
color-code for certain text features. Start simply—with only two codes—and add
others as students become more proficient at coding.
Possible codes include:
? = I have a question about this
A = I agree with this
D = I disagree with this
! = Interesting or important point
C = Confusing
OR

X
?
??
*
→
Confirms what you know
Contradicts what you thought
Puzzles you
Confuses you
Strikes you as very important
Is new or interesting to you
OR
I
C
!
?
A
D
Interesting
Connection
Important
Question
Agree
Disagree
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Step 2. Model. Demonstrate how to use the codes using a student text or
comparable text to what students will read. Using an overhead or document
camera, display the text and think aloud your process of reading and coding. Be
sure to write in the margins a word or phrase to remind you as to why you coded
the text in this way.
Step 3. Practice the strategy.
A. Ask student to read and code a short text passage individually. Then ask them
to get into pairs or small groups to compare and contrast the codes and discuss
why each selected that particular code.
OR, B. Divide students into groups of two or three. Ask them to work together to
read the next few paragraphs of the article. Ask students to individually code the
text using the code symbols after the conclusion of each paragraph (encourage a
second reading of the paragraph silently as they code the text). Small groups
should then discuss their symbol inserts.
Step 4. Individual use. The students read the material and code by using sticky
notes or writing in the margins. They also write a word or phrase to remind them
as to why they coded the text in this way.
Step 5. The discussion of the materials begins with the codes. For example, the
teacher can begin the discussion by asking, “What were you confused about?”
Daniels, H. & Zemelman, S. (2004). Subjects matter: Every teacher’s guide to content-area reading.
Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Harvey, S. & Goudvis, A. (2000). Strategies that work. Portland, ME Stenhouse.
L’Allier, S. & Elish-Piper, LK. (2007). “Walking the walk” with teacher education candidates: Strategies for
promoting active engagement with assigned readings. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 50(5), pp.
338-353.
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Bookmarks*
*(An adaptation or preparation for writing Cornell Notes)
Overview:
This activity is intended to promote student understanding of text by helping them
to become aware of what they don’t understand and making them aware of
connections between the assigned text, their own experiences, and other things
they have read or learned. It should also help students organize knowledge into
larger more meaningful categories and to notice related information. Making
connections contributes to student engagement with texts and helps them to
make inferences about the topic.
Creating and using a bookmark can be done during and after reading.
Procedure:
Step 1. Students fold a piece of paper lengthwise in thirds so that the paper can
be used to keep place as they are reading.
Step 2. On one side of the bookmark, write a response to the reading, a quote,
and important or confusing information. On the other side, students can make a
connection to their lives, other things they have learned, write questions that they
have about the information or whatever the teacher thinks would be helpful.
Example:
Math Bookmark for The Number Devil, by Hans Magnus Enzensberger.
On one side describe one math puzzle that the Number Devil posses but doesn’t
completely solve, a diagram illustrating a puzzle and on the second side a
connection that one puzzle might have with some problems or situations in real
life.
For the film Fast Food Nation:
Use the bookmark (or several bookmarks) to write four kinds of responses to the
film: Personal responses, important passages, questions and important
statistics.
Daniels, H. & Zemelman, S. (2004). Subjects matter: Every teacher’s guide to content-area reading.
Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Porter, C. & Cleland, J. (1995). The portfolio as a learning strategy. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
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Discussion Webs
Overview:
The objective of this strategy is to help students consider the information they
read from more than one point of view. Discussion Webs are during-reading or
post-reading activities that encourage students to engage in the text and engage
each other in thoughtful discussion. Discussion webs create a framework for
students to explore texts and consider different sides of an issue in discussion
before drawing conclusions. Discussion Webs are an alternative to teacherdominated discussion and help activate prior knowledge and make predictions
about the text. This activity can also help students who are not comfortable
participating in large-group discussions talk with a partner or small group.
Procedure:
Step 1: The teacher helps prepare students for reading by activating prior
knowledge, raising questions, and making predictions about the text.
Step 2: The teacher assigns students to read the selection and then introduces
the Discussion Web by having the students work in pairs to generate pro and con
responses to the question. The partners work on the same Discussion Web and
take turns jotting down their reasons in the Yes and No columns. Students may
use keywords and phrases to express their ideas and need not fill all of the lines.
They should try to list an equal number of pro and con responses on the web.
Step 3: Partners join another group and the four students compare responses,
work toward consensus, and read a conclusion as a group. The teacher explains
to students that it is okay to disagree with other members of the group, but they
should all try to keep an open mind as they listen to others during the discussion.
Dissenting views may be aired during the whole class discussion.
Step 4: Each group gets three minutes to decide which of the reasons given best
supports the group’s conclusion. Each group selects a spokesperson to report to
the whole class.
Step 5: Students follow up the whole-class discussion by individually writing their
responses to the discuss web question. Display the students’ responses to the
question in a prominent place in the room so that others can read them.
Source: based on Alvermann, D. (1992). The discussion web: A graphic aid for learning across the
curriculum. The Reading Teacher, 45, 92-99.
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Discussion Web
Reasons
Reasons
Question
Yes
No
Conclusions
Source: based on Alvermann, D. (1992). The discussion web: A graphic aid for learning across the
curriculum. The Reading Teacher, 45, 92-99.
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Discussion Web Sample Exercise – Science
Use a Discussion Web to explore the topic of global warming.
Reasons
Global temperatures are
rising faster than any
other time in the last
1,000 years.
Recent climate change is
just part of an ongoing
cycle – not caused by
humans.
Question
Yes
Reasons
No
Ongoing temperature
increases could lead to
flooding in some areas,
drought in others.
Conclusions
Agriculture and food
This is a hotly contested
production could be cut
leading to more worldwide debate. Our group is split on
this issue with most
hunger.
believing that global
warming is a big problem.
Increased temperatures
could increase food
production.
Satellite data since 1979
show little or not increase
in temperatures in much
of the same atmosphere.
Global warming may be
leading to increases in
heat wave deaths and
some diseases.
Source: based on Alvermann, D. (1992). The discussion web: A graphic aid for learning across the
curriculum. The Reading Teacher, 45, 92-99.
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Discussion Web Sample Exercise – Literature
Use a Discussion Web to explore the state of the American dream in F. Scott
Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby.
Reasons
Reasons
Decline in moral values –
greed, corruption
(bootlegging)
Increasing prosperity
during the 1020’s – the
economy booming after
WWI
Question
Yes
No
Empty pursuit of pleasure
– gatsby’s weekly parties
More opportunity for
individuals to succeed –
Gatsby “self-made”
Conclusions
Excessive materialism
(Tom, Daisy, Gatsby)
Yes, the American dream seems
to be in decline during the
1920’s giving way to cynic.
WWI veterans recovering
from horrors of the war
(Nick)
Global warming may be
leading to increases in
heat wave deaths and
some diseases.
Source: based on Alvermann, D. (1992). The discussion web: A graphic aid for learning across the
curriculum. The Reading Teacher, 45, 92-99.
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Making Connections/Say Something
Overview:
Reading is a strategic process, which involves making connections. Proficient
readers use background knowledge about the topics, to enhance their
understanding, improve their comprehension, and connect to the text in several
ways. We need to support our less than proficient readers to become more
proficient. We want all readers to monitor their own thinking and understanding
and to make connections with their own experiences, other texts, and the world
through writing and talking about text.
Say Something is a strategy that supports student understanding by requiring
them to focus on what they are reading. This during-reading strategy asks
students to stop during their reading and check their understanding of what they
read. When they stop, they should “say something” to a partner about what they
just read. They make a prediction, ask a question, make a comment, or make a
connection. If the student has nothing to say, this strategy has them realize that
they did not understand what was read as much as they thought they had.
Procedure:
Step 1: Model the strategy using a section of text and a student as a partner.
Read a brief passage together, then pause and say a variety of things under
each category.
Step 2: Explain the rules to the students. You can retype the format and make a
poster.
1. With your partner, decide who will say something first.
2. When you say something, you may do one of the following:
a. You can make a prediction.
b. You can ask a question.
c. You can make a comment.
d. You can make a connection.
3. If you can’t do one of these four things, then you need to reread.
Step 3: Provide multiple opportunities for the students to practice this strategy as
they read the text.
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2008-2009
Implementation
(January 5, 2009)
Multimodal learning encourages teachers to think
about how to involve adolescents in looking at multiple
forms of text to examine what it means to their identities and
beliefs about the world...
Making Connections: Literacy and Disciplinary Knowledge Learning
)
 Making Connections – Double Entry Journals






