The document discusses the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy. It begins by asking key questions about the expectations of the standards and how schools can explore strategies for applying them. Specifically, it discusses how the standards aim to ensure students are ready for college and careers by focusing on critical skills like reading complex texts, writing arguments, and using evidence from sources. It also outlines new assessments being developed by the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers to measure these standards. The document emphasizes applying standards through a focus on increasing text complexity and ensuring tasks require rigorous analysis and argumentation. It suggests this will require a shift toward more informational texts and close reading across different subjects.

1. COMMON CORE STATE STANDARDS
An Occasion for Change
http://www.corestandards.org/

2. TODAY’S KEY QUESTIONS
 What are the expectations of the Common Core State
Standards in English Language Arts & Literacy in
History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects?
(The Standards and Assessments)
 How can we begin an exploration of the standards in
schools? (Exploring Strategies)
 What might the application of standards look like in
practice, particularly in text and task selection? (creating
activities that align with the common core

3. WHY NEW STANDARDS?
 Students are not reading at levels sufficient for college
and career readiness in content areas.
 Only slightly more than half (53%) of the members of the
2009 high school graduating class were ready for college-
level and workplace training–level reading

4. WHAT IS ―COLLEGE READINESS?‖
The level of preparation a student needs to be ready to
enroll and succeed without remediation in an entry-
level, credit bearing course (in each content area) at a
two-year or four-year institution, trade school, or
technical school.

5. WHAT IS ―COLLEGE READINESS?‖
College readiness
IS
for EVERY ONE

6. WHAT WE KNOW……
 New Standards
 New Assessments

9. PARCC – PARTNERSHIP FOR ASSESSMENT OF READINESS FOR
COLLEGE AND CAREERS
•An alliance of 25 states to develop a
common set of K–12 assessments in English and Math (Beginning in
2014)
•PARCC Assessment System will include:
Multiple-choice, short answer, open response, and performance based
items

10. PARCC ASSESSMENT TIMELINE

11. PARCC ASSESSMENT SYSTEM

13. LEADING THE DISCUSSION: STRENGTHS OF
CCLS
 Aligned with college and work expectations.
 Include rigorous content and application of knowledge
through higher order skills.
 Build upon strengths and lessons of current state
standards.
 Informed by top-performing countries, so that all students
are prepared to succeed in our global economy and
society; and,
 Evidence and/or researched-based.

14. KEY ADVANCES: ELA AND LITERACY IN CONTENT AREAS
Reading: Balance of literature and informational texts + Text complexity
Writing: Emphasis on argument and informative/explanatory writing + Writing about
Sources
Speaking and Listening: Inclusion of formal and informal talk
Language: Stress on general academic and domain specific vocabulary
Standards for reading and writing in history/social studies, science, and
technical subjects: Complement rather than replace content standards
SHIFTS RESPONSIBILITY for TEACHING with TEXT to ALL TEACHERS

16. ANCHOR STANDARDS: CLEAR SIMPLE TARGETS
 Anchor standards for Reading and Writing across genres and subject
areas allow students to develop mutually reinforcing skills, required
across a range of texts and classrooms
 Reading and Writing standards are closely tied to the standards for
listening and speaking.
 21st Century skills in research and technology, particularly regarding the
interpretation and production of multi-media texts are also featured.

17. KEY GRADE BAND FEATURES
 K-5 Foundational Skills (Print Concepts, Phonological
Awareness, Phonics and Word Recognition, and
Fluency)
 6-12 Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and
Technical Subjects

18. GRADE-SPECIFIC STANDARDS: A SPIRALING
STAIRCASE
 What students should master by the end of each grade.
 Students are expected to retain and further develop skills
and understandings mastered in preceding grades.

19. LEADING THE DISCUSSION: SPIRALING
STANDARDS IN READING AND WRITING
CCR Anchor Standard 8 for Reading:
―Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims
in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as
the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.‖
CCR Anchor Standard 1 for Writing:
―Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of
substantive topics or texts using valid reasoning and
relevant and sufficient evidence.‖

20. TRACKING A SPIRALING STANDARD
Complete Activity 1: Tracking
Activity

21. ACTIVITY 1:
TRACKING A SPIRALING STANDARD
 What variables are used to increase rigor?
 How does the wording change?
 How does the expectations change?
 Do these changes feel appropriate for students
in that grade level?
 What aspects of literacy seems to be valued
most throughout these standards?

