Literacy TrainingGrades

6-8

Team Members:Ruth Alford, Dale Locklear, Michael S. Fletcher, Rob White, Velinda Locklear, Brenda Allison, Linda Dial, Mary Ann

Prevatte, Shaneitha Lee Nance, Ronnie Chavis, and Leon Maynor

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) defines literacy as the "ability to identify, understand, interpret, create, communicate, compute and use printed and written materials associated with varying contexts. Literacy involves a continuum of learning in enabling individuals to achieve their goals, to develop their knowledge and potential, and to participate fully in their community and wider society."

Definition of Literacy

“Every Teacher is a Teacher of Reading”

• Reading strategies can be addressed in all subject areas.– Social Studies– Science– Physical Education– Math– Etc.

6-8 Data

• Goal Summaries– District– School– Teacher

• Formative Data– Discovery– STAR Tests– Success Maker– Teacher Assessments (varied)

THE BASICS:T e x t

F e a t u r e s http://link2literacy.blogspot.com/2010/01/best-ideas-teaching-text-features.html (used as a resource for presentation)

TitleWhat is it?A title is the name of a book, essay, article, etc.

Purpose:• To hint at what the

text might be about.• To give a brief

summary of the text content.

Table of Contents

What is it?The table of Contents is a list of chapters or article titles found at the beginning of the text.

Purpose:• To help readers, at a glance, find

out about topics or concepts discussed in the book or magazine.

PicturesWhat is it?

Pictures are images or graphics often found in writing.

Purpose:• To help us

VISUALIZE what we are reading about.

• To catch readers’ attention and make the text seem more interesting.

What is it?A caption is text in smaller print that is found next to a picture inserted in the main body of the text.Purpose:• To give a brief explanation of the picture.

Caption

Heading“Myths Explain the World”

What is it?A heading is the title of a short section within the main body of a text.

Purpose:• To give readers clues as to

what they will read about next.

• To make it easy to find the main ideas/topics within the body of the text.

Subheading“Greek Gods”

What is it?A subheading is the title of a small section found underneath a heading. Subheadings give clues about what’s coming next.

Purpose:• To help organize the text into

sections of information that support the main topic.

• To make it easy to find important topics within the body of the text.

Bold WordsWhat is it?Bold Words are words in the text printed in darker ink; sometimes highlighted.

Purpose:• To show readers

important words. concepts, or ideas that should be studied or remembered. These words are the key to understanding the main ideas in the text.

FootnoteWhat is it?A footnote is an explanatory note inserted at the bottom of the page referring to a specific word or phrase in the text.

Purpose:• To give readers

extra information they may need to fully understand the word or idea in context.

Rob and BigRob & Big was an American reality television series that followed the lives of professional skateboarder, Rob Dyrdek, and his best friend and body guard, Christopher "Big Black" Boykin.

The BeginningsThe show premiered on November 2, 2006 and ended on April 15, 2008. The series was produced by Ruben Fleischer and directed by Mark Jacobs.

Episode 1After moving in, Big Black suggests to Rob that they get a bulldog, to complete the new family. The two fly to Arizona on a private jet to pick up their new little puppy. To welcome their new family member, the guys host a party with a surprise appearance by Three Six Mafia1. 

1Three Six Mafia is an Oscar-Award winning American rap group originating from Memphis, Tennessee

Bullet PointsWhat is it?Bullet Points are graphics that are used to list items or ideas in a text.

Purpose:• To break up a lot of

text into chunks of important info.

• To create lists, summarize key ideas at the end of a chapter, etc.

Charts and TablesWhat are they?• Tables are summaries

of facts or data written in columns or rows.

• Charts are visual representations of quantities or results.

Purpose:• To organize

information into a small space and an easy-to-read format.

GraphsWhat is it?Graphs are visual comparisons of data and information in a bar/pie/line format.

Purpose:• To help us read

facts and figures in a short amount of time.

GlossaryWhat is it?A glossary is an alphabetized list of terms and definitions found in the back of the book or at the end of an article.

Purpose:• To provide an easy-to-

access reference for important vocabulary.

Skateboard Glossary360: when a skateboarder and his board turns 360 degrees while in the air.Axle: the metal rod that runs through the hangar of a skateboard’s truck.Deck: the flat, long, oval/rectangular, wooden part of the skateboard you stand on.

InsertWhat is it?An insert is a small section of text inserted into the main body of the text.

Purpose: • To provide additional

information that is not vital to the text, but is supplemental or interesting.

MapWhat is it?A map is a diagrammatic representation of a specific location.

Purpose:• To help us

visualize where something is taking place.

Colored PrintWhat is it?Colored Print is text printed in a color other than black.

Purpose:• To make

important ideas, interesting facts, or titles/headings stand out.

Font Size and Type Changes

What is it?A change in the size of the text or the style in which it is written. Purpose: • To hint at important ideas that readers should pay close attention to.

