Connection Circles and Evidence Supported Inferring

     One would think that having had four days off for ice and snow last week, I would have gotten this post done earlier than tonight. But alas, I enjoyed the days off with Mr. Wonderful, cooked a lot of good food, read a few wonderful books, took a lot of great naps, and basically enjoyed the down time. Now it is Sunday night, and I am once again joining the real world.
     In my last post, I paid homage to Tanny McGregor and must do so once again. This post is based on lessons taken directly from her book Comprehension Connections: Bridges to Strategic Reading. As I have said, go buy this book! The book is geared mostly towards instruction with younger students, but I have both adapted parts and kept parts for the high school level seamlessly. As I mentioned before in my blog post on January 16, 2014, these are teenagers reading on 1st to 3rd grade levels. (PS: That is my favorite post ever. I think it captured the challenges of teaching this class while also conveying the challenges the students themselves face. Admittedly, much greater a challenge to be in their shoes than to be in mine. I learn from them everyday, and they aren't even trying to teach me!)
     After introducing metacognition and the concept of having them think about their thinking as they read, I did a lesson on Connections. I had taught Connections in it's most basic form already, but I wanted to dig a little deeper and define the different types. Enter Ms. McGregor's Concentric Circles of Connections. I made one on the computer that looked like the one below. The next picture is what it looked like added to their journal.

     After explaining the types of connections, we went back through the ones we had posted previously on the class CROP-QV for Wonder by R.J. Palacio (our current class read aloud) and sorted them by type: T-S, T-T, and T-W. I then gave them all sticky notes and did our read aloud for the day. I asked them to jot down their connections, but to also code them as to what type they thought they were. After reading, we shared the connections and posted them by code (type) on the board. We had slightly more T-S, but they were pretty even. The next day, I gave them a sheet and asked them to make one connection of each type from their independent reading. I also asked them to choose a fourth connection and tell me what type it was. Additionally, they were to not only share the connection but what the text said that caused the connection. (I took pictures of these, but the camera got stuck at school over the snow day. I'll share them later...) My reasoning behind this was to see of they actually understood the different types and could apply them appropriately as they read. Typically, I would not make them use a certain strategy. I tell them all the time, strategies for comprehension are specific to each person and some work better than others for each individual reader. I personally rely strongly on Visualization and Questions as I read. Some students don't get any mental image at all, but rely on Predictions or Connections to help support their comprehension. Each reader is unique. I am simply trying to find the options that will work best for them. I do like to get an idea, however, if they are with me. It was clear based on the evidence of the practice sheets I gave them, that they were. Just one more strategy in their comprehension arsenal. 

     I had taught schema (basically - background knowledge, unique to each individual) about two weeks ago. I revisited it, and Questioning as well, with a short mini-lesson from the book. I compared McDonald's, a place all of the students are familiar with, to a restaurant in Florida that my husband and I visit called Ponce Inlet. I knew none of them had ever been there. I began by asking them to call out everything they knew about McDonald's in 30 seconds and I recorded it on the left side of an anchor chart. Then on the right side, I gave them 30 seconds to call out all they knew about Ponce Inlet. 

     

     We reflected on the fact that their knowledge based on schema was plentiful, and they could have called out things much longer than 30 seconds. We also discussed how they relied on Questions to try and build some knowledge of the unknown topic. I also discussed with them that even before the 30 seconds was up, and the calling out had gotten quiet, I heard two of them start talking about a girl that they thought was cute who had just walked by the door. Aha! So... see how easy it is to get off topic when it is unfamiliar and uninteresting to you!?! (PS: Thank you to the reading gods who allowed this perfect example to happen.... I love when that happens!!) They all laughed when I pointed out the off topic conversation, but one of the boys who had done it said, "That really happened. How did you know?" (Again... thank you reading gods...)

     I made this anchor chart (thanks, Ms. McGregor!!) and posted it in class. 

