Georgia Department of Education Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
November 28, 2012 All Rights Reserved
GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Literacy Strategies Making Content-Rich Nonfiction Accessible
Daniel Rock and Mary Lynn Huie
Georgia Department of Education
Georgia Department of Education Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
November 28, 2012 • Page 1 All Rights Reserved
1-Anticipation Guides
Anticipation Guides prepare students for reading new material and/or listening to introductory
lectures over new material. This activity is particularly useful when you are preparing to teach content
that students may already know about—and may have some misconceptions about! The beauty of the AG
is that it begins by having students state what they already think about the topic and then gives them an
opportunity to revise their thinking. The questions on the AG make students more focused readers of the
text. AGs also require students to cite evidence to support their original or new position on the facts
presented in the text. After completing an AG, students have excellent notes over the material. AGs help
students learn to take better notes by having them not only write down main ideas but also evidence for
those ideas.
Begin by converting the most important information from the text into short statements.
These statements should challenge preconceived ideas and pique student interest in the material.
Next, present the statements to students—either on a screen or board (for them to copy) or on a
prepared handout. Give students a response option (Agree or Disagree).
After students complete their responses, you might have a class discussion of their
responses or have students discuss their responses in small groups. You could even poll the class
for answers and give percentages of agreement/disagreement for each statement. (These
percentages can later be compared with correct answers.)
Now the students are ready to read the material, watch the video, or hear the lecture. As
students interact with the material, they should be trying to determine whether their pre-reading
responses were correct, adjusting their initial responses as needed. They should also gather
evidence to support both their correct and incorrect responses. Students may read in small groups
(perhaps the same group with whom they first discussed pre-reading responses) or individually.
After students complete the AG, begin discussion by asking what surprised students. Ask
students to share before and after responses as well as their explanations. As students discuss their final
responses, the instructor can address any confusion or misunderstanding students still have.
Fisher, Douglas, William G. Brozo, Nancy Frey, and Gay Ivey. 50 Content Area Strategies for Adolescent
Literacy. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson, 2007. Print.
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November 28, 2012 • Page 2 All Rights Reserved
Anticipation Guide for the United States Bill of Rights
Directions before reading: Show me what you already know about your rights as an American citizen. Read the
statements below and indicate whether you think the statement is true or false in the Before Reading column.
Compare your responses with someone sitting next to you after you complete your responses.
Directions after reading: After reading information related to each statement, decide whether you still think it is
true or false. Cite the sources and information that support your final answer.
Statement and Support Before Reading
True False
After Reading
True False 1. Police must read the Miranda Rights to
anyone placed under arrest.
Support and Source:
2. The right to own firearms can be
restricted for some citizens.
Support and Source:
3. There are no restrictions on a citizen’s
freedom of speech.
Support and Source:
4. All defendants have the right to be
released on bail.
Support and Source:
5. There are circumstances when a person
can be tried more than once for the same
crime.
Support and Source:
6.
Support and Source:
Conclusion:
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2-SQP2RS (“Squeepers”) Survey: Preview text. Question: List 1-3 questions you think we’ll find answers to. Predict: State 1-3 things we’ll learn. Read: Read text. Respond: Try to answer questions. Modify, drop, add. Summarize: At end of text.
S is for Survey Look at the pictures and captions.
Read the highlighted and bold words.
Read the headings and subheadings.
Think about what you are about to read.
Q is for Question What questions will we answer?
Generate questions that we will be able to answer after we read.
P is for Predict What will we learn?
Predict 1 to 3 things we will learn while reading.
R is for Read Read the text along...
With teacher
With partner
With group
R is for Respond Which questions were answered?
Discuss which questions were answered in the text.
Review which questions were not answered.
Eliminate questions that are not likely to be answered.
Develop new questions.
Continue surveying process.
S is for Summarize What did we learn?
Summarize what we have learned.
Orally/Written
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Example of SQP2RS note-taking process
Title of Article or Chapter: _________________________________________
Survey: (Before you read. What will this reading assignment be about? Look at titles and pictures)
Question: (Before you read. Write 1-3 questions you may be able to answer from reading)
1. 2. 3.
Predict: (Before you read. Can you predict 1-3 things we will learn?)
