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Instructional Context

I administered the Metacognition Strategy Index to students in 3 parts:  Before reading, while reading, and after reading.  As I analyzed their responses, I noticed that they were most comfortable with strategies such as asking questions and predicting, but they were not as confident with making inferences and summarizing.  I decided that we would work on these skills by focusing on character analysis with familiar stories.  In this lesson, you will see how we practice those strategies with the help of graphic organizers and the Graffiti/ Carrousel Strategy.

Character

Character Traits

Analyze

Personality

Describe

Adjective

 I do...

We do...

• SHOW the students the graphic organizer and invite them to make observations about it. Have them discuss what they see with their peers. Point out the features. During this step you and the students are simply citing what you see when you look at it.
• EXPLAIN in which situations the specific organizer may be used and how it will help them as a reader.
• MODEL how to fill in the graphic organizer. Reference the book you are using and narrate the process.

Instructional Strategy:  Graphic Organizers

• Provide opportunities for the students to PRACTICE how to complete the organizer. They should use the same organizer you model, but with a different piece of text.
• Have the students COMPLETE their own graphic organizer independently. If you feel there is still a need for support you could work in a small group or plan cooperative learning experiences for peer partner work.

Instructional Strategy:  Graphic Organizers

• Students perform task in small groups on large poster
• Students then rotate around the room to each poster.  At each station students are to reflect, discuss, and make inferences about what the group displayed on their poster.  They interact with the poster by annotating on the posters.
• Once all the groups and rotated to all the posters, they go back to their original poster and look at the feedback
• The students return to their seats.  Volunteers from each group will share out connections.

Instructional Strategy:  Graffiti/Carousel Strategy

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• brainstorm ideas
• organize thoughts
• structure a writing project
• collect information while researching
• increase reading comprehension
• plan for literature circles and book talks
• examine relationships in literature
• guide student thinking
• involves movement, discussion, and reflection

These strategies are appropriate for supporting literacy-based on student data

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• Visualization. Bring dull academic concepts to life with visual and practical learning experiences
• Helps students understand how what they learn in school applies in the real-world.
• Cooperative learning.
• Inquiry-based instruction.
• Differentiation.

These strategies are appropriate for supporting literacy-based on student data

Conclusion

• Based on Metacognitive Strategy Index, I chose to to focus on the Comprehension strategy: Making Inferences and Summarizing
• The instructional strategies:  Graphic Organizers and Graffiti/Carrousel Strategy