Completing Writing Tasks Lesson 6 Unlocking the Prompt Question Type Extended Response Question Strategy & Standard Unlocking the Prompt: W.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content. Resources to Differentiate Unlocking the Prompt Graphic Organizer, page 106 Text a, 790L, page 107 Practice a, page 109 Text b, 1050L, page 111 Practice b, page 113 Text c, 1190L, page 115 Practice c, page 117 Test-Taking Strategy 1. Read the passage. 2. Read the essay question and underline key words. 3. Mark text in the passage that will help you write your answer. 4. Plan your writing by making an outline of key points and evidence. 1ST READ Read the Text Introduce Provide context for the texts. Technology refers to machines such as computers, vehicles, and other inventions that make tasks easier. As technology advances, people are able to do things that were previously impossible. For example, before cell phone technology, people could only make calls from telephones connected to a land line. They usually had to be at home or work or use pay phones. Cell phone technology allows us to make calls from just about anywhere. We will read about technological advancements such as robots and nanotechnology. Nanotechnologists study tiny items that are about 100,000 times thinner than a human hair. Read Have students read the directions for Text a, Text b, or Text c. Use RED Routine 2: Scaffolded Reading to read the text together. Analyze the Question Type Discuss Read Question 3 aloud and discuss the question type. This is an extended response question. Extended means long. This means that you must complete an extended task such as writing an essay. What type of essay should you write? Provide a sentence frame. I should write. (an informative essay) Point out that answering Questions 1 and 2 will help students prepare for the essay. You will need to write more than one paragraph. How can you tell? (The directions say introductory paragraph, body paragraphs, and conclusion. ) An informative essay presents information about a topic that may be unfamiliar to the audience. Because it is nonfiction, it focuses on what is true and real. It does not include made-up people, events, or places. 2ND READ Apply the Question Strategy In the second read, focus on Question 3 to deepen students understanding of the text. Remind students that Question 3 asks them to write an informative essay that cites evidence and examples from the text. Extended response questions like this one are also called writing prompts because they prompt you to write a response. This prompt, or question, requires a multi-paragraph informative essay. Reread the question and model the strategy students might use to answer the question. Use the Graphic Organizer on page 106. Model Text a: Robots to the Rescue 1. Reread and Underline What are the important words in the prompt that tell me what I need to write? (The important words in the prompt are ways, robots, improve, lives, and informative essay. The introduction that precedes the passage describes the passage s main ideas. The prompt 102 4 RDI Book 4: p. 102
indicates that you should explain what the passage tells us about ways robots can be helpful.) 2. Restate In my own words, what is the prompt asking? (The prompt is asking me to explain how robots might make positive changes in our daily lives.) Guide students through Question 3 on their Practice Tests. To answer the question in the prompt, first I need to understand fully what a robot is. A robot is a machine whose actions are controlled by human technology. The prompt asks me to tell how robots help people. The passage details several ways that robots can help us in daily life. Have students brainstorm ways robots can make positive changes in our lives. Model how to find an example from the text. Looking at the text, I see that the section One Hot Job is about ASH. This robot can help put out fires. Fires can destroy property and take human lives. Therefore, a robot can help make life longer, safer, and better by helping put out dangerous fires. What are other ways the text says robots can improve our lives? Have students work individually or in pairs to come up with ideas. Then ask students to share their responses. Provide a sentence frame. My idea is (similar to/ different from) s. Another way robots can improve our lives is by. Record ideas on the board. Model Text b: Small Is Huge 1. Reread and Underline What are the important words in the prompt that tell me what I need to write? (The important words in this prompt are how might, nanotechnology, shape the future, and informative essay. These words indicate that you will define or explain nanotechnology in an essay that also tells how nanotechnology might be used in the future.) 2. Restate In my own words, what is the prompt asking? (The prompt is asking you to write an essay that explains nanotechnology and how it can be used.) Guide students through Question 3 on their Practice Tests. The first part of my response should explain what nanotechnology is. I can do this using evidence from the introductory section and Secrets of the Small. Then I need to explain how nanotechnology might shape the future. Have students brainstorm how nanotechnology might be used in the future. Model how to find an example from the text. Looking at the text, I see that the section titled Getting a Nano Life begins by explaining that readers will have many options for nano careers by the time they finish school. It gives several examples of careers that will be available in the nano industry. We might conclude that one way nanotechnology will shape the future is the way people work and the jobs they do. What are other ways the text says nanotechnology will shape the future? Have students work individually or in pairs to come up with ideas. Then ask students to share their responses. Provide a sentence frame. My idea is (similar to/different from) s. Another way nanotechnology will shape the future is by. Record ideas on the board. Gradual Release Model 1st Read: Whole-Group Instruction 2nd Read: Whole- or Small- Group Instruction Questions 2 & 3: Small-Group Instruction, Pairs, or Independent Practice 103
