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Eliminating silly answers is...silly, or: Why I teach reading strategies, not test taking strategies.

I teach third grade ELAR and Social Studies. This is my first year at this grade level, and the response before I moved up from first was a general, “Oh no, STAAR!”

I decided to move up for a few reasons: I was tutoring third grade math and loved the personality differences in slightly older learners, I wanted the experience with other grade levels as I hope to become a Literacy Coach, and I wanted to inspire change in the way we view teaching reading to these children in light of the STAAR test. So, my response was generally, “Yeah, STAAR? So what?”

The reality is that my students will be taking a STAAR test at the end of the year. I have to prepare them in a lot of ways. Not only do we have the STAAR test, but students are exposed to district tests throughout the year that mimic the STAAR in many ways. What was I to do? Not teach anything related to taking a test? No. We did look at passages and review answering questions; however, I have made a point to keep this at about a 15 minutes per week and instead use real texts throughout my lessons. To prepare students for the types of questions they will see on the test, I use exit tickets that are framed with STAAR “stems”.

But my biggest triumph is modifying the ever popular UNRREAL test strategies to reading strategies...that happen to help when you’re taking a test. The original UNRREAL goes something like this:

Underline the title (But why?)

Number the paragraphs

Read the questions

Read the passage

Eliminate silly answers (Which ones are silly to kiddos first taking tests like these? All of them.)

Answer the questions

Look back for evidence

Ok. So sue me if perhaps I am a little skeptical about this. Keep in mind that I have a class that is 1/3 identified low English proficiency (LEP) and to them, figuring out if something is silly can be quite the chore. More of my students are LEP without identification as some parents elect not to write their actual home language on surveys. It’s cool. We’re really all ELLs in third grade, am I right?

I digress. The first changes were made by my coworker, actually. They weren’t too bad:

Underline the title

Number the paragraphs and label text features (okay, I can definitely see the point in making sure to attend to text features, especially with all of this expository text)

Read the questions and label the skills (this helps to look for specific text structures, so YES)

Evidence for all answers (now this seems to be a better place to think about evidence...but each answer choice? That will take time)

Answer the questions

Look back and check your work (THAT makes more sense!)

As we practiced these skills while READING (I like to make copies for students when legal, or to use Reading A-Z texts for certain activities, so we can write and mark on our texts) I thought about my own study skills as a graduate student. I shared with my students that I am also a student - it keeps them interested and lets them know that learning is a lifelong process. I tell them how I use the skills I teach them when I am learning. I do this with writing, too (did I mention I’m getting published next year?!).

I also considered this fact - I really want readers to use their own thinking when answering questions. In the real world, you’re not going to get multiple choice answers to the questions you will need to research and come up with solutions for. You have to figure it out on your own. I started to take away multiple choices on tests and homework. I still give them AFTER students have written answers sometimes...and they are much better able to find the RIGHT answer than the silly answer.

I have changed UNRREAL and prefer to call these READING strategies. You can use them any time you are reading to learn:

Underline the title and headings...and predict (what will this be about?)

Number the paragraphs (for reference on questions) and label text features (what are they there for?)

Read the questions and label the skills (what are you looking for in the text?)

Read the passage - look for evidence, make notes (I share my own text book, pictured below, for why this is important)

Evidence for answers in your own words (show your thinking)

Answer to match YOUR thinking (which answer best matches the one you thought of?)

Look back and check your work (what did you learn?)

(see kids, Ms. Sandi looks for evidence, though she prefers pink highlighter)

So why am I writing this? Well...it takes time using these strategies to think in-depth about a text. We practice them a lot with read alouds and think alouds and book discussions and sharing the “How do I know this?”

I recently had another teacher in my classroom. While I was out, I wanted my students to take a biography test as we had recently finished a unit examining biographies. Due to the fact that STAAR is coming up, I used multiple choice so that they could practice using their reading skills in a test taking situation. I do teach my students to utilize the time allotted for a test rather than to rush through it. For most of my ELLs, this means they will have extended time. I reflect that through time given on a test. Most students finish pretty early in the time they are given; my ELLs will take the whole time. It’s a process.

But, after the day was done, I was approached by the teacher who gave them the test. She didn’t understand why my students were going through and showing evidence to questions BEFORE they chose an answer, why they don’t eliminate silly answers, or why they write their own answer before they choose one. It takes too long. That doesn’t make sense.

I said, “They need to be able to appreciate the text, understand it, and think for themselves before they look at these answers. If they choose an answer first, they could find evidence anywhere in the text to support it. Trust me, I saw this happening at the beginning of the year.”

