CCC Curriculum Templates for Reading

NRS Level 5

Low ASE

(TABE 9.0 – 10.9)

Note: codes (e.g., 5.R.VA.2) refer to specific Illinois ABE/ASE Content Standards.

Content Area: Reading / NRS Level: 5
VOCABULARY ACQUISITION AND USAGE (VA)
5.R.VA.1 / 5.R.VA.2 / 5.R.VA.3 / 5.R.VA.4
Essential Understandings:
  • Based on the purpose of the text, different reading strategies can be applied.
  • Strategies and resources can be used to determine or clarify the meaning of unknown words and phrases.

Essential Questions:
  • How can unknown words and phrases be understood?
  • What strategies apply to specific types of texts?

Students will be able to…..
(What does mastery look like)
  • Decipher the correct meaning of unknown single or multiple-meaning wordsand phrases found in appropriately-leveled text, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies, including using context and consulting reference materials.5.R.VA.2
  • Compare words and phrases with multiple meanings and use analogies to explain the relationships among them. 5.R.VA.2
  • Apply knowledge of prefixes, suffixes, root words, antonyms, synonyms, and word relationships to understand meaning of new vocabulary in a variety of practical reading settings. 5.R.VA.2
  • Identify and utilize appropriate print and digital reference materials for defining words, pronunciation and parts of speech. 5.R.VA.2
  • Apply knowledge of word origins and derivations to comprehend words used in content areas (e.g. political, literary, mathematical, & scientific). 5.R.VA.2
  • Interpret figures of speech, idioms, colloquialisms, expressions and other language structures in text. 5.R.VA.3
  • Acquire and use advanced vocabulary, including general academic and domain-specific vocabulary. 5.R.VA.4

Evidence for Assessing Learning
Performance Tasks:
  • Vocabulary Quizzes/pre and post tests
  • Graded Assessments and Homework Assignments
  • Graded review of written summaries and outlines of assigned text
  • CCC NRS Level 5 (Low ASE) Final Writing Assessment

Building theLearning Plan
Sample Classroom Activities and/or Lesson Plans:
  • Read from a variety of sources and complete written and/or verbal summaries of the readings that include (Who, What, When, Where, Why, How).
  • Current Events - Read weekly newspaper article from varying assigned sections of the paper and complete a written and/or verbal summary of the article.
  • Independently read and answer questions using Readtheory.org or Readworks.org
  • Students keep a word journal. Teacherintroduces a word of the day.
  • Create Vocabulary Quadrant Charts
  • Prefix Suffix game:
  • Create Prefix Suffix Flip Charts, Pockets, and/or Flip books:
  • Create word lists using previously defined suffixes, prefixes and roots. Infer the meaning of a word using its suffix, prefix or root.
  • Use a paper dictionary, thesaurus and/or glossary as well as an internet search engine to search for and find the definition, pronunciation, synonym/antonym and part of speech for a given word.
  • Figure of Speech Jeopardy

Explain the meaning of specific figures of speech, idioms or colloquialisms when encountered in a text passage or used in verbal conversation.
  • Complete written vocabulary assignments using Tier 2 Vocabulary Words, such as ALRC Tier 2 Vocabulary Word Exercises. Includes: knowledge rating scale, word definitions and prompts, part of speech, antonym/synonym, examples, fill in the blank, sentence completion, yes/no/why questions and read and respond. (over 38 lessons, 5 Tier 2 words per lesson)
  • Highlight signal words in a passage and interpret the meaning of the unknown words using signal words as context clues. (i.e. therefore, however, consequently, despite).

Learning Activities:
  • Independent Computer Games for Review
  • YouTube Tutorial Videos for Additional Lecture
  • Vocabulary Flip Charts for Hands-on learners
  • Flocabulary for Auditory Learners
  • Instructor-led Tutoring
  • Peer Tutoring
  • Guided Group work

List of Instructional Materials:
  • Full-length books students are reading in class from which vocabulary words are chosen
  • Six Way Paragraphs, Jamestown Publishing
  • by Walter Pauk Advanced Level: 3rd Edition, page 136; ISBN 0-8442-2123-6
  • Groundwork for a Better Vocabulary, by Kent R Smith, Townsend Press

List of Technology Resources:
  • Synonym and Antonym Game -
  • ALRC Tier 2 Vocabulary Word Exercises (38 lessons)

  • Figure of Speech Jeopardy

  • Prefix/Suffix Game

  • Examples of Prefix/Suffix/Root Flipbooks/Charts
  • Flocabulary

  • Readworks.org

Content Area: Reading / NRS Level: 5
COMPREHENSION: LITERATURE (CL)
5.R.CL.1 / 5.R.CL.2 / 5.R.CL.3 / 5.R.CL.4 / 5.R.CL.5 / 5.R.CL.6 / 5.R.CL.7 / 5.R.CL.8
Essential Understandings:
  • Analysis of the text should be supported by strong citation of textual evidence, both explicit and inferred.
  • Text can be analyzed in a range from the level of word meanings up to the level of authorial interpretation of source material.
  • Text can be analyzed for theme, plot, point of view, cultural experience, character development, and symbolism.

