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>>teacher: So yesterday we took our pretest on inheritance,
and today we're going to get started with that unit. So to
start that off, I'm going to show you a video clip.
So when I try to decide my anticipatory sets,
I try to use a variety of different strategies. One way is using
interesting video clips. And I can go on Youtube or Vimeo and find these interesting
and engaging videos. I had them watch a video on on an introductory to
genetics as a my anticipatory set 2012
get them engaged and hooked into the content, and so this was like a trailer format.
And so it got the students to really get excited about what they're about to read
which was um... inherited and genetic variation.
So today you're going to underline major points,
you're going to circle keywords or phrases.
I need to see two questions. If there is anything that surprises you,
use that exclamation mark. Okay.
Um, if you do find a connection you make those connections. As time goes on
more and more connections will be made. So if you-don't feel stressed if you can't find
any. And then an 'EX' for examples.
After the video, um, I reviewed what close reading was.
So they didn't really have a lot of experience with close reading.
In the first weeks of school we had kinda looked at close reading. Um,
We looked at what was like underlining major points, circling key words,
but that was pretty much it with a very short piece of
text that was highly engaging... just to kind of get them comfortable with the process.
some were more experience with it because of teachers they've had in the past.
Others had no experience. So this time around I really want to spend some time
on just reviewing what close reading was again, emphasizing that you read
first without doing anything to the text. And that the second time you read you're
gonna annotate.
And I added a couple new pieces, so I wanted them to continue
underlining major points, circling those key words or phrases.
But I wanted them to also ask questions. And gave them a specific number
of two questions. Only to...
hold them accountable for that piece. So rather than just one question, you know
I want two. And later on eventually I take away that number.
So during close reading, um, it is an independent task for students.
What I don't wanna do is, I don't want the students to feel as if
the way they're annotating in that portion of close reading
that it is incorrect, and that they are doing it wrong. The purpose of close
reading is to get the students to really stop and think about what they're reading.
And if they underline something that they think is a major point,
after having read very closely the text, well then they've already achieved
the purpose of close reading,
which is to really stop and think about what you're reading.
You put down what you thought were key words, you circled those.
You put down what you thought was an example. You had questions
you put those down. Right, those are your thoughts, the annotations.
So you're going to be sharing those with your partner. Not all of them.
So an important piece of close reading is having those
text dependent pieces. And one of those pieces are text dependent discussions
where students actually speak to each other about the text and
I to call-call this like sharing your thoughts.
>>student 1: For section one I put mutations are genes
changes that can result to changes in proteins.
>>teacher: That conversation piece is important because it gets
the students to reflect even more on what they had read
and builds up to that text dependent questioning piece
which...the purpose of those text dependent discussions is it
slowly builds confidence with the text. So you know,
first read is usually uncomfortable, the second read is still uncomfortable.
The text dependent discussions and then the text dependent questions it
just leads to the students becoming more and more comfortable with
the text because of that repeated, going back to the text.
Nine B, Briana? >>Briana: Some changes are beneficial
others harmful, and some neutral to the organism.
>>teacher: So after I had them share, I did randomly call on some students to
share their answers. As I go around during the text dependent discussions, I am
hearing a variety of different answers. But I also like
the students to hear other students' answers from across the room.
And for-from the reason I do it it's also an accountability piece.
So you need to be prepared with some type of answer to share.
>>student: The genes produce proteins from
which in turn give eyes their color.
What I want you guys to look at next is I want you to look at how would
I have annotated. I'm not going to go through the who thing. I'm only going to look
at section two. Don't change yours because I do something different from you.
Don't. That's not right or wrong. I just want you to watch my
thought process. Watch how I do this. How would I have taken this
text and annotate it. I'm only going to look section number two.
So I've already read it for the flow...
So I modeled the close reading because I wanted the students to see
how it could be done in one way. I could have students model
the text, um but I also if you notice I did the modeling
after...they had already close read the text. I didn't model before.
Um part of close reading, one of the big things is to
limit-have limited front loading. You wanna limit the front loading of vocabulary.
Um, and of modeling. You want the students to struggle with the text.
that's part of the learning process.
But also after they had struggled with the text I modeled it, so there was...
they can make those connections. So in this lesson after they had um
annotated and had their text dependent discussions, I just closed the
lesson with the starting of their Cornell Notes
where they were getting information from the text, the most important points and
putting that down on their notes. So the notes will be an ongoing thing
that they'll be completing. They're constantly going back and referring to the text
uh, so they'll have multiple opportunities to continue adding notes.
So on the second day for close reading what I did was that was the big
text dependent discussion piece.
What I did differently this time was I used technology
to ask my text dependent discussion. So I used NearPod,
and I had created a series of text dependent
questions that started um at a lower level of complexity and increased in complexity.
So I had originally started with
like words. Starting at the level of the word and then slowly built up
to sentence and then whole paragraph structure.
And then even at some point get into comparisons
of that text to another text. In this case it was a video.
And when the students are assessed on Common Core, they're gonna-all the
questions are text dependent. So getting to analyze text closely
in the the class, when they do get a text, let's say on Smarter Balanced,
the students are gonna have those skills to you know...
how do I look for a major point? How do I know what are some key words?
And what's going to happen is those text dependent questions are going to
be formulated around that. So if the students are used to analyzing a
text very closely, when it gets time to answering text dependent questions
they're gonna be a lot more comfortable.
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