And then: Yeah, I mean that teaches them comprehension skills, but does that teach them to take the test?

This is where I struggled. I simply had to remind her that I teach reading, not test taking. For those who would like to know, I’ve seen scores on our tests rise a great deal by teaching reading and thinking through authentic texts, rather than focusing on passages. I choose books based on their interests, what we are learning in social studies (I will go into why THIS is so important for STAAR grades and ELLs another time) and whatever it is that they are struggling with. One thing I notice about my readers - they sure do love to read. And they’re good at it, too.

Rather than spend my time beating down students about their test scores, I choose to uplift them for finding information in the text features. I cheer them on for answering the ever difficult questions about what the reader can conclude in thoughtful ways while referencing their texts. The added bonus is that they can feel good when they are successful on the test, because they did it just by reading, not panicking over their strategies.

Side note: While this teacher and I disagree on this particular subject, I respect her immensely; we simply view this in different ways.

#reading teacher #reading tests

Every Day - David Levithan

Levithan, D. (2013). Every day. New York, NY: Ember

Every day A wakes up in a new body. Sometimes A is a boy, sometimes A is a girl; the only constant is that A is always the same age and always someone not too far away from the previous body A was in. This is the basic premise of Every Day - a science fiction novel for young adults. One day, A ends up in the body of Justin, and through Justin A meets Rhiannon. Within that day, A falls in love with Rhiannon. Afterwards, A is unable to forget Rhiannon. Jumping every day after into a different body, we follow A as they struggle to find a way to love Rhiannon and make a relationship work. One body - Nathan - even ends up remembering some of what happened and becoming a national headline for demonic possession, putting A in danger of being found out. In the end, A discovers that they are not alone, not the only one jumping from body to body. We are left wondering what, and who, will become of A.

Every Day is masterfully written. Because A inhabit all kinds of bodies, this novel will appeal to almost everyone. A grapples with love, depression, addiction, abuse, neglect, and even the “normal” loving family of a teenager. First loves, sexual tension, gender identity, and sexuality are all touched upon in this novel. One of the most poignant chapters happens to be when A wakes up in the body of a girl who happens to be severely depressed and contemplating suicide. Though A typically makes a choice not to interfere with the lives they take over for a day, A chooses to help this girl. The way that Levithan describes mental illness is the most honest of any description I have read in a novel for any age. I cried, and I am sure others will feel that honest. Teens will find so much to connect with in this novel that the fact that A is genderless and bodiless, moving from body to body will hardly be a blip on their radar. A is every person in one way or another. This novel is unique in its approach to gender, identity, and sexuality because A is fluid, has had love interests that are both male and female, and at one point even (very happily) inhabits the body of a transgender teen named Vic. It will likely connect well with LGBTQ teens and readers.

Teens who enjoy this will likely want to read the sequel, Another Day. Levithan is also popular for writing other novels for teens, such as Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist, Boy Meets Boy, and many others. Readers might also enjoy one of my favorite novels - Hard Love by Ellen Wittlinger.

#young adult literature #science fiction #david levithan #ireadit #every day

Salt to the Sea - Ruta Sepetys

Sepetys, R. (2016). Salt to the sea. New York: Philomel Books.

Salt to the Sea is a harrowing historical fiction novel told as a first person narrative by four different characters: Joana, Emilia, Florian, and Alfred. All four are young adults (15-21 years old) trying to survive at the end of World War II in Germany. Joana, the oldest, is a Lithuanian nurse traveling with a band of other people, looking to board a refugee ship. On their way to the port, they find Florian - a mysterious 19 year old young man from Prussia who turns out to be an art restorer with a secret - and Emilia, a pregnant 15 year old Polish girl who is trying to make her way and has her own secret. As their tale unfolds, we learn about Alfred - a young Nazi sailor - through his own “letters” that he writes in his head to his young love Hannelore. The band of refugees eventually makes their way to Alfred’s ship, though the path is not easy. There, Emilia gives birth, and reveals her secret to Joana. The ship begins to leave the port, but not too far from short, they are attacked by the Soviet forces. The ship sinks, and many more lives are lost to war.

