Grade+11+ELA

May 15 – Afternoon Session ** Open-Ended Topics **** – ** During the pilot in English 11 Honors it has become clear that the open-ended topics are too hard to manage and students can’t make connections with each other when their topics are so diverse. Some are also at a huge disadvantage when they lose to much time chasing down topics that are difficult to research and use for a thesis approach. We talked about the genre study focus as being one that could work. It has the advantage of connecting with book talks, independent reading, and th new organizational system in the library. We wouldn't all have to use an essential question about a genre study, but there are some advantages of all students working on the same big picture. Should students be allowed to pick the same author? (Yes, but not the same task/book if they’re in the same class.) Should students use more than one author? It depends on the task. We don’t want it to be one book and end up being like an independent reading book report. The genre study needs to be more than an informational report. The essential question can help drive the inquiry process and keep it meaningful. How/Why does this fit into __ genre? **Genre Museum** – Could students create a museum of this genre? The student would be the curator of the museum. The factual background could be to include the history of the genre and the traits that identify the genre. In the museum the students could also be required to have visual and three-dimensional aspects. **Library Display** – The library has limited space/money - Students could take on the role of the library media specialist or a group trying to defend or argue that this genre should get shelf space and more titles should be added to the collection. The BOE (or some grant/fund) should give money for the collection. They could be trying to create a Library of Congress electronic display for the genre. They could need to redesign the library and create a genre center. The background could include the history and traits of the genre and the significance of the genre(social, literary, modern relevance, literary allusions) **Bookstore Buyer/Manager** – (same as library media specialist?) **Publisher –** Trying to market a book in the genre to schools, also create book jackets, posters It would be important for the student to research their role to know what was important to do to persuade the audience. We could have guest speakers or have students interview librarians, bookstore managers, publishers, museum curators… ** Presentation –** Not just to students in the class. Could we make it like a GIVE portfolio presentation or like a seminar? Students could invite guests, family members, other classes - Freshmen, teachers, community members, librarians.
 * Guided Inquiry Research Project **
 * Genre Study **
 * Ideas for Meaningful Tasks **

// February 11, 2009 - //// Afternoon Work Session //

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**[|Cornerstones of Inquiry](handout attached)** [|Teachers' and Students' Roles in Guided Inquiry] **(handout attached)** =====

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**Essential Questions** - The teacher provides the essential question(s) (There could be a skills based question - such as - What does it mean to complete a successful guided inquiry research project? AND a thematic question - such as - What does it mean to live deliberately?  **http://guidedinquiry.wikispaces.com/**  This is a wiki our middle school library media specialist, Deb Collins, developed. It has information about essential questions and how to develop essential questions.  Essential questions are probing, reflective questions. ("What if…?" or "What does…?" or Why is ….. important?" ===== =Emphasize Process = Equal weight as final paper (3-5 pages for the first year)  Process = quarter 3 grade(s)  Paper = quarter 4 grade  Presentation = quarter 4 grade  Color paper - Checkpoints  Extra points for showing growth, responding to feedback  Build in technology "rewards"

Checkpoints q  Topic q  Keywords q  Topic Proposal q  Annotated Bibliography q  Thesis q  Graphic Organizer q  Editing q <span style="font: 7pt 'Times New Roman'; color: #000000; msobidifontweight: bold; msobidifontsize: 12.0pt;"> Final Paper <span style="font-size: 8pt; color: #000000; font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; msobidifontsize: 12.0pt;">q Presentation

Moving from Essential Questions to Topics and Framing Questions Teachers provide essential questions. Use personal response journals to help students develop a topic. Think of it like a target. The topic is in the center and then the students ask/answer framing questions to move from a small personal connection to a bigger picture (self, community, society) Keywords Speed Keywording, with a timer Wordle - a visual way of looking at ideas - an online tool - the more a word appears the larger it gets, shows connections and priorities, we're having trouble with the filter, "data visualization" [|www.wordle.net] http://manyeyes.alphaworks.ibm.com/manyeyes/ Topic Proposal with Framing Questions - maybe students could get ideas about framing questions from a community blog Sources - Mini-lesson CARS (Credible Accurate Reliable Sources) =<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; msobidifontweight: bold;">Annotated Bibliography - Again, giving credit for the process. <span style="font-weight: normal; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; mso-spacerun: yes; msospacerun: yes;"> Write about why some sources worked and also write about the sources that didn't work, either because they weren't CARS or because they didn't work for the topic or because the source wasn't accessible (language too difficult…). <span style="font-weight: normal; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; mso-spacerun: yes; msospacerun: yes;"> Use a format that is engaging, perhaps make it interesting using technology, blog (done in College Prep.) = Thesis Builder - Thesis statement generators, [|www.ReadWriteThink.com] Graphic Organizers - offer students several options, emphasize planning over drafting