Full Circling Process
Response Guide for Magazine Articles
Word Chains
Word Posters
Vocabulary Graffiti
Comic Strips
REFERENCES AND RESOURCES
Lent, R.L. (2006). Engaging adolescent learners: A guide for content-area
teachers. Portsmouth, NH: Heinenmann.
Long, T. W. (2008). The full circling process: Leaping into the ethics of history using
critical visual literacy and arts-based activism. Journal of Adolescent and Adult
Literacy, 51 (6), 498-508.
Spencer; B.H. & Guillaume, A.M. (2009). 35 strategies for developing content area
vocabulary, Boston: Pearson.
Tovani, C. (2004). Do I really have to teach reading? Content comprehension grades
6-12. Portland, ME: Stenhouse.
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Making Connections
Overview: Making connections between self, world and other texts (media,
visual, and print) and to prior or background knowledge, is one of the most
effective ways for students to retain and use learned information. It is the
“Velcro” effect where new information attaches to what already exists.
Procedure:
Reproduce a graph, formula or other
graphic from the text
Complete the following statement
about the graphic in this column
I’m inferring from this graphic…
I’m confused about this graphic…
Step 1: Divide paper in half.
Step 2: On left-hand column of the page, students copy directly from the text.
They might write quotes, vocabulary words, reproduce a graph or formula from
the text. This side represents literal information from the text.
Step 3: On the right-hand column, students share their thinking about the quote,
word, graph, etc or write a summary of what they wrote on the left-hand side.
The right side represents inferential or critical thinking.
*Teachers choose how students will structure their thinking on the right-side of
the journal based on what they ask the students to write—questions,
connections, visualizations, etc.
For example, teachers may ask students to focus on one of following when
reflecting on the information on the left-hand column: I’m wondering…This
reminds me of…I’m confused about this quote…The most important part of the
quote is…I’m picturing…I’m inferring…
Adapted from: Tovani, C. (2004). Do I really have to teach reading? Content comprehension grades 6-12.
Portland, ME: Stenhouse.
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Double Entry Variations
Variation 1
Quote
or fact from text
Write about the quote or
fact
Write reasons about why
this quote or fact is
important
Variation 2
Quote/fact/graphic from
the text
Quote/fact/graphic from
the text
Connection to my past
experiences
Connection to past learning
Quote/fact/graphic from
the text
Connections to world
Ask a question
Draw a picture to
represent thinking
about this quote
What I understand
better now
Variation 3 (Content-specific)
Adapted from: Tovani, C. (2004). Do I really have to teach reading? Content comprehension
grades 6-12. Portland, ME: Stenhouse.
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Full Circling Process
Overview: Multilayer process that uses visual media as text to be critically read,
interpreted and employed as a way to make a classroom into a place where
students explore and expand content learning to the affective dimension.
Procedure:
Step1: Start with a visual as text and develop curiosity for it.
 Show photo and write responses to the questions below on Document
Camera or whiteboard.
 Ask students to describe what they see happening in the photo and to
wonder how the Japanese people must have felt.
 As you look at the photo, what are you curious about? What do you
wonder about?
Step 2: Invite students to become aware of many kinds of texts emotionally and
vocalize that awareness.
 Read aloud a poem, piece a fiction, diary entry, letter, or other form of
nonfiction texts with the students
 Quick Write: As you think about the poem and the photos write about
how they make you feel about the Japanese people in Internment
Camps or the Internment Camps in general.
 Whole-discussion: Share student responses and record feelings using
the Document Camera or whiteboard.
Step 3: Engage students in observing, analyzing, and acting on ethical conflicts
related to the text.
 Present more texts (visual or print) about Japanese Internment in
Arizona or allow students to investigate the topic on the Internet
 Small group activities such as
o RAFT writing activity
 Role: Official who conducts intakes and run the camps
 Audience: Japanese US citizens arriving at the camp
 Format: Letter
 Topic: Arriving at the Internment Camp in Arizona
Long, T. W. (2008). The full circling process: Leaping into the ethics of history using critical visual literacy
and arts-based activism. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 51 (6), 498 508.
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o Tableaux (a still image construction to portray a moment, a
concept, an emotion). Construct a still image of what you think
it looked like when a family was forced to leave the safety of
home, schools, jobs, and community with as many belongings
as they could gather.
o Work in pairs to interview people who lived in the camps and
write a news story about living in the camps.
*This step encourages students to develop relationships with the people in the
photographs and supplemental texts as they imagine themselves inside the
events, phenomena, concept, etc. As they participate in these activities students
continue to look at photos, print, and conduct independent research of
supplemental materials.
Step 4: Come full circle by transmediating what was learned, and implement a
plan of action around this knowledge and a culminating activity that synthesizes
and extends their learning.
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ACTIVITIES THAT PROMOTE MAKING CONNECTIONS
Response Guide for Magazine Articles
Title of Magazine___________________________Date of Issue_____________
Title of Article(s) _____________________________Page Numbers__________
Author___________________________________________________________
1. Why did you choose this article to read?
2. What connections could you make from the article to what you have
learned in this or other classes?
3. Was there anything in the article that you already knew?
was.
Tell what it
4. List three new pieces of information or insights you gained from the article.
5. How will you use the information in the future?
6. In what way was the article interesting to you?
7. What other information do you wish the article had included?
8. Was there anything in the article with which you did not agree? Why?
9. List any new words that you learned from the article.
10. What will you do with the information? Choose one.
a. Write a letter to the editor.
b. Discuss it with a friend, parent, or teacher.
c. Write a response in your journal.
d. Include information in your Double-Entry Journal.
Long, T.W. (2008). The full circling process: Leaping into the ethics of history using critical visual literacy
and arts-based activism. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 51 (6), 498-508.
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Making Connections
Prompts for Facilitating Making Connections
Through Writing and Discussing
English: Show a five-minute clip from the movie Contact where the main
character takes a trip into space and experiences an epiphany regarding other
life forms.
Prompt: What do you think the character experienced? Do you believe there is
life beyond what we know on earth? Do you believe there is life beyond what we
know on earth? Explain why you feel as you do.
Social Studies/Law Studies: Provide a news clip or newspaper article detailing
with the debate over Terri Schiavo, the young woman whose parents fought to
keep her alive through an artificial feeding tube, although the courts ordered the
tube be removed based on her husband’s testimony.
Prompt: To what extend should the government intervene in the decision of
families to end the lives of those deemed vegetative? Who should make the
decision?
Math: Provide news article, website information, brochures related to hybrid cars
and their gas mileage.
Prompt: Compare the miles per gallon of a hybrid with the same model car that
is not a hybrid. What would be the advantages and disadvantages in purchasing
a hybrid car?
Science: Provide an article from a science magazine or website about frogs with
deformities due to chemical pollution or parasites in lakes and streams.
Prompt: What other transformations in species might occur in your own area due
to chemical pollution? What impact does this information have for humans in the
future?
Psychology: Demonstrate a popular video game. Ask students to note their
heart rates, breathing, and mental process when watching the demonstration.
Prompt: Do you believe there is any merit to the argument that video games can
be additive? How should parents monitor their children’s video game use?
Should they monitor it? Do players respond differently to different games? Do
you believe that playing violent video games can create violent behavior?
Follow up to writing and discussion
Have some sort of concluding activity such as writing a summary, an entry in a
journal, or a reflection about the experience and how it connected to content
learning. The prompts could also service as the stimulus for an expanded
project.
Activities from: Lent, R. L. (2006). Engaging adolescent learners: A guide for content- area teachers.
Portsmouth, NH: Heinenmann.
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VOCABULARY ACTIVITIES THAT PROMOTE MAKING
CONNECTIONS
Word Chains
Overview: Explore concepts in relation to each other; extend students’
understanding of concepts; support metacognitive awareness as students justify
links (connections) they form among the words.
Procedure:
Step1: Select (5-10) terms or have students select them.
Step 2: Decide the physical format of the chain and prepare materials (word
cards, template, strips, and software like Inspiration).
Step 3: Students work individually, in pairs, or in small groups to develop chains.
Step 4: To make connections use discussion, write a brief paragraph, draw
vocabulary graffiti* or some other graphic representation.
Step 5: Write in the cloud how these words are linked together.
slope
~
ratio ~
division
~
operation ~
expression ~ variable
“I started with slope. Ratio links to slope because a
slope is a ratio (rise over run). Division links to ratio
because you often divide ratios for a quotient (like
2/5 = .4). Operation links to division because division is
an operation. Expression links to operation because
the results of an operation are written as an expression
(for instance, .4). Variable links to expression because
some expressions contain variables (like 7x).”
Spencer, B.H. & Guillaume, A.M. (2009) 35 strategies for developing content area vocabulary. Boston:
Pearson.
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Sample templates for Word Chains
An Algebra I Word Chain (created using Inspiration
Spencer, B.H. & Guillaume, A.M. (2009) 35 strategies for developing content area vocabulary. Boston:
Pearson.
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Vocabulary Graffiti
Overview: Creating images for vocabulary words to support their understanding
of the words. These images should be created in a public place like a word wall
or large piece of paper on the wall. Graffiti comes for the Italian word meaning to
scribble or scratch. This can also be done using a digital camera or phone
camera to depict word meaning.
Procedure:
Step1: Introduce the strategy by sharing the word graffiti. It’s an Italian word that
comes from graffiare, which means “to scratch or scribble.” Display a few
examples of ancient graffiti from around the world, showing that words, pictures,
or combinations are often used as common folk convey messages to others.
Step 2: If you provide the graffiti rather than having students create their own,
display your image for each term and have students predict meanings based on
your images. Throughout the lesson, check on students’ predictions. Provide
accurate information through reading, research, or direct explanation.
Step 3: If students are to create their own graffiti, present the terms and allow
students to choose from among them. Show students where their work will be
displayed and provide materials such as markers and paper.
Step 4: Model the process of creating a graffito. Share a few student samples if
you have them.
Step 5: Allow for work time and then post the Vocabulary Graffiti. Discuss
difference and similarities among the images and encourage students to add to
the board over time.
Spencer, B.H. & Guillaume, A.M. (2009) 35 strategies for developing content area vocabulary. Boston:
Pearson.
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Word Posters
Overview: Many students jump at the chance to draw, create, and talk with their
peers. In Word Posters, students engage in these activities while they deepen
and apply their knowledge of content vocabulary terms and sharpen their
independent word learning skills. Word Posters are displayed throughout the
classroom and spark discussion.
Procedure:
Step 1: Prepare a bank of content terms from which students may select.
Step 2: Decide what the posters must include. At minimum, consider requiring
the following:
a. The word, written in large letters (perhaps as Vocabulary Graffiti).
b. A definition of the word.
c. The context in which the word was found.
d. An image, such as a funny cartoon or drawing, to support the
term’s meaning.
e. An original sentence using the word.
Strength-training Vocabulary Terms for Word Poster
collar
concentric contraction
eccentric contraction
exercise
fatigue
form
frequency
intensity
isometric exercise
isotonic exercise
plyometric exercise
recovery
repetition
resistance
set
Step 3: List and post the requirements for students.
Step 4: Create a sample Word Poster that meets your requirements.
Step 5: Decide on group size. Although students may work individually, using
partners or small groups increases opportunities for students to use the word in a
variety of formats including in their listening and speaking.
Spencer, B.H. & Guillaume, A.M. (2009) 35 strategies for developing content area vocabulary. Boston:
Pearson.
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Step 6: Ensure that dictionaries and content sources (online or print) are
available for reference.
Step 7: Prepare poster materials (e.g., paper, markers). Consider supplying
magazines for images that are cut out and added to the posters in collage style.
The Internet is a rich source of clip art and photographic images that can enrich
students’ posters. You may want to introduce photo-sharing sites such as
http://www.flikr.com
Sample Word Poster for isometric exercise
Spencer, B.H. & Guillaume, A.M. (2009) 35 strategies for developing content area vocabulary. Boston:
Pearson.
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Comic Books
Overview: One of the tenets of literacy programs is that people will learn more
when it's related to a subject that interests them. Comic strips often express
messages or provide brief glances of events or stories. Due to its condensed
format, a comic strip highlights only the most important elements of its targeted
topic.
Procedure:
Step 1: Analyze comic strips to identify main ideas, concepts characters, setting,
dialogue, plot, etc. Or, you may use conversation bubbles to have students
write and draw their own cartoon strip.
Step 2: Students create or reconstruct a sequence of events.
Step 3: Students organize ideas on how to combine pictures, captions, and
dialogue to depict a specific concept, create events, convey a message, or
express interesting information.
From:
http://www.esl-lounge.com/level4/lev4comic1.shtml
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2009-2010
Implementation
(October 20, 2009)
Depth of Knowledge is the degree of depth or
complexity of knowledge standards and assessments
require; this criterion is met if the assessment is as
demanding cognitively as the expectations standards
are set for students.
Questioning and Cognitively Demanding Instruction
Depth Of Knowledge
Complimentary CLICK Strategies:




