1. Navigating Non-fiction Reading
and Writing
Based on
Close Reading of Informational Texts
Assessment-Driven Instruction in Grades
3-8
by Sunday Cummings
Workshop leader: Deborah Hoover
2. Why and who
• The process of reading, observing and
interpreting text deeply.
• Sunday Cummins blog
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zdlbey9-
Jc
• She is a regular contributor to GoodReads and
Booklist online.
• She also has a blog on Facebook.
3. Why it’s important
• Close reading is a central focus of the
Common Core State Standards.
• The purpose is to teach students to notice the
features and language used by the author.
• Students are required to think thoroughly and
methodically about details in a text.
• Ability to evaluate or critique what is written –
print and digital versions.
4. More and more and more…
• The amount of information text students are
reading is increasing exponentially.
• In addition to reading more informational text,
students are being asked to read more
complex texts in both print and digital
formats.
• Students are creating more complex texts with
global audiences.
12. Instructional Shift
• Move from instructing understanding how to
read to reading to understand.
• Being able to read informational text closely
across ALL content areas.
• Students must show how the author uses
evidence to support their position, conclusion,
or interpretation.
13. Issues for Students
• Requires effort by students to close read – must re-
read selection multiple times.
• Close reading means students need to develop an
automaticity of reading strategies becoming reading
skills. Practice, practice, practice.
• Developing the ability to sustain close reading at the
word, sentence, and paragraph level throughout the
text in order to adequately summarize the author’s
central idea(s).
14. Types of Nonfiction
• Survey – provides an overview on a topic, often have
nouns as their title such as “Reptiles” or
“Impressionism.”
• Concept books – focus on abstract ideas or
classifications, like life cycles; this type dives deeply
into a precise topic and may draw on both primary
and secondary material as support evidence.
• Biographies – may focus on the life of one or several
people.
15. Evaluating Non-fiction text
• Text Organization – outside, around and
inside
• Author’s Word Choice – content specific
vocabulary – strong or weak?
• Author’s Point of View – what did include and
what they didn’t include?
16. Digging a hole
First shovel full – Pick Out the Key Idea and
Details
• Skim and scan the text for the layout –
strategic preview THIEVES strategy
• Determine the text organization
• Determine the main idea* and supporting
details
• Connect the text to background knowledge
17. Digging a hole
Second shovel full – Craft and Structure
• Chunk text into manageable pieces
• Text features
• Text organization
• Content vocabulary – author’s word choice
• Can answer higher order questions
18. Digging a hole
Third shovel full – Integration of Knowledge
and Ideas/Author’s Point of View
• Synthesize and analyze information from
another text source.*
• Record thinking in written form to
demonstrate understanding.
• Can cite evidence.
• Can answer more complex questions.
19. Suitcase analogy
Developmental levels of meta-cognitive
knowledge
• Tacit learners – lack awareness of what is inside “their
suitcase.”
• Aware learner reflect upon their decisions for a “successful
trip.” – know their destination but make NO adjustments for
“their trip.”
• Strategic learners – are able to repack or reorganize and
reflect upon their decisions for a “successful trip.”
• Reflective learners – can repack, reorganize and reflect upon
their decisions for a successful trip.” END GOAL!!!
20. Engagement
• Reader MUST meet the author at the point of
comprehension.
• How to promote this?????
• Curricular texts – mentor text/partner reads.
• Free voluntary reading.
21. Text Talker Activities
Begin with verbal practice then move on to
written practice.
• According to the text…
• The author stated…
• The illustration/chart/graph/map shows…
• I know because…
• In the text it said…
• In paragraph ____ it said…
• I can infer from …
• An example in paragraph ____ is ….
22. Close Reading Strategies
• Paraphrase – read each sentence, infer what it means & write
it in your own words.
• Summarize – use the main points from a section of a text &
write a brief statement.
• Ask critical questions – questions that you go back & answer
questions that help you analyze.
• Analyze – to infer the author’s perspective & purpose make
implications, identify key concepts & ask critical questions.
• Evaluate – critique & judge clarity & precision synthesis, logic,
relevance & significance.
23. Key to success
• Embed lessons within multiple content areas
that build upon one another so students get
multiple opportunities to practice with a
variety of applications – authentic learning.
24. Transferring to writing
• “By the end of fourth grade students should
be able to develop the topic with facts,
definitions, concrete details quotations and
other information/examples related to the
topic.”
