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PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF EDISON TOWNSHIP DIVISION OF CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION

BALANCED LITERACY

GRADE 4

Length of Course: Term Elective / Required: Required Schools: Elementary Schools Student Eligibility: Grade 4 Credit Value: N/A Date Approved: 11/22/10

THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF EDISON TOWNSHIP

MISSION STATEMENT

The Public Schools of Edison Township ensure that all students achieve at the highest level of academic success through the New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards and in partnership with the community, through a safe, supportive learning environment. This promotes self-worth and encourages productive contributions to a diverse, technological and constantly evolving global society. The district will maintain a staff of professional educators who support the New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards and the New Jersey Standards for Professional Development.

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Statement of Purpose ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3 Introduction -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5 Structure of Balanced Literacy for Kindergarten to Grade 2 ------------------------------ 7 Before Day One… Setting the Stage for Reading and Writing --------------------------- 8 Unit 1 Establishing the Environment for Reading ------------------------------------------- 10 Unit 2 Establishing the Environment for Writing --------------------------------------------- 16 Unit 3 Writing Response Letters to Literature ------------------------------------------------ 21 Unit 4 Inferring --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 27 Unit 5 Synthesizing --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 33 Unit 6 Writing Persuasive Pieces --------------------------------------------------------------- 38 Unit 7 Questioning ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 43 Unit 8 Writing Informational Pieces ------------------------------------------------------------- 49 Unit 9 Writing Personal Narratives -------------------------------------------------------------- 56 Appendix A Non-Negotiable K-5 Program Elements for the Reading and Writing Workshop

Appendix B Codes for Skills and Strategy Instruction Appendix C Skills and Strategy Scope and Sequence for Reading Appendix D Building Blocks and Reading Strategies with Grade Level Emphases Appendix E Objectives for the K-5 Learner in the Reading and Writing Workshop Appendix F Reading Behaviors: Grade 4 Levels O-T Indicators Appendix G Developmental Stages for Writing Appendix H New Jersey Core Content Curriculum Standards, Strands, and Cumulative Progress Indicators: 3.3 Speaking, 3.4 Listening, and 3.5 Viewing and Media Literacy

Appendix I Edison‟s Essential Instructional Behaviors Appendix J Unit 9 Assessment: Personal Narrative Writing Tasks Appendix K Word Study Appendix L Thinking Strategies Used by Proficient Learners

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 3 STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

Literacy is the key to learning in all content areas. Many of the skills and concepts presented as specific to reading or writing are essential to unlocking meaning in all areas of the elementary educational experience. In addition, the critical, strategic, and creative thinking of literacy provides children with the tools for lifelong learning. According to the Introduction to the New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards for Language Arts Literacy:

The language arts are integrative, interactive ways of communicating that develop through reading, writing, speaking, listening, and viewing. They are the means through which one is able to receive information; think logically and creatively; express ideas; understand and participate meaningfully in spoken, written, and nonverbal communications; formulate and answer questions; and search for, organize, evaluate, and apply information. Literacy is a way to acquire knowledge for thinking and communicating; it is more than the acquisition of a specific, predetermined set of skills in reading, writing, speaking, listening, and viewing. Literacy is also recognizing and understanding one‟s own purposes for thinking and communicating (through print or nonprint, verbal or nonverbal means) and being able to use one‟s own resources to achieve those purposes.

Although reading and writing units are presented separately for the purposes of this guide, it is necessary for teachers to integrate all of the skills and strategies of the five language arts literacy standards: reading, writing, speaking, listening, and viewing. New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards for Speaking (3.3), for Listening (3.4), and for Viewing and Media Literacy (3.5), included in Appendix G, are to be incorporated into all of the units. This Language Arts Literacy Curriculum Guide provides model units for reading and writing instruction within the structure of balanced literacy. The units have been developed around particular comprehension strategies and modes of writing. The units included in this guide have been identified as mandated core units for each grade. Teachers are to develop additional units based on the assessed needs of their students for each school year. In addition to the curriculum units, various documents have been included in this guide in order to provide support for teachers when planning for instruction. These documents are to be used to assist in organizing instructional time; to ensure that instruction meets the assessed needs of individual learners, of small groups, and of the whole class; and for addressing the various strands of the New Jersey Core Content Curriculum Standards. Differentiated instruction is an integral element of a balanced literacy approach to language arts literacy instruction. Instructional activities and materials are included in the curriculum units; however, teachers must adapt their instruction to meet the assessed needs of their students each year. When students are provided with materials and instruction aligned to their strengths and areas of need, they develop not only skills in oral and written language, comprehension, and critical thinking, but also grow socially and emotionally. Through the conversation and sharing of learning that takes place in a balanced literacy classroom, students become part of a true community of learners.

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 K-5 Language Arts Literacy Curriculum Guide Committees:

Summer 2006:

Hope Blecher-Sass, Literacy Coach John Marshall Mary Callahan, CRT Menlo Park Michelle Ferrer, Washington Tory Kowalski, Woodbrook Lisa LaRoche, Woodbrook Cherri Lee-Garcia, Menlo Park Roberta Macy, Lincoln Erin Madara, Ben Franklin Ashleigh Snow, James Monroe Tracey Stricker, Lincoln 2006-2007 School Year:

Hope Blecher-Sass, Literacy Coach John Marshall Janis Duer, JMP Colleen Hamrah, CRT Washington Frances Imperato, Reading Specialist MLK Roberta Macy, Lincoln Erin Madara, Grade 3 Ben Franklin Dalia Mirrione, CRT JMI Pat Norman, CRT Ben Franklin Tracey Stricker, CRT Lincoln Heidi Wehrfritz, Washington Kelly Wojcik, Grade 1 MLK Summer 2007:

Denise Adams, Menlo Park Janis Duer, JMP Lauren Feldman, Menlo Park Michelle Ferrer, Washington Jennifer Mitchell, John Marshall Susan Riolo, JMP Tracey Stricker, Lincoln Heidi Wehrfritz, Washington Kelly Wojcik, MLK Summer 2008

Denise Adams, Menlo Park Anne Diehl, Woodbrook Lauren Feldman, Menlo Park Ashleigh Snow, James Monroe Allison Tavares, Lindeneau Heidi Wehrfritz, Washington Kelly Wojcik, Martin Luther King Coordinated by: Lois Hagie and Suzanne Capraro, Elementary Supervisors

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 INTRODUCTION

The most precious resource teachers have is time. Regardless of how much time a course is scheduled for, it is never enough to accomplish all that one would like. Therefore, it is imperative that teachers utilize the time they have wisely in order to maximize the potential for all students to achieve the desired learning. High quality educational programs are characterized by clearly stated goals for student learning, teachers who are well-informed and skilled in enabling students to reach those goals, program designs that allow for continuous growth over the span of years of instruction, and ways of measuring whether students are achieving program goals. The Edison Township School District Curriculum Template

The Edison Township School District has embraced the backward-design model as the foundation for all curriculum development for the educational program. When reviewing curriculum documents and the Edison Township curriculum template, aspects of the backward-design model will be found in the stated enduring understandings/essential questions, unit assessments, and instructional activities. Familiarization with backward-deign is critical to working effectively with Edison‟s curriculum guides. Guiding Principles: What is Backward Design? What is Understanding by Design?

„Backward design‟ is an increasingly common approach to planning curriculum and instruction. As its name implies, „backward design‟ is based on defining clear goals, providing acceptable evidence of having achieved those goals, and then working „backward‟ to identify what actions need to be taken that will ensure that the gap between the current status and the desired status is closed.

Building on the concept of backward design, Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe (2005) have developed a structured approach to planning programs, curriculum, and instructional units. Their model asks educators to state goals; identify deep understandings, pose essential questions, and specify clear evidence that goals, understandings, and core learning have been achieved.

Program based on backward design use desired results to drive decisions. With this design, there are questions to consider, such as: What should students understand, know, and be able to do? What does it look like to meet those goals? What kind of program will result in the outcomes stated? How will we know students have achieved that result? What other kinds of evidence will tell us that we have a quality program? These questions apply regardless of whether they are goals in program planning or classroom instruction.

The backward design process involves three interrelated stages for developing an entire curriculum or a single unit of instruction. The relationship from planning to curriculum design, development, and implementation hinges upon the integration of the following three stages.

Stage I: Identifying Desired Results: Enduring understandings, essential questions, knowledge and skills need to be woven into curriculum publications, documents, standards, and scope and sequence materials. Enduring understandings identify the “big ideas” that students will grapple with during the course of the unit. Essential questions provide a unifying focus for the unit and

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 students should be able to more deeply and fully answer these questions as they proceed through the unit. Knowledge and skills are the “stuff” upon which the understandings are built.

Stage II: Determining Acceptable Evidence: Varied types of evidence are specified to ensure that students demonstrate attainment of desired results. While discrete knowledge assessments (e.g.: multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank, short answer, etc…) will be utilized during an instructional unit, the overall unit assessment is performance-based and asks students to demonstrate that they have mastered the desired understandings. These culminating (summative) assessments are authentic tasks that students would likely encounter in the real-world after they leave school. They allow students to demonstrate all that they have learned and can do. To demonstrate their understandings students can explain, interpret, apply, provide critical and insightful points of view, show empathy and/or evidence self-knowledge. Models of student performance and clearly defined criteria (i.e.: rubrics) are provided to all students in advance of starting work on the unit task.

Stage III: Designing Learning Activities: Instructional tasks, activities, and experiences are aligned with stages one and two so that the desired results are obtained based on the identified evidence or assessment tasks. Instructional activities and strategies are considered only once stages one and two have been clearly explicated. Therefore, congruence among all three stages can be ensured and teachers can make wise instructional choices.

At the curricular level, these three stages are best realized as a fusion of research, best practices, shared and sustained inquiry, consensus building, and initiative that involves all stakeholders. In this design, administrators are instructional leaders who enable the alignment between the curriculum and other key initiatives in their district or schools. These leaders demonstrate a clear purpose and direction for the curriculum within their school or district by providing support for implementation, opportunities for revision through sustained and consistent professional development, initiating action research activities, and collecting and evaluating materials to ensure alignment with the desired results. Intrinsic to the success of curriculum is to show how it aligns with the overarching goals of the district, how the document relates to district, state, or national standards, what a high quality educational program looks like, and what excellent teaching and learning looks like. Within education, success of the educational program is realized through this blend of commitment and organizational direction.

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4

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Structure of Balanced Literacy for Grades 3 to 5 - Revised 2010 Elements of the workshop structure are to be scheduled in one consecutive block of time within the classroom time restraints with a total of 135 minutes of Language Arts Literacy daily for grade 3 and 120 minutes daily for grades 4 to 5. All of these elements lend themselves to natural integration across all subjects as children will have opportunities to apply Language Arts Literacy skills in all of their other content areas.

The Workshop Model The Workshop Model uses a recurring architecture to provide effective instruction for reading and writing.

The Connection reflects upon prior learning and precisely tells the children what will be taught during the lesson.

The Teaching Point is the specific strategy or skill expected within the children‟s own work explicitly taught by the teacher or demonstrated through mentor texts.

The Active Engagement provides an opportunity for children to try what has just been modeled or demonstrated by the teacher.

The Link to the ongoing work of the day‟s workshop is given as the teacher states his/her expectations for the day‟s independent time. This sets the stage for the independent

time to be used productively.

Independent Time allows each student to apply the skill or concepts previously presented on his/her own terms. The teacher observes and provides scaffolds to support

students in their development. This might be through assessments, individual conferences or small group instruction in order to differentiate instruction.

The Mid-WorkshopTeaching Point is a quick interruption for the teacher to restate, reteach, and/or refocus the readers and writers before resuming their work.

The Teaching Share is a time for closure in a whole group setting. The teacher facilitates reflection on the day‟s work through question such as, “What did I learn as a reader, writer, or as thinker today? How will this help me in my work to be a lifelong learner?” This sets the stage for the next workshops.

Writing Workshop Direct, explicit whole group instruction that writers can apply to their self-

selected pieces within the genre study

Essential element of the workshop is the time allowed for children to do what writers do, write!

Conferring is the opportunity for the writer to receive feedback and learn

something new that can be applied to their current and future writing.

Flexible small group instruction can support the common needs of the writers

Reading Workshop Direct, explicit strategy/skill instruction that readers can apply to books at all

levels

Essential element of the workshop is actual time for eyes on print with children actively engaged in reading just right books

Conferring is the opportunity for the child to receive feedback as a reader.

Flexible small group instruction can support the common needs of the readers

Reading Partnerships sharing thoughts about books

Reading Book Clubs allow for children to read multiple copies of the same

book in sync. This occurs later in the school year.

Literature Circles build toward genuine conversations about books.

Interactive Read Aloud

Direct instruction of the use of comprehension strategies, fluency, vocabulary, author's craft strategies as the teacher demonstrates and models what a proficient reader thinks while reading to comprehend text that could be beyond the readers‟ independent comprehension level

Whole group discussion and/or turn and talk sharing with peers to facilitate thorough, imaginative, and creative understanding of text

Instruction and community building within whole group setting

Essentials of listening, reflecting, commenting, and partnership work

Read aloud text can occur during science, social studies, math, or character education NOTE: Interactive Read Aloud is also highly effective when working with children who are English Language Learners (ELLs) and with children who need support with fluency. It can be done in a small group during Independent Time.

Word Work Word study with word sorts, word families, vocabulary, phonics, decoding, fluency as developmentally appropriate

See Word Study, Appendix K, of the Balanced Literacy Curriculum

Handwriting Teacher modeling letter formation, spacing, and formatting while charting across the day Direct small group instruction and independent practice as needed

Assessments Observation of the reader/writer with anecdotal records by the teacher Rubrics and/or checklists for assessing the progress of writers in the Units of Study for Teaching Writing, Developmental Stages of Writing, K-5 (district writing continuum) On-going use of Assessment of Reading Behaviors (district Running Records) as developmentally appropriate


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Before Day One… Setting the Stage for Reading and Writing

Your classroom environment sets the stage and tone for all learning that will occur within the four walls. If your classroom has a warm

and inviting atmosphere, a sense of community will be fostered. Creating an inviting classroom means reflecting comfort and

productivity throughout the daily routine. The classroom furniture and physical resources should be arranged in a manner that supports

student interaction and learning activities. You can set up the room before the children arrive in September, but as the year progresses,

you will find that the needs of your learners will sometimes necessitate reorganize and rearrangement of the floor plan. Involve the

children in considering a floor plan and reorganization of materials in the classroom, so that they take ownership in their classroom.

The social interaction of children is critical to their learning within this comfortable atmosphere. The classroom must be an envi ronment

where:

Children read and write quietly.

Children know where materials are located and know how to use them and put them away.

Conversations in small-group work and individual conferences are conducted in very soft voices or whispers.

Large group lessons are conducted in an orderly way: each student can hear and see others, and there are routines for taking turns.

Students know the daily schedule for group and individual work.

All members of the classroom community listen to one another in a respectful way.

The children‟s desks should be arranged in groups of four to six children. Children of mixed abilities can talk about and make sense of

their work together. At many times during the day, children need to work quietly to be able to concentrate and do their best work at

their own seats.

The meeting area requires several hubs in the room, which no longer allows for a front or a back of the classroom. There will be an

open, comfortable place for all to gather together for read alouds, book talks, mini-lessons, and group teaching and sharing. A chart

tablet on an easel sets the stage for the gathering of children for learning and discussions. Anchor charts can be displayed for future

reference or revising. A basket a clipboards can be located nearby for the children‟s use during whole group lessons.


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The classroom library should be a warm, inviting, and quiet area dedicated to the children's selecting of "just right" books to read

independently. These books can be organized in baskets or boxes. Each labeled basket can be organized in a child-appealing way

according to a variety of topics, (e.g., genre, author, a series, and award-winners). A few of the book baskets can have a close range of

leveled books in order to support those children who still need support when choosing a book for independent reading. Keep in mind

that the lettered level is only a guide or approximation. The child's own reading experience, strengths, and background knowledge will

help to determine if a book is "just right." The books selected for display in the classroom library should be worthy of conversation and

reflection. Provide room for learners to have a comfortable space to confer or for buddy reading partnerships.

Provide a table for small group, guided instruction with adequate space for you to gather 3-5 children at a time. A table or a group

of clustered desks would facilitate focus and sharing of ideas. Nearby materials should include paper, pencils, white boards with

markers and erasers, and sets of books appropriate for small group instruction. The teacher should have access to a larger white board

or the easel with chart paper. This space can be used throughout the day for small groups of learners to work with the teacher.

A classroom with strong reading and writing work going on is inevitably print-rich. Your classroom should reflect all the learning that

goes on within it. Items posted within the room should foster your students‟ learning. Wall space does not have to be covered with

store bought posters and charts on the first day of school. Feel free to allow the community of learners to contribute to the creation of

the charts or posters during mini-lessons. These charts serve as anchors for their new learning when the children are working

independently. When these colorful chart papers are posted in the classroom, the statement is that the classroom is truly a community

of learners that are constantly learning and growing. Just one minute in a print-rich classroom would tell a visitor that this is a space for

readers and writers. Be sure to revisit the charts and posters by referring to them as they are posted, or take one down to revise or add

new learning. Leave some space for a Word Wall. This is space that is devoted to the collection of interesting and meaningful words

encountered during read alouds, mini-lessons, or content area study in science, math, or social studies. These words can be

categorized and the lists should be added to throughout the year. This is the place to honor words and appreciate our language.


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Unit 1: Establishing the Environment for Reading Targeted Standards: 3.1 (READING) ALL STUDENTS WILL UNDERSTAND AND APPLY THE KNOWLEDGE OF SOUNDS, LETTERS, AND WORDS, IN WRITTEN ENGLISH TO BECOME INDEPENDENT AND FLUENT READERS, AND WILL READ A VARIETY OF MATERIALS AND TEXTS WITH FLUENCY AND COMPREHENSION. Unit Objectives/Conceptual Understandings: Students will understand that good readers employ strategies to help them understand text. Strategic readers can develop, select, and apply strategies to enhance their comprehension. Students will understand that in order to become lifelong readers and learners, they will benefit from daily opportunities to read books they choose for themselves, for their own purposes, and for their own pleasures. Students will understand that in order to grow as readers and deepen their understanding of texts, they need many opportunities to think about, and write about the texts they are reading. Students will understand that a diversity of reading material, including fiction and nonfiction, provides them with opportunities to grow intellectually, emotionally, and socially. Essential Questions: What makes a workshop environment successful? What does the reading workshop look like and sound like? How do readers make informed decisions about their reading? How can conversation and responding to texts enhance reading experiences? How do readers construct meaning from text? Unit Assessment: Teachers will evaluate individual students‟ understandings of unit objectives and essential questions through one-on-one conferences and observations.

Core Content Objectives

Instructional Actions

Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts

What students will know.

Skills

What students will be able to do.

Activities/Strategies

Technology Implementation/ Interdisciplinary Connections

Assessment Check Points

3.1.4.E Reading Strategies (before, during, and after reading). 1. Use knowledge of word meaning, language structure, and sound-symbol relationships to check understanding when reading. 2. Identify specific words or passages causing comprehension difficulties and seek clarification.

Reading is thinking. Reading Workshop is an organized set of language and literary experiences designed to help students become more effective readers.

Readers learn how to work together as a community, how to develop caring and respectful relationships, and support one another as well as

Use the classroom library to self-select and return books appropriately for independent reading Engage in meaningful communication about what they read Create a list of reading interests Take responsibility for their learning and supporting the

Independent Reading: The First Twenty Days of Teaching – Chapter 9 and Figure 9-1 Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6 by Fountas and Pinnell Have students complete a reading survey/interview to establish reading interests as a first step to book choices Help students become lifelong readers by allowing them to

Reading Response Journals. Individual (I.D.R. – Individualized Daily Reading), small group conferences. Use anecdotal notes gathered from these discussions. Observations within whole group, small


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Unit 1: Establishing the Environment for Reading (continued)



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





3. Select useful visual organizers before, during, and after reading to organize information (e.g., Venn diagrams). 3.1.4.G Comprehension Skills and Response to Text 1. Discuss underlying themes across cultures in various texts. 3. Cite evidence from text to support conclusions. 6. Recognize an author‟s point of view. 8. Recognize differences among forms of literature, including poetry, drama, fiction, and nonfiction. 9. Recognize literary elements in stories, including setting, characters, plot, and mood.

10. Identify some literary devices in stories. 13. Read regularly in materials appropriate for their independent reading level.

pursuing individual goals.

The classroom library is made up of fiction and non-fiction books that are grouped into different genres.

Careful readers read just right books with accuracy, fluency, and comprehension. Just right books enable children to feel powerful as readers. Readers talk, read, and write about things in which they are genuinely interested. Readers choose books in many different ways.

Readers are actively engaged in reading. Readers will know when they do not understand words or passages and require clarification.

learning of each other by respecting the rules for Reading Workshop Listen to and participate in mini-lessons Determine whether books are easy, just-right, or challenging Read silently during a designated time building reading stamina Use strategies to help clarify unknown words or text passages Stop and jot notes while reading to prepare for reading response, conferring with teachers/partners, and writing response letters Document their reading choices Categorize genres of fiction and nonfiction to expand reading interests Utilize cooperative learning structures to discuss literature

independently choose books they enjoy Allow students to participate in all the choices and decisions readers make Help students think of themselves as readers by reading books that they enjoy and have them participate in all the choices and decisions readers make. Have students fill out a reading interview to establish reading interests as a first step to book choices. Appendix 46, Reading Interview, Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6 by Fountas and Pinnell Create a “Reading is Thinking” chart with the class, Day 1 of The First Twenty Days of Teaching – Chapter 9. Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6, that will be systematically expanded as comprehension strategies are taught. Establish the roles and routines of the Reading Workshop. Use clear statements and model

group, and individual settings. Informal assessment of how students use strategies to comprehend. Class meetings – a time when students report in on how they are doing or to solve problems as a group.


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Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





Discuss and share books with the teacher and other students through book talks Write and share book recommendations

procedures. Chart procedures, display, and revisit when necessary. Appendix 16, Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6, by Fountas and Pinnell. Revisit discussions of choosing “just right” books from the first twenty days when students seem to struggle with books that are either too challenging or too easy. Guiding Readers and Writers, Grade s 3-6 by Fountas and Pinnell, pages 146-147, Day 3. Document various strategies to help clarify unknown words and text passages on class chart or laminated bookmarks. Refer to The 7 Keys to Comprehension, How to Help Your Kids Read It and Get It! by Zimmerman and Hutchins, Chapter 7, pages 147-166. Display anchor charts created during mini-lessons in the classroom.

Model stopping to jot thoughts while reading on sticky notes, small notepad, or Thinkmarks Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6 by Fountas and Pinnell, Appendix 15


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Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





Model your own thinking while reading and responding in a reading journal Give students a model of reading responses documented in a reading response journal Model maintaining a reading list in their reading response journals. Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6 by Fountas and Pinnell, Appendix 13 Discuss genres and chart characteristics. Practice sorting classroom reading materials into genres using key characteristics from genre lesson. Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6 by Fountas and Pinnell, pages 148-150. Use interactive Read-Alouds to establish the idea of reading, thinking about, and discussing books together as part of a reading community. Establish procedures and norms to assist in making this portion of Reading Workshop run smoothly. Making Meaning, Grade 4, Unit 1, “The Reading Life.”


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Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





Allow students to “Buzz” about their reading. Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6 by Fountas and Pinnell page 148. Model cooperative structures such as Turn to Your Partner, and Think, Pair, Share to aid in analyzing text and reinforcing the idea of the reading community. These structures are imbedded in Unit 1 lessons in Making Meaning, Grade 4. Model how to write a book recommendation using organizer or index cards. Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6 by Fountas and Pinnell, pages 157-158

Resources: Essential Materials, Supplementary Materials, Links to Best Practices NJ Core Content Curriculum Standards Classroom and School Libraries (fiction and non-fiction text, short articles, references materials, and other forms of literature) “Children‟s Books Sorted by Craft or Strategy for Teacher Read-Alouds” (Available on district website) Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6, Teaching Comprehension, Genre, and Content Literacy by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell, Chapter 9, “Getting Started: The First 20 Days of Independent Reading”

Instructional Adjustments: Modifications, student difficulties, possible misunderstandings Consult IEPs and 504s to make appropriate modifications Revisit choosing “just right” books for individuals in need of assistance. Refer to books that are too challenging as “not yet” books to diffuse disappointment and build confidence as readers Conduct small group instruction to target students in need of reinforcement/enrichment of specific skills and/or strategies taught in mini-lessons


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Resources: Essential Materials, Supplementary Materials, Links to Best Practices Making Meaning: Strategies That Build Comprehension and Community, Grade 4 The 7 Keys to Comprehension, How to Help Your Kids Read It and Get It! by Susan Zimmermann and Chryse Hutchins Revisiting the Reading Workshop: Management, Mini-lessons, and Strategies by Barbara Orehovec and Marybeth Alley Science and Social Studies content area books Science and Social Studies Texts Recommended Resources: Mosaic of Thought, Teaching Comprehension in a Reader‟s Workshop, by Ellin Oliver Keene and Susan Zimmermann Strategies That Work, Teaching Comprehension to Enhance Understanding and Engagement by Stephanie Harvey and Anne Goudvis, Chapter 1 Teaching for Comprehension and Fluency, Thinking, Talking, and Writing About Reading, K-8 by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell

Instructional Adjustments: Modifications, student difficulties, possible misunderstandings Use an Alpha Smart or a computer for children who struggle with writing. Encourage them to type their journal responses. For more advanced students: choose more difficult texts and work in small groups if needed.


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Unit 2: Establishing the Environment for Writing Workshop Targeted Standards: 3.2 (WRITING) ALL STUDENTS WRITE IN A CLEAR, CONCISE, ORGANIZED LANGUAGE THAT VARIES IN CONTENT AND FORM FOR DIFFERENT AUDIENCES AND PURPOSES. Unit Objectives/Conceptual Understandings: Students will understand that writing is a complex process that begins with the recording of one‟s thoughts. Students will understand that writing is used for composition, communication, expression, learning, and engaging the reader. Students will understand that writing should be appreciated not only as a product, but also as a mode of thinking and communicating. Students will understand that good writers use a repertoire of strategies that enables them to vary form and style, in order to write for different purposes, audiences, and contexts. Essential Questions: How do good writers express themselves? How does process shape the writer‟s product? What will Writing Workshop look like in our classroom? What procedures will we follow to make Writer‟s Workshop successful? What do writers do during Writing Workshop? Unit Assessment: Teachers will evaluate individual students‟ understandings of unit objectives and essential questions through one-on-one conferences and observations.



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





3.2.4.A Writing as a Process (prewriting, revising, editing, postwriting) 1. Generate possible ideas for writing through talking, recalling experiences, hearing stories, reading, discussing models of writing, asking questions, and brainstorming. 2. Develop an awareness of form, structure, and author‟s voice in various genres. 3. Use strategies such as

The writing classroom is made up of accessible writing tools (pencils, different kinds of paper, clipboards, erasers, dictionaries, thesauruses, commonly misspelled words, etc.) as well as comfortable seating arrangements for successful writers. Writers follow specific guidelines to work effectively as a member of a writing community. Writers follow the writing process. They brainstorm,

Demonstrate respect, support, and maintain a sense of community during Writing Workshop Follow routines, know how supplies are organized, and how time is arranged Recognize and appreciate the read-aloud as a model that fosters a sense of community Organize ideas for writing in writer‟s notebook

Recall experiences and

Discuss expectations with students. Revisit as often as necessary. Develop a class list of guidelines for Writing Workshop. Page 62 and Appendix 11 in Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6, by Fountas and Pinnell Introduce materials in mini-lessons so that the students understand how they are used, how to get them and put them back. Page 59 in Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6, by Fountas and Pinnell

Individual conferences

Informal assessment during guided writing groups Informal observations Anecdotal records

Notebook check Author‟s Chair


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Unit 2: Establishing the Environment for Writing Workshop (continued)



Cumulative

Progress Indicators

Concepts


Skills





reflecting on personal experiences, reading, doing interviews or research, and using graphic organizers to generate and organize ideas for writing.

3.2.4.8 (Writing as a Product (resulting in a formal product or publication) 4. Build knowledge of the characteristics and structures of a variety of genres.

5. Sharpen focus and improve coherence by considering the relevancy of included details, and adding, deleting, and rearranging appropriately.

6. Write sentences of varying lengths and complexity, using specific nouns, verbs, and descriptive words.

7. Recognize the difference between complete sentences and sentence fragments and examine the uses of each in real-world writing.

compose rough drafts, engage in peer conferences and teacher conferences, write final copies, and publish. Writing Workshop is a predictable and structured component of each day. A writer‟s notebook is a place where writers can produce and organize their ideas for writing. Writers use many different strategies to generate ideas for writing. Using graphic organizers can assist with planning writing. Writers use examples of great writing from books to develop the writing craft.

determine which ideas would create meaningful stories Distinguish strategies necessary for specific types of writing (e.g. personal narrative vs. expository) Incorporate feelings and opinions to reflect author‟s voice Analyze samples of author‟s voice and specific types of writing Select which graphic organizer is appropriate for writing purpose

Develop consistent and predictable Writing Workshop procedures and structure. Develop lessons based on appropriate sessions from Launching the Writer‟s Workshop from Units of Study for Teaching Writing Grades 3-5 by Calkins Have students create Writer‟s Notebooks Read Aloud texts which resemble those you hope your students will soon write. These books can help children see that the stories they have been telling each other are literature. Use teacher models, student models, and mentor texts. Craft Lessons, Teaching Writing K-8, page 10 by Fletcher and Portalupi Share teacher‟s writing (at all stages of the Writing Process) and use inspirational language referring to the students as “writers” and “authors” to reinforce their role as writers. Ask students to think about a particular person, place, or thing to spark ideas (e.g., Launching the Writing Workshop from Units

Writing Process Checklist or Chart Writing folder for works in progress Formal assessment of final pieces using rubrics (e.g., Assessment Rubric for Launching the Writing Workshop, by Lucy Calkins and Marjorie Martenelli Development of a portfolio


18




Cumulative

Progress Indicators

Concepts


Skills





8. Improve the clarity of writing by rearranging words, sentences, and paragraphs. 9. Examine real-world writing to expand knowledge of sentences, paragraphs, usage, and authors‟ writing styles. 10. Provide logical sequence and support the purpose of writing by refining organizational structure and developing transitions between ideas. 11. Engage the reader from beginning to end with an interesting opening, logical sequence, and satisfying conclusion. 3.2.4.D Writing Forms, Audiences, and Purposes (exploring a variety of writing) 4. Write independently to satisfy personal, academic, and social needs (e.g. stories,

of Study for Teaching Writing Grades 3-5 by Lucy Calkins) Use author biographies to demonstrate how real authors have brainstormed (e.g., use author‟s homepages on the internet, such as www.PatriciaPolacco.com as resources). Model how you (teacher) would brainstorm. Think Alouds (e.g., Writer‟s Express) Create class list of possible writing topics. Model using books to produce writing topics Use mentor texts for types of writing and to spark topics for writing Use Read Alouds to demonstrate author‟s voice. (e.g., Craft Lessons: Teaching Writing K-8 by Portalupi and Fletcher, page 54) Develop partnerships and small groups for sharing and peer work Model the use of graphic organizers

http://www.patriciapolacco.com/


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Cumulative

Progress Indicators

Concepts


Skills





summaries, letters, or poetry).

Individualized conferences with writers that shape independence:

guided conferences: teach student something he/she needs to know about writing and try it together. Teacher is there for immediate support.

conferences that support the teaching of the mini-lesson: follow-up on teaching of a new strategy or understanding of the mini-lesson.

conferences that extend the teaching of the mini-lesson: teach something that builds on the mini-lesson and extends student learning.

conferences that develop the reader: support the writer as he/she is developing skills needed to become a life-long writer.

Resources: Essential Materials, Supplementary Materials, Links to Best Practices NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards Guiding Readers and Writers: Grades 3-6, Teaching Comprehension, Genre, and Content Literacy by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell

Instructional Adjustments: Modifications, student difficulties, possible misunderstandings Consult IEP‟s and 504 Plans and make appropriate modifications.


20


Resources: Essential Materials, Supplementary Materials, Links to Best Practices Craft Lessons, Teaching Writing K-8 by Joann Portalupi and Ralph Fletcher Writer‟s Express by Dave Kemper, Ruth Nathan, and Patrick Sebranek Units of Study for Teaching Writing Grades 3-5: Launching the Writing Workshop by Lucy Calkins and Marjorie Martinelli Teachers College Reading and Writing Project: 4

th- 5

th Grade Writing Curriculum

(http://books.heinemann.com/shared/onlineresources/E00870/writinggr4-5ccal.pdf) Recommended Resources: A Writer‟s Notebook: Unlocking the Writer Within You by Ralph Fletcher Notebook Know How Strategies for the Writer‟s Notebook by Aimee Buckner Revisiting the Writing Workshop, Management, Assessment, and Mini-Lessons by Marybeth Alley and Barbara Orehovec The Art of Teaching Writing by Lucy Calkins The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Writing by Judy Davis and Sharon Hill The Writing Workshop, Working through the Hard Parts (And They're All Hard Parts) by Katie Wood Ray and Lester Laminack Wondrous Words, Writers and Writing in the Elementary Classroom by Katie Wood Ray If You Were a Writer by Nixon (brainstorming) Wilford Gordon Mac Donald Partridge by Mem Fox (memories) Up North at the Cabin by Marsha Wilson Chall (memories) Nothing Ever Happens On 90

th Street by Roni Schotter (brainstorming, spark recognition)

Instructional Adjustments: Modifications, student difficulties, possible misunderstandings Use more/less advanced materials and texts. Revisit mini-lessons. Continue to model strategies. Frequency of conferences (individual/small group) Provide more teacher support (e.g., more sample narratives, more modeling of the process of writing the narrative). Conduct specific mini-lessons to target areas of need or enrichment. Conduct small guided writing group lessons to target students in need of reinforcement or enrichment of specific skills. Use AlphaSmart or computer word-processing software


21

Unit 3: Writing Response Letters to Literature Targeted Standards: 3.1 (READING) ALL STUDENTS WILL UNDERSTAND AND APPLY THE KNOWLEDGE OF SOUNDS, LETTERS, AND WORDS IN WRITTEN ENGLISH TO BECOME INDEPENDENT AND FLUENT READERS, AND WILL READ A VARIETY OF MATERIALS AND TEXTS WITH FLUENCY AND COMPREHENSION. 3.2 (WRITING) ALL STUDENTS WILL WRITE IN CLEAR, CONCISE, ORGANIZED LANGUAGE THAT VARIES IN CONTENT AND FORM FOR DIFFERENT AUDIENCES AND PURPOSES. Unit Objectives/Conceptual Understandings: Students will understand that reading is thinking and that their thoughts and understanding of literature may be expressed in the form of a letter. Essential Questions: How does the use of active reading strategies help me to understand what I read? How is my understanding of literature enhanced by writing about my thinking? Unit Assessment: Since this unit continues for the entire school year, assessment is on-going. Letters demonstrating students' progress should be collected in portfolios.



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





3.1.4.G Comprehension Skills and Response to Text 1. Discuss underlying themes across cultures in various texts. 2. Distinguish cause and effect, fact and opinion, main idea, and supporting details in nonfiction texts (e.g., science, social studies). 3. Cite evidence from text to support conclusions.

4. Understand author‟s opinions and how they address culture, ethnicity, gender, and historical periods.

Reading is thinking. Readers use comprehension strategies to understand and interact with texts. Readers can communicate their thoughts and ideas about texts through letter writing.

Write using correct letter format Demonstrate use of comprehension strategies (with emphasis on inferring and synthesizing) Use specific evidence/text references to support ideas Develop an on-going correspondence with teacher regarding independent reading Proofread letters to improve sentence structure, grammar, and mechanics Reflect on final copies,

Remind/remodel format and content of reading response letters. Days 11-15 of "The First Twenty Days of Independent Reading," Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6 by Fountas and Pinnell Develop lessons based on Literary Essays: Writing About Reading (Units of Study for Teaching Writing, Grades 3-5), emphasizing Session II (“Gathering Writing by Close Reading”) and Session VII (“Finding and Testing a Thesis Statement”) Examine real-world examples

On-going collection of letters Informal observations Individual conferencing at various points in the process Informal assessment of stop and jot responses and letters Informal assessment during small group instruction Formal assessment of

http://education.state.nj.us/cccs/?_cpi;cpi_uid=3.1.4.G.2






22

Unit 3: Writing Response Letters to Literature (continued)



Cumulative Progress Indicators

Concepts What students will know

Skills What students will be able to do

Activities/Strategies Technology Implementation/ Interdisciplinary Connections


6. Recognize an author‟s point of view.

7. Identify and summarize central ideas in informational texts.

8. Recognize differences among forms of literature, including poetry, drama, fiction, and non-fiction.

9. Recognize literary elements in stories, including setting, characters, plot, and mood.

10. Identify some literary devices in stories.

13. Read regularly in materials appropriate for their independent reading level. 3.2.4.A Writing as a Process (prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, postwriting) 2. Develop an awareness of form, structure, and author‟s voice in various genres.

comparing to elements of a rubric

of letters. Discuss purpose and content. Introduce model letter. Identify essential elements and proper format. Generate a class list of topics to address in letters. Students reflect on the meaning of a text. Use sticky notes to record thinking. Use graphic organizers to structure letter. Embedded lessons in interactive read-aloud, reading mini-lesson, reading conference, and response letter from teacher: Model aloud the thinking of a

good reader (e.g., “This reminds me of . . . ,” “I am wondering . . . ,” “I can tell that . . . ,”)

Model the expression of this thinking in letter format. Reinforce this type of thinking

and expression during conferences

letter using rubric


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4. Draft writing in a selected genre with supporting structure according to the intended message, audience, and purpose for writing. 5. Revise drafts by rereading for meaning, narrowing the focus, elaborating, reworking organization, openings, and closings, and improving word choice and consistency of voice. 7. Review and edit work for spelling, mechanics, clarity, and fluency. 9. Use computer writing applications during most of the writing process. 10. Understand and apply elements of grade- appropriate rubrics to improve and evaluate writing. 11. Reflect on one‟s writing, noting strengths and areas needing improvement. 3.2.4.C Mechanics, Spelling, and Handwriting 1. Use Standard English conventions that are appropriate

Comment on the writer‟s thinking in the response letters. Use transparency on overhead projector or enlarged print on a chart. Show a sample letter response to a book read aloud. Highlight sentences that show the best thinking. Invite students to choose a letter they have written that shows their best thinking. Have them write a few sentences or a paragraph telling why they think that it is a thoughtful letter. Read aloud a story. Invite students to write a letter in response to it and share their letters in small groups. Encourage students to notice strengths and make suggestions. In a letter to the class, model how to get beyond a simple retelling by briefly reporting something that happened in a book. In a different colored marker, tell thoughts and feelings about what happened. Analyze to compare what was written in the two different colors. Use books read together as models to evaluate author‟s craft.