QAR
Quick Write
Making Inferences
Muddiest Point


Jigsaw
List-Group-Label
REFERENCES AND RESOURCES
Internet Resources:
http://wvde.state.wv.us/teach21/thebigpicture/OutcomeIncreasedDOKLevels.htm
(Math, Science, Social Studies, Reading and Language Arts)
http://www.youthlearn.org/learning/teaching/techniques/asking-questions/askingquestions
(Asking Questions)
http://fno.org/toolbox.html#Questioning
(Classroom Strategies to Engender Student Questioning)
http://www.wcer.wisc.edu/WAT/index.aspx
(Webb Alignment Tool - Norman L. Webb and others)
http://www.nciea.org/publications/DOK_ApplyingWebb_KH08.pdf (Exploring Cognitive
Demand ing Instruction and Assessment – Karin K. Hess)
http://www.pac6.org/images/upload/Applying_Webbs_Depth_of_Knowledge_and_NAEP
_Levels_of_Complexity_in_Mathematics.doc
(Applying Webb’s DOK & NAEP Levels of Complexity in Mathematics
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Cognitive Demand Domains
Bloom’s and Webb’s
Bloom’s Taxonomy
Webb’s Depth-of-Knowledge
Anderson & Krathwohl, A Taxonomy for
Teaching Learning and Assessing
Norman Webb,






Remember
Understand
Apply
Analyze
Evaluate
Create
 Recall / Reproduction
Level 1
 Skill / Concept
Level 2
 Strategic Thinking
Level 3

Extending Thinking
Level 4
The Webb’s levels do not necessarily indicate degree of “difficulty” …for
example, Level 1 asks students to recall or restate. This could be about a simple
or a difficult text, for example; however the difficulty of the text does not make the
task more complex.
Taxonomy vs. Nominative
 Bloom’s Taxonomy divides levels on verb used.
 Nominative means naming and also noun.
 Webb describes DOK LEVELS as nominative rather than as a taxonomy
because DOK LEVELS name four different ways students interact with
content…each level is dependent upon how deeply students understand
the content in order to respond.
Information from: The Wisconsin Center for Educational Research website:
http://www.wcer.wisc.edu/people/staff.php?sid=1342 Dr. Norman L. Webb
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Comparison of Bloom’s to DOK
Chandler Unified School District
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Depth of Knowledge (DOK)
Key Concepts:
LEVEL1 Recall – Recall of a fact, information, or procedure
 DOK 1 requires recall of information, such as a fact, definition, term, or
performance of a simple process or procedure.
 Answering a Level 1 item can involve following a simple, well-known
procedure or formula. Simple skills and abilities or recall are
characteristics of DOK 1.
LEVEL 2 Skill/Concept – Use information or conceptual knowledge, two or more
steps, etc.
 DOK 2 includes the engagement of some mental processing beyond
recalling or reproducing a response. Items require students to make some
decisions as to how to approach the question or problem.
 Often requires interpreting.
 These actions imply more than one mental or cognitive process/step.
LEVEL 3 Strategic Thinking – Requires reasoning, developing plan or a
sequence of steps, some complexity, more than one possible answer
 DOK 3 requires deep understanding as exhibited through planning, using
evidence, and more demanding cognitive reasoning. The cognitive
demands at Level 3 are complex and abstract.
 An assessment item that requires students to justify the response they
give would most likely be a Level 3. That justification needs to be
strategic.
LEVEL 4 Extended Thinking – Requires an investigation, time to think and
process multiple conditions of the problem
 DOK 4 requires high cognitive demand and is very complex. Students are
expected to make connections and relate ideas within the content or
among content areas—and have to select or devise one approach
among many alternatives on how the situation can be solved.
 These are often non-routine problems.
 Due to the complexity of cognitive demand, DOK 4 often requires an
extended period of time to answer.
* Created by Norman L. Webb, Ph.D., Wisconsin Center for Education Research
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Guiding Questions
What Level of DOK is it?

