Common Core Standards for High School English Language Arts : A Quick-Start Guide

Smart implementation of the Common Core State Standards requires both an overall understanding of the standards and a grasp of their implications for planning, teaching, and learning. This Quick-Start Guide provides a succinct, all-in-one look at * The content, structure, terminology, and emphases of the Common Core standards for English language arts and literacy at the high school level. * The meaning of the individual standards within the four ELA strands Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, and Language. * How the standards connect across strands, grade bands, and content areas to help students develop the communication and analytical skills essential for college and career readiness. * The areas of the ELA standards that represent the most significant changes to business as usual. Here, teachers and school leaders will find information they need to begin adapting their practices to ensure all students master the new and challenging material the standards present. A practical lesson planning process to use with the Common Core, based on Classroom Instruction That Works, 2nd Ed., is included, along with three sample lessons. LEARN THE ESSENTIALS OF THE COMMON CORE The grade-level and subject-specific Quick-Start Guides in the Understanding the Common Core Standards series, edited by John Kendall, are designed to help school leaders and school staffs turn Common Core standards into coherent, content-rich curriculum and effective, classroom-level lessons. Ryan, a former high school language arts teacher and consultant at the nonprofit education research and development organization Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning, and Frazee, a consultant there and former middle and high school teacher and principal, provide teachers with guidance in developing new lessons or adapting existing lessons and activities to incorporate the Common Core State Standards for English language arts and literacy at the high school level. They examine how the standards help students build on and extend skills and knowledge from earlier grades and detail the process of creating standards-based lessons. They detail the content, structure, terminology, and emphases of the standards; the meaning of the individual standards within the four strands of reading, writing, speaking and listening, and language; how the standards connect across strands, grade bands, and content areas to help students develop communication and analytical skills needed for college and career readiness; and the areas that represent significant changes. Three sample lessons conclude the book. There is no index. Annotation ©2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) High school teachers and leaders with responsibility for English language arts (ELA) need this handy guide to successfully implement the Common Core in their respective grade levels. Getting a copy for every staff member ensures they know: (1) How grades 11-12 ELA content differs from and builds upon 9-10 standards; (2) How the four strands throughout the standards are connected and reinforced; and (3) How the anchor standards establish the frame for preparing students for college and career. To jumpstart your standards implementation, the standards are provided in easy-to-read narrative form. There's a lesson design template based on "Classroom Instruction That Works, 2nd Edition" with three sample lessons, so you and your colleagues can see the implications and advantages of teaching the Common Core This close-up look at the structure and content of the Common Core high school English language arts standards is designed to kick off implementation at the classroom level. Teachers will find information on how the standards work together across strands and grade bands to prepare students for the next level of study, college, or career; practical guidance on lesson planning, including a process for making the best use of the effective instructional strategies explored in Classroom Instruction That Works, 2nd ed.; and sample lessons that illustrate how to approach content likely to be new to ..