Literacy in the Content Areas

1. Literacy in the Content Areas Dr. Jim Greenlaw St. Francis Xavier University

2. What Content Area Reading Involves • Reading in content areas, such as science, history, and social studies, implies that students can read and understand expository texts. Not only are these texts characterized by their factual information, but this information is often conveyed using multisyllabic technical words. Another common feature of expository texts is the way they are structured. For example, they may rely on cause/effect, compare-contrast, or sequencing.

3. When students read in the content areas they interact with the text before, during, and after reading. Before reading, they draw on their prior knowledge, set a purpose, and anticipate questions. During reading, they use word identification strategies (e.g., structural analysis, syllabication) to decode unfamiliar multisyllabic words and context clues to figure out the meaning of technical terms. They read between the lines to make inferences. After reading, students reflect, synthesize ideas across sources, and make further interpretations.

4. Drawing on their diverse abilities and needs, readers interact with the text on three levels. The first level is the literal level—reading and understanding the factual information in the text. The second level is inferential—reading between the lines to make sense of ideas through connecting to past experiences and knowledge. The third level is evaluation—forming conclusions and developing viewpoints based on analysis of the information.

5. Who the reader is—in terms of prior experiences, strengths, abilities, skills, needs, and difficulties—affects the individual's meaning-making process. For example, a student who has visited the Parsboro Museum and collected fossil specimens on the beach at Joggins will be able to draw on his or her prior knowledge when reading a text about the geology of Nova Scotia. If this student has read other materials about geology, then some vocabulary words might already be familiar.

6. Why Teaching Reading is Important in the Content Areas • Although content area teachers might like to assume that all students can comprehend texts, identify the words in the texts, understand the meaning of these words, use information from texts to construct knowledge, and demonstrate their understanding, this is not always the case. If students cannot read, then they are hindered in developing content area knowledge. In today's educational context, every content area teacher has a responsibility to help students successfully and productively access, read, and understand texts.

7. How to Help Students Become Strategic Readers • All content knowledge teachers can help their students become better content readers by using reading strategies. Research has shown that when students are given instruction in strategies they make significant gains on measures of reading comprehension over students trained with conventional instruction.

8. Reading strategies draw on the different approaches that good readers use to read actual text in their classrooms. These strategies include making connections, questioning, inferring, determining importance, visualizing, synthesizing, and monitoring for meaning. To help students become strategic readers, teachers can model different strategies, coach students, provide prompts, offer encouragement, and give feedback at just the right time.

25. Include questions in reading the content that include all six levels of Bloom’s taxonomy

26. Before Reading • Suggestions for teaching comprehension strategy use before reading include providing opportunities for students: • to activate their prior knowledge about the content area topic to be studied. Activities might include having students tell what they know about the topic or inviting them to discuss what they want to learn about it; • • to participate in activities, such as mapping techniques, that enable students to see relationships among their ideas about the topic; • • to participate in activities that introduce analogous material to help students make connections between the topic to be studied and their background knowledge; • • to participate in activities that develop the prerequisite background knowledge and vocabulary about content area topics. Activities might include reading materials, videos, computer databases and Web sites, and field trips;

27. to participate in vocabulary-building activities that teach students the meaning of technical words they will encounter as they read; • to preview and make predictions about the text to be read; • to examine the physical features of the text, such as different kinds of typefaces or headings and subheadings, to make predictions about what they will learn from reading; • to establish goals, or purposes for reading; • to generate questions they would like answered about the topic of the text. Students might use physical features of the text to generate questions. They might, for example turn headings into questions or question themselves about the definitions of boldface or italicized words in the text.

