5 Pillars and Discovery Circles
Before, During, After
Nonfiction Text
Access Features
Organizational Structures
100
To provide kindergarten students with additional ELA support, a teacher often incorporates body movements into verbal interactions during social studies lessons by clapping the syllables of words in simple sentences. This approach focuses primarily on the development of which literacy skill?
What is Accuracy (Phonemic awareness or Phonics)
100
To help students make inferences and aid their comprehension, a math teacher has students make a chart of their predictions about a nonfiction text prior to reading the book. As they read the text, they refer to the chart to confirm or change their predictions. This is an example of a ___________ reading strategy.
During
100
A social studies teacher is beginning a unit on community leaders. As an introduction to the unit, the students will read newspaper articles about local leaders describing their involvement in the community. The newspaper articles are examples of which type of nonfiction text?
Document
100
A teacher is working with his science class on identifying access features in nonfiction texts. The first feature he introduces is the boxed information set off next to the margin that summarizes information within the text. The teacher is providing instruction on what kind of access feature?
Sidebar
100
Teaching a lesson on the properties of sound, a science teacher reads from a survey book that introduces general information followed by a discussion of the subtopics. How is this type of text organized?
Enumerative
200
A teacher systematically teaches her science students the meaning of prefixes, suffixes, and root words during interactive read alouds and shared readings. Her approach focuses primarily on developing which literacy skill?
Vocabulary
200
To teach students new abstract science concepts, a teacher plans to use questioning strategies to help students construct and monitor meaning. The teacher begins by activating prior knowledge to access whether students can generate questions using the potentially new information. This is an example of a _________ reading strategy.
Before
200
A science teacher is teaching a unit on important 20th century inventors. During a lesson, the students will read texts that describe part of or the entire life of an individual. These texts are examples of which type of nonfiction text?
Biography
200
A math teacher gives each student a copy of a nonfiction text. She asks students to look over the book and point to the bolded subtitles described by either a word, phrase, or question. The teacher is providing instruction on what kind of access feature?
Headings and subheadings
200
A math teacher is teaching a lesson on subtraction. To help students with the process, she uses a text that presents information in step-by-step order. How is this type of text organized?
Sequential
300
A math teacher often pairs fluent readers with struggling readers during small group activities that require reading. The teacher instructs the fluent reader in the group to model a sentence or paragraph in the text using all the strategies of a strategic reader. The struggling reader then rereads the modeled segment, striving to repeat exactly how the fluent reader modeled the reading. This approach focuses primarily on developing which literacy skill?
Fluency
300
A science teacher has been teaching a unit on lab safety with her class. She has taught several lessons using a text set of nonfiction trade books. Many of these books provided examples of actions plans for emergency situation. The teacher would now like for her students to WRITE their own action plan for an emergency situation. The teacher decides to refer back to the text set to give students ideas for presenting the information. This is an example of a __________ writing strategy.
Before
300
A social studies teachers is covering a unit on the events occurring on September 11, 2001. Before the lesson the teacher introduces the topic using a text that confirms and authenticates information about this particular event using photographs taken by those witnessing the attacks. This text is example of which type of nonfiction text?
Photographic essay
300
A social studies teacher asks her students during a lesson to find the section of the text that lists definitions of the new terms they just finished reading. The teacher is providing instruction on what kind of access feature?
Glossaries
300
For a social studies lesson on famous explorers, a teacher uses a text containing a timeline on each page. How is this type of text organized?
Chronological
400
A teacher has noticed that one of her social studies students brings up irrelevant information when trying to relate a passage to something in her own life. Which literacy skill should the teacher concentrate on developing with this student?
Comprehension
400
A teacher has noticed that some of his students have difficulty understanding nonfiction texts. The teacher decides to model for the students how to work backwards and forward to construct a main idea when the author's organization is confusing or the information was initially read too quickly. This is an example of a _________ reading strategy.
During
400
To aid students' comprehension of a math lesson, a teacher allows students to use a variety of texts that provide useful facts and information in abbreviated and easily accessible forms and formats. These texts are examples of which type of nonfiction text?
Reference books
400
After finishing a nonfiction read aloud, a science teacher points out to students a text feature that is usually larger than a sidebar with more extensive information. The teacher is providing instruction on what kind of access feature?
Inset sections or pages
400
To spark student curiosity and model a think aloud, a science teacher uses a text that organizes information by presenting a question and then answering it. How is this type of text organized?
Question-Answer (point-counterpoint)
500
A science teacher has each student choose a nonfiction text and then places the students into small groups based on their book choice. Each group meets periodically. While the teacher facilitates each group’s meetings, the students decide the reading selections and discussion topics. The instructional practice outlined can be best described as...
Discovery circles
500
Students have been identifying planets in the solar system and their position in relation to the Sun. To conclude the unit, the teacher makes interactive and shared writing texts available for students to reread independently and to use as mentor texts for their writing. This is an example of a ___________ reading strategy.
After
500
Before conducting a lab experiment in class, a science teachers has students create a text describing the sequences and stages of conducting the experiment. These texts are examples of which type of nonfiction text?
Experiment/Activity/How-to books
500
Before reading a text in a social studies class, the teacher asks students to locate the notes at the end of the book from the author providing additional information or explanations about the topic. The teacher is providing instruction on what kind of access feature?
Afterword, epilogue, end-notes, author/illustrator notes
500
Surprisingly there are many popular nonfiction picture books that use a story-like beginning, middle, and end. How are these texts organized?
Narrative
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