Introduction

This is the compiled list of literacy strategies to satisfy the Best Practices Handbook requirements for our Education 316 course composed by Shaquavia Chiles, Chrysalis Bridges, Ethan Ramsey, and Cameron Freeman.

Enjoy!

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.10

Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.

Strategy: Jigsaws. Reading Rockets. (Bridges)

Detailed Description: Students are divided into groups within a classroom. These primary groups are called “home groups” and divided into 1’s, 2’s, 3’s, & 4’s or A’s, B’s, C’s and D’s.Each letter/number is given a specific topic that makes up a broader subject: an artist in a specific time period, the different habits of animals in a region, etc. that they are have to become “experts” on. These “experts” meet together to compare and exchange notes on their topic. They then have travel back to their home group and explain the topic that they became an expert in. Each letter/number has to share their information with their home groups. It makes students responsible for their learning and encourages cooperation and coordination between students.

Practical Application: In a music class, students would be assigned a specific composer to research in a “home” group. Then they will meet with members from the other groups and teach the other members about the composer which they researched. After mastering the material from all groups, students return to their “home” groups and all work together so that all students understand the material from all groups.

TRAP: The jigsaw method has been used for over four decades. It was developed by Elliot Aronson at the University of Texas and the University of California. Elliot Aronson is an American psychologist. He is listed among the 100 most eminent psychologists of the 20th Century and is best known for the invention of the Jigsaw Classroom as a method of reducing interethnic hostility and prejudice.

Aronson, E. (2000-2008). Jigsaw Classroom: Overview of the Technique.

Strategy: Read, Rate, and Repeat Strategy (Freeman)

Detailed Description:The goal of this strategy is to get students to read the text multiple times. Each time they read they read the text, they will rate how well they understand the text on a scale of 1-10. This strategy can also be used to determine the meaning of the text.

Practical Application: Students can read a book or an excerpt, they can talk together as a group, or individually, and rate their understanding of the passage. They need to consider their ability to read and understand the passage, vocabulary, and the main idea of the passage.

TRAP: The article was published in 2012. This strategy is relevant because I would need to know whether or not a student understood what he or she read. The article was written for those who are interested in learning new ways to check for understanding. The purpose of the strategy is to check for comprehension.

Common core teaching and learning strategies. (2012, May 1). Retrieved February 22, 2015, from http://www.isbe.net/common_core/pdf/ela-teach-strat-read-text-6-12.pdf

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.9

Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.

Strategy: Think-Pair-Share (Bridges)

Detailed Description: Think-Pair-Share is a collaborative learning strategy in which students work together to answers questions about an assigned reading(s). This technique requires students to (1) think individually about a topic or answer to a question, and (2) share ideas with classmates. Discussing answers with a partner serves to maximize participation, focus attention and engage students in comprehending the reading material.

Practical Application: Half of the students in a class are assigned a text while the other half are assigned a different text. As/after they read, they answer questions relating to the topics of the text and the author’s point of view. Then, students are paired with someone with the opposite text and switch. They answer similar questions related to the other text. They then go back to the student with whom they switched texts and discuss how the texts are similar in the subject of the texts as well as the author’s approach to the subjects. They record their findings on paper and share aloud with the rest of the class.

TRAP: This strategy is included in Instruction: A Models Approach, written in 1999 by Thomas Estes, Susan Mintz, and Mary Alice Gunter. The strategy makes instructional models clear and relevant for readers by placing them within a standards-based and instructional aligned process. The authors support the instructional model of Think-Pair-Share by applying current research and evidence-based practice to the preparation of objectives, differentiation practices, and assessment options. It may be applied in both elementary and secondary classes in a variety of content areas.

Estes, T., Gunter, M. A., and Mintz, S. (1999). Instruction: a models approach. Allyn and Bacon: Boston, MA.

Strategy:Comparison Matrix (Freeman)

Detailed Description:Students will be asked to create a chart that they have to label. Students will have subjects or categories on the top row of boxes. Then characteristics or details down the left side of the boxes. Then the students fill in what is similar and then corresponds information such as themes and topics.

Practical Application: While discussing a topic, students can use a matrix, or some other form of an organizer, to list out two different thoughts or theories. The students will then be able to see the similarities and differences between the thoughts and be able to debate or write a paper defending one side or the other.