IndexWhat is it?An alphabetical list of names and/or topics as well as lists of page numbers on which each item is mentioned.

Purpose:• To help readers

find all the pages in the text where each subject is discussed.

Resourceshttp://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/westlandms/agopp/textfeatures.pdf (matching game)

http://www.timeforkids.com/TFK/class/pdfs/2006F/060901_wr2.pdf (sample passage)

http://skyways.lib.ks.us/tricon/2005/handouts/nonfiction_text.pdf (text structures)

http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/lessonplan.jsp?id=232 (toppling tower passage )

http://teachingtoday.glencoe.com/userfiles/file/BIG%20FOX%20graphic%20organizer.pdf(BIG FOX graphic organizer)

http://www.cia.indiana.edu/files/ITRI_3_TF.pdf (text feature pdf)

http://link2literacy.blogspot.com/2010/01/best-ideas-teaching-text-features.html (pretest, Power point, etc.)

Grammar/Basic punctuation

• 4 basic rules for the use of a comma• End punctuation• Capitalization• Parts of Speech• Activity: Editing

Punctuation1. Which of the following sentences is punctuated

correctly?

A. Baseball's greatest players, including Babe Ruth and Joe DiMaggio are enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.

B. Baseball's greatest players including Babe Ruth and Joe DiMaggio, are enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.

C. Baseball's greatest players including Babe Ruth and Joe DiMaggio are enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.

D. Baseball's greatest players, including Babe Ruth and Joe DiMaggio, are enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.

1. Which of the following uses the correct end mark?

A. Will you please be quiet, so I can hear the program on the radio.

B. Will you please be quiet! so I can hear the program on the radio.

C. Will you please be quiet, so I can hear the program on the radio?

D. Will you please be quiet, so I can hear the program on the radio!

2. Passing near Portland, our father _______ to a man coming out of the bayou.

A. will speaks

B. spoke

C. speak

D. speaking

1. Which sentence uses correct subject-verb agreement?

A. The alligator slipped quietly into the water.

B. The alligators slipping quietly into the water.

C. The alligator slipping quietly into the water.

D. The alligators slips quietly into the water.

2. Although we didn't have the best weather, it wasn't all bad, since the rainfall was only sporadic.

What is the meaning and part of speech of the bold word in the sentence above?

A. adverb

B. verb

C. adjective

D. preposition

(1) As a way to protest the new dress code, the students all wore black. (2) They did it symbolically as a way to show that they were in mourning. (3) In fact, many took it a step further and refused to utter a single word throughout the day unless it was necessary. (4) It looked odd to see more than 900 students throughout the school all in black, but it was an effective gesture. (5) The school board decided to put off voting on the new dress code until its next session.

1.Which word from sentence 1 is a verb?2.What part of speech is symbolically?3.What is the subject in sentence 3?4.What is another way of punctuating sentence 4?5.In sentence 5, “to put” can be identified as what?

A. black

B. dress

C. wore

D. all

Reasons to Read

PersonalInformational

Reasons People Read

• For Pleasure• For Academic Success• For Work (technical guide)• For Information• For understanding directions• For keeping touch with family and friends• For understanding the world we live

Activity• Create a T-Chart and list pleasure and

informational text.

Pleasure Informational

Clues/strategies to attain meaning from the written word:

• Cloze procedure• Context clues/Content Clues• SQ3R• Outlining• Underlining• Etc.

What is Cloze Procedure?

Cloze procedure is a technique in which words are deleted from a passage according to a word-count formula or various other criteria. The passage is presented to students, who insert words as they read to complete and construct meaning from the text. This procedure can be used as a diagnostic reading assessment technique.

What is its purpose?

I t is used:

to identify students' knowledge and understanding of the reading process to determine which cueing systems readers effectively employ to construct

meaning from print to assess the extent of students' vocabularies and knowledge of a subject to encourage students to monitor for meaning while reading to encourage students to think critically and analytically about text and

content

How do I do it?

To prepare materials for Cloze exercises, any of the following techniques may be used:

1. Select a self-contained passage of a length appropriate for the grade level of the students being assessed. Use materials easily read by the students.

2. Leave the first and last sentences and all punctuation intact. 3. Carefully select the words for omission using a word-count formula, such as

every fifth word or other criteria. To assess students' knowledge of the topic or their abilities to use semantic cues, delete content words which carry meaning, such as nouns, main verbs, adjectives and adverbs. To assess students' use of syntactic cues, delete some conjunctions, prepositions and auxiliary words.

4. When preparing the final draft of the passage, make all blanks of equal length to avoid including visual clues about the lengths of omitted words.

5. Have the students read the entire passage before they fill in the blanks. 6. Encourage the students to fill each blank if possible. 7. Although there should be no time limit for this exercise, the time necessary

for completion should be noted. 8. Suggest that students reread the completed passage.