1. 2. 3.
Read! (you don’t have to write anything in this box)
Respond (After you Read. Try to answer questions: modify, drop, and add)
Summarize: (After you Read) Four Sentence Summary: Sentence 1: Main Idea (identify what was read, verb [explains, lists, argues, describes, etc], finish thought). Ex. The novel Beloved by Toni Morrison, chronicles the tragic life of a runaway slave. Sentences 2-4: D’REF: Details, Reasons, Examples, Facts
___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________
Reading strategies: Scaffolding students' interactions with text. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://web001.greece.k12.ny.us/academics.cfm?subpage=930&adminActivate=0.487337360925
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Georgia Department of Education Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
November 28, 2012 • Page 5 All Rights Reserved
3-Evaluating Evidence
Evaluating the quality of the evidence provided in an argument requires a critical reading process
that may require some support the first few times students try this sort of evidence-based reading
practice. Students must determine the author’s claim, find the specific evidence the author offers
in support of that claim, and explain how (or whether) the evidence supports the claim. If
student have never engaged in this process, you might want to begin by modeling the process
with a Think-Aloud before asking students to follow your process with another article. Each step
in the following note-taking guide helps students break down an argument; the note-taking guide
can also serve as a formative assessment that helps teachers determine the reading deficiencies
that are causing students to struggle.
Having students read closely for evidence in arguments helps them understand the importance of
evidence and warrants in their own writing. You can then have students use the Evaluating
Evidence worksheet to evaluate one another’s papers in a peer editing activity.
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Evaluating Evidence
Article Title and Author ___________________________________________________
Claim in the article _______________________________________________________
Evidence, quotations, and
page numbers (Citation)
Put it in your own words
(Paraphrase)
How it supports the author’s
claim (Interpretation)
Has the author made a good case for his/her claim? Why or why not?
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4-Close Reading As Social Studies students begin reading primary texts, they will need reading skills they may not
be accustomed to using when reading their social studies textbooks. To read historical speeches, diaries,
and letters requires reading like a literary critic. Close Reading exercises are a staple of the study of
literature, teaching students to pay attention to the literary elements of text that convey a writer’s attitude
toward a topic.
A close reading can be performed on individual texts, but to help students see the importance of
paying attention to the literary elements of primary source documents, select two passages that offer
distinct perspectives on the same topic. When students are first learning close reading, short passages are
best. You might use this activity before students read longer texts, particularly if the texts present various
perspectives on the same topic.
Step 1: Gathering data
Give each student a copy of the text, and instruct them to read with a pencil, pen, or marker
moving: underlining, highlighting, and writing questions as they move through the text. They should note
any words or phrases that seem important, that surprise them, or that they do not understand. They can
use a simple set of symbols (question marks, exclamation marks, plus and minus marks) or write
comments as they read.
Step 2: Making observations about the data
Instruct students to examine the words and phrases they have annotated in the passages. What
unusual language do they see the authors using in each text? How do these words shape the reader’s
response to the topic? Why did each writer make the writing choices he/she made?
Step 3: Interpreting the data
After thinking about the data and considering the choices made by each writer, students are ready
to make a statement about each author’s perspective or about the devices each writer employs to influence
the audience. To support these statements, students will have evidence in their annotated copies of the
texts.
Close Reading is an activity that can take students from reading to writing. As they find the most
important features of the text, they also theorize about the meaning of the text. Reading text closely,
finding the most important element in texts, and interpreting the text are processes that prepare students to
formulate thesis statement and support their positions with evidence—the essential features of good
interpretive writing.
The basic concepts of the close reading can be adapted in a number of ways. The following
reading guide from Bruce Lesh takes the basic concept of close reading to help students analyze multiple
perspectives in a set of articles about Nat Turner.
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November 28, 2012 • Page 8 All Rights Reserved
Nat Turner’s Rebellion: Evaluating Historical Opinions
Use the following worksheet to record information from the various primary and secondary sources.
When deciding the term that best describes the document’s position regarding Nat Turner, consider hero,
villain, fanatic, religious, insane, leader, manipulative, brave, etc.