24









to the grade level, such as sentence structure, grammar and usage, punctuation, capitalization, spelling, and handwriting. 3.2.4.D Writing Forms, Audiences, Purposes (exploring a variety of writing) 3. Develop independence by setting self-selected purposes and generating topics for writing. 4. Write independently to satisfy personal, academic, and social needs (i.e., stories, summaries, letters, or poetry). 5. Use writing to paraphrase, clarify, and reflect on new learning across the curriculum. 6. Respond to literature in writing to demonstrate an understanding of the text, to explore personal reactions, and to connect to personal experiences with the text. 11. Demonstrate higher-order thinking skills through responses to open-ended and essay

Engage students in a discussion about a particular aspect (e.g., Does the title work? Is the language appropriate? Are the characters believable?). Direct the students to focus one paragraph of their letters to address specific questions. Individualized conferences with writers that shape independence:

guided conferences: teach student something he/she needs to know about writing and try it together. Teacher is there for immediate support.





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questions in content areas or as responses to literature.

13. Demonstrate the development of a personal style and voice in writing.

14. Review scoring criteria of a writing rubric.

15. Develop a collection of writings (e.g., a literacy folder or a literacy portfolio).

Resources: Essential Materials, Supplementary Materials, Links to Best Practices NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6, Teaching Comprehension, Genre, and Content Literacy by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell, Chapters 9 and 10 Units of Study for Teaching Writing, Grades 3-5 by Lucy Calkins and colleagues Teachers College Reading and Writing Project: 4


(http://books.heinemann.com/shared/onlineresources/E00870/writinggr4ccal.pdf) Scholastic Guided Reading Collections Classroom and School Libraries Curriculum Units for Grade 4:

Grade 4 Balanced Literacy: Inferring

Grade 4 Balanced Literacy: Synthesizing

Instructional Adjustments: Modifications, student difficulties, possible misunderstandings Consult IEPs and 504s and make appropriate modifications. Provide more teacher support (e.g., more sample letters, a letter template, graphic organizers, more modeling of thinking while reading and letter writing. Conduct specific mini-lessons to target areas of need/enrichment. Conduct small group instruction to target students in need of reinforcement/enrichment of specific skills and/or strategies. Assist students when choosing books. Adjust text student is reading to one of a higher or lower level.

http://books.heinemann.com/shared/onlineresources/E00870/writinggr4ccal.pdf


26


Recommended Resources(available in school lending library of professional books): Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency, Thinking, Talking, and Writing About Reading, K-8 by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell, Chapter 27

Instructional Adjustments: Modifications, student difficulties, possible misunderstandings Use AlphaSmart or computer word-processing software.


27

Unit 4: Inferring Targeted Standards: 3.1 (READING) ALL STUDENTS WILL UNDERSTAND AND APPLY THE KNOWLEDGE OF SOUNDS, LETTERS, AND WORDS IN WRITTEN ENGLISH TO BECOME INDEPENDENT AND FLUENT READERS, AND WILL READ A VARIETY OF MATERIALS AND TEXTS WITH FLUENCY AND COMPREHENSION. Unit Objectives/Conceptual Understandings: Students will understand that good readers employ strategies to help them understand text. Students will understand that combining schema with new information will enable them to make predictions, confirm or contradict predictions, seek answers to questions, draw conclusions, and create interpretations. Essential Questions: How do readers construct meaning from text? How do authors reveal information to readers without directly stating in texts? How can readers identify underlying thoughts, feelings and opinions of the characters based upon what is stated? How can readers evaluate what the author is really trying to say? How do readers use background knowledge and schema with information from texts to make inferences? How do readers evaluate informational texts to determine underlying causes of events? Unit Assessment: Teacher-developed assessment through which students demonstrate understanding of unit objectives and essential questions related to this unit.



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts

What students will know

Skills

What students will be able to do




3.1.4.E Reading Strategies (before, during, and after reading) 3. Select useful visual organizers before, during, and after reading to organize information (e.g., Venn diagrams.) 3.1.3.G Comprehension Skills and Response to Text 5. Recognize how authors use humor, sarcasm, and imagery to extend meaning. 6. Discuss underlying theme or

Reading is thinking. An inference is a personal discovery about what the author didn't quite specifically write. Combining schema with text information enables theories about the significance of events or inferences to be formed. Writers give clues, but readers have to gather evidence and draw conclusions.

Identify implicit and explicit meaning in text Differentiate between the literal and implied meaning of text Utilize implicit and explicit meaning of texts to create theories about characters' behavior, events, theories and/or plots Develop empathy for characters by exploring explicit and implicit meaning.

Read Alouds: model how to infer meaning from prior knowledge and from clues provided by the author within the text Encourage thinking aloud about inferring in large and small groups Reading Mini-lesson, “context Clues: Inferring Word Meaning” Scientific Reading Assessment, Targeted Intervention and Follow-up Lessons by

Evidence of understanding demonstrated through Individual Reading Conferences, Reader's Response Letters/Notebooks, Evidence that the reader is making inferences (e.g., understanding what is not stated but is implied in the text, interpreting characters'


28

Unit 4: Inferring (continued)








message in interpreting fiction.

8. Draw conclusions and inferences from texts. 3.1.4.G Comprehension Skills and Response to Text 1. Discuss underlying themes across cultures in various texts. 2. Distinguish cause and effect, fact and opinion, main idea, and supporting details in non-fiction texts (e.g., science, social studies). 3. Cite evidence from text to support conclusions. 13. Read regularly in materials appropriate for their independent level. 3.1.5.G Comprehension Skills and Response to Text 9. Make inferences using textual information and provide supporting evidence.

Inferential thinking includes feeling empathy for characters, laughing at a joke, discovering an answer to a riddle, getting a sense about the setting of a story, reacting to facts, and solving a mystery.

Inferring enables readers to create meaning and deepen understanding of texts.

Use sensory images related to character, setting, problem, theme or topic Create an inference about what is not clearly stated by the author by connecting schema with the clues from the text or pictures Develop theories that explain characters' motives or events Compare/contrast schema with information from texts to formulate acceptable theories regarding characters, setting, plot or theme. Evaluate acceptable theories to deny or confirm the viability. Make conclusions that are not stated but are based on information found in the text or illustrations.

Maryann Manning, Shelly Chumley, Clark Underbakke pages 55 to 56 Students make inferences to understand text as they explore the difference between explicit and implicit meanings in text utilizing read alouds. "Making Inferences 1" unit 4, Making Meaning, pages 207-272

Hurricane

Sami and the Time of the Troubles

My Man Blue Students make inferences to understand character and continue to use text structure to explore narrative text, utilizing read alouds. "Making Inferences 2" unit 5, Making Meaning, pages 275 -346

Amelia's Road

Peppe the Lamplighter

Coming to America

A Picture Book of Harriet Tubman

Students make inferences to understand text and think about important and supporting ideas in

motivations, expressing what the author might have meant). Stop and jots during read alouds or independent reading Observations and anecdotal notes Graphic Organizers Conferring with readers: "What clues did the author give you to help you figure out the text?" "How did making an inference help you better understand the text?" "How did your own personal experiences help you understand what you were reading?" Open-ended responses


29









texts utilizing read alouds. Making Meaning, Weeks 1 and 2, pages 348-377

Flight

A Picture Book of Harriet Tubman

Double-Entry Journals: What I read/What I inferred I Wonder Charts - using clues to support reasonable response. Literature Circles Students use context clues to infer word meaning. "Context Clues: Inferring Word Meaning," Scientific Reading Assessment: Targeted Intervention and Follow-up Lessons by Maryann Manning, Shelly Chumley, and Clark Underbakke, pages 55-56 Students use descriptive and example context clues. "Context Clues: Descriptions and Examples," Scientific Reading Assessment: Targeted Intervention and Follow-up Lessons by


30









Maryann Manning, Shelly Chumley, and Clark Underbakke, pages 45 - 47 Model inferring and create anchor chart. "Classroom Connections: Drawing Inferences," The 7 Keys to Comprehension: How to Help Your Kids Read It and Get It! by Susan Zimmermann and Chryse Hutchins, pages 113-117 Reading mini-lessons:

Theme

Inferential subheadings in nonfiction text.

Word recognition using context clues.

Determining what the reader already knows about the text information.

Supporting prediction using clues from text

Sharing text interpretations


31









Utilize cartoons to predict what is happening by clues in the illustration.

Poetry analysis - Using sensory images identify the author's message Guided reading lessons focusing on inferring to enhance understanding based on the needs of the flexible group Guided Reading to improve comprehension at students‟ instructional levels Sharing interpretations of poems incorporating schema.

Resources: Essential Materials, Supplementary Materials, Links to Best Practices

NJ Core Content Curriculum Standards: NJ Standards Clarification Project, Phase I (http://www.nj.gov/education/aps/njscp) Scholastic Guided Reading Collection Classroom and School Libraries (fiction and non-fiction text, short articles and other forms of literature) Children‟s Books Sorted by Craft or Strategy for Teacher Read Alouds (available on District Website)

Instructional Adjustments: Modifications, student difficulties, possible misunderstandings Follow learning strategies and modifications as stated in an IEP or 504 Plan Model creating inferences in small group setting Provide introductions that link to student background and build schema before reading Engage in rich conversations before, during, and after reading


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Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6, Teaching Comprehension, Genre, and Content Literacy by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell, Chapter 21, “ Teaching for Connecting and Expanding Strategies in Guided Reading” Making Meaning, Strategies That Build Comprehension and Community, Unit 4: "Making Inferences 1," and Unit 5: "Making Inferences 2," and Unit 6: "Exploring Important Ideas and Summarizing" Mosaic of Thought by Ellin Keene and Susan Zimmermann, Chapter 8, “ The Intersection of Meaning: Inferring” Revisiting the Reading Workshop: Management, Mini-lessons, and Strategies by Barbara Orehovec and Marybeth Alley Scientific Reading Assessment: Targeted Intervention and Follow-up Lessons by Maryann Manning, Shelly Chumley, and Clark Underbakke Strategies that Work: Teaching Comprehension for Understanding and Engagement, by Stephaine Harvey and Anne Goudvis, Chapter 8, “Visualizing and Inferring: Strategies That Enhance Understanding” The 7 Keys to Comprehension, How to Help Your Kids Read It and Get It! by Susan Zimmermann and Chryse Hutchins, Chapter 5 “Weaving Sense Into Words, key 4: Drawing Inferences” Websites for graphic organizers: http://www.eduplace.com/graphicorganizer/ http://school.discovery.com/schrockguide/assess.html#go Recommended Resources: Reading with Meaning, Teaching Comprehension in the Primary Grades by Debbie Miller, Chapter 8, “Inferring” Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency, Thinking Talking, and Writing About Reading, K-8 by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell, Chapter 5, “Helping Students Develop Systems of Strategic Actions for Expanding Thinking”

Instructional Adjustments: Modifications, student difficulties, possible misunderstandings Provide explicit instruction for the use of creating inferences to better understand text prior to reading. Have students respond orally prior to written responses Use an Alpha Smart or a computer for children who struggle with writing. Encourage them to type their journal responses Increase the time pupils spend reading books on their independent level Pair struggling readers with more proficient readers Confer with struggling readers more frequently stressing the identifying clues found in text to support inferences Introduce struggling readers to series books or author studies to provide similar structure of text Use graphic organizers to provide structure to inferring: schema + author's clues = inference For more advanced students: choose more difficult texts and work in small groups as needed


33

Unit 5: Synthesizing Targeted Standards: 3.1 (READING) ALL STUDENTS WILL UNDERSTAND AND APPLY THE KNOWLEDGE OF SOUNDS, LETTERS, AND WORDS IN WRITTEN ENGLISH TO BECOME INDEPENDENT AND FLUENT READERS, AND WILL READ A VARIETY OF MATERIALS AND TEXTS WITH FLUENCY AND COMPREHENSION. Unit Objectives/Conceptual Understandings: Students will understand that good readers employ strategies to help them understand text. Students will understand that the thought process of combining new information with existing knowledge will assist in the formation of original ideas, new ways of thinking, or new creations. Essential Questions: How do readers construct meaning from text? How are readers' opinions and ideas influenced y reading texts? How do readers identify "new" thinking after reading texts? How do readers combine new information with their own existing ideas to create new ideas? How do ideas become clearer as a result of reading? Unit Assessment: Teacher-developed assessment through which students demonstrate understanding of unit objectives and essential questions related to this unit.



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills

What students willl be able to do


Technology Implementation/ Interdisciplinary

Connections


3.1.4.E Reading Strategies (before, during, and after reading) 3. Select useful organizers before, during, and after reading to organize information (e.g., Venn diagrams.) 3.1.3.G Comprehension Skills and Response to Text 4. Ask how, why, and what-if questions in interpreting nonfiction texts. 11. Participate in creative responses to texts (e.g.,

Reading is thinking. Readers integrate information from the text and from their own schemas to create new understandings. Readers acquire new information to add to what is previously known and reorganizing existing information. Retelling what has been read can lead to synthesizing.

Develop new understanding from reading a text Summarize important information and then add personal thinking as synthesizing to formulate new meaning Integrate new information into existing personal, environmental, and literal knowledge Think about what the text really means

Read Alouds: model synthesizing and explain how this strategy helps a reader make sense of text Examine text illustrations to lead to deeper understanding Encourage thinking aloud about synthesizing in large and small groups Model and encourage students to support new conclusions with ideas from

Evidence of understanding demonstrated through Individual Reading Conferences, Reader's Response Letters/Notebooks Evidence that the reader is synthesizing new information (e.g., identifying new learning, expressing curiosity about learning more) Daily Monitoring


34

Unit 5: Synthesizing (continued) Core Content Objectives


Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





dramatizations, oral presentations). 14. Use information and reasoning to examine bases of hypotheses and opinions. 3.1.4.G Comprehension Skills and Response to Text 3. Cite evidence from text to support conclusions. 6. Recognize an author‟s point of view. 7. Identify and summarize central ideas in informational text. 9. Recognize literary elements in stories, including setting, characters, plot, and mood. 3.1.4.H Inquiry and Research 3. Read independently and research topics using a variety of materials to satisfy personal, academic, and social needs, and produce evidence of reading.

Integrating new knowledge with prior knowledge deepens understanding of topics, concepts, or ideas. Thinking evolves in the process of reading while monitoring overall meaning, important concepts, and themes in texts. Synthesizing is a way of learning and makes reading worthwhile and pleasurable.

Think about how the text fits or doesn't fit with what is already known Encounter new ideas, compare to current attitudes, and decide whether to change thinking Expand personal understanding by incorporating experience lived vicariously through text Synthesize to understand what has been read more clearly. Take in essential facts and ask, “What does it all mean to me?" Paraphrasing information learned through reading

texts Students self-monitor: determine what the reader already knows about the text information. Explore various themes; discuss schema and how it changes as a result of reading Double-entry Journals (e.g., notes vs. thinking) Identify important details; summarize and identify the "gist" or "big idea.” Literature Circles Model the thinking involved, "Determining Importance and Synthesizing," The 7 Keys to Comprehension, How to Help Your Kids Read It and Get It! by Susan Zimmermann and Chryse Hutchins, pages 138-144 During read alouds, record thinking and questions. Discuss and summarize together.

Observations: Whole Group Small Group Individual Graphic Organizers Conferring with readers


35



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





Conversations between pairs, groups and class combining illustrations with schema After researching given topic, support "new" opinion with factual information found in text or other valid sources (e.g., present in a debate format). Individualized conferences with readers that shape independence:

Guided conferences: teach student something he/she needs to know about reading and try it together. Teacher is there for immediate support.

Conferences that support the teaching of the mini-lesson: follow-up on teaching of a new strategy or understanding of the mini-lesson.

Conferences that extend the teaching of the mini-lesson: teach something that builds on the mini-lesson and extends student learning.


36



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





Conferences that develop the reader: support the reader as he/she is developing skills needed to become a life-long reader.

Guided reading lessons focusing on synthesizing to enhance understanding based on the needs of the flexible groups. Guided Reading to improve comprehension at students‟ instructional levels

Resources: Essential Materials, Supplementary Materials, Links to Best Practices Scholastic Guided Reading Collection NJ Core Content Curriculum Standards: NJ Standards Clarification Project, Phase I http://www.nj.gov/education/aps/njscp/ Scholastic Guided Reading Collection Classroom and School Libraries (fiction and non-fiction text, short articles and other forms of literature) Children‟s Books Sorted by Craft or Strategy for Teacher Read Alouds (available on District Website) Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6, Teaching Comprehension, Genre, and Content Literacy by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell, Chapter 21, “ Teaching for Connecting and Expanding Strategies in Guided Reading” Making Meaning, Strategies That Build Comprehension and Communities, Grade 4

Instructional Adjustments: Modifications, student difficulties, possible misunderstandings Follow learning strategies and modifications as stated in an IEP or 504 Plan Model synthesizing in small group instruction. Build background knowledge before reading the text Engage in rich conversations about texts before, during, and after reading Engage students in conversations about books that within their reading levels to enable them to synthesize new information


37

Unit 5: Synthesizing (continued) Resources: Essential Materials, Supplementary Materials, Links to Best Practices Scholastic Guided Reading Collection Mosaic of Thought by Ellin Keene and Susan Zimmermann, Chapter 9, “The Contour and Substance of Meaning: Synthesis” Scientific Reading Assessment: Targeted Intervention and Follow-up Lessons by Maryann Manning, Shelly Chumley, and Clark Underbakke Strategies that Work: Teaching Comprehension for Understanding and Engagement by Stephanie Harvey and Anne Goudvis, Chapter 10, “Synthesizing Information: The Evolution of Thought” The 7 Keys to Comprehension, How to Help Your Kids Read It and Get It! by Susan Zimmermann and Chryse Hutchins, Chapter 6, “What‟s Important and Why, key 6: Synthesizing” Websites for graphic organizers: http://www.eduplace.com/graphicorganizer/ http://school.discovery.com/schrockguide/assess.html#go Website for literature for young readers: "A Different Way to Read Great Literature, K-5" http://www.googlelittrips.org/ Recommended Resources: Reading with Meaning, Teaching Comprehension in the Primary Grades by Debbie Miller, Chapter 11, “Synthesizing Information” Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency, Thinking Talking, and Writing About Reading, K-8 by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell, Chapter 5, “Helping Students Develop Systems of Strategic Actions for Expanding Thinking”

Instructional Adjustments: Modifications, student difficulties, possible misunderstandings Provide explicit instruction for the use of synthesizing to demonstrate how readers put together information from the text and from their schema in order to create new understanding Have students respond orally prior to written responses Use graphic organizers to facilitate synthesizing to form new thinking Use technology, such as books on tape, to support students' practice of applying the strategy Use an Alpha Smart or a computer for children who struggle with writing. Encourage them to type their journal responses. Provide introductions that specifically link concepts in texts. For more advanced students: Choose more difficult texts and work in small groups as needed. Use book introductions to engage students in conversation that will foster synthesis and lead them to thinking about the "big picture" of the text.


38

Unit 6: Writing Persuasive Pieces Targeted Standards: 3.2 (WRITING) ALL STUDENTS WILL WRITE IN CLEAR, CONCISE, ORGANIZED LANGUAGE THAT VARIES IN CONTENT AND FORM FOR DIFFERENT AUDIENCES AND PURPOSES. Unit Objectives/Conceptual Understandings: Students will understand that writing can be used to influence opinions and decisions. Students will understand that writers use a recursive process to generate ideas for writing, draft well developed pieces, and revisit them to enhance their work. Essential Questions: How do writers utilize their writing as a tool of persuasion? How do writers decide what persuasive techniques to use in their writing? How do writers decide what facts and opinions to include in order to influence the audience? Unit Assessment: Teachers will evaluate individual student's understanding of unit objectives and essential questions through one-on-one conferences and observations.



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills




Connections


3.2.4.A Writing as a Process (prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, postwriting)

1. Generate possible ideas for writing through talking, recalling experiences, hearing stories, reading, discussing models of writing, asking questions and brainstorming.

2. Develop an awareness of form, structure and author‟s voice in various genres. 3. Use strategies such as reflecting on personal

Persuasive pieces include string opening “hooks,” organized facts and details, persuasive techniques, and effective closings. Authors of persuasive pieces present their points of view through their writing. Writers of persuasive pieces are aware of varying points of view about their topic. Writers look to mentor texts to examine authors‟ craft and elements of persuasive writing

Identify author‟s point of view and recognize details that support this view Recognize similar form and identify specific persuasive writing elements in several literary examples Generate a point of view about a topic and support point of view with detail ideas Organize ideas for writing piece (e.g., using graphic organizer)

Develop lessons based on

sessions in Breathing Life into Essays (Units of Study for Teaching Writing, Grades 3-5) by Lucy Calkins and Cory Gillette Discuss definition of “persuasion” (see Writer‟s Express). Read example of persuasive piece (see Writer‟s Express). Each day, read additional examples of persuasive

Formal and informal observations Monitoring of individuals‟ progress through steps of the writing process Individual conferences at various points in the process Informal assessment of students‟ revisions and editing Informal assessment during guided writing


39

Unit 6: Writing Persuasive Pieces (continued) Core Content Objectives


Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills




Connections


experiences, reading, doing interviews or research, and using graphic organizers to generate and organize ideas for writing.

4. Draft writing in a selected

genre with supporting structure, according to the intended message, audience and purpose for writing.

5. Revise drafts by rereading

for meaning, narrowing focus, elaborating, reworking organization, openings and closings, improving word choice and consistency of voice.

6. Review own writing with

others to understand the reader‟s perspective and to consider ideas for revision.

7. Review and edit work for

spelling, mechanics, clarity and fluency.

8. Use a variety of reference

materials to revise work, such as a dictionary, thesaurus,

when developing their own personal writing style. Writers are always conscious of experiences and their attitudes toward them that could be recorded in a writer‟s notebook and used in future writing.

Write and self-edit first copy of persuasive piece, utilizing writer‟s checklist Use input from peer editing to revise work Reflect on final copy, comparing it to elements of a writing rubric Use research to gather information and support opinions with facts

writing, from entertaining to more serious issues (e.g., I Wanna Iguana by Karen Orloff, newspaper editorial). Choose an issue and as a class list pros and cons of that issue. For example, use “Listing Pros and Cons of an Argument,” Nonfiction Craft Lessons, Teaching Information Writing by Joann Portalupi and Ralph Fletcher, (p. 102) to learn to recognize author‟s use of pros, cons and supportive evidence to generate a persuasive piece. Have students use sticky notes to mark pros and cons and list supportive evidence on each. Model using overhead projector and sample graphic organizer, persuasive writing process: generating topic sentence, addressing each of the pros/cons, and voicing final conclusion.

groups Use of rubrics to monitor progress Development of a portfolio Formal assessment of final pieces using rubrics (e.g., modify Assessment Rubric for Breathing Life into Essays by Luce Calkins and Cory Gillette)


40



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills




Connections


or internet/software resources.

10. Understand and apply

elements of grade appropriate rubrics to improve and evaluate writing.

11. Reflect on one‟s writing,

noting strengths and areas needing improvement.

3.2.4.D Writing Forms, Audiences, and Purposes (exploring a variety of forms)

3. Develop independence by setting self-selected purposes and generating topics for writing.

4. Write independently to satisfy personal, academic and social needs (e.g. stories, summaries, letters or poetry).

10. Use a variety of strategies to organize writing, including, sequence, chronology and cause/effect.

Follow models to generate own persuasive piece. Generate possible ideas for persuasive pieces in Writer‟s Notebook. Use pros/cons graphic organizer to list ideas to support/defend point of view. Use editing checklist to self edit. Meet with peer partners or groups to receive feedback on piece. Use peer input to revise piece. Reflect on own writing using rubric. Individualized conferences with writers that shape independence:

guided conferences: teach student something he/she needs to know about writing


41



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills




Connections


13. Demonstrate the development of a personal style and voice in writing. 14. Review scoring criteria of a writing rubric. 15. Develop a collection of writings (e.g. a literacy portfolio).

and try it together. Teacher is there for immediate support.




End of unit publication and/or celebration.


42

Unit 6: Writing Persuasive Pieces (continued) Resources: Essential Materials, Supplementary Materials, Links to Best Practices NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards Classroom and School Libraries for mentor and touchstone texts Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6, Teaching Comprehension, Genre, and Content Literacy by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell Newspaper and magazine articles and editorials appropriate for grade level content Non-fiction Craft Lessons Teaching Information Writing, K-8 by Portalupi and Fletcher Units of Study for Teaching Writing, Grades 3-5 by Calkins and colleagues Teachers College Reading and Writing Project: 4


(http://books.heinemann.com/shared/onlineresources/E00870/writinggr4_5ccal.pdf) Writer‟s Express by Dave Kemper, Ruth Nathan, and Patrick Sebranek Recommended Resources: About The Authors by Katie Wood Ray Revisiting the Writing Workshop, Management, Assessment, and Mini-Lessons by Marybeth Alley and Barbara Orehovec The Art of Teaching Writing by Lucy Calkins The Writing Workshop, Working through the Hard Parts (And They're All Hard Parts) by Katie Wood Ray and Lester Laminack Wondrous Words, Writers and Writing in the Elementary Classroom by Katie Wood Ray

Instructional Adjustments: Modifications, student difficulties, possible misunderstandings Consult IEPs and 504s and make appropriate modifications. Provide more teacher support (e.g., more sample narratives, more modeling of the process of writing the narrative). Conduct specific mini-lessons to target areas of need or enrichment. Conduct small guided writing group lessons to target students in need of reinforcement or enrichment of specific skills. Use AlphaSmart or computer word-processing software For more advanced students: Create a multi-media persuasive presentation

http://books.heinemann.com/shared/onlineresources/E00870/writinggr4_5ccal.pdf


43

Unit 7: Questioning Targeted Standards: STANDARD 3.1 (READING) ALL STUDENTS WILL UNDERSTAND AND APPLY THE KNOWLEDGE OF SOUNDS, LETTERS, AND WORDS IN WRITTEN ENGLISH TO BECOME INDEPENDENT AND FLUENT READERS AND WILL READ A VARIETY OF MATERIALS AND TEXTS WITH FLUENCY AND COMPREHENSION.

Unit Objectives/Conceptual Understandings: Students will understand that effective readers ask questions before, during, and after reading to enhance understanding of text. Students will understand that questions are answered directly in the text, through inferring, through the use of outside sources, or sometimes not at all.

Essential Questions: How does questioning the text help readers to understand and enjoy text? How does questioning help the reader to focus attention

on what is important in the text? How does questioning help the reader to monitor comprehension while reading? What strategies can the reader use to answer questions about text?

Unit Assessment: Teacher-developed assessment through which students demonstrate understanding of unit objectives and essential questions related to

this unit.



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





3.1.3.E Reading Strategies (before, during, after reading) 1. Set purposes for reading and check to verify or change predictions during/after reading 4. Develop and use graphic organizers to build on experiences and extend learning 3.1.3.G Comprehension Skills and Response to Text 4. Ask how, why, and what-if questions in interpreting non-fiction text

Reading is thinking. Readers purposefully and spontaneously ask questions before, during, and after reading. Readers ask questions to: clarify meaning, speculate about text yet to be read, determine an author‟s style, intent, content or format, focus attention on specific components of the text, locate a specific answer in the text or consider rhetorical questions inspired in the text.

Identify and use questioning language to ask questions before, during, and after reading Differentiate between literal (thin) and inferential (thick) questions Classify questions based on how they are answered (through inferring, directly in the text, or use of outside sources) Develop questioning to clarify meaning while reading

Model language that good readers use when asking questions (I wonder, why, what does this mean, how come, etc.) Each day, read aloud texts that encourage students to ask questions (e.g., Uncle Jed‟s Barber Shop by Margeree King Mitchell, Charlie Anderson by Barbara Abercrombie, The Lotus Seed by Sherry Garland, How Many Days to America by Eve Bunting, etc.) Model asking and answering questions and explain how this strategy helps the reader to make

Evidence of understanding demonstrated through Reader‟s Response Letter, Individual Reading Conferences, Reader‟s Response Journal/Notebook Evidence that the reader is asking questions to clarify meaning; speculate about a text to be read; determine an author‟s style, intent content or format; focus attention on


44

Unit 7: Questioning (continued) Core Content Objectives


Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





13. Read regularly in materials appropriate for their independent reading level 14. Read and comprehend both fiction and nonfiction that is appropriately designed for grade level 15. Use information and reasoning to examine bases of hypotheses and opinions 3.1.3.H Inquiry and Research 2. Draw conclusions from information an data gathered

Readers determine whether the answers to their questions can be found in the text or whether they will need to infer the answers from the text, their background knowledge and/or an outside source. Many of the most intriguing questions are not answered explicitly in the text, but are left to the reader‟s interpretation. Readers monitor their comprehension to clarify confusion or answer questions about the text. Readers differentiate between large global questions and smaller clarification questions in a content area text. Some questions are answered while reading and other questions are not addressed in the text. Thick questions are those that address large, global topics and ask the reader to infer and examine the text from different perspectives.

Use schema and life experiences to answer questions Identify specific strategies used to answer questions after reading Differentiate between Text-Based questions, Author-Based questions, Reader-Based questions and Context-Based questions Develop questions to monitor comprehension while reading Identify important parts of a text through the use of questioning Develop new and deeper questions inspired by the questions of others Utilize and reflect on answers of others to expand thinking and deepen understanding of text

sense of the text. Create a running list of questions the students have before, during, and after a read aloud. At the end of the text, work together to answer the questions and then classify the answers based on whether they were answered using the text (T), inferring (I), or an outside source (OS). Have each student choose a question they have about a specific text. They should bring the question and text into class. As a whole class, use the text to problem solve and figure out the answer to the child‟s question. Choose a question that may not have been answered during a read aloud. Create a question web about this question, asking the children to provide their interpretation of the answer. Ask students to share their possible answers and write them along the outside of the web. Create a class chart about the text you are reading including three columns: question, answer, and strategy for finding the answer. Model for students how

specific components of text; locate a specific answer in the text; or consider rhetorical questions inspired in the text. Stop and Jots during read alouds Guided Reading sessions Observations and anecdotal notes Open-ended responses Conferring with readers: “What questions did you have before you read, while you were reading, and after you read?” “Which question is more important for you as a reader?” “What is your thinking about the answer to this question?”


45



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





Thin, or literal questions are those that are used to clarify confusion, understand words and/or can be answered with simple yes and no responses. Thin questions can often be answered right from the text.

The process of questioning is used in other areas of life, both personal and academic.

to find the answer to the questions and then have them practice on their own (e.g. using schema, reading on, rereading, text clues, inferring, discussion with others, outside sources, etc.) Create a list of thick and thin questions while reading a text. Have students classify each question as a thick or thin question. Have students create a running list of “I Wonder…” statements about a text. They can then share these with a partner and examine how and if each question was answered. Model for students how to utilize question strategies independently, in a small group, and as a class. Develop independence through usage of various active questioning strategies found. Create a list of Question/Answer Relationships (QARs) and categorize them as Text-Based (in-the-text: “right there” and “think and search” questions) questions and knowledge-based (in-your-head: “author and you”

What clues in the text help you answer your question?”


46



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





and “on your own” questions) (see Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6 by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell, pages 456-457). Students use questioning to help them make sense of text. “Exploring Expository Text,” Unit 2, Making Meaning, pages 73-112

Slinky, Scaly, Slithery Snakes

Animal Senses: How Animals See, Hear, Taste, Smell and Feel

Students use questioning to help them make sense of text. “Exploring Narrative Text,” Unit 3, Making Meaning, pages 169-206

The Bat Boy and His Violin

Teammates

Basket Moon

The Memory Coat Distribute a short newspaper article that will evoke questions. Create a list of the questions that the reader asks while reading. Create a list of places and times when you ask questions in your life.


47



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





Develop lessons based on “Classroom Connections: Questioning,” 7 Keys to Comprehension: How to Help Your Kids Read It and Get It by Susan Zimmerman and Chryse Hutchins, pages 87-93 Double entry journals Literature Circles Individualized reading conferences:

Conferences that support the mini-lesson and follow-up on the strategy taught

Conferences that extend the teaching of the mini-lesson and build on the strategy taught

Conferences that develop the reader and support he/she and the developing skills needed to become a life-long reader

Guided Reading groups focused on questioning and strategies needed to question effectively and to answer questions while reading


48

Unit 7: Questioning (continued) Resources: NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards Scholastic Guided Reading Collection

Resources: Classroom and School Libraries (fiction and nonfiction texts, short articles and other literature) Children‟s Books Sorted by Craft or Strategy for Teacher Read Alouds (available on District Website) Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6, Teaching Comprehension, Genre and Content Literacy by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell Making Meaning, Strategies that Build Comprehension and Communities, Grade 4. Mosaic of Thought by Ellin Keene and Susan Zimmerman, Chapter 6, “Delving Deeper with Questions”. The 7 Keys to Comprehension, How to Help Your Kids Read It and Get It! by Susan Zimmerman and Chryse Hutchins, Chapter 4, “Why, What, Where, Who and How”. Recommended Resources: Reading with Meaning, Teaching Comprehension in the Primary Grades by Debbie Miller, Chapter 9, Asking Questions. Strategies that Work: Teaching Comprehension for Understanding and Engagement by Stephanie Harvey and Anne Goudvis, Chapter 7, Questioning. Lessons in Comprehension: Explicit Instruction in the Reading Workshop by Frank Serafini, Strands 5, 6 and 8. Successful Strategies for Reading in the Content Areas, Skill 11: Questioning.

Instructional Adjustments: Modifications, student

difficulties: Follow learning strategies and modifications as stated in an IEP or 504 Plan For more advanced students: Model questioning in small group setting using short passages Provide appropriate levels of text Provide explicit instruction for the use of questioning to better understand strategy Have student respond orally or by drawing prior to written response Use an Alpha Smart or computer for children who struggle to produce written responses. Encourage students to type journal responses. Engage students in conversations about their independent reading to enable them to ask questions more frequently. Choose more difficult texts and work in small groups as needed.


49

Unit 8: Writing Informational Pieces Targeted Standards: 3.2 (Writing) ALL STUDENTS WILL WRITE IN CLEAR, CONCISE, ORGANIZED LANGUAGE THAT VARIES IN CONTENT AND FORM FOR DIFFERENT AUDIENCES AND PURPOSES.

Unit Objectives/Conceptual Understandings: Students will understand that good writers develop and refine their ideas for thinking, learning, communicating, and aesthetic expression. Students will understand that writing can be used to present research and inform. Students will understand that writers use a recursive process to generate ideas for writing, draft well developed pieces, and revisit them to enhance their work.

Essential Questions: How does process shape the writer‟s product? How do writers select relevant information about their topics to present to their readers?

How do writers of informational pieces organize and present their material so that the information is accessible to the reader?

Unit Assessment: Teachers will evaluate individual student‟s understanding of unit objectives and essential questions through one-on-one conferences and

observations.



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





3.2.4.A Writing as a Process (prewriting, drafting, revising, Editing, postwriting) 1. Generate possible ideas for writing through talking, recalling experiences, hearing stories, reading, discussing models of writing, asking questions, and brainstorming. 2. Develop an awareness of form, structure, and author‟s voice in various genres. 3. Use strategies such as reflecting on personal experiences, reading, doing interviews or research, and using graphic organizers to

Authors of informational pieces write to inform their readers. Writers will use various structures to convey a particular meaning. Informational pieces include a strong opening, main ideas/topics that are supported by facts, examples and explanations, appropriate text features, and conclusions. Details an author chooses to include in an informational piece can influence a reader‟s perception of the topic.

Generate and collect ideas in their writer‟s notebooks through observations, questions, opinions, response to texts, and topics they know Use varied genre writings in their notebooks to spark ideas for informational topics Recognize form and identify informational elements in literary examples by studying texts and noticing how a text is written Research from a variety of sources and gather information related to topic paraphrase information found in research

Develop lessons on generating ideas for non-narrative pieces based on Session 1 in Breathing Life into Essays (Units of Study for Teaching Writing, Grades 3-5) by Lucy Calkins and Cory Gillette. Students generate a list of topics for writing informational pieces as in “Taking an „Expert‟ Inventory” in The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Writing, pp. 64-65 by Judy Davis. Develop an informational piece based on a content area topic. Study mentor texts to determine how a text is written, how to group

Individual conferences at various points in the process Informal assessments during guided writing groups Informal observations Anecdotal records Writing folder for work in progress Writing Process Chart Use of rubrics to monitor progress


50

Unit 8: Writing Informational Pieces (continued) Core Content Objectives


Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





generate and organize ideas for writing. 4. Draft writing in a selected genre with supporting structure according to the intended message, audience, and purpose for writing. 5. Revise drafts by rereading for meaning, narrowing the focus, elaborating, reworking organization, openings, and closings, and improving word choice and consistency of voice. 6. Review own writing with others to understand the reader‟s perspective and to consider ideas for revision. 7. Review and edit work for spelling, mechanics, clarity, and fluency. 8. Use a variety of reference materials to revise work, such as a dictionary, thesaurus, or internet/software resources. 9. Use computer writing applications during most of the writing process.

Writers develop ideas by determining focus, understanding purpose, and exploring intention of writing. Writers continually revise their writing to enhance clarity, meaning, organization, idea development, and language. Writers continually edit their writing to improve spelling, mechanics, clarity, and fluency. Writers are always conscious observers of events in their world and of their environment that could be recorded in a writer‟s notebook and used in future writing.

Organize ideas for writing on a specific topic (e.g., graphic organizers, notebook entries using bullets, lists) Write varied informational pieces including science and social studies based topics) and revise drafts Use reference materials to revise work. Develop content by using multiple paragraphs Include voice, word choice, sentence variety, transitions, and vivid description. Use knowledge of conventions and grammar (e.g., subject/ verb agreement, appropriate parts of speech) Define focus, audience, and intention of informational piece Share and confer about their writing with partners, small groups, whole class, and/or teacher Utilize a writer‟s checklist to review, revise, and edit work

texts together, how to study one particular aspect of the text, and how to structure their own text. Conduct Write Alouds and Read Alouds as mini-lessons to teach important ideas, supporting details (facts, examples, and explanations), sequencing, conclusions, etc. Implement mini-lessons demonstrating how to grow ideas and include essential elements of writing an informational piece based on Sessions 2-13 in Breathing Life into Essays (Units of Study for Teaching Writing, Grades 3-5) by Lucy Calkins and Cory Gillette. Use questioning through Think Alouds to help define focus, intention, and audience. Write questions on a chart for discussion. Useful questions:

What is my topic about?

What are the most important things I want my reader to know?

Why am I writing about this topic?

Who will the reader be?

Formal assessment of final pieces using rubrics (e.g., Assessment Rubric for Breathing Life Into Essays by Lucy Calkins and Cory Gillette)


51



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





10. Understand and apply elements of grade-appropriate rubrics to improve and evaluate writing. 11. Reflect on one‟s writing, noting strengths and areas needing improvement. 3.2.3.B. Writing as a Product (resulting in a formal product or publication) 3. Write a nonfiction piece and/or simple informational report across the curriculum. 4. Present and discuss writing with other students. 5. Apply elements of grade-appropriate rubrics to improve writing. 6. Develop a collection of writings (e.g. literacy folder or portfolio). 3.2.3.C Mechanics, Spelling, Handwriting 1. Use Standard English conventions that are developmentally appropriate to the grade level: sentences, punctuation, capitalization, and spelling.

