ELA: Focus on Informational Text FCUSD Instructional Focus Meeting Lari Miller-Powell & Sara Parenzin March 22, 2012

2 Sacramento County Office of Education | Session Structure Teacher as Learner –Session Opener Teacher as Professional Teacher as Practitioner

3 Sacramento County Office of Education | Session Outcomes Today we will… Define informational text Learn about informational text standards in California’s Common Core State Standards Identify the structures and features of informational text and the importance of explicit instruction Explore implications for teaching

4 Sacramento County Office of Education | Identify the Challenges Browse the following sample of “typical” informational text from our curriculum. Identify/Highlight the challenges in reading informational text. Talk with a partner. Be ready to share your observations. Teacher as Learner

5 Sacramento County Office of Education | Types of Informational Text Exposition (e.g., texts, news, tradebooks) Argumentation and persuasive text (e.g., political speeches, editorials, ads) Procedural text and documents (e.g., manuals, directions) National Assessment Governing Board (2011) Reading Framework for the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress Teacher as Professional

6 Sacramento County Office of Education | Informational Text “Informational text, specifically exposition, argumentation, and persuasive text, does not have a single, identifiable structure. Rather, different types of informational text exhibit distinct structural features.” National Assessment Governing Board (2011) Reading Framework for the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress What types of informational text are included in your curriculum? Teacher as Professional

7 Sacramento County Office of Education | Why Emphasize Informational Text? Standards aim to align instruction with this National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) framework. Percentages do not imply that high school ELA teachers must teach 70% informational text; they demand instead that a great deal of reading should occur in other disciplines. Teacher as Professional

8 Sacramento County Office of Education | Structure of the ELA Standards The CCSS are divided into four strands: Reading Writing Speaking & Listening Language Teacher as Practitioner

9 Sacramento County Office of Education | Structure of the Reading Strand Grades K-5 –10 Reading Standards for Literature – 10 Reading Standards for Informational Text –4 Reading Standards – Foundational Skills Grades 6-12 –10 Reading Standards for Literature –10 Reading Standards for Informational Text – 10 Reading Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies – 10 Reading Standards for Literacy in Science and Technical Subjects Teacher as Practitioner

10 Sacramento County Office of Education | Consistent Subheadings in the Reading Strand Key Ideas and Details “What did the author say?” Craft and Structure “How did the author say it?” Integration of Knowledge and Ideas “How do I evaluate what the author says and how do I go beyond it?” Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity “How challenging and varied is the text?” Teacher as Practitioner

11 Sacramento County Office of Education | Explore the Standards Locate the handout CCSS for ELA and turn to the informational text standards. Read the standards for your grade level and the grades immediately before and after. Teacher as Practitioner

12 Sacramento County Office of Education | Structures and Features  “Text structures and features define the organization and elements within the text. The organization and elements refer to the way ideas are arranged and connected to one another. Features refer to visual and structural elements that support and enhance the reader’s ability to understand the text.” National Assessment Governing Board (2011) Reading Framework for the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress – Teacher as Practitioner

13 Sacramento County Office of Education | Structures and Features Text structure is the organizational pattern of the text. –Examples: problem/solution, description, cause and effect, sequence, etc. Text features are the visual and structural elements that support and enhance a reader’s ability to comprehend text. –Examples: headings, captions, italicized print, graphics, illustrations, etc. Teacher as Practitioner

14 Sacramento County Office of Education | Trace the Progression of Standard 5 Read standard 5 across grades K-12 As you read, highlight elements of the standards that relate to text structures and text features. As you read through the standards, write down three observations. Share your observations with your table partners. Teacher as Practitioner

15 Sacramento County Office of Education | Identify the Focus Browse the following sample lesson, Web Wise, to “Identify the Focus.” Read Scenario 1 and Scenario 2 on the following slides. Which of the two scenarios better prepares students to comprehend informational text when they are reading independently? Teacher as Practitioner

16 Sacramento County Office of Education | Identify the Focus Scenario 1 Teacher X begins the lesson by showing students a video clip of spiders weaving webs. She then asks students to pair-share an interesting fact that they learned from the video clip. After the discussion she tells students they will get a chance to draw their own spider webs, but only after they read the story in the anthology. Teacher as Practitioner

17 Sacramento County Office of Education | Identify the Focus Scenario 2 Teacher Y begins the lesson by posting the objective and telling the students that they will be reading a non-fiction article and learning about the text features title, subtitle, and headings, and how they support comprehending informational text. She uses a web organizer to define and give an example of each term. Before reading the text, Teacher Y tells students they will stop and discuss how the title, subtitle, and headings support their comprehension. Teacher as Practitioner

18 Sacramento County Office of Education | Connect to the Curriculum Think-Pair-Share How do the CCSS correspond to what you already have in your curriculum? –Take a look at your TE –Are opportunities provided frequently for students to grapple with informational text? –Are the structures and features of informational text explicitly taught? –If they aren’t, can you identify places where it would be appropriate to add this instruction? Think back to the last informational text selection students read in your class. As you transition to teaching the CCSS, what might you do differently next time? Teacher as Practitioner

Putting it into Practice Give students opportunities to identify text structures and text features to help them comprehend informational text Use the resources you have: tweak it here and there Your science, history, and math texts and readers are examples of informational text!

Putting it into Practice Remember, not all of the selections in your ELA anthologies are “stories,” therefore, they often require a different set of reading skills and strategies Lots of information on the Internet Continuing professional development through district and Sacramento County Office of Education

21 Sacramento County Office of Education | For more information:  Common Core State Standards initiative:  California Common Core Standards:  Assessment:  SCOE Professional Development:  FCUSD Professional Development:

22 Sacramento County Office of Education | Common Core State Standards Exit Ticket –I learned… –I valued… –I’d like more information about… –Comments… *no need to write your name, but if you could please write your grade level on your exit ticket, that will help us organize needs & concerns by grade level! Thank you!