Source 1: John W. Cornwell—“The Aftermath
of Nat Turner’s Insurrection”
Adjectives
Quote
Term
Source 4: The Richmond Whig
Adjectives
Quote
Term
Source 2: Herbert Aptheker—American Negro
Slave Revolts
Adjectives
Quote
Term
Source 5: The Richmond Inquirer
Adjectives
Quote
Term
Source 3: William S. Drewry—The Southampton
Insurrection
Adjectives
Quote
Term
Source 6: Thomas R. Gray—The Confessions of
Nat Turner
Adjectives
Quote
Term
Lesh, Bruce. “Why Won’t You Just Tell Us the Answer?”: Teaching Historical Thinking in Grades 7-12.
Portland, ME: Stenhouse Publishers, 2011. Print.
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5-Key Concept Synthesis
Use this Strategy:
Before Reading
During Reading
After Reading
Targeted Reading Skills:
Condense or summarize ideas from one or more texts
Distinguish between relevant and irrelevant
information
Compare/contrast information from one or more texts
Make text-to-text, text-to-self, and/or text-to-world
connections
What is it? When students are given “dense” reading material, they often become frustrated and remark, “I
read it, but I don’t get it!” or “I didn’t know what was important and what wasn’t.” For many
young readers, this frustration builds and they approach difficult texts feeling defeated before
they even begin. One strategy we can use is to provide a framework for the reading by creating a
focus on the key concepts. The process involves identifying the key concepts as they read,
putting those concepts in their own words and explaining why the concept is important and/or
making connections to other concepts.
What does it look like? Using this strategy requires helping students to use a number of textual clues that will help them
determine the key concepts in a reading. Some elements that will aid students in the
identification of key concepts are:
Examining the text structure for any elements that the writer/publisher may have used to
indicate major divisions in the subject matter (e.g. titles, subtitles, bold headings, and
supportive graphics or visuals)
Determining which sentence in a paragraph is the topic sentence; as texts get more
sophisticated, students need to recognize that frequently it may not be the first sentence in
the paragraph.
Learning to identify statements that “forecast” main ideas or key concepts that will come
at some point later on in the reading.
Recognizing that transitions may sometimes help to identify a main idea or a possible
shift in the writer’s thinking. (e.g. when compared to, or another possibility is, or in
contrast, etc.)
Examining the summary statements in the paragraphs and/or the conclusions that
summarize each section of the reading may help to verify and condense the main ideas or
key concepts.
Providing models and guided practice where students have opportunities to identify and explain
the above elements is crucial. Once students can understand and recognize these elements,
provide them with sections of the current text they are reading and have them practice
independently as preparation for the next class. As students become more proficient in
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recognizing these elements as they read, a powerful addition is to have them identify these
elements in their own writing.
The graphic organizer below is a condensed version of the template that you can print off the
web from Tools for Reading, Writing and Thinking.
Key Concept Synthesis
Directions: Use the following graphic organizer to identify the five most important concepts (in the form of single
words or phrases) from the reading. Think about identifying the five most import concepts this way: If you had to
explain the reading to someone who had not read the text, what are the five most important concepts you would want
them to understand? Use a highlighter and marginal notes to identify import concepts as you read, and then complete
the graphic organizer once you have completed the reading.
Five Key Concepts
(with page #s)
Put the Concept in Your Own
Words Explain Why the Concept is
Important & Make
Connections to Other
Concepts
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Click here for a printable version of this graphic organizer.
How could I use, adapt or differentiate it?
If this is a new strategy for your students, it is helpful to make copies of a section of the
text so that they can highlight and annotate; this process alone will encourage a close
reading of the text even before they complete the graphic organizer.
When first using this strategy with your students, you may want to have them identify the
various elements that helped them to zero in on the main ideas or key concepts. This
could be noted in the Key Concept column under the concept or in the margins of the
annotated text.
For students that are more visual and/or artistic, they may want to use a mind map to
capture the key concepts and their connections.
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Once students have completed the graphic organizer, they can share their ideas with other
students to discuss how/why they identified the key concepts they selected.
