Elizabeth Storey Pamela Page NCTE 2016

1. The Art of Inquiry and Cross-Text
Connections:
Advocating for Engagement and Heart in Literacy
NCTE Annual Convention
Atlanta, GA - November 2016
Pam Page & Liz Storey

2. “Motivation to read and reading achievement are
higher when the classroom environment is rich in
reading materials and includes books from an array
of genres and text types, magazines, the Internet,
resource materials, and real-life documents.
It stands to reason that increasing the number of
books and other reading materials in the classroom
will have a positive effect on the amount and quality
of the reading experiences of the students. Providing
a rich variety of reading materials communicates to
students that reading is a worthwhile and valuable
activity and sets the stage for students to develop the
reading habit.”
(Linda Gambrell, 2011)

5. What are text sets?
A collection of…
● Books
● Charts
● Maps
● Videos
● Poems
● Songs
● Pamphlets/Brochures
● Images
● Quotes
● Art prints
● Speeches
● Interviews
● Letters/Journals
● Magazine/
Newspaper Articles
● Websites

6. “When teachers make the transition from
textbook only classrooms to multi-text
classrooms, the focus of study becomes
concepts rather than the content of one
particular book. Students gain both a broad
perspective and an in-depth sense of the
subject matter from reading many texts on
the same topic. I know of no one textbook
that contains enough information to help a
student become even mildly expert on any
topic.”
Gay Ivey (2002)

7. Why use text sets?
● Increases students’ comprehension
● Enables all students to be exposed to authentic
texts
● Helps students make cross-text connections
● Supports multiple abilities and reading
proficiencies
● Builds and activates prior knowledge
● Increases engagement levels by sustaining
interest
● Provides flexibility with limited resources
● Invites inquiry, examining beliefs, and asking
why
● Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: The danger of a single
story:
http://www.ted.com/talks/
chimamanda_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story.html

8. Organizing text sets
One way to consider using text sets is
by thinking about what texts you could
use
● BEFORE students read a main text
● AS they read a main text
● AFTER they read a main text
But, it’s important that teachers remain
flexible enough to modify the texts
based on the needs and interests of
students.
Flexibility is the key.

9. Approaches
● Choose a book first and then select
the texts
● Choose a theme and then choose the
texts
● Choose a Common Core State
Standard(s) or unit of study and
develop text sets that address that
curricular requirement

10. Consider your students
● What will interest them?
● Are the various texts diverse enough to
capture the interests of all your students? Do
you have enough variety?
● Will students be able to pursue an interest
through the various texts you have in the
set?
● Do you have texts that are accessible to all of
your students (think about the various
reading proficiencies in your classroom)
● Can you strike a balance? Too many texts
may be overwhelming. Too few may fail to
capture students’ imagination.

11. As Ivey (2010) notes:
“You can’t learn much from just one
book . . . .
What we really want students to be able
to do is read across texts critically and
analytically. We have become overly
concerned with whether students can
comprehend a particular text and not
concerned enough about whether
students can use multiple texts
to grapple with big ideas.” (March 2010,
Ed Leadership)

12. Building a text set around a novel
Things to consider:
● Time Period of the Novel
◦ What was happening in the popular culture
of the time?
◦ What other works of literature, art, music,
dance, etc., came out of that period?
● Content Area and/or Themes that are
prevalent (science, history, biography, etc.)
● What primary documents will help students get
a better feel for the period or content
presented?
● Examples:
◦ One Crazy Summer, Salt to the Sea

15. Building a Text Set Around
Content, Issues or Literary
Themes
Things to consider:
● Content themes across the curriculum
● Significant themes that impact students’ lives and their
interests
● Themes that invite inquiry and a call to action - advocasy
or better yet activism
● Books to meet diverse needs, other texts
● Using primary sources
◦ http://www.loc.gov/teachers/usingprimarysources/finding.html
◦ https://www.commoncraft.com/video/primary-and-secondary-
sources
Examples *Snow *Water Conservation *Cultural
Awareness

17. http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/
environment/freshwater/freshwater-101-quiz/
#finished
http://thewaterproject.org/water_stats.php

19. "Text sets help students develop critical
literacy skills that move them beyond literal
understanding to thoughtfully analyzing big
ideas by questioning, examining,
comparing, reflecting, and taking social
action. By seeing topics through multiple
lenses, students avoid stereotypical thinking,
get exposure to nondominant views, and
hear voices often silenced in the school
curriculum"
(Barbara Moss, 2011, p. 47)

20. Companion Texts
● Fiction and Nonfiction
● Novel and Picture Book
● Multiple Perspectives

21. Companion Texts: Fiction &
Nonfiction

22. More Companion Texts

23. Companion Texts
Multiple Perspectives

24. Collecting Resources/Gathering
Images
● * Prezi * Weebly * Glogster * Thinglink * Padlet
● Primary Sources – video clip
◦ Library of Congress (see next slide)
● Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/debbiewiles/
● http://www.thinglink.com/scene/468482696574664705?
buttonSource=email
● Image Search / Citing
● Resources
◦ Tween Tribune, Dogo News, Read Works
◦ Newsela
◦ Time for Kids, Scholastic News
◦ Wonderopolis
◦ PBS Learning Media