Completing Writing Tasks Lesson 6 Unlocking the Prompt Continued Model Text c: Micro Worlds 1. Reread and Underline What are the important words in the prompt that tell me what I need to write? (The important words in this prompt are scanning electron microscopes, beneficial, scientists and engineers, and informative essay. These words indicate that you have to describe the relationship between scanning electron microscopes and scientific progress.) 2. Restate In my own words, what is the prompt asking? (The prompt is asking you to write an essay about how scanning electron microscopes help scientists and engineers.) Guide students through Question 3 on their Practice Tests. The prompt asks how scanning electron microscopes are beneficial to scientists and engineers. When something is beneficial, it is helpful and offers advantages. To answer the question, you would have to know, first of all, what a scanning electron microscope is. A scanning electron microscope uses electrons to magnify its subjects, allowing scientists to see objects in 3-dimensional detail. Have students brainstorm how scanning electron microscopes help scientists and engineers. Model how to find an example from the text. Looking at the text, I notice the last sentence of the first paragraph: Not only do these tools allow them to see the samples in unprecedented detail, but they also lead to new discoveries. So, scanning electron microscopes benefit scientists by helping them learn more about small objects. What are other ways the text says scanning electron microscopes are beneficial to scientists and engineers? Have students work individually or in pairs to come up with ideas. Then ask students to share their responses. Provide a sentence frame. My idea is (similar to/different from) s. Another way scanning electron microscopes are beneficial to scientists and engineers is that. Record ideas on the board. 3RD READ Practice the Task Have students read the questions. Have them reread the text and gather evidence to answer Questions 1, 2, and 3. Point out that they should write a paragraph to answer Questions 1 and 2. For Question 3, direct students to write their essays on the computer or on paper. 104
Remind students that they may want to refer to the Graphic Organizer on page 106. When students finish, encourage them to share their work with the group. Analyze Responses Check Progress Refer to Item Analysis, pages 203 207. 105
Name READ 180 Practice Test Assessment Strategy Lesson 6 Graphic Organizer Question Strategy: Unlocking the Prompt Before you respond to a writing prompt, you need to understand exactly what the prompt asks you to do. Read the prompt closely and restate the prompt in your own words. Use the graphic organizer to practice unlocking the prompt: Reread and Underline What are the important words in the prompt that tell me what I need to write? Restate In my own words, what is the prompt asking? 106 Use with pages 102 105. 4 RDI Book 4: p. 106
Name READ 180 Practice Test Assessment Text Lesson 6: Text a Directions: Read the following text. Then answer questions 1 through 3. Robots to the Rescue From fighting fires to helping people with disabilities, the latest robots are taking on big jobs. by Karen Kellaher No matter their size, appearance, or what jobs they do, all robots have one thing in common. They were built to make people s lives easier. Now, some robots are going one step further. They re being built to make people safer. Here are a few new robots that could become real heroes to humans in the near future. One Hot Job Fighting fires can be a big challenge on a ship. Smoke and flames can spread quickly. Tight, cramped spaces can make it hard to move around, which puts firefighters in danger. That s where ASH comes in. This fivefoot-tall robot will soon fight fires on U.S. Navy ships and submarines. Like many robots, ASH is a humanoid. In fact, that s what the H in its name stands for. Its full name is Autonomous Shipboard Humanoid. (Autonomous means able to work on its own. ) The robot has a head, two legs, and two arms. ASH s head has sensors to detect fire. Its eyes are cameras that can see through thick smoke. Special legs enable ASH to walk, turn, and even climb stairs. Its arms can throw firefighting chemicals to put out flames. It s really exciting, says Viktor Orekhov. He is a robot expert working on ASH at Virginia Tech University. It will perform the most hazardous tasks so that humans are not put in harm s way. Scientists are now putting the finishing touches on ASH. They plan to test it next year. (Continued on next page) Robots to the Rescue by Karen Kellaher from Scholastic News magazine, December 3, 2012. Copyright 2012 by Scholastic Inc. All rights reserved. 4 RDI Book 4: p. 107 Use with pages 102 105. 107