Reading strategies: Scaffolding students' interactions with text. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://web001.greece.k12.ny.us/academics.cfm?subpage=930&adminActivate=0.487337360925
Georgia Department of Education
Georgia Department of Education Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
November 28, 2012 • Page 12 All Rights Reserved
6-History Events Chart
One of the staples of most social studies textbooks is the timeline. Historians look at timelines
and see connections between and among the events displayed on the chart. However, students are more
likely to see the events discretely, without thinking about how each might be connected to others. The
history events chart helps students make connections between and among significant historical events.
A History Events Chart can be a great tool for reviewing a historical period at the end of a unit. It
could also be used for students brainstorming before writing essays on how a series of events affected one
another. Teachers might use this chart with significant events already specified; they could also have
students select what they see as the most significant or interconnected events from a timeline. The
selected events should be arranged chronologically.
The following example from Elizabeth Birr Moje has numbered rows that provide space for
students to record traditional information about each event: Who, What, Where, When, and Why.
However, the most important information will appear in the rows labeled “Relation” where students must
explain how the events are connected. The Conclusion at the end (an optional feature) engages students
in reflective thinking about the implications of the evidence they have presented on the chart and the
connections they have made.
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History Events Chart
EVENT WHO? WHAT? WHERE? WHEN? WHY? 1.
Relation:
2.
Relation:
3.
Relation:
4.
Conclusion:
Moje, Elizabeth Birr. Disciplinary Literacy: Why It Matters and What We Should do about It.
National Writing Project Conference, March 6, 2012.
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November 28, 2012 • Page 14 All Rights Reserved
Opinionnaires
Opinionnaires give teachers an opportunity to discover student attitudes about a topic preceding
instruction on the topic. The opinionnaire differs from the Anticipation Guide since it has no correct
answers. The Anticipation Guide is best when students have misconceptions about a topic; the
Opinionnaire is appropriate for topics that are open to debate. In fact, opinionnaires can stimulate a good
deal of debate the first day you introduce the topic. Encourage your students to revisit their opinionnaire
as they explore the topic in class, revising their opinions or adding to their reasons. Indeed, the
opinionnaire could be expanded to include space for note-taking as students read articles and find more
support for their positions.
To create an opinionnaire, begin by listing no more than 10 statements. You want your students
to have time to think about each statement and their opinions. You do not have to ask them to include
reasons for their positions, but those reasons do require them to think about their positions. You may
want to have students identify themselves only by class period to encourage authentic responses.
You may follow the opinionnaire with a debate in class, selecting one or two of the statements for
discussion of students’ positions.
Follow the opinionnaire with a selected article or primary source document for the students to
read. The reading should relate to the statements in the opinionnaire, but it should also provide new
information that may challenge student thinking. After the reading, students will be ready for more
discussion—and ready to appreciate some of the complexity of the topic.
The following opinionnaire is adapted from Fisher, Brozo, Frey, and Ivey.
Fisher, Douglas, William G. Brozo, Nancy Frey, and Gay Ivey. 50 Content Area Strategies for Adolescent
Literacy. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson, 2007. Print.
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November 28, 2012 • Page 15 All Rights Reserved
Opinionnaire for the United States Bill of Rights
Name _______________________ Period ________________
Directions: Read each statement below and indicate whether you agree (A) or disagree (D). Write your
reason for your opinion below each statement. There are no “right answers.”
__________ A society is safest when its laws are strictly enforced.
Your reason:
__________ All citizens have a right to bear arms so they can protect themselves.
Your reason:
__________ In times of war, the military should be able to use private property.
Your reason:
__________ Free speech should be protected, even when what is said is against the government.
Your reason:
__________ There are crimes for which a criminal should be put to death.
Your reason:
__________ Police should not be required to obtain a search warrant in order to seize evidence against a
criminal.
Your reason:
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Reciprocal Teaching What is it?
According to Alverman and Phelps (1998) in their book, Content Reading and Literacy:
Succeeding in Today’s Diverse Classroom, reciprocal teaching has two major features: (1)
instruction and practice of the four comprehension strategies—predicting, question
generating, clarifying, and summarizing and (2) a special kind of cognitive apprenticeship
where students gradually learn to assume the role of teacher in helping their peers construct meaning from text.