DOK 1: Is it naked content? Does it cue a standard algorithm/procedure?

DOK 2: Does it require interpretation? Does it have many pathways? Is a
decision made? Does it require multiple mental/cognitive steps?

DOK 3: Does it require justification, rationale, proof, explanation, or
experimentation? Is it strategic?

DOK 4: Is it at least a Level 3? Does it require connections?
Sample Science Assessment
Limit (based on Webb)
DOK
Level
Potential DOK Levels for
Assessment
Example A: Perform a simple
science process or a set
procedure to gather data.
Example B: Represent data
collected over a period of time,
making comparisons and
interpretations.
1
1
(Measure temperature of water)
2
1
(Measure temperature of water
at different times/places)
2
(Construct a graph to organize,
display, and compare data)
Example C: Interpret data
collected for a research question
for a scientific problem related to
your environment.
3
1
(Measure temperature of water
at different times/places)
2
(Construct a graph to organize,
display, and compare data)
3
(Design an investigation to
explain the affect of varying
temperatures of the river in
different locations)
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DOK Levels & Writing Test Items
Level
Category
Description of Level
Notes on Items Written for
These Levels
1
Recall
Recall of a fact, information,
definition, term or performance
of a process or procedure
Items typically specify what the
student is to do, which is often to
carry out some procedure that can
be performed mechanically.
2
Skill /
Concept
Includes the engagement of
some mental processing
beyond recalling or reproducing
a response
Items require students to make
some decisions as to how to
approach the question or problem.
These actions imply more than one
mental or cognitive process/step.
3
Strategic
Thinking
Requires deep understanding
as exhibited through planning,
using evidence, and more
demanding cognitive
reasoning. The cognitive
demands are complex and
abstract.
Items require students to justify the
responses they give and may have
more than one possible answer.
4
Extended
Thinking
Requires high cognitive
demand and is very complex.
Students are expected to make
connections and relate ideas
within the content or among
areas – and have to select or
devise one approach among
many alternatives on how the
situation can be solved.
Items require students to bring
together skill and knowledge from
various domains. Due to the
complexity of cognitive demand,
this level often requires an
extended period to answer. A
DOK 3 first, to construct a DOK 4
with added connections.
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QAR and DOK
Remember that the QAR is about the relationship between the question and the
answer; and is a tool to help students develop self-questioning and for teachers
to ask better questions.
* To review QAR, please refer to page 69 of the CLICK Manual.
Webb’s DOK could be used with every assignment to raise the level
of rigor in a course and help more students reach and exceed
proficiency levels.
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2009-2010
Implementation
(January 4, 2010)
“Questioning and inferring work in tandem to
enhance understanding of text.”
- Harvey Goudvis (Strategies That Work)
Cognitively Demanding Instruction:
Depth Of Knowledge (DOK) & Content Literacy






Textmasters
Socratic Method
Fishbowl
Inside/Outside Circle
Critical Questioning
Wordle
REFERENCES AND RESOURCES
Roberts, Terry & L. Billings. (2008). Thinking is literacy, literacy thinking. Educational
Leadership. VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Wilfong, Lori G. (2009). Textmasters: Bringing literature circles to textbook reading
across the curriculum. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy 53(2).
http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/textmasters-shaking-textbookreading-1180.html
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Textmasters
Overview:
The Textmasters strategy was created to engage students in content area
reading by bringing the collaborative learning environment of literature circles to
content area reading of the textbook. This strategy allows students to collaborate
with their peers in different roles that enable a better understanding of the
content.
Procedure:
1. Students are placed in groups of four and given a schedule of the reading
of the upcoming chapter(s).
Summary of Textmasters Roles
Discussion
Director
Your job is to develop a list of questions that your group might want to discuss about this part of
the book. Don’t worry about the small details; your task is to help people talk about the big ideas
in the reading and share their reactions. Usually the best discussion questions come from your
own thoughts, feelings, and concerns as you read.
Summarizer
Ask good questions.
Your job is to prepare a brief summary of today’s reading. Your group discussion will start with
your 1–2-minute statement that covers the key points, main highlights, and general idea of
today’s reading assignment.
Vocabulary
Enricher
Summarize what you read.
Your job is to be on the lookout for a few especially important words in today’s reading. If you find
words that are puzzling or unfamiliar, mark them while you are reading and then later jot down
their definition, either from a dictionary or from some other source.
Webmaster
Learn about new words.
Your job is to take all the information that you have read and make a graphic organizer to show
your understanding. Use keywords, phrases, and examples from your reading to make your
organizer. You can use any type of graphic organizer you would like (i.e., web, pyramid, chart).
Organize important information into graphic organizers.
2. All students read the same section of the book, but complete a role sheet
to guide their perspective.
3. Students meet together to share their roles. Set routine:




20 minutes of silent reading of the assigned portion of the text
20 minutes of filling out the role sheet for the day, as designated by the role
rotation
20 minutes for the sharing of roles and group work on the culminating
activity
10 minutes for student self-reflection
4. Meetings continue biweekly until the chapter is finished.
5. Creative presentations serve as a review of the chapter content.
From: http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/textmasters-shaking-textbookreading-1180.html
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Textmasters Role Sheets
(1 of 2)
Discussion Director: Develop a list of questions that your group might want to discuss about this part of the text.
Don’t worry about the small details; your task is to help people talk over the big ideas in the text and share their
reactions. Usually the best discussion questions come from your own thoughts, feelings, and concerns as you read.
You can list them below during or after your reading. You may also use some of the general questions below to
develop topics for your group.
Possible Discussion Questions or Topics:
1. ________________________________________________________________________
2. ________________________________________________________________________
3. ________________________________________________________________________
4. ________________________________________________________________________
Sample Questions
o Did today’s reading remind you of any real-life experiences?
o What questions did you have when you finished this section?
o Did anything in this section of the book surprise you?
o What are some things you think will be talked about next?
Connections:
Text to Text: ___________________________________________________________________
Text to Self: ____________________________________________________________________
Text to World: __________________________________________________________________
Adapted from Daniels, H. (1994). Literature circles: Voice and choice in the student-centered classroom. York, ME: Stenhouse.
Summarizer: Prepare a brief summary of today’s reading. Your group discussion will start with your 1-2 minute
statement that covers the key points, main highlights, and general idea of today’s reading assignment.
Key Points:
1. ________________________________________________________________________
2. ________________________________________________________________________
3. ________________________________________________________________________
4. ________________________________________________________________________
Summary:
______________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________
Adapted from: Daniels, H. (1994). Literature circles: Voice and choice in the student-centered classroom. York, ME: Stenhouse.
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Textmasters Role Sheets (2 of 2)
Vocabulary Enricher: Look out for a few especially important words in today’s reading. If you find words that are
puzzling or unfamiliar, note them while you are reading and then later jot down their definition, either from a dictionary
or from some other source. You may also run across familiar words that stand out somehow in the reading – words
that are repeated a lot, are used in an unusual way, or provide a key to the meaning of the text. Mark these special
words, and be ready to point them out to the group. When your group meets, help members find and discuss these
words.
Page #
Word
Meaning
Example
Sketch
Webmaster: Your job is to take all the information that you have read and make a graphic organizer to show your
understanding. Use key words, phrases, and examples from your reading to make your organizer. You can use any
type of graphic organizer you would like (i.e., web, pyramid, chart, etc.).
Adapted from: Daniels, H. (1994). Literature circles: Voice and choice in the student-centered classroom. York, ME: Stenhouse
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Socratic Seminar (1of 3)
Overview:
The Socractic Seminar is based on the Greek philospher, Socrates, and the
theory that it is more important to enable students to think for themselves. He
regularly engaged his students in dialogues by responding to their questions with
questions, instead of the answers. The purpose of a Socratic Seminar is to
achieve a deeper understanding about the ideas and values in a text through
shared discussion. In the Seminar, participants systematically question and
examine issues and principles related to a particular content, and articulate
different points-of-view. This timed process and conversation assists participants
in constructing meaning through disciplined analysis, interpretation, listening, and
participation.
Procedure:
There are several basic elements of a Seminar:
 Text – All participants read the text in advance. The text (or article, film
clip, or other artifact) should contain important and powerful ideas and
values. A certain degree of ambiguity or potential for different
interpretations also makes for richer discussion.
 Classroom Environment – The classroom should be arranged so that
students can look at each other directly, and a circle or square works well.
The discussion norms should be reviewed and posted.
 Questions – Questions should be prepared in advance, and lead
participants into the core ideas and values and to the use of the text in
their answers. Questions must be open-ended, reflect genuine curiosity,
and have no ‘one right answer’. Choose one question as the key
interpretive question of the seminar to focus on and begin discussion.
During the Seminar, use particular questions to move the discussion
along. Toward the end of the Seminar, some teachers like to use closing
questions that encourage participants to apply the ideas to their personal
experiences and opinions. Answering these closing questions does not
require use of the text but provides students with the chance to share their
own perspectives. Lastly, debriefing questions help students reflect on the
process of the seminar.
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Socratic Seminar (cont’d 2 of 3)
Using Interpretive, Literal, and Evaluative Questions
Interpretive Questions:
The core of the Socratic Seminar is devoted to considering interpretive
questions. These are questions that ask students to interpret the text. They
should be genuine questions - ones that you are also interested in. No single
right answer exists, but arguments can be made to support different positions.
Students need to make their points using passages from the text to answer these
questions. Sample interpretive questions might ask for the values evidenced by
the author within the text, or might ask students to choose the most important
word/sentence/paragraph and describe why it is the most important.
Literal Questions:
Literal questions are used by some teachers at the very beginning of a seminar
to ensure comprehension of the text. These are questions that can be answered
directly from the text. The answers are contained within the text and are stated
clearly. Sample literal questions might ask for an important text detail, fact, or
quote.
Evaluative Questions:
Evaluative questions are sometimes used at the very end of a seminar, to allow
students to share their own positions and opinions. Answers to evaluative
questions rely on students’ own experiences, not on the text itself. Students will
not need to cite particular passages to answer these questions. Sample
evaluative questions might ask for students’ opinions about the author’s position,
or how the ideas in the text relate to their own lives.
Sample Question Frames:
What puzzles me is…
I’d like to talk with people about…
I’m confused about…
Don’t you think this is similar to…?
Do you agree that the big ideas seem to be…?
I have questions about…
Another point of view is…
I think it means…
Do you think…?
What does it mean when the author says…?
Do you agree that…?
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Socratic Seminar (cont’d 3 of 3)
During the Seminar
 Be seated at the level of the students and remind them to address each
other and not you (the teacher).
 Pose the key question.
 Ask participants to relate their statements to particular passages, to clarify,
and to elaborate.
 If the conversation gets off track, refocus students on the opening
question by restating it.
 Use additional questions to move the discussion along.
 Invite those who have not spoken into the conversation. Some teachers
use talking chips (each student is allotted a number of chips that they use
when they make a contribution) or other device to indicate a ‘turn’.
 While facilitating, teachers may wish to record the main ideas discussed
and the contributions students make (using a diagram or graphic
organizer).
 It can be helpful to summarize the main points made in the discussion.
After the Seminar
 Ask debriefing questions of the students.
 Share your own experience with the seminar as a facilitator.
VARIATIONS:
Fishbowl
There are many ways to use a fishbowl in the classroom, and for large classes, it
is helpful to divide the students into two groups.
1. One half of the class is in the ‘center’ facing each other and discussing the
text, while the remainder is on the ‘outside’ observing and listening.
2. Members of the outer circle can take notes or use an evaluation form to
track the overall conversation or to focus on specific participants.
3. A rubric for evaluating classroom discussions and/or a partner evaluation
format could be used for this purpose.
Inside/Outside Circle
1. The teacher forms two concentric circles containing the same number of
students.
2. Students in the inside circle face a partner standing in the outside circle.
3. The teacher asks students from the inside circle to share something with
their partner in a timed activiy.
4. Reverse roles and have students on the outside circle share with their
partner.
5. The teacher controls the timing, rotations and repetition of steps 2 and 3.
From: http://websites.pdesas.org/ralexander/2011/6/29/317127/page.aspx
www.clickandteachit.com/resources.cfm?subpage=627743 (Paideia Seminar)
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Critical Quesioning
DOK Level III and IV Questions Often Start With:
Do you believe…
?
What do you think…
?
Why was the…
?
How would you…
?
Based on what is known, what…
?
What can you conclude…
?
What evidence does…
?
What biases or beliefs are…
?
Why do you think…
?
DOK Levels
Level 1 – Recall
Level 2 – Skill/Concept
Level 3 – Strategic Thinking
Level 4 – Extended Thinking
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168
WORDLE (1 of 2)
Overview: Wordle is a free web tool that allows users to create word clouds
by entering lines of text. It then transforms those words into a cloud of
interconnected words. Users can change the layout, color scheme, and fonts.
There are a variety of ways in which Wordle can be used in the classroom:
 ‘All About Me’ Teambuilder or Icebreaker
 Jeopardy-like game (e.g., given Wordle, students must
guess the topic)
 Identifying key points of a speech (e.g., cut and paste
words/text – most prominent is the one most used)
 Create a Wordle when introducing a new topic and have
students create the headline, main idea, etc.
 Graphing – take a poll, type the word each time a student
states or selects it – most prominent word is the most
popular
 Literature themes
 Character traits analysis
 For more ideas, go to
http://www.slideshare.net/boazchoi/fortyfive-interestingways-to-use-wordle-in-the-classroom
Procedure:
Step1: Go to http://www.wordle.net
Step 2: Create your own.
Step 3: You can copy and past text from a word document or you can simply type in the
words you want to use.
HINTS: The more often a word is entered, the larger it will appear. To keep two words
together (ex. James Madison) insert a tilde between them (~) (James~Madison)
Step 4: Select go.
Step 5: Wordle is generated. Characteristics can be changed by using the toolbar
located at the top of the page.
HINTS: Color refers to the color scheme. Wordles can be white or black backgrounds.
Layout is the appearance/shape of the Wordle – mostly vertical, mostly horizontal, half
and half, etc.
Font is the style of the text. Language – Wordles can be anything from English to
Croatian.
From: http://appomattoxhslibrary.webs.com/wordle.pdf
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WORDLE (2 of 2)
The biggest drawback to Wordle it that there is no way to save directly from
http://www.wordle.net. The created WORDLE can be saved to the gallery but
there is no way to search for it. It is recommended that you save it to office using
the following directions:
Saving WORDLE to PowerPoint or Word:
1. After you’ve generated your WORDLE, choose ‘open’ in new window.
Maximize the window.
2. Use the ‘print screen’ key to save the screen to your clipboard.
3. Open a Word or PowerPoint slide document. The clipboard is to the left of
your page. Click on the image of your screen to insert. Click on the picture
itself to get picture tools. Select format. Crop is in the upper right hand
corner. Adjust the borders to delete unwanted edges. Save document.
From: http://appomattoxhslibrary.webs.com/wordle.pdf
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2010-2011
Implementation
(October 19, 2010)
Inquiry is not simply thematic study, but the
exploration of a question or issue that drives debate in
the disciplines and the world.
- Wilhelm & Smith 2007
Status Quo Is Not Okay:
Facilitating Deeper Learning Through Literacy





Drawing Inferences
RAFT
Analyzing Editorial Cartoons
Every Picture Tells a Story
Riddle Me This