Use writing rubric to evaluate their work Publish varied informational pieces (e.g., informational booklet, brochure, essay, news article, feature articles)

Explicit instruction on how to organize for drafting based on Session 14-15 in Breathing Life into Essays (Units of Study for Teaching Writing Grades 3-5) by Lucy Calkins and Cory Gillette. Useful questions to ask before drafting may be:

Do all of your bits of information support the main idea?

Is each bit based on different information?

Is there enough information or too much?

Utilize Nonfiction Craft Lessons, Teaching Information Writing K-8 by Joann Portalupi and Ralph Fletcher:

“Using Questions to Outline,” p. 51

“Outlining the Beginning, Middle, and End,” p. 52

“Jazzing Up Your Title,” p. 53

“Writing Subtitles That Teach,” p. 54

“Narrowing Your Focus,” p. 55

“Focusing on the One,” p. 56

“Writing a Topic Sentence,” p. 59


52



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





2. Use grade-appropriate knowledge of English grammar and usage to craft writing, such as singular and plural nouns, subject/verb agreement, and appropriate parts of speech. 3. Study examples of narrative and expository writing to develop understanding of paragraphs and indentation. 4. Develop knowledge of English spelling through the use of patterns, structural analysis, and high frequency words. 5. Write legibly in manuscript or cursive to meet district standards. 3.2.4.D. Writing Forms, Audiences, and Purposes (exploring a variety of forms) 3. Develop independence by setting self-selected purposes and generating topics for writing. 5. Use writing to paraphrase, clarify, and reflect on new learning across the curriculum. 8. Write informational reports that frame a topic, include facts

“Using Subheadings to Organize Information,” p. 60

“Putting Voice into Nonfiction Writing,” p.65

“Using Comparisons,” p.68

“Selecting Fascinating Facts,” p. 69

Implement mini-lessons on writing an informational essay based on lessons found in Writer‟s Express by Kemper, Nathan, Sebranek, pp. 74-77. Explicit instruction about writing a report based on lessons found in Writers Express by Kemper, Nathan, Sebranek, pp. 220-232. Explicit instruction about writing feature articles based on lessons found in The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Writing, pp. 165-180, by Judy Davis and Sharon Hill. Explicit instruction about writing introductions and conclusions based on Session 16 in Breathing Life into Essays (Units of Study for Teaching Writing Grades 3-5) by Lucy Calkins and Cory Gillette, and lessons in Nonfiction Craft Lessons, Teaching Information


53



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





and details, and draw information from several sources. 12. Use relevant graphics in writing (e.g. maps, charts, illustrations). 14. Review scoring criteria of a writing rubric. 15. Develop a collection of writings (e.g. a literacy folder or a literacy portfolio).

Writing K-8 by Joann Portalupi and Ralph Fletcher, “Writing an Introduction,” p.57. Implement mini-lessons on the purpose and process of paragraphing using two models, one with paragraphs, and one sample without. Discuss using the “Writing in Paragraph Form” lesson in Craft Lessons, Teaching Information Writing K-8, page 58, by Joann Portalupi and Ralph Fletcher. Explicit instruction on how to share and confer with partners, small group, whole class, and teacher to revise and edit based on sessions in Breathing Life into Essays (Units of Study for Teaching Writing Grades 3-5) by Lucy Calkins and Cory Gillette:

Guided conferences that teach students what they need to know by trying it together. Teacher is present for immediate support.

Individualized conferences that develop and support skills needed to become life-long writers.


54



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





Use mentor texts to study how informational writers paraphrase and use informational features such as captions, illustrations, charts, graphs, etc. Model two samples of student or teacher generated informational pieces to illustrate paraphrasing. One piece with obvious lifted words from source material, and one piece illustrating successful paraphrasing. Utilize a variety of sources to research information (e.g., print and electronic resources, interviews, surveys). Help students understand they need to reread with a particular focus on one editing issue at a time with mini-lessons outlined in The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Writing by Judy Davis and Sharon Hill, page 91. Use a checklist to edit work.


55

Unit 8: Writing Informational Pieces (continued) Resources: Essential Materials, Supplementary Materials, Links to Best Practices

NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards Classroom and School Libraries for mentor texts Newspaper and magazine articles appropriate for grade level content Breathing Life into Essays (Units of Study for Teaching Writing, Grades 3-5) by Lucy Calkins and Cory Gillette. The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Writing by Judy Davis and Sharon Hill Nonfiction Craft Lessons, Teaching Information Writing K-8 by Joann Portalupi and Ralph Fletcher Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-5, Teaching Comprehension, Genre and Content Literacy by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell Writer‟s Express by Dave Kemper, Ruth Nathan, and Patrick Sebranek

Recommended Resources: Revisiting the Writing Workshop, Management, Assessment, and Mini-Lessons by Marybeth Alley and Barbara Orehovec The Art of Teaching Writing by Lucy Calkins The Writing Workshop, Working Through the Hard Parts (And They‟re All Hard Parts) by Katie Wood Ray and Lester Laminack Wondrous Words, Writers and Writing in the Elementary Classroom by Katie Wood Ray

Don‟t Forget to Share by Leah Mermelstein


difficulties, possible misunderstandings Consult IEPs and 504s and make appropriate modifications. Provide more teacher support (e.g. varied modeling, revisiting past modeling). Conduct specific individualized mini-lessons to target areas of need or enrichment. Conduct small guided writing group lessons to target students in need of reinforcement or enrichment of specific skills. Use AlphaSmart or computer word-processing software. For more advanced students: Create a multi-media informational presentation.


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Unit 9: Writing Personal Narratives Targeted Standards: 3.2 (WRITING) ALL STUDENTS WILL WRITE IN CLEAR, CONCISE, ORGANIZED LASNGUAGE THAT VARIES IN CONTENT AND

FORM FOR DIFFERENT AUDIENCES AND PURPOSES.

Unit Objectives/Conceptual Understandings: Students will understand that writers use experiences from their own lives to craft personal narratives. Students will understand that writers use a recursive process to generate ideas for writing, draft well developed pieces, and revisit them to enhance their work.

Essential Questions: How do writers choose interesting life experiences to write about? How do writers decide on the important details to include in their writing? How does an author decide what to add to enhance a story? How do writers use writer‟s notebooks to gather and develop ideas for narratives? How do writers analyze mentor texts to enhance their own personal narratives?

Unit Assessment: Personal Narrative Writing Task (see Appendix J)



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





3.2.3.A Writing as a Process (prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, postwriting) 1. Generate possible ideas for writing through talking, recalling experiences, hearing stories, reading, discussing models of writing, asking questions, and brainstorming 4. Draft writing in a selected genre with supporting structure according to the intended message, audience, and purpose for writing 5. Revise drafts by rereading for meaning, narrowing the focus, elaborating, reworking organization, openings and

Writers gather ideas for personal narratives by storytelling, making connections to literature, or looking at photographs or artifacts. Writers reread their notebooks and find an entry, part of an entry, or an idea that they want to spend more time writing about. Writers develop ideas by determining the focus, understanding the purpose, and exploring the intention of a piece of writing. Personal narratives include

Generate ideas for writing in a writer‟s notebook Define the writer‟s focus, audience, and intention of the personal narrative Recognize form and identify personal narrative elements and structures in literary examples by studying texts and noticing how a text is written Incorporate writing strategies to enhance the beginning, middle, and end of the personal narrative Develop content by using multiple paragraphs

Develop lessons based on Raising The Quality of Narrative Writing (Units) of Study for Teaching Writing, Grades 3-5 by Lucy Calkins and Ted Kesler, emphasizing Session I (“Reading With a Writer‟s Eye”), Session III (“Starting With Strong Feelings”), and Session VI (“Writers Ask, „What Am I Really Trying to Say?‟”). Model think-alouds to develop an idea. To find focus, ask: What is this really about? What is the most important thing that I want to say? To explore intention, ask: Why am I writing about this? What am I trying to say? What form should

Formal and informal observations Monitoring individuals‟ progress through steps of the writing progress Individual conferences at various points in the process Informal assessment of students‟ revisions and editing Informal assessment during guided writing groups


57

Unit 9: Writing Personal Narratives (continued) Core Content Objectives


Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





closings, and improving word choice and consistency of voice 3.2.4.A Writing as a Process (prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, postwriting) 6. Review own writing with others to understand the reader‟s perspective and to consider ideas for revision. 7. Review and edit work for spelling, mechanics, clarity, and fluency. 8. Use a variety of reference materials to revise work, such as a dictionary, thesaurus, or internet/software resources. 10. Understand and apply elements of grade-appropriate rubrics to improve and evaluate writing. 11. Reflect on one‟s writing, noting strengths and areas needing improvement. 3.2.4.B (Writing as a Product) 1. Create narrative pieces, such as a memoir-or personal narrative, which contain description and relate ideas, observations, or recollections of an event or experience.

strong openings, sequenced plots, effective and developed details, descriptive language, and satisfying endings. Writers “show” using developed details rather than “tell” their readers. Writers paint a picture for the reader by choosing strong and creative verbs, adjectives, and proper nouns. Writers organize, or structure, their narratives in many ways to convey a particular meaning or feeling. Writers constantly revise their writing to enhance clarity, meaning, organization, idea development, and language.

Writers constantly edit their writing to improve spelling, mechanics, clarity, and fluency.

Reread personal narratives to generate more writing about an idea or find a different angle Use knowledge of conventions and grammar to craft writing (e.g., singular and plural nouns, subject/verb agreement, and appropriate parts of speech) Use correct punctuation in writing Edit drafts to improve spelling and mechanics Publish personal narrative pieces with strong openings, developed middles, and satisfying endings Apply elements of a rubric to evaluate and improve writing piece

writing take to accomplish this intention? To understand purpose, Encourage students to write about the same topic in different structures. Then model asking: What new insights do you get? How does it work better? Immerse students in varied styles of personal narratives. Model how to analyze various structures using samples of personal narratives. Conduct think-alouds to facilitate drafting process from The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Writing, Judy Davis & Sharon Hill, using the following techniques:

Underline a strong line from writing notebook and use it to begin the draft.

Analyze the sequence of a mentor text to facilitate the organization of ideas in personal narrative.

Highlight parts of an entry that should be used in draft.

Reread notebook entry, close notebook, and write draft with ideas floating in head.

Use of rubrics to monitor progress Formal assessment of final pieces using rubrics (e.g., Assessment Rubric for Raising the Quality of Narrative Writing by Lucy Calkins and Ted Kessler) Development of a portfolio Writer‟s notebook


58



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





3. Craft writing to elevate its quality by adding detail, changing the order of ideas, strengthening openings and closings, and using dialogue. 5. Sharpen focus and improve coherence by considering the relevancy of included details, and adding, deleting, and rearranging appropriately. 6. Write sentences of varying lengths and complexities, using specific nouns, verbs, and descriptive words. 8. Improve the clarity of writing by rearranging words, sentences, and paragraphs. 9. Examine real-world writing to expand knowledge of sentences, paragraphs, usage, and authors‟ writing styles. 10. Provide logical sequence and support the purpose of writing by refining organizational structure and developing transitions between ideas. 11. Engage the reader from beginning to end, with an interesting opening, logical

Make a list, a simple web, or a flowchart to help identify and organize the information that needs to be included.

Conduct mini-lessons from Craft Lessons, Ralph Fletcher and Joann Portalupi, to achieve the following:

Find the focus of a central theme and specific time frame to narrow in on a topic. Refer to “Sharpening the Focus,” page 57, “Focusing on a Slice of the Pie,” page 58, “Time Focus,” page 59, and “Narrowing the Time Focus,” page 60.

Craft a strong beginning that makes the reader curious to read on. Refer to “Crafting a Lead,” page 66 and “The Give-Away Lead,” page 67.

Develop the setting by adding description to improve the story‟s sense of place. Refer to “Describing the Setting,” page 61.

Replace, or “crack open,” generalities such as good, nice, things, stuff, and, fun with more concrete words and phrases. Refer to “‟Cracking Open General


59



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





sequence, and satisfying conclusion. 3.2.4.C (Mechanics, Spelling, and Handwriting) 1. Use Standard English conventions that are appropriate to the grade level, such as sentence structure, grammar and usage, punctuation, capitalization, spelling, and handwriting. 2. Use increasingly complex sentence structure and syntax to express ideas. 3. Use grade appropriate knowledge of English grammar and usage to craft writing, such as subject/verb agreement, pronoun usage and agreement, and appropriate verb tenses. 4. Use punctuation correctly in sentences, such as ending punctuation, commas, and quotation marks in dialogue. 5. Use capital letters correctly in sentences, for proper nouns, and in titles.

Words,” page 50.

Revise by cutting the story where more information could be added. Refer to “Using Cut and Paste,” page 49.

Use strong, precise, and active verbs to achieve the key to descriptive writing. Refer to “Using Stronger Verbs,” page 51.

Elaborate the most important part of a story by finding the major action and slowing it down, adding sensory details, and playing a movie in your mind, while summarizing details that are less important. Refer to “Unpacking a Heavy Sentence,” page 52, “Using Sensory Details,” page 53, “Creating a Dramatic Scene,” page 55, and “Summarizing Information,” page 56.

Incorporate the main character‟s thoughts, feelings, and conflicts to help the reader understand the story‟s significance. Refer to “The Inner Life of a Character,” page 63.

Craft a strong ending. Refer to “Experiment with Endings,” page 68, “The Circular


60



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





6. Study examples of narrative and expository writing to develop understanding of the reasons for and use of paragraphs and indentation. 7. Indent in own writing to show the beginning of a paragraph. 8. Spell grade-appropriate words correctly with particular attention to frequently used words, contractions, and homophones. 9. Use knowledge of base words, structural analysis, and spelling patterns to expand spelling competency in writing. 3.2.4 D. Writing Forms, Audiences, and Purposes (exploring a variety of forms) 3. Develop independence by setting self-selected purposes and generating topics for writing. 7. Write narratives that relate recollections of an event or experience and establish a setting, characters, point of view, and sequence of events.

Ending,” page 69, “Emotional Endings,” page 70, and “Surprise Endings,” page 71. Use a student or teacher- generated writing piece to demonstrate how to use asterisks or numbers to identify places in the draft where some revision might occur. Model how to make those revisions on a separate piece of paper or on the right side of a notebook page, which will then be inserted into the draft. The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Writing, Judy Davis & Sharon Hill. Conduct mini-lessons on how to work on a better beginning or a stronger ending. Refer to mentor texts that you have read to discuss the purpose of beginnings and endings, and what the writers have done to make them effective. The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Writing, Judy Davis & Sharon Hill. Model how to expand on simple statements that simply tell. Use a piece of writing, pointing out lines that tell and do not show: “I had fun,” “he was nice,” or “I had a good time.” Help the students


61



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





13. Demonstrate the development of a personal style and voice in writing. 14. Review scoring criteria of a writing rubric. 15. Develop a collection of writings (e.g., a literacy folder or a literacy portfolio).

understand how they can improve the writing by showing how they had “fun.” Use mentor texts to help them see how authors “show and not tell.” The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Writing, Judy Davis & Sharon Hill. Incorporate mini-lessons on how to look at the draft, choose a part that needs to be revised, draw what the words say, then try to add detail to the drawing as a way to inform the writing. The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Writing, Judy Davis & Sharon Hill. Show a piece of your own writing where you have left out lots of details. Talk to the children about the quality of the writing. Then, show them a more detailed piece about the same topic and discuss the difference and the power of the more developed writing.

Share your thinking about why you chose to include those details and how they make for a more highly developed piece of writing. Instruct the students to go back and find a piece of writing in their notebooks where they can insert


62



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





more information to develop their writing. The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Writing, Judy Davis & Sharon Hill. Provide explicit instruction on how to share and confer with partners, small group, whole class, and teacher to revise and edit. Conduct think-alouds that help students understand they need to reread with a particular focus on one editing issue at a time. For instance, read through the piece once checking for punctuation errors, then reread again with a focus on spelling errors, etc. The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Writing, Judy Davis & Sharon Hill.

Conduct mini-lessons on the proper use of punctuation. One example is to remove the punctuation from a short, published piece of writing and have the children insert punctuation where they think it is necessary. Then show them the original writing and discuss their decisions. The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Writing, Judy Davis & Sharon Hill.


63



Cumulative Progress

Indicators

Concepts


Skills





Fishbowl a conversation between students who are engaged in editing each other‟s work, paying special attention to the ways in which they support each other and their conversations about the decisions they made and why. The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Writing, Judy Davis & Sharon Hill. Teach editing “habits” including: reading their writing aloud, reading words of text from the end to beginning to catch spelling errors, and circling unknown words.


NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards

Classroom and School Libraries for mentor and touchstone texts.

Write on Track by Dave Kemper, Ruth Nathan, and Patrick Sebranek

Craft Lessons, Teaching Writing, K-8, by Ralph Fletcher and Joann Portalupi

Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6, Teaching Comprehension, Genre, and Content Literacy by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell

Nonfiction Craft Lessons, Teaching Information Writing, K-8 by Joann Portalupi and Ralph Fletcher

The No-Nonsense Guide to Teaching Writing by Judy Davis and Sharon Hill


difficulties, possible misunderstandings Consult IEPs and 504s and make appropriate modifications. Provide more teacher support (e.g. more sample narratives, more modeling of the process of writing the narrative). Conduct specific mini-lessons to target areas of need or enrichment. Conduct small guided writing group lessons to target students in need of reinforcement or enrichment of specific skills.


64

Unit 9: Writing Personal Narratives (continued) Units of Study for Teaching Writing, Grades 3-5 by Lucy Calkins and colleagues Teachers College Reading and Writing Project: 4

th and 5


(http://books.heinemann.com/shared/onlineresources/E00870/writinggr4_5ccal.pdf)

Recommended Resources:

Revisiting the Writing Workshop, Management, Assessment, and Mini-Lessons by Marybeth Alley and Barbara Orehovec

The Art of Teaching Writing by Lucy Calkins

The Writing Workshop, Working through the Hard Parts (And They‟re All Hard Parts) by Katie Wood Ray and Lester Laminack

Wondrous Words, Writers and Writing in the Elementary Classroom by Katie Wood Ray

Use Alpha Smart or computer word-processing software.

http://books.heinemann.com/shared/onlineresources/E00870/writinggr4_5ccal.pdf


APPENDIX A

Non-Negotiable K-5 Balanced Literacy Program Elements for Reading and Writing Workshop

based on the New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards

Reading

Independent silent reading of self-chosen materials; shared reading ; guided reading; literature circles Interactive read-aloud and whole group discussion which includes whole group direct instruction of comprehension

strategies, fluency, vocabulary, author's craft: read -aloud text frequently connected to science, social studies, math, character education; whole group discuss to enable a deeper understanding of text

Direct instruction (mini-lessons) of strategies to develop fluency as well as reading comprehension of both fiction and nonfiction text

Regular enhancement of sight word and meaning vocabulary through direct instruction, wide reading and writing, word walls (e.g., commonly used words, content area vocabulary), and the use of reference sources (e.g., dictionary, thesaurus, on-line resources)

Regular opportunities to think about, talk about, and write about books Regular opportunities to record/document reading Individualized one-on-one conferences with readers to discover student's responses, use of fix-up and comprehension

strategies, understandings about print. These conferences are to be designed to shape independence: 1. Guided conferences to teach student something he/she needs to know about reading and try it together. Teacher

is there for immediate support. 2. Conferences that support the teaching of the mini-lesson: follow-up on teaching of a new strategy or

understanding of the mini-lesson. 3. Conferences that extend the teaching of the mini-lesson: teach something that builds on the mini-lesson and

extends student learning. 4. Conferences that develop the reader: support the reader as he/she is developing skills needed to become a life-

long reader. Sharing/discussion to bring closure to the reading workshop by reflecting on the day's reading and/or some aspect of

direct instruction, "What did I learn as a reader today?" "How will my reading help me to become a lifelong reading?" This sharing will set the stage for the next reading workshop.

Regular writing in response to reading Regular reader self-evaluation to recognize that what a reader hears, says, writes, and views contributes to the content

and quality of the reading experience On-going exposure to, discussion of, and reading of a variety of genre, authors, text types Regular visits to the school library


APPENDIX A

Writing

Direct instruction (mini-lessons) of writing strategies to develop command of/fluency in written composition to record one's thoughts

Written composition in the various stages of writing: 1. Prewriting - setting the purpose, generating /rehearsing ideas, organizing for writing 2. Drafting - putting ideas on paper 3. Revising - changing the content of writing by evaluating and modifying 4. Editing/proofreading of multiple drafts- checking writing for the conventions of language 5. Post-writing processes including sharing/publishing - using a variety of forms depending on personal preferences

as what is appropriate for the task; talking about writing with others, learning to respect their contributions and opinions

Sharing/discussion to bring closure to the writing workshop by reflecting on the day's writing and/or some aspect of direct instruction, "What did I learn as a writer today?" This sharing sets the stage for the next writing workshop.

Regular opportunities to begin to understand the recursive nature and shifting perspectives of the writing process, moving from the role of writer to the role of reader and back again

Regular opportunities to practice a variety of text types: narrative, expository/informational, everyday/functional Regular writer self-evaluation to recognize that what a writer hears, says, reads, and views contributes to the content and

quality of writing Individualized conferences with writers that shape independence:

1. Guided conferences to teach student something he/she needs to know about writing and try it together. Teacher is there for immediate support.

2. Conferences that support the teaching of the mini-lesson: follow-up on teaching of a new strategy or understanding of the mini-lesson.

3. Conferences that extend the teaching of the mini-lesson: teach something that builds on the mini-lesson and extends student learning.

4. Conferences that develop the writer: support the writer as he/she is developing skills needed to become a life-long writer.

Speaking

Regular direct instruction of speaking strategies for communicating, thinking, and learning and teacher modeling of the conventions of spoken English

Regular small and whole group discussions Regular collaborative speaking opportunities (e.g., choral reading, reader's theater, plays, poetry) Regular individual speaking opportunities (e.g., questioning, sharing information, speeches, retellings, oral reports and or

presentations) Regular discussion of reading Regular reading/writing conferences with teacher/ peers Informal talk and conversation Regular speaker self-evaluation to recognize that what a speaker hears, writes, reads, and views contributes to the

content and quality of oral language


APPENDIX A

Listening

Regular direct instruction of listening strategies: speaker power; awareness of need to be silent, to wait, and to respond as appropriate; distinguishing between types of speech (e.g., conversation, warnings, jokes); hearing difference between speaking in conversation and sharing information; distinguishing intensity, pitch, quality, and sequence of a variety of sounds; recognizing sounds in the environment; active listening and sustaining attention for increasing periods of time

Regular demonstrating of listening comprehension through discussion, writing, projects, following directions, recall of information

Regular demonstration of thinking skills in listening activities to make judgments, summarize, evaluate, analyze, hypothesize

Regular listener self-evaluation to recognize that what a listener says, reads, writes, and views contributes to the content and quality of the listening experience

Viewing

Regular direct instruction of viewing strategies Regular teacher use of a variety of media to facilitate learning to respond to visual messages and images in print,

nonverbal interactions, the arts, and electronic media Regular student use of a variety of media to facilitate and demonstrate learning Regular use of print media such as charts, graphs, maps, pictures, illustrations, photographs and electronic media such

as computers, television with captions, film with captions to facilitate learning Regular activities/discussions which examine and evaluate the impact of a variety of media on learning and knowing Regular activities/discussions which interpret and evaluate information from a variety of viewed sources Regular activities/discussions which integrate information from related written and viewed sources Regular viewer self-evaluation to recognize that what a viewer says, hears, writes, and reads contributes to the content

and quality of the viewing experience

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 APPENDIX B

CODES FOR SKILLS AND STRATEGY INSTRUCTION

The following literacy profiles were created to assist teachers in developing a blueprint for instruction in reading. The profiles determine at what grade level teachers would emphasize (E), reinforce (R), or extend (E) instruction of specific

skills and strategies. The information contained in the profiles is offered with the obvious understanding that teachers who determine that their students require additional instruction will provide it, regardless of the suggestions made in the profile.

EMPHASIZE “E”

Instruction which is EMPHASIZED by the teacher through modeling and/or explanation. The responsibility for initiating and directing the instruction is with the teacher. The teacher determines, through observing, talking with students, and formal/informal assessments, what students need to learn and are able to learn. Instead of just talking about a strategy or task, the teacher illustrates the processes used by thinking aloud or modeling mental processes, during his/her explanation.

REINFORCE “R”

Instruction which need only be REINFORCED by the teacher because students have had

prior experience and/or exposure to the task/strategy or lesson. Students and teachers practice the task/strategy/concept together, with teachers giving constructive feedback to the students. The responsibility, then, is gradually released to the students to complete the task.

EXTEND “X”

The student will EXTEND his/her learning by practicing strategies and tasks with a significant degree of independence. The teacher provides feedback and guidance, ensuring the student has the opportunity for extensive practice with concepts and strategies. The responsibility for completing tasks is released to the student. Students are able to adapt and modify strategies so that the strategies work successfully for them.

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 APPENDIX C

SKILLS AND STRATEGY

K 1 2 3 4 5

Early Emergent Upper Emergent

Early Fluency

Fluency

A B C

B C D E F G H I

H I J K L M

L M N O P

O P Q R S T

S T U V W

CONCEPTS ABOUT PRINT

Holds book correctly E R

Demonstrates one-to-one correspondence E R

Differentiates words and spaces E R X

Demonstrates directionality E R

Understands left-to-right page sequence E R

Understands return sweep E R

Recognizes front and back of book E R

Identifies title, title page, author, illustrator E R X

Realizes that print contains meaning E R

Understands concept of a letter E R

Differentiates first and last letter E R

Understands concept of a word E R

Differentiates first and last word E R

Understands concept of a sentence E R

Recognizes and forms all uppercase and lowercase letters

E R

Recognizes environmental words in print E R

Recognizes high-frequency words in and out of context

E R

Writes name E R

Identifies and interprets features that support text meaning (maps, charts, illustrations

E E R R R X

Recognizes purpose for print conventions such as end-sentence punctuation.

E R X E R X

Recognizes purpose of a paragraph E R R X


SKILLS AND STRATEGY

K 1 2 3 4 5


Early Fluency

Fluency

A B C

B C D E F G H I

H I J K L M

L M N O P

O P Q R S T

S T U V W

Uses titles, table of contents, chapter headings

E E R X

Uses a glossary/index to locate information E E R X

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS

Has sentence awareness E R

Has word awareness E R

Recognizes and says rhyming words E R X

Hears and produces words that begin with the same sound

E R X

Has syllable awareness E R X

Hears and produces words with onset/rime E R X

Identifies initial, final, and medial consonant sounds

E R X

Recognizes and manipulates vowel sounds E R X

Orally segments, blends, and manipulates phonemes in words

E R X

Has phoneme awareness E R X

DECODING AND WORD RECOGNITITON

Decodes using initial, final, and medial consonants

E R X

Decodes using short vowels E R X

Decodes using long vowels E E R

Uses consonant blends to decode E R

Uses vowel digraphs to decode E R

Uses vowel diphthongs to decode E R


SKILLS AND STRATEGY

K 1 2 3 4 5


Early Fluency

Fluency

A B C

B C D E F G H I

H I J K L M

L M N O P

O P Q R S T

S T U V W

Uses irregular vowels to decode E R

Uses r-controlled vowels to decode E R

Segments and blends words to decode E E R

Uses word parts, clusters, and word families to decode

E E E

Manipulates sounds/symbols to create new words

E R X

Uses syllabication to decode one-syllable words

E R X

Uses syllabication to decode multi-syllable words and nonsense words

E R

Knows sounds for a range of developmentally appropriate prefixes and suffixes

E R

Recognizes compound words, contractions and common abbreviations

E R R E R X

Uses context to accurately read words with more than one pronunciation

E E R X

READING STRATEGIES (BEFORE, DURING AND AFTER READING)

Set purpose for reading E E R R X X

Uses some initial letters to predict words E E R R X X

Uses known words to decode unknown words

E E R R X X

Relies more on print for meaning E E R R X X

Compares similar words E E R R X X

Uses picture cues to confirm meaning E E R R X X


SKILLS AND STRATEGY

K 1 2 3 4 5


Early Fluency

Fluency

A B C

B C D E F G H I

H I J K L M

L M N O P

O P Q R S T

S T U V W

Predicts meaning from context and illustrations

E E R R X X

Uses sentence structure to gain meaning E E R R X X

Uses prior knowledge to gain meaning E E R R X X

Uses self-correcting and cross-checking strategies

E E R R X X

Verbalizes how to use reading strategies E E R R X X

Modifies reading strategies for type of reading

E E R X X

Uses and applies graphic organizers (Venn diagram, KWL, character trait charts, etc.)

E

E R R X X

COMPREHENSION SKILLS AND RESPONSE TO TEXT

LITERARY STRATEGIES

Discusses and expresses opinions of a story E E R R X X

Makes connections (to text, self and world) E R X E R X

Retells simple story E E R R X X

Identifies main idea E E R R X X

Identifies important details E E R R X X

Identifies cause and effect E E R R X X

Determines author‟s purpose E E R E R X

Recognizes genres E E E E E E


SKILLS AND STRATEGY

K 1 2 3 4 5


Early Fluency

Fluency

A B C

B C D E F G H I

H I J K L M

L M N O P

O P Q R S T

S T U V W

Differentiates fact from opinion E E R R X X

Evaluates historical significance E R R

Confirms and clarifies understanding E E R R R

Locates information in text and illustrations E E R R X X

Compares and contrasts information E E R R X X

Discusses underlying themes across cultures in various texts

E R X

Understands author‟s opinions and how they address culture

E R

ACTIVE READING STRATEGIES

Predicting E E E R R R

Visualizing E R X E R X

Schema/Connections E R R E R R

Questioning E R R E R

Determining Most Important Ideas E R E R E

Summarizing E R E R

Inferring E R E R

Analyzing Text Features E E

Synthesizing E R E

Critiquing E

LITERARY ELEMENTS

Identifies elements of fiction E E E R X X

Understands author/illustrator E R X X X X

Identifies main character E E R R X X

Analyzes character traits and actions E E R R R R

Analyzes character relationships E E E R R R

Recognizes time elements E R X E R X


SKILLS AND STRATEGY

K 1 2 3 4 5


Early Fluency

Fluency

A B C

B C D E F G H I

H I J K L M

L M N O P

O P Q R S T

S T U V W

Analyzes story setting E R X E R X

Recognizes sequence of events E E R R R X

Identifies problem/solutions or conflict/resolution

E E R R X X

Identifies point of view E R X

Analyzes mood/tone E R X

Analyzes plot or plot structure E R X

Identifies theme E R X

Identifies climax E R X

LITERARY DEVICES

Identifies rhyme and rhythm E E R X

Identifies alliteration E E R R X X

Identifies onomatopoeia E E E R X X

Identifies similes/metaphors E E R X

Identifies personification E E R X

Identifies figurative language E E R R

Identifies hyperbole (exaggeration) E E R R

Identifies idioms E E R R

Recognizes symbolism E E E

Identifies and analyzes flashbacks E E E

Recognizes foreshadowing E E E

EXPLICIT VOCABULARY INSTRUCTION

Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency, Chapter 31 by Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell

Early concept words E E R X X X

Labels E E E E R

Synonyms E E E R


SKILLS AND STRATEGY

K 1 2 3 4 5


Early Fluency

Fluency

A B C

B C D E F G H I

H I J K L M

L M N O P

O P Q R S T

S T U V W

Antonyms E E E R

Nouns E E E R

Verbs (action words) E E E R

Adjectives and Adverbs (describing words) E E E R

Homophones E E E E

Homographs E E E E

Compound Words E E E E

Figurative Use of Words E E E

Blended (Portmanteau) Words E E E

Onomatopoetic Words E E E

Words with Multiple Meanings E E E

Multi-syllable Tier-two Words E E E

Technical or Scientific Words E E E

Idioms E E

Words from Many Languages E E

Words from Names E E

Words from Initials E

Clipped Words and Abbreviations E

Palindromes E

Greek and Latin Roots of Words E

Content Words

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 APPENDIX D

Building Blocks for Teaching Children to Read

Concepts of Print - the basic knowledge about print and how it is typically organized on a page. For example, print conveys meaning, print is read left to right, and words are separated by spaces. Phonological Awareness

Phoneme - the smallest unit of sound that changes the meaning of a spoken word. English has approximately 41-44 phonemes. For example, if you change the first phoneme in bat from /b/ to /p/, the word bat changes to pat. The word oh is one phoneme, the word go has two phonemes.

Phonemic Awareness - the ability to hear, identify, and manipulate the individual sounds and phonemes in spoken words. For example, blending /w/ and /e/ to say the word we. Phonics - the understanding and use of the alphabetic principle in reading and spelling. Understand that there is a predictable relationship between phonemes (the sounds in spoken language) and graphemes (the letters that represent the sounds in written language) and this information can be used to read, decode and encode words. Phonological Awareness - a range of understandings related to the sounds of words and word parts, including identifying and manipulating larger parts of spoken language such as words, syllables, and onsets and rimes. It also includes phonemic awareness, as well as aspects of spoken language such as rhyming and syllabication. Fluency - the ability to read, both silently and orally, with accuracy, appropriate pace, proper expression, and comprehension. Vocabulary - refers to the words needed to communicate effectively. Oral vocabulary refers to words used in speaking or recognized when listening. Reading vocabulary refers to words recognized or used in print. Comprehension - good readers have a purpose for reading and think actively as they read. To make sense of what they read, good readers engage in a complicated process. Using their experiences and knowledge of their world, their knowledge of vocabulary and language structure, and their knowledge of comprehension strategies, good readers make sense of the text. They know when they are having problems with understanding and how to resolve these problems as they occur.


Reading Strategies to Enhance Comprehension and Understanding of Text

Predicting – A reader uses knowledge of language syntax to narrow possibilities when decoding words to determine meaning. A reader generates expectations based on genre, author, illustrator, or topic.

Visualizing – A reader creates mental images including visual, auditory, and other sensory images to become emotionally involved with what is read. A reader engages with the text to anchor it to prior knowledge in order to make the text personal and memorable. The reader‟s emotions and the five senses are enhanced to create images that are fluid. These images are adapted as new information is read adding depth and dimension to the reader‟s understanding of text.

Fix Up Strategies – A reader uses a wide range of problem-solving strategies including skipping ahead, rereading, asking questions, using a dictionary, and reading the passage aloud to monitor understanding of text. A reader becomes aware when he/ she understands the text. A reader adjusts and monitors reading based on the purpose for reading and genre of the text.

Schema/Connections – A reader uses relevant prior knowledge before, during, and after reading to enhance understanding of the text. A reader is continuously making mental files to which new files are created, linking new information to exiting files, and revising and deleting information.

Questioning – A reader generates questions before, during, and after reading to clarify meaning, make predictions, and focus attention on what‟s important as he/she searches for answers to monitor comprehension and interact with text to construct meaning. Some reasons a reader processes questions are to clarify meaning, speculate about text to be read, determine an author‟s style intent content or format, focus attention on specific components of the text, locate a specific answer, or consider rhetorical questions inspired by text.

Determining Most Important Ideas – A reader identifies key ideas or themes, distinguishes between important and unimportant information based on the purpose for reading and genre of the text.

Summarizing – A reader identifies and organizes relevant information while reading, extracting it from print and forming an ongoing synopsis to create meaning while disregarding the irrelevant information. Inferring/ Predicting – A reader uses prior knowledge (schema) and information from text to make predictions, form answers to questions, draw conclusions, and create interpretations to confirm or contradict predictions.

Inferring extends the literal meaning of text to what is not stated but rather implied by the author. A reader searches for clues within the text and merges his/her prior knowledge (schema) and answers from self-posed questions to create a conclusion about an underlying theme or idea in a text.

Predicting is using what is already known to think about what will follow while reading continuous text.

Synthesizing – A reader uses a continuum of evolving thinking based on combining new information with existing knowledge to form an original idea or to create a new way of thinking about the “big picture.”

Analyzing Text and its Features – A reader analyzes text features and/or elements of text and notices aspects of the writer‟s craft to construct meaning. A reader determines how text is organized to convey meaning, how it works and discovers literary elements while utilizing visual features such as: illustrations, photo, maps, diagrams along with text features including heading and table of contents.

Critiquing – A reader evaluates and responds to text based on his/her personal world, or knowledge of text information and thinking critically about the ideas contained within the text. The reader is required to judge the quality of text.


Reading Strategies to Enhance Comprehension Grade Level Emphasis

*These strategies are not to be taught in isolation but rather as a collection of readers’ tools to aid in constructing meaning of text at all grade levels. The shaded box denotes the unit provided within the Language Arts Curriculum Guide for kindergarten through grade 5.

Strategies used by readers to enhance comprehension and understanding of text: K 1 2 3 4 5

Predicting*: thinking about what will follow while reading continuous text.

E

E

E

R

R

R

Visualizing: mental images including visual, auditory, and other sensory images to become emotionally involved with what is read

E

R

X

E

R

X

Fix Up Strategies: skipping ahead, rereading, asking questions, using a dictionary, and reading the passage aloud to monitor understanding of text

E

E

E

E

E

E

Schema/Connections: relevant prior knowledge before, during, and after reading to enhance understanding of text

E

R

R

E

R

R

Questioning: questions generated before, during and after reading to clarify meaning, make predictions, and focus attention on what‟s important as he/she searches for answers to monitor comprehension and interact with text to construct meaning

E

R

R

E

R

Determining Most Important Ideas: key ideas or themes, distinguishes between important and unimportant information based on the purpose for reading and genre of the text

E

R

E

R

E

Summarizing: relevant information organized while reading, extracting it from print and forming an ongoing synopsis to create meaning while disregarding the irrelevant information to understand the essence of the text

E

R

E

R

Inferring/Predicting*: prior knowledge (schema) and information from text to make predictions, form answers to questions, draw conclusion, and create interpretations to confirm or contradict predictions

E

R

E

R

Analyzing Text Features: how text is organized, how it works to convey meaning; literary elements while utilizing visual features such as: illustrations, photo, maps, diagrams along with text features including heading and table of contents and how it adds to a deeper understanding of the text

E

E

Synthesizing: a continuum of evolving thinking based on combining new information with existing knowledge to form an original idea or create a new way of thinking about the “big picture”

E

E

E

E

Critiquing: text evaluated, judged, and responded to, based on reader‟s personal world, or knowledge of text information and thinking critically about the ideas contained within the text.

E

E Sources: Miller, Reading with Meaning; Harvey and Goudvis, Strategies that Work; Fountas and Pinnell. Guiding Readers and Writers: Grades 3-6; Fountas and Pinnell, Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency: Thinking, Talking, and Writing About Reading, K-8; Keene and Zimmermann, Mosaic of Thought; Hutchins and Zimmermann, 7 Keys to Comprehension.

