DECIDE WHAT'S

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DECIDE WHAT'S IMPORTANT
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The House
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The Powerpoint is divided into the following
sections

• Gradual Release of Responsibility
• Power Notes
• Chapter Tour
• Non Fiction Text Conventions
• Other strategies to help students

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• Readers of nonfiction have to decide and
  remember what is important in the texts they read
  if they are going to learn anything from them.
• Harvey Goudvis

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Have you ever asked someone how their day went
and received a blow-by-blow description of every
detail?
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Decisions about importance are based on

• The readers purpose
• The readers schema for the text content ideas
  most closely connected to the readers prior
  knowledge will be considered most important

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It is critical to support learners through the
learning process and gradually release
responsibility to them. Keene Zimmerman -
Mosaic of Thought
Independent Application
Independent Practice
Guided Practice
Teacher Modeling
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Teacher Modeling
Teachers should model thinking aloud about their
own process of determining importance during
reading.
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Guided Practice
In small or large group mini-lessons, students
are invited to share their thoughts about what is
important.
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Independent Practice
Students may work individually, meet in small
groups, or work in pairs to compare ideas about
what is most important in text and how they came
to that conclusion.
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Independent Application
Conference with students during independent
reading. This will give you the opportunity to
discuss what decisions they are making about
important ideas in a variety of texts.
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Power Notes
Giving Notes a Power Rating
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Power Notes
Power Notes contribute to students awareness of
text structure as they read and write. In
addition Students learn to read actively and
to prioritize main ideas from details as they
study. Power Notes can be integrated into a
number of other activities to help students
perceive how information in interconnected.
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Power Notes
Power 1 main point or category Power 2s,
3s, and 4s corresponding details and
examples
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Power Notes
An example of Power Notes 1. Penalties in
Football 2. On Offense 3. Holding 3.
Clipping 2. On Defense 3. Off Sides 3.
Pass Interference 3. Grabbing Face Mask 2.
On Special Teams
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Power Notes
Power 1
Power 2
Power 2
Power 3
Power 3
Power 3
Power 3
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Chapter Tour
Being Your Own Tour Guide
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Chapter Tour
A Chapter Tour is a form of study guide that
"talks" the reader through a chapter, and points
out elements of the text that warrant special
attention.
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Chapter Tour

• Using a Chapter Tour activity involves the
  following steps.
• Preview the Chapter
• Create the Tour
• Students Complete the Tour
• Develop Variations

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Chapter Tour
Step 1 Preview the Chapter
Preview a typical textbook chapter to identify
salient features that students might overlook
during their reading.
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Chapter Tour
Step 2 Create the Tour
Create a Chapter Tour that guides students toward
noticing organizational features as they use the
book.
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Chapter Tour
Step 3 Students complete the Tour
Have students complete your first Chapter Tour as
an introduction to the textbook.
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Chapter Tour
Step 4 Develop Variations
Variations
Variations
Variations
Variations
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NonFiction Text Conventions
Features that Signal Importance
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NonFiction Features
We must teach our students what nonfiction is.
Teaching our students that expository text has
predictable characteristics and features they can
count on before they read allows them to
construct meaning more easily as they read.
Debbie Miller
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NonFiction Features

• Labels
• Captions
• Comparisons
• Graphics
• Maps

• Fonts and Effects
• Table of Contents
• Index
• Glossary
• Appendix

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You Be the Guide
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A few more strategies to help students
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In the Past

• You were asked to highlight the most important
  parts of the material.
• How many of you highlighted almost the entire
  page?
• Were you ever told how to figure out what are
  important details?

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When students highlight or mark text in
nonfiction materials, they should keep the
following guidelines in mind

• Look carefully at the first and last line in each
  paragraph.
• Highlight only necessary words and phrases.
• Dont get thrown off by interesting details.
• Try not to highlight more than half of a
  paragraph.
• Continued

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• Make notes in the margins.
• Cue words will be followed by important
  information.
• Nonfiction has many features that signal
  important information.
• Pay attention to surprising information. You may
  be learning something new.

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V.I.P. (Very Important Points)

• Students cut sticky notes so there are slim
  strips of paper extending out from the sticky
  edge.
• As students read, they tear off pieces to mark
  points in text they feel are significant.
• After reading, students compare the points they
  marked. They must justify their answers. I chose
  to mark this point because

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Coding

• I Important
• L Learned something new
• Interesting/important
• Aha! Big idea surfaces
• S Surprising
• S!!! Shocking
• !!! - Exciting

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Two or Three Column Notes
The Monarch Butterfly - Pg. 9

• Mate in 4 days
• Lay eggs on milkweed plants
• Males females die in one month

Monarchs that emerge in spring and early summer
Monarchs that emerge in late summer and fall

• Live longer
• Migrate hundreds of miles to warmer areas

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Anticipation Guides

1. Prepare a list of true / false statements about a
   subject that is about to be read.
2. Have the students make a true or false prediction
   about the statements BEFORE reading.
3. Have the students read the article or text.
4. Tell the students to answer the same set of true
   / false questions as they can now verify their
   answers from the reading.

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DECIDE WHAT'S IMPORTANT