Though it is fiction, it is clear that Sepetys has done a great deal of research into real first person accounts of the lived experiences during World War II. The fact that she has focused on the stories of young people does not make this novel lighthearted or untrue. Instead, readers are exposed to the harrowing truths of war - some scenes are dreadfully hard to read through. This novel is less focused on adolescent developmental tasks than most young adult work; however, those feelings and learning about self are woven into the fabric of survival that Sepetys has throughout. For teenagers studying WWII this novel would be a great literary connection, allowing them the opportunity to see multiple perspectives in the war. Combining this with other non-fiction accounts, such at Bomb! by Sheinkin and texts, will allow students a great perspective while studying this time period. This is most appropriate for high school students due to the very realistic accounts of the horrors of war. It is not overly grotesque, it is simply very real. The short vignettes told from each character’s perspective give students an opportunity to discuss different first-person narratives. While it has become a more popular way to write recently, it is still rare to have multiple main characters telling their story in one novel.

Ruta Sepetys writes historical fiction for young adults, and has become a popular “crossover” into literary fiction for adults. Readers who liked Salt to the Sea would likely want to read the “sequel” of sorts - Between Shades of Gray which follows Joana’s cousin Lina during the war. She is briefly mentioned in Salt to the Sea.

Bomb - Steve Sheinkin

Sheinkin, S. (2013). Bomb: the race to build and steal the worlds most dangerous weapon. New York: Roaring Brook Press Scholastic.

Bomb is an historical narrative of the race between the United States, Germany, and the USSR to create the atom bomb during World War II. Beginning with the discovery of fission in Germany, this book is full of intrigue and espionage. We follow famous scientists such as Oppenheimer as he works for the US government in a race against others to create the first atom bomb, as well as the spies who tried to steal the work of US scientist for the USSR.

Cut up into short chapters, with splashes of photographs depicting those who are tied into the many stories within it, Bomb is fast paced, especially considering the many decades of history it covers. Young readers will find themselves wrapped up in the story, wondering who will win the arms race, and what will happen. Sheinkin does not hold back from describing the terror that the atom bomb eventually brings to Japan, and leaves readers with the question - what will become of the nuclear weapons that now exist?

The greatest aspect of this book is the connection readers can make to history and foreign policy as they read. Though this arms race happened decades ago, it affects us today. Even now, readers can hear in the news about the worries that North Korea or Pakistan or many other countries may release their own nuclear weapons into the world. Reading about the devastation that the smaller, first atom bombs created can help them to see why this is such an important matter. It also brings to light why current events with Russia might cause disturbance amongst Americans. It is a great supplement to a regular history book and discussion about World War II. Rather than getting lost and disengaged with dry, academic discussion, students could follow along with this book and compare what was happening in the United States, the excitement these scientists experienced, with the terrible, awful things happening elsewhere.

Readers interested in historical tales such as this might enjoy Shenkin’s other works, including The Notorious Benedict Arnold, Lincoln’s Grave Robbers, or Most Dangerous. Younger readers might like Lincoln Shot - a picture book posited as a newspaper special edition in memory of Abraham Lincoln.

#young adult #young adult literature #non-fiction #world war two #steve sheinkin #bomb #ireadit

Looking for Alaska

Green, J. (2007). Looking for Alaska. New York: Speak.

In John Green’s Looking for Alaska, readers follow Pudge, a high school junior, as he sets off to the “Great Perhaps” - he has asked his parents to send him to a boarding school in Alabama to finish his high school years. Pudge has not made friends in public school (mostly of his own accord), and is looking forward to the unknown that his new school will bring him. Upon arrival, he makes quick friends with his roommate, Chip (known as the Colonel), Takumi, and the eponymous Alaska - a free spirited (sometimes), moody, and beautiful girl he soon falls for. Looking is divided into two parts. Before begins as Pudge gets ready to set off to boarding school and follows as he meets his new friends, gains their trust and learns to trust them, and falls for Alaska. A sense of foreboding builds as each section counts down the days “before” - an unknown event is coming. Readers find that Pudge and his band of buddies do typical teenage things - pranks, joking, learning about their bodies and sexuality, and also drinking and smoking. Alaska asks Pudge to stay for Thanksgiving, and they grow closer through the holidays. Alaska also begins to become a bit more reckless, drinking more often and sometimes exhibiting strange, excited behaviors. Tension builds, Pudge and Alaska kiss on the last day before... and then the after happens. After Alaska is in a terrible accident, the band of friends must face mortality, grief, and figure out the greatest questions in life, together, afraid, and devastated.

