What they are and how you can prepare for them. STAAR Crossover
Short Answer Questions (SAQs)
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What is a crossover question? A STAAR crossover short answer
question will require you to: Read two texts Answer a question that
may be about similar themes within the texts, similar characters,
differing characters, differing perspectives, etc. Use two details,
one from each reading selection Explain how the details you chose
prove your response Essentially, crossover questions test to see if
you can synthesize (combine different ideas into a whole)
information from two texts and write a response that
compares/contrasts elements of both works.
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Rubric
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Parts of a Crossover Response The loss of language in Tehuelche
is important on a more personal level, whereas the loss in Fossil
Language takes place on a larger scale, professional level. In the
patients last moments, Benetti listened harder than hed ever
listened to anything in his life, because he personally realized
that he was witnessing the death of an ancient language, and more
or less the culture that it belonged to. However, the reporter in
Fossil Language is taking a more professional trip to visit the
Inuit in Greenland. He went to spend time amongst them, recording
their language and culture before an entire language and culture is
likely to disappear. Though the language may die out in a couple of
years, Benetti witnessed the final act, while Leonard is trying to
prevent that from happening to the Inuit. Thesis answers question
and mentions both selections. There is a well- chosen detail from
each selection. Elaboration makes it clear which selection each
detail is from, and provides context for the details. Commentary
explains how both details from the passages prove assertion in
thesis.