INTERVENTION: READING AND WRITING TO TASK Week 4

LEARNING OBJECTIVES 1. CLOSE READING – I CAN close read a text to gain a better understanding of what the text is talking about. 2. SUMMARIZING – I CAN accurately summarize a text or a section of text in my own words. 3. CITING EVIDENCE – I CAN cite and explain evidence from a text to support my answer to a writing task.

DAY 1 1. Hand out Text. 2. Hand out 3 Sheets of lined paper. 3. Have students write (a) first name, (b) last name, and (c) Room # on Article and Lined Sheets.

WRITE THE TEXT AND WRITER/PUBLISHER “State parks hope to tempt kids into nature, not Nintendo” (re-published by NEWSELA)

WRITE DOWN THE TASK What are the two main goals of the Capital Campouts program? Cite evidence from the article to support each goal. Explain how each piece of evidence supports the respective goal.

WRITE THE DEFINITION OF UNRAVEL ON YOUR LINED PAPER UNRAVEL is a close reading strategy that helps me better understand the text I am reading so that I can accurately answer the writing task.

WRITE OUT UNRAVEL (ACE) U – Underline the Title N – Now, predict the passage R – Run through and number the paragraphs A – Annotate the writing task V – Venture through (read) the passage E – Earmark your evidence L – Let’s ACE it (Answer, Cite, Explain)

U – Underline the Title Read the title. Underline the title. Any unfamiliar words in the title? Scan the article. Pay attention to the structure and format of the article. This offers clues about the type of information to be shared in the article.

N – Now, predict the passage. Based on the words in the title, what do you think the article will be about? Share out. Write down your prediction of what you think the article will be talking about. NOTE – you may also use the graphic (photo) and sub-titles to make your prediction.

R – Read Through and Number the Paragraphs Count the paragraphs Agree the number Number paragraphs

A – Annotate the Writing Task What is the writing task asking you to do? (Note – this sets the purpose for reading the article.) Pay attention to instructional verbs like “cite” and “explain.” What does EXPLAIN mean? This week, you will cite one piece of evidence for each goal. (Remember two pieces of evidence are the minimum.)

THE WRITING TASK What are the two main goals of the Capital Campouts program? Cite evidence from the article to support each goal. Explain how each piece of evidence supports the respective goal.

DAY 1 - CLOSURE Great work everyone! What is UNRAVEL? Why does it help to read the writing task BEFORE you read the article? Hand in article and lined sheets.

DAY 2 You will need your copy of the article with your writing paper attached.

V – Venture through the passage. Popcorn read. Be ready to read. Everyone else is tracking (following along) the article with their eyes and pencil/pen. We will read all the way through the article once. After we have read the article once, we will go back and re-read certain sections. This is close reading!

ANNOTATING THE ARTICLE As we read, underline any words that you think relate to the central idea of the article (what the article is about – remember your prediction from the title?). Circle words that you do not know the meaning of. Write down questions and comments in the margins when something from the article stands out to you. Draw lines between connecting ideas. Put a bracket around text that you think could be an answer to the writing task.

SUMMARIZE AND GO As we read, we will write a one sentence summary of each section. This will help with us with our comprehension of the article as a whole.

RE-READ WITH TEXT DEPENDENT QUESTIONS TDQs require us to go back into the text to find the answer to the question, so we will have to re-read the relevant sections of the article. Remember: Answer, Cite, Explain

TEXT DEPENDENT QUESTIONS 1. What is the central claim of the article and how is it developed? (What kind of evidence is used to develop the claim? Data? Statistics? Testimonials? Quotes? Other?) 2. What section talks about the challenges facing outdoor experiential learning programs? Cite some of the challenges mentioned and explain how they impact the outdoor programs. 3. Re-read the section, “Inactivity Linked to Higher Obesity in Children.” What are two benefits of experiential or hands-on learning? 4. How is the New Mexico outdoor program funded?

DAY 2 - CLOSURE REFLECTION – How did TDQs and One Sentence Summaries help you better understand the article? Hand in packets.

DAY 3 DO NOW: In your own words: what is the article is about? HINT: Include the critical information that you would need to share with someone who has not yet read the article. Share out.

CLASS DISCUSSION USING OPEN- ENDED DISCUSSION QUESTIONS Open-ended discussion questions are different to text-dependent questions. I can include my opinion and personal experience when answering an open-ended discussion question. I don’t have to rely on just what the text is saying, although I do want to relate what I am saying to the text. Open-Ended Discussion Questions help me to relate to the article, but when I answer the writing task, I CANNOT include my opinion. I can only rely on the evidence in the text itself.

