Social Studies, Common Core and Learning Disabilities

1. Social Studies, Common Core and Learning Disabilities Jason Hermance Global Studies Teacher Social Studies Department Chair The Norman Howard School jhermance@normanhoward.org NYSCSS Annual Convention March 28, 2014

2. Norman Howard School • Established 1980 • Independent school, grades 5-12, serving 135 students from 40 school districts. • All students with IEPs or 504s. • Wide range of learning disabilities including language based learning disabilities, autism spectrum, reading, ADD/ADHD, etc. • Thank you to all of my colleagues whom I collaborate with, in particular Jeff Parker (ELA), Vicky Britton (S/L), Peggy Green (Global Studies), Jeanette Atkinson (Monroe I Boces).

3. Agenda • Common Core Standards and Special Education • Explicit Vocabulary Instruction & Examples • Close Reading Strategies & Resources • Example Close Reading Lessons • Discussion

4. What does Common Core say? • According to the page and a half memo: “Application to Students with Disabilities:” “Some students with the most significant cognitive disabilities will require substantial supports and accommodations to have meaningful access to certain standards in both instruction and assessment, based on their communication and academic needs. These supports and accommodations should ensure that students receive access to multiple means of learning and opportunities to demonstrate knowledge, but retain the rigor and high expectations of the Common Core State Standards.” http://www.corestandards.org/assets/application-to-students-with-disabilities.pdf

5. Put yourself in their shoes… What issues might a special education student have answering these questions?

6. Vocabulary Instruction • The explicit instruction of vocabulary is essential for special education students to access course content. • First Tier – Sight words • Second Tier – Words used everyday • Second tier words routinely impact student understanding of multiple choice questions and documents on Regents Exams. • Ex: outcome, analysis, adhere, sustain, extensive • Third Tier – Words specific to social studies or other content area • Ex: Imperialism, Nationalism, Glasnost, Apartheid

7. How do I determine 2nd tier words? • Examine old Regents Examines looking for words you feel may affect your students ability to comprehend questions. • June 2013 Multiple Choice: Distribution, inability, hindered, reliance, siege, consistent, institution, supported, incorporated, obstacle, equitable, benefit, ambitions, denial, norms, conform • Give students a practice exam and have them circle words they do not know. • In one-on-one, small group or whole class instruction pick second-tier words at random and informally gauge understanding.

8. Teaching the vocabulary • Give two model sentences • Ask the students, to utilize context clues to brainstorm the meaning of the word. • Compare student definitions to actual definition & discuss part of speech • Look at examples and non-examples of the word • Students create their own sentences utilizing the word.

9. Second Tier Example Sustained • The Giants sustained a 15 play, 80 yard drive and scored a touchdown. • Athens sustained their democratic government for more than 200 years until the Macedonians conquered the city. • Definition: to support, hold, or keep going • Examples • Working on & completing homework • Spending Saturday raking leaves • Non-Examples • Giving up early • Getting distracted when doing homework

10. Third Tier Example Nationalism • Otto Von Bismarck’s “Blood and Iron” policy sought to develop German nationalism by emphasizing common characteristics, such as language and history. • Serbian nationalism motivated GavriloPrincip to assassinate Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary. • Definition: Love of country • Examples: Giuseppe Garibaldi, Simon Bolivar, Gandhi, Breakup of Austria-Hungarian Empire, Olympics • Non-Examples: al-Qaeda, Yugoslavia, Russification

11. Transfer & Assessment Ideas Keep a “vocabulary bank” of second tier words for students to access. Have students formulate “social studies sentences” utilizing both a second-tier word and third-tier word from the unit. Recognize the use of second-tier words during class discussions and assignments. Can the students use context clues to determine the meaning of unfamiliar vocabulary during close reading assignments?

