1. BEST CRISS STRATEGIES FOR TAKS
Selective Highlighting/Underlining
Marginal Notes: Power Thinking, Two Column Notes, Venn, Read and Write Something
Question/Answer Relationships(QARS)
Questioning the Author(QtA)

2. SELECTIVE HIGHLIGHTING/UNDERLINING
P CRISS Manual
Magazine or newspaper articles, old textbooks, photocopies, or TAKS selections
Teacher models. Talk about the author’s plan.
Divide into groups of three using a transparency of a selection. Selective highlight together and present to the class.

3. SELECTIVE HIGHLIGHTING/UNDERLINING(Cont.)
Use with teacher notes and study guides
Use different articles or selections with each group(differentiation)
Use clear transparencies over selection pages-transfer information onto paper, erase and reuse
Use non-fiction material dealing with current events, history, or science

4. MARGINAL NOTES
Power Notes P.38: Power 1-selection title or thesis statement, Power 2s-topic sentences of the body paragraphs, Power 3s,4s,5s-details in the body paragraphs
Read and Write Something-Variation of Read and Say Something
Two Column Notes P.118 Main ideas/Details
One Sentence Summaries P.111 over the paragraphs of the selection

5. QUESTION ANSWER RELATIONSHIPS
Easy example P. 71 CRISS Manual: Popcorn
Start with In the book questions: Right There / Think and Search
After mastery, add Author and You
Model, model, model (Dr. Seuss books work well for modeling and practice)
Start with easy material: Well known fairytales or picture books

6. QARS(Cont.) About 85% of the TAKS questions are Author and You
Put the students in groups of 4 and have them make up all four types of questions
After the students have used QARs successfully several times, model how to use it as a tool to identify and answer TAKS questions.
Practice in groups or partners with release TAKS materials. Discussion is important.
Move to independent practice

7. THE PLAN FOR QARS Phase 1: Introduce the Strategy
Phase 2: Modeling/Think Aloud (Teacher does, Students observe)
Phase 3: Scaffolding (Teacher does, Students help)
Phase 4: Coaching (Students do, Teacher helps)
Phase 5: Independent Practice (Assessment)

8. QUESTIONING THE AUTHOR
QtA P CRISS Manual
Ask and answer these questions while reading: What is the author trying to tell me? Why is the author telling me this? Does the author state it clearly? If not, how might have the author written it more clearly? What would I have wanted to say instead?
Partners, small group, independently