Each teacher was asked to bring three papers to the discussion — one in the top of the class performance, one in the middle, and one in the bottom of the class performance. Papers were chosen before the team defined proficiency. After defining proficiency, teachers often changed their minds about how they ordered their papers. The online discussion will make that clearer.
Question: Write a summary of the article “Fly High, Bessie Coleman” (Acrobat)
Top Classroom Response
What did the student understand?
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What does the student still need to learn?
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Where would you go next instructionally with this student?
- Have her clarify the summarizing statement because she linked it with her details; maybe she could have stopped at the word ‘died,’ put a period, and then create that concluding sentence that states the main idea.
- Ask her what the main idea of the story was
- Discuss:
- Where would be an appropriate place to put the main idea?
- Do you want it at the beginning or at the end?
- Do you feel there should be a separate statement from the details?
- Model for her
- “Okay, you said that she had to overcome all this and to accomplish her dream of being a pilot. What is the article trying to tell you? Is it teaching you anything? Is there a message in it? ”
Where would you go next instructionally with the class?
- Start with the author‘s message and ask them to prove it
- Use an inductive approach by finding the main idea in each of the sections and then see what the message is or determine how they are related
- Ask which one would be a better summary: The one about Betsy’s Coleman’s life or the one about overcoming obstacles?
- Present a lesson on the author’s message to teach about inferencing and how you can connect details
- Ask them to verbalize the main idea in a discussion
Middle Classroom Response
What did the student understand?
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What does the student still need to learn?
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Where would you go next instructionally with this student?
- Give him a sentence starter
This article is about ...
Show him how to pick details that would support that sentence
Where would you go next instructionally with the class?
- Model different main ideas and then ask them to choose one
Bottom Classroom Response
What did the student understand?
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What does the student still need to learn?
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Where would you go next instructionally with this student?
- Create a graphic organizer and complete it with him; include the subheadings
- As he reads the subheading “Growing Up,” I would write that down and then ask, “Okay, what was that about?” Give me two or three very important details. I’d write that down. I would go section by section ... Now let’s look at all of these things that we have written down.”
What is this relating to? What is this all about?
Then he can take all that information and put it into a paragraph.- Start with “Dreams came true” which impressed him and work backwards; have him pick out the things that led up to that.
- See if he could do this orally
- Give him a chance to revise this and see a proficient response
Where would you go next instructionally with the class?
- Go back over what to include in a summary
- Talk about the importance of a main idea
- Find a text where the main idea is inferred instead of always picking stories that have it stated directly