According to Rosenshine & Meister (1994), there are four important instructional practices
embedded in reciprocal teaching:
Direct teaching of strategies, rather than reliance solely on teacher questioning Student practice of reading strategies with real reading, not with worksheets or
contrived exercises Scaffolding of instruction; students as cognitive apprentices Peer support for learning
Reciprocal teaching involves a high degree of social interaction and collaboration, as
students gradually learn to assume the role of teacher in helping their peers construct
meaning from text. In essence, reciprocal teaching is an authentic activity because learning,
both inside and outside of school, advances through collaborative social interaction and the
social construction of knowledge (Alverman and Phelps, 1998).
What does it look like?
Teachers begin by teaching and modeling the four comprehension strategies; students then
practice them through dialogue among themselves. At first the teacher leads the dialogue,
but as students become more proficient with the four strategies, the teacher gradually fades
out of the dialogue and allows students to assume leadership.
The process of reciprocal teaching must be carefully scaffolded to ensure success for your students:
Teachers need to explicitly teach and model the four basic strategies above:
predicting, questioning, clarifying, and summarizing. It is important that students
understand that skilled readers employ these strategies every time they read
something, and that this is a great habit to develop as a way to improve their
comprehension skills. This can be accomplished with short pieces of fiction or
nonfiction; the entire class can brainstorm examples of the various types of
comprehension strategies. Small groups can then choose 3-4 questions from each
category to answer and share with the entire class.
Once students understand and are able to apply all four strategies, it is time for the
students to work independently at first, by annotating examples of all four strategies
on a short text for homework. Students can annotate in the margins, or the teacher
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may want to create a graphic organizer or note sheet where students can record their questions and commentary.
Then, the next day in class, small groups form to share their annotations and
construct their own meaning of the text. One student in the group is
chosen/appointed/elected to be "the teacher" of the group. His/her responsibilities are essentially to facilitate the group’s task, progress, and time management.
During the discussion, it is crucial that each student cite reference points in the
texts that are the focal point of his/her questions and/or evidence to clarify or support their questions and/or commentary.
During the discussion, students add commentary to their sheets/annotations to
construct a richer and deeper understanding of the text.
The teacher spends his/her time circulating the room to visit each group’s
discussion. He/she might ask a follow-up question to enrich the conversation.
The teacher should structure some sort of closure activity, such as a whole class
discussion that is built around questions that groups still have or interesting
commentary that each group discovered as a result of their discussion.
In the chart below are some sample questions that students might pose for each of the four
comprehension strategies based on the text, Night, by Elie Weisel.
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Reciprocal Teaching
Four Roles
Predicting Questioning Clarifying Summarizing
Why do you suppose
Weisel chose the
single word title,
Night? What is his intent?
After reading this
first chapter, what
specifics do you
expect to learn from this perspective?
What is likely to happen next?
How will this
character respond,
based on what you
know about him
already?
Weisel describes, in
great detail, the
possessions left on
the empty street
after the first evacuation, why?
How does the
writer’s diction reveal his tone?
How does this
chapter relate or
connect to our
essential question?
What connections
can we make to
human rights abuses
today?
Are there any words
or phrases that
confused you?
Are there any
cultural or religious
references that you
don’t understand or
you would like clarified?
How might you have
responded in that
particular situation in
which the main
character found himself?
What is important
and/or not
important in this section of the text?
What do you
suppose was the
writer’s intent in
this chapter?
How would you
characterize the
overall tone of this opening section?
Sixty years later,
how has the world
changed as a result of the Holocaust?
Reading strategies: Scaffolding students' interactions with text. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://web001.greece.k12.ny.us/academics.cfm?subpage=930&adminActivate=0.487337360925
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Annolilghting Text
Use this Strategy:
Before Reading
During Reading
After Reading
Targeted Reading Skills:
Formulate questions in response to text
Analyze and interpret elements of poetry or prose
Draw conclusions and make inferences based on explicit
(literal) and implicit (figurative) meaning
What is it?
We have all had the experience of suggesting that students highlight the text that they are
reading, only to watch them indiscriminately highlight nearly every word on the page. It is
clear that learning how to highlight a text as a part of a reading strategy requires some
instruction, including some modeling and guided practice. If done well, highlighting can
become a very effective reading tool; if done poorly, it is most likely a waste of a student’s
time, energy and ink. "Annolighting" a text combines effective highlighting with marginal
annotations that help to explain the highlighted words and phrases.
