Another Great List of Literature Discussion Guidelines from Linda Dorn

The goal of literature discussion groups is to promote deeper comprehension through interactive dialogue and conversational moves to keep the discussion in motion.  In the past, before we knew better, teachers  lead literature discussions and asked all the questions.  Now, because of research, we know it's best for students to actively participate in discussions, ask questions, make inferences, provide evidence from the text, offer opinions, and more.  When students discuss a book or piece of text in depth, the gain a deeper understanding of the text.

Remember literature discussion guidelines will start small.  Focus on a few behaviors at the beginning and add more guidelines as the school year progresses.

LITERATURE DISCUSSION GUIDELINES
by Linda Dorn

Be prepared:

• Bring your book and other needed materials to the discussion.
• Your book is flagged with places you want to talk about.

Actively participates:

• Look at the person who is talking.
• Listen to the person who is talking.
• Find the page someone is talking about.

Gives evidence from the text:

• Using events, characters, phrases, etc. in your log entry to support your thinking.

Stay on topic:

• Talk about the book - don't start talking about things that are not related to the book.

Listens carefully:

• Show that you are listening by looking at the person and expressing your interest in what they are saying.
• Show respect.

Offers opinion or builds on others' thinking:

• When someone talks, you build on what they are saying.

Uses response language:

• You say something to add your thinking to others.

Asks questions for clarification:

• You ask questions if you don't understand what someone has said.

Making Reading and Writing Relevant to Students

Have we said lately what awesome teachers we have in Nixa?  Here's another example of how our teachers make reading and writing relevant to students.  Cindy Enlow's 2nd graders wanted a class pet, but they didn't get one just because they wanted one.  Back in September, these second graders began earning 100 class compliments to get their class pet.  When the students were within reach of meeting their 100 class compliments goal, the work for their class pet of choice, guinea pigs, was just beginning.  

First, these eager-to-be pet owners  researched 2 different sources from their classroom's website:  

• https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/small-pet-care/guinea-pig-care
• http://www.wikihow.com/Care-for-Guinea-Pigs

They read to find out about a guinea pigs' diet and what kind of shelter is best for this mammal.  The students learned about different types of lettuce and which ones were most nutritious for guinea pigs, and they had to figure out if their classroom would be a good habitat for guinea pigs. They also learned about a guinea pig's general care and what supplies were needed to take good care of a guinea pig.  They learned how to take notes while reading for information.

After researching, the students wrote a friendly letter to their parents to inform them about the ins and outs of guinea pig ownership.  Students used their research notes to compose their informative letters.  They shared their friendly letters with their parents explaining what they learned from their research before the break.  Did you know that guinea pigs should eat romaine lettuce rather than iceberg lettuce?  It's true.  Guinea pigs don't produce vitamin C, so it's good to feed them foods high in vitamin C.  Romaine lettuce happens to be high in vitamin C.

When students came back from Christmas break, Mr. Enlow had a surprise waiting for them.  The Century second graders were the proud owners of three guinea pigs named Blondie, Tuco, and Angel Eyes.  They were named after the main characters in Mr. Enlow's favorite western.   Since then, second graders have been feeding and cleaning up after their new, little friends. Mrs. Enlow's students absolutely love their new classroom pets, and they have become very responsible pet owners. They love holding the guinea pigs and reading to them to tame them.  Students can also use their PBIS signatures to spend time with the guinea pigs.

At parent/teacher conferences, many parents thanked Mrs. Enlow for teaching their students about responsibility in such a relevant way.  This is just one example of how Nixa teachers go above and beyond everyday to make learning relevant for students.  Thank you Nixa educators for the great job you do!  

   

What to Expect from the ELA Smarter Balanced Test

It's the question everyone really wants to know.  We've never seen this test before.  What should we expect?  

Smarter Balanced has published "Stimulus Specifications" that may give us a clearer picture of what our students can expect to see.

Students in K-5 apply the Reading standards to the following range of text types, with texts selected from a broad range of cultures and periods.

Because students have a limited amount of time to complete an assessment, expecting them to read and comprehend lengthy texts is unrealistic.  The table below presents minimum and maximum word counts for texts to be used in Smarter Balanced items/tasks.  Short texts contain 75% or less of the maximum number of words allowed in long texts.

Lexile levels for Common Core State Standards grade bands are shown in the following chart.

TEXT COMPLEXITY

Text complexity consists of three equally important parts:

Qualitative dimensions of text complexity refer to those aspects best measured or only measurable by an attentive human reader, such as levels of meaning or purpose; structure; language conventionality and clarity; and knowledge demands.

Quantitative dimensions of text complexity refer to those aspects such as word length or frequency, sentence length, and text cohesion, that are difficult, if not impossible, for a human reader to evaluate efficiently, especially in long texts, and are thus today typically measured by computer software.

Reader and task considerations take into account variables specific to particular readers (such as motivation, knowledge, and experiences) and to particular tasks (such as purpose and the complexity of the task assigned and the questions posed).  Such assessments are best made by teachers employing their professional judgment, experience, and knowledge of their students and the subject.

The following rubric is used for examining literary texts:

 

Below is an example worksheet of literary text complexity analysis.  Following the example are options for worksheets to use to determine text complexity.

 

Analysis worksheet from Kylene Beers and Robert Probst's Notice and Note 

Analysis worksheet from PARCC online

The following rubric is used for examining informational texts:

Teaching Channel offers a glimpse into assessing text complexity: