Literacy Design Collaborative

Session One, Two Day Training

LITERACY DESIGN COLLABORATIVE

A Framework to Move from

Common Core State Standards

to Classrooms

Literacy Design

Collaborative

…a fresh approach to incorporating literacy

into middle and high school content areas

Essential Questions

• How does LDC help students develop content knowledge through reading and demonstrate understanding of the content through writing?

• How does LDC help assure that students acquire the reading and writing skills required in the Common Core?

How much do you know about LDC?

• Raise your hand if you’ve “never heard of” LDC

• Raise your hand if you “know a little bit” about LDC

• Raise your hand if you “know a lot” about LDC

Review Agenda

• What are you looking forward to the most as you learn about LDC?

• What questions do you have?

• What do you hope to gain from this training?

Norms

• Start and end on time• Chimes signal the need for attention• Raise hands to signal engagement• Laptops down for input/discussion• Laptops up for Module Creator• Take care of needs without disruption• Collaborate across teams and districts• Be present physically and mentally• Use the “parking lot” to post questions• Presume positive intention

Teaching to the Common Core By Design, Not Accident

• Divide your table of 6 participants into pairs. Number your groups 1 thru 3.

• Group 1 – Read pages 1 – 3 , stopping before you reach “Literacy Collaborative”.

• Group 2 - Read pages 3-5, beginning with “Literacy Collaborative” and ending

before “Math Collaborative”.

• Group 3 – Read pages 6-8, beginning with “Math Collaborative” and completing the article.

 • After reading, begin work on guided questions. Use the white paper on the table to

report out. Choose a representative from your group to report out to your table.

• Last but not least !!! Everyone will individually react to lessons learned on pages 3-4.

 

Guiding Questions for Group Report Out

• Why is this information important ? Why do we need to become familiar with CCSS (and in Colorado CAS)?

• What impact will LDC/MDC have on education in Colorado, your district, and your school?

• What information provided in this article will make the most difference in the ways you approach your lessons, approach student learning, and address student assessment?

Students will have the literacy skills that create a solid foundation for succeeding in college and

the workplace.

The reading and writing skills embedded in LDC are key elements of Post-Secondary and Workforce Readiness

skills.

Vision for the Future

• Supports teachers implementing the CCSS

• Addresses adolescent literacy in our country

• Bounded by few “rules of the road” – teachers are in control

• Preserves and supports teacher innovation and creativity

• Encourages the participation of practitioners

• Provides possibilities for scale across schools, districts, states

LDC Supports Vision for the Future

An expanding set of classroom, district, state and service providers with the will to meet the challenge of expecting

high levels of secondary literacy head-on.

The Literacy Design Collaborative (LDC)

• Literacy skills are critical in the lives of students; therefore,

they must be intentionally and frequently taught in all grades

K-12

• The LDC system is intended to assist secondary teachers in

all disciplines deliver quality literacy instruction in all

classrooms

• LDC considers teachers as partners and co-designers in

transforming LDC templates into quality teaching tasks and

modules

LDC is Purposeful

CCSS Challenges

• Unlike mathematics, secondary literacy is not a discipline. It is “homeless” in that it belongs to everyone and no one.

• Literacy is used in secondary classrooms, but is not taught in a systematic way.

In pairs, discuss what you believe are the key changes that need to take place in classrooms and schools to increase

literacy levels for secondary students.

LDC Represents a Shift in Thinking

• Hard-wired to the Common Core State Standards

• Minimalist as an approach – a lean model with powerful software

• Interested in local choice and teacher decision making

• Support teachers in developing instruction to use over 2-4 weeks

• Help teachers design instruction – their choice – focused on guiding students to complete a single literacy task linked to content

LDC Modules

LDC Module System

Read pages 8-11 and discuss as a table group.

• Why does the LDC system begin with a template task?

• How is the LDC system preserving local choice and honoring teacher expertise?

• How will LDC support teachers in planning instruction that is responsive to student learning needs?

LDC Guidebook

The Literary Design Collaborative Approach

Common Core Standards

Aligned, Distributed Instruction

Formative & Summative

Assessments

Tasks

• What are your greatest hopes about using LDC in your classroom?

• What are the most pressing challenges that you will face implementing LDC?

• Questions and/or concerns?

Capture Your Thoughts

Teacher Candyby Kathy Thiebes

We’re Running !

Text Here

We’re running FULL speed to PRODUCE, REVIEW, EDIT, REWRITE, RE-EDIT and TRAIN…this entire effort is in fast forward and being built AS WE RUN…..and we NEED YOU to run with us!!