28. During Reading Suggestions for teaching comprehension strategy use during reading include providing opportunities for students: • to construct mental images of the content they are reading; • to reflect on and monitor their understanding of text as they read; • to participate in self-questioning activities that require them to clarify and monitor their comprehension as they proceed through text. For example, students might be taught to ask themselves questions such as, “Do I understand what I just read?”; • to participate in activities in which they respond to factual and inferential questions as they proceed through the text. To begin, teachers might provide clues about where to find the answers to these questions;

29. to participate in summarization activities that enable students to identify information pertinent to sections of text. Students can be prompted to ask themselves questions such as, “What is the most important idea about the paragraph I just read? or “What is the gist of the paragraph?”; • to keep literature logs and journals, which offer students opportunities to reflect on their reading through prediction, summarization, and interpretation; • • to apply organizational frameworks as a way to understand and remember content information; • • to complete note sheets and study guides to facilitate their understanding of text and improve their ability to deal with information presented in various expository text structures; and • • to make story maps or use other graphic organizers to help them organize information from the text.

30. After Reading Suggestions for teaching comprehension strategy use after reading include providing opportunities for students: • to review, paraphrase, summarize, and interpret text; • to participate in discussions of the main ideas of the text by summarizing or by putting information into their own words; • to answer questions that pertain both to literal and inferential comprehension of text; • to participate in small-group discussions using study guides and postreading questions; and • to present important information from the text through oral reports, visual representations, media shows, or book reviews.

31. Think Alouds • The Think Aloud is a literacy strategy designed to help students monitor comprehension and direct their thinking as they work through the problem solving process. This literacy strategy can be implemented effectively in many content areas. It is used, for instance, to demonstrate the thinking that goes into solving a math problem. Through teacher modeling, students are “talked through” the thinking processes. The teacher should keep in mind that the comments must exemplify metacognitive awareness so that each step in the process is modeled for the students. Questions are to be encouraged after the problem is solved.

32. Think Aloud Lesson • Students turn to the assigned problems for the day. • Teacher thinks aloud through 2 or 3 examples, pointing out to the students how the Think Aloud reveals how to attack and solve the problem. • Students solve each sample problem after the teacher does the Think Alouds. • Next the children try Thinking Aloud with a partner on several problems. The teacher circulates and listens to the interaction, offering suggestions and modeling for those who are having difficulty. • Finally, students work on the assigned problems using Think Aloud “silently” as they work.

33. SQRQCQ • SURVEY First, the students survey the problem rather quickly to get a general idea or understanding of it. • QUESTION Then they come up with questions — what they believe the problem is asking for. • REREAD The third step is to reread the problem to identify facts, relevant information, and details they will need to solve it. • QUESTION Now another question is formulated that focuses on what mathematical operation(s) to apply. • COMPUTE The students actually compute the answer — solving the problem. • QUESTION The question to be asked at this point involves the accuracy of the answer. Is it correct? Does the answer make sense?

34. SQ3R • Survey By surveying the chapter titles, introductory paragraphs, bold face, italicized headings, and summary paragraphs, the reader gets an overview of the material. Surveying also gives enough information to generate individual purposes for reading the text. • Question Purpose questions are often provided at the beginning of the chapter. It not, the reader can turn section headings into questions. The main objective is to have questions for which answers are expected to be found in the passage. • Read The student is to read to answer the purpose questions formulated in Step 2, Question. • Recite Student should try to answer questions without referring to the text or notes. This step helps in transferring information from short-term to long-term memory. • Review Students review the material by rereading parts of the text or notes. Students verify answers given during Step 4, Recite. This helps retain information better and gives immediate feedback.

35. Concept Maps • Concept mapping, among many other things, allows teachers and students to organize concepts and determine the relations between concepts. This enables a teacher or student to work with concepts and propositions as opposed to the rote memorization of facts. • Concept maps are both evocative and generative. That is they help evoke prior knowledge and help generate or construct new knowledge. Concept mapping is particularly useful in the science classroom. There are several steps in the construction of Concept maps.

36. Steps in Concept Map Construction 1. Select several concepts from the content material (8-12 preferable). 2. Write each concept on a separate post-it or card. 3. Select an organizing concept or main idea concept to be placed at the top of the map. 4. Arrange the other concepts in a distinct hierarchy under the organizing concept. 5. Draw lines between related concepts adding linking words that explain relationships. 6. Review and Reflect. Once satisfied with the arrangement of the concepts on the map, construct a final map.