OPEN-ENDED DISCUSSION QUESTIONS Have you ever been camping or spent any time outdoors in nature? What was your experience? Share the positive and the negative aspects of your experience. How does “smelling fresh air, understanding the stars at night, knowing the life-cycles of ecology” enhance or improve your quality of life? Is inactivity the only reason why young people are overweight or obese? What could be some other reasons leading to obesity in young people? Do these need to be considered in a program for action? 5-8 minutes then share out.

OPEN-ENDED DISCUSSION QUESTIONS “Young people need to have a healthy lifestyle and truly experience the nature of the world and not some virtual reality through a gaming device.” Do you agree? Why? Why not? 5-8 minutes then share out.

OPEN-ENDED DISCUSSION QUESTIONS Last week we talked about the benefits of real friends versus virtual friends. This week, we read about the benefits of real life experiences versus virtual life experiences. Is there any value at all in a virtual life experience? When might a virtual experience replace or be more useful than an actual experience? 5-8 minutes then share out.

OPEN-ENDED DISCUSSION QUESTIONS You have a choice: you can use your cell phone in school during the current lunch period, OR you can have an extended lunch period (one hour) with time to spend in the courtyard, the gym (say, shooting hoops), and the library (reading books), but no cell phones allowed. Which would you choose? Why? 5 minutes then share out.

DAY 3 - CLOSURE Great discussion! I hope our discussion helped you make a deeper and more meaningful connection to the text. Hand in packets.

DAY 4 - ACE Re-read the writing task: What are the two main goals of the Capital Campouts program? Cite evidence from the article to support each goal. Explain how each piece of evidence supports the respective goal.

E – EARMARK YOUR EVIDENCE Go back to the article. Look for the evidence that answers the question and earmark, or highlight, it. Keep referring back to the Writing Task to make sure that you are accurately answering the question and earmarking/citing evidence that supports the answer.

L – LET’S ACE IT! A – Answer C – Cite C - Explain

A - ANSWER What paragraph did you find the answer in?

PARAGRAPH 3 Paragraph 3 mentions the two main goals of the Capital Campouts program. Frame your answer to the Writing Task in a sentence, by using the words from the Writing Task to construct the answer.

A – ANSWER (SENTENCE FORMAT) The two main goals of the Capital Campouts program are: (1) to encourage young people to be active at a time when childhood obesity rates are climbing, and (2) to provide a way for young people to experience nature and to gain an appreciation of the importance of conserving state parks (paragraph 3).

C - CITE The section “Inactivity Linked to Higher Obesity in Children” talks about the astounding obesity rates in younger children and teens. It also talks about the outdoor classroom program implemented in New Mexico to keep kids active while learning.

C – CITE (EVIDENCE #1) Dealing with GOAL (1): “Over the past 30 years, obesity has more than doubled in younger children and more than quadrupled in teens. In 2012, more than one- third of children and teens were overweight or obese.” (paragraph 13)

E - EXPLAIN How does the quote support or explain Goal (1).

EXPLANATION #1 The data provided sets out the obesity rates among younger people and teens in America. It is strong evidence that demonstrates a clear need for young people to be more physically active. Activities that require young people to move around more will improve their fitness levels and may even have other positive effects on well-being and learning.

C - CITE What other evidence did you earmark? Remember, you need two pieces of evidence; this time, one piece of evidence for each goal.

C – CITE (EVIDENCE #2) Dealing with GOAL (2): “You have a whole generation of kids who grew up on video games. People now are so connected to technology that they don’t put it down and don’t go outside,” said Ray Bivens, director of Delaware State Parks. (paragraph 17)

E - EXPLAIN How does your second piece of evidence explain or support goal (2)?

EXPLANATION #2 This quote from the Delaware Director of State Parks suggests that there is a generation of young Americans who has missed out on some traditional and critical development experiences, which can only be learned by spending time in nature. The quote goes on to suggest that it is the parks’ responsibility to teach young people an appreciation for nature, so that young people can come to understand the importance of preserving state parks.

DAY 4 - CLOSURE Plan to spend some time in State park this long weekend! Hand in packets.

DAY 5 WRITING ACTIVITY Write a letter to Tina Sullivan, the Executive Director of Overton Park. Tell her about some of the things you learned in your discussion of the this week’s article and invite her to form a learning partnership with our school. Be specific about how your request would benefit both the students of the school and the park’s interests. Length – 1 page.

DAY 5 - Closure Thank you for your participation this week! We had a great discussion and did some wonderful reading and writing! We will review your letters and select some for revision and submission. Hand in packet and all work.