Mini-Lessons - Create YouTube videos of mini-lessons for students who are absent, students who need to see/hear the directions more than once, could link to Edline. Guided Inquiry/Essential Questions Topic - Blogging Framing Questions Keyword Searches - Wordle, Speed Kewording Sources & Annotated Bibilographies Graphic Organizers In-Text Citations Editing = Technology = Require jump drives.(on supply list) - require students to back everything up Use Blogs and Wikis Access to technology is going to be an issue when we have an entire grade-level needing technology during the same points. The English 11 classes are usually scheduled during different periods, but there are periods when it is difficult to get into a lab If Dave V. puchases a wikispace/service it could be more private

// Best practices, tuning protocols, looking ahead… //
English 11 teachers with Jan Tunison // Current best practice discussed: // ** English 11 Honors - identity journals/essential questions ** <span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-weight: normal; msobidifontweight: normal; msotabcount: 1;"> ** English 11 guided inquiry research paper with common directions, elements (technology for research, note taking…) benchmarks, deadlines, rubric using qualitative measurements, not just quantitative. The essential questions or for the research projects should depend on the teacher and the specific topics should depend on the student. **
 * English 11 - "This I believe…" journals **
 * English 11 - Independent Reading **
 * English 11 R - Everest Research **
 * // Best Practice to be developed: //**
 * Next Steps **
 * February 11 work session 1/2-day p.m. start to develop directions/common elements **
 * Pilot 08-09 English 11 Honors Quarter 3/4"Living Deliberately" Paper **
 * // Support you will need: //**
 * // Time to… //**
 * develop inquiry projects for English 11 **
 * crosswalk between various English 11 projects **
 * articulate common elements for research expectations (non-negotiable) **
 * train on technology (RSS, Google Notebooks…) **

** Other Thoughts **

 * Committee scoring would give students an extended audience but it would logistically be difficult. <span style="font-weight: normal; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; mso-spacerun: yes; msospacerun: yes;"> The problem would be to get days of release time for all teachers involved. <span style="font-weight: normal; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; mso-spacerun: yes; msospacerun: yes;"> Another way to have an authentic audience would be to have students give presentations. <span style="font-weight: normal; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; mso-spacerun: yes; msospacerun: yes;"> If the topics are personal this could be difficult for students. <span style="font-weight: normal; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; mso-spacerun: yes; msospacerun: yes;"> **

What are the essential skills and topics for grade 11 ELA?


 * Skills - We focused on one essential skill - the guided inquiry/research piece. Here our the notes we took... English 11 teachers please feel free to edit and add....**

= English 11 - Research = **//Why?//** We can present the extended writing project as a way to build writing stamina and intellectual stamina, to start with solid information that can be used later for condensed presentations, publications...  We thought about building leverage and starting in a positive way by inviting in graduates, college people or employers to talk about the importance of extended writing based on solid research. Students should know that before they publish or present information using a quick technologically trendy format that it's important to have substantial research and a thoroughly developed argument. Then that research can be refined and distilled into an effective Power Point, Wiki... **//When?//**  It would start after the Regents and finish before the prom; it would be finished by the first week in April. Then, during 4th quarter students could work on turning their research into a presentation using technology. Perhaps some presentations could happen during double periods. **//What?//** Each year we should be able to expect more, as research becomes part of many courses' curricula and the students' exposure and experience increases, but we need to remind ourselves to start small. For the first year (2009-2010) an extended writing task could be five pages. We'd want to consider how this would work with the R level and H level classes. We'd want some kind of consistent process and evaluation tools. We could consider committee grading.

The main part of our discussion had to do with finding a topic to use for the paper. We talked about how there will be students who resist if they are given specific topics and students who resist if they're not given specific topics. Some students will resist just because we're requiring them to be active. We want the students to engage in a process of guided inquiry to refine their topics. The toughest part will to get them hooked into the project. There were two main thoughts about the type of projects. <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; msospacerun: yes; msobidifontweight: bold;">
 * 1) **Genre Study** - This project could connect with independent reading and be a yearlong project.  Students could elect to study a specific genre, including non-fiction writing.  This could make independent reading more significant.  It wouldn't be like the old book report.  The first question could be in an earlier quarter when students choose a genre.  They could write a personal response journal about why they chose that genre…
 * 1) **Object Study** - Students could bring in a personally significant object and have classmates ask questions about the object.  (Okay, as I'm typing this I'm thinking we'd have to give them some guidelines about appropriate objects - thus guided inquiry.) The students could use the questions to start their research.  The example given was from the summer Writing Workshop and involved a dollar bill.  Why is it green?  Where is it made?  Who designs the dollar bill?  What do the symbols represent?