TRAP: The comparison matrix strategy is a useful tool that allows students to see information in another way, outside of PowerPoints or jumbled notes. They can sift through a text, and write the important things down. It eliminates students writing down information that they don’t need.

(n.d.) Retrieved February 22, 2015, from http://www.sde.ct.gov/sce/lib/sde/pdf/curriculum/section7.pdf

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.8

Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.

Strategy: Question the Author (Bridges)

Detailed Description: Questioning the author engages students actively with a text by encouraging students to ask questions of the author and the text. Through forming their questions, students learn more about the text. It teaches students to evaluate the topic of the text as well as the style of writing.

Practical Application: The students are assigned a passage of nonfiction text to read. The text should be interesting and should have a clear argument/point that the author is trying to make/prove. At specified stopping points within the text, students pause their reading and answer questions. These would include: What point is the author trying to make here? What does the author say that leads you to believe that point is true? Could you argue something different than what the author is writing? How would you support your argument? Answers are shared in small groups of 4-6.

TRAP: This strategy is cited in Questioning the author: An approach for enhancing student engagement with text, written in 1997 by Isabel Beck, Margaret McKeown, Rebecca Hamilton, and Linda Kucan. They purport that when students read in a QtA lesson, they learn to question the ideas presented in the text while they are reading, making them thinkers, not just readers. The authors analyze the transcripts of actual class discussions to show the important tools that differentiate QtA from other approaches to reading comprehension and engagement.

Beck, I., Hamilton, R., Kucan, L., and McKeown, M. (1997). Questioning the author: An approach for enhancing student engagement with text. Newark, Delaware: International Reading Association.

Strategy:Stopping Points (Freeman)

Detailed Description: The teacher will give students sticky notes at the beginning of the class and ask the students to read a section. While they are silently reading, they need to place a sticky note in the text next to where they could pick out or evaluate specific claims that they think are confusing or need help understanding.

Practical Application: If students are required to read a lengthy passage, the teacher could provide stopping points. At these strategic points, the teacher can open a discussion that would cover what they have read up to that point, anything that they are still having troubles with, and if any connections can be made to help them better understand what they are reading.

TRAP: The article was written in 2005. The stopping points strategy is relevant because it is important for kids to understand what they are reading, and even why they are reading it. The audience for this article would be teachers who have students who may struggle with comprehending large passages, or for those who would like another strategy to improve student’s reading comprehension skills. The purpose of this strategy is to improve comprehension and their overall understanding of a passage.

Tankersley, K., & Association for Supervision and Curriculum, D. (2005). Literacy strategies for grades 4-12: reinforcing the threads of reading. Alexandria, Va: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.7

Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse media and formats, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words.

Strategy: Visual imagery. (Bridges)

Detailed Description:Visual imagery involves students creating an image about the text which they are reading. Creating mental images while reading can improve comprehension.

Practical Application: In an elementary classroom setting (third or fourth grade), the teacher reads a portion of a text aloud. The teacher instructs the students to draw a mental image of what is occurring in the text. Students then form pairs and share their own visual images relating to the text. They verbally describe how their picture relates to the text. An alternative method would be to have students draw or create an image on a technological device, such as an iPad.

TRAP: The visual imagery strategy has been cited in numerous journals and books including Comprehension Instruction by Cathy Block and Sherri Parris in 2008. The strategy is designed to integrate technology and reading comprehension. It is especially effective when working with students with dyslexia or English Language Learners. The purpose of the strategy is to stimulate students’ comprehension and memories of the details of a text.

Strategy: Readers Theater. (Freeman)

Detailed Description: Readers theater is exactly what is sounds like. Students create a skit or play and act out whatever they have read or are currently reading. They are not required to use props or multiple people, but they may if they would like to. It is meant to be a small, engaging activity to assist in comprehension and to get students physically active.

Practical Application: In a 1st or 2nd-grade language arts classroom, students could get in groups and create props that they deem necessary to act out “The Hungry Caterpillar”. They could then use these props to act out the story. This activity would help them with comprehension, sequence of events, and summarizing. It would also build creativity and cooperation with other students. This activity could be used in any grade level and it could be revamped to fit all classrooms. For example, in a middle or high school classroom, students could choose a passage out of a novel that they are reading, and create a skit that visualizes that passage. This would be a great activity to consider for texts that are hard to comprehend to most students.

