Classroom Strategies for Interactive Learning

1. Please sit with someone from your department if possible Take the strategies you would like from the table before or after we begin! Classroom Strategies for Interactive Learning Doug Buehl

2. Where do strategies fit? Instructional strategies fit in Teaching for Learner Differences with Characteristics of Effective Instruction. The objective of teaching for learner differences is to implement a process of teaching, learning, and assessment that will effectively meet the learning needs of all students so that they can acquire the essential concepts and skills of the Iowa Core.

3. Ch 2: Frontloading: Addressing knowledge Demands of Complex Texts “When students do not have the knowledge necessary to comprehend a particular text, such knowledge needs to be built; one cannot activate what is not there, and one cannot strategize about things one does not know.” From What Research Has to Say About Reading Instruction

4. Hidden Knowledge For your students, look at “What does the author assume we already know?” Proficient readers can size up a text to determine this and adjust accordingly. If the author assumes readers will know things that they do not know, a mismatch results which will frustrate your reader (p12).

5. Hidden Knowledge Can you interpret this statement? There’s a bear in a plain brown wrapper doing flip-flops on 78, taking pictures, and passing out green stamps. This is a basic sentence. The vocabulary is very simple. The readability is elementary, but perhaps your comprehension falters due to an author’s mismatch with your knowledge? This sentence will not make sense to some readers because of the confusion about the author’s message (p 13). If I had told you this was trucker talk on a CB radio, would it have helped?

6. Hidden Knowledge Two levels of knowledge: • overt display / readily apparent/ directly stated • hidden knowledge- below the surface/unstated/readers assume the responsibility to find the message (ex: draw conclusions/inferences) Cold readings- When there is no early alert about the text such as in Iowa Assessments, AIMSweb, and some of your classroom assignments or tests. But not everything has to be a cold read. In order to learn how to independently do cold reads, we must teach students how to do what good readers do by gradually releasing strategies in our instruction.

7. Hidden Knowledge “Having knowledge is one thing; using it is another. That readers often do not relate what they are reading to what they already know has prompted research about how to encourage more extensive use of prior knowledge.” From Reading Instruction that Works

8. Frontloading for Hidden Knowledge Sometimes general knowledge will not be sufficient enough to compensate for the lack of academic knowledge. Frontloading instruction- addressing knowledge demands of a text before reading- teachers can accomplish a number of important objectives (p 13-14). • discover what students already know • build relevant background • spotlight key vocabulary • ignite interest in a topic • intentionally connect their knowledge to the text • help extract relevant information

9. Frontloading Students who arrive in the classroom with rich reservoirs of academic knowledge tend to have grown up with more firsthand experiences such as the following: visiting museums, art galleries, plays, concerts, travel opportunities, interactions with knowledgeable adults, and access to print as well as other sources such as the internet. Students who don't have these experiences depend on frontloading practices to prepare for reading and learning content information.

10. Caveat Regarding Frontloading An important thing to remember regarding frontloading is that the intention is NOT to tell the students what they should learn through the reading which renders the actual reading unnecessary. Don’t do the work (the comprehension or thinking) for them. Instead, focus on what the author expects readers to already know and what the author does not tell them. Focus on the words and concepts that are essential to a basic understanding and the students are not likely to know or be able to determine from the context. The purpose of frontloading is not to replace reading, but to prepare students to further their knowledge and delve deeper into concepts through the reading (p 15-16).

11. Strategies General Application: • K-W-L (plus), (K-C-M) • Brainstorming Prior Knowledge with an Alphabet Chart • Analogy Chart • Anticipation Guide • Connect Two • Vocabulary Surveys (Classification Chart) Specific Classes: • Literature Character Quotes • Math Reading Keys • Science Connection Overview • History Change Frame

12. Know, Confirmed, Mistaken • KWL with Text Evidence • Supports the idea of Claim, Support, Evidence • Can be utilized across Contents

13. Alphabet Chart • Connect a Concept or Vocab Word to Letter • Can Be Utilized to Frontload or Review • Students Can Add Just the Vocab Word • Extend: Write Sentence with Vocab/Concept Explanation

14. Anticipation Guide • Survey Knowledge on Concepts or Themes • Allows Room for Pre-/Post- Assessment • Apply Claim, Reasoning, Evidence • Utilize Across All Content Areas

15. Vocabulary Classification • Classify by any category (Part of Water Cycle, Time in History, etc.) • Teacher-Determined Categories • Pre-Assessment for Student Vocabulary Knowledge • Provide Students with Word Bank for Vocabulary in the Unit/Chapter

16. Vocabulary Classification Word Bank: • air pressure - condensation - barometer - front • altitude - forecast - longitude - humidity • cumulous - rain gauge - stratus - evaporation

17. Resources Doug Buehl graphic organizers- http://teach.clarkschools.net/jbernhard/literacy_web/LitDocsJennifer/Reading_Strategies_Reproducibles_Buehl.pdf

18. Exit Slip and Next Time • Next Time- November 10, Application Sessions • Then, MORE Strategies! Focus on questioning for understanding If there is anyone with a great strategy idea that has worked in your room and would like to share it in a TQ session, please let me know! We can set up a time for you to lead a session! • Exit Slip- http://goo.gl/forms/IFnEqVptDZ

20. Constructing Meaning from Complex Texts Comprehension is achieved when readers actively create meaning. The interactions with the following four conditions determine what meaning a reader will construct from a text (Finish Ch 1- p 6): • What the reader brings to the reading situation (the reader) • The characteristics of the written text (the text) • The activity that defines the task and purpose of the reader (the activity) • The context within which the reading occurs (the context)