NC Public Schools Ready for SuccessEQuIP Collaborative Educators Evaluating Quality Instructional Products

Shift OneBuilding knowledge through content-rich

nonfiction and informational texts:This shift plays an essential role in literacy. In K-5, the standards require a 50-50 balance between informational and literary reading. Informational reading primarily includes content rich non-fiction in history/social studies, science and the arts; the K-5 standards strongly recommend that students build coherent general knowledge.

Examples of what you willobserve in the classroom.….

Shift One:• Elementary teachers instructing with and students reading from informational texts fifty percent of the time.

Shift Two:Reading and writing grounded in

evidence from the text:The standards place a premium on students writing to sources, i.e., using evidence from texts to present careful analyses, well-defended claims, and clear information. Rather than asking students questions they can answer solely from their prior knowledge or experience, the standards expect students to answer questions that depend on their having read the text or texts with care. The standards also require the cultivation of narrative writing throughout the grades, and in later grades a command of sequence and detail will be essential for effective argumentative and informational writing. Students should read like a detective and write like an investigative reporter.

Examples of what you willobserve in the classroom.….Shift Two:• Teachers asking questions that make it necessary for students to return to the text to find answers and evidence to support their ideas.• Students reading text closely to findevidence and draw inferences.• Students supporting opinions withevidence from the text.

Shift Three:Regular practice with complex

text and its academic vocabulary:Rather than focusing solely on the skills of reading and writing, the standards highlight the growing complexity of the texts. The standards build a staircase of text complexity so that all students are ready for the demands of college- and career-level reading no later than the end of high school. Teachers provide scaffolds that enable all students to experience rather than avoid the complexity of a text. Closely related to text complexity―and inextricably connected to reading comprehension―is a focus on academic vocabulary: words that appear in a variety of content areas (such as reality and rotate).

Examples of what you willobserve in the classroom.….• Students grappling with challenging,

rich text – often independently.• Teachers discussing academic

vocabulary with students.

Depending on the difficulties of a given text and the teacher’s knowledge of the fluency abilities of students, the order of the student silent read and the teacher reading aloud with students following might be reversed .

Academic vocabulary could be introduced as the teacher reads aloud or as part of a brief introduction to the text.

A Composition for Lesson Design

1.Briefly introduce text (i.e. draw attention to time period, author etc.) then have students read text silently.

2. Teacher reads the text aloud to students as they follow and draws attention to academic vocabulary.

3. Students reread the text independently or with a partner and summarize (rehearsal / partner reading).

4.Teacher asks a series of text dependent questions about the selection.

•These questions can only be answered by referring explicitly back to the text being read.

•Good questions often linger over specific phrases and sentences to ensure careful comprehension of the text.

•These questions serve as scaffolding, sustaining focus.

5.Allow opportunities for text-based writing. Returning students to the text as evidence as well as using the text as a guide or mentor text.

This lesson…

•allows the mystery and the adventure of the text to unfold,•chunks the text in a meaningful way,•includes scaffolding that doesn’t simplify the text and asks questions that require evidence,•and provides keen focus on paragraphs, sentences, and words.

What is the Tri-State Quality Rubric?

1.It is a rubric used to evaluate lessons that include instructional activities and assessments aligned to the CCSS that may extend over a few class periods or days AND to evaluate units that include integrated and focused lessons aligned to the CCSS that extend over a longer period of time.

2. The primary purpose of the Quality Review process is to provide specific input for the improvement of instructional materials so that teaching and learning are aligned with the CCSS.

Note: The Tri-State Rubrics and DPI do not require a specific template for lesson or unit design. The Rubrics are not designed to evaluate a single task.

Four dimensions:I. Alignment to the rigors of the CCSS

II. Key areas of focus in the CCSS (the “shifts”)

III. Instructional Supports

IV. Assessment

Understanding Quality:EQuIP

http://vimeo.com/46694757

Quality Review RubricAssignment:In your table talk group, review the rubric.Then discuss the following questions: How will this help to create better lessons? What do you think will be the most difficult

key area of focus to address?Record your responses on chart paper. Select a presenter and be prepared to share.

The Long Night of the Little Boats

Read the selection. When finished, compare the selection to

the rubric. Table talk Question: How would using

the rubric enhance the quality of instruction?

Teacher Lesson ReviewCompare your lesson plan to the rubric.Use these steps to complete your rubric:1.Record the grade and title2.Scan the lesson3.Identify the grade-level standards4.Study and measure the text(s) used in the lesson5.Analyze the lesson for evidence of the dimensions6.Check the box for each criteria met or make suggestions for improvements

Explore Tagul

http://tinyurl.com/9e57qo4

Aligning Instruction:Key Considerations for Quality

ELA Lessons and Units1. Standard Focus Focus on a targeted integrated set of grade-level standards. The idea is to go “deeper with fewer”.

2. Standards Alignment Make sure the lesson is tightly aligned to the standards listed. The entire standard needs to be addressed.

3. Complex Texts Texts align with the complexity requirements as outlined in Reading Standard 10.

4. Close Reading Lessons include opportunities to examine a portion of a text closely.

5. Text-Dependent Questions Use text-dependent questions that require students to read the text and return to the textfor evidence.

6. Terminology Use the language of the new standards. Example:Standard ― [RI. 6.3] Analyze in detail how a key individual, event, or idea is introduced,illustrated, and elaborated in a text – e.g., through examples or anecdotes.

Task ― Students analyze in detail how the early years of Harriet Tubman (as related by authorAnn Petry) contributed to her later becoming a conductor on the Underground Railroad, attending to how the author introduces, illustrates, and elaborates upon the events in Tubman’s life.

7. Writing from Sources Students are asked to return to the text for evidence to inform, explain, or make an argument.

8. Assessment Assessments determine the level of mastery of the standards taught.

9. Academic Vocabulary Select Tier 2 words are taught deeply.

10. Differentiation Lessons include a plan for differentiation to ensure success for all students. Scaffolding provides temporary guidance/assistance for task completion

Empowerment in implementation means knowing what to keep and what to let go. Shoulders can quickly get heavy in education. It can feel like every new idea is added to the heap of “everything to accomplish in a single day.” In order to implement the Core with success we’ll not only need to make sense of what it is, but we’ll also need to empower ourselves to determine what we let go of. Whether we decide to let go of a textbook we’ve always taught from in favor of a primary text or to keep the narrative piece of writing that sparks creativity in our students, we must remember that when our choices are purposeful we’ll find ways to intersect the Common Core Standards with the integrity of our classrooms. -Sarah Wessling's Top Ten Common Core Insider Secrets