37. Jigsaw • The Jigsaw strategy is designed for cooperative learning. The idea is analogous to a jigsaw puzzle in that “pieces” or topics of study are researched and learned by students within groups and then put together in the form of peer teaching between groups. • Students work in groups of three to six to become experts on a particular topic which is based on an overall theme or unit of study. The group members are charged with learning everything they can about their assigned topics. Each group member participates in the research efforts and becomes an “expert” on his or her particular topic. The students then leave their groups to join “expert groups” to teach about their assigned pieces of the puzzle. Then, the original group comes back together to teach each other what they have learned. Each student listens and takes notes, and at the end of the unit, is accountable for the information shared throughout the class. Instructional technology can easily be incorporated into the jigsaw strategy. Research can be accomplished via the internet on-line encyclopedias. Presentations can be developed with various software packages and enhanced with video camera pictures, student voices, music, and moving illustrations from other sources in to the presentations.

38. How to set it up 1. Divide class into 4-6 member groups; each member becomes an expert on a different topic/concept assigned by teacher. 2. Members of the teams with the same topic meet together in an expert group with a variety of resource materials and texts available to explore their topic. Also, a single reading from the textbook or another source could be used to complete the assignment. 3. The students prepare how they will teach the information to others. 4. Everyone returns to their jigsaw teams to teach what they learned to the other members. 5. Team members listen and take notes as their classmate teaches them. 6. All students are given a quiz or exam on the overall topic which as been taught in sections within each jigsaw group.

39. Cubing • This strategy was originally intended to be a writing strategy to explore topics or subjects from a variety of dimensions. A concrete visual of a cube is used to consider these multiple dimensions. • It is best to introduce the activity with a familiar topic, going through each of the steps to model their application to that particular topic. Then, students can work individually or in groups to go through each side of the cube.

40. The Six Sides of the Cube 1. Describe it (including color, shape, size (if applicable)—How would you describe the issue/topic? 2. Compare it (what it is similar to or different from)—“It’s sort of like” 3. Associate it (what it makes you think of)—How does the topic connect to other issues/subjects? 4. Analyze it (tell how it is made or what it is composed of)—How would you break the problem/issue into smaller parts? 5. Apply it (tell how it can be used)—How does it help you understand other topics/issues? 6. Argue for/against it (take a stand and support it)—I am for this because/This works because/I agree because

41. KWL • We know that successful learners link prior knowledge to new information, then reorganize it to create their own meaning and learning. KWL helps students do this—it provides a framework that students can use to construct meaning from new material. It is a literacy strategy that teachers can easily modify to meet students’ learning needs at any level and in any content area. The letters stand for the knowledge construction process that takes place: • K — What I KNOW begins with students’ prior knowledge—brainstorm and record • W — What I WANT to learn/know students articulate their own questions • L — What I LEARNED students record what they have learned

42. Journals • Allowing students to write in journals gives them the opportunity to express their own thoughts and opinions in a non-threatening arena. While the activity allows them to organize their ideas with some freedom, guidelines for how the journal is to be set up and utilized is basic to successful use of journals. Presenting a general format to follow will help to eliminate writer’s anxiety and give structure to journaling assignments. • Students are often motivated to go beyond the basic requirements of an assignment and explore other perspectives and possibilities for solutions to problems. Journal entries can be inspired by teacher prompts or student-selected topics. The information recorded in the journal can serve as a study guide or resource for other projects.

43. Observation Journal (Field Journal) • The students and the teacher should negotiate about what observations are to made, and what guidelines are to be established for recording in the journals. The format for entries, information to be included, when to record, etc., are topics that should be included in the preliminary planning for the observation journals. The students then visit the experiment and record their observations into the journal (or field notebook). • It is important to remember that journal entries do not always have to be charts or narrative writings. The use of illustrations in the journal is an effective way for students to clarify what they are reporting and is an excellent way to address different learning styles represented by students in every classroom.