Reading Data Tables
Drawing Conclusions – DTS
(Dialogical Thinking
Strategy)
Summarizing (GIST)
REFERENCES AND RESOURCES
Christenbury, L. (1994). Making the journey: Being and becoming a teacher of English
language arts. Portsmouth: Boynton-Cook/Heinemann.
Daniels, H. & Zemelman, S. (2004). Subjects matter: Every teacher’s guide to content
area reading. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Richardson, J., Morgan, R., Fleener, C. (2009). Reading to learn in the content areas.
KY: Wadsworth Publishing.
Roberts, Terry & L. Billings. (2008). Thinking is literacy, literacy thinking. Educational
Leadership. VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Wilhelm, Jeffrey D. (2007) Engaging readers & writers with inquiry. Scholastic Teaching
Resources.
Wilhelm, Jeffrey D. (2001) Strategic reading. Portsmouth: Boyton-Cook/Heinemenann.
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READING BETWEEN THE LINES
(Drawing Inferences)
Overview:
It is important for students to understand that informational texts are not
necessarily unbiased. Even if an article presents certain facts, these facts were
selected based on the author’s background and awareness of what he/she thinks
is important.
Procedure:
1. Select at least three different articles on the same topic (e.g., Animal
Cloning, Global Warming, Recycling, Off-Shore Drilling), and assign the
reading to groups.
2. Assign after reading:
o What does the author want the reader to infer from the article? In
other words, what is the author’s main point?
o Read again and highlight statements in the article to support your
answer to the question.
o Add movement – Match up with another person who read the same
article - discuss.
o Based on the information presented in the article, write a paragraph
about your thoughts on Global Warming (or other topic) and include
examples from the article to support your thoughts.
o Repeat with Article #2, OR use a Jigsaw and have the class read
different articles.
o In pairs, decide which statements in each of the articles best
supports their response to the initial question. Which statements
lead the reader to think differently about Global Warming (topic)?
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RAFT: Global Warming
ROLE
AUDIENCE
FORMAT
TOPIC
Scientist
Scientific
Community
White Paper or
Journal Article
Global Warming
Politician
Constituents
Letter
Environmental
Protection
Rainforest
Home Builders
Plea for Help
You Must Protect
Me!
Solar System
Planet Earth
Break-up Note
You’ve Changed
More RAFTs:
ROLE
Isosceles
Triangle
AUDIENCE
My Angles
FORMAT
TOPIC
Email
Our Unequal
Relationship
A Sailor in Pearl
The Public
Harbor, 12/7/1941
A Telegram
We’ve Been
Attacked
Possessive
Apostrophe
Young Writers
Complaint
How It’s Left Out
or Misused
Larry Fitzgerald
High School PE
Class
Motivational Talk
Lifelong Exercise
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173
ANALYZING EDITORIAL CARTOONS:
Overview:
The decisions students make about social and political issues are often
influenced by what they hear, see, and read in the news. For this reason, it is
important for them to learn about the techniques used to convey political
messages and attitudes. Through inquiry, students search for answers to gain
new knowledge or a deeper understanding of concepts.
Procedure:
1. Look at the editorial cartoon provided by your teacher. The caption is
missing.
2.
Using the images and text in the cartoon, complete this Think-Pair-Share
activity by writing an appropriate caption for the editorial cartoon and
discussing your response.
Write a Caption…
From: http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/analyzing-purpose-meaningpolitical-794.html
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ANALYZING EDITORIAL CARTOONS:
3.
Think:
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
Students complete on own.
List the images you see in this cartoon. Circle the images in your list that
you think are the most important.
List the words and phrases you see in the cartoon. Circle the ones on
your list that you believe to be most important.
What current event or issue is addressed in the cartoon? What makes
you think this?
What political or social message is the artist trying to convey? Why do
you think this?
Explain anything in the cartoon that is confusing to you.
Write a brief caption for the cartoon (less than 25 words).
4.
Pair:
5.
Share:
Students complete with a partner.
a) Discuss and compare your answers to the first four questions (‘a’-‘d’).
Make changes or additions to your answers based on this discussion.
b) Discuss and summarize with your partner question ‘e’.
c) Compare your captions. Which caption seems to be best suited to the
cartoon? Explain why.
Whole class discussion.
a) After a short discussion, write a brief reflection comparing and contrasting
your caption with others in your class.
Sources for Political Cartoons:
https://www.nytsyn.com/cartoons
http://editorialcartoonists.com/
http://cagle.com/
http://www.gocomics.com/explore/editorials
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175
EVERY PICTURE TELLS A STORY?
1. Write a caption (or story) for the photograph, picture, drawing,
collage, graph, chart, etc.
2. Write why you think this caption or story is supported by the
illustration.
3. List the things you saw in the illustration (people, animals, place,
things). What inferences did you make in order to write the caption
or story?
Points to Ponder…
 What kinds of thinking and literacy was used to read the pictures
and political cartoons?
 How can visual displays be used in your content area to enhance
learning?
 How could you support ELL in these activities?
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176
RIDDLE ME THIS
Overview:
This activity facilitates the need for decoding, asking questions, and making
inferences. Inferring—making inferences—is often described as making a logical
guess or "reading between the lines." When readers infer, they are personally
engaged with the text, are more aware of the author’s purpose and are
processing for deeper meaning.
Procedure:
1. Think-Pair-Share
Think – Highlight or underline the clues in the riddle that might be used to
help you solve the riddle.
Pair – Discuss the clues and possible solutions.
Share – Whole class, share solutions and identify the clues that were
used to come up with solutions.
Last in Class
I am the beginning of sorrow,
and the end of sickness.
You cannot express happiness without me,
yet I am in the midst of crosses.
I am always in risk,
yet never in danger.
You may find me in the sun, but I am never out of darkness.
What am I?
The Letter “S”
I Am With You
Each morning I appear
to lie at your feet,
all day I will follow
no matter how fast you run.
Yet I nearly perish
in the midday sun.
Your Shadow
Chandler Unified School District
What am I?
177
READING DATA TABLES
Overview:
Reading is more than decoding – readers must comprehend what they
translate/decode from letters (and other symbols). Tables and graphs can be
useful tools for making decisions. However, they only provide part of a story, as
inferences often have to be made from the data shown. Additionally, being able
to identify clearly what the graph or table is telling us by identifying what parts of
the story are missing enables the reader to decide what other information is
needed to support the argument. Readers need to ask themselves questions
about what they read, what they understand, and what they don’t understnd.
They need to engage in texts.
Procedure:
1. Write/tell a story that describes the bicycle trip displayed in the graph below.
Distance is the vertical line (y-axis)
Time is the horizontal line (x-axis)
2. Ask students:
 What did you do to make sense of the graph?
 How does reading the graph demonstrate that reading is an active,
constructive process?
3. Teacher Reflection:
 How can you use data tables in your content area to practice making
inferences?
Daniels, H. & Zemelman, S. (2004). Subjects matter: Every teacher’s guide to content area reading.
Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
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READING DATA TABLES
PREDICT: Before reading the chart, list three things that you know have
changed since 2000.
Answer the following questions:
1. What are the only things on the list that have decreased? Why do you
believe they have decreased?
2. What does this chart tell us about our classrooms?
3. How can you take information from this chart and apply it to your
classroom?
4. What does this chart say about us as a society?
5. What predictions can you make for the next 10 years with these items?
From: http://visual.ly/exactly-how-much-times-changin
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179
QUESTIONING STRATEGIES
Questioning Strategies:
 Are an essential practice to support and extend students’ understanding of
text
 Facilitate predictions about text, clarify understanding, and extend thinking
and learning
 Can facilitate readers to compare, interpret, predict logical outcomes,
make inferences, provide introspection, draw conclusions, and make
connections
Guidelines for Constructing Good Questions:
Simplify your questions

Identify the purpose of the question. Will it measure fact,
implication, or applied levels of comprehension? Is the purpose
justified? Does it contribute to a balance of comprehension levels
within the lesson?

Identify the type of response demanded. Is this expectation
justified? Will there be more than one reasonable response?
Will you be able to accept more than one answer?

Share your reasons for the questions with the students. Let them
understand the process that you would use to answer them.
Conduct “think alouds” to promote metacognition.

Encourage students to ask questions about your questions and to
ask their own questions.

Allow plenty of practice in answering different kinds of questions.

