MarykateHennelly

KeanUniversityWritingProject
TeacherInquiryWorkshop
June27July19

ReadingandWritingConnection

TeachingContext
IamaLanguageArtsteacheratBayshoreMiddleSchoolinMiddletown,
NewJersey.Iamcurrentlyresponsibleforteachingbothsixthandeighthgradestudents.The
majorityofmystudentscomefrommiddletouppermiddleclassfamilies,withverylittlediversity
inourschool.Myoverallobjectiveasateacheristobuildempathyandunderstandingwithinmy
studentsthroughtheuseofreadingandwriting.Iamfortunatetoseemythreeclasseseach
dayfor80minuteblocks,whichprovidesuswithampletimetoengageinmeaningfulactivities
withintheclassroom.Mystudentswillinglyattendschoolandaspiretohighereducation.
However,moststudentsseeschoolasameanstotheirfuturecareer,whereIaspiretoinstillin
themaloveforlearning.Mygoalistofosterindependentreadersandwriters,andtherefore
independentthinkers.Icultivateanenvironmentwithmystudentswheretheyfeelcomfortable
takingrisksandexploringdeeptopics.Ideveloplessonsthatareengagingandallowstudents
theoptiontoworkaloneorwithpartners.Ialsogenerateavarietyoflessonsthatallowstudents
tofindandplacevalueontheirvoice,throughacademicdiscussionsandtheuseofaccountable
talk.

IreadanexcerptfromAmongtheHiddenby
MargaretPetersonHaddix
withmysixthgrade
students,whichisanupperfifthgradereadinglevel.Ichosethistexttouseasamentortext
becauseitisaccessibletoallstudentsandtheyenjoyit.Drivingquestionsaboutwhatmakes
foragoodmentortexttoengagethestudentsandhowcanIprovideanaccessibletexttofoster
studentdiscussionledmetochosethispracticeformyTeachingInquiryWorkshop.

Overview
Thegoalsforthislessonaregearedtowardcreatingstronger,moreattentive,
readerswhocanmaketheconnectionbetweenatextandpersonalexperiences.Theactivities
inthislessonaredesignedtodevelopindependentreaderswhocanclosereadatextfora
specificpurpose,examininginternalconflictthroughcharactersthoughtsandquestions,and
citingtextevidencetomakeinferencesaboutthecharacterandtheirconflict.Studentswillbuild

criticalspeakingskillsthroughusingaccountabletalktodiscusstheconflictidentifiedinthetext.
Studentswillusethisdiscussiontotalkaloudabouttheirideasalongwithdiffering
interpretationsandperspectives.Studentswillwritetoexploretheideaofatoughquestionsand
developcriticalwritingskillsbygeneratingawrittenresponseexploringatoughquestion
momentfromtheirpersonalexperience.Thebroadergoalfortheselearningobjectivesisfor
studentstofindtheirvoiceandmakeaconnectionbetweenthelessonsandskillstaught
throughtextsincomparisontowhattheycanlearnintheirownlives.

StudentsmayormaynotbefamiliarwithAmongtheHidden,althoughafewoftheelementary
schoolsinourdistrictuseitasamentortextinfifthgrade.Inadditiontothat,theelementary
schoolshavebeguntouseKyleenBeersandRobertProbstsNoticeandNote:Strategiesfor
CloseReadingSignpostsintheirinstruction.Thestudentsinmyclassmayormaynothave
hadexperiencewiththesignposts.ToughQuestionsisthethirdsignpostIteachinmyclass
therefore,studentswillhavepriorexperiencewiththeformatfortodayslesson,alongwiththe
purposeofsignpostsandtheaccountabletalkstemstheywilluse.ClasswillbeginwithaDo
NowinwhichtheyviewavideodefiningandexplainingToughQuestionsdesignedtogetthe
studentsthinkingabouttheskillathandandmakingmeaningoftheskillindependently.
Studentswilljotdownquestionstheyhaveduringtheviewing.Theteacherwillthenbreakdown
theclosereadingstrategyfortheclassbyusinganAnchorChartthatthestudentswillfillinin
theirnotebooks.Theteacherwilldefineandexplainthestrategyfurtherandclarifyany
confusionfromthevideo.Theteacherwillthenreadtheexcerptfromthestoryaloudforthe
students,remindingthemthatwhenwecloseread,wereadthroughsomethingonce,andthen
asecondtimeforanintendedpurpose.Theteacherwilltheninstructthestudentstofollow
alongwiththesecondreadaloud,wheretheclasswillstopandnoticeandnotewhena
signpostappears,eachtimestoppingtodiscusstheanchorquestionwithapartner.Thiswill
continueuntilthestudentshaveidentifiedalltheToughQuestions.Thesediscussionswill
createbrainstorming/prewritingopportunitiesforthereflectionpieceofthislesson.

Afteridentifyinganddiscussingeachofthesignposts(about15minutes),studentswillrespond
tothefollowingprompt:Makealist(longorshort)ofdifficultdecisionsyouvehadtomakein
yourlife.SelectoneToughQuestionyouvehadtoanswerandwriteaparagraphexploringthat
question,yourstrugglewithin(internalconflict),andhowyourdecisionshapedyouinyourlife
(howdiditaffectyourlifeoryouasaperson).Writeashortresponsetotheprompt.The

responsemustbeatleastonecompleteparagraphandbereadaloudtoyourpartner.Full
creditwillbegivenforaclearlyfocusedresponsethatexploresaninternalconflictanditseffect
onthewriter.Studentswillhaveabout20minutes,afterwhichtheywillsharewithapartner.
Studentswillvolunteertoreadtheirwritingaloudtotheclassintheauthorschair.

TheoreticalLensMyReadingandWritingConnectionpertainingtoToughQuestionsand
exploringpersonalexperiencereflectsthefollowingNewJerseyCommonCoreState
Standardsinobjective,practice,andassessment:
CCSS.ELALITERACY.RL.6.1
Citetextualevidencetosupportanalysisofwhatthetextsaysexplicitlyaswellasinferencesdrawnfromthetext.
CCSS.ELALITERACY.W.6.3.B
Usenarrativetechniques,suchasdialogue,pacing,anddescription,todevelopexperiences,events,and/or
characters.
CCSS.ELALITERACY.W.6.4
Produceclearandcoherentwritinginwhichthedevelopment,organization,andstyleareappropriatetotask,
purpose,andaudience.(Gradespecificexpectationsforwritingtypesaredefinedinstandards13above.)
CCSS.ELALITERACY.SL.6.1
Engageeffectivelyinarangeofcollaborativediscussions(oneonone,ingroups,andteacherled)withdiverse
partnersongrade6topics,texts,andissues,buildingonothers'ideasandexpressingtheirownclearly.
CCSS.ELALITERACY.SL.6.1.C
Poseandrespondtospecificquestionswithelaborationanddetailbymakingcommentsthatcontributetothetopic,
text,orissueunderdiscussion.

Whenreadingatext,thewordsmustbecomemorethanjustspotsonapage.The
readermustbeabletomakemeaningfromthetext,versussimplyusingtextevidencetofindan
answerorrespondingtopromptssuchasHowdoyoufeelaboutthat?AccordingtoKylene
BeersandRobertE.Probst,meaningmanifestsitselfwhenthereaderauthenticallyexperiences
andinteractswithatext.AccordingtotheirbookNoticeandNote:StrategiesforClose
Reading,Thetextawakensassociationsinthereadersmind,andoutofthemix,meaningis
created.Itresidesneitherinthetextnorinthereadersmind,butinthemeetingofthetwo(1).
Thistheoryofclosereadingallowsthereadertoexploretheirpersonalconnectiontothetext,
whateverthatmaybe.Literarycriticandplaywright,T.S.Eliot,oncearguedwithacriticabout
themisinterpretedmeaningofhisplay.ThecriticbelievedthedirectorinterpretedEliots
meaningincorrectly.Whenaskedthatsincethetwointerpretationsarecontradictory,mustthe
authorberightandtheotherwrong?Mr.EliotrespondedwithNotnecessarily,doyouthink?
Whyiseitherwrong?(Rowntree)