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 APPENDIX E

OBJECTIVES FOR THE K-5 LEARNER IN THE READING AND WRITING WORKSHOP

BASED ON THE NEW JERSEY CORE CURRICULUM CONTENT STANDARDS FOR LANGUAGE ARTS LITERACY

The learner will understand that reading is thinking. The learner will use fix-up and comprehension strategies to enhance his/her understanding of text. He/she will recognize appropriate times to utilize fix-up strategies to monitor decoding (e.g., word solving, skipping ahead, rereading, looking for little words in big words) and to use comprehensions strategies to make sense of text (e.g., predicting, visualizing, activating schema, making connections, questioning, determining important ideas, summarizing, inferring, synthesizing, analyzing text, critiquing).

The learner will read independently with fluency and comprehension in order to become a lifelong reader. The learner will see himself/herself as a reader.

The learner will extend understanding of text through a variety of ways of expressing meaning by writing, speaking, creating visual products, or performing. He/she will begin to understand that the goal of reading and writing is to build meaning, and that a reader and writer must be actively involved in the process of constructing meaning.

The learner will read and write for a variety of purposes.

The learner will learn the conventions of the English language through listening, speaking, reading, writing, and viewing, as well as through direct instruction and teacher modeling. He /she will understand that language can be expressed through reading and writing according to literacy conventions and that by following these conventions of the English language helps people to communicate effectively with each other. Students will learn to edit their own writing and apply the conventions of spelling, usage, grammar, and mechanics.

The learner will become an active participant within the learning environment by engaging in collaborative learning experiences (e.g., turn and talk with peers, reading/writing partnerships, peer editing/revision, literature circles, reader's theater).

The learner will begin to see reading and writing as a means to better understand one's self and the world, to expand experiences, and to have opportunities to grow intellectually, emotionally, and socially.

The learner will begin to understand the interrelationship of reading, writing, listening, speaking, and viewing. He/she will read and write in order to expand learning in the content areas of math, science, social studies, and the arts.

The learner will experience a home - school connection that enhances literacy skills and habits.

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 APPENDIX F

Reading Behaviors: Grade Four Levels O-T: Indicators

New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standard

Reading: All students will understand and apply the knowledge of sounds, letters, and words in written English to become independent and fluent readers, and will read a variety of materials and texts with fluency and comprehension.

These areas are referred to as strands and were developed and defined by the NJDOE. They are regarded as integral components of a Language Arts Literacy Program. The Cumulative Progress Indicators, CPIs, guide the teacher to answer the question: what would you observe in a student‟s reading

behaviors that “indicate” the pupil has become proficient at both the strand and level?

LEVEL O INDICATORS FOR CONCEPTS ABOUT PRINT

CPI: Recognize that printed materials provide specific information. CPI: Recognize purposes for print conventions such as end-sentence punctuation, paragraphing, and bold print. CPI: Use a glossary or index to locate information in a text. Gather content carried by print rather than pictures. Understand integration of print and pictures in text. Extend understanding through use of illustrations in most informational texts. Survey fiction books with few illustrations and long stretches of texts, picture books with some illustrations. Recognize varied print and font size within large text. Utilize descriptive and figurative language that is important to understanding the plot. Survey shorter non-fiction text on single topic and/or many chapters book with many lines of print on a page. Use words in italics bold, or all capitals to indicate level of importance or meaning. Recognize more difficult layout with denser format and ample space between lines. Recognize a variety in the layout of print in non-fiction text, such as question and answer, paragraphs, boxes, legends and callouts. Recognize a full range of punctuation, including dashes and ellipsis. Identify features of dialog such as assigned, unassigned and questions. Develop an understanding of longer more complex sentences, including prepositional phrases, introductory clauses, lists of nouns, verbs and

adjectives and sentences with parenthetical material. Understand sentences continuing on several lines and/or pages. Survey non-fiction text containing a variety of graphics (diagrams, labels, captions, cutaways and maps) that extends the content of text and are

clearly explained. Utilize table of content, a few heading, glossary, pronunciation guides, chapter titles, authors‟ notes, simple index.

LEVEL O INDICATORS FOR PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS (INCLUDES PHONEMIC AWARENESS)

CPI: Demonstrate a sophisticated sense of sound-symbol relationship, including all phonemes (e.g., blends, digraphs, diphthongs).


LEVEL O INDICATORS FOR DECODING AND WORD RECOGNITION

CPI: Know sounds for a range of prefixes and suffixes (e.g., re-, ex-, -ment, -tion). CPI: Use letter-sound knowledge and structural analysis to decode words. CPI: Use context to accurately read words with more than one pronunciation. Utilize words with suffixes and simple prefixes. Use words with 3+ syllables with many plurals, contractions and compound words, some words hyphenated across lines and pages. Use multi-syllable proper nouns that are difficult to decode. Solve words quickly and automatically while focusing on meaning.

LEVEL O INDICATORS FOR FLUENCY

CPI: Recognize grade-level words accurately and with ease so that a text sounds like spoken language when read aloud. CPI: Read longer text and chapter books independently and silently. CPI: Read aloud with proper phrasing, inflection, and intonation. Orally read rapidly and smoothly with expression and figures out new words easily and quickly. Demonstrate the ability to interpret text while reading orally with fluency and phrasing.

LEVEL O INDICATORS FOR READING STRATEGIES (BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER)

CPI: Set purpose for reading and check to verify or change predictions during/after reading. CPI: Monitor comprehension and accuracy while reading in context and self-correct errors. CPI: Use pictures and context clues to assist with decoding of new words. CPI: Develop and use graphic organizers to build on experiences and extend learning.

LEVEL O INDICATORS FOR VOCABULARY AND CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

CPI: Spell previously studied words and spelling patterns accurately. CPI: Point to or clearly identify specific words or wording that are causing comprehension difficulties. CPI: Infer word meanings from taught roots, prefixes, and suffixes. CPI: Use a grade-appropriate dictionary with assistance from teacher. CPI: Use pictures and context clues to assist with meaning of new words. Identify new vocabulary in fiction text that is largely unexplained. Recognize the underlying meanings of words that are essential to understanding text. Attempt to understand the subtle shades of meaning words can convey.


Understand complex content specific in words and meaning in non-fiction defined in text or illustrations. Recognize some longer descriptive words and words used figuratively.

LEVEL O INDICATORS FOR COMPREHENSION AND RESPONSE TO TEXT

Visualizing

CPI: No additional indicators at this time. Continues to build on knowledge and skills gained at the previous levels.

Fix Up Strategies

CPI: Read regularly in materials appropriate for their independent reading level.

CPI: Read and comprehend both fiction and nonfiction that is appropriately designed for grade level.

Schema/Connections

CPI: No additional indicators at this time. Continue to build on knowledge and skills gained at the previous levels.

CPI: Make connections among texts to enhance interpretations.

CPI: Connect with memorable characters with good and bad traits that change and develop over time with explicit and obvious factors.

CPI: Access prior knowledge to understand informational text.

Questioning CPI: Ask how, why, and what-if questions in interpreting nonfiction texts.

Determining Most Important Ideas

Summarizing CPI: Recognize purpose of the text. Understand that setting and details are important to understanding the plot. Recognize and follow suspenseful characteristics of plots.

Inferences/Predictions

CPI: Draw conclusions and inferences from texts. CPI: Discuss underlying theme or message in interpreting fiction. Understand multiple characters that are revealed by what they say, think and do and what others say/think about them. Go beyond the text to speculate on alternate meaning. After reading silently, demonstrate understanding and sophistication in text interpretation.

Synthesizing

CPI: Participate in creative responses to texts (e.g., dramatizations, oral presentations). CPI: Use information and reasoning to examine bases of hypotheses and opinions. Take on perspectives from diverse cultures and brings cultural knowledge to go beyond the reader‟s personal understanding. Sustain attention to a text read over several days remembering details and revising interpretations as new events are encountered.


Analyzing Text Features CPI: Compare and contrast story plots, characters, settings, and themes. CPI: Recognize how authors use humor, sarcasm, and imagery to extend meaning CPI: Distinguish cause/effect, fact/opinion, main idea/supporting details in interpreting texts. CPI: Interpret information in graphs, charts, and diagrams. CPI: Recognize first-person "I" point of view. Recognize a few abstract ideas supported by the text.

Critiquing

CPI: No additional indicators at this time. Continues to build on knowledge and skills gained at the previous levels. Explore more challenging themes such as war, the environment, important human problems and social issues.

LEVEL O INDICATORS FOR INQUIRY AND RESEARCH

CPI: Use library classification systems, print or electronic, to locate information. CPI: Draw conclusions from information and data gathered. CPI: Read a variety of nonfiction and fiction books and produce evidence of understanding.




These areas are referred to as strands and were developed and defined by the NJDOE. They are regarded as integral components of a Language Arts Literacy Program. The Cumulative Progress Indicators, CPIs, guide the teacher to answer the question: what would you observe in

a student‟s reading behaviors that “indicate” the pupil has become proficient at both the strand and level?

LEVEL P INDICATORS FOR CONCEPTS ABOUT PRINT

CPI: Recognize that printed materials provide specific information. CPI: Identify differences of various print formats, including newspapers, magazines, books, and reference resources. CPI: Recognize purposes for print conventions such as end-sentence punctuation, paragraphing, and bold print. CPI: Recognize purposes and uses for print conventions such as paragraphs, end-sentence punctuation, and bold print. CPI: Use a glossary or index to locate information in a text. CPI: Identify and locate features that support text meaning (e.g., maps, charts, illustrations). Select many books with few or no illustrations. Recognize that most illustrations in fiction are black and white. Recognize that fiction books will typically have long stretches of text without illustrations. Recognize that picture books have illustrations on every page. Explore lengths of text as being shorter (24-48 pgs) texts on a single topic (usually nonfiction), chapter books (60-150 pgs.), and text with

many lines of print on a page. Recognize that questions and answers in nonfiction text impart content. Use wide variety in showing dialogue (assigned, unassigned). Recognize a large variation among print styles, font size, print color, and background color. Recognize the use of bold, larger font, or italics for emphasis or to indicate importance or level of information. Recognize that print and illustrations are integrated in most texts, with print wrapping around pictures and there may be captions under

pictures that provide important information. Recognize that there is varied space between lines, with some lines containing dense print. Recognize that there is a variety of layout formats in nonfiction (question/answer; paragraphs; boxes; legends; callouts) and that

informational text may have a more difficult layout with denser format. Recognize that some sentences may continue over several lines or to the next page. Recognize a full range of punctuation as needed for complex sentences. Recognize that longer complex sentence structures include dialogue and many embedded clauses and phrases. Recognize that sentences with nouns, verbs, or adjectives in series are divided by commas. Recognize sentences with parenthetical material. Recognize that non-fiction text may have a full range of graphics providing information that matches and extends the text. Recognize that some non fiction texts include graphics that are complex, not fully explained, and may have scales or legends important to

understanding.


LEVEL P INDICATORS FOR PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS (INCLUDES PHONEMIC AWARENESS)

CPI: Demonstrate a sophisticated sense of sound-symbol relationship, including all phonemes (e.g., blends, digraphs, dipthongs).

Analyze words in flexible ways and makes excellent attempts at new, multi-syllable words. Recognize that many words have 3 or more syllables, are complex, and are challenging to take apart. Recognize plurals, contractions, compound words, words with suffixes and some simple prefixes. Recognize that many multi-syllable proper nouns are difficult to decode.

LEVEL P INDICATORS FOR DECODING AND WORD RECOGNITION

CPI: Know sounds for a range of prefixes and suffixes (e.g., re-, ex-, -ment, -tion). CPI: Use letter-sound knowledge and structural analysis to decode words. CPI: Use context to accurately read words with more than one pronunciation. CPI: Use letter-sound correspondence and structural analysis (e.g., roots, affixes) to decode words. CPI: Know and use common word families to decode unfamiliar words. CPI Recognize compound words, contractions, and common abbreviations.

LEVEL P INDICATORS FOR FLUENCY

CPI: Recognize grade-level words accurately and with ease so that a text sounds like spoken language when read aloud. CPI: Read longer text and chapter books independently and silently. CPI: Read at different speeds using scanning, skimming, or careful reading as appropriate. CPI: Read aloud with proper phrasing, inflection, and intonation. CPI: Use appropriate rhythm, flow, meter, and pronunciation in demonstrating understanding of punctuation marks. Read silently and reads fluently when reading aloud. When reading silently, read rapidly and with attention to meaning. Demonstrate facility in text interpretation while reading orally, with fluency, and phrasing. Figure out new words rapidly in oral reading while reading smoothly and expressively.


LEVEL P INDICATORS FOR READING STRATEGIES (BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER)

CPI: Set purpose for reading and check to verify or change predictions during/after reading.

CPI: Use knowledge of word meaning, language structure, and sound-symbol relationships to check understanding when reading.

CPI: Monitor comprehension and accuracy while reading in context and self-correct errors.

CPI: Identify specific words or passages causing comprehension difficulties and seek clarification.

CPI: Use pictures and context clues to assist with decoding of new words.

CPI: Develop and use graphic organizers to build on experiences and extend learning.

CPI: Select useful visual organizers before, during, and after reading to organize information (e.g., Venn diagrams

Use figurative language that is important to understanding the plot extensively.

Aware of some suspense characteristic of plots.

Understand multiple characters.

Reveal characters by what they say, think, and do and what others say/think about them.

Recognize memorable characters, with both good and bad traits, that change and develop over time.

Recognize that factors related to character change explicit and obvious.

LEVEL P INDICATORS FOR VOCABULARY AND CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

CPI: Spell previously studied words and spelling patterns accurately. CPI: Point to or clearly identify specific words or wording that are causing comprehension difficulties. CPI: Infer word meanings from taught roots, prefixes, and suffixes; CPI: Infer word meanings from learned roots, prefixes, and suffixes. CPI: Use a grade-appropriate dictionary with assistance from teacher. CPI: Use a grade-appropriate dictionary (independently) to define unknown words. CPI: Use pictures and context clues to assist with meaning of new words. CPI: Infer specific word meanings in the context of reading passages. CPI: Identify and correctly use antonyms, synonyms, homophones, and homographs. Actively acquire new vocabulary through reading. Acquire many new vocabulary words that must be derived from context. Understand longer descriptive words-adjectives and adverbs. Understand some words figuratively – metaphor, simile, idiom. Understand words with connotative meanings that are essential to understanding the text. Acquire many new vocabulary words that depend on readers‟ tools such as glossaries. Understand complex content-specific words, mostly defined in text, illustrations, or glossary.


LEVEL P INDICATORS FOR COMPREHENSION AND RESPONSE TO TEXT

Visualizing

CPI: No additional indicators at this level. Continue to build upon knowledge and skills gained in preceding levels.

Fix Up Strategies CPI: Read regularly in materials appropriate for their independent reading level. CPI: Read and comprehend both fiction and nonfiction that is appropriately designed for grade level. CPI: Read regularly in materials appropriate for their independent reading level.) Demonstrate interest in reading an extended text over a longer time period.

Schema/Connections

CPI: No additional indicators at this level. Continue to build upon knowledge and skills gained in preceding levels. Continuously building background knowledge and realizing the need to bring prior knowledge to reading.

Questioning

CPI: Asks how, why, and what-if questions in interpreting nonfiction texts).

Determining Most Important Ideas CPI: No additional indicators at this level. Continue to build upon knowledge and skills gained in preceding levels.

Summarizing

CPI: Recognize purpose of the text. CPI: Follow simple multiple-steps in written instructions (cf. mathematics standard 4.4). CPI: Summarize major points from fiction and nonfiction texts. CPI: Identify and summarize central ideas in informational texts. Use descriptive language to provide details important to understanding the plot. Explore more challenging themes such as war, the environment, important human problems and social issues. Understand ideas and themes requiring taking the perspective not familiar to the reader. Comprehend ideas and themes requiring understanding of cultural diversity.


CPI: Draw conclusions and inferences from texts.

CPI: Recognize how authors use humor, sarcasm, and imagery to extend meaning.

CPI: Cite evidence from text to support conclusions.

CPI: Discuss underlying theme or message in interpreting fiction.

CPI: Discuss underlying themes across cultures in various texts.

After reading silently, demonstrate understanding and sophistication in interpreting meaning.

Comprehend settings that are distant in time and space from the students‟ experiences.


Synthesizing

CPI: Participate in creative responses to texts (e.g., dramatizations, oral presentations).

CPI: Uses information and reasoning to examine bases of hypotheses and opinions.

Sustain attention to text read over many days, remembering details, and revising interpretations as new events are encountered.

Analyzing Text Features

CPI: Compare and contrast story plots, characters, settings, and themes. CPI: Distinguish cause/effect, fact/opinion, main idea/supporting details in interpreting texts. CPI: Interpret information in graphs, charts, and diagrams. CPI: Distinguish cause and effect, fact and opinion, main idea and supporting details in nonfiction texts (e.g., science, social

studies). CPI: Recognize differences among forms of literature (poetry, drama, fiction, nonfiction). CPI: Recognize literary elements in stories, including setting, characters, plot, and mood. CPI: Identify some literary devices in stories. CPI: Identify the structures in poetry. CPI: Identify the structures in drama (cf. visual and performing arts standards). CPI: Recognize first-person "I" point of view. CPI: Understand author's opinions and how they address culture, ethnicity, gender, and historical periods (cf. social studies

standards). CPI: Recognize an author's point of view. Compare the text with other books in an analytic way. Understand more complex fantasy elements.

Critiquing

CPI: no additional indicators at this level. Continue to build upon knowledge and skills gained in preceding levels.

LEVEL P INDICATORS FOR INQUIRY AND RESEARCH

CPI: Use library classification systems, print or electronic, to locate information. CPI: Draw conclusions from information and data gathered. CPI: Read a variety of nonfiction and fiction books and produce evidence of understanding. CPI: Use library classification systems, print or electronic, to locate information. CPI: Investigate a favorite author and produce evidence of research. CPI: Read independently and research topics using a variety of materials to satisfy personal, academic, and social needs, and

produce evidence of reading.






LEVEL Q INDICATORS FOR CONCEPTS ABOUT PRINT

CPI: Identify differences of various print formats, including newspapers, magazines, books, and reference resources. CPI: Recognize purposes and uses for print conventions such as paragraphs, end-sentence punctuation, and bold print. CPI: Identify and locate features that support text meaning (e.g., maps, charts, and illustrations). Survey shorter non-fiction text on single topic and/or many chapters book with many lines of print on a page. Recognize large variations among print styles and font including use of bold, larger font and italics to indicate importance of text. Understand the integration of print and illustrations with print wrapping around most illustrations. Understand the variation of print layout including varied space between lines and denser print as well as sentences continuing over

several lines or another page. Recognize a variety in the layout of print in non-fiction text, such as question and answer, paragraphs, boxes, legends and call-outs. Utilize a full range of punctuation needed for complex sentences. Survey fiction books with few or no illustrations, usually black and white and long stretches of texts, picture books with some illustrations. Develop an understanding of longer more complex sentences, including dialog, many embedded clauses and phrases, lists of nouns,

verbs and adjectives and sentences with parenthetical material. Identify questions in dialog in fiction texts and questions and answers to impart content in non-fiction. Utilize captions located under pictures that provide information. Utilize a full range of reader‟s tools including table of contents, glossary, headings, subheadings, call-outs, pronunciation guides, index

and references. Utilize non-fictions books with a full range of graphics to provide information and extend the text and some texts with graphics that are not

fully explained. Utilize non-fiction texts with some graphics that have scales or legends important to the understanding of the book.

LEVEL Q INDICATORS FOR PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS (INCLUDES PHONEMIC AWARENESS)

CPI: No additional indicators at this grade level. Continue to build upon knowledge and skills gained at the previous levels.


LEVEL Q INDICATORS FOR DECODING AND WORD RECOGNITION

CPI: Use letter-sound correspondence and structural analysis (e.g., roots, and affixes) to decode words.

CPI: Know and use common word families to decode unfamiliar words.

CPI: Recognize compound words, contractions, and common abbreviations.

Utilize words with affixes and technical words that are difficult to decode.

Use multi-syllable proper nouns that are difficult to decode.

Utilize words that are seldom used in oral language and are difficult to decode.

Use words with 3+ syllables with many plurals, contractions and compound words.

LEVEL Q INDICATORS FOR FLUENCY

CPI: Use appropriate rhythm, flow, meter, and pronunciation in demonstrating understanding of punctuation marks.

CPI: Read at different speeds using scanning, skimming, or careful reading as appropriate.

Orally read rapidly and smoothly with expression and figures out new words easily and quickly.

Demonstrate the ability to interpret text while reading orally with fluency and phrasing.

LEVEL Q INDICATORS FOR READING STRATEGIES (BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER)


CPI: Identify specific words or passages causing comprehension difficulties and seek clarification. CPI: Select useful visual organizers before, during, and after reading to organize information (e.g., Venn diagrams).

LEVEL Q INDICATORS FOR VOCABULARY AND CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

CPI: Infer word meanings from learned roots, prefixes, and suffixes. CPI: Infer specific word meanings in the context of reading passages. CPI: Identify and correctly use antonyms, synonyms, homophones, and homographs. CPI: Use a grade-appropriate dictionary (independently) to define unknown words. Actively acquire new vocabulary while reading. Understand complex content specific words and meaning in non-fiction texts mostly defined by text, illustrations or glossaries. Recognize the underlying meanings of words that are essential to understanding text. Recognize some longer descriptive words such as adjectives and adverbs and words used figuratively such as idioms, similes and


metaphors. Recognize many new vocabulary words that depend on using reader‟s tools and the content of the text to understand.

LEVEL Q INDICATORS FOR COMPREHENSION AND RESPONSE TO TEXT

Visualizing

Understand that use of descriptive and figurative language is important to understanding the plot.

Fix Up Strategies CPI: Read regularly in materials appropriate for their independent reading level. Demonstrate an interest in reading an extended text over a longer period of time.

Schema/Connections

Build background and brings own knowledge to reading. Connect with memorable characters with good and bad traits that change and develop over time with explicit and obvious factors. Follow complex ideas on many different topics requiring real or vicarious experiences through reading.

Questioning No additional indicators at this grade level. Continues to build upon knowledge and skills at preceding levels.

Determining Most Important Ideas CPI: Follow simple multiple-steps in written instructions (cf. mathematics standard 4.4). Recognize and follow suspenseful characteristics of plots. Understand texts with complex plots, creating suspense and leading towards conflict resolution. Explore more challenging themes such as war, the environment, important human problems and social issues.

Summarizing

CPI: Identify and summarize central ideas in informational texts. CPI: Cite evidence from text to support conclusions. Use illustrations to help analyze text meaning.

Inferences/Predictions CPI: Discuss underlying themes across cultures in various texts. Go beyond the text to speculate on alternate meanings and characters thoughts and feelings. After reading silently, demonstrate understanding and sophistication in text interpretation. Understand multiple characters that are revealed by what they say, think and do and what others say/think about them.

Synthesizing

Take on perspectives from diverse cultures and brings cultural knowledge to go beyond the reader‟s personal understanding. Understand settings that are placed distant in time or location from the student‟s personal experiences and settings that require

knowledge of the content.


Sustain attention to a text read over several days remembering details and revising interpretations as new events are encountered.


CPI: Distinguishes cause and effect, fact and opinion, main idea and supporting details in nonfiction texts (e.g., science, social studies)

CPI: Recognizes an author's point of view. CPI: Recognizes differences among forms of literature (poetry, drama, fiction, and nonfiction). CPI: Recognizes literary elements in stories, including setting, characters, plot, and mood. CPI: Identifies some literary devices in stories.

CPI: Identifies the structures in poetry.

CPI: Identifies the structures in drama (cf. visual and performing arts standards).

CPI: Understands author's opinions and how they address culture, ethnicity, gender, and historical periods (cf. social studies standards).

Explore non-fiction texts with underlying structures such as compare/contrast, temporal sequence, problem/solution, cause/effect.

Compare the text to other books in an analytic way.

Understand more complex fantasy elements and complex narratives that are highly literary.

Explore fiction narrative structures including chapters and multiple episodes related to single detailed plots.

Explore non-fiction with a variety in organization and topic and some texts with several topics organized categorically.

Understand that although most of the content is carried by the illustrations rather than the print, the content is extended by the illustrations in informational text.

Critiquing

Show the ability to analyze and extend the text in writing.

LEVEL Q INDICATORS FOR INQUIRY AND RESEARCH

CPI: Use library classification systems, print or electronic, to locate information. CPI: Investigate a favorite author and produce evidence of research. CPI: Read independently and research topics using a variety of materials to satisfy personal, academic, and social needs, and

produce evidence of reading.






LEVEL R INDICATORS FOR CONCEPTS ABOUT PRINT

CPI: Identify differences of various print formats, including newspapers, magazines, books, and reference resources. CPI: Recognize purposes and uses for print conventions such as paragraphs, end-sentence punctuation, and bold print. CPI: Identify and locate features that support text meaning (e.g., maps, charts, and illustrations). Survey shorter non-fiction text on single topic and/or many chapters book with many lines of print on a page. Recognize large variations among print styles and font including use of bold, larger font and italics to indicate importance of text. Understand the integration of print and illustrations with print wrapping around most illustrations. Understand the variation of print layout including varied space between lines and denser print as well as sentences continuing over

several lines or another page. Recognize a variety in the layout of print in non-fiction text, such as question and answer, paragraphs, boxes, legends and callouts. Survey fiction books with few or no illustrations, usually black and white and long stretches of texts, picture books with some illustrations. Develop an understanding of longer more complex sentences, including dialog, many embedded clauses and phrases, lists of nouns,

verbs, and adjectives and sentences with parenthetical material. Identify questions in dialog in fiction texts and questions and answers to impart content in non-fiction. Utilize captions located under pictures that provide information. Utilize a full range of punctuation needed for complex sentences. Utilize a full range of reader‟s tools including table of contents, glossary, headings, subheadings, call-outs, pronunciation guides, index

and references. Utilize non-fictions books with a full range of graphics to provide information and extend the text and some texts with graphics that are not

fully explained. Utilize non-fiction texts with some graphics that have scales or legends important to the understanding of the book. Demonstrate an interest in reading an extended text over a longer period of time.

LEVEL R INDICATORS FOR PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS (INCLUDES PHONEMIC AWARENESS)

CPI: No additional indicators at this grade level. Continue to build upon knowledge and skills gained at the previous levels.


LEVEL R INDICATORS FOR DECODING AND WORD RECOGNITION

CPI: Use letter-sound correspondence and structural analysis (e.g., roots, and affixes) to decode words. CPI: Know and use common word families to decode unfamiliar words. CPI: Recognize compound words, contractions, and common abbreviations. Utilize words with affixes and technical words that are difficult to decode. Use multi-syllable proper nouns that are difficult to decode. Utilize words that are seldom used in oral language and are difficult to decode. Use words with 3+ syllables with many plurals, contractions and compound words.

LEVEL R INDICATORS FOR FLUENCY

CPI: Use appropriate rhythm, flow, meter, and pronunciation in demonstrating understanding of punctuation marks. CPI: Read at different speeds using scanning, skimming, or careful reading as appropriate. Read rapidly, both orally and silently, while focusing on meaning. Read fluently while reading aloud.

LEVEL R INDICATORS FOR READING STRATEGIES (BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER)


CPI: Identify specific words or passages causing comprehension difficulties and seek clarification. CPI: Select useful visual organizers before, during, and after reading to organize information (e.g., Venn diagrams.) Demonstrate interest and ability in interpreting shorter selections.

LEVEL R INDICATORS FOR VOCABULARY AND CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

CPI: Infer word meanings from learned roots, prefixes, and suffixes. CPI: Infer specific word meanings in the context of reading passages. CPI: Identify and correctly use antonyms, synonyms, homophones, and homographs. CPI: Use a grade-appropriate dictionary (independently) to define unknown words.


Understand complex content specific words and meaning in non-fiction texts mostly defined by text, illustrations or glossaries. Recognize the underlying meanings of words that are essential to understanding text. Acquire new vocabulary while reading. Recognize some longer descriptive words such as adjectives and adverbs and words used figuratively such as idioms, similes and

metaphors. Understand some text requiring the understanding of connotative meanings of words. Recognize many new vocabulary words that depend on using reader‟s tools and the content of the text to understand.

LEVEL R INDICATORS FOR COMPREHENSION AND RESPONSE TO TEXT

Visualizing Understand that use of long stretches of descriptive language and figurative language are important to understanding the plot.

Fix Up Strategies

CPI: Read regularly in materials appropriate for their independent reading level. Demonstrate an interest in reading an extended text over a longer period of time.

Schema/Connections

Build background and brings own knowledge to reading. Compare other texts to assist in interpretation of book. Connect with memorable characters with good and bad traits that change and develop over time with explicit and obvious factors. Follow complex ideas on many different topics requiring real or vicarious experiences through reading.

Questioning

No additional indicators at this level. Continue to build upon knowledge and skills gained in preceding levels.

Determining Most Important Ideas CPI: Follow simple multiple-steps in written instructions (cf. mathematics standard 4.4). CPI: Cite evidence from text to support conclusions. Recognize and follow suspenseful characteristics of plots. Understand texts with complex plots, creating suspense and leading towards conflict resolution. Explore more challenging themes such as war, the environment, important human problems and social issues.

Summarizing

CPI: Identify and summarize central ideas in informational texts.

Inferences/Predictions CPI: Discuss underlying themes across cultures in various texts. Go beyond the text to speculate on alternate meanings and characters thoughts and feelings. After reading silently, demonstrate understanding and sophistication in text interpretation.


Understand multiple characters that are revealed by what they say, think and do, and what others say or think about them.

Synthesizing

Take on perspectives from diverse cultures and brings cultural knowledge to go beyond the reader‟s personal understanding. Understand settings that are placed distant in time, space from the student‟s personal experiences and settings that require knowledge of

the content. Sustain attention to a text read over several days remembering details and revising interpretations as new events are encountered.


CPI: Distinguish cause and effect, fact and opinion, main idea and supporting details in nonfiction texts (e.g., science, social studies.)

CPI: Recognize an author's point of view. CPI: Recognize differences among forms of literature (poetry, drama, fiction, and nonfiction.) CPI: Recognize literary elements in stories, including setting, characters, plot, and mood. CPI: Identify some literary devices in stories. CPI: Identify the structures in poetry. CPI: Identify the structures in drama (cf. visual and performing arts standards.) CPI: Understand author's opinions and how they address culture, ethnicity, gender, and historical periods (cf. social studies

standards.) Explore non-fiction texts with underlying structures such as compare/contrast, temporal sequence, problem/solution, cause/effect. Understand more complex fantasy elements and complex narratives that are highly literary. Demonstrate analytic and interpretive skills in text. Explore fiction narrative structures including chapters and multiple episodes related to single detailed plots as well as short stories with

plots that intertwine. Explore non-fiction with a variety in organization and topic and some texts with several topics organized categorically. Understand that although most of the content is carried by the illustrations rather than the print, the content is extended by the illustrations

in informational text.

Critiquing

No additional indicators at this level. Continue to build upon knowledge and skills gained in preceding levels.

LEVEL R INDICATORS FOR INQUIRY AND RESEARCH


produce evidence of reading. Extend the text in various ways including through research.






LEVEL S INDICATORS FOR CONCEPTS ABOUT PRINT

CPI: Identify differences of various print formats, including newspapers, magazines, books, and reference resources. CPI: Recognize purposes and uses for print conventions such as paragraphs, end-sentence punctuation, and bold print. CPI: Identify and locate features that support text meaning (e.g., maps, charts, illustrations). CPI: Use a text index and glossary appropriately. CPI: Survey and explain text features that contribute to comprehension (e.g., headings, introductory and concluding

paragraphs). Survey longer texts with complex sentence structures including dialogue and many embedded clauses and phrases and sentences with

parenthetical material. Understand sentences with nouns, verbs, or adjectives in series, divided by commas. Explore texts with questions in dialogue (fiction) and question and answers to impart content (nonfiction.) Survey many books with only a few or no illustrations, in fiction are in black and white and some pictures books with illustrations on every

page. Understand a full range of graphics providing information that matches and extends the text. Explore some text with graphics that are complex, not fully explained, with graphics that have scales or legends important to

understanding. Recognize captions under pictures that provide important information. Recognize a full range of readers‟ tools including a table of contents, glossary, heading/subheadings, call-outs, pronunciation guides,

index, and references. Explore shorter texts on a single topic, chapter books with many lines of print on a page. Survey books with a large variation among print styles and font size including use of bold, large font, or italics for emphasis or to indicate

importance or level of information. Explore texts with a variety in print color and background color where print and illustrations are integrated in most texts with print wrapping

around pictures and the spaces between lines vary, with some texts having dense print. Choose texts with a variety of layout of nonfiction formats (question/answer; paragraphs; boxes; legends; call-outs) including more difficult

layout of informational text, with denser format and sentences continuing over several lines or to the next page. Recognize a full range of punctuation and occasional use of less common population (colon, semicolon).


LEVEL S INDICATORS FOR PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS (INCLUDES PHONEMIC AWARENESS)

CPI: No additional indicators at this grade level. Continue to build upon knowledge and skills gained at preceding levels.

LEVEL S INDICATORS FOR DECODING AND WORD RECOGNITION

CPI: Use letter-sound correspondence and structural analysis (e.g., roots, affixes) to decode words. CPI: Recognize compound words, contractions, and common abbreviations. CPI: Know and use common word families to decode unfamiliar words. CPI: Use the pronunciation key of a dictionary to decode new words. CPI: Use context clues or knowledge of phonics, syllabication, prefixes, and suffixes to decode new words. CPI: Interpret new words correctly in context. CPI: Apply spelling and syllabication rules that aid in decoding and word recognition. Use multi-syllable proper nouns that are difficult to decode. Identify many technical words that are difficult to decode. Recognize words that are seldom used in oral language and are difficult to decode. Use words with 3+ syllables with many complex plurals, contractions and compound words. Utilize words with suffixes and simple prefixes.

LEVEL S INDICATORS FOR FLUENCY

CPI: Use appropriate rhythm, flow, meter, and pronunciation in demonstrating understanding of punctuation marks. CPI: Read at different speeds using scanning, skimming, or careful reading as appropriate. CPI: Adjust reading speed appropriately for different purposes and audiences. CPI: Apply knowledge of letter-sound associations, language structures, and context to recognize words. CPI: Read aloud in ways that reflect understanding of proper phrasing and intonation. CPI: Read silently for the purpose of increasing speed, accuracy, and reading fluency. CPI: Apply self-correcting strategies to decode and gain meaning from print both, orally and silently. Read rapidly, both orally and silently, with attention to meaning.

LEVEL S INDICATORS FOR READING STRATEGIES (BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER)

CPI: Use knowledge of word meaning, language structure, and sound-symbol relationships to check understanding when

reading.


CPI: Identify specific words or passages causing comprehension difficulties and seek clarification. CPI: Select useful visual organizers before, during, and after reading to organize information (e.g., Venn diagrams). CPI: Activate prior knowledge and anticipate what will be read or heard. CPI: Vary reading strategies according to their purpose for reading and the nature of the text. CPI: Reread to make sense of difficult paragraphs or sections of text. CPI: Make revisions to text predictions during and after reading. CPI: Apply graphic organizers to illustrate key concepts and relationships in a text. Demonstrate flexibility in reading many different kinds of texts.

LEVEL S INDICATORS FOR VOCABULARY AND CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

CPI: Infer word meanings from learned roots, prefixes, and suffixes. CPI: Infer specific word meanings in the context of reading passages. CPI: Identify and correctly use antonyms, synonyms, homophones, and homographs. CPI: Use a grade-appropriate dictionary (independently) to define unknown words. CPI: Infer word meanings from learned roots, prefixes, and suffixes. CPI: Infer specific word meanings in the context of reading passages. CPI: Identify and correctly use antonyms, synonyms, homophones, and homographs. CPI: Use a grade-level appropriate dictionary independently to define unknown words. CPI: Use a thesaurus to identify alternative word choices and meanings. Utilize many new vocabulary words that readers must derive from context or use glossaries or dictionaries. Recognize many highly technical words, mostly defined in text, illustration, or glossary. Use many longer descriptive words – adjectives and adverbs. Rapidly acquire new vocabulary through reading. Recognize words with connotative meanings essential to understanding the text. Utilize many words used figuratively – metaphor, simile, idiom.

LEVEL S INDICATORS FOR COMPREHENSION AND RESPONSE TO TEXT

Visualizing CPI: Identify and respond to the elements of sound and structure in poetry. CPI: Recognize figurative language in text (e.g. simile, metaphor, personification, alliteration). Understand long stretches of descriptive language, important to setting and characters.

Fix-Up Strategies

CPI: Read regularly in materials appropriate for their independent reading level.

Schema/Connections CPI: Anticipate and construct meaning from text by making conscious connections to self, an author, and others.


Understand complex ideas on many different topics requiring real or vicarious experiences (through reading.) Understand settings distant in time and space from students‟ experiences.

Questioning

No additional indicators at this grade level. Continue to build upon knowledge and skills at preceding levels.

Most Important Ideas CPI: Understand that theme refers to the central idea or meaning of a selection and recognize themes, whether implied or stated

directly. CPI: Distinguish between major and minor details. CPI: Cite evidence from text to support conclusions. CPI: Follow simple multiple-steps in written instructions. CPI: Follow simple multiple-steps in written instructions. Recognize literary elements in stories, including setting, characters, plot, and mood. Recognizes narrative structure including chapters with multiple episodes related to a single plot, plots with detailed episodes, and some

short stories with plots that intertwine. Recognize literary elements in stories, including setting, characters, plot, and mood. Understand long stretches of descriptive language, important to setting and characters. Identify author‟s purpose, views, and beliefs. Underlying themes across cultures in various texts. Identify central ideas in informational texts.

Summarizing

CPI: Identify and summarize central ideas in informational texts. Explore complex plots, creating suspense and leading toward problem resolution.

Inferences/Prediction

CPI: Make inferences using textual information and provide supporting evidence. After reading silently, demonstrate understanding and sophistication in interpreting meaning. Understand multiple characters revealed by what they say, think, and do, and what others say or think about them. Go beyond the text to interpret characters‟ thoughts and feelings and to speculate on alternative meanings.

Synthesizing

Sustain attention to a text read over many days, remembering details and revising interpretations as new events are encountered. Explore topics that go well beyond readers‟ personal experiences requiring the reader to take on diverse perspectives (race, language,

culture).

Analyze Text Features CPI: Distinguish cause and effect, fact and opinion, main idea, and supporting details in nonfiction texts (e.g., science, social

studies). CPI: Recognize literary elements in stories, including setting, characters, plot, and mood. CPI: Identify author’s purpose, views, and beliefs. CPI: Recognize an author’s point of view.