22. THE STAIRCASE OF TEXT COMPLEXITY

23. QUANTITATIVE TEXT COMPLEXITY
 Standards recommend that multiple quantitative
measures be used whenever possible and that their
results be confirmed or overruled by a qualitative
analysis of the text in question.
 Certain texts such as Poetry, Drama and K-1 texts
cannot accurately be measured quantitatively .

24. EXAMINE CHANGES IN LEXILES
Text Complexity
Grade Band in the
Standards
Old Lexile Ranges Lexile Ranges
Aligned to CCR
Expectations
K-1 N/A N/A
2-3 450-725 450-790
4-5 645-845 770-980
6-8 860-1010 955-1155
9-10 960-1115 1080-1305
11-CCR 1070-1220 1215-1355
ACTIVITY 2: EXPLORING TEXT COMPLEXITY
ARTICLE JIGSAW

25. LEADING THE DISCUSSION: QUALITATIVE TEXT
COMPLEXITY

26. ACTIVITY 3: LOWER OR HIGHER END OF
GRADE BAND?
 Examine the Text Using the Protocol for Analyzing the
Qualitative Dimensions of Text Complexity
 Would you place your book on the lower or higher end of
the band?
 Reflection: How can you as an instructional leader
facilitate these kinds of reflective discussions?

27. THE SPECIAL PLACE OF ARGUMENTATION
(1) Other nations pay equal attention to what students read and how they read. Explicit
expectations for the range, quality, and complexity of what students read along with more
conventional standards describing how well students must be able to read.
(2) Students are required to write in response to sources. In several international assessment
programs, students are confronted with a text or texts and asked to gather
evidence, analyze readings, and synthesize content. The Standards likewise require
students to ―draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support
analysis, reflection, and research‖ (Writing CCR standard 9).
(3) Writing arguments and writing informational/explanatory texts are priorities. The Standards
follow international models by making writing arguments and writing
informational/explanatory texts the dominant modes of writing in high school to
demonstrate readiness for college and career.

28. LEADING THE DISCUSSION: READER AND
TASK &TEXT COMPLEXITY

29. TEACHERS AND THE READER VARIABLE
Can teachers influence these variables?
 Background knowledge
 Motivation
 Experience

30. STAIRCASE OF COMPLEXITY ACTIVITY

31. KIDS GET GOOD AT WHAT THEY
PRACTICE
All worksheets aren’t
bad.
All worksheets is bad.

32. IT’S STILL ABOUT THE TEXT/TASK
Tier I Teaching to the Match
 Frontload Background Knowledge
 School Life/Real Life—The Argumentation
Connection
TEXT TASK

33. IMPLICATIONS FOR INSTRUCTION
 Shift focus from literacy instruction to center on
careful examination of text
 Text selection: complexity, genre, and quality
 Task selection: rigorous tasks
Source: CARRIE HEATH PHILLIPS, COUNCIL OF CHIEF STATE SCHOOL OFFICERS (CCSSO)
CARRIEH@CCSSO.ORG

34. MORE NON-FICTION
 Grades 3-5 50% Literature 50% Informational.
 Grades 6-12 45% Literature 55% Informational
(More literary non-fiction, particularly texts build on
informational text structures rather than literary non-
fiction that are structured as stories such as
memoirs or biographies.)
 Texts must be worthy of close reading.
Source: CARRIE HEATH PHILLIPS, COUNCIL OF CHIEF STATE SCHOOL OFFICERS (CCSSO)
CARRIEH@CCSSO.ORG

35. GRADE LEVELS DISTRIBUTION OF LITERACY
TEXT BASED WORK
ELA
Science
Social Studies
Mathematics, Arts, et
c.

36. LITERATURE VERSUS INFORMATIONAL TEXTS
Think about grade and subjects levels, not ELA
classes and reading blocks
 Slight shift toward more literary non-fiction in ELA
classes
Big shift toward more text
school-wide

37. SCAFFOLD COMPLEXITY-DON’T AVOID IT
 Lots of opportunities for close reading of short texts
at or beyond the grade level.
 Access to lots of accessible texts and time to
choose and read them—Increasing # of pages is
essential to increasing reading ability.
 Productive struggle with independent reading.
 Challenge students to make claims and support
with evidence from the text.

38. PLEASE COMPLETE YOUR EXIT TICKET!
WHAT DO YOU THINK WILL BE THE HARDEST SHIFT TO INCORPORATE INTO AN
ELEMENTARY CLASSROOM?