25. Library of Congress
Collections

26. SLJ and Common Core
Resources
● Inquiry and Integration Across the Curriculum: Global
Citizenry
● http://www.slj.com/2013/11/standards/curriculum-
connections/inquiry-and-integration-across-the-
curriculum-global-citizenry/
● Lincoln: A Multifaceted Man | Inquiry and Integration
Across the Curriculum
● http://www.slj.com/2014/04/standards/curriculum-
connections/lincoln-a-multifaceted-man-inquiry-and-
integration-across-the-curriculum/
● Our Ecological Footprint | Inquiry and Integration
Across the Curriculum
● http://www.slj.com/2014/05/standards/curriculum-
connections/our-ecological-footprint-inquiry-and-
intergration-across-the-curricululm/

27. More Resources
● Library of Congress
● NASA
● National Geographic
● Smithsonian Museums
● Teaching Books.net
● http://www.loc.gov/teachers/usingprimarysources/
resources/Analyzing_Political_Cartoons.pdf
● http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/
primarysourcesets/
● Finding primary sources:
http://www.loc.gov/teachers/usingprimarysources/
finding.html
● Digital Public Library: https://dp.la
● Kids Click: http://www.kidsclick.org
● Awesome Library: http://www.awesomelibrary.org

28. Connecting to CCSS
● Key Ideas and Details
● Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
● Research to Build and Present
Knowledge
● Depending on how text sets are used,
you can teach common core standards
from Literacy in History/Social Studies,
Science, and Technical Subjects

29. Reading Standard for Literature
● Key Ideas and Details:
● 1. Cite several pieces of textual evidence when useful to support
analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn
from the text.
● 2. Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its
development over the course of the text; provide an objective
summary of the text.
● 9. Compare and contrast a fictional portrayal of a time, place, or
character and a historical account of the same period as a means of
understanding how authors of fiction use or alter history.
● Integration of Knowledge & Ideas
● 9. Analyze how two or more authors writing about the same topic
shape their presentations of key information by emphasizing
different evidence or advancing different interpretations of facts.
● Research to Build and Present Knowledge
● 9. Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support
analysis, reflection, and research. a. Apply grade 7 Reading
standards to literature (e.g., “Compare and contrast a fictional
portrayal of a time, place, or character and a historical account of the
same period as a means of understanding how authors of fiction use
or alter history”).

30. Anchor Standards
Anchor Standard 1: What the Text Says
Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical
inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to
support conclusions drawn from the text.
Anchor Standard 2: Central Idea
Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development;
summarize the key supporting details and ideas.
Anchor Standard 3: People, Events & Ideas
Analyze how and why individuals, events, or ideas develop and interact
over the course of a text.
Anchor Standard 4: Word Meaning & Choice
Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including
determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze
how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.
Anchor Standard 6: Point of View/Purpose
Assess how point of view or purpose shapes the content and style of a text.

31. Books We Used
for our Text Set
Examples

32. Breakout Groups
● We invite you to join us in breakout
groups to see how we created text
sets from two recent novels.
● We will rotate after 12 minutes.
● We will wrap up at
12:10 for final
comments
http://www.online-stopwatch.com

33. I’m excited! What do I do???
● Creating your own text sets
● Check:
◦ Back matter supports text sets
● Resources… The Classroom Bookshelf:
http://www.theclassroombookshelf.com/, Library of
Congress
● Use your expertise!
● Staying up-to-date
● Thanks for coming and sharing with us!
◦ pagep@gvsu.edu
◦ storeyL@gvsu.edu

34. “So Matilda’s strong young mind
continued to grow, nurtured by the
voices of all those authors who had
sent their books out into the world
like ships on the sea. These books
gave Matilda a hopeful and
comforting message: You are not
alone.”
● ― Roald Dahl, Matilda
“Classroom communi.es are essen.al
because students care about what other
students think.” Penny Ki;le

35. Sources
● Gambrell, L. (2011). Seven Rules of Engagement; What’s Most
Important to Know About Motiavtion to Read. The Reading Teacher,
Volume 65, Issue 3.
● Ivey, G. (2002). Getting Started: Manageable Literacy Practices”.
Educational Leadership 60 (3):20-23.
● Ivey, G. (2010). Texts That Matter. Educational Leadership.
● Johnson, N., Giorgis, C. (2007). The Wonder of It All; When Literature and
Literacy Intersect. Heinemann, Portsmouth, ME
● Kittle, P. (2013). Book Love; Developing Depth, Stamina, and Passion in
Adolescent Readers. Heinemann, Portsmouth, ME
● Moss, B. (2011). Boost Critical Thinking: New Titles for Thematically
Based Text Sets. Voices from the Middle, Volume 19, Number 1.
● Tovani, C. (2004). Do I Really Have to Teach Reading? Content
Comprehension, Grades 6-12. Stenhouse Publishers.
● Teaching with Text Sets – The Classroom Bookshelf, October 1, 2012:
http://classroombookshelf.blogspot.com/2012/10/teaching-with-text-
sets.html
● Teaching with Text Sets Blog:
http://www.teachingwithtextsets.blogspot.com
● Sharon McElmeel: Best Teen Reads, updated yearly