Allow discussion among peers and with the teacher.
Richardson, J., Morgan, R., Fleener, C. (2008). Reading to learn in the content areas. KY: Wadsworth
Publishing.
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180
THOUGHT-PROVOKING QUESTIONS
Sample Question Stems:






What happens/ happened when…?
What causes / caused…?
What are the connections among….?
What is / was the difference between … and …?
Why do you believe…?
That’s what the author said, but what does it mean?
What if? Questions
What if questions are hypothetical questions that ask you to use knowledge to
consider an option or pose a hypotheses.
What if the Civil War never happened?
What if the sun never shined again?
What if children made up the laws?
Should? Questions
Should questions ask students to make a moral or practical decision based on
evidence.
Should we clone humans?
Should we be able to use Stem Cells for research?
Why? Questions
Why questions help students understand the relationship between cause and
effect.
Why do people abuse drugs?
Why is the death rate higher in some third world countries than other third world
countries?
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181
DRAWING CONCLUSIONS
DTS – Dialogical Thinking Strategy
Overview:
DTS helps students become aware of opposing opinions or understand multiple
perspectives. It is a visual representation that helps students think before they
draw conclusions.
DTS: Should cloning of pets be allowed?
Procedure:
1. Brainstorm about the pros and cons of pet cloning. Then, make a list of
the pros and cons. Here are a few things to help start thinking about:
o
o
o
o
o
the 55 million pet dogs in America
the little girl whose cat just got hit by a car
the thousands of pets in shelters waiting for homes
the high costs of cloning
the boy whose favorite dog is old and feeble
2. Imagaine what other arguments could be included in the pros and cons
lists and then share with a partner.
3. Categorize your lists into ‘economic’, ‘social’, ‘ethical’, and ‘practical’
arguments.
4. Read: Cloning article (access from Internet)
5. Add to pro and con lists.
6. Write the answer to the question, “Should pets be cloned?” Include
reasons for your answer found in the article.
Kane, Sharon. (2006). Literacy and learning in the content areas. Scottsdale: Holcomb Hathaway
Publishers.
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182
SUMMARIZING
Summary Writing Guidelines:

Preview, think, and read the passage.

After reading two paragraphs, ask yourself: What does the author keep
talking about? What is the author trying to say?

Write the idea in your own words (in one sentence), but leave out details,
examples, etc.

Continue this process through the entire selection.

Check sentences against the passage making sure that they tell the most
important ideas, nothing is repeated, that the sentences are in your own
words, and the first sentence states the overall main idea.

Check again with a partner.
Complimentary CLICK Strategies:
Paired Summarizing
GIST
Personal Narrative Summary Writing
Expository Paragraph Frames
GIST with a Newspaper Article (Example)
Directions: Read the assigned article and answer the following:
Who?
What?
When?
Where?
Why?
How?
Write a 15-word summary:
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
From: Allyn and Bacon (2006), Pearson Education, Inc.
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183
2010-2011
Implementation
(January 4, 2011)
Having students read different texts around a
common question actually benefits everyone. Learning
becomes more social, expertise is shared, and
motivation stays higher.
- Wilhelm & Smith, 2007
Facilitating Deeper Learning Through Literacy
Part 2






Textbook Scavenger Hunt
QtA – Question the Author
Questioning Circle
I – Chart
Writing for Deeper Thinking
SPAWN Writing
REFERENCES AND RESOURCES
Allen, Janet. (2004). Tools for teaching content literacy. ME: Stenhouse Publishers.
Alvermann, D.E., S.E. Phelps, & V.G. Ridgeway (2007). Content area reading and
literacy: Succeeding in today’s diverse classrooms. Boston, MA: Pearson.
Martin, C., Martin, M., & O’Brien, D. (1984). SPAWNING ideas for writing in the content
areas. Reading World, 11, 11-15.
Wilhelm, Jeffrey D. (2007). Engaging readers & writers with inquiry. NY: Scholastic
Teaching Resources.
Wilhelm, Jeffrey D. and Smith, Michael W. (2007). Making it matter through the power of
Inquiry. Adolescent Literacy-Turning Promise into Practice, 231-242. Portsmouth
NH: Heinemann.
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HOW TO READ A TEXTBOOK –
5 Tips to Help High School Students
1. Read the Introductory Paragraphs
These are usually found before the first chapter heading. This should give you
the basics of what the chapter covers and why it is important. You may want to
make some notes as you complete these steps, but even if you don’t, you’ll still
find you are gaining valuable information.
2. Read the Headings and Subheadings
These are put in a specific order by the author(s) to help explain the topic. Look
at the topics of each section. Find patterns or relationships that show how they
are connected to each other. (Hint: Many textbooks are starting to put an
overview sentence at the beginning or ending of each section. Often these are in
a different colored text or italicized. Read these if they are there).
3. Look at All the Pictures, Diagrams and Figures
Make sure you read the captions for each one of these in the chapter so you
understand what it means. Remember, a picture paints a thousand words. This
is like speed reading. Ask yourself: How does this illustration help explain the
subheading it is under?
4. Note All Boldfaced, Italicized or Highlighted Words
These are obviously important, READ THEM. The author and publisher believed
they were vital to your understanding of the information.
5. Read the Summary or Review
This is almost always located at the very end of the chapter right before or after
the questions. As you read each sentence, try to remember any key words or
illustrations that were tied to the main idea of the sentence you are reading. If
you have made notes, draw arrows to show relationships between ideas.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
These helpful hints can take you to the top of the class, but you do have to
engage your brain when you follow them. If you apply yourself to these 5 steps,
you’ll find you’ve learned more than if you tried to read the whole chapter word
for word.
From: http://darin-harris.suite101.com/students---how-to-read-a-boring-textbook--5-tips-to-help-a293340
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TEXTBOOK SCAVENGER HUNT
Directions: Use your textbook to answer the questions below.
1. Find and check out the index. How many pages of index are there?
Where do you find the index? Locate and write a key topic that has
several pages of information. Find a topic that has single pages listed.
2. Stroll through the Table of Contents. Where is it located? How many
units does it include? List three units you would like to study.
3. Glance through the glossary. Where is it located? What information does
a glossary contain? Select and jot down two words you know something
about, and two that are unfamiliar. How can a glossary help you?
4. Check out the first page of a chapter. List all the information.
5. List three boldface words in that first chapter. Find out what each one
means and write the explanation in your own words. What else can you
use in this textbook to find the meaning of a word?
6. Scan the textbook and find a photograph. Note the page number. Study
the photo and read the caption. Write what you learned.
7. Introduce yourself to a graph, chart, diagram, or map. Note the page it is
on. Now, study it and read all the print. In your own words, write what this
feature can teach you.
8. Flip through two chapters. What other features do you find in your
textbook? How do these features help you learn new information?
9. Take a look at the last page of a chapter. What do you find there? How
can this help you?
10. Skim through a chapter. Is there anything that confuses you? Note the
page and ask your teacher about it.
Robb, L. (2003). Teaching reading in social studies, science & math. NY: Scholastic.
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QUESTION THE AUTHOR (QtA)
(Beck & McKeown, 1997)
Overview:
Question the Author (QtA) is a comprehension strategy that requires students to
pose queries while reading the text in order to challenge their understanding and
solidify their knowledge. It is a protocol of inquiries that students can make about
the content they are reading. This strategy is designed to encourage students to
think beyond the words on the page and to consider the author’s intent for the
selection and his/her success at communicating it.
Procedure:
There are several guidelines:
 Write and display initiating and follow-up questions.
 Model how you use these questions to interpret and comprehend text.
 Encourage student feedback.
 Facilitate student pairs using QtA.
 Practice until students use on their own.
Initiating Questions
What is the author trying to say?
What is the author’s message?
What is the author talking about?
Follow-up Queries
What did the author mean?
Does the author explain this clearly? What makes you say this?
Does this make sense with what the author told us before? How so?
How does this connect with what the author has told us here?
Why do you think the author tells us this now?
Did the author explain it clearly? Why or Why not?
From:
http://www.adlit.org
http://www.readwritethink.org
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QUESTIONING CIRCLES
Overview:
Questioning Circles is a teaching strategy (Christenbury 1994) that provides a
structured framework for developing questions about a text. The strategy helps
teachers to devise questions that are interesting and engaging to students. It
helps students to think more critically about a text and to see how the text
connects personally to their own lives. The Questioning Circles consists of three
overlapping areas of knowledge that readers bring to bear when reading. These
3 key areas generate 7 types of questions within the Questioning Circles
protocol.
Key Areas of Knowledge
 TEXT - Knowledge of the text being read
 READER – Personal response to the text
 WORLD – Knowledge of the world and other texts
As the following diagram shows, the three areas overlap and create a central
dense area. The dense center represents the highest-order thinking about a text.
Students need to inquire into and reflect upon these complex questions.
Reader
Text
Text/Reader
Dense
Questions
Text/World
Reader/World
World
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QUESTIONING CIRCLES (con’t)
Text


