8th Grade - Gateway 1

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria for anchor texts being of publishable quality and worthy of especially careful reading and consider a range of student interests.

Texts encompass many text types such as poems, speeches, informational texts, personal narratives, and media (such as newscasts and online sources). Additionally texts exhibit exceptional craft, rich vocabulary and syntax, as well as provide useful information. The materials allow teachers and students an adequate amount of time to spend working with complex texts that are engaging and consider a range of interests. Examples include:

• In Unit 1, students read “The New Colossus” by Emma Lazarus. This poem is inscribed on the Statue of Liberty and conveys the statue’s role of welcoming people to the United States. Students also read Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Ch. XI, a personal narrative by Frederick Douglass. This excerpt builds historical knowledge as it recounts Douglass’s escape from slavery and his experiences in New York. This text is found in the Common Core State Standards for ELA Appendix B: Text Exemplars under 6-8 Text Exemplars.

• In Unit 2, students read “Ain’t I Woman?” by Sojourner Truth. This notable speech is worthy of close reading as it builds historical knowledge not only about slavery, but women’s rights as well. Students also read “Equal Rights of Women” by Shirley Chisholm. This speech also builds historical knowledge as Chisholm calls for a constitutional amendment ensuring equal rights from women.

• In Unit 3, students read “According Animals Dignity” by Frank Bruni which was published by The New York Times in 2014. This article is engaging and provides insight into the animal welfare movement. Students also read “Caring for Animals May Have Shaped Human Evolution” which was published by Live Science. This article builds content knowledge as it provides scientific information connecting the desire to care for animals and how it affected human evolution.

• In Unit 4, students read “The Great Immigration Debate” by Patricia Smith. This article was published in The NY Times Upfront Magazine and discusses illegal immigration and policy since 1986. Its photographs, opposing viewpoints, maps, graphics, and timelines make this piece highly engaging while building content knowledge about a current event of national importance. Students also read “The Easy Problem” by David Brooks. This article was published by The New York Times and builds content knowledge about the issue of immigration through the use of statistics and scientific findings.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria for texts having the appropriate level of complexity for the grade according to quantitative analysis, qualitative analysis, and relationship to their associated student task.

The Grade 8 texts with provided Lexile levels range from 970L to 1200L which means that most texts fall within either the Current Lexile Band or the Stretch Lexile Band for Grades 6-8. The texts are appropriate for Grade 8 according to quantitative analysis, qualitative analysis, and relationship to their associated student task. Some texts do exceed these bands, but the tasks are designed to make them accessible to eighth graders. The few texts that do not have Lexiles provided qualitatively meet the requirements for this grade level because they serve as introductory pieces for a unit, provide different perspectives on a controversial topic, and build content knowledge. Examples include:

• In Unit 1, Part 2, Activity 1, students read Chapter V of On the Trail of Immigrant. This text measures at 1650L which is well above the Lexile Grade Bands for Grades 6-8. This text has a rich narrative description of the immigrant experience. The text contains longer sentences that will make it challenging for Grade 8 students. The materials provide scaffolds that include students listening to the text being read aloud and focusing on author’s message, tone, and language. Scaffolding also includes a focus on the first four paragraphs. With the scaffolds provided, this text is accessible and appropriate for Grade 8 students. The tasks associated with this texts make it appropriate for Grade 8 students.
• In Unit 2, Part 3, Activity 1, students read “Wimbledon Has Sent Me a Message: I’m Only a Second-Class Champion” by Venus Williams. It has a Lexile level of 1140 which falls within the Stretch Lexile Band for Grades 6-8. While this text will be challenging for students, their knowledge of the subject matter and the author, along with the accessibility of the vocabulary will aid in comprehension. This piece has qualitative value in that the author makes connections between the appearance of Wimbledon's value of men and women and the reality; this text connects the author’s experience with the larger issue of women’s rights. The tasks associated with this texts make it appropriate for Grade 8 students.
• In Unit 3, Part 1, Activity 3, students read the Gale “Animals Rights” Opposing Viewpoints article. This article has a Lexile level of 1160 which falls at the higher end of the Stretch Lexile Band for this grade level. While this article is complex, the text structure of three subheadings and short, direct paragraphs aid in student comprehension. This is also a qualitatively rich text that not only provides background information on the debate of using animals for research but also provides connections between animals and science and medicine. The tasks associated with this text make it appropriate for Grade 8 students.
• In Unit 4, Part 1, Activity 3, students read “The Great Immigration Debate” by Patricia Smith. This article has a Lexile level of 1310L which exceeds the Lexile bands for this grade level. Even though this text is complex, Grade 8 students should be able to read it due to its journalistic and narrative approach; it was written for a teenage audience and stylistically reflects articles that eighth graders would be familiar with. This text has qualitative value as it builds content knowledge of the issue of illegal immigration, builds historical knowledge of immigration in the U.S., and provides information about laws and policies regarding illegal immigration. The tasks associated with this text make it appropriate for Grade 8 students.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria for materials supporting students’ increasing literacy skills over the course of the school year.

