Foreword Acknowledgments Aim 1. Introduce Students to Six Types of Comprehension-Building Conversations Chapter 1. Talking About Texts: Getting Started Lessons and Texts to Take Students From Talk to Literary Conversation Five Benefits of Student-Centered Talk Benefit 1: Talk Supports Recall and Comprehension Benefit 2: Talk Engages and Motivates Benefit 3: Interactive Talk Becomes a Model for In-the-Head Conversations Benefit 4: Talk Activates Ideas for Writing About Reading Benefit 5: Talk Changes How Students Think and Feel About Fiction and Nonfiction The Research Support Coming Full Circle With Literature Circles Types of Talk and How They Fit Into the Lessons Initiating Talk With Questions and Prompts How to Craft Guiding Questions How to Teach Students to Compose Interpretive Questions Making Student Talk Productive How to Build Trust How to Help Students Initiate Discussion How to Teach Students to Listen Actively How to Use the Fishbowl Technique How to Use Smart Notebooks What's Ahead Reflect on Your Teaching Chapter 2. Lessons for Teaching Six Types of Talk How Literary Conversations Help Students Texts for Talk-Based Reading Lessons When to Use the Six Types Tips for Managing Literary Conversations Offer Prompts That Keep a Discussion Moving Forward Provide a Timeframe Reflect and Intervene Set a Signal for Closing a Discussion Lesson 2.1: Turn-and-Talk Lesson in Action: Turn-and-Talk Lesson 2.2: Whole-Class Discussions Lesson in Action: Whole-Class Discussions Lesson 2.3: Partner Talk Lesson in Action: Partner Talk Lesson 2.4: Small-Group Discussions Lesson in Action: Small-Group Discussions Lesson 2.5: In-the-Head Conversations Lesson in Action: In-the-Head Conversations Lesson 2.6: Teacher-Student Discussions Lesson in Action: Teacher-Student Discussions Chapter 3. Lessons That Build Comprehension Skills in Any Genre Step 1: Mine Texts for Teaching Topics Step 2: Plan Lessons Step 3: Develop Effective Assessments Ten Top-Notch Short Texts and Lessons Getting-Ready Tips Lesson 3.1: Inferring With Informational Text Lesson 3.2: Exploring Interpretative Questions: Biography Lesson 3.3: Determining the Author's Purpose: Informational Text Lesson 3.4: Why Characters Change: Small-Group Discussion Using a Short Story Lesson 3.5: Prompting In-the-Head Conversations: Biography Lesson 3.6: Teacher-Student Talk: Conferring Reproducible Fiction and Nonfiction Texts "Coming Clean" by Anina Robb "Defying Gravity: Mae Jemison" by Anina Robb "Hoops Tryouts" by Anina Robb "How Ada Lovelace Leaped Into History" by Kathleen Krull "How Athens Got Its Name" Retelling by Joanna Davis-Swing "Isaac Newton and the Day He Discovered the Rainbow" by Kathleen Krull "Making Scientists Into Climbers" (Excerpt From Secrets of the Sky Caves: Danger and Discovery on Nepal's Mustang Cliffs) by Sandra Athans "New Horizons in Space" by Seymour Simon "Snow Day" by Priscilla Cummings "Who Climbs Everest?" (Excerpt From Tales From the Top of the World: Climbing Mount Everest With Pete Athans) by Sandra Athans Aim 2. Teach Students to Read, Talk, and Write About Fiction Chapter 4. Taking the Plunge: How to Talk and Write About Fiction Exploring and Analyzing Fiction With Literary Elements Building Knowledge of Key Literary Techniques Some Key Literary Devices Encouraging Students to Discuss Literary Elements and Techniques Characteristics of Fictional Genres From Talk to Writing Brief Writing Tasks to Follow Talk Writing About Reading Model Lesson: The Importance of Inferring: "Snow Day" by Priscilla Cummings Reflect on Your Teaching Chapter 5. Going Deeper: How to Analyze Literary Elements Offer Students Guided Practice Moving From Talking to Writing Literary Elements and Five Kinds of Conflict Bundling Literary Elements Teaching Tips for Literature-Based Lessons Lesson 