12. Assessment Students can complete cloze notes utilizing a word bank. The Golden Age of Ancient Greece featured accomplishments in philosophy, mathematics and science that surpassedthe achievements of the River Valley Civilizations. Unlike Mesopotamia and Egypt, the Greeks did not have a reliance on annual river floods in order to grow a surplus of food. Athens establishedthe world’s first democracy. Many doctors today say an oath not to harm patients that is derivedfrom the original work by Hippocrates. Archaeologists have analyzedGreek artifacts and came to the interesting conclusion that the Greeks developed the first batteries, computers and calculators. When studying the works of the world’s first historians, Thucydides and Herodotus, it is important to examine their interpretationof events. The city-states of Athens and Sparta were often in conflict with each other, but were allies in the contextof the Persian Wars.

13. Close Reading • When selecting source, one needs to consider: • Reading Level • Cognitive Abilities • It can be difficult to find/select articles that are at the appropriate reading level that also reflect the higher order concepts required of the curriculum • Backwards plan from the document. • What do I need to do to minimally “front load” and “unpack” the document so students can access/accomplish task. • Resources for documents • Newsela.com • Readworks.org

14. Front loading the Document • What “front loading” does the teacher need to do for students to successfully complete the close reading assignment? • Pre-teaching strategies - Ongoing throughout the year (using context clues, annotation, etc.). • Introduce essential question(s) – Examine the metacognitive piece – What kind of thinking will I need to do to answer the question? • Provide sufficient background information– Previewing difficult vocabulary, providing visuals, introducing concepts. • “We need to make sure we do not take readers away from the text too quickly, otherwise we run the risk of having them get too caught up in what they already know and the new information doesn’t get the proper attention it deserves” (Atkinson, 2014).

15. Close Read • Preview the text • First Read: What is the gist of the document? How do you know this? • Purposeful rereads – On your second, third re-read, students should understand the purpose. What are they trying to answer? • Annotation – A system of coding text. • Scaffolding text-dependent questions • Literal comprehension questions “establish a foundation on which higher order responses can be based” (Atkinson, 2014).

16. Annotation process • “I do” (modeling), “We do,” “You do” • Posters in every classroom. • Annotation Marks (Parker, 2014) •  = Something I know • ? = Something that confuses me or I have a question about • = Something that might be important • = Something that connects to my life or the content • Margins: Record of what we were “thinking”

17. Armenian Genocide Lesson Plan – Day 1 Essential Question: Does the massacre of Armenians by Turks during World War I fit the UN definition of Genocide? What kind of thinking is necessary to answer that question? What information do we need to know? As a class, we examine the UN definition of genocide and create a tree map to show the components. 1 Page of cloze notes – basic details (Where is Armenia? Why were the Turks hostile to Armenians? Statistics.) 5 Minute Video overview. Examine Armin Wegner’s photographs of the atrocities.

18. Lesson Plan – Days 2 and 3 Examine Article 1 – What is the gist? Preview Text Dependent Questions (TDQs). Purposeful reread #1 – Students annotate. Students answer TDQs – Guide additional rereads – What do I need to find out? (Small groups or whole class share out evidence from the text that support thinking). Repeat the same steps (1-4) for Article #2. Utilize information gleaned from the articles to answer essential question as part of class discussion. Closure: Watch 60 Minutes Episode. How does the Turkish government view this event today?

19. Conclusion Per IDEA, we are required to provide equal access to the curriculum and teach to Common Core Standards. Through intensive scaffolding, modeling, visual cues, use of text-to-speech software, etc., we need to build the skills that will lead to independence. There needs to be shared language, strategies and process across content. Visual cues in each room help! The close reading process needs to be a structured class activity. As students demonstrate increasing levels of independence, modifications can be made. You may need to plan on spending one whole class period or more on one document, depending on its complexity. Consider other forms of text besides primary source documents or expository texts: Song lyrics, political cartoons, graphic novels, etc.

20. Examples Available for download http://www.mrhermance.net Armenian Genocide (Hermance, 2014) PM Chamberlin Announces Declaration of War (Hermance, 2014) “Cult of Personality” Close Reading (Hermance, 2014) British Workers and Bolshevik Revolution (Green, 2014)