AnothertheorybehindthislessoncentersaroundLevVygotskysbeliefthatwelearn
throughourinteractionsandcommunicationswithothers.Hetheorizedthatourroleas
educatorsistofacilitatethiscommunicationwithpeersandanenvironmentwherestudentscan
growthroughinteractingwithothers.Vygotskyargued"thatlanguageisthemaintoolthat
promotesthinking,developsreasoning,andsupportsculturalactivitieslikereadingandwriting"
(Vygotsky1978).InadditiontoVygotsky,BeersandProbsthavesimilarsentimentintheirbook
Notice&Note
,wheretheydiscusstheimportanceoftalkintheclassroom.Talkissoincredibly
importantintermsofmakingmeaningofanideaorasurrounding.Forexample,inoureveryday
lives,weasksomeonefordirectionstohelpusfigureoutanarea.Weasksomeoneforhelpto
figureoutaproblem.Wetalkwithourpeerstofigureoutanidea,justasourstudentsdo.
Studentsfeelinspiredwhentheycanengageinconversationwithapeer,andmorelikelyto
takerisksinthesmallgrouporoneononesetting.Incorporatingdiscussionintoaclassroom
allowsthestudentstobecomeCoconstructorsoftheirknowledge...takeownership...askwhy
andwhynot...andrealizethattheirvoicemattersandtheirquestionscountmorethantheir
answers(27).
Justlikediscussionallowsstudentstoexploreideasinreading,writingalsoallows
studentstoexploretheirideas.AccordingtoFrankSmith,authorofMythsofWriting,itis
dispelledthatwritinginvolvesthetransferofideas,butratherthatWritingcancreateideasand
experiencesonpaperwhichcouldneverhaveexistenceinthemind(27).Inboththe
educationalandpersonalsetting,writingshouldbeviewedasbothexplorativeofideas,butalso
asameansofcreatingideas.Throughthesephilosophiesandpractices,studentswillbeableto
personallymakemeaningofatext,exploretheirideasinasafeenvironment,empowerthemto
findtheirvoiceandtoquestionsocialconstruct.Studentswillbecomemotivatedtobe
independentandpurposefulthinkers.

PracticalLens
InIreneClarksConceptsinComposition,shereferencesKenMacroriesbook
Telling
Writing
,hestatestheimportanceofavoidingEngfishorlanguagethatconcealsratherthan
revealsoneself.(15)Inotherwords,theabsenceofvoiceinwritingisaproblemthatneedsto
beaddressed.Whendevelopingthislesson,Ithinkitisimportantforstudentstorealizethat
thereisnorightanswertotheToughQuestionsposedinatext.Eachstudentbringstheirown
experiencetothetable,andthoseexperiencewillshapetheirresponses.Itisnecessaryfor
studentstorecognizethattheycanfindtheirvoiceinreadingaswellaswriting.Astheyread,

eachstudentbringsawealthofknowledgeandexperiencetothetablethathelpsthemmake
meaningofatext.However,whilestudentvoiceisincrediblyimportant,studentsmaystruggle
withfindingtheirvoice.Whenreadingatext,studentshavebeentrainedtofindandcitethe
correctanswer.Itisimportantthatstudentsrealizethereisntalwaysone.Inreadingatextand
discussingtheToughQuestions,studentsmustuseboththeirunderstandingofthetextand
theirownexperiencestoengageinanauthenticreadingexperience.

ReflectiveLens
Ibelievethislessonissuccessfulandengagingformystudentsforafewreasons.One
reasonisthatthestudentsunderstandthestructureoftheNotice&NoteSignpostlessons,
allowingthemtoanticipateeachsteptheymustfollow,allowingthemtofocussolelyonthetask
athand.Ienjoyusingthistextsbecauseitposesthoughtfuldiscussionsandallowsthestudents
tobereflectiveabouttheirownlivesinconnectiontothecharacters.Studentsarealsoreceptive
tothislessonbecausetheyveeachexperiencedatoughquestionintheirlife.Theycanrelate
totheeasilyidentifiedconceptofbeingfacedwithachoiceandknowingthatchoicecanalter
yourlife.Thislessonalsoissuccessfulbecauseoftheaccountabletalkelement.Studentsare
morewillingtosharetheirexperiencesandtakeriskswheninasmallsetting,helpingthemto
buildconfidencetoshareinwholegroup.Iaminterestedinselectingtextsthatdealwithissues
mystudentswillface,andusingtheseToughQuestionstohelpmystudentsbecomewell
roundedindividualswhomakeeducateandresponsiblechoices.