How the Butterflies Came to Beby Joseph Brachac

Cloze Activity

Long ago, not long after Earth-Maker shaped the world out of dirt and sweat he scraped from his skim.Iitoi or __________________________was walking around during the time of year when the ____________________ came, that made the _____________________bloom and the ____________________ green and bright. During this season it also made his ________________ glad to see children___________ and ___________________. He became ____________ when he realized the children would grow __________ and weaken and _______________. That was the way it was made to be. The red, yellow, white and blue of the _____________________ would fade. The __________________would fall from the trees. The ______________would grow short and the ___________________ would be cold.The _________________ brushed pass Elder Brother, making some leaves ___________ in the sunlight. Then an idea came to him. He would make something to make the children ________________and his ___________________ glad again.He took a ______________ and placed bright-colored __________________, fallen ______________________, yellow___________________, white __________________, green _________________________, shining gold _____________________and the _________________________ of birds.The _____________________ opened the Elder Brother's __________ and out flew the first __________________________. Their __________________ were bright as sunlight and held all of the __________________ of the flowers, the leaves, the cornmeal, the pollen and the green pine needles. They looked like flowers, ___________ in the __________________. The first butterflies___________________ about the heads of the children they ____________________. As they flew, they______________ and the children _____________________.Everyone was happy with the butterflies except the _______________________. They told Elder Brother that the __________________ belonged to them and not the butterflies and Elder Brother agreed. To this day butterflies dance as they __________, but they are __________________________. Children's hearts remain glad. That is how Elder Brother meant it to be.

Context Clues

1. Context Clues - Bits of information from the text that, when combined with the reader's own knowledge, allow the reader to "read between the lines," figure out the meaning of the text, or determine the meaning of unknown words in the text.

How the Butterflies Became to Be By Joseph Bruchac

Use context clues and students prior knowledge to help students understand the meaning of the following vocabulary words:

1. elder 2. songbird 3. butterflies 4. creature

What is the title of reading selection?

Who is the author of the reading selection?

How was the world created?

Who was the creator of the butterfly?

Which of the following is the main character in the selection, Earth Maker or Elder Brother?

Based on the selection did Elder Brother use man-made or natural materials to create the butterfly?

What is the overall tone of the selection?

What was the purpose of creating the butterfly?

Why did the songbirds not want the butterflies to have the ability to sing?

What was the effect of the songbirds speaking to Elder Brother?

How the Butterflies Came to Be

Major Reading Focus Strategies(Content and Informational Literacy)

• Comprehension/High Level Critical Thinking Skills– Main Idea– Predicting outcomes– Identify chronological order– Cause and Effect– Context clues– Compare and contrast– Identify steps in process– Use visuals– Draw conclusions– Fact and opinion– Author’s purpose

How to Help Struggling Readers

• Question Answer Relationships (QARs)• Directed Reading • Directed Reading-Thinking Activity

Directed Reading Activity• Preparation and Background

– Introduce new vocabulary– Ask questions about title or pictures– Give focus question that is open-ended

• Silent Reading• Discussion and rereading

– Ask questions - students support/prove answers• Skills development and practice

– Direct instruction in specific reading skills• Follow-up and enrichment activities

– Drama, writing, discussions, art or music

Source – Remediating Reading Difficulties. Sharon Crawley and King Merritt. 4th Ed. 2004.

Directed Reading-Thinking ActivityNarrative Text

1. Survey title– What do you think this story is about? Why?

2. Read assigned section silently (cover unread portions

3. Repeat step 1 questions4. Continue Reading to next stop. 5. Repeat step 1 questions6. Continue to end7. Engage reflection and thoughtful responsesSource (current and following slide) – Content Area Reading: Literacy

and Learning Across the Curriculum 9th Edition, Richard and Jo Anne Vacca. 2008.

Directed Reading-Thinking ActivityInformational Text

1. Set reading purpose– Chapter titles/headings/subheadings– What do you think the author will present?– Record speculations – Ask why do you think that?– Use discussion to explore inaccurate or weak knowledge base and

further clarify concepts– Poll class for predictions

2. Adjust rate of reading based on purposes– Tell students to read to see if predictions are correct

3. Observe reading and assist students who need help4. Guide reader-text interactions

– Accept, reject, or redefine purposes5. Extend learning through discussion, additional study, or writing

– Whole class or small groups– Compare predictions to outcomes – How do you know that? – Can you prove it/what made you think that way?

Literary Terms

• From all subjects• Cross-curricular

Grade Level Reading Lists

You must be signed into the PSRC website to view this page

Required Grade Level Vocabulary

• Active, Cumulative Word Walls• Introducing words

transmit

A messenger can transmit your reply now.

• Verb• From Latin

– transmittere

To send or to convey from a person or place.

ambition

My ambition is to play professional soccer.

• Noun• From Latin

– ambitus

An ardent desire for rank, fame, or power.

parachute

The parachute billowed open and floated down.

Umbrella shaped device used to slow descent.

Additional Websites/Resources

• Linked on the PSRC website