Essential Questions:
  • How can textual evidence for supporting an analysis be identified?
  • How do theme, plot, point of view, cultural experience, character development, and symbolism influence literary readings?
  • How do different artistic mediums affect authorial interpretation?
  • How do language and structure vary depending on the author’s choice of medium?

Students will be able to…..
  • Form ideas about what has been read in a literary text, and use specific information from the text to support these ideas. 5.R.CL.1
  • Summarize themes in a work of literature by interpreting selected phrases, sentences, or passages. 5.R.CL.2
  • Recognize the parts of a plot while simultaneously identifying character development and a characters’ influence on plot.5.R.CL.2
  • Analyze the use of figurative language, connotative meanings of words and phrases and how language can affect tone and setting. 5.R.CL.3
  • Examine how the structure of a text including sequencing of events and presentation of time spans is used to create build-up and suspense.5.R.CL.4
  • Read literature from outside the United States in order to investigate differing cultural experiences and points of view 5.R.CL.5
  • Compare and contrast two mediums of the same subject matter identifying similarities, discrepancies, and the variance in emphasis 5.R.CL.6
  • Consider how an author implements the usage of sources to influence a piece. 5.R.CL.7
  • Respond critically to works of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and drama; apply new ideas and concepts. 5.R.CL.8

Evidence for Assessing Learning
Performance Tasks:
  • CCC NRS Level 5 (Low ASE) Final Reading Assessment
  • Reading journals
  • Homework assignments
  • Reading comprehension quizzes & exams

Building the Learning Plan
Sample Classroom Activities and/or Lesson Plans:
  • Independently read a variety of level appropriate literature including novels, magazines, newspapers, etc.
  • Guided discussion about the reading in which students demonstrate comprehension of text by showcasing their ability to infer ideas, predict what comes next, draw conclusions, state opinions, compare and contrast characters, themes and ideas, distinguish between facts and opinions, identify plot and setting, mood and theme.
  • Instructor led Think-Alouds: Instructor reads aloud and then pauses to discuss thoughts aloud (making predictions, verbalizing mental visualization, discussing obstacles in comprehension, discussing personal experience and connection with the text, etc.)
  • Students practice metacognitive strategies (such as rereading what came directly before the part they didn’t understand, rereading what came directly after what they didn’t understand, rereading the part that is unclear, connecting what they are reading to things they already know, getting outside help) and keep a metacognitive log to track their progress.
  • Students write different types of questions about a text they have read and then ask and answer one another’s questions.
  • Read a given passage and write a summary, identifying the main idea (either implied or explicit) and the details that support that as the main idea
  • Analyze a story to determine how the setting, characters, plot, and other elements interact with and influence each other
  • Create character maps and discuss the how characters have changed throughout a text.
  • Students use vivid adjectives to describe a character’s personality traits and find evidence in the text to support their claims.
  • Students create Venn diagrams to compare and contrast characters or other information.
  • Identify figurative language (similes, metaphors, alliterations) in a story and use them as a base to write original examples from their own experience
  • Read a nonfiction account of an historical event and compare and contrast it to a fictional description of the same event.
  • Read, for example, a newspaper account of the 1963 bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church and compare it with the poem “The Ballad of Birmingham” by Dudley Randall.
  • After reading a story and watching the film version, compare and contrast how the story or meaning changed based on the medium in which it was presented
  • Define fiction, drama, poetry, fables, and legends, highlighting the specific features that distinguish each from the others
  • Write in reading response journals.
  • Write a “sequel” to a story, using the original text to predict probable outcomes.
  • Write a “prequel” to a story, using the original text to imagine what would have happened before the story began.

