Using the Close Read Strategy

We all do it.
It's nothing new.
But why is it when something gets a new name,
Everyone jumps on the bandwagon,
excited about this new teaching tool,
when actually its not new at all.

Maybe it's like when you whiten your favorite t-shirt
and it looks new again,
so it becomes your favorite tee until the whiteness starts to fade again.

Anyway....

The close read strategy is something we all have to implement twice this semester as we continue on this Common Core journey.
Reading is in all classses.
No one is immune.

I chose a comic based on the topic we have been studying.

Here's what my lesson looked like.

Objectives:  

1.  Students will understand the Tier 2 and Tier 3 (mathematical content) vocabulary

    definitions of:  slope, horizontal, vertical, vertical line test, functions, undefined

2.  Students will restate the comic in their own words.

3.  Students will create a comic depicting some aspect of slope (i.e. using stairs,

    mountains, the pitch of a roof, etc)

Introduction:  

To hook students and also give those that have never gone skiing some background information, find a skiing video that explains the various slopes of a ski resort (bunny hill, green, blue, black) and what they mean.

Instead of showing a video, I chose to talk about our family's skiing experiences to help them relate to the various slopes at a ski resort. I even admitted I cried like a baby on my one and only blue/black experience. It still sends shivers down my spine!

The Close Read Task:

1.  Hand out the comic worksheet and have students read the comic individually.

This literally took 30 seconds.

If that.

2.  Have students read the comic for the second time and circle (or mark in some way)

    words or phrases they don’t understand.

Most classes simply marked the words "slope" and "vertical line test". Two classes chose to mark "stick to".

3.  Have students read the comic a third time, this time looking at the pictures as well as

    the caption.  Mark with a symbol (a star, ?, !, etc) anything that strikes them unusual,

    unexpected, important, or an aha moment.  Have them write in the margin of the

    cartoon their thoughts.

We chose to spend some time on the vertical line of the comic, talking about why this was in the comic. We added words such as "unskiiable", "sheer drop", and "cliff"

4.  Hand out the vocabulary worksheet and have them write in their own words in

    complete sentences the definitions for both the Tier 2 and Tier 3 words.

The hardest part of this assignment was writing in complete sentences!

    Discuss any similarities and/or differences between the meaning of slope outside the

    math classroom and the meaning of slope in mathematical context.

I loved discussing the similarities and differences between the words inside and outside the math classroom. It really brought to light the meaning of slope and functions with the lessons we've been studying.

5.  Read the comic a fourth time and this time have them restate it in their own words

    using worksheet #???

I was impressed with the vocabulary they chose to use to replace what the comic was saying.

6.  Finally, create a slope cartoon depicting some aspect of slope (i.e. a staircase, the

    pitch of a roof, mountains, escalators, etc).  Student creations can be paper/pencil or

    with the use of technology.  Grade final projects with the rubric.

Setting up the final project is a huge part of getting their minds engaged. Providing lots of examples and vocabulary, but not enough to take the creativity away is vital. Students must submit a rough draft first before any technology can be used.