25. Common Core Standards
Grade 3 students Grade 5 students Grade 8 students
Ask and answer
questions understanding
of a text, referring
explicitly to the text as
the basis for answers.
Quote accurately from a
text when explaining
what the text say
explicitly and when
drawing inferences form
the text.
Cite the textual evidence
that most strongly
supports an analysis of
what the text says
explicitly as well as
inferences drawn from
the text.
Determine the main idea
of a text; recount the key
details and explain how
they support the main
idea.
Determine two or more
main ideas of a text and
explain how they are
supported by key details;
summarize the text.
Determine the central
idea of a text and
analyze its development
over the course of the
text, including its
relationship to
supporting ideas;
provide an objective
summary of the text.
26. PA Core Sample
• CC1.2 Reading Informational Text: students read, understand and respond to informational
texts with emphasis on comprehension, making connections among ideas and between
texts with focus on textual evidence.
Grade 3
• CC1.2.3B Ask and answer questions about the text and make inferences from the text, refer
to text to support responses.
• CC1.23D Explain the point of view of the author.
• CC1.2.3E Use text features and search tools to locate and interpret information.
• CC1.2.3G Use information gained from text features to demonstrate understanding of the
text.
• CC1.2.3H Describe how an author connects sentences and paragraphs in a text to support a
particular point.
• CC1.2.3I Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in two
texts on the same topic.
• CC1.2.3L Read and comprehend literary nonfiction and informational text on grade level
reading independently and proficiently.
27. Essential Skills of Close Reading
• Prior knowledge of the topic, text structure,
content area or academic vocabulary.
• Setting the purpose for reading by previewing
text strategically.
• Self-monitoring for meaning.
• Determining importance.
• Synthesizing.
28. Characteristics
• Multiple readings of same topic through
different texts
• Focus on a short passage – (complex text).
• Build understandings of key take-aways in the
text
• Practice with both fiction and non-fiction as
well as genres of both categories.
29. Teaching for automaticity
• Tapping into one’s prior knowledge related to
informational text structure.
• Topical and vocabulary knowledge.*
• Setting a purpose for reading – scaffold.
• Self-monitoring for meaning – meta-cognition.
• Determining what is important – practice note
taking.
• Synthesizing – evaluating and merging
information.
• Teach for varying reading purposes.
30. Non-fiction Text Structures
• Different from the structures typically used in
literature such as
description/definition/example,
sequence/time order, comparison, problem-
solution…
• Instead focus is on teaching students to
recognize these structures as techniques
author use to build texts.
31. Complex Text
• The issue of identifying definitive text
structures is more difficult the more complex
the text.
• To introduce more complex text begin with
what students are already familiar with – such
as a textbook and incorporate the
investigation skills & strategies of identifying
the text structures used while reading it.
32. Micro and Macro
• Micro level of text structure – word, sentence
and paragraph construction.
• Macro level – how the micro structures build
to form a pattern, the big picture.
• Complex text will require readers to think
about domain specific vocabulary and topical
background knowledge as well as how the
author is structuring the language to convey
the content.
33. Building research skills
• If students can determine what is and isn’t
important in text they can more easily
compare and contrast different texts on the
same subject.
• Must be able to do that in order to think
critically and independently.
34. Setting Purpose for Reading
• Purposes are central to any reading.
• Identifying purpose from writer’s and reader’s
perspectives.
• Different purposes require different levels of
reading focus needed.
• Initial purpose for reading can shift and
deepen as you read further.
35. Flexibility
• Reader’s begin with identification of purpose
for reading.
• Next step is to recognize how authors indicate
to the reader to make a shift in purpose.
• Final step is to develop the flexibility to adjust
their purposes for reading from one text to
another or even from one paragraph to the
next.
36. Determining what is important
• Trash and Treasure
• Pasta analogy
• Synthesis activity – graphic organizer
Content (Facts) Process (Thinking)
37. Unpacking the standard
Grades 3-8 should be able to:
• Determine which key words or phases in a text reveal the
author’s central ideas.
• Identify other key words or phrases that lead to important
supporting details.
• Explain why certain details support the author’s central
idea(s).
• Combine key words or phrases in a coherent or logically
consistent way to create and objectively correct oral or
written summary.
38. Cite the Evidence
• Start by having students verbally justify their
answers – turn the prompt around.
• Move on to written responses with prompts
that must be justified with evidence.