CPI: Understand author’s opinions and how they address culture, ethnicity, gender, and historical periods. CPI: Use cause and effect and sequence of events to gain meaning. CPI: Interpret idiomatic expressions. CPI: Recognize differences among forms of literature, including poetry, drama, fiction, and nonfiction. CPI: Identify some literary devices in stories. CPI: Identify the structures in poetry. Identify the structures in drama. CPI: Recognize common organizational patterns in text that support comprehension (e.g., headings, captions). CPI: Identify and analyze text types, formats, and elements in nonfiction. CPI: Identify genre by their distinctive elements (e.g. tall tale-exaggeration). CPI: discuss underlying theme across cultures in various texts. Recognize literary elements in stories, including setting, characters, plot, and mood. Recognizes narrative structure including chapters with multiple episodes related to a single plot, plots with detailed episodes, and some

short stories with plots that intertwine. Understand underlying structures-description, compare/contrast, temporal sequence, problem/solution, cause/effect. Explore memorable characters, with both good and bad traits, that change and develop over time. Explore some more complex fantasy elements and some complex narratives that are highly literary. Identify the structures in drama. Demonstrate all analytic and interpretive skills in writing. Understand more challenging themes such as war and the environment. Understand texts with deeper meanings applicable to important human problems and social issues.

Critiquing

CPI: Recognize persuasive and propaganda techniques used to influence readers. CPI: Recognize historical and cultural biases and different points of view.

LEVEL S INDICATORS FOR INQUIRY AND RESEARCH

CPI: Use library classification systems, print or electronic, to locate information. CPI: Investigate a favorite author and produce evidence of research. CPI: Read independently and research topics using a variety of materials to satisfy personal, academic, and social needs and

produce evidence of reading. CPI: Develop and revise questions for investigations prior to, during, and after reading. CPI: Use multiple sources to locate information relevant to research questions. CPI: Read independently and research topics using a variety of materials to satisfy personal, academic, and social needs, and

produce evidence of reading. CPI: Draw conclusions from information gathered from multiple sources. CPI: Interpret and use graphic sources of information such as maps, graphs, timelines, or tables to address research questions. CPI: Summarize and organize information by taking notes, outlining ideas, and/or making charts CPI: Produce projects and reports, using visuals, media, and/or technology to show learning and support the learning of an

audience. Extend text meaning through research, writing, or the arts.






LEVEL T INDICATORS FOR CONCEPTS ABOUT PRINT

CPI: Identify differences of various print formats, including newspapers, magazines, books, and reference resources. CPI: Recognize purposes and uses for print conventions such as paragraphs, end-sentence punctuation, and bold print. CPI: Identify and locate features that support text meaning (e.g., maps, charts, illustrations). CPI: Use a text index and glossary appropriately. CPI: Survey and explain text features that contribute to comprehension (e.g., headings, introductory and concluding

paragraphs). Understand a full range of graphics providing information that matches and extends the text. Explore some text with graphics that are complex and not fully explained and/or with graphics that have scales or legends important to

understanding. Recognize captions under pictures that provide important information. Survey books with a large variation among print styles and font size including use of bold, large font, or italics for emphasis or to indicate

importance or level of information. Explore texts with a variety in print color and background color where print and illustrations are integrated in most texts with print wrapping

around pictures and the spaces between lines vary, with some texts having dense print. Choose texts with a variety of layout of nonfiction formats (question/answer; paragraphs; boxes; legends; call-outs) including more difficult

layout of informational text, with denser format and sentences continuing over several lines or to the next page. Recognize a full range of punctuation and occasional Survey longer texts with complex sentence structures including dialogue and many embedded clauses and phrases and sentences with

parenthetical material. Understand sentences with nouns, verbs, or adjectives in series, divided by commas. Understand a wide range of declarative, imperative, interrogative sentences and complex sentences – phrases, clauses, compounds. Explore texts with questions in dialogue (fiction) and question and answers to impart content (nonfiction.) Survey many books with only a few or no illustrations, in fiction are in black and white and some pictures books with illustrations on every

page. Explore shorter texts on a single topic, chapter books with many lines of print on a page. Use less common punctuation (colon, semicolon.) Recognize a full range of readers‟ tools including a table of contents, glossary, heading/subheadings, call-outs, pronunciation guides,

index, and references.


LEVEL T INDICATORS FOR PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS (INCLUDES PHONEMIC AWARENESS)

CPI: No additional indicators at this grade level. Continue to build upon knowledge and skills gained at the preceding levels.

LEVEL T INDICATORS FOR DECODING AND WORD RECOGNITION

CPI: Use letter-sound correspondence and structural analysis (e.g., roots, affixes) to decode words. CPI: Know and use common word families to decode unfamiliar words. CPI: Recognize compound words, contractions, and common abbreviations. CPI: Use the pronunciation key of a dictionary to decode new words. CPI: Use context clues or knowledge of phonics, syllabication, prefixes, and suffixes to decode new words. CPI: Interpret new words correctly in context. CPI: Apply spelling and syllabication rules that aid in decoding and word recognition. Recognize common abbreviations, pronunciation key of a dictionary and applies spelling rules. Utilize words with suffixes and simple prefixes. Use words with 3+ syllables with many complex plurals, contractions and compound words. Use multi-syllable proper nouns that are difficult to decode. Identify many technical words that are difficult to decode. Recognize words that are seldom used in oral language and are difficult to decode.

LEVEL T INDICATORS FOR FLUENCY

CPI: Use appropriate rhythm, flow, meter, and pronunciation in demonstrating understanding of punctuation marks. CPI: Read at different speeds using scanning, skimming, or careful reading as appropriate. CPI: Adjust reading speed appropriately for different purposes and audiences. CPI: Apply knowledge of letter-sound associations, language structures, and context to recognize words. CPI: Read aloud in ways that reflect understanding of proper phrasing and intonation. CPI: Read silently for the purpose of increasing speed, accuracy, and reading fluency. CPI: Apply self-correcting strategies to decode and gain meaning from print both, orally and silently. Apply letter-sound associations, language structures and context to recognizing words. Adjust speed for audiences. Read rapidly, both orally and silently, with attention to meaning. Self-correct to gain meaning. Utilize proper phrasing and intonation.


LEVEL T INDICATORS FOR READING STRATEGIES, (BEFORE, DURING AND AFTER)


CPI: Identify specific words or passages causing comprehension difficulties and seek clarification. CPI: Select useful visual organizers before, during, and after reading to organize information (e.g., Venn diagrams). CPI: Activate prior knowledge and anticipate what will be read or heard. CPI: Vary reading strategies according to their purpose for reading and the nature of the text. CPI: Reread to make sense of difficult paragraphs or sections of text. CPI: Make revisions to text predictions during and after reading. CPI: Apply graphic organizers to illustrate key concepts and relationships in a text. Demonstrate flexibility in reading many different kinds of texts.

LEVEL T INDICTORS FOR VOCABULARY AND CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

CPI: Infer word meanings from learned roots, prefixes, and suffixes. CPI: Infer specific word meanings in the context of reading passages. CPI: Identify and correctly use antonyms, synonyms, homophones, and homographs. CPI: Use a grade-appropriate dictionary (independently) to define unknown words. CPI: Infer word meanings from learned roots, prefixes, and suffixes. CPI: Infer specific word meanings in the context of reading passages. CPI: Identify and correctly use antonyms, synonyms, homophones, and homographs. CPI: Use a grade-level appropriate dictionary independently to define unknown words. CPI: Use a thesaurus to identify alternative word choices and meanings. Utilize many new vocabulary words that readers must derive from context or use glossaries or dictionaries. Utilize words used in regional or historical dialects and some words from languages other than English. In oral and silent reading, figure out new words automatically and easily interpret word meaning. Recognize words with connotative meanings essential to understanding the text. Use many longer descriptive words – adjectives and adverbs. Utilize many words used figuratively – metaphor, simile, idiom. Recognize many highly technical words, mostly defined in text, illustration, or glossary.


LEVEL T INDICATORS FOR COMPREHENSION AND RESPONSE TO TEXT

Visualizing CPI: Identify and respond to the elements of sound and structure in poetry. CPI: Recognize figurative language in text (e.g. simile, metaphor, personification, alliteration). Understand long stretches of descriptive language, important to setting and characters.

Fix Up Strategies

CPI: Read regularly in materials appropriate for their independent reading level. Demonstrate flexibility in reading texts of different styles and genres.

Schema/Connections CPI: Recognize historical and cultural biases and different points of view. CPI: Anticipate and construct meaning from text by making conscious connections to self, an author, and others. Understand complex ideas on many different topics requiring real or vicarious experiences (through reading.) Explore settings distant in time and space from students‟ experiences. Develop a connection to themes presenting mature issues and the problems of society (for example racism) themes focusing on the

problems of preadolescents, and themes that evoke alternative interpretations.

Questioning No additional indicators at this grade level. Continue to build upon knowledge and skills gained at preceding levels.

Determining Most Important Ideas

CPI: Recognize literary elements in stories, including setting, characters, plot, and mood. CPI: Identify author’s purpose, views, and beliefs. CPI: Use cause and effect and sequence of events to gain meaning. CPI: Distinguish between major and minor details. CPI: Recognize literary elements in stories, including setting, characters, plot, and mood. CPI: Understand that theme refers to the central idea or meaning of a selection and recognize themes, whether implied or stated

directly. CPI: Cite evidence from text to support conclusions. CPI: Discuss underlying themes across cultures in various texts. CPI: Follow simple multiple-steps in written instructions. Identify central ideas in informational texts.

Summarizing CPI: Identify and summarize central ideas in informational texts.



CPI: Make inferences using textual information and provide supporting evidence. Extend thinking beyond the text to interpret characters‟ thoughts and feelings and to speculate on alternative meanings. Understand multiple characters revealed by what they say, think, and do and what others say/think about them. After reading silently, demonstrate understanding and ability to analyze characters and plot.

Synthesizing

Sustain attention to a text read over many days, remembering details and revising interpretations as new events are encountered.


CPI: Recognize differences among forms of literature, including poetry, drama, fiction, and nonfiction. CPI: Identify some literary devices in stories. CPI: Identify the structures in poetry. CPI: Identify the structures in drama. CPI: Identify genre by their distinctive elements (e.g. tall tale-exaggeration.) CPI: Recognize common organizational patterns in text that support comprehension (e.g., headings, captions). CPI: Identify and analyze text types, formats, and elements in nonfiction. CPI: Identify the structures in drama. CPI: Recognize an author’s point of view. CPI: Understand author’s opinions and how they address culture, ethnicity, gender, and historical periods. CPI: Distinguish cause and effect, fact and opinion, main idea, and supporting details in nonfiction texts (e.g., science, social

studies.) CPI: Interpret idiomatic expressions. Explore some more complex fantasy elements and some complex narratives that are highly literary. Understand more challenging themes focusing on human problems related to war, hardship, economic classes and texts with deeper

meanings applicable to important human problems and social issues. Recognize narrative structure including chapters with multiple episodes related to a single plot, plots with detailed episodes, and some

short stories with plots that intertwine. Understand underlying structures-description, compare/contrast, temporal sequence, problem/solution, cause/effect. Understand texts with deeper meanings applicable to important human problems and social issues. Explore memorable characters, with both good and bad traits, that change and develop over time.

Critiquing

CPI: Recognize persuasive and propaganda techniques used to influence readers. Extend and demonstrate understanding of the text through writing in a variety of genres.


LEVEL T INDICTATORS FOR INQUIRY AND RESEARCH


produce evidence of reading. CPI: Use library classification systems, print or electronic, to locate information. CPI: Develop and revise questions for investigations prior to, during, and after reading. CPI: Use multiple sources to locate information relevant to research questions. CPI: Read independently and research topics using a variety of materials to satisfy personal, academic, and social needs, and

produce evidence of reading. CPI: Draw conclusions from information gathered from multiple sources. CPI: Interpret and use graphic sources of information such as maps, graphs, timelines, or tables to address research questions. CPI: Summarize and organize information by taking notes, outlining ideas, and/or making charts. CPI: Produce projects and reports, using visuals, media, and/or technology to show learning and support the learning of an

audience. Reflect knowledge of literary genre in conversation and writing. Extend and demonstrate understanding of the text through public speaking, research or the arts.

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 APPENDIX G

Developmental Stages of Writing K-5

This document was designed to provide a continuum of the developmental stages of writing for kindergarten through grade five. Although grade levels are indicated, there cannot be an assumption that all children will demonstrate only behaviors designated for their particular grade levels. Teachers need to examine each writer as an individual and provide

appropriate instructional support or enrichment to develop his or her potential. This document is to be used to assess progress of individuals as well as to provide a NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards-based support for planning for instruction for whole class mini-lessons, small group guided reading, or individual conferencing and instruction.

Writing as a Process

How?

Writing as a Product

What?

Conventions of Writing: Mechanics, Spelling, Vocabulary

Writing Forms, Audiences, and Purposes; Exploring a Variety of

Writing

For whom?

A developing writer in kindergarten . . .

Pre 1

recognizes that thoughts and talk can be written down in words

attempts to put ideas into writing using pictures

shows and talks about work samples containing pictures

scribbles communicates personal responses to literature through drawings

1.0 uses some letters, but there is no relationship between letters chosen and the sounds in the words written

uses pictures and words to express meaning copies first name left to right

shows and talks about work samples using some letters

writes strings of letters begins to write letter like forms copies environmental print

attempts to spell first name

communicates personal responses to literature through drawings and word labels (developmental spelling)

1.5 writes first name left to right

begins to sequence story elements for writing using pictures

uses words to express meaning

shows and talks about work samples using

words (developmental spelling) begins to write related words or phrases begins to write one simple sentence

forms some letters correctly

copies environmental print accurately copies all letters (upper and lower case)

from teacher‟s sample

uses a mix of upper and lower case letters writes words based on sounds (e.g., m for

monster)

hears and represents some consonant sounds at the beginning of words

recognizes and begins to use left to right and

top to bottom directionality for writing spells first name accurately

communicates personal responses to

literature through drawings and related words or phrases

2.0 writes first and last name left to right

begins to sequence story events for writing uses some environmental print when writing a

minimum of 2 simple sentences

can read back his/her own writing begins to mimic an author‟s craft and patterns in

writing

uses sentences to express meaning

shows and talks about work samples using

a minimum of 2- 3 sentences

forms most letters correctly

writes all letters (upper and lower case) writes words using more than one sound

(e.g., mr or msr for monster)

hears and represents consonant sounds within words

uses environmental print with purpose

begins to spell high frequency words correctly (e.g., I, a, the )

begins to use spacing between words

spells first and last name accurately experiments with basic end mark

punctuation (i.e., period and question

mark)

communicates personal responses to

literature through drawings, labels, and simple sentences



How?


What?



Writing For whom?

A developing writer in grade one . . .

2.5 revisits pictures and writing to add details or to extend meaning

includes details that may be repetitious or lists of episodes or ideas

composes 2-3 or more sentences about a single

idea begins to notice author‟s craft and begins to use

those techniques in writing

shows and talks about work samples using 2-3 or more sentences

writes all letters (upper and lower case) of the alphabet from memory

spells words based on sounds in the word (e.g., munstr for monster)

develops an awareness of conventional

spelling spells some simple high frequency words

correctly

begins to use basic end mark punctuation (i.e., period and question mark)

uses appropriate spacing between words

begins to use basic capitalization uses word choice that is mostly general

creates written texts for others to read begins writing for different purposes

(e.g., letters, journals, poetry)

3.0 revisits writing to add details or to extend meaning

begins to use a simple checklists to improve writing with teacher support

composes 3 or more sentences about a single idea

uses author‟s technique in writing

shows and talks about work samples using 3

or more sentences produces stories from personal experiences

writes left to right across several lines

spells words based on sounds with some attention to spelling patterns (e.g., munster for monster)

writes known words fluently uses basic end mark punctuation (i.e.,

period, question mark, exclamation point)

uses basic capitalization skills uses appropriate vocabulary to express

ideas

writes for different purposes (e.g.,

letters, journals, poetry)

3.5 begins to use a basic writing process to develop writing

begins to write in a few varied genres with teacher

support begins to write with details that are clearly related to

the topic

uses simple checklists to improve writing with teacher support

begins to use graphic organizers to assist in

planning writing with teacher support composes readable first drafts

produces finished writings to share with class and/or for publication after completing the writing process

shows and talks about work samples using 3-5 sentences about one topic

produces narratives with beginnings and

endings

spells many words conventionally uses basic punctuation (i.e., period,

question mark, and exclamation) and

capitalization skills uses expressive and descriptive vocabulary

writes for different purposes (e.g., letters, journals, poetry)

writes narrative pieces based on

personal experiences begins to write non-fiction pieces with

teacher support

K-5 Developmental Stages of Writing – Edison Public Schools – Division of Curriculum and Instruction – 2006-2007



How?


What?



Writing

For whom?

A developing writer in grade two . . .

4.0 works on pieces over several days using the writing process

uses graphic organizers with teacher support to

assist in planning writing attempts to write in a few varied genres

independently

writes with details that are clearly related to the topic composes readable first drafts uses simple checklists to improve writing

uses a variety of graphic organizers to assist in planning writing with teacher support

writes over several days to produce longer, more complex text

begins to produce pieces of writing that

contain topic sentence and supporting details with teacher support

produces narratives with beginning, middle,

and end

experiments with the use of complex punctuation (comma, quotation marks)

spells many words conventionally

uses a variety of words to begin sentences uses expressive and descriptive vocabulary

often

produces a variety of writings including stories, descriptions, journal entries

writes nonfiction pieces

writes simple content area, informational reports with teacher support

4.5 uses checklists to improve elements of writing

uses graphic organizers to assist in planning writing begins to write in a few varied genres independently composes first drafts from prewriting and begins to

revise

writes over several days to produce

longer, more complex texts writes pieces that contain a topic sentence

and supporting details with teacher

support produces narratives with beginning, middle,

and end

begins to use more complex punctuation

(i.e., commas and quotation marks) spells many words conventionally uses expressive and descriptive vocabulary

consistently begins to correct subject-verb agreement

writes narrative texts

writes nonfiction pieces or content area, informational reports

5.0 uses checklists to improve elements of writing uses a variety of graphic organizers to assist in

planning writing

composes and revises drafts by rereading for meaning, narrowing the focus, sequencing, elaborating with details to improve the overall piece

writes in a few varied genres

writes pieces that contain a topic sentence and supporting details

writes over several days to produce

longer, more complex texts produces narratives with beginning,

middle, and end

uses correct subject-verb agreement most of the time

uses punctuation (including commas and

quotation marks) uses capitalization correctly uses a variety of strategies to spell more

complex words conventionally uses varied expressive and descriptive

vocabulary consistently

uses conventional spelling most of the time

writes narrative texts writes more detailed nonfiction pieces

or content area, informational reports

begins to develop strategies for constructing open-ended responses (OERs) with teacher support




How?


What?


Writing Forms, Audiences, and Purposes; Exploring a Variety of Writing

For whom?

A developing writer in grade three . . .

5.5 generates ideas based on imagination, experiences, stories, pictures, brainstorming, discussions, and thoughts recorded in writer‟s notebook

uses graphic organizers to assist in planning composes rough drafts from prewriting work

revises work to improve content and organization (i.e., sticks to topic; has beginning, middle, and end)

edits work to improve mechanics uses some reference materials independently uses checklists and/or rubrics to improve writing

begins to produce multi-paragraph pieces with teacher support

writes narratives that include clear openings, clear sequences of events, and closings, with teacher support

uses details to elaborate produces non-fiction pieces across the curriculum

(e.g., letters, procedures, biographies, reports) that include clear openings and closings

uses mostly correct capitalization, punctuation, spelling, and sentence structure

correctly punctuates simple quotations use commas to indicate a series, compound

sentence, or phrase, with teacher support

uses knowledge of English grammar and usage to craft writing (i.e., singular and plural nouns, subject/verb agreement, appropriate parts of speech) with teacher support

begins to use indentation and paragraphing to organize pieces

demonstrates knowledge of spelling through use of patterns and high frequency words

writes to express thoughts and ideas, to share experiences, and to communicate socially

writes daily and for sustained amounts of time begins to produce writing that demonstrates

use of a variety of sentence types (i.e., declarative, interrogative, exclamatory, imperative)

writes events of a story sequentially writes narrative text (e.g., realistic, humorous,

memoir) produces a variety of non-fiction texts (e.g.,

reports, procedures, letters) responds to literature through writing, with

teacher support, to demonstrate understanding (with emphasis on visualizing, making connections, and determining importance)

uses strategies for constructing open-ended responses (e.g., restate, refer, relate) with

teacher support

6.0

generates ideas in a variety of ways experiments with different types of openings and closings composes drafts with sharpened focus revises to include appropriate and varied details participates in peer/teacher conferences is aware of ways authors use paragraphs to

support meaning demonstrates an awareness of genre and sense of

purpose/audience uses reference materials independently (e.g., dictionary,

thesaurus, word processor, Internet) uses checklists and/or rubrics to improve writing

produces multi-paragraph pieces produces narratives that include clear openings,

logical sequences of events, and closings uses appropriate details to elaborate produces descriptive pieces (i.e., description of

person, place, or object) uses expressive and descriptive vocabulary takes some compositional risks (e.g., dialogue,

similes) produces non-fiction pieces across the curriculum

that include clear openings and closings and that contain relevant and developed details

publishes and shares work

uses correct capitalization, punctuation, and sentence structure

uses commas to indicate a series, compound sentence, quotation, or phrase

uses knowledge of English grammar and usage to craft writing (i.e., singular and plural nouns, subject/verb agreement, appropriate parts of speech)

uses indentation and paragraphing to organize pieces

applies knowledge of spelling through use of patterns and high frequency words

produces writing that demonstrates use of a variety of sentence types

writes narrative text produces a variety of non-fiction texts responds to literature through writing to

demonstrate understanding (with emphasis on visualizing, making connections, and determining importance)

uses strategies for constructing open-ended responses

6.5 generates ideas in a variety of ways creates graphic organizers to assist in planning revises drafts by incorporating:

-interesting, stronger word choice (e.g., verbs, adjectives) clear details logical order well connected ideas varied types of beginnings and endings

participates in peer/teacher conferences begins to develop author‟s voice chooses own topic and form can research topic imitates style of successful authors uses checklists and/or rubrics to improve writing reflects on own writing

produces structured multi-paragraph pieces with topic sentences

produces narratives that include effective openings, logical sequences of events, and effective closings

uses appropriate, specific, and varied details to elaborate

begins to take compositional risks such as personification, onomatopoeia, alliteration, and metaphors

produces non-fiction pieces across the curriculum that include effective openings and closings and that contain relevant and developed details

organizes writing in folder/portfolio with teacher assistance

uses varied sentence structure demonstrates command of punctuation, including

commas to indicate a series, compound sentence, quotation, or phrase

uses consistent and correct grammar and usage (i.e., singular and plural nouns, subject/verb agreement, appropriate parts of speech)

independently uses indentation and paragraphing appropriately

uses conventional spelling most of the time uses proofreading marks when editing work, with

teacher support writes legibly in manuscript and in cursive

writes for a variety of purposes (e.g., inform, entertain, persuade) and for a variety of audiences (e.g., self, peers, community)

responds to literature through writing to demonstrate understanding (with emphasis on visualizing, making connections, and determining importance)

independently demonstrates use of strategies for constructing open-ended responses




How?


What?



Writing For whom?

A developing writer in grade four . . .

7.0 generates ideas through a variety of methods, such as recalling experiences in writer‟s notebook, listening to stories, reviewing pictures, reading, brainstorming, asking questions, and discussing models of writing

uses a variety of provided and self-created graphic organizers

revises work to: - narrow focus of chosen topic - refine topic sentences - improve descriptive words and phrases

engages in peer conferences demonstrates development of author‟s voice in various genres uses variety of reference materials independently (e.g., dictionary,

thesaurus, word processor, Internet) uses checklists and/or rubrics to improve writing

produces developed and structured narratives that incorporate details and descriptive language (e.g., memoir, personal narrative)

begins to establish setting, characters, point of view, and sequence of events in narratives

engages reader through use of: - dialogue - varied beginnings (e.g., active, question,

exclamation) - varied endings (e.g., circular, emotional surprise) - logical sequence

begins to write persuasive pieces with clear positions and supportive evidence, with teacher support

writes focused informational reports across the curriculum that include facts and details and draw from more than one source of information

uses mostly correct spelling, sentence structure, grammar, and usage

uses increasingly complex sentences with teacher support

uses knowledge of English grammar and

usage to craft writing (e.g., pronoun usage and agreement, appropriate verb tenses) with teacher support

correctly uses ending punctuation, commas, and quotation marks

demonstrates awareness of uses of less common punctuation such as hyphen, semicolon, and ellipsis

uses proper indentation and paragraphing to organize pieces

writes legibly in manuscript and cursive

writes for a variety of purposes (e.g., express ideas, inform, entertain, persuade) and for a variety of audiences (e.g., self, peers, community)

sets own purposes for writing and generates topics

responds to literature through writing to demonstrate understanding (with emphasis on questioning, summarizing, inferring, and analyzing text features)

independently applies strategies for constructing open-ended responses

7.5 uses strategies such as reflecting on personal experiences, reading, doing interviews, or researching to generate ideas for writing

revises work to: - incorporate effective transitions

- expand vocabulary edits work for spelling, mechanics, and clarity conducts peer conferences to understand reader‟s perspective, to consider

ideas for writing, and to offer suggestions to other writers develops an understanding of form and structure in various genres uses checklists and/or rubrics to improve writing

produces developed and structured narratives that incorporate effective and developed details and descriptive language

establishes setting, characters, point of view, and

sequence of events in narratives engages reader by including:

- varied and expanded details - descriptions of characters and their feelings - well-crafted titles

produces persuasive pieces with clearly stated positions and supportive evidence

examines real-world writing to - recognize uses of complete sentences and

sentence fragments - expand knowledge of paragraphs, usage, and

author‟s writing style produces informational reports across the curriculum

that focus on issues or topics, include relevant facts and details, and draw from more than one source of

information

spells correctly (e.g., high frequency words, contractions, homophones)

uses increasingly complex sentences uses knowledge of English grammar and

usage to craft writing (e.g., pronoun usage and agreement, appropriate verb tenses)

uses correct capitalization in sentences, for proper nouns, and in titles

uses less common punctuation such as hyphen, semicolon, and ellipsis with teacher support


demonstrates knowledge of genres (i.e., expository, narrative, poetry, reflection)

writes to satisfy personal, social, and

academic needs (e.g., stories, a variety of letters, poetry, summaries)

paraphrases, clarifies, and reflects on new learning

uses a variety of strategies to organize writing (e.g., sequence, chronology, cause-effect)



8.0 generates ideas through a variety of methods composes drafts in a variety of genres with structure according to intended

message, audience, and purpose for writing revises drafts to:

- focus on a specific period of time - use different types of beginnings and endings - expand details - sharpen focus - rework organization so that ideas are well-connected and explained clearly

- improve consistency of voice - improve clarity by rearranging words, sentences, and paragraphs

conducts peer conferences uses checklists and/or rubrics to improve writing

reflects on own writing, noting strengths and areas needing improvement

produces developed and structured narratives that incorporate details and descriptive language and that engage readers

produces persuasive pieces with clearly stated and logical positions maintained throughout and with support developed by specific details

produces informational reports across the curriculum that focus on issues or topics, include clear openings/introductions and closings, and include relevant and appropriate facts and details gathered through varied forms of research

uses sentences of varying lengths and complexity uses organizational structures and transitions that

support intended purposes

organizes writing in folder/portfolio

uses knowledge of base words, structural analysis, and spelling patterns to expand competency in writing

uses increasingly complex sentences uses consistent and correct grammar and

usage (e.g., pronoun usage and agreement, appropriate verb tenses)

uses less common punctuation such as hyphen, semicolon, and ellipsis


demonstrates development of personal style and voice

produces informational reports that frame topics, include facts and details, and draw information from several sources

uses relevant graphics to enhance writing (e.g., maps, charts, illustrations)





How?


What?



Writing

For whom?

A developing writer in grade five . . .

8.5 generates ideas through a variety of methods, such as listening, viewing pictures, recalling experiences, reading, discussing models of writing, asking

questions, and recording ideas in writer‟s notebook uses appropriate provided and self-generated graphic

organizers and outlines

organizes paragraphs using topic sentences demonstrates understanding of form, structure, and

author‟s voice in various genres

conducts peer conferences revises draft by:

-rereading for meaning

-narrowing the topic -focusing on a specific period of time

uses a variety of reference materials to edit/revise work

understands and, with teacher support, applies elements of rubrics to improve and evaluate work

reflects on own writing noting strengths and setting

goals for improvement

produces various types of writing such as short stories, biographies, autobiographies, or memoirs that contain narrative elements

and that establish plot or conflict, setting, characters, point of view, and resolution

writes persuasive essays with clearly stated

positions supported by organized and relevant evidence and sources cited when needed

supports main idea, topic, or theme with facts, examples, or explanations including information from multiple sources

uses sentences of varying length and complexity

engages readers from beginning to end

uses knowledge of roots, prefixes, suffixes, and patterns to spell words correctly, with teacher support

uses knowledge of English grammar and usage to express ideas effectively

demonstrates awareness of the use of

colons uses quotation marks and related

punctuation in passages of dialogue

uses a variety of punctuation correctly indents paragraphs appropriately writes legibly in manuscript and cursive

writes for different purposes (e.g., to express ideas, inform, entertain, respond to literature, persuade,

question, reflect, clarify, share) and a variety of audiences (e.g., self, peers, community)

gathers, selects, and organizes information appropriate to a topic, task, and audience

produces letters in correct format and coherent style with teacher support

responds to literature through writing to

demonstrate understanding (with emphasis on determining importance, analyzing text features,

synthesizing, and critiquing) independently applies strategies for

constructing open-ended responses

9.0 generates ideas through a variety of methods composes multi-paragraph drafts in selected genres

with supporting structure according to intended messages, audiences, and purposes for writing

revises work for organization and fluency

edits work for spelling, mechanics, usage, and clarity understands and applies elements of rubrics to improve

and evaluate work

produces various types of writing such as short stories, biographies,

autobiographies, or memoirs that contain narrative elements and developed plot elements

produces persuasive, personal, descriptive, and issue-based pieces across the curriculum

produces multi-paragraph expository pieces across the curriculum (e.g., problem/solution, cause/effect,

hypothesis/results, feature articles, critiques, research reports)

uses knowledge of roots, prefixes, suffixes, and patterns to spell words correctly

uses knowledge of English grammar and usage to express ideas effectively

uses Standard English conventions in all

writing (e.g., sentence structure, grammar and usage, punctuation, capitalization, spelling)

uses quotation marks and related punctuation correctly in passages of dialogue

indents paragraphs appropriately

uses narrative techniques (e.g., dialogue, specific actions of

characters, sensory description, and expression of thoughts and feelings of characters)

produces letters in correct format and coherent style with teacher support

uses a variety of strategies to organize

writing (i.e., sequence, chronology, cause/effect, problem/solution, order of importance)

responds to literature through writing to demonstrate understanding (with emphasis on determining importance,

analyzing text features, synthesizing, and critiquing)

demonstrates higher-order thinking

skills and writing clarity when answering open-ended and essay questions in content areas or as

responses to literature




How?


What?

Conventions of Writing:

Mechanics, Spelling, Vocabulary

Writing Forms, Audiences, and Purposes;

Exploring a Variety of Writing For whom?

A developing writer in grade five . . . (continued)

9.5 generates ideas through a variety of methods uses precise language (i.e., adjectives, adverbs,

verbs, specific details) and justifies the choices develops author‟s craft by

experimenting with flashback, surprising imagery

and comparisons, changing the pace or emphasis, and/or varied sentence lengths

revises drafts by:

-elaborating and deleting -reworking organization, openings, closings, word

choice, and consistency of voice

-developing effective transitions to improve coherence and cohesion

understands and applies elements of rubrics to

improve and evaluate work

produces various types of writing such as short stories, biographies,

autobiographies, or memoirs that contain narrative elements and developed plot elements

produces persuasive, personal, descriptive, and issue-based pieces across the curriculum

produces multi-paragraph expository pieces across the curriculum (e.g., problem/solution, cause/effect,

hypothesis/results, feature articles, critiques, research reports)

uses increasingly complex sentence structure and syntax to express ideas

uses Standard English conventions in all writing

uses a variety of reference materials to

edit work indents paragraphs appropriately

develops and uses knowledge of a variety of genres (i.e., expository, narrative,

persuasive, poetry, critiques, and everyday/workplace writing)

produces informational reports based on

research with support of main ideas/topic with facts, examples, and explanations, and a works consulted page

produces business letters in correct format and coherent style

begins to use relevant graphics in writing

(e.g., maps, charts, illustrations, graphs, photographs)

demonstrates personal style and voice

responds to literature through writing to demonstrate understanding (with emphasis on determining importance,

analyzing text features, synthesizing, and critiquing)

organizes responses to literature that

develop insight and refer to text through use of examples

demonstrates higher-order thinking skills and

writing clarity when answering open-ended and essay questions in content areas or as responses to literature

10.0 generates ideas through a variety of methods including reading and making connections across the curriculum and with current events

demonstrates expanding knowledge of form, structure, and voice in a variety of genres

is able to independently carry out all steps of writing

process and elements of writing workshop, including making significant revisions to pieces and conducting peer conferences

understands and applies elements of rubrics to improve and evaluate work

applies expanding knowledge of characteristics, structures, and tones of various genres

produces various types of writing that contain narrative elements and various types of expository pieces across the

curriculum organizes writing in folder/portfolio

uses a variety of sentence types and syntax (i.e., independent and dependent clauses, prepositional and adverbial

phrases) uses Standard English conventions in all

writing

expands understanding of the reasons for and uses of paragraphs and indentation

applies knowledge of a variety of genres produces informational reports based on

research with support of main ideas/ topic

with facts, examples, and explanations from authoritative sources, and a works consulted page

produces business letters in correct format and coherent style

uses relevant graphics in writing

demonstrates personal style and voice responds to literature through writing to

demonstrate understanding (with

emphasis on determining importance, analyzing text features, synthesizing, and critiquing)

organizes responses to literature that develop insight and refer to text through sustained use of examples

demonstrates higher-order thinking skills and writing clarity when answering open-ended and essay questions

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 APPENDIX H

STANDARD 3.3 (Speaking) All students will speak in clear, concise, organized language

that varies in content and form for different audiences and purposes.

Strands and Cumulative Progress Indicators

Building upon knowledge and skills gained in preceding grades, by the end of Grade 4,

students will:

A. Discussion (small group and whole class)

1. Use details, examples and reasons to support central ideas or clarify a point of view.

2. Stay focused on a topic and ask relevant questions.

3. Take turns without dominating.

B. Questioning (Inquiry) and Contributing

1. Develop questioning techniques (e.g., who, what, when, where, why, and how).

2. Use interview techniques to develop inquiry skills.

3. Explore concepts by describing, narrating, or explaining how and why things happen.

4. Discuss information heard, offer personal opinions, and ask for restatement or general

explanation to clarify meaning.

5. Reflect and evaluate information learned as a result of the inquiry.

6. Solve a problem or understand a task through group cooperation.

C. Word Choice

1. Use convincing dialogue to role-play short scenes involving familiar situations or

emotions.

2. Use figurative language purposefully in speaking situations.

3. Use appropriate vocabulary to support or clarify a message.

4. Adapt language to persuade, explain, or seek information.

D. Oral Presentation

1. Speak for a variety of audiences and purposes.

http://education.state.nj.us/cccs/?_cpi;cpi_uid=3.3.4.B.6

http://education.state.nj.us/cccs/?_cpi;cpi_uid=3.3.4.C.4

http://education.state.nj.us/cccs/?_cpi;cpi_uid=3.3.4.D.1


2. Prepare, rehearse, and deliver a formal presentation in logical or sequential order,

including an opening, supportive details, and a closing statement.

3. Use notes or other memory aids to structure a presentation.

4. Maintain audience interest during formal presentations, incorporating adequate volume,

proper pacing, and clear enunciation.

5. Participate in a dramatization or role-play across the curriculum.

6. Read aloud with fluency.

7. Understand and use criteria for a rubric to improve an oral presentation.

STANDARD 3.4 (Listening) All students will listen actively to information from a variety

of sources in a variety of situations.



students will:

A. Active Listening

1. Listen actively for a variety of purposes such as enjoyment and obtaining information.

2. Listen attentively and critically to a variety of speakers.

3. Interpret vocabulary gained through listening.

B. Listening Comprehension

1. Demonstrate competence in active listening through comprehension of a story,

interview, and oral report of an event or incident.

2. Develop listening strategies (e.g., asking questions and taking notes) to understand

what is heard.

3. Demonstrate competence in active listening by interpreting and applying received

information to new situations and solving problems.

4. Make inferences based on an oral report or presentation.

5. Describe how language reflects specific regions and/or cultures.

6. Follow three-and four-step oral directions.






http://education.state.nj.us/cccs/?_cpi;cpi_uid=3.4.4.A.1









STANDARD 3.5 (Viewing and media literacy) All students will access, view, evaluate,

and respond to print, nonprint, and electronic texts and resources.



students will:

A. Constructing Meaning

1. Interpret information found in pictorial graphs, map keys, and icons on a computer

screen.

2. Respond to and evaluate the use of illustrations to support text.

3. Use graphs, charts, and diagrams to report data.

4. Distinguish between factual and fictional visual representations.

5. Identify the central theme in a movie, film, or illustration.

6. Identify the target audience for a particular program, story, or advertisement.

7. Demonstrate an awareness of different media forms and how they contribute to

communication.

B. Visual and Verbal Messages

1. Understand that creators of both print media and electronic media have a purpose and

target audience for their work.

2. Explore and interpret various messages found in advertisements and other texts.

3. Discuss the emotional impact of photos and how they aid understanding.

4. Compare and contrast media sources, such as film and book versions of a story.

C. Living with Media

1. Express preferences for media choices.







BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 APPENDIX I

Public Schools of Edison Township Divisions of Curriculum and Instruction

Draft 14

Essential Instructional Behaviors

Edison’s Essential Instructional Behaviors are a collaboratively developed statement of effective teaching from pre-school through Grade 12. This statement of instructional expectations is intended as a framework and overall guide for teachers, supervisors, and administrators; its use as an observation checklist is inappropriate.

1. Planning which Sets the Stage for Learning and Assessment

Does the planning show evidence of: a. units and lessons directly related to learner needs, the written curriculum, the New Jersey Core Content

Curriculum Standards (NJCCCS), and the Cumulative Progress Indicators (CPI)? b. measurable objectives that are based on diagnosis of learner needs and readiness levels and reflective of

the written curriculum, the NJCCCS, and the CPI? c. lesson design sequenced to make meaningful connections to overarching concepts and essential

questions? d. provision for effective use of available materials, technology and outside resources? e. accurate knowledge of subject matter? f. multiple means of formative and summative assessment, including performance assessment, that are

authentic in nature and realistically measure learner understanding? g. differentiation of instructional content, processes and/or products reflecting differences in learner

interests, readiness levels, and learning styles? h. provision for classroom furniture and physical resources to be arranged in a way that supports student

interaction, lesson objectives, and learning activities?

