1. Academic Conversations in the Common Core Classroom
Elementary
ELA Leadership Institute
Session 3
March 2015

2. PURPOSE and OUTCOMES
Learn a framework for using the CCSS standards for Reading/Literacy to drill down deeply into one text or topic.
Learn three strategies for facilitating students through successive steps using academic conversations.

3. Building Academic Conversations
Setting up physical environment that promotes conversation
Establishing expectations for academic conversations
Implementing conversation protocols
Increasing depth of academic conversations
Rare Occasional Frequent

4. A A

5. Increasing Depth of Conversations
Depth of Knowledge/Levels of Complexity
4 Extended Thinking – Requires connections and extensions, high cognitive demands and complex reasoning, creation
Strategic Thinking – Requires reasoning, developing a plan or a sequence of steps, more than one reasonable approach
2 Skill/Concept – Use information or conceptual knowledge, two or more steps
1 Recall/Reproduction – Recall a fact, information, or procedure; process information on a low level

6. Creating academic conversation prompts that will progressively deepen students’ understanding
8 & 9
3 & 7 6
4 & 5 2
Vocab might be here, too. 1

7. Creating academic conversation prompts that will progressively deepen students’ understanding
Churchill’s “Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat” speech
Does Churchill make a strong enough argument for “victory at all costs”?
8 & 9
3 & 7
What effect does Churchill’s use of the pronouns I, you and we have on the speech? 6
4 & 5 2
What was Churchill’s main message? 1

8. Creating academic conversation prompts that will progressively deepen students’ understanding
8 & 9
3 & 7 6
4 & 5 2
Vocab might be here, too. 1

9. Vocabulary Tea Party with Tier III Words
Tier II Words Tier III Words
Academic Academic
Non-specific to content areas Specific to content areas
Examples: redundant, distribute Examples: magma, chrysalis
Distribute vocabulary words (between 1-3) to students. These should be words students have been introduced to but are still developing.
Have students collect in groups of 2-3 and “mingle,” relating their vocabulary words to each others’ word in way that make sense
Allow for 2-3 mingling rounds
Optional follow up: students can recreate some of the sentences they produced or heard for the whole group, for different partners or in writing

10. Fifth Grade: American Revolution Lesson
Find two other people with different vocabulary words (different colored papers)
Work together to determine the relationship among your words.
When possible, use the signal words provided to demonstrate their relationship.
When finished, form another triad and repeat.

11. Comparison Cause/Effect Sequence
Like __, __
___. Similarly, __
Both ___
Although ___
In contrast, ___
Unlike __, __
Consequently, __
As a result, ___
Because __, ___
__. Therefore, __
___ led to ___
Since __, __
First, __. Then __
Before ___, ___
Afterward __
By then, ___
Later ___
Finally, ___

12. Creating academic conversation prompts that will progressively deepen students’ understanding
8 & 9
3 & 7 6
4 & 5 2
Vocab might be here, too. 1

13. Craft and Structure: Noticing with a Partner
The teacher models something she has noticed about craft or structure
a similar feature of craft or structure in a different text
a different feature in the same text
The teacher sets a focus or parameters for noticing and asks students to determine the significance of what they’ve noticed.
Partners notice, decide on what to choose and craft a statement about its significance.

14. The fog comes on little cat feet.
Noticing Imagery in Fog by Carl Sandberg
The fog comes on little cat feet.
It sits looking over harbor and city on silent haunches and then moves on.

15. Fourth Grade: Notice Imagery with a Partner
Notice the Imagery that Naomi Shihab Nye uses in A Valentine for Ernest Mann
Choose one of the images and jot down how the image is important to the poem.
As you listen to your partner’s example, help him or her to be as specific as possible about how their image is important to the poem. Use clarifying questions.
Both partners are prepared to share with class.

16. Creating academic conversation prompts that will progressively deepen students’ understanding
8 & 9
3 & 7 6
4 & 5 2
Vocab might be here, too. 1

17. Integrating Ideas and Knowledge with a Partner
Using two related texts, ask students to
compare and contrast ideas or
integrate the ideas
(depending on grade level)
Prompts might sound like: How do these two texts differ? How are they similar? Or How does your understanding of ___ grow by reading/viewing both texts?
Each student can be “in charge” of one text. Students can use language anchor charts to draw comparisons or integrate knowledge.

18. First Grade: Compare Two Water Cycle Diagrams
Each partner has a different diagram.
They take turns noticing how the diagrams are alike and different using a anchor chart for language of comparison.

19. Language for Showing Similarities and Differences
Both have ___
Both are___
They are alike because ___
Differences
One has/is ___, but the other has/is ___.
This one has/is ___, but that one has/is __.
They are different because __.

22. Increasing Depth of Conversations
Sticking to one text or topic enables your students to progressively drill deeper into its meaning.

23. Think-School Team-Share
Review your handouts and notes from this session and ponder this question:
What is one action you can take immediately to improve the quality or quantity of academic conversations in your classroom? Be prepared to discuss why you chose this action and how you will undertake it.

24. Image
How It’s Important