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Getting to the Core of Literacy for History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects, Grades 6–12

By: Vicky Giouroukakis, Maureen Connolly

Each of these teacher-tested lessons incorporates reading and writing into content-specific instruction—with notes on strategies, variations, Backward Design components, and links to major educational theorists.

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Product Details

Grade Level: PreK-12
ISBN: 9781452255446
Published By: Corwin
Year: 2013
Page Count: 264
Publication date: May 06, 2013

Price: $32.95

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Description

Literacy—it’s not just for English teachers anymore.

The new Common Core English Language Arts Standards aren’t just for English teachers. Fluent reading and writing are critically important to the study of history/social studies, science, and technical subjects, too. What’s more, the progress your students make is directly tied to their ability to process information they read and to express their ideas in writing.

So how do you make literacy a focus of your teaching . . . without taking time away from essential content? This practical resource—packed with teacher-tested, CCSS-based sample lessons—shows you how, using the Backward Design approach to set and meet your goals. Each lesson template includes

The teaching strategies you’ll utilize
Ways to incorporate technology and media
Variations for differentiation and interdisciplinary connections
Links to the work of major educational theorists

Following these models, you’ll set the CCSS in your sights and develop lessons that both meet standards and fit your classroom. Before you know it, you’ll be infusing reading and writing across your curriculum in purposeful and meaningful ways.

Key features

Practical, brief, and comprehensible for busy teachers who want to read a book tailored to their specific needs
Annotated sample lessons that address the Common Core State Standards for Reading and Writing in History/Social Studies, Science, and the Technical Subjects standards.
Templates that provide a simple breakdown of the components of a successfully aligned CCSS lesson.
Multiple reproducible handouts for each lesson narrative.
Success stories involving content area teachers working together, tips for collaboration, and resources available to support online collaboration.

Author(s)

Vicky Giouroukakis

Consulting Description

Vicky Giouroukakis, PhD, (née Vasiliki Menexas), is an Associate Professor in the Division of Education at Molloy College, Rockville Centre, New York. She teaches graduate courses to prospective and practicing secondary English teachers and English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers. Prior to her tenure at Molloy, Vicky taught English at a public high school in Queens, New York, and ESL to adolescents and adults. She also taught at Manhattanville College and Queens College, CUNY. Her research interests include adolescent literacy, standards and assessment, teacher education, and cultural and linguistic diversity. Her work has been featured in books and scholarly journals, and she frequently presents at regional, national, and international conferences. In 2010, Vicky was the recipient of the Educator of Excellence Award by the New York State English Council and has been serving on the Council’s Executive Board since then. She has been interested in standards and assessment and how they affect teaching and learning ever since she began teaching. Moreover, her dissertation work was on the impact of state assessments in English on instructional practice. Vicky received a master’s degree in English Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. She also received a master’s degree in TESOL and a doctorate in Reading/Writing/Literacy from the University of Pennsylvania. Vicky resides in New York with her supportive husband and three loving children.

Maureen Connolly

Consulting Description

Maureen Connolly, EdD, has been an English teacher at Mineola High School on Long Island, New York, for 12 years. She has also worked as a professor of Education at Molloy College, Adelphi University, and Queens College. She has overseen service-learning grants for the New York Metropolitan Area and collaborated in the writing of several publications related to service-learning. While Maureen credits her passion for service to her mother, a music teacher who often coordinated trips for her pupils to perform at a local nursing home, she credits her love of literature and teaching to her grandmother, a professor of English at Hunter College, and her grandfather, a salesman for Macmillan. Maureen has developed many standards-based, service-learning projects that link community outreach, character education, and reading. In addition, she has been a part of the Learn to Serve with Character Research Project headed by New York State. Maureen earned her master’s degree in Reading and her doctorate in Educational Leadership at St. John’s University. She has been awarded the title of Honoree for the ASCD Outstanding Young Educator of the Year and granted the St. John’s University LEAD Award. Also, she has presented workshops at regional, national, and international conferences, and volunteered to teach in India, Ghana, Peru, and Spain. Maureen is part of the Teachers for Global Classrooms Program which promotes global education. She believes that at the core of her profession is the need to develop purposeful learning that opens students’ eyes to the potential for positive change in themselves and in their local, national, and global communities. Maureen resides in New York City.

Table of Contents

Introduction: How to Use This Book

Overview of Chapters

Lesson Format

Lesson Selection

Best Practices

Part I. Reading Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects

1. Understanding the CCSS: An Overview

What Are the CCSS for Literacy in the Content Areas?

How Can We Use Backward Design to Create Curriculum that Addresses the CCSS for Literacy in the Content Areas?

How Do the CCSS for Literacy in the Content Areas and Backwards Design Relate to the Theories of Dewey, Bloom and Gardner?

2. The Benefits of the CCSS for the Teaching of Reading in the Content Areas

3. Reading Lessons in History/Social Studies 6-12

Key Ideas and Details

Nationalism: THe Good, the Bad, the Ugly (U.S. History, Grades 6-8)

Craft and Structure

Social Causes of New Imperialism (World History, Grades 9-10)

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas

Vietnam: The Human Face of an Inhumane Time (US History, Grades 11-12)

4. Reading Lessons in Science and Technical Subjects

Key Ideas and Details

Bonus Science Articles (Biology, Grades 11-12)

Craft and Structure

Vocabulary Videos (Computer Apps, Grades 9-10)

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas

Continental Drift (Earth Science, Grades 6-8)

Part II. Writing Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects

5. The Benefits of the CCSS for the Teaching of Writing in the Content Areas

6. Argument Writing Lessons

Social Studies

Mock Trial: Native Americans & European Colonization ( U.S. History, Grades 6-8)

Science

Boyle's Law (Chemistry, Grades 9-10)

Technical Subjects

Fantasy Basketball (Sports Marketing, Grades 11-12)

7. Informative/Explanatory Writing Lessons

Technical Subjects

Math in Everyday Life (Math, Grades 6-8)

Science

Earth Day (Earth Science, Grades 9-10)

Social Studies

The Montgomery Bus Boycott (U.S. History, Grades 11-12)

8. Ensuring Success With the CCSS for Literacy in the Content Areas

What are Best Practices for Addressing the CCSS for Literacy in the Content Areas?

Success Stories Involving Content Area Teachers Working Together

Accessing Support Through Technology

Ten Tips for Getting to the Core of the Common Core for Literacy in the Content Areas

Conclusion

Reviews

“This hands-on, research-based guide presents classroom-tested lessons and ideas for modifying existing lessons to meet the challenges of the CCSS. The authors also emphasize 21st century learning skills such as collaboration, critical thinking, and creativity, with technology and life and career skills components. Getting to the Core clearly breaks down key tenets of the CCSS, deftly addressing both timely topics (cyberbullying, social justice, and graphic novels), as well as more traditional secondary English experiences (Macbeth, Of Mice and Men, the Gettysburg Address, and The House on Mango Street). This melding cements the important place this book deserves on the shelf of any current or aspiring English educator.”

Lawrence Butti, English Instructional Leader
Mineola High School, Garden City Park, NY

Other Titles in: Teaching Methods & Learning Styles | High School Teaching Methods | Literacy, K-12

Select Format:

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Request Review Copy

When you select 'request review copy', you will be redirected to Sage Publishing (our parent site) to process your request.