The document provides an agenda for a three-day middle school professional learning event on expository reading and writing. Day 1 will cover an overview of the Expository Reading and Writing Course (ERWC) outcomes and how they align with Common Core State Standards. It will also discuss differentiating instruction for English learners, special education students, and advanced learners. Day 2 will debrief homework assignments, discuss what writers need for effective writing practice, teach about argument writing, academic literacy and close reading, and examine an 8th grade module on social networking. Day 3 will continue working on academic literacy and adapting assignment templates to individual curriculums.

1. Middle School Professional Learning:
Expository Reading and Writing Modules

2. Overview of our three days together
December 11, 2013
February 11, 2014
February 25, 2014
Overview and
background of ERWC
Debrief homework;
Debrief homework;
Review ERWC outcomes Status check
Alignment of the CCSS
standards and ERWC
outcomes
What writers need,
effective writing practice
and writing argument
Integration of reading
and writing to support
academic literacy
Effective readers,
academic literacy, close
reading
Continued work with
academic literacy
Differentiating ERWC for
ELs, SPED, and
advanced learners
Experience with a
module and the
assignment template
Adapting the assignment
template to your own
curriculum
Planning time
2

3. Agenda: February 11, 2014
 Debrief of “homework” Laurie & Erika
 What writers need, effective writing practice Laurie & Erika
– Supporting the development of habits of mind
 Argument in writing Laurie
 Academic literacy, close reading, text complexity Erika
– Connections to the Assignment Template
 Examination of an 8th grade module: Social Networking Erika
 Adapting the assignment template to your own curriculum Erika
 Homework: Teach all or part of one of the existing modules
– OR Adapt one of your current unit’s to the Assignment Template
3

4. Writing in the Common Core
Writing activities and assignments should be
designed with genuine purposes and
audiences in mind in order to foster flexibility
and rhetorical versatility.
Framework for Success in Postsecondary Writing, co-authored by the Council of Writing Program Administrators,
NCTE and NWP, as quoted in the Content Specifications for the Summative Assessment of the Common Core State
Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy , pp. 45

5. Writing in the Common Core
Standardized writing curricula or assessment
instruments that emphasize formulaic writing for
non-authentic audiences will not reinforce the
habits of mind and the experiences necessary for
success as students encounter the writing
demands of postsecondary education” [and the
world of work and career].
Framework for Success in Postsecondary Writing, co-authored by the Council of Writing Program
Administrators, NCTE and NWP, as quoted in the Content Specifications for the Summative
Assessment of the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy , pp. 45

6. Timeline of writing experiences
 Create a timeline of your writing experiences in
(and out) of school from when you first
remember writing to now. Put positive
experiences above the line and negative below
the line.
6

7. Writing: What works?
7

8. Hillocks Meta-analysis
8

9. Effective Writing Instruction for Grades 6-12
Writing Next:
http://www.all4ed.org/files/WritingNe
 Carnegie report that identified 11 elements of current
writing instruction found to be effective for helping
students in grades 4-12 learn to write well and use
writing as a tool for learning. All eleven elements
are supported by rigorous research but even taken
together do not constitute a writing curriculum.
9

10. 11 Elements:
 Writing strategies
• Prewriting
 Inquiry activities
• Study of models
 Collaborative writing •Summarization
 Word processing • Process writing approach
 Sentence combining
 Specific Product goals
 writing for content learning
10

11. Quickwrite:
What do
writer’s need?
11

12. What writers need:
 Time
• Room Structure:
 Predictability
basic structure
 Choice
procedures for solving
 Immersion in writing
problems
 Response
circulate & conference
 Demonstration: Models/Mentor texts
 Process centered approach
 Direct Instruction
 Expectation of success
12

13. Ralph Fletcher:
 Mentors
 A love of words
 Voice
 A significant subject
 Beginnings, endings
 Safe place to take risks
 The art of specificity
 Unforgettable language
13