Looking for Alaska has strong, beautiful language throughout. John Green is a fantastic writer, though I do have some hesitations about the fact that Alaska is a bit of the “manic pixie dream girl” in this text. It may bring up some good discussions with students about female characters serving as tools of enlightenment for male protagonists. Consider how Green portrays Alaska and develops her character. She is often called “moody” and not exactly fully developed. Green does do a good job of portraying adolescent developmental tasks in this book, and so many teens will find themselves glued to it, feeling connected to Pudge as he navigates the beginnings of his own sexual awakening. Due to some pretty graphic (for young adult literature) depictions of alcohol use and sexuality, this would be recommended for older teens only. Consider having alternative reading assignments available.

John Green is a very popular young adult writer, with other titles such as The Fault in Our Stars. Movie projects for Looking for Alaska appear to be indefinitely shelved, but readers might enjoy the film for The Fault in Our Stars as well.

#young adult #john green #looking for alaska #ireadit #book review #young adult literature #ya lit #teen lit #teen literature

theliteraryjournals

BOOK OF THE DAY:

Reviving Ophelia by Mary Pipher

“Girls struggles with mixed messages: Be beautiful, but beauty is only skin deep. Be sexy, but not sexual. Be honest, but don’t hurt anyone’s feelings. Be independent, but be nice. Be smart, but not so smart you threaten boys.”

Reviving Ophelia gives an in-depth look at the challenges facing adolescent girls as they enter puberty. Although written in 1995, the book still has relevance for parents or adults working with teens today. If anything, the messages that Pipher delivers through cases studies of dozens of young girls that she has worked with in therapy are even more urgent for adults to hear as our culture has continued on the path of becoming more violent and younger and younger girls are being hyper-sexualized. The stories are vivid and heartbreaking: drug-abuse, suicide, self-mutilation, sexual assault and incest, bullying and vicious cliques. Pipher asserts that these problems are the norm for today’s young girls entering the junior high school years. The author introduces us to each young girl and her problems, illustrates and discusses the culture in which these problems arise, and then shows us the therapeutic path she was able (or in a few cases, unable) to take with the girl to begin to enable her to reclaim her true, healthy self. Each story is engrossing and informative, but the importance of this book is that Pipher ties the individual stories together in order to take stock of the state of the lives of young girls in general and to view the problems of adolescence through a cultural lens. The news is not particularly good: young girls are in crises from a culture that objectifies and over-sexualizes them and devalues their intelligence.

“Young men need to be socialized in such a way that rape is as unthinkable to them as cannibalism.” While Pipher gives us many examples of families in crisis she is not out, fortunately, to condemn the American family or even decry the evils of what she calls “junk culture.” What she does instead is to reveal her own journey to understand the actions and feelings of her patients and to delve into the differences between the world she grew up in and the world that adolescents face today. She shows us that the defensive and often angry attitudes that teen girls display and the self-destructive actions that they often take have developmental and cultural contexts. Pipher shows herself, finally, to be a champion of young girls. She then puts out a critical call for us to expand our understanding of the cultural difficulties adolescents face in order that we might begin to take a stand against the culture that destroys young women and begin to build a culture that supports them.

“We all walk among people in crisis and are unaware of their suffering.”

by guest reviewer Meg

Get the book here!

Read excerpts from the book here!

mykingdomofbooks

New-ish bookshelf!

bookwormsanonymous

Speak - Laure Halse Anderson

Anderson, L. H. (2011). Speak. New York: Square Fish.

Speak is a young adult novel, told by the main character, Melinda, in four parts - each a grading period of her freshman year of high school. We follow Melinda as she begins the year without a clique or true friend of her own - she is Outcast, as she calls herself, after having called the police to a party during the summer. Her old friends have abandoned her and though she is not completely mute, she speaks very little. She has one acquaintance that she spends time with outside of school - new girl Heather - who eventually drops her as a friend, as well as a slight crush on her lab partner Danny. Melinda is floundering, however. She is holding on to a secret about the party; she was raped there by a senior and this is why she called the police. Through the year, Melinda’s mental health begins to deteriorate, as well as her grades. Teachers think she is a burnout and up to no good. Her parents think she is trying to get attention in all the wrong ways. No one knows the truth until the end, when she finds her voice and speaks up to her friends and eventually her assailant.