Written by

Teachers

Evaluated by

Teachers

Piloted by Teachers

...in Real-Time, with On-Going Feedback

LDC FrameworkContinued:

“Rethinking Literacy” Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSyC1KcrkM0

The video makes several points about changes that need to happen to implement LDC. How will these changes impact your instructional practice?

LDC Vocabulary

TEMPLATE TASKS & TEACHING

TASKSSelecting One &

Designing the Other

What Task?

From Template Task

To Teaching Task

Template Tasks

Template tasks are the beginning point for the LDC strategy. An LDC template task is a fill-in-the blank assignment or assessment:

• With the CCSS for literacy “built in”

• That will “drive” the development of the LDC module

Template Tasks

All LDC template tasks require students to:

• Read, analyze, and comprehend texts as specified by the Common Core

• Write products as specified by the Common Core focusing on argumentation, informational/explanatory, and narrative

• Apply Common Core literacy standards to academic content (ELA, Social Studies, Science, and others)

Thinking about Template Tasks

• Go to pages 17-21 in your Guidebook

• Read the information on Template Tasks

• Identify two things you noticed about template tasks that you want to remember when you start writing your Teaching Task.

• Share with a partner

NOTE: A Teaching Task is a filled-in Template Task

Task Design

The tasks are designed to ensure that students receive literacy and content instruction in rigorous academic reading

and writing tasks that prepare them for success in college and the work place by the end of their high school career.

The Basic Format

After researching _____(informational texts) on ___________(content), write __________(essay or substitute) that argues your position on __________ (content). Support your position with evidence from your research. L2 Be sure to acknowledge competing views. L3 Give examples from past or current events or issues to illustrate and clarify your position.

The Basic Format with Essential Question

[Insert Question] After reading __________(literature or informational texts), write_________ (essay or substitute) that addresses the question and support your position with evidence from the text(s). L2 Be sure to acknowledge competing views. L3 Give examples from past or current events or issues to illustrate and clarify your position.

Informational Teaching Task Example: Science

After researching the following articles on various organisms, write a report that defines “organisms” and explains what Domain and Kingdom you would classify each organism. Support your discussion with evidence from your research.

• Template Task 11 – After Researching

Informational Teaching Task Example: Social Studies

After researching secondary sources on ancient India or China, write a report that explains the geography, culture/customs, and government of these civilizations. What conclusions or implications can you draw? Cite at least three sources, pointing out key elements from each source. A bibliography is or is not required.

• Template Task 18 – Informational or Explanatory/Synthesis

Argumentation Teaching Task Example: Science

After researching technical and academic articles on the use of pesticides in agriculture, write a speech that argues your position on its use in managing crop production. Support your position with evidence from your research. L2 Be sure to acknowledge competing views. L3 Give examples from past or current events or issues to illustrate and clarify your position.

• Template Task 1 – “after researching”

Argumentation Teaching Task Example: Social Studies

L1: Was the Treaty of Versailles a fair one for Germany? After reading various primary and secondary sources on the Treaty of Versailles write an essay that addresses the question and support your position with evidence from the text(s). L2: Be sure to acknowledge competing views.

Template Task 2 – “Essential Question”

A Colorado Example

Taken from the History Standard

8th Grade Evidence Outcome

Analyze ideas that are critical to the understanding of American history and give examples of the ideas involved in major events and movements. Topics

include…representative democracy…..

Colorado Example Continued

• Uses an Inquiry Question from the same Grade Level Expectation

• How have the basic values and principles of American democracy changed over time and in what ways have they been preserved?

Colorado Example Teaching Task

How did the principle of Federalism change from the end of the Revolution to the end of Reconstruction? After reading the identified informational texts write an essay that addresses the question and support your position with evidence from the texts. L2 Be sure to acknowledge competing view. L3 Give examples from past or current events or issues to illustrate and clarify your position.

• Template Task 2 – Argumentation/Analysis

A Great LDC Teaching Task

Establishes a teaching task that is both challenging and feasible for students, with a balance of reading demands and writing demands that works well for the intended grade and content.

Addresses content essential to the discipline, inviting students to engage deeply in thinking and literacy practices around a connected intellectual issue.

A Great LDC Teaching Task

• Selects reading texts that are sufficiently complex, that use and develop academic understanding and vocabulary

• Makes effective use of the template task’s writing mode (argumentation, information/explanation, or narrative)

• Designs a writing prompt that requires sustained writing and effective use of ideas and evidence from the reading texts

How to Select a Task

• Refer to your curriculum map and/or other documents outlining your plan of study for the next three months

• Refer to the CAS for content, focusing on the appropriate Grade Level Expectations and Inquiry Questions

• You may also find the Concept Maps for your content and grade level very useful (Available on the web)

• Identify a topic or essential question that is important enough to involve two to four weeks of study

• See Page 1 of the Template Task Collection in the Guidebook for more assistance

Teachers make decisions within the template to adjust:

Task level: Select level 1, 2, or 3 task

Reading requirements: Vary text complexity, genre, length, familiarity, etc.

Writing demands: Vary type of product, length, etc.

Pacing requirements: Vary workload and time allowed to complete

Your Turn – Design a Task

• Alone or in pairs

• Look at the template task collection. Pick a favorite argumentation or information template. (Recommend limiting yourself to Templates 1, 2, 11, and 12.)

• Look at your state content standards. Grade Level Evidence Outcomes, concepts/skills maps, and Inquiry questions can be used in templates to create strong, aligned tasks.

• Design a teaching task you think is worthy of 2-4 weeks of quality instruction.

Task Sharing and Review

• Get into job-alike groups of 3 or 4 and share your teaching tasks

• Job-alike = middle level science, high school ELA, AP history, IB Science, etc.

• Select one task to revise as a group

• Using the section on the Teaching Task in the Module Review Sheet, discuss and revise the selected task

• Write the revised task on butcher paper

• Post the revised task on the wall

Return to Own Teaching Task

• Think back on the discussion (questions and comments) from your group teaching task revision activity

• Using those insights, review and revise your own teaching task

• Once finished, use the ½ sheet form provided to write down your teaching task information (just the information you designed for the “blanks”)

• Turn in your teaching task form for review before you leave

Please Don’t Forget to Turn in Your Teaching Task Form!

So Where Are We?

Using a “thumbs up, thumbs down, or thumbs sideways” signal, tell us where you are relative to each of the outcomes as they are reviewed.

• Thumbs up – I’m moving toward this outcome

• Thumbs down – I still have no idea or I’m even more confused

• Thumbs sideways – I’m not sure yet

Feedback for Day 1

• The most valuable learning today was__________.

• The least valuable activity today was____________.

• I wish I had been able to learn more about __________.

Preview of Day 2

• Response to feedback/questions

• Information on Colorado Context

• Revision of Teaching Tasks

• Introduction of Module Creator

• Work time for module development

Good Morning

• Review Outcomes

• Reflections & Feedback

• Parking Lot

Pair and Share

Find someone new from another school and share the one “aha!” from this yesterday

THE COLORADO CONTEXT

How does LDC fit into other reform initiatives?

The Colorado Integration Project aims to ensure the highest possible performance for both educators and students by aligning academic content, educator performance, student achievement and professional growth so that all students

are college and career ready.

LDC is part of the Colorado Integration Project

• Think about all the “wheels” that get your district down the road (budget, schedules and calendars, personnel practices, curriculum and assessments, etc.)

• Why is it important that these “wheels” all are moving together and in the same direction?

• Share your thinking with a partner.

Why Is Integration Important?

How are you answering questions about:• What will local assessments be?• What do you value in PD?• What do you look for in teacher observations?• How are you spending money?• How are you spending time?• How are you spending energy?

Strategies for Aligning Initiatives

CAP4K Standards Bill 212

Educator Effectiveness Bill 191

System of Accountability & Support Bill 163

What do we want them to know and be able to do?

Colorado Academic Standards & English language proficiency standards

Professional practice standards

Performance indicators

How will we know if expectations are met?

Assessments: Summative and Formative

Performance evaluations School and district performance frameworks

How will we create responsive systems to support their learning?

• Multi-tiered systems of supports: RTI &PBIS

• Standards Based Curriculum

• Individual Student Plans (IEP, ILP, ALP, SRP)

• Induction & Mentoring• Instructional Leadership &

Feedback• Targeted goal creation• Professional development

plans

Unified Improvement Planning (UIP)

The Common Core State Standards for English The Common Core State

Standards for Language Arts & Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science and

Technical Subjects include a separate standard for Language. In this document,

those Language expectations are integrated into the CAS for Reading,

Writing, and Communicating as well as the CAS for Science and Social Studies.

• It will be difficult for students to meet the new CAS standards in science and social studies, as well as ELA without implementing instructional practices such as LDC. LDC will enhance the content learning of students in other academic areas as well.

• The Common Core literacy standards also apply to technology.

Why are ELA and Other Content Area Teachers Trained on LDC?

LDC for All Content Areas

LDC provides direct instructional support for students to:

• Develop knowledge in the content through reading

• Demonstrate understanding of the content through writing

• Acquire the reading and writing skills required at their grade level by the CCSS

• LDC is a system of instruction for supporting students in meeting the CCSS, the CAS, and the 21st Century Graduate Proficiencies with emphasis on ELA, Science, and History/Social Studies

• It is congruent with the anticipated student assessments that will be used to determine achievement of standards

• It is consistent with the expectations outlined for teachers in the Colorado Teacher Quality Standards and defined in more detail in the Teacher Evaluation Rubric

So Where Does LDC Fit?

PARCC

Let’s look at released items from PARCC and explore the implications for instructional rigor.

HOW DOES LDC RELATE TO EDUCATOR EFFECTIVENESS?

Educator Effectiveness: Colorado Teacher Quality Standard 1 (CTQS)

• Teachers demonstrate mastery of and pedagogical expertise in the content they teach

• The elementary teacher is an expert in literacy and mathematics and is knowledgeable in all other content that he or she teaches

• The secondary teacher has knowledge of literacy and mathematics and is an expert in his or her content endorsement area(s)

The Proficient Teacher

• Teacher provides literacy instruction that enhances:• Critical thinking and reasoning• Information literacy• Collaboration• Self-direction• Innovation

• Teacher focuses lessons on the reading of complex texts

The Accomplished and Exemplary Teacher

• Accomplished Teacher: Students communicate orally and in writing at levels that meet or exceed expectations for their age, grade, and ability level

• Exemplary Teacher: Students apply literacy skills across academic content areas and to understand complex materials

Crosswalk of LDC with CTQS

• Review the handout that shows the alignment of LDC with the CTQS

• Ask yourself, “In what areas of the CTQS can LDC best help me be a better teacher?”

• Find someone you haven’t talked to before and share your answers

• Return to your seat

• LDC is a system for organizing instruction to support students in achieving the CAS and CCSS

• An LDC module can be used as a major component of a unit or as the organizing structure for a unit

• An LDC teaching task can be used as student assessment

How Can I Use LDC?

• Students who have the literacy skills promoted by LDC will have a much more solid foundation for succeeding in college and the work-place

• The reading and writing skills imbedded in LDC are the heart of the Post-Secondary and Workforce Readiness skills

The Future

RECONNECTING WITH YOUR

TEACHING TASKYour teaching task is the critical foundation for the module,

and the quality of the work that you inspire from students will be the result of a well crafted teaching task.

A Great LDC Teaching Task:

• Establishes a task that is both challenging and feasible for students, with a balance of reading demands and writing demands that work well for the intended grade and content

• Addresses content essential to the discipline, inviting students to engage deeply in thinking and literacy practices around a connected intellectual issue

A Great LDC Teaching Task:

Selects reading texts that are sufficiently complex and that use and develop academic understanding and vocabulary

Makes effective use of the template task’s writing mode (argumentation, information/explanation, or narrative)

• Designs a writing prompt that requires sustained writing and effective use of ideas and evidence from the reading texts

Reviewing the Teaching Tasks

• Everyone has feedback on their teaching task. Please take five minutes to review the feedback and discuss your task with others at your table.

• Capture any new insights or questions and be prepared to share.

Moving from Teaching Task to LDC Module

Examining an Exemplary Module

Answer these questions on your own or in a pair

• Read the module overview on p. 67 (for teachers)

• Read “Background to Share with Students” on p. 68

• What skills do students need to understand the task and acquire the necessary information? (pp. 72-77)

• What was the pacing/duration of the instruction?

• What is an example of an instructional strategy used for task engagement?

• What is an example of the “extra support” provided for “organizing notes”?

• What resources are provided for students in the Appendix? (p. 78)

Comparing Economic Systems

Table Talk

• Read Kathy’s reflections on the Teacher Work Section on p. 81

• If Kathy was sitting at the table with you, what questions would you have for her?

3 Academic Modes of Writing

• Review the module, 3 Academic Modes of Writing, using the Module Review Sheet

• What do you notice about:• The Module Description/Overview for Students• The text selections• The Skills section in relationship to the CCSS

Standards and Grade Level Expectations• The mini-tasks

Moving from Skills to Instruction:What Instruction?

• Selecting the skills that your students will need to accomplish the task is the next step in the process, which is followed by developing an instructional plan to teach the skills

• These instructional plans are called mini-tasks

Objectives for the Skills to Instruction

• Examine the literacy skills in the LDC system and how they are defined and clustered

• Deconstruct the template task rubrics and consider which skills your students will need to accomplish your teaching task

• Discuss how to collaborate on instructional plans

• Design an instructional plan to teach one skill, which is called a mini-task

PLC Big Four Process

• What content and skills do our students need to know?