14. Knowledge writers need:
 According to Hillocks, all writers
must have five kinds of knowledge
to write effectively:
1.Declarative knowledge of form
2.Declarative knowledge of substance
3.Procedural knowledge of form
4.Procedural knowledge of substance
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5.Knowledge of context

15. How do we create these conditions for
effective writing?
15

16. The Special Place of
Argument
Argument is, “a serious and
focused conversation among people
who are intensely interested in getting to the
bottom of things cooperatively . . .
-Joseph M. Williams and Lawrence McEnerney as quoted in Appendix A of the CCSS
16

17.  Neil Postman (1997) called argument
the soul of an education because
argument forces a writer to evaluate
the strengths and weaknesses of
multiple perspectives
17

18. From Appendix A of CCST
“While all three text types are
important, the Standards put particular
emphasis on students’ ability to write
sound arguments on substantive topics and
issues, as this ability is to critical to
college and career readiness. English
and education professor Gerald Graff
(2003) writes that ‘argument literacy’ is
fundamental to being educated. The
university is largely an ‘argument
culture,’ Graff contends; therefore K-12
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schools should ‘teach the conflicts’ so

19.  “A 2009 national curriculum survey
of postsecondary instructors of
composition, freshman English and
Survey of American literature
courses (ACT, Inc., 2009) found
that ‘write to argue or persuade
readers’ was virtually tied with
‘to convey information’ as the
most important type of writing
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needed by incoming college

20. Why argument?
because . . .
 “argument” is a significant part of the English/ Language Arts
Content Standards, the recently adopted Common Course
Standards (across disciplines) and college readiness.
 “argument” is the central aspect of “reading rhetorically”
and each of the modules (grades 7-10) – which have been
designed – expressly – to be standards based AND to
increase AP and college readiness
 we and our students are not necessarily familiar with
the language of “argument” used in this context

21. Why argument?
Grade 7
“argument” is a significant part of the English/ Language
Arts Content Standards
Reading
Comprehension 2.0
Students read and understand grade-level-appropriate material. They describe
and connect the essential ideas, arguments, and perspectives of the text by
using their knowledge of text structure, organization, and purpose.
Reading
Comprehension 2.4
Identify and trace the development of an author’s argument, point of view, or
perspective in a text
Reading
Comprehension 2.5
Assess the adequacy, accuracy, and appropriateness to support claims and
assertions, noting instances of bias and stereotyping
Speaking Applications
2.4
a. State a clear position or perspective in support of an argument or proposal
b. Describe the points in support of the argument and employ well-articulated
evidence.
Writing Strategies 1.0
Support all statements and claims with anecdotes, descriptions, facts and
statistics, and specific examples
Writing Applications
2.4
2.4 (Write persuasive compositions)c. Anticipate and address reader concerns
and counterarguments

22. Why argument?
 “argument” is a significant part of the cross disciplinary
California Common Core State ELA/Literacy Standards
Grade 7
Reading 1
Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says
explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
Reading 6
Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how the
author distinguishes his or her position from that of others.
Reading 7
Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether
the reasoning and the evidence is relevant and sufficient to support the claims.
Writing 1
Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence . . .
Speaking
and
Listening 2
Delineate a speaker’s argument and specific claims, and attitude toward the
subject, evaluating the soundness of reasoning and the relevance and sufficiency of
the evidence
Speaking
and
Listening 4a
Plan and present an argument that: supports a claim, acknowledges
counterarguments, organizes evidence logically, uses words and phrases to create
cohesion, and provides a concluding statement that supports the argument
presented

23. Theories underpinning CCSS
 Different kinds of writing work differently.
Writing requires task specific knowledge as
opposed to the position that believes writers
work in essentially the same way regardless of
the kind of writing they are doing.
 . Note the sequence and introduction of
complexity in argument in the CCSS. Become
familiar with the way the complexity of
argument builds through the standards. It’s
not enough to know the expectation of your
particular grade level. As teachers we must
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be familiar with the anchor standard and how