InquiryQuestions

HowcanIdeveloptheimportanceofareadingandwritingconnectionamongyoung
readers?

Howcanthislessonpromotethoughtfulandcompassionatethinkers?

Howcanthislessonassiststudentsinbringingforthpersonalexperiencesandhelping
themtofindtheirvoice?

Sources

Clark,IreneL.,andBettyBamberg.
ConceptsinComposition:TheoryandPracticeinthe
TeachingofWriting
.Mahwah,NJ:L.ErlbaumAssociates,2003.Print.

Smith,Frank."MythsofWriting."
EssaysintoLiteracy:SelectedPapersandSome
Afterthoughts
.Exeter,NH:HeinemannEducational,1983.N.pag.Print.
Neff,LindaS."LevVygotskyandSocialLearningTheories."
LevVygotskyandSocialLearning
Theories
.N.p.,n.d.Web.06July2016.
Vygotsky,L.S.(1978)MindinSociety:Thedevelopmentofhigherpsychologicalprocesses.
Cambridge,MA:HarvardUniversityPress.
Rowntree,Derek.1977.
HowShallWeKnowThem?
London:Harper&Row

LessonPlan
Objectives
SWBAT
Identifytoughquestionswithinagradeappropriatetext.
respondtoanchorquestionregardingthetoughquestion,citingtextualevidencetosupport
analysisandtopromptthoughtfulideasanddiscussion.
identifyinternalconflictofacharacterandusetextevidencetodrawinferencesaboutthe
conflict.
discusswithapartneropposinganalysesofthetext,citingevidencetodoso.
reflectuponandrecordapersonalexperiencewithatoughquestion.

EssentialQuestions
Whatisatoughquestion?
Whatdotoughquestionsrevealaboutacharacter?
Howdoourchoicesinfluenceouractionsorthoughts?

EnduringUnderstanding
Atoughquestionisadifficultquestiononeasksthatrevealaninternalconflict.
Individualsfacetoughquestionsandchallengeseveryday.Thechoicesthatwemakeand
theactionsthatwetakeaffectwhoweareasaperson,alongwiththosearoundus.

Materials

NoticeandNoteToughQuestionPresentation

ToughQuestionAnchorChart

AmongtheHiddenexcerpt

AccountableTalkStems
WritingPrompt

AnticipatorySet
WatchtheNoticeandNoteToughQuestionPresentation.
Jotdownanyquestionsyoumayhaveasyouviewthevideo.

DirectInstruction
Reviewvideopresentation.
HavestudentsrecordAnchorChartintotheirnotebook:definingToughQuestionandAnchor
Question.
Respondtoanyquestionsstudentshave.

Assessment
GuidedPractice
ReadexcerptfromAmongtheHiddenaloudalltogether.
ModelforthestudentshowtoStopandNoticeandNoteaToughQuestion.
InstructstudentstoturnandtalktothepersonsittingnexttothemandrespondtotheAnchor
Question.
Instructstudentstostopandjotdowntheirthoughtsonthehandout.
Asyouread,instructstudentstostoptheclosereadingwhentheyidentifyanothertough
question.
Repeattheabovestepofturningtotalktoapartnerrespondingtotheanchorquestioneach
timeastudentidentifiesatoughquestion.

IndependentPractice
Onablanksheetofpaper,instructstudentstorespondtothefollowingpromptandinform
studentstheywillbesharingtheirresponseswithapartner:
Makealist(longorshort)ofdifficultdecisionsyouvehadtomakeinyourlife.
SelectoneToughQuestionyouvehadtoanswerandwriteaparagraphexploringthat
question,yourstrugglewithin(internalconflict),andhowyourdecisionshapedyouinyour
life(howdiditaffectyourlifeoryouasaperson).

Closure
Instructstudentstosharetheirresponseswiththepersonsittingnexttothem.