Do you Close Read?

I'm pretty sure I've never been apprehensive about any pedagogy. Being a new(er) teacher, I usually embrace new ideas. I'll try anything once!

This was far from the case with Close Reading. I attended a workshop last summer on NMSI and AP English. A good part of the workshop focused on close reading. It seemed cumbersome and confusing. If I was having a hard time wrapping my mind around it, what was going to happen to my eighth graders? YIKES!

Listen carefully - this does not get said often - I was so very wrong.

My kids loved it! My advanced students and my inclusion students were on a roll. They had so many ideas. Synapses were firing. Communication and collaboration were on happening without prompting! Education on steroids! If you haven't tried it yet, I highly recommend it!

That is the best summary of close reading I have found. There are many different 'steps' or 'approaches' to close reading. The key is finding/creating steps that fit your students' understanding and standards. Below are our steps:

1. Read the passage silently.
2. Listen to the passage read aloud.
3. Circle details in the text that make an impact (on your understanding, your views, your imagination). Make a note next to the circle that tells why this stands out to you.
4. Underline words with connotative diction (positive or negative meaning to you). Place a plus (+) or minus (-) sign about the word to illustrate the meaning.
5. Block off imagery (words appealing to senses). Make a note next to the block on what imagery is brought to mind - what image appears in your mind? what emotion does it make you feel?
6. Highlight comparisons (similes, metaphors, personification). Make a note to explain what is being compared and what information is gained from the comparison. 
7. Put an asterisk next to word(s) that illustrate the point of view.

Writing these steps out remind me why I tried to hide from close reading. It can be a lot to take. It can have several large words that may require a bit of reteaching, but it is worth it! 

The typical student response to "read this piece of literature and tell me what you think" is to read it quickly and say it was "nice." Close reading removes the ability to do this. It requires the student to think deeply on several levels. The end result is a deeper understanding from analyzation and creating your own opinions. Many parts of close reading cannot be copied from a friend because your emotions and understanding is not the same as someone else's emotions and understanding. 

Yesterday my students close read "Masks" independently. Today we reviewed as a class. This is what they came up with:

In previous years, my students have read the poem and replied "she doesn't show people the real her, and she wants someone to try to see the real her." Well … this is a general summary, but you are missing SO MUCH when you only read the surface. 

This year my students came up with the theme that is written in black on the sheet. "Every person you meet is facing problems you can't see. Love and encouragement from you will help others feel better and overcome their problems." I'm so proud!

Through close reading they had a good ten minute conversation on the power that "love is stronger than strong walls" brings into the poem. Their ideas brought me to tears! They also noted that you can't say "he" or "she" because the author is unknown and the last stanza blatantly states that the poem is about everyone. 

Earlier I noted that it is hard to copy someone else's close read. This was definitely brought to light with the term "masks" in this poem. Some students thought of Mardi Gras masks (fun, playful, party). Others thought of Halloween masks (scary, hiding things, monsters). Another group thought of masks as covering something. Your history shapes what you bring to the conversation. 

If you close read or you try close reading, please comment below and let me know how it goes! 

Busy Beginning

The school year is in full swing! We have officially completed three weeks of school, and I survived picture day (I'm in charge of picture day - it goes with yearbook territory). These weeks have been a HUGE success! I am unbelievably proud of my students and their hard work. 

We started off the first week with the general 'getting to know you' activities, but by the end of the week, we had jumped straight into the deep end!

My students deconstructed their standards. We worked through the Common Core/College and Career Readiness Standards to make them understandable for everyone. Now we are all on the same page about what needs to be accomplished this school year!

By the end of the first week, we began Close Reading. I was VERY hesitant about attempting this with my eighth graders, but I was also VERY wrong. They rocked it! Completely took over and ran with their thoughts! We barely scratched the surface on day one, and day two was even more incredible. I teach a regular ed class and an inclusion class. Both classes were remarkable. They really took the texts and made relevant, interesting connections. Many that never occurred to me!

During the second week of school, we began our first PBL unit: "How can we use history to solve a current issue?" Students will end the unit by creating a proposal to solve a current issue in society. 

We kicked it off with QFT (Question Formulation Technique)). My students ran with this activity too! They got so much out of it. Their ideas and creativity were more than I could have ever hoped for. 
They worked in groups to narrow down their questions to their best open ended questions. Then they worked as a class using "Keep it, Junk it, or Cloud it" to narrow down their final questions. 
Their final questions go into the "Want to Know" column of our unit K-W-L. (They were so enthralled and ON TASK with the QFT, we never made it to the K-W-L that day - and our class period is one hour forty-five minutes long.)

This year has so much to hold! It's fantastic!

As a part of our first unit, we are reading The Diary of Anne Frank. Prior to reading the story, my students used a virtual tour of Anne Frank's Secret Annex to complete a virtual quest. They enjoyed seeing everything first hand and hearing how everyone lived. It was eye-opening for my students to see, travel through, and hear the living situation and conditions that surrounded the Holocaust. It was a great opening activity!

We are only three weeks into this school year, and it is already incredible. It will be a fantastic experience to see my students grow this year. I look forward to continuing our student-center classroom using project based learning!