• Building up to citing evidence when taking
notes.
• Notes with cited evidence provide a skeletal
framework for stronger writing.
39. Cite the Evidence Activity
Identify Author’s Purpose
Post –it Note
Evidence
Fact 1
Post –it Note
Evidence
Fact 2
Post –it Note
Evidence
Fact 3
Post –it Note
Evidence
Fact 4
Post –it Note
Evidence
Fact 5
Post –it Note
Evidence
Fact 6
40. Roadblocks
• Need for vertically consistent scaffolding of
skills.
• Takes students longer to close read text.
• Many content area texts are poorly written
and not student friendly.
41. Synthesis
• Framed photograph analogy.
• Application of analogy to reading.
• Students move from just summarizing to
summarizing AND synthesizing.
• Synthesizing knowledge is the ultimate
purpose of close reading.
• Being able to synthesize across multiple texts
is called researching.
Editor's Notes
Audience for her book is classroom teachers grades 3- 8.
Explain reason for choosing this book for workshop.
Requires active engagement
Requires a different type of instruction – reading for ……..
It requires students to get truly involved with the text they are reading.
Must be able to determine what details are important.
How they fit together to convey a central idea.
How to synthesize information from multiple sources.
Understand the unique demand of different text features and structures.
Basic objective is that students think about and understand what they are reading.
The link to being able to read informational text well and to write quality informational text is strong.
Examples of informational texts.
Start the year by doing a book walk through the textbook so students know your expectation of using all the features to build independent readers.
Understand the specific purpose for each source and how to use each.
Help students see how to critically examine print text for author’s purpose, to establish their own purpose for reading, text structures, and text features.
Great introduction tool for reluctant readers as they are more likely to feel less threatened using magazines – start with identifying print features and ask how they support their understanding of what they chose to read.
Readers must be secure in deciphering text formats to best use the information web pages provide – combines reading and technology skills.
Moving students toward transliteracy – reading skills and strategies learned with print format moved into digital format (must be strong to stay focused and not be distracted by digital bells and whistles.
Features a dense amount of text features.
It creates a path for being able to understand the world more deeply, being able to engage in the creation, innovation, critical thinking and problem-solving as well as communication.
The term reading skill refers to what a reader does automatically without thinking, whereas reading strategies are about the reader being purposefully aware of his or her efforts to read and understand a text.
Students reveal 3 reasons for being unable to engage deeply with informational texts
Struggle with determining what is and isn’t important
Struggle with summarizing
Struggle with synthesizing
Helps readers determine their purpose for reading, how to approach strategies and to use to comprehend the text.
Close reading is a careful and purposeful rereading of a text to determine these 3 factors.
Outside nonfiction – table of contents, bibliography, index, glossary – helps readers locate what they want, understand the overall structure of the book, learn the sources used to write it, find additional books to extend their understanding, and enrich or support vocabulary.
Around non-fiction – Introduction, Author’s Note, Illustrator’s Note, Preface, Afterward, Appendix – not only introduces readers to a topic and provide additional information about the subject and the author’s experience researching it.
Inside nonfiction – headings & subheadings, sidebars & insets, photographs & captions, diagrams, graphs, charts, & tables, timelines, maps – consider how these features complement and extend the writing.
Students need the opportunity to engage with teachers in discussing what good readers do to make meaning and what authors do to convey meaning as a way to make comprehension visible. Using a teacher think aloud is a key instructional approach to promote higher order thinking.
Both text structure and text features provides ways for writers to organize and introduce information, while keeping the narrative engaging.
* Complex texts will have more than one central idea.
Critical thinking questions:
How did author organize text? Why is it organized that way?
How do text features best convey information?
How does the author’s word choice impact your understanding?
This is doing RESEARCH.
Key – integrating information of multiple sources.
Are aware of verbal text clues, images, patterns (example)
Are able to understand what the author’s real purpose is and compare it to their own.
Third reading questions:
What reason would the author have for writing this passage?
Do you agree with what the author is saying? If so, why? So you disagree? If so, why?
Is there a pattern that takes place in the reading? If so, what is the pattern?
What did the author leave out that you would have included in the text?*
Packing for a journey analogy – suitcase
Preparing for a trip is like reading for understanding. You need to know your destination, what kinds of equipment you may need for a successful trip, and if you have to make any adjustments for missing items. Active readers develop a plan for reading and set a specific purpose, decide which strategies they may need to comprehend and if their comprehension breaks down, what adjustments they will need to make.