The following lists provide a simple set of goals and guidelines that students could use to
increase the effectiveness of their annolighting and, as a result, improve their comprehension
and understanding of a text.
Purposes/Goals of Annolighting
Capture main ideas / key concepts / details of a reading
Target, reduce and distill the needed information from a text
Cut down on study and review time when you return to the material increasing your
effective and efficient use of time and effort
Strengthen your reading comprehension
What does it look like? 1. Choose a focus or framework for your highlighting. Ask yourself: What is the purpose or
intended goal of this particular reading? (e.g. Main ideas only? Supportive details for an
interpretive claim you are making? Definitions and examples of key vocabulary? Culling
examples of the writer’s craft? etc.) After you determine the focus, highlight only the
targeted information.
2. If possible, do not highlight on a first reading of a text. Rather, divide a page into
manageable chunks and read a section once. Then skim the section again and highlight on
the second reading. If you try to highlight on the first reading, you may not have a clear
sense of the key ideas/concepts or important/relevant details.
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3. Eliminate every single unnecessary word in a sentence by using a "telegraphic" approach
to highlighting. "Telegraphic highlighting" should still allow you to make sense of a
sentence or section when you reread it. It may sound picky to take 6—20 words out of
each sentence, but the longer the reading, the more it will cut down on unnecessary
information as well as re-read time when you return to your highlighted text for
review. Rarely should you highlight entire sentences unless it is absolutely necessary
based on your targeted focus.
4. You may want to use multiple colors in your highlighting process. For instance, choose
one color for main ideas and another color for supportive detail that may help in sorting
the information when you study the material or collect information for a paper, exhibition
or project. You may want to use a color to indicate facts or concepts on which you would
like clarification or pose as questions.
Below is an excerpt of a reading titled, Shakespeare’s Hamlet and the Nature of
Tragedy. Students were asked to identify the basic elements of tragedy in regard to the
hero or protagonist. Note the "telegraphic approach" to the highlighting; when the
highlights are read, they should make sense to the reader. Notes on the right side
represent possible summary annotations.
Highlighted Text Reader Annotations
"Towards the end of the sixteenth century, a new tragic pattern
began to emerge, very much richer and deeper than the old one,
sounding intimately the depths of the human mind and spirit, the
moral possibilities of human behavior, and displaying the extent to
which men’s destinies are interrelated one with another. According to this scheme, an ideal tragedy would concern
the career of a hero, a man great and admirable in both his powers
and opportunities. He should be a person high enough placed in
society that his actions affectthe well being of many people. The plot
should show him engaged in important or urgent affairs and should
involve his immediate community in a threat to its security that will
be removed only at the end of the action through his death.
The hero’s action will involve him in choices of some
importance which, however virtuous or vicious in themselves, begin
the spinning of a web of circumstances unforeseen
by the hero which cannot thenbe halted and which brings about his
downfall. This hostile destiny may be the result
of mere circumstance or ill luck, of the activities of the hero’s
enemies, of some flaw or failing in his own character, of the
operation of somesupernatural agency that works against him. When
it is too late to escape from the web, the hero-victim comes torealize
everything that has happened to him, and in the despair or agony of
that realization, is finally destroyed."
The hero/protagonist:
Admirable
High society
Actions affect many
Makes choices that involve him/her in a web of circumstances
Caused by:
Mere circumstance
Ill luck
Enemies
Character flaw
Supernatural agency
Results:
Realizes too late
Creates despair
Destruction or death
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How could I use, adapt or differentiate it?
Sometimes, I would ask students to take home a copied reading and highlight only the
first few pages. The next day in class, in partners or small groups, they would briefly
show what they highlighted. More often than not, they would highlight far too much
without any frame of reference. I would then go over theGuidelines for Effective
Annolighting and give them some time for guided practice in class. For homework, they
would complete the annolighting on the rest of the reading.
As suggested earlier, you may want them to practice differentiating between main
ideas/key concepts and specific details by having them use two different colors in the
annolighting process.