24. Why argument?
 “argument” is a significant part of college readiness
“Those values [of argument] are also an integral part
of your education in college. For four years, you are
asked to read, do research, gather data, analyze it,
think about it, and then communicate it to readers in a
form . . . which enables them to assess it and use it.
You are asked to do this . . . because in just about any
profession you pursue, you will do research, think
about what you find, make decisions about complex
matters, and then explain those decisions—usually in
writing—to others who have a stake in your decisions
being sound ones.”
~ Joseph M. Williams and Lawrence McEnerney as quoted in Appendix A of the CCSS

25. Why argument?

“argument” is the central aspect of “reading rhetorically”
“ ‘reading rhetorically’ [is defined] as attending to a
writer’s purposes within a rhetorical situation by
examining both what the author says and how he or
she says it.
“In most cases, a writer’s goal is to change a reader’s
understanding of a topic in some way . . . . and their
efforts to do so involve both direct and indirect
means. . . .”
~ Bean, Chappell, Gilliam, Reading Rhetorically, xii

26. Why argument?

we and our students are not necessarily familiar with the
language of “argument” used in this context
Essential Concepts
 Text
 Argument
 Claim
 Analysis
 Audience
 Purpose
 Rhetoric / Persuasive Strategies
 The Two Components of Critical Reading and Thinking

27. The Language of
Argument: Text
"By reading . . . we mean something more than
simply lifting information out of books and articles. To
read a text or event is to do something to it, to make
sense out of its signals and clues . . . . Reading is thus not
something we do to books alone. Or, to put it another
way, books and other printed surfaces are not the only
texts we read. Rather, a ‘text’ is anything that can be
interpreted, that we can make meaning out of or assign
value to. In this sense, all culture is a text and all culture
can be read."
~ Joseph Harris and Jay Rosen, eds, The Media Journa l

28. The Language of
Argument: Argument
ar • gu • ment
[ahr-gyuh-muhnt]
a. A discussion in which disagreement is expressed; a debate.
b. A quarrel; a dispute.
c. A course of reasoning aimed at demonstrating truth or
falsehood
Latin root – arguere – to make clear
Our Simple, Straightforward, and User-Friendly Definition
A claim an author makes
about how things are and/or ought to be.

29. The Language of
Argument: Argument
Arguments are:




explicit (clearly stated) or implicit/implied
supported by reasons and evidence
rooted in an author’s philosophical beliefs/assumptions
placed in particular contexts – historical, social, political,
religious, etc – and therefore respond to, are informed by,
and shape what’s happening around them
Some argue that all writing is an argument!

30. The Language of
Argument: Claim
For students to engage in this way, they must accept
certain beliefs about the nature of knowledge: that
knowledge is created; that they themselves are
capable of creating knowledge; that authors present
knowledge in the form of claims rather than truths;
that the knowledge claims of one author often
conflict with those of another; and that they can test
knowledge claims and decide which are worthy of
acceptance because they’re backed by good reasons.
~ Carolyn Boiarsky, Academic Literacy in the Classroom: Helping Underprepared and
Working Class Students Success in College

31. The Language of
Argument: Analyze
an • a • lyze
[an-l-ahyz]
to examine methodically by separating into parts
and studying their interrelations.

32. The Language of
Argument: Audience
au·di·ence
[aw-dee-uhns]
1. the group of spectators at a public event; listeners or viewers
collectively, as in attendance at a theater or concert: The
audience was respectful of the speaker's opinion.
2. the persons reached by a book, radio or television broadcast,
etc.; public: Some works of music have a wide and varied
audience.

33. The Language of
Argument: Purpose
pur·pose
[pur-puhs]
1. the reason for which something exists or is done, made,
used, etc.
2. an intended or desired result; end; aim; goal.

