This week, my students will be using a new strategy to help them understand what they are reading. The strategy requires students to sketch three significant events that occurred in a text plus one event they predict might happen next and briefly explain their choices. I have suggested that the students make notes of events that they believe to be significant and then choose from the list before recording on the graphic organizer. Also, students should read the entire selection for the week before predicting.
Here are the strategies we are working on this week.
Punctuation Prompt Response Tool
This is a response tool that uses common punctuation marks to prompt student reactions to three important passages or ideas in the text. This response will be used to fuel the discussions during the book club discussion.
·Need sticky notes for this
1.While reading -look for three passages or central ideas that make you do the following:
a.Make you stop and think.Use a comma (,) to mark this passage with a sticky note
b.Cause you to ask a question.Use a question mark (?) to mark this passage with a sticky note.
c.Provoke a strong reaction of some kind.Use an exclamation point (!) to mark this passage with a sticky note.
2.After you read – go back to the passages and writer about how they affected you in these ways.Use the following format to record reactions:
a.Use the punctuation mark as a heading
b.Record the chapter number, page numbers and a short excerpt from the passage OR briefly record the ideas that you want to discuss.
c.Write your response below.Use the following sentence starters:
, - This passage made me stop and think because …
? – When I read this passage, I wondered ….
! – I reacted strongly to this part of the text because …
*The sticky notes will be used as a reminder. "The Punctuation Prompt" graphic organizer will be used after they are finished reading.
For the next 5 weeks we will be working on book clubs. All the students in the class have chosen a novel, based on interest. They have been assigned groups and will be working on different strategies that will help them become better readers and writers. The following is an example of the schedule for the first week.