Preparing for a trip is like reading for understanding. You need to know your destination, what kinds of equipment you may need for a successful trip, and if you have to make any adjustments for missing items. Active readers develop a plan for reading and set a specific purpose, decide which strategies they may need to comprehend and if their comprehension breaks down, what adjustments they will need to make.
We have to teach students how to pay attention to their thinking while reading informational texts – meta-cognition, in order for them to derive more than just a surface-level understanding of the text.
Meaning student MUST put age appropriate effort into their reading.
Discussion as to how to motivate students – age levels.
Brainstorm examples that can be used in various content areas/
Reading and writing must be partnered not separated as the reading high quality nonfiction text provides the modeling needed for students to create quality expository text.
To meet these standards and others, a student must know how to engage in close reading of a text.
Can apply close reading skills or strategies for varying purposes – reading for enjoyment, reading to answer a specific question, or to learn about a topic of interest.
The seamless integration of all these skills in order is the culmination that results in close reading.
Teachers may need to pre-assess level of prior knowledge first and then adjust teaching to be prepared to build it BEFORE the intended lesson for it to be successful.
The goal of automaticity is to move reading strategies to the level of reading skill. (Reluctant readers, Learning Support & ELL students)
*Sometimes teachers need to assess content/academic vocabulary first and be prepared to build that before the intended lesson for it to be successful.
Author will often use multiple structures even within a single section of text to develop a central idea – students must be exposed to this type of complex text in order to learn to shift their application of reading skills and strategies.
Examples:
Fiction – Avi’s Nothing But the Truth
Non-Fiction – print and digital examples
Key point is that teaching students the traditionally identified text structures has only limited value unless they are also able to understand how these structures are used flexibly by authors to convey particular information – micro and macro levels.
Good readers have learned the automaticity of recognizing how informational text is structured and how to use that knowledge to understand new informational texts – understanding schema.
This represents a conceptual approach to teaching for understanding informational text structure as a whole.
Build this into research lesson – ie how to use a database.
Goal is to get students to the point of independently identifying their purpose for reading, the level of focus needed and the writer’s perspective.
Critical thinking – how does the writer’s purpose for writing the text impacts the reader’s perspective of the information.
The feeds into developing and honing student inquiry skills.
Gradual release of responsibility from teachers setting the purpose for reading to students doing it and adjusting independently. This is the key – Essential Questions, Objective, Thesis Question
Self-monitoring – get good readers to slow their thinking down and make it visual – meta-cognition.
Reading of complex text requires seamless shift of reading purposes and levels of focus – use of text features, skim and scan, ect.
THIEVES – (bookmarks) Title, Headings, Introduction, Every first sentence in a paragraph, Visuals and Vocabulary, End of chapter questions, Summary.
Pasta analogy : page 136 The author want us, the readers to eat and digest the pasta words and phrases; he or she wants those words and phrases to weigh in on our thinking about central ideas; the author wants us to remember the taste and the sensation of those words when we are summarizing and synthesizing the key or central ideas.
THIEVES - bookmarks
This first step can be started at any age BUT it takes a concerted and consistent effort by staff.
Teach student multiple ways to take notes – students can make this graphic organizer themselves and it is a way making their thinking as they read visible.
Vertical scaffolding makes it easier for both students and teachers and creates more efficient and effective readers who can move quicker to reading for deeper meaning – higher order critical thinking.
Teachers must build in time for teaching of close reading and then time for students to use the skills.
Teachers must seek out better resources that meet their student’s needs.
Photograph analogy – page 26 of printout
When the reader thinks about why an author would choose to group certain facts together in a text (the details in the photo) and then identify the author’s central idea (the photo frame) – then we are synthesizing.
Students should be introduced to the concept of synthesis from the very beginning of any kind of reading strategy instructions, they then can better appreciate the purpose of every reading strategy instruction.
Synthesis reveals a deeper understanding of the text than does a simple summary.
Little picture and Big picture.
This creates deeper understanding – our thinking may evolve or shift as we read OR our initial impressions may be affirmed AND we can cite the textual evidence to support and explain their reasoning as well as how it fits together to convey that idea.
Synthesis is more than simply identifying the central idea – it’s being able to indentify the textual evidence and being able to explain how the evidence fits together to convey the idea.
Active reading.
All begins with purpose – plan/directions.
