Strategy 5: Directed Reading/Thinking Activity (DR/TA)
Level of Expertise: 5
What is the instructional strategy?
The instructional strategy I am using is a directed reading/thinking activity or DR/TA. This guide will help my students with active reading, predicting, checking accuracy and activating prior knowledge about segregation in society during the Civil Rights Movement. While reading pages 818-823 in the social studies textbook “Creating America; A History of the United States” this strategy will help my students understand the important concepts they are reading. (Doty, Cameron & Barton, 2003).
Why does the strategy work?
This strategy works because it allows students to preview the text first, obtaining an idea of what the reading is about. This in turns activates their prior knowledge of the subject matter. Also this strategy works by giving the students the opportunity to create their own questions and opinions about civil rights and what the presidents did to help the movement while answering questions as they read.
How does it work?
1. First students, in pairs, groups, or individually, will preview the reading by examining the title, headings, subheadings, and graphics. After doing this students should fill out the first three sections of the DR/TA chart. This will add to discussion between peers, prior knowledge, and new ideas.
2. Students will then read pages 818-823 from their textbook. This will confirm or reject their earlier ideas, answer their questions, and teach them new ideas about the civil rights movement.
3. Lastly, after students are finished with the reading passage, they will complete the fourth and final piece in the DR/TA chart. This will reinforce new ideas and understanding and correct misconceptions students had before finishing the reading.
What It Looks Like:
Directions: Students will use the reading passage to fill out the DR/TA Chart. The first three sections are to be done before reading and the last section will be completed after reading.
Directed Reading/Thinking Activity Kennedy, Johnson, & Civil Rights |
What I know I know: Names: Events: |
What I think I know: Positive: Negative: |
What I think I’ll learn and why? |
What I know I learned, and how I learned it: Interesting: Important: |