Consider using this strategy with the annotating acronyms associated with the
"Annotating a Text" reading strategy.
Georgia Department of Education
Georgia Department of Education Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
November 28, 2012 • Page 22 All Rights Reserved
Four Corners
Four Corners can be used to help students assert and support their positions on controversial
topics. This activity can be used before students read or after they read as a transition to writing.
Four Corners also helps students listen to one another and consider other positions on a topic.
1. On the board for all students to see, write a controversial statement related to a unit the
class has recently studied.
2. Then have students write on a piece of paper whether they strongly agree, agree,
disagree, or strongly disagree with the statement and why. No consulting with neighbors
on this one—just a personal statement and justification.
3. Once students have completed the Quick-Write, have them move to a designated corner
based on their responses. In other words, all who said they “strongly agree” should go to
one corner, all who “agree” should go to another corner, and so on.
4. Give students some time to discuss their position with members of the same group,
sharing reasons and justifications for their position. Each group should compile the most
compelling reasons and select a spokesperson who will speak to the class with the goal of
winning other class members over to this corner of the room. Students may re-read text
and look up supporting information while making the list.
5. Once ready, each spokesperson should present each group’s position. Other students
should listen quietly, taking notes on the most convincing arguments.
6. After all presentations, give students time to ask questions or challenge other groups.
7. Finally, close by asking students to consider what they have heard and then move to a
new corner if they were swayed by another group’s arguments.
Georgia Department of Education
Georgia Department of Education Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
November 28, 2012 • Page 23 All Rights Reserved
They Say/I Say
To help students make claims about a topic they have studied, you can use templates from “They
Say/I Say” (Graff, Birkenstein, & Durst, 2011) or make up your own. Here are a few examples:
I agree that _________ because my experience ________ confirms it.
I agree that _________, a point that needs emphasizing since so many people believe
___________.
I think those who agree with the statement _________________ are mistaken because
they overlook ______________.
I disagree with the statement that _________ because __________.
Although I agree with the statement ____________ up to a point, I cannot accept the
overall conclusion that ___________.
I am of two minds about the statement that __________. On the one hand, I agree that
__________. On the other hand, I am not sure if _____________.
Georgia Department of Education
Georgia Department of Education Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
November 28, 2012 • Page 24 All Rights Reserved
Warrant Workout
The Warrant Workout helps students write papers that go beyond merely providing evidence to
support a claim: students provide explicit explanations of how their evidence supports the claim
of the argument. The workout can be completed as an outline for an argumentative essay or as a
checklist after students have written a first draft. Students could also work in groups to evaluate
how well each group member’s warrants support their claims.
My claim: __________________________________________________________________
List the quotations or examples you plan to use to support your claim above. After each, in a
sentence or two, explain how it supports your claim.
1. Supporting quotation or evidence: _________________________________
a. How it supports my claim
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
2. Supporting quotation or evidence: _________________________________
a. How it supports my claim:
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
3. Supporting quotation or evidence: _________________________________
a. How it supports my claim:
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Georgia Department of Education
Georgia Department of Education Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
November 28, 2012 • Page 25 All Rights Reserved
Literacy Strategies Embedded in Training
You can find descriptions of these and many other literacy strategies on the GaDOE literacy
wiki: literacyccgps.wikispaces.com
Possible Sentences
Goal Setting
Thinking Maps (Multi-Flow and Tree Map)
Think/Pair/Write/Share
Letter to a Confused Student
Advanced Organizer
Modeling/Think Aloud
Four Corners
Chalk Talk
Learnzillion
The Teaching Channel
LDC Resources
Sample LDC modules, the LDC Guidebook, informational videos:
www.literacydesigncollaborative.org
Literacy Strategies and Common Core information: literacyccgps.wikispaces.com
Module Creator tutorial videos: www.youtube.com/literacybytechnology
Kathy Theibes video describing how she created her economics module:
http://colegacy.org/2011/08/literacy-design-collaboration-kathy-theibes-cenntenial-school-
district-oregon/
Dan Rock: [email protected]
Your RESA Consultant: __________________________________
Georgia Department of Education
Georgia Department of Education Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
November 28, 2012 • Page 26 All Rights Reserved