Monday, 4 April 2016

1. Monday, 4 April 2016 You will need a writing utensil and your AR book today  Today you will take an ISTEP-style test to measure your reading comprehension and literature skills using a NEW text. This will help us see how you have progressed in your understanding of key Language Arts concepts and identify areas where we might need to do a little reteachingand extra practice in the coming weeks. To get ready for your test, work with your table group to generate a list of helpful reading and test-taking strategies that you could use today and on your upcoming ISTEP test. Choose a scribe, discuss with your group, and be ready to share!

2. Helpful Strategies Preview Questions Read (and reread!) Annotate Boom Eliminate Context Clues Inferences Evidence—Refer back to the text

3. Today’s Tasks • Complete the READING AND LITERARY SKILLS TEST. Feel free to annotate your text, but write all answers ONLY on your answer sheet. • When you finish, staple your answer sheet to the front of your copy of the story. TURN IN YOUR TEST COPY AND YOUR ANSWER SHEET with READING to the front. • Return to your seat and work on AR READING and quizzing with remaining time in class. Good luck and good thinking! Show off your BEST work! 

4. Tuesday, 5 April, 2016 Pick up today’s assignment sheet on the front cart, complete section 1 by brainstorming the differences between fiction and nonfiction. Think about the following: How are they defined? How might the skills we have worked with change among them (summarizing, theme..etc.) What are some nonfiction skills we might need to brush up on to enhance our skills?

5. Difference in Fiction and Nonfiction Summary? A summary is a STILL a brief or condensed account covering the substance or main points of another work. It both shortens and rephrases the original. Fictional Work summaries include the basic plot elements(setting, characters, conflict, resolution) in chronological order, but nonfiction doesn’t work the same. A nonfiction summary should include the following: • Title and Author • Main topic and important details • Transitional phrases/terms • Your own words with few to no quotations (if necessary) • No biased opinion  especially in an argumentative piece. • Highlighted details about any subsections. • Exclude small details (examples, illustrations, or major explanations)

6. Nonfiction Summary Topic Sentence (SAAC) Now, create your own summary with your group with your article. Follow the directions at the top of your page. One person must write on the table paper, while the rest write in the chart on your notesheet.

7. Is it an effective summary? Complete the following gallery walk with these expectations: Bring your paper and pencil with you. Copy down the title of the article Read over the summary written by the group. Are you left with questions that the article should have covered? What are they?What did they do well?What could they improve on? How does this compare to yours? Remember a Gallary Walk is silent and quick. Get to the point. Jot down what you need and keep moving. After seeing multiple examples, take one last opportunity to improve your own. Add what you are missing. Change what you need to. Then, turn it in. The person that wrote it for the table, should staple their copy to their note sheet after the walk is finished.

8. Finish it up  Exit Ticket Summer Bridge The storm that blew through Wichita, Kansas, last night dropped buckets of rain before turning more severe. Between 9 PM and 1 AM, Wichita Airport reported six inches of rain. Reports from residents in surrounding counties recorded the rainfall up as high as eight inches in the same time period. Reports of tornados were not correct. However, very strong winds were experienced all over the area. Around 11 PM, some residents on the western edge of the city reported large hail. The hail was originally reported to be the size of dimes or nickels. Within an hour, reports were received describing hail the size of golf balls or tennis balls. Millions of dollars in damage are expected to be announced. This includes hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses at several local car dealerships. 1. Which of the following best summarizes the passage? A. A severe storm in Wichita, Kansas, last night brought strong wind, rain, and hail that caused millions of dollars in damage. B .The severe storm last night in Wichita, Kansas, brought hail that caused millions of dollars in damage and reports of tornadoes that were not correct. C. The severe storm that struck Wichita, Kansas, last night dropped between six and eight inches of rain and caused millions of dollars in damage. D. Last night's severe storm caused millions of dollars in damage including hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage at local car dealerships. 2. Which of these is the best summary of the first paragraph? A. Between 9 PM and 1 AM, areas around Wichita, Kansas, received as much as eight inches of rain. B. The severe storm in Wichita, Kansas, last night brought strong winds but no tornadoes. C. A severe storm last night in Wichita, Kansas, dropped a lot of rain and brought strong winds. D. A severe storm brought between six and eight inches of rain to Wichita, Kansas. Complete the remaining questions before you leave and turn it in.