• How will we teach them?

• How will we know if they are proficient?

• What strategies will we use if they are not successful or if they are advanced on the skills?

LDC Module Template

Beginning with the End in Mind

• LDC has developed rubrics for scoring the student writing products

• These rubrics can be helpful in determining the specific

skills that you want to focus on during the module

LDC Rubrics

One scoring guide works for all argumentation tasks, another for all informational and explanatory tasks, and a third for the narrative tasks.

Shared rubrics support teacher collaboration across grades and subjects, including:

• Shared scoring to develop common expectations and language

• Joint analysis of student work• Collaborative planning around instructional strategies and

improvements

Deconstructing the Rubrics

In triads take a look at the argumentation rubric on page 36 and the information/explanatory rubric on page 37 and discuss:

• What are the key commonalities and differences in the rubrics?

• Which skill elements (focus, development, organization, conventions, etc.) do you anticipate including in your skills list?

Determining What Skills

• The skills list will drive your instructional planning

• The LDC system has a list of skills that are named, defined and clustered

• You have the ability to select the skills using the template provided and delete or add skills based on your students’ needs, including providing more specificity based on grade-level expectations

Remember: Each skill identified will require a mini- task.

Skills Cluster Example

• Turn to page 5 in 3 Academic Modes of Writing

• Compare this skills list with the skills on page 46 of your Guidebook

• Share the similarities and differences you notice with a partner

• Share out with your table

Collaborating on Skills Selection

In pairs at your table, discuss:

• What are the essential skills that will be included in your module? Consider the list on page 46 and your deconstruction of the rubric. Capture a list to use this afternoon when you work on your module.

• Also consider the grade-level expectations for the CCSS for the grade where this module will be taught.

• How will you collaborate with colleagues in your school to support students reaching proficiency on those skills?

Module Section 3: What Instruction?

How will students be taught to succeed on the teaching task?

YOU establish the instructional plan – or the mini-tasks– to teach students the skills necessary to succeed on each task

YOU create a plan that includes mini-tasks w/ scoring guide, instructional strategies, pacing guide

Core Elements of a Mini-Task

Turn to p. 6 in 3 Academic Modes of Writing and notice:

• Prompt that addresses students and asks them to practice and demonstrate an “in-process” skill

• Product that students will produce that can be evaluated for success on the skill that has been taught

• Scoring guide with a stated criteria for what students will be expected to show as evidence of learning

What Did You Notice?

Select ONE mini-task and jot down on a piece of paper what you noticed about each of the following:

• Prompt

• Product

• Scoring guide

Mini-Tasks as Formative Assessments

As you develop or use the embedded LDC scoring guides for each mini-task, there will be students who immediately accomplish the mini-task and those who need more time and differentiated instructional strategies.

As a table group, discuss:

How do you anticipate using the mini-task scoring guides as formative assessments to accommodate individual student learning needs?

Developing Your Instructional Plan

• The LDC system has a list of skills that are named, defined and clustered. “Preparing for the task” will always be a part of your planning.

• Preparing for the Task: Task engagement is the ability to connect the task and content with existing knowledge, skills, interests or concerns.

Your Plan for Task Engagement

• Take five minutes to share ideas at your table on strategies that you have found successful for task engagement when beginning a new unit of study.

• Write a mini-task (prompt and product, scoring) and instructional plan for engaging students in your teaching task (Task Engagement) and share out at the table.

Questions or Concerns?

• My biggest question at this point is________________.

• My best hope at this point is _____________________.

• My biggest concern at this point is ________________.

Module Creator

• How it Works

• Transferring work to Module Creator

• Guide

Preparing for the Task; Reading• Will these skills and mini-tasks enable students to

understand the task and acquire the necessary information?

Transition to Writing; Writing• Will the skills and mini-tasks enable students to produce

the product?• Is the writing product called for in the mini-tasks the one

that is described in the Teaching Task?

Student Results• Check to make certain the narrative in “student

background” still makes sense.

Guiding Questions

Professional Learning Support

Are you interested in learning more about…. • Close Reading• Vocabulary Development• Creating Essential Questions• Scaffolding Skills for Writing• Differentiation for EL and Special Needs• Text Complexity

Participate in…• On-line modules• PLC sessions in your district

Participant Expectations

Following this training, each participant is expected to:

• Complete the development of your module, including tailoring of the mini-tasks

• Implement your module

• Collect and bring to Session II three clean (no grading marks or identifying information) copies of 3 examples of student work from your module