34. The Language of
Argument: Rhetoric
rhet  o  ric
[ret-er-ik]
o the art or study of persuasion
o the art or study of using language effectively and
persuasively

35. The Language of
Argument: Persuasive
Strategies
Ethos
Logos
the use of
logic, which
appeals to the
audience’s
reason and
intellect
the speaker’s
attempts to
project his or
her character as
wise, ethical,
and practical
Pathos
appeals to the
emotions or
sympathies of
the audience

36. Persuasion
• Ethos (author
credibility)
• Pathos (emotional
appeals)
Argument
• Logos (logical appeals)
• Reason
36

37. Argument and persuasion
 With its roots in orality, rhetoric has a bias for viewing
audiences as particular. Aristotle said, ‘The
persuasive is persuasive to someone.’ In contrast to
rhetoric, writing has a bias for an abstract audience or
generalized conception of audience. . . . For this
reason, a particular audience can be persuaded,
whereas the universal audience must be convinced;
particular audiences can be approached by way of
values, whereas the universal audience (which
transcends partisan values) must be approached with
facts, truths, and presumptions.” ~Miller & Charney 37

38. Argument or persuasion
38

39. 39

40. Teaching argument writing
40

41. What is a good leader?
1. Pass out copies of “The Voluptuary”
and ask students what they think of the
man.
2. Ask students what a voluptuary is
and why this man might be labeled one.
3. Ask, “What makes a good king?” and
encourage them to justify their
responses. Record their thinking. At
the end of the discussion, you have a
list of criteria for your question. 41

42. What makes a good king?
4. Work with the class to apply one of their criteria to the
prince pictured in “The Voluptuary”. Record:
Claim
Evidence
Warrant (Explanation)
Prince is not
good money
manager.
on
Book on the floor
called “Debts of
Honor” which
means gambling.
Anyone with gambling
debts is probably not a
good manager of money
because spending money
gambling results in debt.
It is common knowledge
you lose money
gambling.
42

43. 5.Put students in groups of 3-4
and ask them to work with the
remaining criteria established
by the class.
6.Students write an argument of
judgment.
43

44. What is courage?
Developing and supporting
criteria for arguments of
judgment.
44

45. Slip or trip?
Puzzles from Crime and
Puzzlement : Solve them
yourself picture mysteries
by
Lawrence Treat
Solving mysteries to teach
45

46. Resources for teaching argument
 See student samples in
Appendix C of CCSS. They have
samples for every grade. Go
to:
 http://www.corestandards.org/ass
 Download ELA Appendix C
46

47. iCivics
In 2009, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor founded iCivics
to reverse Americans’ declining civic knowledge and
participation. iCivics prepares young Americans to
become knowledgeable, engaged 21st century citizens
by creating free and innovative educational materials.
http://www.icivics.org/curriculum/persuasive-writing
In this language arts unit, students learn how to “argue
on paper” using a fictional case about a school dress
code rule against band t-shirts. The lessons take them
through the process of writing two persuasive essays:
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one supporting the rule and one opposing it.

48. Free Resources
 ASCD worked with the Literacy Design Collaborative
to develop these resources. These modules, written
by educators working through LDC, are designed to
support core content teachers in implementing the
Common Core State Standards. A standard format
provides clarity and support for teachers as well as
the flexibility for them to be creative. Each module
focuses on a specific teaching task and includes the
skills students need to be successful, a set of minitasks to guide instruction, and a scoring guide/rubric
to help assess student performance.
48

49.  Sample argumentation modules can be found at:
http://educore.ascd.org/channels/c8920746-9ae8-49bf(These are for grades 6-12)
 Sample informational modules can be found at:
http://educore.ascd.org/channels/c8920746-9ae849bf-bae3-f8b6cac46173
49

50.  Hillocks, G. (2011) Teaching argument writing grades
6-12. Heinemann.
 iCivics:
http://www.icivics.org/curriculum/persuasive-writing
 Lapp & Fisher, Persuasion = Stating and arguing
claims well. English Journal. April 2012
 Smith, M., J. Wilhelm & J. Redricksen. (2012) Oh
Yeah?! Putting argument to work both in school and
out. Heinemann.
50