TRAP: This method was found on the Connecticut State Department of Education’s website under section 7 of their curriculum guide. The purpose of this specific section is to provide teachers with “instructional strategies that facilitate literacy across content areas”.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.6

Assess how point of view or purpose shapes the content and style of a text.

Strategy: Exit Slip (Bridges)

Detailed Description: Exit slips encourage students to answer a critical thinking question and to reflect on what they have learned. They also provide teachers feedback on how well students have understood a lesson. These can be used to guide the next lesson and tell teachers what they need to revisit and what the students have completely grasped.

Practical Application: At the end of a lesson about the author’s background and purpose for writing The Kite Runner, high school students complete an exit slip that addresses one thing that they learned in the lesson as well as one question that they have concerning the lesson.

TRAP: This strategy was published in Improving Adolescent Literacy  by Douglas Fisher and Nancy Frey in 2011. It was written to give teachers and teacher candidates the tools they need to help all students work toward mastery of literacy and comprehension of content area texts. It explains how exit slips can be used in a variety of ways including individually, in pairs or groups, verbally, in writing, etc.

Fisher, D. and Frey, N. (2011). Improving Adolescent Literacy. Boston, MA: Pearson.

Strategy:  Question and Answer Relationship (Freeman)

Detailed Description:Using questions to gain a deeper understanding of the book. Teachers ask students questions that relate to their reading and the students answer the teacher. Then, after some time, the students will ask the questions.

Practical Application: The teacher can ask a question or a series of questions that pertain to the reading that was done. The student’s response, whether orally or through writing, will show the teacher how well they know the information. Critical thinking questions can be used to check for a deeper understanding of a text.

TRAP: This strategy is relevant because it allows teachers to see if their students are understanding a text. New teachers can read this article and see why current teachers use this strategy. The article is written for new teachers with the purpose of understanding why this strategy is so frequently used in the classroom. 
(n.d.) Retrieved March 1, 2015, from http://www.sde.ct.gov/sce/lib/sde/pdf/curriculum/section7.pdf

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.5

Analyze the structure of texts, including how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of the text (e.g., a section, chapter, scene, or stanza) relate to each other and the whole.

Strategy: Cooperative Learning (Bridges)

Practical Application: In groups of 4, students will be assigned to analyze portions of a text. Students will act out their portion of the text. They will also be required to collaborate with the group who is analyzing and acting out the following portion, in order to assure that the two flow together. In doing so, students will have a hands-on opportunity to see how portions of a text relate to each other.

TRAP:  Identifying similarities and differences is a strategy from the book Classroom Instruction that Works: Research-based Strategies for Increasing Student Achievement. It was published in 2001 and written by Robert Marzano, Debra J. Pickering, and Jane E. Pollock. The book is designed specifically for busy educators that desire to apply education research within the classroom. The authors examined decades of research findings to distil the results into nine broad teaching strategies that have positive effects on student learning.

Marzano, R., Pickering, D., and Pollock, J. (2001.) Classroom Instruction that Works: Research-based Strategies for Increasing Student Achievement. Alexandria, VA: McREL.

Strategy: Chapter Tour (Freeman)

Detailed Description:Students can flip through the chapter, looking at pictures, captions, and the title of major sections in the chapter. This will give the students a preview of the chapter and aid in comprehension and construct meaning.

Practical Application: Before reading a chapter, the students can skim through it and see if there is any vocabulary, headings, and pictures that stick out. Then they can talk about what they might expect from the chapter, and make a KWL chart.

TRAP: The strategy is relevant because by giving an insight to the chapter before it starts, the students can prepare for what’s to come and can set goals for themselves. The students can also have questions that they would like to have answered from the chapter. The audience is teachers who are looking for new, effective strategies to incorporate into their literacy time at school. The purpose of the strategy is to improve their understanding of a topic by allowing them to see it once before they read the chapter in more detail.

n.d.) Retrieved February 22, 2015, from http://www.sde.ct.gov/sce/lib/sde/pdf/curriculum/section7.pdf