Weekly Coaching Communication
Make it a great day -- every day!
07 -- 11 March 2016
On the Standards Front . . .
If you subscribe to the Write Tools mailing list, then you would have received the latest feature for Citing Textual Evidence. The standard for citing evidence is integral to all content areas:
Social Studies - History:
RH.11–12.1
Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, connecting insights gained from specific details to an understanding of the text as a whole.
Science and Technical Subjects:
RST.11–12.1
Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts, attending to important distinctions the author makes and to any gaps or inconsistencies in the account.
ELA:
RL/RI.9–10.1
Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
RL/RI.11–12.1
Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text, including determining where the text leaves matters uncertain.
Teachers want to know what from the student's reading he or she deems to be the textual evidence to support the thinking that goes with answering a question. Although the example is elementary, the process is universal:
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Citing Textual Evidence
Last month we shared with you Jeff Spafford's great acronym (A. C. E.) to help take some of the mystery out of citing textual evidence. Jeff mentioned that his students are still a work in progress when it comes to writing strong explanations after citing evidence.
This made me wonder if students could even identify a strong E when they saw one. After all, if they can't recognize a good E, they're never going to be able to write one!
The text I used for my quick assessment was from Junior Scholastic 9/2/13,
"Bug Bites: Why the United Nations Wants You to Eat Insects." After reading and highlighting the articles, students were able to answer the question and cite evidence.
Question: Why does the UN want you to eat insects?
A: (Answer): The UN wants you to eat insects because there are economic benefits to bug eating.
C: (Cite evidence): The text states, "Gathering and farming insects can offer employment and cash income..."
Now I asked students which was the best "E" to explain the answer and the text evidence. The choices were:
1. People shouldn't eat bugs because they might get sick from them.
2. People could collect or farm bugs and sell them to others to make money. In addition, jobs could be created by companies who farm and sell bugs for people to eat.
3. Some people have said that the bugs didn't actually taste that bad. They described the flavors as nutty or having a bacon flavor. These flavors would definitely encourage people to eat bugs!
The class quickly eliminated Option 1. Students debated the merits of Options 2 and 3 before deciding that since the evidence mentioned "employment" Explanation 2 was the best Evidence.
The final great response would then read:
The UN wants you to eat insects because there are economic benefits to bug eating. The text states, "Gathering and farming insects can offer employment and cash income..." People could collect or farm bugs and sell them to others to make money. In addition, jobs could be created by companies who farm and sell bugs for people to eat.
If your students are struggling with writing explanations for their textual evidence, give this a try. Send us an email and let us know if this helps.
Quick Clicks
Website (Tools to Use or Peruse)
Have you had a chance to take a look at GWAEA's Tumblebook Cloud? It's online E-Books and Audio books for 7-12. Pretty nice.
Use the Grant Wood AEA username and password.
Suggested Reading/Viewing
You can read it or listen to him explain it in 1:40.
Trending Tweets
Quotation of the Week . . .
Although the entire blog is applicable as an instructional coach, the blunder that I found most appropriate for reflection was #3:
Mistake #3: Focusing on problems more than solutions.
The danger of problems is their ability to capture our attention. Lousy leaders solve problems. Successful leaders pursue solutions.
Solutions:
- Problems are useful when they help you clarify what you want. “Don’t-want” leadership de-energizes.
- You’ve already lost when you forget why you’re hacking away in the weeds.
- Keep asking, “What do I want?”
- Point to the big picture, when teams get lost in the weeds.
Of late, it seems several problems have marred the big picture for me, and I'm lost in what Mr. Rockwell would call the weeds. I always joke that my whiteboard can only answer me so much; however, I think I'm on the right path here in pursuing solutions rather than feeling compelled to just solve the problem.
That question of "What do [we] want?" is integral in deciding the pursuit, but is also necessary for reflection first. We have to decide the end goal or outcome of the initiative before we can move forward. Eliminating a "Don't-want" mindset allows for a focus on growth and detracts the attention from the problem and allows for a focus on the pursuit of the solution. By looking at several solutions and opportunities to move forward with the pursuit of those solutions, I can then call on others to delineate which is the best solution to pursue.
Standards-Based Learning/Grading is a tall challenge on its own. Shrouding it in "the weeds" of a transition to an 8-period schedule can garner a lot of attention; however, if we focus on our pursuit of a solution and maintain a growth-mindset in the answer for "What do [we] want?", we will move forward.
Coaching Schedule -- see Google Calendar for specific "Busy" times **schedule subject to change**
Monday, 07 March
- IC Meeting w/ District Review Council (DRC) 9:15 @ Primary
- Serve Teachers & Students
- Classroom Observations
- Research & Resources
Tuesday, 08 March SBL/G Council Meeting 7:30 HS Conference Room
- Serve Teachers & Students
- Classroom Observations
- Research & Resources
Wednesday, 09 March -- Morning Meeting -- Growth Mindset
- Serve Teachers & Students
- Classroom Observations
- Research & Resources
Thursday, 10 March -- Staff Meeting 8:00 AM -- TLC Updated Session 2016-17
- Serve Teachers & Students
- Classroom Observations
- Research & Resources
Friday, 11 March -- Principal/ IC Meeting w/ Libolt 7:30AM
- IC Team Meeting
- Serve Teachers & Students
- Classroom Observations
- Research & Resources
Click on the link to access prior weekly communications.
Contact Information
Center Point - Urbana CSD
Email: epopenhagen@cpuschools.org
Phone: 319-849-1102+91015
Twitter: @Epopenhagen