9. Wednesday, 6 April, 2016 Today we will take a close look at the Central Idea in nonfiction text. In order to identify and analyze the central idea, we need to dig deeper into an author’s purpose and supporting details. Only then, will you find the “goldmine” in the piece. To begin, pick up today’s bell work practice assignment on the front cart, complete the 6 problems by analyzing the author’s purpose of each small description. Once it is identified, explain your reasoning in the box provided. Be ready to share.

10. Determining Central Ideas in Nonfiction • The main idea of an entire nonfiction text or thekey point the author wants to make. • All details in each paragraph may develop an independent central idea, but working together they will serve the larger purpose of developing the central idea of the whole work. • Stated vs. Implied • The central idea is stated directly, typically at the beginning of the piece (think thesis statements). It may even be in the title. • The central idea is not stated but implied. Instead the central idea is revealed through connections between details in the work. • Nonfiction works develop central ideas through the use of supporting details.

11. Central Idea Statement Example: The central idea of “Park on Elmstreet,” by Joe Schmoe is that our town should build a skate park for skateboarders.

12. Determining Central Ideas in Nonfiction • All the details in the text develop and support the central idea through various methods: • Statements of Fact: statements that can be proven true. • Ex: “Milkweed is the major food source for Monarch butterflies.” • Statistics: facts or data of a numerical kind that have been collected and analyzed. • Ex: “Sixty-four percent of the students polled said they did not know how to cook.” • Expert Testimony: information comes from a recognized authority on a subject or topic. • Ex: “Professor Gordon, a Vermeer expert, said the painting was a fraud.” • Examples: illustrate a general concept or point by providing specific instances or examples. • Ex: “There are many non-meat sources of protein–for example, nuts, beans, and grains.”

13. Continued… • Firsthand Accounts: description of an event from eyewitnesses, or people who saw it firsthand. • Ex: “The security guard said no one entered the building after 6 p.m.” • Personal Experience: reports of the author’s own experiences, used to illustrate a point (directly from the author). • Ex: “I had run marathons before, so I knew what to expect.” • Anecdote: stories that make a point. • Ex: “To show the importance of following directions, my dad told me the story of the time he tried to make a cake without a recipe.” • Analogies: comparisons that clarify a point. • Ex: “Singing is like playing a sport. Both require consistent practice.”

14. Central Idea + Purpose • How a text’s central idea is developed is directly related to the author’s purpose, or reason for writing. • Example: To inform, to persuade, to entertain Rockclimbing is dangerous. Angle Purpose • Include facts about accidents. • Add arguments about the need for safety. • Include comical details about a rock climbing experience. To inform To persuade To entertain

15. Let’s try it together Mow-Rons - Saving a City Start with jotting any notes from the video, to put together a statement when it’s finished. Complete the following central idea statement based on what you see in the video. • The central idea of “New Orleans Teen is a Cut-Up” by CBS News is that ________________________________. • Throughout the broadcast, the author discusses ____(supporting details)_____. • The author also points out that ___(supporting details)_______. • Clearly, _________(conclusion)_______________________.

16. The City Park Mow-Rons Class Example • The central idea of “New Orleans Teen is a Cut-Up” by CBS News is that anyone, at any age, can make a difference to a community. • Throughout the broadcast, the author discusses that the boy, Jack, volunteers his own time out of his own free will in order to make this park a better place for the community. • The interviewer also points out that, “he mows…all morning,” because no one else would do it after the natural disaster. • Clearly, the interviewer wants viewers to see how the importance of Jack’s volunteering in fixing this park is helpful to the community and could be leading by example.

17. Your turn: • Download the Central Idea Article from my class website under Class Readings/Downloads. • Read the following article and annotate for the CENTRAL IDEA. Highlight key details that support this topic. Statements of Fact Firsthand Accounts Statistics Personal Experience Expert Testimony Anecdote Examples Analogies • Then, complete the following directions on your note sheet to identify the author’s purpose and complete a central idea statement using supporting evidence for support.

18. Thursday, 7 April, 2016 Unfortunately, we live in a world where everything you read is not the truth. The internet, especially, is full of lies and information that take away from the major purpose of our research. Our job as educated learners and researchers, is to know a credible and reliable source from the not so trustworthy, is to weed out the irrelevant information from the hard facts we need to know, and to USE and be familiar with the sources we know will provide an accurate and reliable perspective to our studies. Turn in your homework from yesterday! In your group, skim the article on your table. There is ONE piece of irrelevant information in every paragraph. Identify the information that doesn’t fit the BEST and underline it. Then, in bullet points explain how credible this source is or how not credible.What do you already know about strong researching skills?