Series of texts are at a variety of complexity levels appropriate for the grade band. Skills build on one another, as well as the complexity of the texts to support the thinking and literacy skills. In the units with the text sets, there is a full range of the Lexile stretch band providing opportunities to challenge students by giving them complex texts but also by providing more reachable texts as they are working on analysis and synthesis skills.

Each unit has Questioning Path Tools and a toolbox of graphic organizers that allow students to record thoughts for discussion and build student understanding. Students focus on attending to literacy skills that include attending to details, deciphering words, comprehending syntax, interpreting language, identifying relationships, making inferences, summarizing, questioning, recognizing perspective, evaluating information, delineating argumentation, forming claims, using evidence, using logic, using language, presenting details, organizing ideas, using conventions, publishing, and reflecting critically.

As the year progresses, questions and tasks build literacy skills and student independence. In Unit 1, students read closely for textual details. Students read nine texts and draft a multi-paragraph explanation to show their understanding of the texts they have read. In Unit 2, students begin making evidence-based claims. In Unit 3, students research to deepen their understanding of a topic. At the end of the year, in Unit 4, students are building evidence-based arguments using the skills from each of the previous units to evaluate and write an evidence-based argument.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria that anchor texts and series of texts connected to them are accompanied by a text complexity analysis and rationale for purpose and placement in the grade level.

While not all Grade 8 texts have a text complexity analysis, most texts include Instructional Notes and Text Notes. There is clear rationale for the purpose and placement of the texts chosen. The Instructional Notes include a recommendation on how students should read the text (silently and independently, listen to text read aloud, etc.) and the language in the text. In the teacher’s edition, the curriculum explains the purpose and value of the texts in the Text Notes provided for teachers. For example, some texts are chosen for their value in reinforcing literary techniques while others were chosen as appropriate introductions to a particular time period or topic. All texts were chosen because they were appropriate for eighth-grade students while still allowing some flexibility for a variety of reading levels. Quantitative and qualitative measures are discussed in the text notes section.

Examples of Instructional and Text Notes found in Grade 8 materials include the following:

• Unit 1, Text Notes: “The passage is from Chapter 5 of his 1906 book, On the Trail of Immigrant. Because of longer sentences, it measures above grade level (at 1650L), but its rich description and narration should be accessible to most students with some scaffolding.” Instructional Notes: “knowing that the text was written by a college professor who researched the experiences of immigrants coming to and moving through America will help students think about how this purpose may have influenced the author’s perspective on the scene he is describing.”
• Unit 2, Text Notes: “The students will make text based claims by moving from literal understanding of the text’s details to simple conclusions or inferences, to claims that arise from and are supported by close examination of textual evidence.”
• Unit 3, Text Notes: “The imagery of the video and its initial presentation of the topic should stimulate a class discussion of how humans and animals are, and have always been, linked together--and set the stage for some brainstorming about different aspects of the topic that might be interesting for students to research.” Instructional Notes: “In groups of three and then as a class, students summarize what they have noted and thought about as they have watched the video. Have students compare the notes they have taken -- in terms of their content and their approach to notetaking.”
• Unit 4, Text Notes: “It is intended to provide background information for articles and blog posts about immigration written by CIS Fellows, which are also accessible through the CIS website. The text presents a concise but relatively detailed history of immigration and immigration policy in the United States, moving from historical background in the first three paragraphs to a chronological history of US immigration laws from 1965 (a landmark policy shift discussed by Lyndon Johnson in Text 4.4, a 1965 dedication speech) to 2007. ”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria that anchor and supporting texts provide opportunities for students to engage in a broad range of text types and disciplines as well as a volume of reading to achieve grade level reading proficiency.