     They added it to their journals, we discussed each element of the equation, and we were all set to start making evidence based inferences. I started by defining what exactly it is to infer and how inferences can support comprehension. Before they arrived, I got a clean trash bag and collected a few items from the class trash can as well as printed some staged ones offline. I used some ideas from the book and threw in some of my own to make it relevant. As I took out the items, they were to tell me what they were and then explain what that item told about the person to whom the trash belonged. Here is the chart we made. 

     These were the items and the grey wording is what they said the items meant. (PS: I think Cosco may be spelled Costco... I should look that up...) They had a great discussion about these things and some really good ideas. For the next lesson, I displayed the anchor chart again and discussed how we could use their ideas as solid evidence to support their inferences. We made a new chart. We put our evidence based on schema in pink. 

     I then sent them on their merry way with a supply of sticky notes (larger ones, folded down the middle, hot-dog style) and asked them to practice making an inference on the left and offer support for that inference on the right. We displayed these on the board and discussed each. They really did a fabulous job!! 

     I have been so focused on Reading on the blog, that I have neglected my EBD friends. I thought I would share the lesson we did on anger last week. I found a wonderful article on anger and how it can mask other emotions. (The article is at school, but I promise to give credit to the author in the next post.) I drew this graphic on the board:

     We read the article and discussed examples of times when anger may have masked these emotions in them. I didn't take a picture of the examples we wrote under each emotion because they were personal to the students. I am nothing if not respectful of each of them and their confidentiality. Suffice to say, the examples were numerous. We added it all to their journals. 

     I just have to say, I am enjoying teaching so incredibly much this year. It was a scary - no terrifying - move to come to high school, but I am so excited that I took the plunge. I LOVE it!! I had been hoping to do it for a few years, but the need for change wasn't crystal clear until last year. Coming to a Title I high school of 3600 students has been 100% different than anything I have ever imagined. But different in an amazing, inspiring, challenging, and wonderful way. I thank these kids every day for the lessons they teach me and the time they allow me to spend with them. Treasures. Each and every single one of them. 

    I leave you with a picture of my board from last week. If you have read my earlier posts from this year, you know that I actually teach in a closet. (That may or may not be a slight exaggeration, but slight if at all...) And I hate (with a red hot passion) clutter. I hate it. It makes me hyperventilate. Well, take a look at this....

     As I walked in the other day and looked at this board, I sighed and wondered how I was going to use the 5 square feet of wall space I have left to display my most important things. I mean, I don't leave at the end of the day until everything is put away and my desk is 100% clear. It helps me start the next day fresh, people! But then, one of my kids came in behind me and said, "Look at all that stuff!" And I, thinking she was disturbed by the level of clutter, sticky notes, and anchor charts said, "I know! I have got to get this under control!" And do you know what she said to me? She said, "No, Mrs. Beck. That just shows how much we learn in this class. That's why we all come here every day and no one ever skips your class. This stuff really helps us. You really help us. Thanks, Mrs. Beck." And she left. I closed the door, sat at my desk, actually shed a happy tear, and silently thanked the reading gods once again. That really happened. Have I mentioned how much I LOVE THIS JOB!!!!! PS: I left the board. Just like that. 

    Have a great week friends. I hope to get the next post out in a few days on Questioning. Stephanie Harvey is going to be so proud. 

Mrs. Beck

Metacognition: Thinking About Thinking

     First of all, I need to do a major disclaimer here. I have relied on (and by relied I mean totally used, stolen, adapted, stolen, and used again.....) Tanny McGregor and her book Comprehension Connections: Bridges to Strategic Reading for my instruction over this last week and a half. Some of the pictures from my classroom are going to look very familiar, and in some cases exactly like, the anchor charts she has in this book. I feel guilty only long enough to realize that 1) That is why she sold the book, 2) That is why I bought the book, 3) Teachers are idea thieves - accept it, 4) Sometimes my brain is mush and I am doing good to match my shoes much less design an anchor chart that is already fabulously designed and in the book that she sold me and I bought. Okay. Enough justification..... (But you really should go buy the book!)

