Using Big Ideas and Mentor Texts to Develop Higher-

Order Thinking A Team Approach

By Julia GraydonSt. Francis of Assisi SchoolRCCDSB

Collaboration time… Take 10 minutes to share with the people at your table how you set up your literacy program?

A Learning Journey

Background Experience Professional Development Research Collaborative Planning Implementation Sharing of resources and ideas Impact/ Results TLLP – Next Steps

What is a BIG IDEA?

A BIG IDEA is the main point of a book, magazine article, argument or film. It is the moral of the story or the underlying theme of a novel. It is what an author, poet, speaker, or artist is really trying to communicate to his or her audience. Foremost, a BIG IDEA is the life lesson or deeper understanding that a person takes away from the text, work of art or performance. BIG IDEAS are determined after reflecting or analyzing the entire text or work rather than on parts of it. Sean Walmsey

Why is using BIG IDEAS an effective teaching strategy?

It helps students create connections with their own lives, with other texts they have read and also with the world around them.

It provides strong scaffolding for student learning.

It builds self-confidence. It creates potential for rich conservations. It promotes higher- order thinking. Most importantly, determining the BIG IDEA

is a necessary life skill.

Common BIG IDEAS or themes Acceptance Community Courage Perseverance Co-operation Compassion Honesty Kindness Equality Loyalty Hatred Disillusionment Faith Greed

Power Everlasting Love Injustice Resilience Pride Respect Destruction Circle of Life Hope New Beginnings Stewardship Discovery Dreams

What is the BIG IDEA?

What is a “Mentor Text”?

Mentor Texts or Anchor Books are examples of rich, high quality children’s literature that can be used to teach a specific reading or writing strategy or skill. Mentor Texts should be multi-layered so that it allows for a variety of interpretations, it should be sufficiently challenging so it encourages the student to struggle with the ideas presented and it should provide strong visual support.

Collaboration time…

Take a few minutes to discuss at your table some of your experiences using children’s literature or Mentor Texts as part of your Literacy Program.

Why use Mentor Texts?

Fosters students’ engagement in reading Expands students background knowledge and

experience with high-quality literature Develops students understanding of well-

crafted literature Builds students knowledge of authors and

illustrators Builds vocabulary Provides opportunities for students to explore

new ways of interpreting and analyzing text Creates opportunities for higher- order thinking

Sample Literacy Plan Using Big Ideas and Mentor Texts

Sample Monthly Focus

NovemberMaking the

World a Better Place

September Building

Relationships October

Dare to Imagine

NovemberMaking the

World a Better Place

DecemberGod is

Powerful

January Hope

February Equality

MarchResilience

AprilRespect

May Persistenc

e

JuneA Journey

Capturing Student LearningWrite down answers given on chart paper during class discussionsWrite anecdotal notes while the students are discussing possible answers with their Accountable Talk PartnersRecord the conversations with an iPad, video camera, audio recorder.ConferencingPhoto BoothUse the information gathered in a writing task after a group conversation.

Building Deep Connections

Big Idea

: Hop

e

Collaboration time…

Take the next 10 minutes to think about what themes would be beneficial for your students to explore.

Use the handout to brainstorm with people at your table some possible Mentor Texts that you could use to explore the BIG IDEA.

What are the benefits of using BIG IDEAS and Mentor texts as the foundation of your literacy program?

What are the benefits of using BIG IDEAS and Mentor texts as the foundation of your literacy program?

Students become more proficient at examining concepts at a deeper level.

Students learn how to explain their connections with the text at a deeper level because the learning focus was evident, structured and intentional.

Students discover new and different ways of analyzing a text over time.

Students become cognizant of the fact that their understanding changes and evolves as more information is discovered through the sharing of ideas with others.

It is an effective way of teaching reading comprehension strategies.

Promotes the development of communication skills. Encourages higher-order thinking skills.

How do proficient readers build a deep understanding of a text?

According to Ellin Keene and Susan Zimmerman authors of Mosaic of Thought: Teaching Comprehension in a Reader’s Workshop, proficient readers use the following comprehension skills simultaneously to build a deep understanding of a text:

Activate prior knowledge Ask appropriate questions Use their schema to make connections Determine the most important ideas and themes in the text Draw references information and inferences Synthesize and retell what they have learned Use strategies to repair comprehension Create sensory images Recognize learning and understanding involve continuous

thinking, reasoning, and questioning (i.e., metacognitive skills) Engage with and respond to the text

“Although we tend to introduce these (reading) strategies independently of one another, we recognize that readers rarely infer, determine importance, or synthesize in isolation. These thoughts interact and intersect to help readers make meaning and often occur simultaneously during reading.”

(Strategies That Work: Teaching Comprehension to Enhance Understanding p. 12)

What are the benefits of using BIG IDEAS and Mentor texts as the foundation of your literacy program?

Students become more proficient at examining concepts at a deeper level.

Students learn how to explain their connections with the text at a deeper level because the learning focus was evident, structured and intentional.

Students discover new and different ways of analyzing a text over time.

Students become cognizant of the fact that their understanding changes and evolves as more information is discovered through the sharing of ideas with others.

It is an effective way of teaching reading comprehension strategies.

Promotes the development of communication skills. Encourages higher-order thinking skills.

Justifying the BIG IDEA

http://www.curriculum.org/content/30/conversations-for-learning

What are the benefits of using BIG IDEAS and Mentor texts as the foundation of your literacy program?

Students become more proficient at examining concepts at a deeper level.

Students learn how to explain their connections with the text at a deeper level because the learning focus was evident, structured and intentional.

Students discover new and different ways of analyzing a text over time.

Students become cognizant of the fact that their understanding changes and evolves as more information is discovered through the sharing of ideas with others.