44. Dialogue Journal • Dialogue journals offer an opportunity for two-way communication between teacher and student: on-going learning can take place through use of this process.

45. Assessment Journal • Students respond to teacher prompts, experiences, or self-selected topics. Illustrations may also be included. Students exchange journals between each other and critique them in a positive manner. This helps the students further understand the concepts being presented as they have an opportunity to see other student’s work, ask questions of classmates, and offer positive suggestions to each other. Peer assessment of journal writing also helps foster communication between students.

46. GIST • GIST is helpful for teachers to use when students fail to read problems carefully before attempting to solve them (Cunningham, 1982). The task is to write a summary of the problem in 12 words or less. The student identifies the 12 most important words needed to solve the problem. The words capture the “gist” of the problem. A chart may be prepared with the word problem at the top and 12 blanks below to be completed by the students. • This strategy helps students to recognize information that is not essential to solving the problem. The teacher can model the strategy, then ask students to line out information that is not necessary to solve the problem. Through the use of this strategy, the students learn to distill the essence of the problem.

47. Vocabulary Study • Vocabulary knowledge is in constant change as students encounter different uses of terminology in different contexts. In order for students to solve word problems they need to understand the vocabulary used in the problem. Some words are best learned through direct and visual experience and by making connections. An understanding of the words contained in word problems is essential to finding a solution. This literacy strategy can easily be incorporated into mathematics teaching whenever word problems are being studied. • The teacher selects words in the problem to review with the students. Words are decoded, and their use within the context of the problem is recognized. The teacher guides the students through the problem, asking questions that require the students to think about what the problem is asking. This strategy promotes the higher level thinking necessary to interpret word problems.

48. Knowledge Rating • The Knowledge Rating literacy strategy can easily be incorporated into instruction in any content area (Blachowicz, 1986). It is a pre/during/and post-reading activity. Students begin with a list of vocabulary words and corresponding columns (see sample Knowledge Rating charts). Before reading, students analyze each word and note whether the term is familiar. If the student knows the meaning of the word, a short definition is written in the appropriate column. This pre-reading activity sets the stage for further clarification of the words through discussion or reading. • Next, students skim the text to locate the words in context. The location of the word is noted for later reference (with highlighters, removable sticky strips, underlining, etc.). It is permissible to have the students highlight a form of the word, if the exact word is not found first. • After reading the text completely, the words are revisited in context, and definitions are noted for each word. Such active participation in processing vocabulary is necessary to understand the text and to help students construct meaning.

49. Writer’s Workshop • Writer’s Workshop involves use of an instructional strategy by which students are engaged, encouraged, and developed as writers and readers. Within the context of Writer’s Workshop, a variety of organizational patterns for instruction are used. A whole class session, a small group mini-lesson, or a student-teacher conference are examples of the various intraclass organizational structures. The Writer’s Workshop is devoted to supporting student learning in writing. What students need to learn during a Writer’s Workshop is based upon their present writing competencies and the English language arts standards and benchmarks for each grade level. For the majority of the time in Writer’s Workshop, students will be engaged in actual writing. This strategy may be employed over a period of several days, and has several “sub parts.”

50. Mini-lesson A mini-lesson (Calkins, 1986) provides direct instruction by the teacher which will help students independently engage in their own writing. It is a short, focused lesson about a specific writing technique which is often thought of as an opportunity for the teacher to explain and demonstrate a specific technique for improving a piece of writing. It is an invitation for students to try a particular technique in their own writing. Selection of the topic for the mini-lesson is based on students’ writing needs. A variety of topics may be selected based on the identified need in student writing as the teacher helps the writer to further refine a piece of writing. The minilesson may involve revising a piece of writing based on a need for organization and clarity, while another mini-lesson might focus on helping students generate topic ideas for one’s writing. Teachers may use the writing from one of the students in the class as the text used to discuss the mini-lesson topic. Using your student’s own writing to help other students develop their writing skills helps to build a community of writers. It is important to remember to value student ownership and seek permission to use the student’s writing prior to using it in a minilesson.