51. LUNCH!!
51

52. Academic literacy—developing habits of mind
Text complexity, close reading, text-dependent questioning are part
of academic literacy. Academic literacy is really about habits of mind.
Read through the three handouts (habits of mind, students who are
college and career ready, classroom discussion strategies).
Annotate to note the big ideas, interesting concepts, and important
points.
Make notes about what habits do your students already exhibit
and what habits they are working toward.
Put the big ideas onto sticky notes (one idea per note).
Create a concept map to represent your thinking about the concepts.
www.asccc.org/Publications/Papers/AcademicLiteracy/main.htm

53. Generate-Sort-Connect
Concept Map

54. The Language of Argument:
Critical Reading and Thinking
Analysis
Evaluation
an  a  lyze: to examine
methodically by separating into
parts and studying their
interrelationships
e  val  u  ate: to examine
carefully for the purpose of
determine value
 rough synonyms: listen, observe,
understand, break down, deconstruct
 rough synonyms: judge, conclude, decide
 facilitated by “listening to the text,”
“trying to understand it on its own terms
. . . trying to consider the ideas fairly and
accurately before rushing to judgment”
 facilitated by “questioning the text” and
“carefully interrogating a text’s claims and
evidence and its subtle forms of
persuasion” in order to “make sound
judgments and offer thoughtful
responses” (Bean et all, Reading
Rhetorically 70).
(Bean et all, Reading Rhetorically 52).
 involves:
 Argument Analysis
 Rhetorical Analysis
The Two Major Components of Critical Reading and Thinking

55. Writing
Review the
“Reading the
Assignment” section
of the module, and
answer the
questions together
in table groups.
55

56. Writing
Review the writing prompt from Social Networking.
Discuss the following:
What appears to be the key learning objective of
this prompt/assignment?
What is the expected product?
How does this kind of writing task prepare
students to meet Common Core standards?
Report to the group.
56

57. Writing
Review the
expectations
for revision.
How will you
support your
students in
this work?
Why is this
work a good
investment of
your time?
57

58. Writing
Editing happens
only when
revision is
complete. How
can you help
your students
see these as
separate
processes?
58

59. Writing
Academic Literacy
states that
students should
“demonstrate
initiative and
develop ownership
of their education”
How does this
activity develop
that skill?
59

60. Non-Examples &
Examples
Not Text-Dependent
In “Casey at the Bat,” Casey
strikes out. Describe a time when
you failed at something.
In “Letter from a Birmingham
Jail,” Dr. King discusses nonviolent
protest. Discuss, in writing, a time
when you wanted to fight against
something that you felt was unfair.
In “The Gettysburg Address”
Lincoln says the nation is dedicated
to the proposition that all men are
created equal. Why is equality an
important value to promote?
Text-Dependent
What makes Casey’s experiences at
bat humorous? Give some
examples of the humor from text.
What can you infer from King’s
letter about the letter that he
received? Explain to whom he was
addressing in this letter and give
examples of how you know this.
What year was “The Gettysburg
Address,” and according to
Lincoln’s speech, why is this year
significant to the events described
in the speech?
60

61. 8th Grade Module: Social Networking
 Read pages 1 & 2 from the module. Annotate the text
through your teacher lens.
– What is important to know about this module?
– How do the module objectives connect to academic
literacy and habits of mind?
 Do activity 1: Getting Ready to Read
61

62. Social Networking—Reading the text
Read the text: Teenage Social Media Butterflies May
Not Be Such a Bad Idea.
Prepare to discuss what makes it complex using both
qualitative and quantitative criteria (day 1).
Identify the reader and task considerations that might
be posed for YOUR students.
62

63.  When you look at a module like Social Networking, with
what aspects of it would your students be ready to
engage and where would they require more support?
 What moves will you make to
– construct opportunities for students to do the hard
work of analyzing the text?
– support students who are unprepared for this work?
– assess students along the way
 What do you need to do to prepare for instruction of this
module? Mark the module with your instructional notes.
63

64. Assignment Template
64

65. Homework for Day 3
 Teach a module.
 Please bring in three copies each of two
students’ papers with the writing prompt
attached.
65