2. Observed Learner Behavior that Leads to Student Achievement

Does the lesson show evidence of: a. learners actively engaged throughout the lesson in on-task learning activities? b. learners engaged in authentic learning activities that support reading such as read alouds, guided

reading, and independent reading utilizing active reading strategies to deepen comprehension (for example inferencing, predicting, analyzing, and critiquing)?

c. learners engaged in authentic learning activities that promote writing such as journals, learning logs, creative pieces, letters, charts, notes, graphic organizers and research reports that connect to and extend learning in the content area?

d. learners engaged in authentic learning activities that promote listening, speaking, viewing skills and strategies to understand and interpret audio and visual media?

e. learners engaged in a variety of grouping strategies including individual conferences with the teacher, learning partners, cooperative learning structures, and whole-class discussion?

f. learners actively processing the lesson content through closure activities throughout the lesson? g. learners connecting lesson content to their prior knowledge, interests, and personal lives? h. learners demonstrating increasingly complex levels of understanding as evidenced through their growing

perspective, empathy, and self-knowledge as they relate to the academic content? i. learners developing their own voice and increasing independence and responsibility for their learning? j. learners receiving appropriate modifications and accommodations to support their learning?

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 APPENDIX I

3. Reflective Teaching which Informs Instruction and Lesson Design

Does the instruction show evidence of: a. differentiation to meet the needs of all learners, including those with Individualized Education Plans? b. modification of content, strategies, materials and assessment based on the interest and immediate needs

of students during the lesson? c. formative assessment of the learning before, during, and after the lesson, to provide timely feedback to

learners and adjust instruction accordingly? d. the use of formative assessment by both teacher and student to make decisions about what actions to

take to promote further learning? e. use of strategies for concept building including inductive learning, discovery-learning and inquiry

activities? f. use of prior knowledge to build background information through such strategies as anticipatory set,

K-W-L, and prediction brainstorms? g. deliberate teacher modeling of effective thinking and learning strategies during the lesson? h. understanding of current research on how the brain takes in and processes information and how that

information can be used to enhance instruction? i. awareness of the preferred informational processing strategies of learners who are technologically

sophisticated and the use of appropriate strategies to engage them and assist their learning? j. activities that address the visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning modalities of learners? k. use of questioning strategies that promote discussion, problem solving, and higher levels of thinking? l. use of graphic organizers and hands-on manipulatives? m. creation of an environment which is learner-centered, content rich, and reflective of learner efforts in

which children feel free to take risks and learn by trial and error? n. development of a climate of mutual respect in the classroom, one that is considerate of and addresses

differences in culture, race, gender, and readiness levels? o. transmission of proactive rules and routines which students have internalized and effective use of

relationship-preserving desists when students break rules or fail to follow procedures?

4. Responsibilities and Characteristics which Help Define the Profession

Does the teacher show evidence of: a. continuing the pursuit of knowledge of subject matter and current research on effective practices in

teaching and learning, particularly as they tie into changes in culture and technology? b. maintaining accurate records and completing forms/reports in a timely manner? c. communicating with parents about their child‟s progress and the instructional process? d. treating learners with care, fairness, and respect? e. working collaboratively and cooperatively with colleagues and other school personnel? f. presenting a professional demeanor?

MQ/jlm 7/2009

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 APPENDIX J

Unit 9 Assessment: Personal Narrative Writing Task This assessment is to be administered both prior to and after instruction for the personal

narrative/small moments writing unit. It is meant to be used for grades K-5. Results should be

used to drive instruction within the classroom.

Administration Directions:

Prior to having students complete the writing task, begin a discussion with students in regards

to the prompt topic. Encourage students to share personal experiences about memorable

moments. As students share, ask them to elaborate on specific details about characters,

setting, sequenced events, etc. Explain that students will be using these ideas to think about

the best day they have had or to imagine the best day they could have.

Distribute My Best Day Writing Prompt and Pre-Writing Activity and read aloud together.

Format or presentation, but not content, can be modified based on the developmental needs of

students. K-2 teachers read aloud each pre-writing prompt and ask students to draw or write

their responses to each question. 3-5 teachers may allow students to proceed independently.

The teacher‟s role is to introduce the task and to lead the students through the prompts. There

should be no writing instruction at this time; this should not be considered a “teachable

moment.”

Once all students have completed pre-writing, inform students they will be timed as they

complete their personal narrative. Distribute appropriate paper. Students will have 25 minutes

to complete the writing task.


My Best Day Writing Prompt and Pre-Writing Activity Write about your best day ever. Think of the best day you‟ve ever had, or imagine the best day you could ever have. Use pictures or words to plan your writing. • Where are you during your best day? • What do you do? What happens first? Next? Last? • Who is with you? • Why is this the best day ever?

Use this Writer‟s Checklist after you write. Did I write about the best day ever? Did I include an introduction? Did I stay on topic? Did I include details? Did I include story elements (characters, setting, plot)? Did I use transition words to connect my ideas? Did I write about my day in the right order? Did I use interesting words? Does my conclusion explain my message? Did I pay attention to capitalization, punctuation and spelling?


Personal Narrative Writing Rubric and Class Profile Sheet The attached four-point rubric is intended to be used in conjunction with the personal narrative

unit assessment. Since this rubric should be used with K-5 writing samples, please consider

appropriate grade level expectations when scoring student writing. The rubric is divided into

seven components of personal narratives with an emphasis on the crafts specific to personal

narrative writing. When evaluating student writing, score each student according to the

specific components listed on the rubric. A total score can be calculated by adding the scores

for each component for each individual student (see sample class profile sheet).

The attached personal narrative profile sheet is intended to be used to inform instruction.

Student scores within each personal narrative component should be recorded on the sheet.

Teachers can then utilize the class profile sheet to monitor student strengths and weaknesses.

This can help teachers to determine the areas where instruction is needed.


K-5 Rubric: Personal Narratives

4 3 2 1 Introduction

Introduction is inviting, clearly states the main topic and previews the structure of the paper.

Introduction clearly states the main topic and previews the structure of the paper, but is not particularly inviting to the reader.

Introduction states the main topic, but does not adequately preview the structure of the paper nor is it particularly inviting to the reader.

No clear explanation of the main topic or structure of the paper.

Focus on Topic/ Elaboration of

Details

There is one clear, well focused topic. Main idea is supported by stretching out the most important part. Writer uses varied and thoughtful details to convey meaning.

There is one clear, well focused topic. Main idea is supported by stretching out the most important part but is not fully developed.

Focus on topic may not be clear and there is either a need for more supporting details or the details evident do not support the main idea.

There is no clear focus on topic. There is a seemingly random collection of information.

Story Structure Story elements including main characters, character development, setting, sequenced events, and plot are evident and fully developed.

Most story elements are included and developed.

Some story elements are evident but not fully developed.

Limited evidence of important story elements.

Transitions

Transitions are thoughtful, varied, and show how ideas are connected.

Transitions clearly show how ideas are connected but there is little variety.

Some transitions show how ideas are connected but other transitions are unclear and may lack variety.

The transitions between ideas are unclear or nonexistent.

Word Choice Writer uses vivid words and phrases that linger or draw pictures in the reader‟s mind. Placement of the words is accurate, natural and not forced.

Writer uses vivid words and phrases that linger or draw pictures in the reader‟s mind, but occasionally the words are used inaccurately or seem overdone.

Writer uses words that communicate clearly, but the writing lacks variety, vivid words or phrases needed to draw pictures in the reader‟s mind.

Writer uses words that do not communicate clearly or interferes with meaning.

Conclusion

The conclusion is strong and leaves the reader with a clear understanding of the writer‟s message.

The conclusion is recognizable but leaves the reader with some questions about the author‟s message.

The conclusion is recognizable, but the writer‟s message is unclear.

There is no clear conclusion, the paper just ends.

Mechanics Evident control of mechanics, spelling, grammar, usage and sentence formation.

Sufficient control of mechanics, spelling, grammar, usage and sentence formation.

Limited control of mechanics, spelling, grammar, usage and sentence formation.

Minimal control of mechanics, spelling, grammar, usage and sentence formation.


- SAMPLE -

CLASS PROFILE – PERSONAL NARRATIVE WRITING TASK

Teacher Name: Ms. Starteacher School: Sunshine Elementary School Dates: PRE: 10/15/08 POST: 11/30/08

Student Names

Introduction Topic/ Elaboration

Story Structure

Transitions Word Choice

Conclusion Mechanics Total

PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST

Kelly 2 3 2 3 3 4 3 3 2 3 3 4 2 3 17 23

Andrew 1 2 1 3 1 3 1 3 1 3 1 3 2 2 8 19

Anne 4 4 3 3 4 4 3 3 4 4 3 4 4 4 25 26

Mark 1 1 2 3 1 2 1 2 2 3 1 3 1 3 9 17

Denise 2 3 3 4 2 3 1 2 2 3 2 3 2 2 14 20

Heidi 2 3 2 3 2 3 1 2 1 3 2 3 2 3 12 20

Elliot 3 3 4 4 3 3 4 4 4 4 3 4 3 3 24 25

Mike 2 3 2 3 2 3 3 3 3 4 2 3 2 3 16 22

Ashleigh 3 4 4 4 4 4 3 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 26 27

Steven 3 3 3 4 3 3 3 3 2 3 3 3 3 4 20 23


CLASS PROFILE – PERSONAL NARRATIVE WRITING TASK

Teacher Name: School: Dates: PRE: POST:

Student Names

Introduction Topic/ Elaboration

Story Structure

Transitions Word Choice

Conclusion Mechanics Total

PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 APPENDIX K

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE FOR WORD STUDY Literacy is a braid of interwoven threads that begins with oral language and stories. The braid is strengthened with reading and writing. The size

of the threads and the braid itself thicken as word knowledge grows (Words Their Way). Through the integration of word study skills across the

curriculum, students will become independent readers, writers and spellers. Word study envelops the investigation and problem solving strategies

of:

oral language

phonological awareness

spelling rules and expectancies

decoding

vocabulary

sight words

dictionary skills

These skills can be taught through multiple contexts in focused direct instruction and mini-lessons in small or whole group settings based on the

assessment of students‟ developmental needs. Providing students with authentic purposes for acquiring and applying word knowledge will enable

them to make meaningful connections across content areas and help students develop a word consciousness.

This appendix will provide you with a scope of spelling rules and expectancies, resources and activities to enhance your word study instruction.

Additional resources will be available electronically for teachers‟ use.


Word Study Beginnings: Oral Language Development Activities in Kindergarten

Students are taught many words in school, but without rich oral language experiences they will not be able to incorporate them independently into their speaking, reading, and writing. Daily opportunities to utilize new vocabulary in discussion and clarify understanding of new words with peers are essential components of word study. Therefore, oral language experiences in kindergarten provide a strong foundation for effective word study instruction in future grade levels. Oral language experiences are also necessary to the social and cognitive development of young students, particularly for English Language Learners.

The activities outlined in this appendix serve to help students build their understanding of word learning through activities that cause them

to discuss, clarify, and collaborate. The oral language section contains three parts:

1. An explanation of the teacher’s role in supporting students‟ oral language development and scaffolding activities depending on oral

proficiency demonstrated in the classroom.

2. A continuum of oral language is included to help teachers determine the needs of their class, a small group of students, or an individual

student. Please consider using these descriptions when discussing oral language concerns for a student during parent/teacher conferences,

I&RS, etc.

3. Oral language activities (speaking and listening) developed specifically for the kindergarten classroom based on the continuum and

aligned with NJCCCS.


1. Explanation of Teacher’s Role: Each part is based on the gradual release of responsibility model. Suggested resources and websites

are listed at the end of the oral language section.

Teacher Support/Scaffolding

The Model:

showing, instructing,

explaining, directing,

making

The Coach:

structuring, sequencing,

focusing, cueing

The Advisor:

suggesting, reminding,

prompting, monitoring

The Mentor:

extending, wondering,

exploring, what-if

Think-Aloud Strategies Teacher thinks aloud about her own speaking/listening

behaviors

Teacher guides students to observe and/or notice what

she is doing during speaking/listening activities

Teacher monitors student think-alouds during

speaking/listening activities using eye-to-eye, knee-to-

knee

Using jigsaw and/or numbered heads together,

students individually explore speaking/listening

concepts further, then collaborate as teacher

joins in

Speaking/ Listening Observations

Teacher asks students to observe her modeling

speaking/listening behaviors during a

fishbowl activity and create list

Teacher asks students to observe peers modeling

speaking/listening behaviors during a

fishbowl activity and compare to class list

Teacher monitors student think-alouds during

speaking/listening activities using eye-to-eye, knee-to-

knee

Students offer feedback for speaking/listening

concerns, as well as opportunities, both in and

out of the classroom through role play,

observation, collaboration with older students, adults, community members, etc.


2. A Continuum of Oral Language

Developmental Aspects Emerging: With direct instruction,…

Developing: with guided support,…

Applying: with minimal support,…

Extending

The Child…

may listen to and use language for play and

collaborative learning. The child may not have enough language for conversation

to be meaningful.

listens to and is beginning to use language for play

and collaborative learning. The child is beginning to

participate in conversations.

uses conventional language for play and collaborative learning.

The child is able to contribute to

conversations.

adjusts language use for play and collaborative

learning. The child uses language for a range of purposes and actively

contributes to conversations.

Speaking and Listening

Developmental Aspects Emerging: With direct instruction,

the child…

Developing: With guided support, the

child…

Applying: With minimal support,

the child…

Extending: The child…

Attending

may attend to informal oral language interactions.

attends to and participates in informal language

interactions.


interactions.


interactions. Listening may listen during activities

(e.g., ignoring distractions). listens during activities

(e.g., ignoring distractions).

listens during activities (e.g., ignoring distractions).

listens during activities (e.g., ignoring distractions).

Speaking

may speak with adults/peers. May be

difficult to understand (e.g. tone of voice, volume,

articulation, rate, gesture).

speaks with adults/peers (e.g., tone of voice,

volume, articulation, rate, gesture).

speaks clearly & fluently with adults and peers (e.g., tone of voice,

volume, articulation, rate, gesture).

speaks clearly and fluently using appropriate voice and body language (e.g. tone of voice, volume,

articulation, rate, gesture). Taking turns

in conversation may take turns in a

conversation.

takes turns in a conversation.

takes turns in a conversation.

takes turns as a thoughtful listener and speaker in a

conversation.

Staying on topic

may sometimes stay on topic in a short conversation.

stays on topic in conversations; responds to

and extends ideas.

stays on topic in conversations; responds

to and extends ideas.

stays on topic in conversations; responds

to and extends ideas.


Knowledge of the Content and Structure of Language

Developmental Aspects Emerging:

With direct instruction, the child…


child…


the child…


Understanding and participating in language

activities

may understand classroom language activities (e.g.,

shared reading, role plays, imaginative play).

understands and participates in classroom language activities (e.g.,

shared reading, role plays, imaginative play).

understands and participates in classroom language activities (e.g.,

shared reading, role plays, imaginative play ).

understands and actively participates in classroom language activities (e.g.,

shared reading, role plays, imaginative play ).

Understanding

vocabulary

may understand a limited vocabulary.

understands a basic vocabulary.

understands a wide vocabulary.

understands an extensive vocabulary.

Speaking in sentences

may use single words or short phrases modeled by

others.

uses words or phrases modeled by others.

expresses thoughts and ideas in short sentences.

expresses thoughts and ideas in some detail using

a variety of sentences.

Understanding and following directions

may understand the difference between a

question and a comment or a response.

understands questions; asks simple questions and

may respond on topic.

asks and answers questions on topic.

asks thoughtful questions; responds on topic and

extends ideas.

Sharing personal experiences

may share personal experiences and feelings

shares personal experiences and feelings.

shares personal experiences and feelings

with some clarity.

shares personal experiences and feelings

with clarity; is beginning to adjust language for

audience Retelling

Recounting

may retell something about a story; may recount part of an experience or give one

or two simple facts.

retells a simple story, recounts an experience or

gives new information; some sequence errors or

omissions

retells a story, recounts an experience or gives new

information; some sequence errors and

omissions

retells a story, recounts an experience or gives

information; uses more complex connectors (e.g. if, because, when, before)

Problem solving

may use language to problem solve.

uses language to problem solve.

uses language to problem solve.

uses appropriate language to problem solve.


Knowledge of the Sounds of Language

Developmental Aspects Emerging: With direct instruction,

the child…


child…


the child…


Demonstrating phonological awareness

may demonstrate emergent skills in a few phonological

awareness areas (e.g., awareness of words,

syllables, sound, rhyme).

may demonstrate emergent skills in a few phonological awareness

areas (e.g., awareness of words, syllables, sound,

rhyme).

may demonstrate emergent skills in a few phonological awareness

areas (e.g., awareness of words, syllables, sound,

rhyme).

Demonstrates emergent skills in most phonological

awareness areas (e.g., awareness of words,

syllables, sound, rhyme).

(http://portal.sd69.bc.ca/programs/literacy/Kindergarten%20Learning%20Project/OL%20CONTINUUM%20F.pdf)

3. Oral Language Activities STANDARD 3.3 (Speaking) All students will speak in clear, concise, organized language that varies in content and form for different audiences and purposes. http://education.state.nj.us/cccs/?_standard_matrix;c=3

Teacher Support/Scaffolding

The Model: showing, instructing, explaining, directing,

making

The Coach: structuring, sequencing,

focusing, cueing

The Advisor: suggesting, reminding, prompting, monitoring

The Mentor: extending, wondering,

exploring, what-if

A. Discussion 1. Share experiences

and express ideas. 2. Participate in

conversation with peers and adults.

3. React to stories, poems, songs.

The teacher plays a tape of voices used in and around the school, such as classroom voices, library voices, and those found on the playground and in the hallways. After listening to the tape, the teacher and students discuss the reasons for the different volumes in each of these settings.

Following summer vacation, the teacher tells about his summer or reads a related book. Students share their responses to the story. Then each child draws a picture of what a dream summer vacation would look like and shares the drawing with the other students. Suggested book: How I Spent My Summer Vacation by Mark Teague

On a rotating schedule, have each student bring in a show and tell item, (it can be based on a concept learning, for example, a special day or season) and present it to the class and ask for children‟s connections.

Following a discussion of important people in students‟ lives, each student draws a picture of one important person and tells a story about that individual to the rest of the class.

http://portal.sd69.bc.ca/programs/literacy/Kindergarten%20Learning%20Project/OL%20CONTINUUM%20F.pdf


B. Questioning (Inquiry) and Contributing

1. Share in conversations with others.

2. Use oral language to extend learning.

Have students tell a partner about a favorite toy and why they like it. Allow the other students to ask questions for the chosen student to answer.

Teacher places animal picture cards in a bucket or hat. Teacher picks a student to start animal charades game. The student will describe the animal to the group. Who ever guesses goes next.

Students summarize and retell a familiar fairy tale or nursery rhyme in dramatic play. Students use puppets, scenery, and / or flannel board (for example: trees, chair, tuffet from “Little Miss Muffet”).

Dramatic play-Teacher reads a book to the class, volunteers pretend that they are various characters in the book solving the problem in various ways. Suggested book: Katy No Pocket by Emmy Payne and H.A. Rey

C. Word Choice 1. Use language to

describe feelings, people, objects, and events.

2. Suggest rhyming words during word plays, songs, or read aloud.

Sing “One, Two Buckle My Shoe” or “Down by the Bay.” Omit words that follow the rhyme and see if the class can guess them.

Discussion about feelings and / or a time when they were happy, sad, or angry. Have students illustrate and talk about their picture related to their experience to a partner and / or class. Suggested book: Feelings by Aliki

Discussion about a favorite toy or stuffed animal. Have each student bring a favorite stuffed animal to class. Using them as a prop, the students tell its history, where it lives, what it does at home, and why it is his or her favorite. Suggested book: When Ira Sleeps Over by Bernard Waber

Play a guessing game-Have a student select a small object from a box and describe it so the class can guess. Model the process by providing clear clues: shape, color, etc. Ask students which clues were helpful and why. Have students generate descriptive words for objects pulled from the box. Create a class book of mystery objects.

D. Oral Presentation 1. Sing familiar songs

and rhymes to promote oral language development.

2. Begin to use social conventions of language.

Place titles of familiar songs and rhymes in an empty box or hat. Choose a song leader to pick a song from the hat or box. Have the leader lead the children through the song or rhyme.

The students can create “All About Me” project at home with family. It can include pictures, some food items, heritage information, etc. Students present project in class to classmates and display in hall for further discussion.

Children participate in creating dramatizations for a story they have enjoyed. When they have practiced it and know their parts, they perform it for several audiences at school and for their parents. Suggested story: “The Three Billy Goats Gruff”

Model and conduct various scientific experiments, for example, magnetism, sink or float, or five senses.


STANDARD 3.4 (Listening) All students will listen actively to information from a variety of sources in a variety of situations. http://education.state.nj.us/cccs/?_standard_matrix;c=

A. Active Listening 1. Listen fully to

understand directions or hear daily messages.

2. Listen to identify main characters or events in stories.

3. Listen to rhymes and songs to begin developing an understanding of letter/sound relationships.

Students help the teacher tell an action story. Following her direction, the students clap, stomp their feet, stand up, and sit down on cue. Their movements correspond with the actions in the narrative.

Students follow oral directions with rhyme and songs, such as "Simon Says," "The Hokey Pokey," “Days of the Week song,” and “My Mother is a Baker” by Dr. Jean

The teacher prepares her class to listen to a book with many different motion/action words in it. As the teacher reads, the class will follow along with the actions given in the book. Afterwards, the class is divided into groups, each student will have a different activity and listening responsibility to remember as a second telling of the story is delivered and re-enacted . Suggested book: “There Was An Old Lady That Wasn‟t Afraid of Any Thing”

Students draw character sketches as they listen to read-aloud of multiple versions of a fairy tale. The drawings should reflect differences in the characters as portrayed by the different authors. Suggested stories: the wolf that is drawn based on listening to the True Story of the 3 Pigs as told by A. Wolf should look different from that drawn for the traditional story.

The teacher conducts a dress-up story. Student will be given dress up clothes. The student in small groups will construct a story with all characters in dress clothes. Teacher will record story in small groups and become the narrator as the students act out the story they created.


1. Listen attentively to books teacher reads aloud to class.

2. Answer questions correctly about books read aloud.

Students listen to a story, without seeing its illustration. Students illustrate what they envisioned from the story. They compare their illustrations with the books illustrations during a second reading with pictures. Suggested books: In the Tall, Tall Grass by Denise Fleming or Cats‟ Colors by Ruth Heller

As their teacher reads a story that they already know, students imagine the sound effects that could be used to enhance a radio reading of it. As a follow-up, students listen to an audiotape of the story, complete with sound effects. They note the sound effects used that they had suggested, as well as ones they had not considered.

While a teacher reads a story to his class, he periodically asks students to make predictions about what will happen next. Their responses indicate whether they were practicing effective listening.

Teacher reads a book to the middle or near the end of the story. Ask, “How would you end this story if you were the writer? There are no wrong answers." Send children back to their seats to write or draw the end of the story. They come back to the carpet to present their endings. This activity can be done in pairs. Suggested book: Ira Sleeps Over.


Oral Language Additional Resources

Well developed oral proficiency is associated with well-developed reading comprehension skills and writing skills. This is

true for both native and English Language Learners. The resources listed below are books and websites describing

activities to promote students‟ oral language across the curriculum and reduce teacher talk. These activities can be

adapted by grade level and used whole class, small group, or individually – depending on students‟ needs.

Suggested Books

Time for Talking: Speaking and Listening Activities for Younger Students

by E. Love & S. Reilly

Talk and Learn: Focused Language Activities for Young Children

Jazz Chants by C. Graham

Children Tell Stories: A Teaching Guide by M. Hamilton & M. Weiss

Storytelling in the Classroom: Twenty Tips in Reading Today, Feb./March 1998

Talking Classrooms: Shaping Children's Learning Through Oral Language Instruction by P. Smith

Websites

www.readinga-z.com; wordless books

http://www.literacyconnections.com/OralLanguage.php

http://www.colorincolorado.org/educators/content/oral

http://www.readingrockets.org; search oral language activities

http://www.teachervision.fen.com/cooperative-learning/resource/48649.html; explanation of cooperative learning

models

http://www.readinga-z.com/

http://www.literacyconnections.com/OralLanguage.php

http://www.colorincolorado.org/educators/content/oral

http://www.readingrockets.org/

http://www.teachervision.fen.com/cooperative-learning/resource/48649.html


Word Study: Phonological Awareness

In teaching phonological awareness, explicit instruction is embedded in daily reading and writing rather than isolated drill type activities in order to link real life purposes to the instruction and practice that occur during the daily Word Study block. Below are suggestions for how you might integrate phonological awareness in your instructional day.

Read Alouds: Reread favorite book, poems, and songs with alliteration, rhyme, and other sound features that enable children to become more conscious of sounds. Children may listen for words that rhyme, words that are plural, or any number of words related to a word study focus. (Suggested activities - Words Their Way, pgs. 102-103, 112, 117-119) Shared Reading: Read and reread books, poems, morning message, and experience charts that play with sounds in language, introduce activities that focus on the concept of a word to assist children in becoming aware of words as separate entities in a stream of speech. Children may listen and look for words with a specific sound, a particular pattern, a particular suffix, or any number of words related to a word study focus. (Suggested activities – Words Their Way, pgs. 102-103, 108-111, 117-119, 164)

Use a frame to locate particular words in a Big Book, poem, morning message, or experience chart and read the sentence with the children, leaving out the framed word. Have children listen, predict, identify, and say the framed word within the sentence.

Have children count the number of words within spoken and written sentences.

Write two copies of sentences from Big Books or charts used for Shared Reading on sentence strips. Cut one copy of each sentence into words. Have children count the number of words and match these words with an identical sentence strip. Reread the matched sentences, then remove the words one at a time and help children listen for and identify the removed words within the spoken sentence.

Prepare cloze exercises using familiar texts or rhymes by covering predictable words. Tell children that there is one word covered in each line. Then read the text with the children, have them match each spoken word with a visible or covered word, and have them identify the missing words. Have children check that the words they predict make sense. In the case of a rhyme, show children how they could use the rhyming word in the next line to help them.

Guided Reading: Children may return to a text to find examples of words relating to a class exploration, or teachers may

focus on a specific need within the small group. Beginning readers may be asked to locate high frequency words while more experienced readers may locate homophones. (Suggested activities- Words Their Way, pgs.161-162)


Reading Workshop: Children may notice examples of words related to class or small group exploration. They may also notice and harvest powerful words of personal interest. One to one conferring and small group work provide opportunities to teach into letters, sounds, and words. (Words Their Way – “Harvesting Words,” pgs. 161-162) Shared & Interactive Writing: In shared writing, the teacher demonstrates the spelling strategy with suggestions from the children. In interactive writing, the teacher shares the pen with the child(ren). The teacher may demonstrate a spelling strategy which is then attempted by the child(ren). During daily shared and/or interactive writing sessions (Daily News, Morning Message, shared experience charts/stories, posters, signs, labels, etc.) consider the following:

Model how writing is speech written down. Think aloud.

Model saying words slowly and stretching out their pronunciations in order to hear the individual sounds within them. Think aloud.

Demonstrate strategies to use when attempting to spell unfamiliar words. Focus on listening for the sounds in the words and identifying the letters that represent the sounds. Think aloud.

Demonstrate the use of spaces between words, and focus children‟s attention on the point where one word ends and another begins. Think aloud.

Have children count the number of words in sentences.

Use a frame to locate particular words and read the sentence with the children, leaving out the framed word. Have children listen, predict, identify, and say the framed word within the sentence.

(Suggested activities – Words Their Way, pgs. 108-111, 124-126 “Children‟s Names,”133-137 “Concept of Word,” 163) Writing Workshop: Think aloud as you demonstrate and model your teaching point in any number of writing units during any part of the writing process. Thinking aloud is a powerful model for children. As children write on a daily basis for sustained periods of time, they become more competent in attempted spellings, often by consciously isolating the phonemes they hear in spoken words. When writing their own pieces, the children are also writing for real purposes as well as gaining practice in listening for beginning, middle, and ending sounds in words. One to one conferring and small group work provide opportunities to teach into letters, sounds, and words. OBSERVING AND EXAMINING CHILDREN‟S WRITING IS CRITICAL TO EVALUATING THEIR PHONOLOGICAL UNDERSTANDING AND NEEDS. Math & Content Areas: Categorize by attributes as an introduction to sorting. Introduce concept sorts in science or social studies. (Words Their Way, pgs. 113-117) Word Study: There are two basic sorts: picture sorts and word sorts. Each serves a different purpose. (Words Their Way,

pgs. 60-64, 100,106-108, 112-117)

Picture sorts can be used to develop phonological awareness, phonemic awareness, and phonics.

Picture sorts can also be used to teach word meanings in the form of concept sorts.


Word sorts are useful for children who have a functional sight word vocabulary. Because they are sorting known words, their sorts help them to discover the orthographic patterns that represent certain sounds and meanings. These understandings are then transferred to reading and writing.

Additional suggested games and activities that may be used to further support the word work embedded in the instructional day:

WORDS THEIR WAY Activities for Emergent Readers”

Rhyming Games, pgs. 119-120

Alphabet Activities & Games, pgs. 127-130

Working With Beginning Sounds, pgs. 130-133 Activities for Beginners in the Letter Name Alphabetic Stage”

Activities for Beginning/Ending Sounds, Including Digraphs & Blends, pgs. 166-171

Activities for the Study of Word Families, pgs. 171-177

Activities for Short Vowels, pgs. 178-181

RESOURCES: ADDITIONAL SUGGESTED RESOURCES

Bear, D. R., Invernizzi, M., Templeton, S., Johnston, F: Bear, D. R., Invernizzi, M., Templeton, S., Johnston, F. Words Their Way-ELL Words Their Way, second edition. Cunningham, P. M. Phonics They Use, Words for Reading & Writing Words Their Way-Emergent Stage Cunningham, P. M., Hall, D. Making Words Words Their Way- Letter Name Alphabetic Stage Ganske, K. Word Journeys Snowball, D., Bolton, F. Spelling K-8, Planning & Teaching


Strand B Phonological Awareness Essential Question: How are sounds represented by letters? Enduring Understanding: Letters and letter combinations represent sounds.

Cumulative Progress Indicators: Kindergarten 3.1.K.B.1 Demonstrate understanding that spoken words consist of sequences of phonemes. 3.1.K.B.2 Demonstrate phonemic awareness by rhyming, clapping syllables, and substituting sounds. 3.1.K.B.3 Understand that the sequence of letters in a written word represents the sequence of sounds (phonemes) in a spoken word (alphabetic principle). 3.1.K.B.4 Learn many, though not all, one-to-one letter sound correspondences. 3.1.K.B.5 Given a spoken word, produce another word that rhymes with it. Grade 1 3.1.1.B.1 Demonstrate understanding of all sound-symbol relationships. 3.1.1.B.2 Blend or segment the phonemes of most one-syllable words. 3.1.1.B.3 Listen and identify the number of syllables in a word. 3.1.1.B.4 Merge spoken segments into a word. 3.1.1.B.5 Add, delete, or change sounds to change words (e.g., cow to how, cat to can). Grade 2 3.1.2.B.1 Add, delete, or change middle sounds to change words (e.g., pat to put). 3.1.2.B.2 Use knowledge of letter-sound correspondences to sound out unknown words. Grade 3 3.1.3.B.1 Demonstrate a sophisticated sense of sound-symbol relationship, including all phonemes (e.g., blends, digraphs, diphthongs).


Word Study: Spelling Rules and Expectations

Word study is a hands-on, student-centered approach where students actively engage in exploring words by sound, pattern, and meaning. Through this interactive and inquiry-based approach, students will discover regularities, patterns, and rules of English orthography in order to decode and encode. Through assessments, teachers will have a better understanding of their students‟ orthographic knowledge and as a result, be able to tailor instruction to meet their students‟ needs. By analyzing errors including decoding miscues, spelling miscues from the spelling inventory, and spelling errors within the context of writing, teachers can plan for meaningful instruction. The following spelling rules or expectancies are a guide to assist you when providing whole class, small group or individualized instruction. These rules or expectancies should not be taught in isolation but rather, students should still be expected to explore, examine, discriminate, discover, and make judgments about word structures, spelling patterns and meanings of words. The term “expectancy” is used because it is what students can expect to see when looking at a word and based on what the word looks like, we can tell how it is expected to sound. When using the spelling rules or expectancies guide, remember to keep in mind the student‟s developmental stage of spelling and their zone of proximal development. You do not need to follow the exact order in the rules/expectancies guide, but instead, choose ones that best meet your students‟ needs.

Spelling the Sound /k/

The sound /k/ can be spelled four different ways: c, cc, k, ck

c – The single letter c is the most common spelling and it may be used anywhere in a word.

examples: cat, corn, public, cactus, victim, pecan, actor, bacon

cc – Sometimes the letter c must be doubled to cc to protect the sound of a short vowel.

examples: stucco, raccoon, hiccups, tobacco, occupy

k – The letter k is substituted for c if /k/ is followed by an e, i, or y.

examples: skin, make, sketch, kind, keep, risky, flaky

ck – The spelling ck is substituted for cc if the following letter is an e, i, or y.

examples: lucky, picking, rocking, blackest, stocking

k and ck – These letters are used to spell /k/ at the end of a single syllable word. The digraph ck always follows a short vowel.


examples: duck, luck, stick, clock

The letter k follows any other sound.

examples: tank, tusk, milk, soak, bike, bark, cork, hawk

Spelling the Sound /j/

The sound /j/ can be spelled three different ways: j, ge, and dge.

j – The letter j is usually used if the sound is followed by an a, o, or u.

examples: jam, jar, just, jacket, major, adjust, adjacent

g – The letter g is usually used if the sound is followed by an e, i, or y since it has the soft sound of /j/.

examples: gem, ginger, gentle, gym, algebra, aging, origin

dge – If /j/ follows a short vowel sound, it is usually spelled with dge because the letter j is never doubled in English.

examples: judge, badge, ridge, edge, smudge, budget, gadget, dodge

Spelling the Sound /ch/

The sound /ch/ has two spellings, tch after a short vowel, ch anywhere else.

examples: witch, catch, kitchen, sketch, hatchet

exceptions: which, rich, much, such, touch, bachelor, attach, sandwich, ostrich

FLOSS Rule: Double f, l, s, z

One syllable words ending in f, l, s and z after a single vowel, usually end in double ff, ll, ss or zz.

examples: full, fluff, pull, pass, puff, stuff, ball, cliff, class, miss, tell, buzz, roll


Vowels in One Syllable Words

When there is only one vowel in a word or syllable and the vowel comes between two consonants, the vowel is usually short.

examples: cat, fed, gum, back, stick

When there is only one vowel in a word or syllable and the vowel comes at the beginning of the word, the vowel is usually short.

examples: egg, off, it, add, us, itch, ump

When there is only one vowel in a word or syllable and the vowel comes at the end, the vowel is usually long.

examples: why, no, he, me

Silent e

When a syllable has one vowel, followed by a consonant, followed by an “e,” the “e” is silent and makes the preceding vowel sound long.

examples: pin – pine, mat – mate, man – mane, rod - rode

Final v

A final /v/ is always spelled with ve, no matter what the preceding vowel sound may be.

examples: have, give, love, sleeve, cove, brave, receive

Adding –s

When adding –s to a word to make it plural, add –s to the end of the word.

examples: dogs, plays, girls

If the word ends in -ch, -s, -sh, -x, or -z, add –es to the singular.

examples: churches, masses, brushes, boxes, chintzes

If the word ends in –f, or –fe, remove the –f, or –fe and add –ves.

examples: wife – wives, calf – calves exceptions: beliefs, chiefs, dwarfs, griefs, gulfs, proofs, roofs, fifes


If the word ends with a consonant and y, remove the –y and add –ies.

examples: spy – spies, baby – babies

If the word ends in o after a vowel, form the plural by adding –s.

examples: studio – studios, shampoo – shampoos exceptions: buffaloes, dominoes, echoes, goes, grottoes, haloes, heroes, mangoes, mosquitoes, potatoes, tomatoes, tornadoes,

torpedoes, vetoes, volcanoes

Spelling the Sound /sh/

When the /sh/ sound occurs before a vowel suffix, it is spelled ti, si, or ci.

examples: partial, special, musician, nutrition, patient, ratio, vacation, pension

I before E, except after C

When spelling words with the vowel pair, ie, remember it‟s “i before e except after c.”

examples: achieve, believe, bier, brief, hygiene, grief, thief, friend, grieve, chief, fiend, patience, pierce, priest

exceptions: 1. “ei” is used when words are pronounced with a long a, as in neighbor, freight, beige, sleigh, weight, vein, weigh 2. other exceptions - either, neither, feint, foreign, forfeit, height, leisure, weird, seize, seizure

Doubling Final Consonants

When a one-syllable word ends with one short vowel and one consonant, double the final consonant before adding a vowel suffix.

examples: hop – hopped/hopping, skip – skipped/skipping

When a two-syllable word ends with a vowel and a consonant, double the final consonant before adding a vowel suffix, if the accent is on the last syllable.

examples: admit – admittance/admitted, begin - beginning


Dropping Final e

When adding a suffix to a word that ends with a silent e, drop the final e if the suffix begins with a vowel.

examples: surprise – surprising, change – changed, fame – famous, age – aging, refuse – refusal, cure - curable

When adding a suffix to a word that ends with a silent e, keep the final e if the suffix begins with a consonant.

examples: advance – advancement, like – likeness

If the silent e is preceded by another vowel, drop the e when adding any ending.

examples: argument, argued, truly

When the word ends in –ce or –ge and the incoming vowel is an a, o, or u, do not drop the final e.

examples: manage – manageable, courage – courageous, surge – surgeon, notice – noticeable, outrage – outrageous

Soft c

When the letter c is immediately followed by an e, i or y, it usually says /s/ as in ice. This is called the soft sound of letter c.

examples: cent, city, cycle, ice

Soft g

When the letter g is immediately followed by an e, i or y, it usually says /j/ as in gem. This is called the soft sound of letter g.

examples: gentle, giant, genie exceptions: give, get, gift, girl, begin

“Y” as a Vowel

When a two syllable word ends in y, the y says /ē/. The y takes the consonant before it to make the last syllable.

example: sun/ny

When a one syllable word ends in y and the y is the vowel sound, the y says /ī/.

examples: my, cry, shy, by, why

In the middle of a word, y also acts as a vowel to help the letters c and g to be soft.

examples: y in gym sounds like /ĭ/, y in cyclone sounds like / ī/.


When Two Vowels Go Walking

When there are two vowels together in a word or syllable, the first vowel is usually long and the second one is silent. “When two vowels go walking, the first one does the talking.” (Vowel pairs – ee, ea, ai, oa)

examples: maid, coat, beat (see the picture of the sail, boat, and sea)

The Diphthong Syllable

A diphthong is two vowels which in combination produce one sound. However, some diphthongs have two or more sounds.