Name READ 180 Practice Test Assessment Text No Leashes Needed Robots to the Rescue by Karen Kellaher from Scholastic News magazine, December 3, 2012. Copyright 2012 by Scholastic Inc. All rights reserved. ASH isn t the only robot being created to help U.S. military forces. Scientists in Massachusetts are working with the U.S. Marines to build four-legged robotic dogs. These machines, called AlphaDogs, will be able to follow troops anywhere. They ll even be able to jog! AlphaDogs will be able to carry up to 400 pounds of equipment for 20 miles. That will lighten the load for troops on long hikes. It will also keep the troops from tiring out as they move across rough terrain. Machine Marvels Robotic heroes aren t just for the military. In Pennsylvania, scientists have built a robot that can help disaster victims. It looks and moves like a snake. This machine can slither into hard-to-reach spots such as rubble left by an earthquake or a building that has collapsed. The snake robot has a camera eye that can help rescuers locate people who are hurt. Robots can also be a big help keeping the elderly and people with disabilities safe at home. Take PR2, for example. Scientists in California built this two-armed robot on wheels. It will be able to do certain everyday tasks for people who can t get around on their own. For instance, PR2 will be able to turn on lights, fold laundry, and load a dishwasher. A person will simply use a voice command or click a computer mouse to tell it what to do. Shape of the Future? Whether they ll be keeping us safe or just making life easier, robots will play a major role in our future. Many people wonder how humanlike robots can get. Someday, it may be impossible to tell a robot and a human apart. Henrik Scharfe, a scientist in Denmark, recently helped create a robot called Geminoid-DK. It was built to look exactly like Scharfe himself. 108 Use with pages 102 105. 4 RDI Book 4: p. 108
Name READ 180 Practice Test Assessment Lesson 6: Text a Unlocking the Prompt Directions: Use Robots to the Rescue to answer the questions. 1. What is ASH and how is it used? Use at least two examples from the text to support your response. 2. Why does the author call the machines robotic heroes at the beginning of the Machine Marvels section? Use at least two pieces of evidence from the text to support your response. (Continued on next page) 4 RDI Book 4: p. 109 Use with pages 107 108. 109
Name READ 180 Practice Test Assessment 3. What are some ways in which robots can improve the lives of people? Write an informative essay to answer the question, using evidence from Robots to the Rescue for support. Remember to: identify the topic in the introductory paragraph, use evidence and examples from the text in the body paragraphs, summarize the key points in a conclusion, and use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, and capitalization. 110 Use with pages 107 108. 4 RDI Book 4: p. 110
Lesson 6: Text a Graphic Organizer Reread and Underline What are the important words in the prompt that tell me what I need to write? The important words in the prompt are ways, robots, improve, lives, and informative essay. Restate In my own words, what is the prompt asking? The prompt is asking me to explain how robots might make positive changes in our daily lives. Lesson 6: Text a Practice: Unlocking the Prompt 1. Constructed Response 2 The response correctly tells what ASH is and explains how it is used with two or more details from the passage. 1 The response partially answers the response or gives only one detail from the text. 0 Incorrect or blank 2-point Scoring Rubric 2. Constructed Response 2 The response accurately tells why the author refers to the machines as robotic heroes, using two or more pieces of evidence from the text. 1 The response correctly explains why the author refers to the machines as robotic heroes but does not use sufficient evidence from the text to support the response. 0 Incorrect or blank 2-point Scoring Rubric Sample response: ASH stands for Autonomous Shipboard Humanoid and it is a robot with a head, two legs, and two arms. It will put out fires on ships and submarines. This keeps everyone safe, especially because it can better navigate the tight, cramped spaces. Sample response: The author refers to the machines as robotic heroes because they save people s lives. Some robots like ASH will fight fires where it is too dangerous for humans to do so. AlphaDogs are robots that will help lighten the load for troops on long hikes by carrying up to 400 pounds of gear. Robots also perform search and rescue in disasters and do household chores for people who can t get around on their own. 203
Assessment Strategies and Practice Item Analysis Continued 3. Extended Response 4-point Scoring Rubric 4 The response accurately explains how robots can improve daily life, and it includes at least three supporting details from the text. 3 The response explains how robots can improve daily life, and it includes two supporting details from the text. 2 The response partially explains how robots can improve daily life, and it includes one supporting detail from the text. 1 The response attempts to explain how robots can improve daily life, but it does not include any supporting details from the text. 0 Incorrect or blank Key Ideas to Look For: ASH robots can fight fires on U.S. Navy ships and in submarines, making life on board ships safer for people. AlphaDogs can assist soldiers and carry heavy equipment over rough terrain. A snake-like robot can help with search and rescue efforts in collapsed buildings after a natural disaster. Robots can help people at home who are elderly or disabled by doing such tasks as turning on lights, loading the dishwasher, and folding the laundry. Lesson 6: Text b Graphic Organizer Reread and Underline What are the important words in the prompt that tell me what I need to write? The important words in this prompt are how might, nanotechnology, shape the future, and informative essay. These words indicate that you will define or explain nanotechnology in an essay that also tells how nanotechnology might be used in the future. Restate In my own words, what is the prompt asking? The prompt is asking me to write an essay that explains nanotechnology and how it can be used. 204