Learning Activities:
(interventions for students who are not progressing, instructional strategies, differentiated instruction, re-teaching options)
  • Group and Individual Think-Alouds
  • Tutoring
  • Explore literary devices through creative hands-on activities:
  • Create a Simile Restaurant Menu in which food is described using similes
  • Create product advertisements using metaphors and similes
  • Create posters illustrating a figure of speech
  • Make a list of objects in the classroom and share their personifications
  • Explore character development through creative interaction:
  • Conduct a role playing interview with a main character from the text

List of Instructional Materials:
  • Books at appropriate level to be read in class and at home, such as: America’s Dream (Santiago),Harper Perennial Books; How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accent (Alvarez),Algonquin Books; The Bean Trees (Kingsolver), Harper Torch Books; A Lesson Before Dying (Gaines),Vintage Books; Maggie’s American Dream (Comer), Plume Books; The Pact: Three Young Men Make a Promise and Fulfill a Dream (Davis, Jenkins, Hunt, Frazier), Riverhead Books; Coming of Age in Mississippi (Moody), Dell Books; La Vida Loca/Always Running: Gang Days in L.A. (Rodriguez), Touchstone Books; The Color Of Water (McBride), Riverhead Books; Things Fall Apart (Achebe), Anchor Books.
  • Poetry by a wide range of writers: Hughes, Giovanni, Carlos Williams, Dickenson, Angelou, Brooks, etc.

List of Technology Resources:
  • (Example Think Aloud Video Demonstration)

Content Area: Reading / NRS Level: 5
COMPREHENSION: INFORMATIONAL TEXT (CI)
5.R.CI.1 / 5.R.CI.2 / 5.R.CI.3 / 5.R.CI.4 / 5.R.CI.5 / 5.R.CI.6 / 5.R.CI.7 / 5.R.CI.8 5.R.CI.9 / 5.R.CI.10 / 5.R.CI.11 / 5.R.CI.12 / 5.R.CI.13 / 5.R.CI.14
Essential Understandings:
  • Graphic organizers can be used to visually illustrate the importance of and relationships between ideas.
  • Analysis of the text should be supported by strong citation of textual evidence, both explicit and inferred.
  • The author’s analysis can be determined through the connection between the central idea and the development of the supporting details.
  • The author’s choices with regard to craft and structure impact the reader’s understanding of the text.
  • Sources of information can be evaluated for accuracy, validity, bias, relevance, and/or significance.

Essential Questions:
  • What criteria determine which graphic organizer is most appropriate for the information?
  • How is the message affected when conveyed through different mediums?
  • How does the reader evaluate information for accuracy, validity, bias, relevance, and/or significance?
  • How can textual evidence for supporting an analysis be identified?

Students will be able to…..
(What does mastery look like)
  • Organize ideas in a text using graphic organizers 5.R.CI.1
  • Justify conclusions and projections orally and written citing the text as evidence; make inferences and logical conclusions from reading passages.5.R.CI.2
  • Summarize the main idea and supporting details from reading passages. 5.R.CI.3
  • Consider how an author presents ideas or events in a writing in order to build up to implicit and explicit conclusions 5.R.CI.4
  • Compare various texts, identifying the difference in tone, content and structure. 5.R.CI.5
  • Recognize a word and phrase meanings specific to context. Understand how specific words and phrases can be used to denote mood or tone and to draw emphasis on an idea or implied conclusion. 5.R.CI.6
  • Examine the development of a thought or assertion and how it is emphasized or supported through a particular sentence, paragraph or body of text 5.R.CI.7
  • Define an author’s viewpoint and how they express and emphasize it using language. 5.R.CI.8
  • Evaluate the validity and accuracy of information by differentiating fact from opinion. 5.R.CI.9
  • Compare and contrast varying mediums on the same subject matter identifying variance in emphasis. 5.R.CI.10
  • Scrutinize, defend and challenge an argument or claim asserted in a text for validity, suitability, and thoroughness. Identify insufficient or invalid reasoning. 5.R.CI.11
  • Explore important U.S. documents of historical and literary impact and consider their related motifs and theories. 5.R.CI.12
  • Independently read and understand nonfiction at the appropriate level. 5.R.CI.13
  • Display an ability to interpret information and follow directions understanding written content, including vocabulary and technical content. 5.R.CI.14
  • Apply advanced comprehension and visual processing skills to a variety of materials, such as periodicals, nontechnical journals and library reference materials, on common topics.

Evidence for Assessing Learning
Performance Tasks:
  • Graded homework
  • Reading journals
  • Learning journals
  • Reading comprehension quizzes and exams
  • CCC NRS Level 5 (Low ASE) Final Reading Assessment

