The New Art and Science of Teaching Writing. Robert J. Marzano
Coordinating conjunction + subject
3. Preposition + subject
4. Subject + verb + adverb
• Example D: Which sentence from Natalie Babbitt’s (1975) Tuck Everlasting is a simile?
1. “Disconnected thoughts presented themselves one by one” (p. 32).
2. “The first week of August was reasserting itself after a good night’s sleep” (p. 86).
3. “I got a feeling [our secret] is going to come apart like wet bread” (p. 59).
4. “The parlor came next, where the furniture, loose and sloping with age, was set about helter-skelter” (p. 51).
• Example E: What can you infer about the boy from this passage? The filthy, unkempt ten-year-old boy ravenously devoured the meal with such eagerness that he attacked each morsel swiftly and clumsily. When finished, his plate looked as clean as if it had just been lifted from the dishwasher.
1. He loves food so much that he eats quickly.
2. His home life is questionable since he is dirty and seems like he’s starving.
3. He ignores his appearance and has bad table manners.
4. He might have been in an eating contest.
Voting techniques can also overlap with other elements. For example, asking students to vote using their fingers aligns with the hand-signal strategy (element 24, chapter 7, page 120). If teachers pose a series of questions that they phrase like examples A and B, the activity would be more akin to an academic game (see element 30, chapter 7, page 130), and we would classify it under the strategy “Which one doesn’t belong?”
Response Boards
In this strategy, teachers can quickly ascertain students’ degree of understanding or how they’re applying a skill by posing a question or prompt that elicits a brief student response. For example, in an opinion paper, teachers can ask K–2 students, “What is your favorite farm animal in this book?” For upper elementary, “Write one reason for your opinion. Or, list one fact you will use in your paper.” For older students, “Write a thesis statement for your argumentation essay that includes a subordinate clause to set up the claim.”
Once teachers present the question or prompt, they allow sufficient time for each student or pair to write an answer on an erasable mini-whiteboard or chalkboard, type on an electronic device, or input their response on an app (such as www.padlet.com). When typing their responses, teachers tell students to add their names in parentheses so they can determine the originator of each contribution. As students write responses or enter them on a device, the teacher gathers input and clarifies as needed. As is true for all strategies, a targeted line item or items on a proficiency scale drive the focus.
Teachers can ask rudimentary questions, such as “What is the first step of the writing process?” “Where and when will your story take place?” or “What source will you first use to research your topic?” Here are other suggestions from the countless options that can support writing instruction.
• “Write a compound sentence that relates to the text we are reading.”
• “Write a dependent clause. Circle the subordinating conjunction, and underline the verb.”
• “Read the sentence on the board from our text and notice the pattern. Then write a sentence using this pattern.” (For example, teachers can share a sentence that reflects parallel construction or one that includes dialogue or a speaker tag positioned in the middle of a sentence.)
• “What specific pronouns could you use if you write a piece from third (or first) person point of view?”
• “Write a sentence using proper mechanics of dialogue with a middle (or beginning or end) speaker tag. Write something that a character in your story would say.”
• “Correctly format the book information that you see on the front board for a works cited document.”
• “After listening to the article (speech, essay, or other), write the author’s purpose.”
• “I will say a title of a book (article, chapter, poem title, and so forth). Write it using proper conventions.”
• “Write a personality trait for the protagonist (main character) in your story.”
• “Draw a plot diagram for the narrative you plan to write.”
• “Write a synonym for the word _______________.”
• “Draw a symbol or simple picture for the word _______________.”
• “What two things are being compared in the metaphor (or simile) I will read?”
• “Read the paragraph on the board. Which words show alliteration?”
• “Identify the rhyme scheme of the stanza you see on the front board.”
Teachers can also use more formal assessments of individual students, as we discuss in the following section.
Element 5: Using Formal Assessments of Individual Students
To individually show evidence that students can demonstrate their understanding of an item or a set of related items on a proficiency scale, the teacher issues formal assessments. Figure 2.2 presents the self-rating scale teachers can utilize for this element.
Figure 2.2: Self-rating scale for element 5—Using formal assessments of individual students.
To address this element, teachers might use the following strategies from the seven aligned to this element.
• Common assessments designed using proficiency scales
• Student demonstrations
• Student-generated assessments
Common Assessments Designed Using Proficiency Scales
Collaborative teams responsible for the same content at a particular grade level can devise common writing assessments around items on a proficiency scale, such as the following examples focused on generating text organization and structure at level 2.0.
• Grades 9–10: Write an introduction for a text that identifies the topic and thesis, previews the rest of the text, and summarizes the context for a reader. Assessment example: After reading Jane Austen’s (1996) Pride and Prejudice, write an introduction for an argumentation essay in which you engage the reader, provide context, and stake a claim through a thesis statement.
• Grade 5: Generate a thesis statement that explains the focus of a text. Assessment example: After reading Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt (1975), write a thesis statement that provides your opinion to this guiding question—“Is Winnie right in deciding not to drink the water?”
• Grade 2: Draft a sentence that states a response’s main idea or opinion using wording from a question or prompt. Assessment example: After reading My Five Senses by Aliki (2015), write your opinion about the sense you think is most important.
See the section Student-Designed Tasks in element 12, chapter 5 (page 72) for more comprehensive examples and support.
Student