Speak is powerful, raw, and real. I didn’t even look at the original publication date until after I had finished. This book is now eighteen years old, and it still reads as if it were written today. The way the students speak and interact with each other, the way the adults interact with teenagers, and Melinda are timeless. This is not the only strength. I doubt any girl, woman, or even many men can read this and not say to themselves, “I am Melinda.” You do not have to have a history that includes sexual assault to have thought of a time when you felt your voice was taken from you in some way. Many of our students will relate to Melinda because they feel they have lost their voice. This book deals with more than just sexual assault, it is also a realistic view of depression. I imagine using this relation to discuss and have students write about will open many doors. Who do they see that might be a Melinda - misunderstood because they have no voice to speak with? How can they reach out to someone like this? The 2011 edition comes with discussion notes at the end, including resources for those who have been or know someone who has been sexually assaulted; these are important things to include with such a text. Consider using this novel in a health or communications class, discuss the concept of consent. For some part of the novel, Melinda wonders if because she did not speak up she was truly raped. Due to the content, this novel is best suited for high school students. Students may also want to see the film based on this novel, also called Speak, which stars popular actress Kristen Stewart. They may also enjoy novels such as 13 Reasons Why and authors like John Green.

#young adult #young adult literature #ireadit #speak #laurie halse anderson #difficult literature

Me: *Has fun*

Me: *loses library card*

Me: :/

Mexican Whiteboy - Matt de la Pena

de la Pena, M. (2008) Mexican Whiteboy. New York: Random House, Inc.

In Mexican Whiteboy we meet Danny Lopez, a prep-school loner who has just landed in National City to stay with his father’s side of the family for the summer. Danny is half Mexican, half white, and doesn’t feel as though he belongs in either world. He hardly talks, is obsessive about baseball, and misses his father - a man who left for Mexico without any known reason several years ago. Throughout the summer, Danny practices playing street ball with Uno, one of National City’s locals who Danny befriends despite the fact that Uno left him with stitches upon their first meeting. Danny is trying to figure out why he always chokes up when he’s pitching with his prep-school team; he doesn’t want to sit on the bench anymore. With Uno, Danny is able to deliver amazing pitches, better than most have ever seen. Uno manages to find a way to get Danny to control his talent, and the two begin a series of hustles. Uno is saving his share of the wins to move to Oxnard with his dad. Throughout, Danny’s inner turmoil about his father begins to come out. In the end he finds out there is much more to his father’s story than he has been told; he finds peace with it, and makes plans to go back home to his prep-school.

de la Pena’s voice as a story-teller is strong; Mexican Whiteboy feels present and real. As he struggles with finding himself and figuring his place in the world, Danny’s raw emotions are very relatable to teens. I think this book would be particularly appealing to reluctant male readers - Danny is not a stereotype, he is a fully realized character. This book is most appropriate for 9-11th grade readers - there is some difficult content (violence, sexual innuendo, self-injury) that younger readers may not be prepared to read. I think Matt de la Pena’s style would fit well with rewriting some scenes to be acted out; some parts read like monologues I would expect to hear on stage, and I think that doing this would help students to really see and understand the subtle emotion that Danny is going through.

#mexican whiteboy #matt de la pena #young adult literature #ya lit #ireadit

George - Alex Gino

Gino, A. (2017). George. New York: Scholastic Inc.

George is a middle grade novel about Melissa, a transgender fourth grader who wishes to play Charlotte in the class play of Charlotte’s Web. Melissa is still called by her deadname of George by family and friends who are not aware that she is not a boy. As we follow her, we experience the frustration and fear that Melissa goes through struggling with her gender identity and the way the world treats her for being different. She is bullied by Jeff, a classmate who frequently antagonizes her. Her teacher refuses to allow her to audition or perform as Charlotte. Her best friend is the first person she opens up to; Kelly accepts Melissa as she is and encourages her to be Charlotte in the play and to also be herself. In the end, Melissa does perform as Charlotte, tells her mother about her true self, and eventually ventures into the world openly as Melissa for the first time.

George is touching, well written, and extremely sensitive to the journey of Melissa. Alex Gino’s writing reminds me of my own favorite middle grade writer, Katherine Paterson (author of Bridge to Terabithia and The Great Gilly Hopkins) who also writes about those who are perhaps a little different than their peers. Gino dedicates the book to all readers, for when they felt different. Even those who are not transgender may feel some connection. As a teacher, I see many opportunities to connect this book to social-emotional understanding and learning among young students. Teachers will likely need to speak to administrators and parents before using this book in class due to the subject matter. The end of the book includes a FAQ which will help readers to navigate some of the language regarding transgender people, as well as information about Gino’s writing process. I think this is a great opportunity to involve readers in the writing experience, as Gino is open about their experience with revising and editing over a long period of time. Readers can write about their experiences when they have felt different, bullying, or handling tough topics.

#middle grade literature #alex gino #george #lgbtq literature #transgender youth #ireadit