Building the Learning Plan
Sample Classroom Activities and/or Lesson Plans:
  • Compare/contrast a newspaper or magazine article to a radio or television story on same topic. Complete a graphic organizer organizing ideas from the text. For example, listen to Second Chance Diploma – Radio documentary by American Radio Works. Use the internet to find a written article about the GED. Read, discuss and write about similar and contradicting ideas. Identify Facts vs. Opinions. Define the author’s viewpoint. Complete a Venn Diagram comparing the ideas presented in the 2 mediums.
  • Read articles from a U.S. newspaper and a foreign newspaper reporting the same account. Discuss similarities and discrepancies in reports. Discuss as a class and in writing tone, author’s viewpoint, opinion vs. fact, validity of facts.
  • Complete worksheets, quizzes and interactive online activities that test comprehension and understanding of tone.
  • Discuss the list of key words that imply tone, and then read and find words in a written text.
  • Highlight key words in a text that are clues for identifying opinion vs. fact. Verbally challenge the validity of an argument.
  • Read summaries of significant Supreme Court decisions: Plessy v. Ferguson, Brown v. Board of Education, etc.
  • Write summaries and create outlines of the main idea and supporting details of a text. For example, read, discuss, summarize important documents in U.S. history: Bill of Rights, sections of the Constitution, Gettysburg Address, Emancipation Proclamation, Washington’s Farewell Address, Douglass’s “What to a Slave is the Fourth ofJuly?”, etc.
  • Questioning activity: students write, ask, and answer one another’s questions.
  • Questioning activity: as above, with the included requirement that students identify various types of questions: right there, pulling-it-together, text and me, on my own.
  • Discuss and write projections, opinions, inferences and conclusions citing specific text passages.
  • Answer comprehension questions that explore foreshadowing. Students write and discuss what they think will happen next and explain what clues in the text have led them to these conclusions.
  • Write in learning journals.

Learning Activities:
(interventions for students who are not progressing, instructional strategies, differentiated instruction, re-teaching options)
  • Tutoring
  • Peer teaching

List of Instructional Materials:
  • The Change Agent
  • The Pact (Davis, Hunt, Jenkins, Frazier) Riverhead Books
  • The Bond (same as above) Riverhead Books
  • Chew on This (Schlosser and Wilson) Houghton Miflin Books
  • CCC science curriculum
  • Maggie’s American Dream (Comer) Plume Books
  • La Vida Loca: Always Running – Gang Days in L.A. (Rodriguez)Touchstone Books
  • Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (Douglass) Dover Books
  • Having Our Say (Delaney and Hill Hearth) Dell Books
  • The Color of Water (McBride) Riverhead Books
  • Farewell to Manzanar (WakatsukiHouston) Ember Books

List of Technology Resources:
  • YouTube
  • NYTimes.com

Content Area: Reading / NRS Level: 5
READING IN THE CONTENT AREAS: HISTORY AND SOCIAL STUDIES (RH)
5.R.RH.1 / 5.R.RH.2 / 5.R.RH.3 / 5.R.RH.4 / 5.R.RH.5 / 5.R.RH.6 / 5.R.RH.7 / 5.R.RH.8 / 5.R.RH.9 / 5.R.RH.10 / 5.R.RH.11 / 5.R.RH.12
Essential Understandings:
  • Information in primary and secondary sources can be analyzed in regard to date, origin, central idea, cause/effect, and sequence.
  • Information can be analyzed in terms of vocabulary, structure, and point of view.
  • Digital research tools and resources can be used to obtain information.
  • The integration of quantitative and qualitative data, reasoning, and evidence are used to analyze and apply information learned from reading and comparing primary and secondary sources.

Essential Questions:
  • How can information derived from primary and secondary sources be applied to actual practice?
  • What digital resources can be used to obtain information?
  • What criteria can be used to analyze primary and secondary sources?

Students will be able to…..
(What does mastery look like)
  • Determine the validity and relevance of a source using the date and origin as criteria. Properly cite specific relevant portions of a text in order to build a supportive analysis of text. 5.R.RH.1
  • Determine the main idea of a primary or secondary source and summarize how key events or concepts progress throughout the text. 5.R.RH.2
  • Analyze sequential events and determine if events are merely correlated sequentially or if causation exists. 5.R.RH.3
  • Comprehend words and phrases in context when used to describe political, social or economic aspects of history/social studies. 5.R.RH.4
  • Examine the outline of a text and how structure is used to deliver key ideas and arguments. 5.R.RH.5
  • Analyze multiple texts from different authors on the same or similar topics, comparing and contrasting point of view. Identify which details were included and/or emphasized and how this contributes to each author’s argument. 5.R.RH.6 5.R.RH.9
  • Incorporate relevant charts, data, graphs and other forms of quantitative analysis with written text. 5.R.RH.7
  • Analyze the quality of an author’s argument to determine the strength of supporting details in making a valid claim. 5.R.RH.8
  • Interpret information in order to practice real world application. 5.R.RH.10
  • Apply library technology skills to acquire research materials. 5.R.RH.11
  • Select an appropriate search engine or directory related to a specific task. 5.R.RH.11
  • Independently read and interpret history/social studies texts written at NRS Level 5. 5.R.RH.12