Ride

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media type="youtube" key="02rW3vaNj98" height="263" width="258" In this lessons students will watch videos on amusement parks and roller coasters. After watching the movies the students will discuss what they saw using descriptive words or science concepts used at the amusement park. Together the class will write a 5 sentence paragraph on the amusement park

Then the class will discuss how stories need to be in order. The teacher will randomly switch the sentences and then allow the students to practice putting the sentences back in order while also practicing skills in the word processor.

Here is a screen shot of the activity page:

This follows good practice from the Reading Next Report

 **The Fifteen Elements of Effective Adolescent Literacy Programs**  **From Reading NEXT**  This report delineates fifteen elements aimed at improving middle and high school literacy  achievement right now.

 **1. Direct, explicit comprehension instruction,**  which is instruction in the strategies and  processes that proficient readers use to understand what they read, including summarizing,  keeping track of one’s own understanding, and a host of other practices  **2. Effective instructional principles embedded in content,**  including language arts teachers  using content-area texts and content-area teachers providing instruction and practice in  reading and writing skills specific to their subject area  **3. Motivation and self-directed learning,**  which includes building motivation to read and learn  and providing students with the instruction and supports needed for independent learning  tasks they will face after graduation <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **4. Text-based collaborative learning,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which involves students interacting with one another <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> around a variety of texts <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **5. Strategic tutoring,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which provides students with intense individualized reading, writing, and <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> content instruction as needed <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **6. Diverse texts,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which are texts at a variety of difficulty levels and on a variety of topics <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **7. Intensive writing,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> including instruction connected to the kinds of writing tasks students <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> will have to perform well in high school and beyond <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **8. A technology component,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which includes technology as a tool for and a topic of literacy <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> instruction <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **9. Ongoing formative assessment of students,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which is informal, often daily assessment of  <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> how students are progressing under current instructional practices <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **10. Extended time for literacy,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which includes approximately two to four hours of literacy <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> instruction and practice that takes place in language arts and content-area classes <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **11. Professional development** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> that is both long term and ongoing <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **12. Ongoing summative assessment of students and programs,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which is more formal and <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> provides data that are reported for accountability and research purposes <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **13. Teacher teams,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which are interdisciplinary teams that meet regularly to discuss students and <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> align instruction <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **14. Leadership,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which can come from principals and teachers who have a solid understanding of  <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> how to teach reading and writing to the full array of students present in schools <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **15. A comprehensive and coordinated literacy program,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which is interdisciplinary and <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> interdepartmental and may even coordinate with out-of-school organizations and the <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> local community

<span style="font-family: Times,serif;">Biancarosa, C., & Snow, C. E. (2006). Reading next—A vision for action and research in middle and high school literacy: A report to Carnegie Corporation of New York (2nd ed.).Washington, DC: Alliance for Excellent Education.

<span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **Eleven Elements of Effective Adolescent Writing Instruction** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **From Writing NEXT** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> This report identifies 11 elements of current writing instruction found to be effective for helping <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> adolescent students learn to write well and to use writing as a tool for learning. It is important to note that all of the elements are supported by rigorous research, but that even when used together, they do not constitute a full writing curriculum.

<span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> 1. <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **Writing Strategies,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which involves teaching students strategies for planning, revising, and <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> editing their compositions <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> 2. <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **Summarization,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which involves explicitly and systematically teaching students how to  <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> summarize texts <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> 3. <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **Collaborative Writing,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which uses instructional arrangements in which adolescents work <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> together to plan, draft, revise, and edit their compositions <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> 4. <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **Specific Product Goals** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;">, which assigns students specific, reachable goals for the writing they <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> are to complete <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> 5. <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **Word Processing,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which uses computers and word processors as instructional supports for <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> writing assignments <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> 6. <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **Sentence Combining,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which involves teaching students to construct more complex, <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> sophisticated sentences <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> 7. <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **Prewriting,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which engages students in activities designed to help them generate or organize <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> ideas for their composition <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> 8. <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **Inquiry Activities** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;">, which engages students in analyzing immediate, concrete data to help <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> them develop ideas and content for a particular writing task <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> 9. <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **Process Writing Approach,** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> which interweaves a number of writing instructional activities in  <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> a workshop environment that stresses extended writing opportunities, writing for authentic <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> audiences, personalized instruction, and cycles of writing <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> 10. <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **Study of Models** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;">, which provides students with opportunities to read, analyze, and emulate <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> models of good writing <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> 11. <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> **Writing for Content Learning** <span style="font-family: Times,serif;">, which uses writing as a tool for learning content material

<span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> Graham, S., & Perin, D. (2007). <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> //Writing next: Effective strategies to improve writing of adolescents in middle and high schools – A report to Carnegie Corporation of New York.// <span style="font-family: Times,serif;"> Washington, DC:Alliance for Excellent Education.