     I love the idea of teaching students metacognition (thinking about their thinking) mostly because I want to make them aware of when it is that their thinking breaks down. They have to understand that when you look up at the end of a text and realize you read the whole thing but have no idea what you read... you needed to fix that before you got to the end. This sets me up to teach strategies on how to fix the thinking later. In the book, she starts with an activity in which you have sets of cards marked "Text" and "Thinking" and a basket or box labeled "Real Reading Salad". I adapted this for high school and it looked similar, but like this: 

     I read When the Relatives Came by Cynthia Rylant, and modeled thinking as I read. Some thoughts were directly from the text (Text card) and some were me thinking based on my schema and other connections I had (Thinking card). I had the students determine which card went into the basket. Low and behold, we had many more thinking cards at the end than we did text cards. We discussed the reasons for that determined it was that we think while we read and we don't even know it. Wa-La... Metacognition! (Is that even how you spell "Wa-la"? I have never written it. In my whole life. Hmmm. If not, feel free to correct it as you read.) I then gave them the Venn type diagram that is used in the book and had them fill it in for their journals. 

     

     The graphic shows how thinking and explicit reading overlap. I love it. I have it hanging in my room as well. I then gave them each a card marked "Text" and "Thinking" and we practiced this whole group. I would model thinking as I read from an article I had on our basketball team, and they would hold up the card  that they thought showed how I was thinking. We would briefly discuss if they were right and why, then I would continue reading.  They wanted to keep the cards so I let them add them to their journals as a visual reminder of the lesson. 

     The next thing I shared with them was thinking stems for metacognition. This anchor chart is 100% copied from the book. (But I had on matching shoes that day, so I was already spent...Judge Free Zone, remember.)

     I discussed the thinking stems and modeled how to use the them based on the reading from the day before. We recorded these on the board. Then I put them into groups and gave them each a Shel Silverstein book of poems. I had them use the thinking stems to record their thinking and then we added them to the chart and shared our thinking. 

     Our next metacognition topic was to tackle depth of thinking. I used paint cards from Lowe's to model this, just as the book suggests.(I asked them if I could have them first even though they are free because I felt bad just taking them. I mean, we remodeled an entire home in Florida and used Lowes for it all so it isn't like they couldn't spare a few paint cards... but I HATE to be in trouble. And what if that sweet old lady at the door called me out for stealing free paint cards!? No way was I risking that. So, I asked. But it's up to you.) I made an anchor chart and then they added their cards to their journals. 

   

     I modeled how to use the colors to understand my thinking as I read excerpts from the book I am currently reading, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou.  I then had them practice using these cards to show how they were thinking as they read using their independent texts from their book boxes. The recorded this thinking in their journals as well. 

     Obviously, Ms. McGregor's book will give you much more insight into these processes, and I wish I had time to share it all. The students really did a great job of grasping the concept of metacognition and have applied it well so far in isolation. The goal, however, is to have them use it without even having to exert that much effort, seamlessly as they read. Work in progress, friends!

     Oh - I also started reading Wonder by R.J. Palacio out loud to the students. I only read a little bit each day, and I think it has such a valuable lesson for them all to hear. I told them I wanted to model fluency and thinking out loud for them and hoped they didn't mind. They were all on board (with the exception of one, but I am working on him...), which is good because I was going to do it anyway. We have an ongoing class CROP-QV that they each add to after I have read and we discuss what they are thinking. My hope is that it will help solidify some of these basic strategies.

     The next post will be on schema and making connections. The lessons went really well and I cannot wait to share! I leave you with one of my favorite pics of the week of one of my favorite kids in the world. He is funny, smart, and going to do something amazing one day. I can't wait to see it!!

Have a wonderful week, friends!!

Mrs. Beck