Diphthongs that generally have one sound: ai (ā) sail, ailment, detail au (ô) August, applaud, laundry ay (ā) play, swaying, crayon aw (ô) awful, squawk, sprawl, yawl ee(ē) tree, feeble, canteen oi (oi) oil, poison, hoist, broil oa (ō) boat, boastful, roaming oy (oi) boy, oyster, annoy, loyal oe (ō) toe, hoe, foe igh (ī) high, thigh, blight Diphthongs with two or more sounds: ea (ē) eat (ĕ) head (ā) great ou (ou) out (ōō) soup (ŭ) touch ie (ē) chief (ī) tie ew (ū) few (ōō) grew ei (ē) ceiling (ā) vein ue (ū) rescue (ōō) true eigh (ā) neighbor (ī) height oo (ōō) pool (ǒǒ) look ow (ō) grow (ou) owl ey (ē) valley (ā) they

Since a diphthong is pronounced in one sound, it is treated as one vowel in syllabicating words. For example, awk/ward (vc/cv), trai/tor (v/cv), mead/ow (vc/v).

Dropping Final y

When adding an ending to a word that ends with y, change the y to i when it is preceded by a consonant.

examples: supply – supplies, worry – worries, happy – happiness, puppy – puppies, beauty- beautiful, vary - various

When adding –ing to a word that ends with y, just add –ing

examples: cry – crying, stay – staying

When adding an ending to a word that ends with y and is preceded by a vowel, just add –ing examples: obey – obeyed, say - saying


Using –le

When spelling words ending with –le, if the vowel is short, there must be two consonants between the vowel and the –le. Otherwise, one consonant is enough.

examples: two consonants – little, handle, tickle, puzzle, bottle, crumble

one consonant – bugle, able, poodle, needle, people

Endings: -al or -el?

al – It is usually an adjective ending.

examples: brutal, several, occasional

al – It can be a noun ending when it is added to a verb to form a noun.

examples: approve – approval, rehearse – rehearsal

el – It is usually an ending for words that act as nouns or as both nouns and verbs. examples: chapel, colonel, funnel, quarrel, shovel

Adding Consonant Suffixes

Consonant suffixes can be added to words without any changes unless the word ends with y; then the final y must be changed to i before you add any suffix.

examples: peace – peaceful, pity – pitiful, harm – harmless, child – childhood

consonant suffixes: -ness, -less, -ly, -ful, -hood, -wise, -cess, -ment, -ty, -ry, -ward

Suffixes “-est” and “ –ist”

When deciding to use –est or –ist, remember the following:

-ist – is a suffix meaning someone who does something

examples: artist, machinist, chemist

-est – is a suffix used on superlative adjectives

examples: sweetest, fastest, longest


Suffixes “-cian,” “–tion” and “–sion”

When deciding to use –cian, –tion or –sion, remember the following:

-cian – always means a person

examples: electrician, magician, musician

-tion or –sion – never used for people

examples: election, decision

Prefixes “dis-“ and “mis”

When the prefixes “dis-“ and “mis-“ are added to a word, the spelling of the word is not altered.

examples: misplace, mistake, disinfect, disconnect

SYLLABICATION DIVISION RULES

First Syllable Division Rule

A one syllable word is never divided. A syllable must have a vowel.

Closed Syllable

Words with one syllable that end in a consonant have a short vowel. This is called a closed syllable because the final consonant “closes” in the vowel and makes it short.

examples: sun + set = sunset, bas + ket = basket

Open Syllable

An open syllable is a syllable that ends in a vowel or is a vowel by itself. Since the vowel is not “closed in” by a consonant, the vowel is open and the sound is long.

examples: she, no, music, open, we


Compound Words

A compound word is divided between the words that make the word compound.

examples: sun/shine, base/ball, mail/box

Double Consonants

When a word has two of the same consonants together in the middle of a word, divide the word between the two consonants.

examples: run/ning, skip/ping, lit/tle

Words with –le

When a word ends with –le preceded by a consonant, the word is divided before that consonant.

examples: bot/tle, a/ble, nee/dle

VC/V

When a consonant comes between two vowels in a word, try dividing after the consonant.

examples: com/ic, rap/id

V/CV

If dividing after the consonant doesn‟t produce a known word, try dividing before the consonant.

examples: si/lent, bo/nus

Two Vowels Sounded Separately

When two vowels come together in a word and are sounded separately, divide the word between the two vowels.

examples: di/et, cru/el


Vowels Sounded Alone

When a vowel is sounded alone in a word, it forms a syllable by itself.

examples: u/ni/form, a/live, dis/o/bey

VCCCV

When you see three consonants between two vowels, mark the pattern VCCCV. To divide this pattern, draw a line after the first consonant VC/CCV.

examples: cul/prit, ex/plode

If the word does not sound right, divide the pattern after the second consonant instead VCC/CV.

examples: emp/ty, pump/kin, ath/lete

Syllables Ending in –al or –el

When a word or syllable ends in –al or –el, these letters usually form the last syllable in the word. examples: sev/er/al, ap/prov/al, shov/el, chap/el

Additional Resources: Bloom, F. & Traub, N., Recipe for Reading Ganske, K., Word Journeys Lindamood, P.C. & Lindamood, P.D., The Lindamood Phoneme Sequencing Program for Reading, Spelling, & Speech www.dyslexia.org/spelling_rules.shtml


Word Study: Decoding STANDARD 3.1 (READING) ALL STUDENTS WILL UNDERSTAND AND APPLY THE KNOWLEDGE OF SOUNDS, LETTERS AND WORDS IN WRITTEN ENGLISH TO BECOME INDEPENDENT AND FLUENT READERS, AND WILL READ A VARIETY OF MATERIALS AND TEXTS WITH FLUENCY AND COMPREHENSION. Good readers are able to correctly pronounce familiar words at their level as well as unfamiliar words that follow the conventions of written English. Students who have difficulty decoding do not have adequate knowledge of the relationship between how words are spelled and pronounced in English, (cipher knowledge) or they do not realize that when certain words are sounded out they do not make sense, (lexical knowledge). Students need a strong letter-phoneme base for cipher knowledge and repeated practice reading irregular words.

Cumulative Progress Indicators 3.1.K.C.2: Recognize and name most uppercase and lowercase letters of the alphabet. 3.1.K.C.3: Recognize and read one’s name. 3.1.1.C.1: Identify consonant sounds in spoken words (including blends such as bl, br; and digraphs such as th, wh). 3.1.1.C.2: Recognize and use rhyming words to reinforce skills. 3.1.1. C.3: Decode regular one-syllable words and nonsense words (eg. sit, zot). 3.1.1.C.4: Use sound letter correspondence knowledge to sound out unknown words when reading text. 3.1.1.C.6: Decode unknown words using basic phonetic analysis. 3.1.1.C.7: Decode unknown words using context clues. 3.1.2.C.1: Look for known chunks or small words to attempt to decode an unknown word. 3.1.2.C.2: Reread inserting the beginning sound of an unknown word. 3.1.2.C.3: Decode regular multi-syllable words and parts of words (i.e., capital, Kalamazoo). 3.1.2.C.4: Read many irregularly spelled words and such spelling patterns as diphthongs, special vowel spellings, common endings. 3.1.3.C.1: Know sounds for a range of prefixes and suffixes (i.e., re-,ex-, -ment, -tion). 3.1.3.C.2: Use letter-sound knowledge and structural analysis to decode words. 3.1.3.C.3: Use context to accurately read words with more than one pronunciation. 3.1.4.C.1: Use letter-sound correspondence and structural analysis (i.e., roots, affixes) to decode words. 3.1.4.C.2: Know and use common word families to decode unfamiliar words. 3.1.4.C.3: Recognize compound words, contractions, and common abbreviations. 3.1.5.C.1: Use the pronunciation key of a dictionary to decode new words. 3.1.5.C.2: Use context clues or knowledge of phonics, syllabication, prefixes and suffixes to decode new words. 3.1.5.C.3: Interpret new words correctly in context. 3.1.5.C.4: Apply spelling and syllabications rules that aid in decoding and word recognition.


Suggested Activities for Grades K-2 for decoding practice:

1. Picture Clues: Students use the pictures and get their mouth ready for the first sound for unknown words.

2. Skip it and Go On: When students come to an unknown word, they skip it and keep reading to the end of the sentence. Then they go back and reread

getting ready to make the first sound to see if they can decode based on the context.

3. Little Words in Big Words: Students look for little words they know inside a bigger word to decode.

4. Similar Words/ Word Chunks: Students look at the words and see if they know any words or word chunks that are similar and then replace the onset

with the new sound to decode.

5. Big Word of the Day: Students hunt for the best word in their reading. They write the word on chart paper. The students vote on which is the best “big

word” and discuss the meaning and sounds.

6. Echo Reading: Students “echo” the teacher or peer.

7. Making Words: The teacher selects a secret word and gives the students the letters of the word in ABC order. (example: acmp, the word is camp) The

teacher initially guides the students through making of the words and gradually releases responsibility to the students allowing them to make as many

words as they can with specific letters independently.

8. Word Ladders: Students begin with a word and make one letter change to create a new word. They begin by changing the initial sound, then the

ending sound and finally the medial sound.

9. Missing Vowels: Students are given consonant sounds only, and they fill in the vowel to make a word. To check for understanding, the children should

write the word in a sentence to illustrate the word they have made.

10. Word/Rhyming Families: Students manipulate the onset or initial consonant to create word family or rhyming words.

11. Syllable Practice: Students need repeated practice counting numbers of syllables in a word. They may do so by clapping, hopping, counting chips.

12. Guess the Covered Words: Students are seated on the carpet. The teacher records a poem or passage from a story and covers key words. The

teacher and students read the recorded text together and then stop at the covered words. The students predict what word would make sense and sound

right. Then the teacher thinks aloud modeling how to decide if the prediction is correct. What letter would we expect first? Will it be a short word or a

long word? How many syllables did our predictions have? Would that word make sense and sound right in our reading?

13. Guess the Scrambled Words: The teacher records a poem or passage from a story and scrambles key words. The teacher and students read the text

together and stop at the scrambled words. The students decide what word would make sense and sound right and unscramble it for the correct spelling.


Suggested Activities for Grades 3-5 for decoding practice:

1. Big Word of the Day: Students hunt for the best word in their reading. They write the word on chart paper. The students vote on

which is the best “big word” and discuss the meaning, sounds etc.

2. Making Words: The teacher selects a secret word and gives the students the letters of the word in ABC order. (example: acmp, the

word is camp) The teacher initially guides the students through making of the words and gradually releases responsibility to the

students allowing them to make as many words as they can with specific letters independently.

3. Word Ladders: Students begin with a word and make one letter change to create a new word. They begin by changing the initial

sound, then the ending sound and finally the medial sound.

4. Guess the Covered Words: Students are seated on the carpet. The teacher records a poem or passage from a story and covers

key words. The teacher and students read the recorded text together and then stop at the covered words. The students predict what

word would make sense and sound right. Then the teacher thinks aloud modeling how to decide if the prediction is correct. What

letter would we expect first? Will it be a short word or a long word? How many syllables did our predictions have? Would that word

make sense and sound right in our reading?

5. Guess the Scrambled Words: The teacher records a poem or passage from a story and scrambles key words. The teacher and

students read the text together and stop at the scrambled words. The students decide what word would make sense and sound right

and unscramble it for the correct spelling.

6. How Many Words Can You Make: The students are given a simple root word (e.g., play, work, agree) and asked to work

independently or in small groups to make as many words as they can using prefixes, suffixes, compound words etc. Then the words

are shared and the meaning discussed.

7. Flip-a-Chip: Students write prefixes, suffixes, and bases on chips. They then flip the chips and determine if the resulting word is real

or not. Lee Mountain (2002) introduced the game using 2 chips. On the first, one side says pro- and the other says re-. On the other

chip one side says –duce, and the other says –voke. Students flip to make the following words: produce, provoke, reduce, and

revoke.


Word Walls for Grades 3-5:

Classrooms will have a working word wall in place. The word wall in grades 3-5 should include the most common used prefixes and suffixes.

Bauman, Font, Edwards, and Boland (2005) examined the effectiveness of teaching word-part and context clues to promote word knowledge.

According to their data, students must learn to use strategies and skills such as solving unknown words by understanding how affixes affect root

word meaning. Adams and Henry (1997) noted that the attention to affixes was critical, especially after students have mastered early phonics.

Without an increasingly sophisticated understanding of the ways words work, students fail to advance their literacy skills. (Frey and Fisher,

Learning Words Inside & Out, 2009)

Four prefixes, un, re, in (and im, ir, il meaning “not”) make up 58 % of all prefixed words. Add 16 more prefixes en/em, non, in/im, over, mis,

sub, pre, inter, fore, de ,trans, super, semi, anti, mid and under and you have 97% of all prefixed words (White, Sowell & Yanagihara, 1989)

For suffixes, s/es, ed, and ing, account for 65% of the suffixed word. Add ly, er/or, ion/tion, ible/able, al, y, ness, ity and ment and that

accounts for 87% of all suffixed words. The remaining suffixes are er/est, ic, ous, en, ive, ful, and less. (White, Sowell & Yanagihara, 1989)

Students need to have examples of multisyllabic words that are familiar to them because a limited number of prefixes, suffixes and spelling

changes can be found in thousands of words. The attached list contains 42 words that could be read by two-thirds of fourth graders and 50 words

that could be read by two-thirds of sixth graders. Each week 5 words should be added to the word wall and reviewed with the students. They

should take a few minutes each day and chant the spelling of the words and discuss the parts of the words that could be applied to other words.

The discussion should focus on the meaning of the word rather than the meaning of the separate parts. Rather than discussing the root word

freeze and the prefix anti in the word antifreeze, the discussion should focus on the how antifreeze keeps a car engine from freezing up. The

students should think about other words that look and sound like antifreeze and decide if anti means “against”. (Phonics They Use, Words for

Reading and Writing, Cummingham, Patricia M. 2009 pgs. 169-172. The Nifty Thrifty Fifty).


Suggested Word Wall Activities Grades 3-5:

1. Wheel of Fortune: The teacher draws lines to show the number of letters in a word. They give a category. The students guess a

letter in the word. If the letter is there, it is written in the correct space. The student guesses until they get a no. Then the next

student has a turn. The word may not be said until all the letters have been filled in to practice correct spelling.

2. Read My Mind: Students number their papers 1 to 5. The teacher writes a word on a white board. The teacher gives clues and the

children write their guess after each clue. Example for the word transportation: 1. It has 14 letters. 2. It contains a prefix and a

suffix. 3. It has four syllables. 4. The prefix means across. 5. It fits in this sentence: What form of _____________ are you going

to take to get to school?

3. Bang!: The words that have been practiced are placed in a box. The students sit in a circle and take a turn choosing a word and

reading it. If the student can read the word and identify the prefix or suffix, or if they can read the word and give the definition, they

get to keep it, if not it is placed back in the box. If they choose the card with Bang! all the cards are returned to the box. The student

with the greatest number of cards at the end is the winner.

4. Ruler Tap: The teacher chooses a word from the Word Wall. The teacher then taps and says several letters in that word but not the

whole word: forgotten: f-o-r. Call on a student to finish spelling the word out loud: g-o-t-t-e-n. If the student correctly finishes spelling

the word, that child gets to choose a word, tap and spell the word and call on another student to finish. Do several additional words.

Additional Resources:

Cummingham, Patricia M., The Phonics They Use, Words for Reading and Writing

Frey, Nancy & Douglas Fisher, Learning Words Inside & Out

Websites: http://www.sedl.org/reading/framework/overview.html

http://www.sedl.org/reading/framework/overview.html


Nifty Thrifty Fifty

Word Prefix Suffix or Ending

antifreeze anti

beautiful ful (y-i)

classify ify

communities com es (y-i)

community com

composer com er

continuous con ous

conversation con tion

deodorize de ize

different ent

discovery dis y

dishonest dis

electricity ity

employee em ee

encouragement en ment

expensive ex ive

forecast fore

forgotten en (double t)

governor or

happiness ness (y-i)

hopeless less

illegal il

impossible im

impression im sion

independence in ence

international in al

invasion in sion

irresponsible ir ible

midnight mid

misunderstand mis

musician ian

nonliving non ing (drop e)

overpower over

performance per ance

prehistoric pre ic

prettier er (y-i)

rearrange re


replacement re ment

richest est

semifinal semi

signature ture

submarine sub

supermarkets super s

swimming ing (double m)

transportation trans tion

underweight under

unfinished un ed

unfriendly un ly

unpleasant un ant

valuable able (drop e)

The Phonics They Use, Words for Reading and Writing, Cummingham, 2009


Common Prefixes, Meanings and Examples

Prefix Meaning Meaning Chunk Spelling/Pronunciation Chunk

re back replacement refrigerator re again rearrange reward un opposite unfriendly uncle

in (im, ir, il) opposite independent incident impossible imagine irresponsible irritate illegal illustrate

in (im) in invasion instant impression immense

dis opposite dishonest distress non opposite nonliving ---- en in encourage entire

mis bad, wrong misunderstand miscellaneous pre before prehistoric present

inter between international interesting de opposite/take away deodorize delight

sub under submarine subsist fore before/ in front of forehead ----

trans across transportation ---- super really big supermarkets superintendent semi half semifinal seminar mid middle midnight midget over too much overpower ----

under below underweight understand anti against antifreeze ----



Suffix/Endings and Examples

Suffix/Ending Examples

s/es heroes, musicians, signatures (y-i) communities, discoveries, countries

ed/ing unfinished, performed, misunderstanding (drop e) nonliving, replaced, continuing

(double consonant) swimming, forgetting er/est richest, craziest, bigger

en forgotten, hidden, chosen less hopeless, careless, penniless ful beautiful, successful, pitiful

able valuable, portable, incurable ible irresponsible, reversible, horrible tion transportation, imagination, solution sion invasion, impression, permission

ly unfriendly, hopelessly, happily er composer, reporter, robber or governor, dictator, juror ee employee, referee, trainee ian musician, magician, beautician

ance performance, attendance, ignorance ence independence, conference, persistence ment encouragement, punishment, involvement ness happiness, goodness, business

y discovery, jealousy, pregnancy ity electricity, popularity, possibility ant unpleasant, tolerant, dominant ent different, confident, excellent al international, political, racial ive expensive, inconclusive, competitive ous continuous, humorous, ambitious ic prehistoric, scenic, specific ify classify, beautify, identify ize deodorize, modernize, standardize

ture signature, creature, fracture



VOCABULARY Vocabulary instruction in the elementary classroom is taught through wide reading, teacher modeling, and explicit, systematic and intentional instruction in a variety of settings. Students are learning how to learn new words, not just the meanings of specific words. Instructional opportunities are embedded to integrate learning into students‟ personal verbal and written repertoires. Rather than using an existing list exclusively, the teacher selects specific vocabulary from reading material based on specialized, high utility words that confuse most readers, change meaning in different contexts, and are often more typical of written language. Reading and thinking aloud while modeling word-learning strategies across content areas develops students‟ metacognitive skills. Technical words specific to content areas need to be identified in advance by grade levels and directly instructed to improve comprehension. The school community‟s high expectations to use vocabulary words in writing, reading and communication can raise the level of word consciousness. Instruction is gradually released from demonstrations, to peer practice with critical oral language experiences, to independent and individual application.

Best ways to learn/teach words a. Direct life experiences. b. Indirect life experiences – Read! c. Direct instruction that includes the following characteristics:

Makes connections to students‟ lives, studies, and interests.

Makes connections/relationships to/with other words.

Involves analysis through compare and contrast.

Involves categorization and classification.

Involves stories about words.

Helps students detect meaningful patterns in words.

Provides for a degree of personal ownership.

Models how to learn new words and explores old words to new depths.

Explores the implied meanings of words and phrases.

Is game-like and engaging

Encourages word knowledge to improve writing.

Encourages word knowledge to construct meaning while reading (comprehension) (Adapted from Tim Rasinski http://www.timrasinski.com/?page=presentations)

Resource Words Their Way, Word Study for Phonics, Vocabulary, and Spelling Instruction by Donald R. Bear, Marcia Invernizzi, Shane Templeton, and Francine Johnston Additional Resources: Learning Words Inside and Out by Nancy Frey and Douglas Fisher, Heineman Teaching Vocabulary in the K-2 Classroom by Karen Kindle, Scholastic The Great Word Catalogue by Susan Ohanian, Heinemann Bringing Words to Life by Isabel Beck, Margaret McKeown, Linda Kucan, Guilford Press

http://www.timrasinski.com/?page=presentations


Creating Robust Vocabulary by Isabel Beck, Margaret McKeown, Linda Kucan, Guilford Press Word Journeys by Kathy Ganske “Character Trait Vocabulary, A Schoolwide Approach,” Reading Teacher, v60 n6 p574-577 March 2007 A Word of the Day, Grades 1-3 & Grades 4-8, Evan-Moor Building Bigger Words, Building Bigger Words with Prefixes and Suffixes, by Primary Concepts Word of the Day, Idiom of the Week, by Primary Concepts Kagan‟s Cooperative Learning, by Spencer Kagan Target Vocabulary Pictures, by Lonestar Learning (A combination of color and the definition contained within the vocabulary card image produces amazing recall.) Websites This website provides 850 phonetically regular and easy to pronounce words and is a resource for English Language Learners who are learning a tremendous volume of words.http://ogden.basic-english.org/words.html Latin and Greek roots http://www.kent.k12.wa.us/ksd/MA/resources/greek_and_latin_roots/transition.html#prefix This website is an online dictionary with student friendly explanations that include examples of how the word is used. http://dictionary.reverso.net/english-cobuild/ http://www.timrasinski.com/?page=presentations Resources for vocabulary activities, sorts, books and graphic organizers http://www.vocabularya-z.com/ http://www.readinga-z.com/vocabulary/reading-vocabulary.php http://www.carlscorner.us.com/WordStudy.htm http://www.readinglady.com/mosaic/tools/Vocabulary%20Ideas%20compiled%20by%20Deb.pdf Website with games and puzzlemaker recommended by The Reading Teacher http://www.vocabulary.com/

http://ogden.basic-english.org/words.html

http://www.kent.k12.wa.us/ksd/MA/resources/greek_and_latin_roots/transition.html#prefix

http://dictionary.reverso.net/english-cobuild/

http://www.timrasinski.com/?page=presentations

http://www.vocabularya-z.com/

http://www.readinga-z.com/vocabulary/reading-vocabulary.php

http://www.carlscorner.us.com/WordStudy.htm

http://www.readinglady.com/mosaic/tools/Vocabulary%20Ideas%20compiled%20by%20Deb.pdf

http://www.vocabulary.com/


A PICTURE OF VOCABULARY INSTRUCTION THROUGHOUT THE DAY

Within Literacy Block Morning Meeting or Morning Message: As students sit in a circle holding a discussion about a student council activity, the teacher asks the students to brainstorm a solution. The teacher rephrases solution, to provide a student friendly definition. The class is encouraged to turn to a neighbor and share their solution. Two students model their discussion using the word.

Word of the Day: Words are given daily to students related to the monthly theme of character traits. The class keeps an anchor chart logging characters from books that show a specific trait in their read aloud. As students use these words through out the day, a designated student gets to ring the bell when the word is seen, used or heard.

Writing Workshop: A mini lesson is delivered on overused words. Student pairs are given a paint chip with a word on the top and discuss words of varying degrees that are related. As they come up words in their discussion, they are written on the varying shades of color on the paint chip to convey the strength of the word. Writers return to their stories to look for places they can change words. Ex: Overjoyed, ecstatic, thrilled, delighted, jubilant, pleased, elated

Independent Reading: As a student is reading independently, he/she comes across a new word, and records it on a post-it note. The reading notebook contains a recording sheet or vocabulary journal where the word can be recorded. The teacher confers with the student and they discuss ways meaning was determined; word part, context clue or resource. The teacher looks at the chart to see what words the student is self-selecting.

Read-Aloud: During the read aloud, the teacher has previously identified 6 vocabulary words planning when to stop and think. As the teacher reads, he/she stops to think aloud at various words, signaling with cues such as “I noticed…” and pointing to his/her head while sharing out loud the problem solving approaches used to determine meaning of the vocabulary.

Guided Reading: Prior to students reading, the teacher builds background knowledge using an anticipation guide with a targeted vocabulary word. For example, the anticipation guide asks students to think of something that can be underneath. The student then forms a connection and builds background with the word prior to having to read it in the text. The group is motivated to find the word in the story. Later, the students make index cards with the word written on it and divided into quadrants that include a picture, synonym, examples and a sentence (Frayer Model).

Word Study: Groups are sorting words by prefixes. The students learn the meaning of the prefixes re- and un-. The group tries to build more words using the prefixes. The students look for examples in their reading during the week and keep an ongoing chart of words with the prefixes.

Within Content Area Instruction Math: A separate word wall of math vocabulary is displayed in the classroom. The students add the word solution to the wall. The teacher uses the word frequently throughout the lesson and expects the class to use it when giving answers, or solutions to their word problems. This tier 2 word has multiple meanings, has changed meaning in a different context from the earlier example during morning meeting.

Science: During a science experiment, the class is making a solution of salt and water. Once again, the word‟s meaning has changed in context from the initial discussion during morning meeting. The teacher describes the meaning and gives the class time to make a list of solutions in their kitchens.

Social Studies: A semantic feature analysis chart is being made to compare and contrast environments. Vocabulary words that are technical words, identified in standards, curriculums and textbooks are called tier 3 words. As teams decide together, a discussion takes place to determine the characteristics of each environment.


Selecting Vocabulary for Instruction

Taken from Learning Words Inside and Out by Frey and Fisher.

Vocabulary instruction requires selection of words by the teacher and grade level team (suggested approach.)

How do you know which words to instruct if you are creating your own list? Which words should be selected to improve key understanding?

There are 3 tiers of words: Tier 1: General vocabulary words that are usually learned while reading or being read to. These are considered basic words that regularly do not require direct instruction. Tier 2: Specialized words are high utility because they change meaning in different contexts. These can include words with prefixes, suffixes, and bases. Often a student may only know part of the word. These are words more commonly used in writing than oral language. Tier 3: Technical words are specific to content areas. Comprehension can break down if not directly instructed. Students typically do not know these words and have a hard time using them. Examples:

Tier 1

brave happy said shy fun

Tier 2

performed tend

benevolent fortunate maintain

Tier 3

antennae metamorphosis

entomology

Evaluate word choice based on the following criteria and on the needs assessment of students:

1. Is the word representative? A word that represents a key concept, label, or family of words. 2. Is it repeatable? Words likely to be seen again throughout the text or school year. 3. Is it transportable? The vocabulary can transfer to other content areas. 4. Is it best understood by contextual analysis? Readers most likely can determine meaning through context clues and direct instruction

may be unnecessary. 5. Is it best understood by structural analysis? Readers can infer the meaning based on the prefix, root, or suffix. 6. Does it overburden the cognitive load? Informal assessments determine the learner‟s ability to assimilate information and need of

vocabulary. Recommended 2-3 words per lesson.


Vocabulary Word Study for Grades K-2

Standard Strand Essential Question and Enduring Understanding

STANDARD 3.1 (READING) ALL STUDENTS WILL UNDERSTAND AND APPLY THE KNOWLEDGE OF SOUNDS, LETTERS, AND WORDS IN WRITTEN ENGLISH TO BECOME INDEPENDENT AND FLUENT READERS, AND WILL READ A VARIETY OF MATERIALS AND TEXTS WITH FLUENCY AND COMPREHENSION.

F. Vocabulary and Concept Development .

Essential Question: Why do readers need to pay attention to a writer‟s choice of words? Enduring Understanding: Words powerfully affect meaning


Kindergarten 3.1.K.F.1 Continue to develop a vocabulary through meaningful, concrete experiences. 3.1.K.F.2 Identify and sort words in basic categories. 3.1.K.F.3 Explain meanings of common signs and symbols. 3.1.K.F.4 Use new vocabulary and grammatical construction in own speech. First Grade 3.1.1.F.1 Develop a vocabulary of 300-500 high-frequency sight words and phonetically regular words. 3.1.1.F.2 Use and explain common antonyms and synonyms. 3.1.1.F.3 Comprehend common and/or specific vocabulary in informational texts and literature. Second Grade 3.1.2.F.1 Develop a vocabulary of 500-800 regular and irregular sight words. 3.1.2.F.2 Know and relate meanings of simple prefixes and suffixes. 3.1.2.F.3 Demonstrate evidence of expanding language repertory. 3.1.2.F.4 Understand concept of antonyms and synonyms. 3.1.2.F.5 Begin to use a grade-appropriate dictionary.


STANDARD 3.2 (WRITING) ALL STUDENTS WILL WRITE IN CLEAR, CONCISE, ORGANIZED LANGUAGE THAT VARIES IN CONTENT AND FORM FOR DIFFERENT AUDIENCES AND PURPOSES.

A. Writing is a Process

Essential Question: How do good writers express themselves? How does the process shape the writer‟s product?

Enduring Understanding: Good writers develop and refine their ideas for thinking, learning, communicating, and aesthetic expression.


Kindergarten 3.2.K.A.1 Recognize that thoughts and talk can be written down in words. First Grade 3.2.1.A.4 Use simple sentences to convey ideas. Second Grade 3.2.2.A.8. Use everyday words in appropriate written context.

http://education.state.nj.us/cccs/?_cpi;cpi_uid=3.1.1.F.3



STANDARD 3.3 (SPEAKING) ALL STUDENTS WILL SPEAK IN CLEAR,CONCISE, ORGANIZED LANGUAGE THAT VARIES IN CONTENT AND FORM FOR DIFFERENT AUDIENCES AND PURPOSES.

C. Word Choice

Essential Question: How does the choice of words affect the message?

Enduring Understanding: A speaker‟s choice of words and style set the tone and define the message.


Kindergarten 3.3.K.C.1 Use language to describe feelings, people, objects, and events. 3.3.K.C.2 Suggest rhyming words during word play, songs, or read-aloud. First Grade 3.3.1.C.1 Attempt to use new vocabulary learned from shared literature and classroom experiences. 3.3.1.C.2 Use descriptive words to clarify and extend ideas. Second Grade 3.3.2.C.1 Use new vocabulary learned from literature and classroom experiences. 3.3.2.C.2 Recognize and discuss how authors use words to create vivid images.


STANDARD 3.4 (LISTENING) ALL STUDENTS WILL LISTEN ACTIVELY TO INFORMATION FROM A VARIETY OF SOURCES IN A VARIETY OF SITUATIONS.


Essential Question: How does a listener understand a message? Enduring Understanding: Effective listeners are able to interpret and evaluate increasingly complex messages.


Kindergarten First Grade Second Grade 3.4.2.B. 2 Develop a strong listening vocabulary to aid comprehension and oral and written language growth.

http://education.state.nj.us/cccs/?_cpi;cpi_uid=3.3.0.C.1


Grades K-2 Suggested Vocabulary Activities

1. Group content area words by common relationships using picture sorts. 2. Using Example/Non-Example technique, the learner gives a thumbs up if the stated phrase is an example of the identified vocabulary word, thumbs down

if it is a non-example. 3. Provide students with explanations in everyday student friendly language, rather than dictionary definitions. 4. Sort symbols found in the learner‟s environment into safety, warning, information. Encourage students to bring in food labels, photographs, magazine

clippings, tags which convey messages using symbols. 5. Use morning message to integrate new vocabulary and to model think-aloud strategies for determining meaning. 6. During morning meeting, embed vocabulary into conversations and have expectation for students to use in their daily language.

Students develop graphic organizers to provide a visual representation. 7. Teachers choose words that crack open key content understanding, using lists provided to inform instruction. 8. The learner will have multiple opportunities for discussion using the vocabulary in cooperative learning modules. 9. Teacher models thinking aloud to open the window to the learner to context clue strategies. 10. Write new words on index cards divided into quadrants that include synonym, a picture, examples and a sentence (Frayer Model). 11. Create immediate opportunities with a clear purpose to integrate new vocabulary into oral language through peer interaction. 12. Raise the level of word consciousness in the classroom by establishing high expectations for use of new words in oral language. Organize a “Word of the

Day” component into the classroom routine. 13. Incorporate vocabulary development seamlessly into content teaching. 14. Scattergories: Make a matrix with prefixes or suffixes along one dimension and roots along the other.

Example:

ROOTS In-/im -ible/-able -er/-or

port Import portable

vis invisible visible visor

flam inflame flammable

15. Go on a word hunt to locate words with an identified prefix or suffix in newspapers, magazines, independent reading material. 16. Students will use Shades of Meaning strategy to talk about words and organize them by gradients of meaning by writing words on paint chips. (Words

Inside and Out, p.82) 17. Use a Semantic Feature Analysis Chart to compare the differences in word attributes. 18. Play word games to provide opportunities to discuss words such as Concentration, Wordo, War, Word Charades, Jeopardy (Words Their Way). 19. Sketch to Stretch: Provide words written on slips of paper. Distribute these to students. Ask them to sketch something that reveals the word meaning.


Then they share these with others who try to guess what they have drawn.

20. Vocabulary Hot Seat. Position student facing away from a previously studied word that is written on the board. The student asks the group yes or no questions to try to determine the word.

21. Children Creating Examples: In this activity, the child is asked to provide a situation to describe a word. For example: When might be a time you would dodge something? Students can keep a journal for responding to questions in writing.

22. Word Associations: If the four words are: mischief, bunch, humble, and throb, students would be asked to associate one of these with a presented word or phrase: Which word goes with bananas? (bunch )Which word goes with blushing? (humble) Which word goes with blood? (throb) Which word goes with trouble? (mischief)The words are not necessarily synonyms, but have a particular relationship. It is then important to ask why each word is associated with the other. This deepens the students' understanding of the new words.

23. Have You Ever...? This is an activity that asks students to think about a time when they had a personal context with the word. For example: Have you ever given advice to another person? Describe the advice you gave. Have you ever bothered someone? Describe what you did when you were bothering someone. Have you ever been to a meadow? What did it look like?

24. Applause, Applause! For this activity, students are asked to clap in order to indicate how much they would like (not at all, a little bit, a lot) to be described by the target words: frank, impish, vain, stern. And, as always, why they would feel that way.

25. The Nym Family. Introduce students to antonym, synonym and homonym word families by personifying to help them to remember the meaning of each term.


Vocabulary Word Study for Grades 3 to 5


STANDARD 3.1 (READING) ALL STUDENTS WILL UNDERSTAND AND APPLY THE KNOWLEDGE OF SOUNDS, LETTERS, AND WORDS IN WRITTEN ENGLISH TO BECOME INDEPENDENT AND FLUENT READERS, AND WILL READ A VARIETY OF MATERIALS AND TEXTS WITH FLUENCY AND COMPREHENSION.

F. Vocabulary and Concept Development .

Essential Question: Why do readers need to pay attention to a writer‟s choice of words? Enduring Understanding: Words powerfully affect meaning.


Third Grade

3.1.3.F.1 Spell previously studied words and spelling patterns accurately. 3.1.3.F.2 Point to or clearly identify specific words or wording that cause comprehension difficulties. 3.1.3.F.3 Infer word meanings from taught roots, prefixes, and suffixes. 3.1.3.F.4 Use a grade-appropriate dictionary with assistance from teacher. 3.1.3.F.5 Use pictures and context clues to assist with meaning of new words. Fourth Grade 3.1.4.F.1 Infer word meanings from learned roots, prefixes, and suffixes. 3.1.4.F.2 Infer specific word meanings in the context of reading passages. 3.1.4.F.3 Identify and correctly use antonyms, synonyms, homophones, and homographs. 3.1.4.F.4 Use a grade-appropriate dictionary (independently) to define unknown words. Fifth Grade 3.1.5.F.1 Infer word meanings from learned roots, prefixes, and suffixes. 3.1.5.F.2 Infer specific word meanings in the context of reading passages. 3.1.5.F.3 Identify and correctly use antonyms, synonyms, homophones, and homographs. 3.1.5.F.4 Use a grade-level appropriate dictionary independently to define unknown words. 3.1.5.F.5 Use a thesaurus to identify alternative word choices and meanings.






STANDARD 3.2 (WRITING) ALL STUDENTS WILL WRITE IN CLEAR, CONCISE, ORGANIZED LANGUAGE THAT VARIES IN CONTENT AND FORM FOR DIFFERENT AUDIENCES AND PURPOSES.

A. Writing is a Process

Essential Question: How do good writers express themselves? How does the process shape the writer‟s product? Enduring Understanding: Good writers develop and refine their ideas for thinking, learning, communicating, and aesthetic expression.


Third Grade 3.2.3.A.5 Revise a draft by rereading for meaning, narrowing the focus, sequencing, elaborating with detail, improving openings, closings, and word choice to show voice. Fourth Grade 3.2.4.A.5. Revise drafts by rereading for meaning, narrowing the focus, elaborating, reworking organization, openings, and closings, and

improving word choice and consistency of voice.

3.2.4.A.8 Use a variety of reference materials to revise work, such as a dictionary, thesaurus, or internet/software resources. Fifth Grade 3.2.5.A.8 Revise drafts by rereading for meaning, narrowing focus, elaborating and deleting, as well as reworking organization, openings, closings, word choice, and consistency of voice.

Standard

Strand Essential Question and Enduring Understanding

STANDARD 3.3 (SPEAKING) ALL STUDENTS WILL SPEAK IN CLEAR, CONCISE, ORGANIZED LANGUAGE THAT VARIES IN CONTENT AND FORM FOR

C. Word Choice

Essential Question: How does the choice of words affect the message?

Enduring Understanding: A speaker‟s choice of words and style set the tone and define the message.



DIFFERENT AUDIENCES AND PURPOSES.

Third Grade 3.3.3.C.1 Use vocabulary related to a particular topic. 3.3.3.C.2 Adapt language to persuade, explain, or seek information. 3.3.3.C.3 Use new vocabulary and figurative language learned from literature and classroom experiences. Fourth Grade 3.3.4.C.1 Use convincing dialogue to role-play short scenes involving familiar situations or emotions. 3.3.4.C.2 Use figurative language purposefully in speaking situations. 3.3.4.C.3 Use appropriate vocabulary to support or clarify a message. 3.3.4.C.4 Adapt language to persuade, explain, or seek information. Fifth Grade 3.3.5.C.1 Use convincing dialogue to role-play short scenes involving familiar situations or emotions. 3.3.5.C.2 Use varied word choice to clarify, illustrate, and elaborate. 3.3.5.C.3 Use figurative language purposefully in speaking situations. 3.3.5.C.4 Select and use suitable vocabulary to fit a range of audiences.


STANDARD 3.4 (LISTENING) ALL STUDENTS WILL LISTEN ACTIVELY TO INFORMATION FROM A VARIETY OF SOURCES IN A VARIETY OF SITUATIONS.

A. Active Listening B. Listening Comprehension

Essential Question: How does a listener understand a message? Enduring Understanding: Effective listeners are able to interpret and evaluate increasingly complex messages.


Third Grade 3.4.3.B.3 Paraphrase information shared by others. Fourth Grade 3.4.4.A.3 Interpret vocabulary gained through listening. 3.4.4.B.3 Demonstrate competence in active listening by interpreting and applying received information to new situations and solving problems. Fifth Grade 3.4.5.B.1 Demonstrate competence in active listening through responding to a story, interview, or oral report (e.g., summarizing, reacting, retelling). 3.4.5.B.2 Demonstrate competence in active listening by interpreting and applying received information to new situations and in solving problems.


