3rd Grade - 6th Grade Blending Routine

  Text Dependent Questions

SMART Standards Alignment: READING - WRITING - SPEAKING AND LISTENING 

Students revisit the text several times to answer a series of questions which are designed to build levels of understanding. The questions begin by establishing general understandings and then lead to deeper understanding of the text. Evidence from the text is used to support answers at all levels of questioning.

Informational Text Structure

Close Reading

Question - Answer Relationships (QAR)

Science Text

Claim, Evidence, Interpretation

Mentor Text Routine

Comparing Literature

SMART Standards Alignment:  READING:  Transfer  WRITING:  Knowledge

Compare and contrast characters, adventures, and experiences of characters in stories.  This strategy guides students to identifying similarities and differences of various elements in literature.

Mentor Text Routine

SMART Standards Alignment: READING:  Analyze - WRITING

Students and teacher read a quality text and analyze the text by making a map of the text, which outlines how the author composed his/her writing. The teacher and students then use the map to guide their own writing, emulating the author’s style, pattern, technique, etc. as outlined on the map.

Just Ask It

SMART Standards Alignment:  WRITING: Communication - SPEAKING AND LISTENING: Understand

Just Ask It! is a revision strategy that demonstrates the kind of thinking good writers go through as they draft and make on-going changes to the content of their writing. A student reads his piece of writing to the whole class, a small group, or a partner. As the students have questions about the piece, they “just ask it.” The writer chooses whether or not to revise his piece in response to the questions.

Modeled Writing 

SMART Standards Alignment:  WRITING

Modeled writing is an ongoing practice that occurs during your sustained writing period. Teachers take a few minutes to model the thinking that goes into their own personal writing. They might model the thinking that goes into composing or revising a section of text (or any other step in the writing process), or the thinking that occurs when applying a particular strategy or technique. Teachers then have a discussion with their students that focuses on the question, “What did you see me do as a writer?”

Challenge Word Spelling Strategy

SMART Standards Alignment:  WRITING: LANGUAGE: Spelling

Students are taught a strategy for sounding out challenging words and for making logical attempts at spelling those words. This strategy encourages students to use more difficult and exciting words in their writing, rather than stick with less exciting words that are easier to spell. It also helps students apply what they have learned about spelling patterns, and makes it easier for students and others to read their own writing.

Informative Writing 

SMART Standards Alignment:  WRITING: Product: Informative

Students learn to convey information accurately through informative/explanatory writing.  They learn a variety of structures, such as description, sequence, cause/effect, compare/contrast, problem/solution, and question/answer.  

Argumentative Writing 

SMART Standards Alignment: WRITING: PRODUCT: Opinion

Students learn to logically present a position, belief, or conclusion in argumentaive writing.  They learn to provide reasons, examples, and explanations to support their argument.

Narrative Writing 

SMART Standards Alignment:  WRITING: PRODUCT: Narrative

Students learn to convey experiences, either real or imaginary, through narrative writing.  They learn to provide visual details, to depict specific actions, to use dialogue, and to manipulate pace for effect.

Stop, Think, and Write Techniques

SMART Standards Alignment:  WRITING:  Knowledge

Students respond to a question or topic posed by the teacher through writing.  This is followed by a few minutes of sharing and classroom discussion.

Spelling Memorization Routine

SMART Standards Alignment: LANGUAGE: Spelling

The Spelling Memorization Routine is used....

Editing Circles

SMART Standards Alignment:  LANGUAGE: Capitalization/Punctuation

The purpose of editing circles is to give students practice with editing for conventions in authentic writing. Students become a specialist in one area of editing: capitalization, punctuation, or spelling.