It is an effective way of teaching reading comprehension strategies.

Promotes the development of communication skills. Encourages higher-order thinking skills.

How can we help our students learn to “dig deeper” to improve their understanding?

To help students “dig deeper” teachers should “model the use of authentic questions and prompts to initiate conversation and stimulate critical and reflective thinking about a text… By opening floor for students to share what they are thinking and feeling it creates “interpretative space” for the co-construction of meaning… Authentic questions and prompts are open-ended, “big” or interpretive in nature, so that they allow for a range of possible responses.”

Grand Conversations in Primary Classrooms, Capacity Building Series #18 p. 3

WebcastDr. Lucy West on Effective Questioning

http://www.curriculum.org/k-12/en/videos/lucy-west-questioning

Examples of Effective Open-Ended Questions

What do you think the author wanted you to learn from this story?

What do you think is the BIG IDEA in this text? Why do you think that?

What character traits do you think the main character possessed? Explain.

Do you agree with the way the character solved the problem in the story? How would you have done it differently?

What is the moral of the story? Why do you think that?

Students discuss how listening to their classmates impacts their thinking.

http://www.curriculum.org/content/30/conversations-for-learning

*How Conversations Help Us Learn

What are the benefits of using BIG IDEAS and Mentor texts as the foundation of your literacy program?

Students become more proficient at examining concepts at a deeper level.

Students learn how to explain their connections with the text at a deeper level because the learning focus was evident, structured and intentional.

Students discover new and different ways of analyzing a text over time.

Students become cognizant of the fact that their understanding changes and evolves as more information is discovered through the sharing of ideas with others.

It is an effective way of teaching reading comprehension strategies.

Promotes the development of communication skills. Encourages higher-order thinking skills.

What are the benefits of using BIG IDEAS and Mentor texts as the foundation of your literacy program? Students become more proficient at examining concepts

at a deeper level. Students learn how to explain their connections with the

text at a deeper level because the learning focus was evident, structured and intentional.

Students discover new and different ways of analyzing a text over time.

Students become cognizant of the fact that their understanding changes and evolves as more information is discovered through the sharing of ideas with others.

It is an effective way of teaching reading comprehension strategies.

Promotes the development of communication skills. Encourages higher-order thinking skills.

Encourages Conversation Student engagement increases when students are

given opportunities to think deeply, articulate their reasoning and listen with purpose in conversations about issues that are important to them…. Involving students in collaborative structures and teaching students how to engage in meaningful conversations about text makes a difference in student learning and achievement, supporting the development of the higher-order thinking skills which are so critical in today’s learner.

Grand Conversations in Primary Classrooms, Capacity Building Series #18 p. 8

How can you promote richer conversations in your classroom?

Here are some specific strategies you can use to create more opportunities for your students to engage in conversation:

Turn and Talk Discussion Triads Invite elaboration of an idea- “Tell us more about that…” Ask for clarification “I’m not sure I understand is there another way

you can explain that…” Encourage new points of view- “Interesting… what does everyone

else think?…” Invite new voices to enter the conversation “That’s interesting…

can anyone build on that…?” Refocus the conversation “We were trying to decide why the

character acted that way. Any ideas?...”

What are the benefits of using BIG IDEAS and Mentor texts as the foundation of your literacy program?

Students become more proficient at examining concepts at a deeper level.

Students learn how to explain their connections with the text at a deeper level because the learning focus was evident, structured and intentional.

Students discover new and different ways of analyzing a text over time.

Students become cognizant of the fact that their understanding changes and evolves as more information is discovered through the sharing of ideas with others.

It is an effective way of teaching reading comprehension strategies.

Promotes the development of communication skills. Encourages higher-order thinking skills.

What is higher- order thinking?

Higher –order thinking skills involve the learning of complex judgmental skills such as critical thinking and problem solving. According to Bloom’s Taxonomy, analyzing, evaluating, and creating are the most complex kinds of thought. These three more complex kinds of thought are called higher-order thinking.

BLOOM’S TAXONOMY

Bloom’s Taxonomy is a widely accepted psychological theory that categorizes different kinds of learning in ascending order from least to most complex.

When should we start teaching higher-order thinking skills?

According to the Full Day Early Learning Kindergarten Program, “Children need many opportunities to pose and answer questions, participate in discussions, classify information in order to develop their capacity for metacognition and their ability to use higher-order thinking skills involved in critical thinking” (FDELKP p. 19)

How can we create an environment that fosters higher-order thinking?

Teachers promote higher-order thinking skills by ensuring that students have the following knowledge and skills in place:

• prior knowledge• understanding of the texts meaning (front-end loading)• problem solving skills (modeled through think alouds)• skills in analyzing information (e.g., the ability to explain,

compare infer)• skills in synthesizing information (e.g., the ability to relate,

predict, draw conclusions)• skills in evaluating information (e.g., the ability to make

choices, verify evidence, assess value)

Guide to Effective Instruction in Reading, Kindergarten to Grade 3, p 2.11

Dr. Allan Luke- On Critical Literacy

http://blip.tv/presenting/dr-allanlukeseg5-3020955

Getting started…

When selecting your BIG IDEA(s) and Mentor texts you should take the following things into consideration: Student interests School culture Curriculum expectations Learning goals Timelines

How can I learn more about this approach to literacy planning?

Article entitled, Getting the Big Idea: A Neglected Goal for Reading Comprehension, by Sean A Walmsley, The Reading Teacher, Vol. 60 No. 3 November 2006.

Beyond Retelling: Toward Higher Order Thinking and Big Ideas, By Patricia Cunningham and Debra Smith

Capacity Building Series byLiteracy and Numeracy Secretariat

Questions?