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Writing In Content Courses. Quick Write. Describe a time you have been discriminated against because of your gender. Quick Writes. Most courses require students to continually think at higher levels. As one skill is achieved, another is introduced.
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Quick Write • Describe a time you have been discriminated against because of your gender.
Quick Writes • Most courses require students to continually think at higher levels. • As one skill is achieved, another is introduced. • How can students integrate new information with prior knowledge? • How can students learn to reflect upon and evaluate their learning?
Quick Writes • Designed to give students the opportunity to reflect upon their learning • Can be used at the beginning, middle, or end of a lesson • Takes only about three to five minutes. • Short, open-ended statements are usually given.
Quick Write Examples Students are asked to write about: • what they learned • problems they encountered • what they liked (or did not like) about the lesson • how well they understood the concepts
Writing in Content Areas In content teaching, the integration of reading and writing reinforces meaning construction as both activities use similar processing skills.
WICR Activity On chart paper, list 10 provocative words from the article just read. • Have students write a story using all the words in just 7 minutes • Have students volunteer to read their stories aloud • for a large group, have trios read to eachother
WICR Activity • Paraphrasing • Pass out a different section of a long article to small groups • Students read the section silently. • Students then collaborate to briefly paraphrase their section. • Share out paraphrases to the class • Class collaborates to write a paraphrase for the wholearticle.
4-Square Analogy 1. Write as much as you can about ________ 2. A ________ is like ________ because... 3. Describe what it would be like to be ________ 4. I now wish to change or add to number 1 ________
Interactive Journals • Spiral-bound ONLY - always with you • Right side - INPUT • Cornell notes (input, questions) • data, research • Left-side - OUTPUT • Concept maps, diagrams, flow-charts & procedures, photos, graphics • Summary - SELF-REFLECTION • Added at the end of a unit • Feedback on progress, enjoyment,
Interactive Journals • An innovative strategy for students and teachers, incorporating: • Independent learning, • creativity • accountability & • feedback stressed in brain research
Adaptations for Journals • Provide students with skeleton computerized Cornell notes • Students re-copy their notes that night into their journal • Automatic review • Kinesthetic learning • Can edit, look-up words at leisure • Prompts higher-level questions • Absentees can target on what they need to know
Essay-writing • Essay-writing in each content area is like learning another language. • English & the social sciences need a thesis statement, supporting body paragraphs and concluding paragraph. • Science & math need only brief introductory and concluding sentences, with body paragraphs including equations & data analysis
Standardized Tests • Timed Essay-writing is found on: • AP/IB tests • Some Stanford 9 tests • High School Exit Exam • Some Golden State Exams • Some college placement exams • Graded only on points that correctly address the prompt. • Timed essay-writing needs to be taught
Elements of a Good essay Spiral the Skill • First essay:(learning the skill) • Go over the format beforehand • Give them the prompt in advance • Grade rigorously; make overheads of best (nameless) papers to go over in class • Re-write the essay for a final grade
Spiral the Skill • Second essay:(learning to peer-grade) • Give them a choice of 3 prompts in advance; test on one; grade rigorously • Have students peer-grade, with both positive and negative critical comments • Give points for productive comments • Re-write the essay for a final grade
Spiral the Skill • Third essay:(honing their skills) • Give them a choice of one of 3 prompts on the test (not known in advance); • Teach them to highlight main points • Give points for productive comments • Re-write the essay for a final grade
Spiral the Skill • Fourth essay:(writing a test essay) • Give them a choice of one of 2 prompts on the test • Teach them to quick write key concepts before writing • Grade rigorously • No re-write (this is a test)
Spiral the Skill • Fifth essay:(writing to the clock) • Give only one, clear prompt (a main concept for the unit) • Math/science: Insist on at least one diagram or graph within the essay • Tell them they have ???? min. to work • Students analyze what they have written
Spiral the Skill • Sixth essay:(demonstrating mastery) • Give only one, clear prompt (a main concept for the unit) • Math/science: Insist on at least one diagram and highlighting within the essay • Tell them they have ???? min. to work • Student analysis • Re-writing essay
"In the classroom, wondering should be as highly valuedas knowing." F. James Rutherford and Andrew Ahlgren in “Science for All Americans”
The Fairytale Game 1. Think of a childhood fairytale. 2. Write a question about the fairytale as though you had assigned it as a reading in your class.
The Fairytale Game 3. Review Bloom’s Taxonomy of critical thinking on the next slide and determine which level of critical thinking would be required to respond to your question. Write down the category next to your question.
