I’m going to begin with the college and career readiness (CCR) anchor standards in reading because, in the “Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for English Language Arts and Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects” document, those standards come first. (By the way, I bet the length of that document title makes about half […]
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Why Did my Students Bomb their Extended Research Paper?
At the Michigan Reading Association (MRA) conference this past spring, I heard Mike Schmoker give an address about his most recent book Focus. During the address, Schmoker recommended that, when building curriculum, each summative paper should be graded for a single item (e.g., explaining quotations). I tried this on a recent epic research assignment that I […]
What do Demons have to do with the Common Core State Standards?
No, I’m not saying that I think the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) are spawned by the devil’s minions. Not even close. Let me explain. Ever since I entered the University of Michigan’s School of Education in 2005, standards have been one of my greatest weaknesses as a teacher. And, like a brave warrior, I […]