19. Internet Books/Text Wading Through the Web How can we compare and contrast the Internet and books or other texts and their use? Can you think of any ways they are different? The same? • Anyone can publish a Web page • No one checks to see if the information is true or false • There are millions of places to look for information • Using the Internet is much quicker • You can narrow down what you’re looking for more easily • The Internet uses search engines • A book has to be published by a publishing company • Editors check and verify the information • Looking for a book can be more time consuming • You have to visit a library • The library uses the Dewey Decimal System • Both provide sources of information • Both are viewed by millions of people each day

20. Wading Through the Web A Search Engine is a program that allows you to search the Internet for information. There are many search engines on the World Wide Web. You might have heard of search engines like Google, Yahoo!, or MSN. While, popular they should not be trusted ALONE! • .Regular Search Engines vs. Other Search Engines • A regular search engine, like Google or Yahoo!, searches the Internet based on a given search term. • For example, typing “Vasco da Gama” into Google will give you 23,400,000 “hits” or sites to visit for information. • Type the same term into Yahoo!, and you come up with 2,500,000 hits. • Other searches can streamline or divide your search. • A Metacrawler.com has the ability to search several search engines • Polysearch.com divides your information into categories on the left. • Answers.com allows you to specifically ask questions instead of key terms. • Encyclopedia Brittannica • Wikipedia (Not a site to trust ALONE!!!!!!!)

21. Wading Through the Web How can you tell if an Internet site is reliable? • REMEMBER: Anyone can post information on the Internet! • Make sure the information you are using comes from a person or organization that can be trusted. • One simple way to tell if a site is reliable is to look at who runs the site. Usually, looking at the first section of a web address will tell you where it came from. If it came from a museum, university, or official or political organization or well-known sources, chances are that it can be trusted. • Make sure to double check your facts! Use a VARIETY of sources before you call it day. IF you have several sources providing similar information, then the facts probably check out! Ween out the irrelevant details (like our intro)… if there is a lot of unnecessary information, it’s probably not the best source! • The following slide provides a checklist you can use to decide whether a website is reliable. If the site contains several characteristics in the “Questionable” column, you probably shouldn’t use it!

22. Wading Through the Web Available at: http://www.lerc.educ.ubc.ca/LERC/outreach/lomcira2006/lomcirahandoutapril06.doc

23. Let’s put it to the test! • Download the article from my website (www.msbeamish.weebly.com) Open the article titled, “Man’s Best Friend” from class Readings/Downloads skim/scan the article and annotate briefly to familiarize yourself with some background knowledge that you will “research further.” • Then, create 4 research questions about the topic of Canine Comparative Oncology. • Remember research questions should be open-ended. • Should dig-deep and get specific. • Break apart into several categories you will need to create a well-rounded research project. Be ready to share out these questions

24. Create the proper Research • When typing in the key term, “Canine Comparative Oncology,” all of the following sites and journals appear in your search engines. Some of these sources are BETTER than others when researching for an assignment. • YOUR TASK: With a group of 4-5, explore the following 5 sources on my website under Class Readings/Downloads by clicking the black buttons labeled “Source 1-5”. • Some of these sites are reliable, credible, and extremely relevant. After searching through all 5 while using your Dupe Detector tool, decide which 2 sources are the best and create an argument for WHY.

25. Friday, 8 April 2016 You will need a writing utensil and your AR book today  Find your seat #. Today you will take an ISTEP-style test to measure your reading comprehension and nonfiction skills using a variety of text. This will help us see how you have progressed in your understanding of key Language Arts concepts and identify areas where we might need to do a little reteachingand extra practice in the coming weeks. You’ve recently discussed strategies, SO…To get ready for your test, generate a list of helpful definitions and strategies for the following terms. Define and recall summarizing, central idea, author’s purpose, and researching skills and strategies.

26. Today’s Tasks • Complete the READING & NOFICTION SKILLS TEST. Feel free to annotate your text, but write all answers ONLY on your answer sheet. • When you finish, staple your answer sheet to the front of your copy of the story. TURN IN YOUR TEST COPY AND YOUR ANSWER SHEET with READING to the front. • Return to your seat and work on AR READING and quizzing with remaining time in class. Good luck and good thinking! Show off your BEST work! 