Based solely on text. Answers can easily be found within the text itself.
Example: Why does the main character hide when he hears the police
siren?
Reader


Based on personal experiences not necessarily related to the text.
Example: How do you react when you are frightened?
World


Based upon global experiences not necessarily related to the text.
Example: What are some causes for teenage runaways?
Text/Reader


Merge personal experiences with an idea presented in the text.
Example: Do you sympathize with the main character?
Reader/World


Make personal connection to global experiences or topics.
Example: Do you know someone who has run away? For what reason?
World/ Text


Relate global experiences / phenomena to the text.
Example: Do you think that the main character’s experience is one that is
common among inner city youth?
Dense Questions (Text/Reader/World)


Merge elements of all questions into one.
Example: How would people generally view the main character’s
situation? Would they feel badly for him or sympathize with him?
Wilhelm, Jeffrey D. (2007). Engaging readers and writers with inquiry. NY: Scholastic Teaching Resources.
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The Questioning Circle
Pure Question
 Me
 Text
 World
Shaded Questions
 Text and Me
 World and Me
 Text and World
Dense Questions (me / text / world)
Text and Me
Example:
How do I treat people who I am happy or upset with?
Text and World
Example:
How do relationships in the book compare with the ways – (e.g., society, school,
and sports teams) treat people it approves of and disapproves of?
World and Me
Example:
How do I feel about the way we treat “outsiders” in our school?
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I - Chart
Overview:
The Inquiry Chart (I-Chart) is a strategy that enables students to generate
meaningful questions about a topic and organize their writing. Students integrate
prior knowledge or thoughts about the topic with additional information found in
several sources. The I-Chart procedure is organized into three phases:
(1) Planning, (2) Interacting, and (3) Integrating / Evaluating. Each phase
consists of activities designed to engage students in evaluating a topic. This
instructional strategy fosters critical thinking and strengthens reading skills.
I-Charts can be used with the entire class, small groups, or individual work.
Teachers can guide each student’s chart development, which allows for
differentiated instruction, as well as, serves as an evaluation tool for how much a
student has learned about a topic.
Procedure:
1. The teacher directs students as they begin with the planning phase of this
activity. This phase includes:




Identifying the topic
Forming questions
Constructing the I-Chart
Collecting materials
2. The next step is to engage students in the interacting phase, which involves:



Exploring prior knowledge
Sharing of interesting facts
Reading and rereading
3. Finally, teachers guide the students through the integrating and evaluation
phase by:




Summarizing
Comparing
Researching
Reporting
4. The teacher provides each student with a blank I-Chart and assists with topic
selection or provides the pre-selected topic. Students then engage in forming
questions about the topic. These are placed at the top of each individual column.
The rows are for recording any information students already know and the key
ideas pulled from several different sources of information. The last row gives
students the opportunity to pull together the ideas into a general summary.
Teachers may ask students to resolve competing ideas found in the separate
sources or develop new questions to explore based on any conflicting or
incomplete information.
From: http://www.adlit.org/strategies/21826
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I – Chart
Question Area 1
Question Area 2
Question Area 3
Question Area 4
What I Think
Source #1
Source #2
Source #3
Summary
From: http://www.readingquest.org/pdf/ichart.pdf
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Inquiry Chart
(Hoffman, 1992)
TOPIC
(FACT
QUESTION)
(CONCEPT
QUESTION)
(SKILL
QUESTION)
What questions do I
have?
What do I (we) already
know?
TEXT SOURCE 1
TEXT SOURCE 2
PRIMARY SOURCES
OTHER SOURCES
Summary
From: http://www.readingquest.org
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Writing for Deeper Thinking
Writing and DOK
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Level 4
Level 1 requires the student
to write or recite simple
facts. This writing or
recitation does not include
complex synthesis or
analysis but basic ideas.
The students are engaged in
listing ideas or words as in a
brain-storming activity prior
to written composition; are
engaged in a simple spelling
or vocabulary assessment;
or are asked to write simple
sentences. Students are
expected to write and speak
using Standard English
conventions. This includes
using appropriate grammar,
punctuation, capitalization
and spelling.
Level 2 requires some
mental processing. At this
level students are engaged
in first draft writing or brief
extemporaneous speaking
for a limited number of
purposes and audiences.
Students are beginning to
connect ideas using a
simple organizational
structure. For example,
students may be engaged in
note-taking, outlining or
simple summaries. Text may
be limited to one paragraph.
Students demonstrate a
basic understanding and
appropriate use of such
reference materials as a
dictionary, thesaurus, or web
site.
Level 3 requires some
higher level mental
processing. Students are
engaged in developing
compositions that include
multiple paragraphs. These
compositions may include
complex sentences and may
demonstrate some synthesis
and analysis. Students show
awareness of their audience
and purpose through focus,
organization and the use of
appropriate compositional
elements. The use of
appropriate compositional
elements includes such
things as addressing
chronological order in a
narrative or including
supporting facts and details
in an informational report. At
this stage students are
engaged in editing and
revising to improve the
quality of the composition.
Higher-level thinking is
central to Level 4. The
standard at this level is a
multi-paragraph composition
that demonstrates synthesis
and analysis of complex
ideas or themes. There
is evidence of a deep
awareness of purpose and
audience. For example,
informational papers include
hypotheses and supporting
evidence. Students are
expected to create compositions that demonstrate a
distinct voice and that
stimulate the reader or
listener to consider new
perspectives on the
addressed ideas and
themes.
Why write in content classrooms?





To demonstrate knowledge
To improve and maintain writing skills
To help students understand course materials
To connect new information with old
To restate new information
Keep in mind… When writing to learn, the emphasis should be on what is said more than
how it was said.
Sample Writing Assignments:







Journals and Learning Logs (Double-entry Journals)
Admit or Exit Slips
Quick Writes (Pause to write – Reflection, Pause to Paraphrase – Summary)
Recording observations
Observation reports
Interviews
Plans (planning an experience, a computer program, a paper, a music
production, planning an utopian community, etc.)
 Research paper
 Creative writing (a poem like a Biopoem demonstrating a concept; a play
comparing political views; letters to scientists apprising them of discoveries since
their death; letter to the editor about global warming; RAFT)
From: Council of Chief State School Officers TILSA Assignment Study
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SPAWN Writing
Council of Chief
State
Overview: School
Officers
TILSA
SPAWN is an acronym that stands for five categories of writing prompts (Special
Powers, Problem Solving,Study
Alternative Viewpoints, What If? and Next), which can
Assignment
be crafted in numerous ways to stimulate students’ predictive, reflective, and
critical thinking about content-area topics. The thinking and writing prompted by
SPAWN can serve as a springboard for student reflection, partner or small-group
discussion, and whole-class problem solving and assessment.
SPAWN stands for:
S – Special Powers: Students are given the power to change some aspect of the
text or topic. Their writing should explain what was changed, why, and the
effects of the change.
P – Problem Solving: Students are asked to write possible solutions to problems
posed or suggested by the books being read or material being studied.
A – Alternative Viewpoints: Students write about a topic or retell a story from a
unique perspective.
W – What If?: Students are asked to respond to a change the teacher has
introduced in some aspect of the topic or story. (Similar to Special Powers).
N – Next: Students are asked to write in anticipation of what the author will
discuss next, explaining the logic behind their conjecture.
Procedure:
1. Begin by targeting the kind of thinking students should be exhibiting.
When students are finished reading a text, researching a topic, or working
with a concept, they work individually or collaboratively on one or more
writing assignments in each of the five areas listed above.
2. When presenting SPAWN for the first time, the teacher prepares the
thinking/discussion/writing prompts for reading and research assignments.
After intitial encounters with this strategy, student themselves can create
SPAWN prompts for other groups or classes.
Allen, Janet. (2004).Tools for teaching content literacy. ME: Stenhouse Publishers.
Alvermann, D.E., S.E. Phelps, & V.G. Ridgeway (2007). Content area reading and literacy: succeeding in today’s
diverse classrooms. Boston, MA: Pearson.
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