Bloom’s Levels 1. KNOWLEDGE: recalling information 2. COMPREHENSION: understanding meaning 3. APPLICATION: using learning in new situations 4. ANALYSIS: ability to see parts & relationships 5. SYNTHESIS: Use parts to create a new whole 6. EVALUATION: judgment based on criteria
The Fairytale Game 4. In collaborative groups, share and discuss these questions. As a group, rewrite the questions to a higher Level.
The Big Picture • Inquiry is the common thread in a student-centered classroom. • Used in: • Cornell notes • Tutorials • Socratic Seminars • Learning Logs • Critical thinking & decision-making
The Big Picture • Often begins with a question • Encourages students to thinkcritically • Creates the opportunity for students to problem-solve & share analyses • Inquiry promotes COLLABORATION
Why Use Inquiry as a Teaching Methodology? Inquiry immediately engages students with their own thinking processes.
Why Use Inquiry as a Teaching Methodology? Student gain greater understanding of concepts and values.
“You can’t get students to think critically without asking critical questions” Carmen Serret-Lopez
Collaborative Strategies
What have we done collaboratively? • 1. Chunking the article on Title IX • 2. Fairy Tale Activity using Bloom’s Taxonomy
Benefits to Students • No one knows EVERYTHING! • Teachers expect analysis, synthesis & evaluation of subject matter • the “stuff” of collaborative groups • Students will remember more and succeed at a faster pace. • Learning with other people is more FUN than learning alone!
Preparing Students to Collaborate • May be shy to share their work at first • Start with non-threatening experiences • Gradually increase task demands • Discuss before they begin to work: • Group “etiquette” • Stereotyping • Group dynamics
Preparing Students to Collaborate • Provide careful instructions before moving to groups • Establish routines for moving • Have students group desks closely • Prevents loud talking • Creates a group atmosphere • Establish a reasonable time limit • Too long and groups deteriorate
Carousel Brainstorming • Collect LOTS of data in an active way • Immediately shows the class all the information generated • Post on walls several sub-topics from a major topic • Divide into groups that match the number of sub-topics • Give groups a different color pen and send to a specific chart.
Carousel Brainstorming • Give 5 minutes to write brainstorm ideas about the sub-topic on the paper • Move groups clockwise to a new chart after 5 minutes until all groups have added their ideas • Do a “Gallery Walk” around the room to allow each group to see what was added after they wrote. • Reflect on the activity as a whole orally or in writing From Spencer Kagan’s Cooperative Learning, Resources for Teachers
Word Wall • Good activity to begin a unit to see what information students already know about a subject • Tape critical vocabulary words and/or concepts for a new unit on the wall • Pairs define 3 concepts or words they know from the “word wall” onto post-it notes and place them under the appropriate word on the word wall • Quickly shows group where learning needs to occur
Helping Students Successfully Access Text Material Reading for understanding and knowledge
Schemata: Have You Got It? • People “construct” meaning in their lives based on stores of memories. • It consists of everything they have ever: • sensed • experienced • learned
Schemata: Have You Got It? • Schema = HOW people organize and store information in their heads. It reflects • experiences • attitudes • values • conceptual understanding • skills & strategies • that readers bring to a text situation
Schemata: How it Functions Schema functions in 3 ways: • Gives a framework to understand reading and fill in gaps. • Helps readers organize text information and remember what’s been read. • Helps readers elaborate information involving deeper levels of insight, memory judgment and evaluation.
Schemata: Have You Got It? 1. Read the passage and fill in the blanks with words that make sense to you. 2.Answer the questions using sentences. 3. Get in pairs and read passages to each other. 4. Find out if any groups have the exact same wording. 5.Share your responses in pairs. 6. Have a class discussion on what strategies students have when dealing with a text.
SQ4R • An important part of the college experience is learning to learn. • SQ4R is one strategy that can help you get the most out of your textbook reading. • SQ4R will assure that you don't just "do it," when it comes to your reading assignments: • you will derive as much as you possibly can out of the experience.
SURVEY • Overview: quickly look for the main idea or unifying theme • Table of Contents • Introduction/Summary • Read the first sentence of each paragraph • Headings (memorize if possible) • Pictures, charts, diagrams, etc. • Vocabulary lists, notated print, captions, etc.
As You Are Surveying: Have a conversation with yourself: • How is the text organized? • What do I know about the topic already? • What do I expect it to talk about? • Do I need to use some kind of visual aid such as a thinking map?