1. Students use vocabulary journals to keep track of the words learned while analyzing how meaning was determined (context clues, word

parts, resources) (Words Inside and Out, p. 100-101)

2. Logs and/or charts of words that cause students to consider what he/she knows and don‟t know allowing for differentiation and choice.

Vocabulary Self Awareness Chart and A-Z chart (Words Inside and Out, p. 98 –99)

3. Model the five ways in which authors provide context clues to help students develop their skill in using context clues to discover words and

their meanings Definition or explanation, restatement or synonym, contrast or antonym clues, inference or general context clues,

punctuation clues, (Words Inside and Out, p 51)

4. Students can use writing frames or sentence stems as a way to scaffold their learning so they can incorporate target words into their

writing. (Words Inside and Out, p.113)

5. Camouflage (Words their Way, 111)

6. Caption Creator – create a contest in your school or classroom to write the best caption using specific vocabulary for a funny picture.

7. Word Wizard – tally points for seeing, hearing, or using words and keep a classroom chart.

8. Use vocabulary words in generative sentences asking students to place the word in a specific place within the sentence, thus ensuring the

students use their knowledge of vocabulary and grammar to check for depth of understanding. (Words Inside and Out, p. 110)

9. Play word games to provide opportunities to discuss words such as Concentration, Wordo, War, Word Charades, Jeopardy (Words Their

Way),.

10. Create concept circles before and after reading to record attributes of a vocabulary word. Collect circles and have teams identify the

concepts based on attributes. (Words Inside and Out, p.80)

11. Use common graphic organizers to make connections with words visible. Use cooperative learning strategies to involve high percentage of

students in discussion and decision-making process. Consider using Inspiration software to allow students to make their own graphic

organizers.

12. Create word walls related to content area themes and subjects. Consider using digital camera to match visual images with words.

13. Teachers choose words that crack open key content understanding, using lists provided to inform instruction.

14. The learner will have multiple opportunities for discussion using the vocabulary in cooperative learning modules.

15. Teacher models thinking aloud to open the window to the learner to context clue strategies.

Grades 3 to 5 Suggested Vocabulary Activities


16. Write new words on index cards divided into quadrants that include synonym, a picture, examples and a sentence (Frayer Model).

17. Create immediate opportunities with a clear purpose to integrate new vocabulary into oral language through peer interaction.

18. Raise the level of word consciousness in the classroom by establishing high expectations for use of new words in oral language. Organize

a Word of the Day component into the classroom routine.

19. Incorporate vocabulary development seamlessly into content teaching

20. Scattergories: Make a matrix with prefixes or suffixes along one dimension and roots along the other

Example:

ROOTS In-/im -ible/-able -er/-or

port Import portable

vis invisible visible visor

flam inflame flammable

21. Go on a word hunt to locate words with an identified prefix or suffix in newspapers, magazines, independent reading material.

22. Students will use Shades of Meaning strategy to talk about words and organize them by gradients of meaning by writing words on paint

chips.(Words Inside and Out, p.82)

23. Use a Semantic Feature Analysis Chart to compare the differences in word attributes.

24. Use an Anticipation Guide to access prior knowledge of vocabulary words and to give a quick glimpse of understanding.

25. Generate situations and contexts for statements or questions about target words. Ex. What would make a teacher say this to her class?

What an industrious class you are!, What a clever class you are! What a splendid class you are! Allow teams to discuss the scenario

actively and respond by numbered heads together.

26. Ask students to place phrases by number on a word line that represents a continuum and to explain their placement. Ex. Least surprised--

-------------------most surprised. How surprised would you be if you saw a friend vault over the moon? Place vault on the continuum and

support your answer in discussion. Puzzle: Have students write clues in a series narrowing the range of possible answers. Give more

points for the fewer clues used to determine a word.

27. Use mnemonic devices.


Word Study: Sight Words

STANDARD 3.1 (READING) ALL STUDENTS WILL UNDERSTAND AND APPLY THE KNOWLEDGE OF SOUNDS, LETTERS AND WORDS IN WRITTEN ENGLISH TO BECOME INDEPENDENT AND FLUENT READERS, AND WILL READ A VARIETY OF MATERIALS AND TEXTS WITH FLUENCY AND COMPREHENSION. Sight word assessment is an ongoing process. In kindergarten sight words should be assessed in January or sooner if the student is showing mastery in letter sound correspondence. In grades 1 and 2, sight words should be assessed in September or October. Once the assessment is complete direct instruction is essential. Students who are not acquiring sight vocabulary through reading and writing should continue to receive direct individualized or small group instruction as needed. Within the sight word lists are the 100 words that are used in 50% of our writing. These words should be placed on the word wall and practiced weekly. Indicators and activities: 3.1.K.C.1: Recognize some words by sight. 3.1.1.C.5: Recognize high frequency words in and out of context.

Suggested Organization and Implementation for Instruction. Once the assessments have been completed it is essential that each student receive a list of words they need to practice. There are many ways to organize your instruction. Individual words are written on index cards and the words are written in a meaningful sentence. The words may be kept in a plastic bag, plastic file box, pencil case etc. The children should be given 3 to 10 words per week depending on their developmental ability. The words will be practiced using the suggested activities listed below. Once the students are reading the words with automaticity, usually a week, new words are given. If some words are not mastered, they should continue to be used in the activities. Words that have been mastered may be underlined on the index card and put in the back of the organizational tool being used. These words should be practiced periodically to ensure mastery. In order to manage the assignment of new words, flexible grouping is suggested. For example, 4 to 5 children on Monday, 4 to 5 on Tuesday, etc. Once the children begin to acquire sight words through reading, it is no longer necessary to provide direct instruction. Sight word instruction takes place during the literacy block, and is considered small group or guided instruction. The activities should take 10 to 15 minutes.


Suggested Activities: The following is a suggested list of some of the activities that can be used for sight word practice. After the activity has been completed the students may choose 3 to 5 words to write in a sentence.

1. Stamp a Word: Students use alphabet stamps to stamp words. 2. Spin a Word: Students use the word wheel to record their words. Spin and write. (see attached sheets) 3. Write and Spill: Students write each word on an index card with pencil. Each word is traced over with a different colored crayon, marker or pencil.

The letters are cut apart and placed in a cup. The cup is shaken and the letters spilled onto the work area. The letters are sorted by color and put together in the correct order to a spell a word. The letters may be glued into a notebook or kept for further practice.

4. Rainbow Writing: Students write their words using different colored crayons, markers or pencils. 5. Cloud Writing: Students write their words using bubble letters to resemble clouds. 6. Word Hide- and- Seek: Hide the cards and have the students find them and read the words. Record the words. 7. Search a Word: Students record words to be used in the word search. Write each letter of the words in one box. Fill in the remaining boxes with

alphabet letters. Students search for the words they have hidden the next day. 8. Write on My Back: The students work with a partner. Read the words. Have your partner write the word on your back and guess which word is

being written then reverse roles. 9. Sight Word Memory Match: Students record words on index cards and play a memory match game. 10. Sing a Song of Sight Words: Students lay down the cards left to right. Practice singing the words to a familiar song such as “Twinkle, Twinkle Little

Star” or “Row, Row, Row Your Boat”. 11. Jump on It: Students make two sets of word cards. Place one set face down on a flat surface. Scatter the other set face up on the floor. The

students turn over a card and read the word. They find the word on the floor and jump on it. Continue playing until all words have been read. 12. Spill a Word: Divide an index card into four sections. Write a different word on each card. Put all the cards into a container. Shake the container

and “spill” the words. Read the words that are face up and place them to the side. Place the remaining words in the container and “spill” them again. Continue until all of the words have been read.

13. Write Your Word: Use sugar, kosher salt, flour, dry rice, shaving cream, or sand, etc. Place the substance you have chosen on a cookie sheet or in a disposable foil pan. The students read the words and then write them in the substance chosen.

14. Play Doh Words: Students read the words and they may use a pencil point to write the words, or use the Play Doh to shape each letter of the words to make the word.

15. Making Words: Students read the words. Make the letters of the words with yarns, string, pipe cleaners or ribbon and then record the words. Students may also use magnetic letters, letter tiles, foam letters, etc., to make and record their words. Read the words again.

16. Food Words: Students may use food such as raisins, cereal, beans, macaroni, etc., to form the letters to make the words. Read the words again. 17. Magic Words: Students read each word. Have them write each word with a white crayon. Then color over the words with a different colored crayon

or marker and the word “magically” appear. You may also write the words for each child and have them color over the paper to see the words appear. 18. Read and Search: Students read an appropriately leveled text and see how many times they can find their words. Record each word found. 19. One Minute Words: Students see how many times they are able to write their words in one minute. 20. Chalk Words: Students use sidewalk chalk to write their words outside. They may also use regular chalk to write their words on black construction

paper. 21. Character Writing: Students draw their favorite character with a speech bubble saying their words. 22. Newspaper/Magazine Writing: Students read their words. Using newspaper headlines or magazines they find the letters in their words and cut them

out. Glue down the letters to form their words. The letters may be glued on a sentence strip to make a sight word hat. 23. Zap It!: Students read their words and write each word on a craft stick as well as the words Zap It!. Have the students place the words in a cup and

then pull out one stick at a time and read the word. The object of the game is to get all of the sight word sticks out of the cup before pulling the Zap It! stick. If the Zap It! stick is pulled all of the sticks must be placed back in the cup. The children may play this alone or with a group.


24. Bumpy Words: Students write each word on an index card that is placed over a plastic embroidery card using a crayon. They trace over the words three more times in crayon pressing firmly. When the cards are complete, the students close their eyes and trace over the letters with their finger to see if they can guess the word.

25. Dot-a –Word: Students write each word on a large index card or piece of paper with a pencil and use dot markers to “write” over the word. 26. Gel Bags: Fill a plastic sealable bag with colored or clear hair gel. Seal the bag with duct tape. Have the students “write” their words with their finger

on the top of the bags. 27. Pyramid Words: Students write their words in the shape of a pyramid by writing the first letter of the word, then the first two letters under it, then the

first three letters, etc. t th the

then 28. Wikki Sticks: Students use Wikki sticks to form the letters of their words. Then place a piece of paper over the words and do a crayon rubbing. 29. Type a Word: Students use a “keyboard” to type in words. Then the students write the words they have “typed”. (see attached sheet) 30. Roll-Say-Keep: Students put a card in each space on the game board. Roll the die and read the word in the corresponding box. If the word is read

correctly, the student keeps the words and replaces it with another word. Continue playing until all of the cards have been read. After the activities have been completed sight word books and poems should be used to reinforce the words the children are learning in a meaningful context.

WORD WALLS Classrooms will have a working word wall in place. The word wall will have those words that the students use most in their writing. Once the high frequency words have been added, you may add words with spelling patterns, rhyming patterns, vowel patterns etc. In the primary grades the students‟ names may also be placed on the word wall prior to the high frequency words. Words are to be added gradually, about 5 per week. The teacher introduces the word, the students help decide where the word belongs, and then the word is chanted and spelled before being added to the word wall. Framing the letters of the word and discussing the formation of each letter is also suggested. It may be helpful to write words that are easily confused in a variety of colors for easy identification (for, from, that, them, they, this, etc.). In addition to a word wall, a theme wall may be placed in the room to help the students spell content area words. Suggested Activities: The following are suggested activities that may be used with the word wall.

1. Chanting and Writing Words: The students number the paper 1 to 5. The teacher calls out five words, saying each word in a sentence. As the teacher calls out a word, a student finds the word on the word wall and points to it. The students then clap and chant the spelling in a rhythmic manner. After chanting they write the word. This is a good time to practice handwriting skills and letter formation. As new words are added, the children may write more than 5 for this activity.

2. Rhyming: The teacher selects one of the words used in the writing activity. Pose the question: What if you were writing and needed to spell…? Then model for the children how to spell using a particular pattern. Example: The teacher selects the word play from the word wall activity. Poses the question using day and models how to use the ay pattern to spell.

3. Easy Ending: Call out words that could easily add s, ed, ing. After the words have been found, chanted and written, the students turn the paper over and write the words using one of the endings.

4. Read My Mind: Students number their papers 1 to 5. The teacher writes a word on a white board, scrap paper etc. The teacher gives 5 clues and the children write their guess after each clue. Example for the word here: 1. It has 4 letters. 2. It begins with h. 3. It has 2 vowels. 4. It has one tall letter. 5. It finishes this sentence Put your books over _________.


5. Flashlight Words: The teacher calls out a word and a student finds the word with a flashlight. 6. Flyswatter Words: The teacher calls out a word and a student finds the word and swats it. 7. Bang!: The words that have been practiced are placed in a box. The students sit in a circle and take a turn choosing a word and reading it.

If the student can read the word they get to keep it, if not it is placed back in the box. If they choose the card with Bang! all the cards are returned to the box. The student with the greatest number of cards at the end is the winner.

8. Ruler Tap: The teacher chooses a word from the Word Wall. The teacher then taps and says several letters in that word but not the whole word: come, c-o. Call on a student to finish spelling the word out loud: m-e. If the student correctly finishes spelling the word, that child gets to call out a word, tap and spell the word and call on another student to finish. Do several additional words.


100 Most Frequently Written Sight Words

1 and 2 Letter Words

a I an as at

be by do go he

if in is it me

my of on so to

up us we

3 Letter Words

all and are big but can

day did dog for get got

had her him his man not

off one our out ran saw

see she the too two was

you

4 Letter Words

back came down from good have

home into just like over play

said some soon that them then

they this time very went were

what when will with

4 Letters or More

about after could going night their

there three water would father little

mother school people morning started because


Additional Resources Books Brown, Sharen & Oppy, Sally, Word They Need to Know, A Book of K-3 Sight Word Activities (Teacher Resource Center) Cummingham, Patricia M., The Phonics They Use, Words for Reading and Writing Ellermeyer, Deborah and Judith Rowell, Perfect Poems for Teaching Sight Words Franco, Betsy, My Very Own Poetry Collection, 101 Sight Word Poems Jordan, Kimberly and Tebra Corcoran, Sight Word Books Level 1 and 2 Lanczak Williams, Rozanne, Sight Word Poetry Pages Creative Teaching Press, Success with Sight Words Multisensory Ways to Teach High Frequency Words Teacher Created Resources, Reproducible Little Books for Sight Words Teacher Created Resources, High Frequency Word Practice Websites http://www.readinga-z.com http://www.kellyskindergarten.com http://www.mrsperkins.com http://www.makinglearningfun.com http://www.dolchwords.org

Within Reading Workshop

Begin to use a grade-appropriate dictionary with assistance from teacher.

Locate information using alphabetical order.

Recognize that printed materials provide specific information.

Identify and correctly use antonyms, synonyms, homophones, and homographs.

Use a grade-appropriate dictionary (independently) to define unknown words.

Use the pronunciation key of a dictionary to decode new words.

Apply spelling and syllabication rules that aid in decoding and word recognition.

Use a grade-level appropriate dictionary independently to define unknown words.

Use a thesaurus to identify alternative word choices and meanings.

Recognize a dictionary‟s purpose and functions

Locate and utilize glossary in back of textbooks

Notice text structure of reference materials compared to texts

Begin to identify and use all aspects of dictionary definition to understand and apply new vocabulary (e.g. part of speech, basic affixes, pronunciation key)

Discern between words with multiple meanings

Within Writing Workshop

Use a variety of reference materials, such as a dictionary, grammar reference, and/or internet/software resources to revise/edit written work.

Build independence and problem-solving skills

Create own picture dictionaries to learn vocabulary and text structure

Edit own work to highlight tricky/possibly misspelled words; use a dictionary to check spelling

Recognize and apply “Spell Check” feature in computer documents

Note distinctions between synonyms to enhance word choice and best convey a message

Use reference materials to select words that improve meaning and structure of poetry.

Create own words and definitions based on prefixes/spelling patterns and use them in appropriate writing genres (poetry, fiction, etc.)

http://www.readinga-z.com/

http://www.kellyskindergarten.com/

http://www.mrsperkins.com/

http://www.makinglearningfun.com/

http://www.dolchwords.org/



Word Study: Dictionary Skills

It is essential for children to learn when and how to use dictionaries (among other available resources). When children recognize how a dictionary or glossary is used, they can refer to it within all content areas in order to become more self-sufficient. Some of the ways teachers can encourage dictionary use is by frequently modeling appropriate practices; looking up precise definitions for unfamiliar words or words with double meanings, checking the spellings of tricky words, and seeing how a difficult word should be pronounced. Direct instruction based on learners‟ needs provides ample opportunities for students to practice these skills.


Sample Objectives with Suggested Strategies

Objective: TLWD an ability to use alphabetical order to locate words in a dictionary.

o Provide a list of words starting with different letters (can vary amount of words to differentiate) and have students search for words and write down page numbers where those words can be found.

o Work with partners (or independently) to find words on a list that all begin with the same letter. Have students identify strategies to help them find words faster (i.e., looking at the second letter of the word).

Objective: TLWD an ability to use guide words as a reference to locate words in a dictionary more efficiently.

o Have students work with a partner to find several words in the dictionary. Point out the guide words at the top of the page. Ask why these words might be helpful. Then, encourage the use of guide words to locate a new list of words.

o Set up sample “dictionary pages” on chart paper all around the classroom with only guide words in the upper corners. Hand out index cards or sticky notes with vocabulary words on them (suggestion: use thematic or vocabulary words that students are already learning) and have students put the words on their corresponding “dictionary page.”

Objective: TLWD an ability to use the dictionary to aid in spelling difficult words.

o Have students work with a list of words they are unsure how to spell by dictating a list of frequently misspelled words encouraging students to look through their own writing and highlighting words that may be misspelled creating a list of misspelled words on chart paper

o Model strategy in front of students (Think aloud – “I‟m not sure how to spell this word, but it might start with „T-O-M,‟ so I‟ll use the dictionary to start looking there)

Use first few letters of a word to locate it in the dictionary If unsure of first few letters, try out a few possible variations (model this as well)

o Find a few difficult words together, and then have students work independently (or with a partner) to find other difficult words o Have students share some of the words that they found, and review the methods that were used to find them

Objective: TLWD an ability to use the dictionary definitions to make sure they’ve found the right words.

o Ask students how they know if they‟ve found the right word in the dictionary o Have students look up definitions of some familiar words, such as “giraffe” or “winter” and discuss how they know they‟ve found

the right word (by reading the definition) o Provide a few words that have more than one definition, such as “quarter,” or “spring” and ask students what to do if the first

definition does not fit their schema o Conclude that words may have multiple definitions, and it is often important to read more than one definition to make sure that

they‟ve found the right word


Objective: TLWD an appreciation for the pronunciation guide in a dictionary

o Have students look up a familiar word, such as “cat” and look at its pronunciation. What do the symbols tell you, and why are those symbols used?

o Using the table of contents, have children locate the pronunciation guide and see what they notice. Have them look up a few other familiar words and see the same symbols.

o Once they have become more familiarized with the guide, have them look up a few more difficult words (that they may not know how to pronounce, particularly words with silent letters, such as “solemn”)

o Closure: why do we need pronunciation keys in the dictionary? Objective: TLWD an appreciation for dictionary features and uses

o Have a dictionary scavenger hunt (can be a team relay or partnership). o Create a list of different features/elements that can be found in a dictionary, including: pictures/captions, pronunciation guide,

table of contents, index, specific words, guide words, etc. o Either give the entire list to groups/partnerships, or turn the hunt into a relay by only giving one clue at a time for teams to locate

in the dictionary. o Once the team finds the feature/elements, they must write down the page number where it was found and then move onto the

next clue. o This can either be a race where the first team wins or a fun game where students use their dictionary skills.

Objective: TLWD an understanding of conceptual vocabulary words by creating picture dictionaries

o Identify key vocabulary words for a science, social studies, math, or other thematic topic. o Have students work independently to create pictorial and/or written definitions for these words in a small booklet. o Depending on students‟ ability level, they can create guide words, pronunciation keys, parts of speech, etc. o Small groups can create different thematic dictionaries and then use each other‟s dictionaries as resources.

Some activities taken from: Wilde, Sandra. 2008. Spelling Strategies and Patterns: What Kids Need to Know. Heinemann.

Online Dictionary Resources

http://kids.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary/english - students can look up unknown words to hear their pronunciation, read the definition, learn etymology of the word, etc.

http://www.wordcentral.com/byod/byod_index.php - students create own words, definitions, and part of speech http://wordmonkey.info/ - for English Language Learners: allows them to type unknown English words into a translator for definitions in their

native language http://photodictionary.giraffian.com/ - for primary grades: a very basic online picture dictionary http://kidshealth.org/kid/word/ - an online dictionary of health/medical words (great to use in conjunction with science, DARE, or non-fiction

articles pertaining to health) http://www.poetry4kids.com/rhymes - an online rhyming dictionary, helpful with rhyming poetry as well as spelling patterns http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/archives/vocabulous.shtml - worksheets to challenge higher level students to define and use

words in context.

http://kids.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary/english

http://www.wordcentral.com/byod/byod_index.php

http://wordmonkey.info/

http://photodictionary.giraffian.com/

http://kidshealth.org/kid/word/

http://www.poetry4kids.com/rhymes

http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/archives/vocabulous.shtml

BALANCED LITERACY – GRADE 4 APPENDIX L

An excerpt from: Keene, Ellin Oliver, and Zimmermann, Susan. 2007. Mosaic of Thought: The Power of Comprehension Strategy Instruction. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann. APPENDIX L

Thinking Strategies Used by Proficient Learners

Monitoring Meaning and Comprehension

READERS

Readers monitor their comprehension during reading. They know when the text they are reading or listening to makes sense, when it does not, what

does not make sense, and whether the unclear portions are critical to overall understanding of the piece.

Readers can identify ways in which a text gradually becomes more understandable by reading past an unclear portion and/or by rereading parts or the

whole text.

Readers are aware of the processes they can use to make meaning clear. They check, evaluate, and make revisions to their evolving interpretation of

the text while reading.

Readers can identify confusing ideas, themes, and/or surface elements (words, sentence or text structures, graphs, tables, etc.) and can suggest a

variety of different means to solve the problems they have.

Readers are aware of what they need to comprehend in relation to their purpose for reading.

Readers must learn how to pause, consider the meanings in text, reflect on their understandings, and use different strategies to enhance their

understanding. This process is best learned by watching proficient models "think aloud" and gradually taking responsibility for monitoring their own

comprehension as they read independently.


WRITERS

Writers monitor during their composition process to ensure that their text makes sense for their intended audience at the word, sentence, and text

levels.

Writers read their work aloud to find and hear their voice.

Writers share their work so others can help them monitor the clarity and impact of the work.

Writers pay attention to their style and purpose. They purposefully write with clarity and honesty. They strive to write boldly, simply, and concisely by

keeping those standards alive in their minds during the writing process.

Writers pause to consider the impact of their work and make conscious decisions about when to turn a small piece into a larger project, when revisions

are complete, or when to abandon a piece.

MATHEMATICIANS

Mathematicians check to make sure answers are reasonable.

Mathematicians use manipulatives/charts/diagrams to help themselves make sense of the problem.

Mathematicians understand that others will build meaning in different ways and solve problems with different problem-solving strategies.

Mathematicians write in order to improve understanding.

Mathematicians check their work in many ways: working backwards, redoing problems, and so on.

Mathematicians agree/disagree with solutions and ideas.

Mathematicians express in think-alouds what's happening in their head as they work through a problem. They are metacognitive.

Mathematicians continually ask themselves if each step makes sense.

Mathematicians discuss problems with others and write about their problem-solving process to clarify their thinking and make problems clearer.

Mathematicians use accurate math vocabulary and show their work in clear, concise forms so others can follow their thinking without asking questions.

(Note: Readers will be enlightened, informed, and engaged by

Comprehending Math, Arthur Hyde's [2006] new book on translating the strategies for use in math classrooms.)


RESEARCHERS

Researchers are aware of what information they need to discover and learn. Researchers can identify when they comprehend and take steps to repair

comprehension when they don't.

Researchers pause to reflect and evaluate information.

Researchers choose effective ways of organizing information-taking notes, webbing, outlining, etc.

Researchers use several sources to validate information and check for accuracy.

Researchers revise and edit for clarity, accuracy, and interest.

Researchers check sources for appropriate references and copyrights.

Using Prior Knowledge--Schema

READERS

Readers spontaneously activate relevant, prior knowledge before, during, and after reading text.

Readers assimilate information from text into their schema and make changes in that schema to accommodate the new information.

Readers use schema to relate text to their world knowledge, text knowledge, and personal experience.

Readers use their schema to enhance their understanding of text and to store text information in long-term memory.

Readers use their schema for specific authors and their styles to understand text better.

Readers recognize when they have inadequate background information and know how to create it--to build schema--to get the information they need.

WRITERS

Writers frequently choose their own topics and write about subjects of interest.

A writer's content comes from and builds on his or her experiences.

Writers think about and use what they know about genre, text structure, and conventions as they write.

Writers seek to improve their recognition and capitalize on their own voice for specific effects in their compositions.

Writers know when their schema for a topic or text format is inadequate and they create the necessary background knowledge.

Writers use knowledge of their audience to make decisions about content inclusions/exclusions.


MATHEMATICIANS

Mathematicians use current understandings as first steps in the problem-solving process.

Mathematicians use their number sense to understand a problem.

Mathematicians add to schema by trying more challenging problems and hearing from others about different problem-solving methods.

Mathematicians build understanding based on prior knowledge of math concepts.

Mathematicians develop purpose based on prior knowledge.

Mathematicians use their prior knowledge to generalize about similar problems and to choose problem-solving strategies.

Mathematicians develop their own problems. RESEARCHERS

Researchers frequently choose topics about which they know and care.

Researchers use their prior knowledge and experience to launch investigations and ask questions.

Researchers consider what they already know to decide what they need to learn; they self-evaluate according to background knowledge of what

constitutes high-quality products/presentations.

Asking Questions

READERS

Readers spontaneously generate questions before, during, and after reading.

Readers ask questions for different purposes, including to clarify meaning, make predictions, determine an author's style, content, or format, locate a

specific answer in text, or consider rhetorical questions inspired by the text.

Readers use questions to focus their attention on important components of the text.

Readers are aware that other readers' questions may inspire new questions for them.


WRITERS

Writers compose in a way that causes the reader to form questions as they read.

Writers monitor their progress by asking questions about their choices as they write.

Writers ask questions of other writers in order to confirm their choices and make revisions.

Writers' questions lead to revision in their own work and in the pieces to which they respond for other writers.

MATHEMATICIANS

Mathematicians ask questions before, during, and after doing a math problem. o Could it be this? o What happens if? o How else could I do this? o Have I seen this problem before? o What does this mean?

Mathematicians test theories/answers/a hypothesis by using different approaches to a problem.

Mathematicians question others to understand their own process and to clarify problems.

Mathematicians extend their thinking by asking themselves questions to which they don't have an answer.

RESEARCHERS

Researchers ask questions to narrow a search and find a topic.

Researchers ask questions to clarify meaning and purpose.

Researchers ask themselves:

o What are the most effective resources and how will I access them?

o Do I have enough information?

o Have I used a variety of sources?

o What more do I need?

o Does the concept make sense?

o Have I told enough?

o Is my thinking interesting and original and does my writing have voice?


Drawing Inferences

READERS

Readers use their schema and textual information to draw conclusions and form unique interpretations from text.

Readers make predictions about text, confirm their predictions, and test their developing meaning as they continue to read.

Readers know when and how to use text in combination with their own background knowledge to seek answers to questions.

Readers create interpretations to enrich and deepen their experience in a text. WRITERS

Writers make decisions about content inclusions/exclusions and genre/text structure that permit or encourage inference on the part of the reader.

Writers carefully consider their audience in making decisions about what to describe explicitly and what to leave to the reader's interpretation.

Writers, particularly fiction and poetry writers, are aware of far more detail than they reveal in the texts they compose. This encourages inferences such

as drawing conclusions, making critical judgments, predictions, and connections to other texts and experiences possible for their readers.

MATHEMATICIANS

Mathematicians predict, generalize, and estimate.

As mathematicians read a problem, they make problem-solving decisions based on their conceptual understanding of math concepts (e.g., operations, fractions).

Mathematicians compose (like a writer) by drawing pictures, using charts, and creating equations.

Mathematicians solve problems in different ways and support their methods through proof, number sentences, pictures, charts, and graphs.

Mathematicians use reasoning and make connections throughout the problem-solving process.

Mathematicians conjecture (infer based on evidence).

Mathematicians use patterns (consistencies) and relationships to generalize and infer what comes next in the problem-solving process.

RESEARCHERS

Researchers think about the value and reliability of their sources.

Researchers consider what is important to a reader or audience.

Using Sensory and Emotional Images

READERS

Readers create sensory images during and after reading. These may include visual, auditory, and other sensory images as well as emotional

connections to the text and are rooted in prior knowledge.


Readers use images to draw conclusions and to create unique interpretations of the text. Images from reading frequently become part of the reader's

writing. Images from personal experience frequently become part of the reader's comprehension.

Readers use their images to clarify and enhance comprehension.

Readers use images to immerse themselves in rich detail as they read. The detail gives depth and dimension to the reading, engaging the reader more

deeply and making the text more memorable.

Readers adapt their images in response to the shared images of other readers.

Readers adapt their images as they read to incorporate new information revealed through the text and new interpretations they develop.

WRITERS

Writers consciously attempt to create strong images in their compositions using strategically placed detail.

Writers create impact through the use of strong nouns and verbs whenever possible.

Writers use images to explore their own ideas. They consciously study their mental images for direction in their pieces.

Writers learn from the images created in their minds as they read.

They study other authors' use of images as a way to improve their own. MATHEMATICIANS

Mathematicians use mental pictures and models of shapes, numbers, and processes to build understanding of concepts and problems and to

experiment with ideas.

Mathematicians use concrete models and manipulatives to build understanding and visualize problems.

Mathematicians visually represent thinking through drawings, pictures, graphs, and charts.

Mathematicians picture story problems like a movie in the mind to help understand the problem.

Mathematicians visualize concepts (parallel lines, fractions, etc.).

RESEARCHERS

Researchers create rich mental pictures to improve understanding of text.

Researchers interweave written images with multisensory (auditory, visual, kinesthetic) components to enhance comprehension.

Researchers use words, visual images, sounds, and other sensory experiences to communicate understanding of a topic (which can lead to further

questions for research).

Determining What Is Important in Text

READERS

Readers identify key ideas or themes as they read.


Readers distinguish important from unimportant information in relation to key ideas or themes in text. They can distinguish important information at the

word, sentence, and text levels.

Readers utilize text structures and text features (such as bold or italicized print, figures and photographs) to help them distinguish important from

unimportant information.

Readers use their knowledge of important and relevant parts of text to prioritize in long-term memory and synthesize text for others.

WRITERS

Writers observe their world and record what they believe is significant.

Writers make decisions about the most important ideas to include in the pieces they write. They make decisions about the best genre and structure to

communicate their ideas.

Writers reveal their biases by emphasizing some elements over others.

Writers provide only essential details to reveal the meaning and produce the effect desired.

Writers delete information irrelevant to their larger purpose.

MATHEMATICIANS

Mathematicians look for patterns and relationships.

Mathematicians identify and use key words to build an understanding of the problem.

Mathematicians gather text information from graphs, charts, and tables.

Mathematicians decide what information is relevant to a problem and what is irrelevant.

RESEARCHERS

Researchers sort and analyze to improve understanding of information.

Researchers make decisions about the quality and usefulness of information.

Researchers evaluate and think critically about information.

Researchers decide what's important to remember and what isn't.

Researchers choose the most effective reporting platform.

Synthesizing Information

READERS


Readers maintain a cognitive synthesis as they read. They monitor the overall meaning, important concepts, and themes in the text and are aware of

ways text elements "fit together" to create the overarching ideas. They use their knowledge of the text elements to make decisions about the overall

meaning of a passage, chapter, or book.

Readers retell or synthesize in order to improve understanding of what they have read. They attend to the most important information and to the clarity

of the synthesis itself.

Readers capitalize on opportunities to share, recommend, and critique books they have read.

Readers may respond to text in a variety of ways, independently or in groups of other readers. These include written, oral, dramatic, and artistic

responses and interpretations of text.

A proficient reader's synthesis is likely to extend the literal meaning of a text to the inferential level.


WRITERS

Writers make global and focal plans for their writing before and during the drafting process. They use their knowledge of text elements such as

character, setting, conflict, sequence of events, and resolution to create a structure for their writing.

Writers study other writers and draw conclusions about what makes good writing. They work to replicate the style of authors they find compelling.

Writers reveal themes in a way that suggests their importance to readers. Readers can create a cogent synthesis from well-written material.

MATHEMATICIANS

Mathematicians generalize from patterns they observe.

Mathematicians generalize in words, equations, charts, and graphs to retell or synthesize.

Mathematicians synthesize math concepts when they use them in real-life applications.

Mathematicians use deductive reasoning (e.g., reach conclusions based on knowns).

RESEARCHERS

Researchers develop insight about a topic to create new knowledge or understanding.

Researchers utilize information from a variety of resources.

Researchers enhance their understanding of a topic by considering different perspectives, opinions, and sources.


Thinking Rubric

Name

Teacher

Date

Directions

Use this rubric to rate the quality of your thinking on a comprehension strategy. The rubric can be used to review written, oral, artistic, or dramatic

expressions of your thinking about a book.

When you can go beyond describing your use of a strategy to tell how using that strategy helps you comprehend better, your work should be scored at

least a 4.

Thinks Aloud (Used for a general think-aloud on a text---any strategy can be used, and many can be used together)

1. I can't think of any response; I can't contribute to the discussion about this text or strategy.

2. My thinking is related more to the pictures than text and I'm generally pretty confused about what is going on in the book.

3. I understand some of the events and content, but I feel like I have some of it wrong-some of it doesn't really seem to fit together. I may be thinking more

about things that have happened to me than this book. I think I could probably retell generally what's happening in the book.

4. I find myself asking questions and making some inferences in this book. I know what's happening with the main characters and the conflict. I can make

some connections between text events and my own experience; it's possible to make predictions about the book's overall meaning. I could probably

retell this book in some detail.

5. My thinking is very clear about this book. I have a strong idea about the central ideas or themes. When I think about my thinking, I understand this text

much more clearly; I can even tell you how thinking about my own thinking helps me in other books I read.


Monitors Comprehension


2. I can tell you where I have problems in this book; the problems are usually on hard words. I'm not sure that I read this book well enough to really

understand it and I'm not quite sure what to do to fix the problems.

3. I have some problems when reading this book. Some are on words and some relate to the ideas in the book, but I usually know what to do to solve the

problems.

4. I understand much of this book and when I do have problems I can solve them quickly. If that doesn't work I have a lot of other ways I can fix the

problem-most of the problems I do have relate to ideas, not words.

5. I can identify whenever I have a problem, whether it's at the word or idea level, and I have a lot of word and comprehension strategies I can experiment

with until I fix the problem. I use different strategies depending on the problem and the purpose I have for reading and can tell you how using those

strategies helps me understand any book I read.

Uses Schema


2. I can tell you what this text reminds me of but it would be really hard to explain how those connections fit with the book.

3. I have a very clear idea of how my own experiences, beliefs, and feelings relate to the characters and events or topics in this text.

4. I can describe my background knowledge that relates to this book and even develop new thinking and interpretations for it using my schema. I can

discuss my schema for this author, and maybe even for the way the text is laid out--the text structure. I may have some questions because my schema

for some of the content doesn't seem to fit with the way things happen in this text.

5. I can explain how my schema helps me understand this or any other text much more clearly; I'm even more aware of how my schema helps me

understand other texts. The connections I make go beyond my own life experience and this book. I am able to think about connections to other issues

and other people's experiences.


Questions


2. I can think of a couple of questions that can probably be answered by reading further or rereading the text.

3. The questions I think of mostly help me figure out exactly what is happening in this book or what the main topics are.

4. The questions I pose make me understand more about the book itself but I'm not sure I can explain exactly how posing these questions deepens my

comprehension.

5. I can use questions to challenge an author's message or point of view; I can question whether he or she is right or shares my beliefs, feelings, and

opinions. I can tell you exactly how my questions help me understand this text or any text I read better; most of my questions are the kind that can't be

answered directly in the text and would probably lead to interesting discussion.

Infers

1. I can't think of any response; I can't contribute to the discussion about this text or strategy. 2. Sometimes I have predictions or decide things about this book, but I'm not sure how they relate to the book or if the author wanted me to draw these

conclusions.

3. The predictions and conclusions I draw from this text are probably aligned with what the author would think and with my background knowledge. 4. I can draw conclusions, interpret, and/or predict and can explain how I thought of my conclusions, interpretations, or predictions for this book. 5. I can develop my own predictions, interpretations, and/or conclusions about the text that include connections between the text and my background

knowledge or my ideas and beliefs. When I create these inferences I can describe how I understand more about the book or any book I read and why those books are likely to be more memorable to me.

Uses Sensory and Emotional Images

1.I can't think of any response; I can't contribute to the discussion about this text or strategy.

2.I have a few pictures in my head, but I'm not sure how they relate to the book.

3.I can tell you about my images. Most of them are visual. My images include more than just what is in the book or pictures. Sometimes I have some

emotional images that make me want to read this book more or reread it.

4. I have images that come from emotions as well as sight, sound, smell, touch, and even taste. I can use them to help me understand this text better.

5. I can tell you a lot about how my images help me better understand this book or any book I read.


Determines What Is Important in Text


2. I can point to some parts of the text, mostly pictures, that must be pretty important for understanding this text's meaning, but I'm not quite sure how or why

these parts are important.

3. I can point to certain words, characters, and/or events as more important to the meaning and I can explain why I think something is important. If I'm reading

expository text I can use text features such as bold print and captions to help me decide what is important. 4. I can usually explain why the concepts are

important.

5. I am sure I can point to and explain at least one key concept, idea, or theme as important to understanding the overall text meaning.

6. I can explain several ideas or themes that are very important for understanding this text; I can tell you why they're important and why the author might have

emphasized them given his/her purpose. I can tell you how thinking about these important ideas helps me to understand better this text or any other book I

read.

Synthesizes


2. I can tell you some parts of text for fiction and nonfiction. I can tell you generally how things are happening in this book, but I'm not really sure what the author is trying to tell me.

3. I have a pretty good idea about the order for this text and how the ideas are organized, like the beginning, middle, end. I understand that the order helps me understand better. I can tell you a little about how my thinking changed as I read this book.

4. When I think about how my thinking is changing, how I'm synthesizing, I understand this text much better. Sometimes I use my schema or my

knowledge of what characters usually do, the problem, the setting, and the conclusion or resolution; I can tell you about the key themes and I can

describe how my thinking changed from the beginning to the end of the passage.

5. I can synthesize using everything I know about story structures, text, formats, and genres. I can identify the key themes and tell you how synthesizing

helps me understand more in this or any book I read. I can represent my understandings and opinions in a way you'll clearly understand after my reading.

balanced literacy grade 4 - edison · balanced literacy grade 4 length of course: ... high quality...

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