5.1: Protagonist and Antagonists Model Lesson 5.1: Teaching Protagonist and Antagonists: "Hoops Tryouts" by Anina Robb Lesson 5.2: Conflict, Plot, and Setting Model Lesson 5.2: Teaching Conflict, Plot, and Setting: "Coming Clean" by Anina Robb Lesson 5.3: Identifying Themes Model Lesson 5.3: Teaching Theme: "Snow Day" by Priscilla Cummings Lesson 5.4: Planning and Writing a Summary: Fiction Model Lesson 5.4: Teaching Summary: Fiction: "Hoops Tryouts" by Anina Robb Lesson 5.5: Compare and Contrast Notes Model Lesson 5.5: Teaching Compare and Contrast Notes: "How Athens Got Its Name" Retelling by Joanna Davis-Swing Aim 3. Teach Students to Read, Talk, and Write About Nonfiction Chapter 6. Taking the Plunge: How to Talk and Write About Nonfiction Seven Tips for Inspiring Students to Have Literary Conversations About Nonfiction Teach Six Kinds of Context Clues Lesson 6.1: Mining Text Features for Information Identifying Text Structures to Build Understanding Lesson 6.2: Teaching Text Structures From Talk to Writing Understanding the Structure of Nonfiction Genres Reflect on Your Teaching Chapter 7. Going Deeper: How to Analyze Nonfiction Teaching Tips for Text-Based Lessons Lesson 7.1: Taking Heading Notes and Finding a Main Idea Model Lesson 7.1: Taking Heading Notes and Finding a Main Idea: "Who Climbs Everest?" (Excerpt From Tales From the Top of the World) by Sandra Athans Lesson 7.2: Thinking About Issues: Obstacles Model Lesson 7.2: Teaching About Obstacles: "How Ada Lovelace Leaped Into History" by Kathleen Krull Lesson 7.3: Teaching the Problem-Solution Text Structure Model Lesson 7.3: Teaching Problem-Solution: "New Horizons in Space" by Seymour Simon Lesson 7.4: Personality Traits and a Person's Achievements: Biography Model Lesson 7.4: Teaching Personality Traits: "Defying Gravity: Mae Jemison" by Anina Robb and "Isaac Newton and the Day He Discovered the Rainbow" by Kathleen Krull Lesson 7.5: Identifying Main Ideas Model Lesson 7.5a: Teaching Explicitly Stated Main Ideas: "Who Climbs Everest?" (Excerpt From Tales From the Top of the World) by Sandra Athans Model Lesson 7.5b: Teaching How to Infer Main Ideas: "Defying Gravity: Mae Jemison" by Anina Robb Chapter 8. Reflecting on the Process of Read, Talk, Write Four Key Skills Skill 1: Taking Risks Skill 2: Creativity Skill 3: Empathy Skill 4: The Ability to Negotiate Writing Is Knowing Making the Changeover Take the First Steps Climb That First Hill Start Slowly Down the Hill Continue Moving Along the Path Picture Your Destination Make a Teaching Investment With Student Paybacks List of Top-Notch Books for Instruction and Class Libraries Bibliography of Professional Materials Index
Laura Robb shares 35 lessons and 45 reproducibles that make it easier for teachers to train their students to read, talk, and write about texts independently. She includes model lessons for introducing the fundamentals of productive whole class, small group, partner, turn and talk, teacher/student conversation. Other lessons use the 6 short texts in the book to address literary elements, text features and structures, reading strategies, and vocabulary - all through discussion, brief writing about reading, and an emphasis on analytical thinking.
An author, teacher, coach, and speaker, LAURA ROBB has spent the last four decades in middle school education. What teachers appreciate most about Laura is her deep commitment to children and adolescents, and her ability to show what best-practice instruction looks like day by day; a survey conducted by Instructor magazine named Laura as one of the nation's top twenty educators. Currently, in addition to her speaking and consulting, she works part time in grades K-8. She was named NCTE's recipient of the 2016 Richard W. Halle Award for Outstanding Middle Level Educator.