Grade 8 materials meet the criteria that anchor and supporting texts provide opportunities for students to engage in a range and volume of reading to achieve grade level reading proficiency. Students read a variety of texts including images, informational texts, videos, websites, literary nonfiction, poems, personal narratives, and speeches. Most texts are accompanied by a Questioning Path Tool which provides both text-dependent and text-specific questions that guide them into a deeper reading of the text. Finally, each unit provides various student checklists and teacher rubrics that can be used to monitor progress throughout the year.

Instructional materials clearly identify opportunities and supports for students to engage in reading a variety of text types and disciplines and also to experience a volume of reading as they grow toward reading independence at the grade level. Evidence is as follows:

• In Unit 1, Part 1, Activity 3, teachers may choose to read aloud “Description of Immigrants Leaving Ellis Island” and have students follow along or have the students read silently; this depends on students’ previous experiences and reading levels. Before students reread the text independently, students are directed to text-specific questions provided by the Questioning Path Tool.

• In Unit 2, Part 1, Activity 3, students follow along as they listen to a dramatization of Sojourner Truth’s speech, “Ain’t I a Woman?” The text is chunked into shorter sections. This allows students to read carefully so that they can make claims about both concrete and abstract ideas presented in the text. In this unit, students also read “Equal Rights of Women” by Shirley Chisholm and “Wimbledon Has Sent Me a Message: I’m Only a Second-Class Champion” by Venus Williams. The instructional materials provided Questioning Path Tools to help students analyze these speeches on Women’s Rights.
• In Unit 3, Part 1, Activity 2, students use Common Source 2A “Caring for Animals May Have Shaped Human Evolution” as a model text as they begin to think about the topic; it should also open up additional pathways for asking questions and learning within the topic area. “This text provides an opportunity to work on close-reading skills used during independent research project."

• In Unit 4, Part 1, Activity 3, students read “Historical Overview of Immigration Policy.” The curriculum provides support for the analysis of this text via the Questioning Path Tool. This tool provides both text-dependent and text-specific questions in the levels analyzing, deepening, and extending.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria that most questions, tasks, and assignments are text-dependent/specific, requiring students to engage with the text directly (drawing on textual evidence to support both what is explicit as well as valid inferences from the text).

The Grade 8 units include questions and tasks that focus on gathering evidence, knowledge, and insight from what students read. Questions and tasks delve systemically into texts to guide students toward extracting the key meanings or ideas found there. Coherent sequences of text-dependent/specific questions and activities are present to ensure text focus and increased reading, listening, speaking, and writing skills.

The program includes a Literacy Tool Box - a collection of adoptable resources designed to increase literacy skills. The toolbox includes handouts, graphic organizers, checklists, and rubrics which are used throughout the program. These instructional materials support scaffolding, include activities that encourage responses that require text evidence, and can be used in many different contexts.

Text-dependent questions and tasks that students encounter in the Grade 8 materials include, but are not limited to:

• In Unit 1, Part 4, Activity 3, students are asked to closely read The Promised Land by Mary Antin and answer text-dependent/specific questions including: “In what ways does the text begin, end, and develop? How do the text’s main ideas relate to what I already know, think, or have read? Which details in the first three paragraphs suggest ‘newness’ to Mary Antin, though they may seem much more familiar to us as readers?”
• In Unit 2, Part 5, Activity 1, students are asked to read "Ain’t I a Woman?" by Sojourner Truth, "Equal Rights for Women?" by Shirley Chisholm, and "Wimbledon Has Sent Me a Message: I’m Only a Second-Class Champion" by Venus Williams. They respond to the following text-dependent/specific questions including: “How can it be that Wimbledon finds itself on the wrong side of history? What evidence can you point to in the text(s) that is the basis for the and supports your observation? What relationships do I discover among the ideas and details presented, the (various) author’s perspective(s), and the language or structure of the text(s)?”
• In Unit 3, Part 1, Activity 2, students are asked to research and read about a topic and answer the following text-dependent questions: “What new ideas or information do I find in the text? What ideas stand out to me as significant or interesting? How do the text’s main ideas relate to what I already know, think, or have read?”
• In Unit 4, Part 2, Activity 3, students read "The Easy Problem" by David Brooks and respond to the following text-dependent/specific questions: "What claims do I find in the text? Which sentences-taken together- best communicate Brooks’s position about immigration? How does on one of these claims relate to his overall argument, and what specific evidence does he provide to support the claim?”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria that materials contain sets of high-quality sequences of text-dependent/specific questions and activities that build to a culminating task designed to help students synthesize and apply their learning from the unit in an engaging and authentic way.

The Grade 8 materials include the Questioning Path Tool for many texts and provide both text-dependent and text-specific questions to help students analyze the texts. Each unit also has a Literacy Toolbox with student materials to help guide the students through each task and build to the culminating task. Tasks are developed using the writing process and are rich, scaffolded, and provide opportunities for students to demonstrate what they know and are able to do using reading, speaking, and writing.

• In Unit 2, the culminating writing tasks ask students to analyze three related texts then write several paragraphs about their analysis. Next, students lead a discussion about the three texts. To prepare for this final task, students work through these texts using the Questioning Path Tool and analyze each text by responding to text-dependent/specific questions. These questions help students deepen their understanding of the text. For example, in Unit 1, Part 4, Activity 3, the Questioning Path Tool for Rebels: into Anarchy asks students to answer the question, “How does her mother’s reaction contrast with how she is described by Ganz and with the author’s characterization of her father? What is the impact of this juxtaposition and use of antithesis at the end of the passage?”

• In Unit 2, students are asked to write an Evidence-Based Claim essay as a culminating task. The activities throughout the unit build on each other and help prepare students for the end task. There are five parts to this unit, each building on evidence-based claims and ending with the development of evidence-based writing. Each part uses Questioning Path Tools to help students analyze the text, identify claims within the text, and eventually create claims of their own. For example, in Unit 2, Part 1, Activity 2, students independently read “Ain’t I a Woman?” and answer questions such as, “What is Truth referring to as her 'cup' in paragraph 3? What point is Truth trying to make about rights with her 'cup' metaphor? Why does Truth ask the question, 'Where does your Christ come from?' in paragraph 4? What point is Truth trying to make about how some view women with her question?”

• Unit 3 is devoted to research. Students create a Research Portfolio and develop a reflective research narrative using information from their portfolios as a culminating task. After choosing a research topic, students conduct the research process and develop a research portfolio which will then be used to write the research perspective. Throughout the unit, teachers are provided Text Notes to help students analyze the common texts that will be used as sources. For example, the instructional materials provide text-dependent discussion questions as part of the Researching to Deepen Understanding Common Source Set, including “What does the text suggest about the topic area: 'Animals and Humans: How are We Connected?' How credible and relevant is the source as a starting point for further research?"

• In Unit 4, the culminating task is writing an evidence-based argument. The entire unit focuses on argument beginning with issues, analyzing arguments, taking a position, organizing an argument, and writing their argumentative essays. Throughout the unit, Questioning Path Tools are provided to help students analyze the common texts that will be used as sources for their evidence-based argumentative essays. For example, in Unit 4, Part 1, Activity 2, the Questioning Path Tool for “Immigration” provides text-specific questions such as “What details and ideas does the text provide about the more recent problem of illegal 'aliens' or immigrants in the United States? What evidence does this text provide that builds my understanding of the issue of immigration and immigration policy in the United States?”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria for materials providing frequent opportunities and protocols for evidence-based discussions (small groups, peer-to-peer, whole class) that encourage the modeling and use of academic vocabulary and syntax.

Materials provide protocols for evidence-based discussions. Students are provided with multiple opportunities to work with partners, small groups, and when appropriate, large groups, to practice application of academic vocabulary and syntax and to build communication and presentation skills.

• In Unit 1, Part 1, Activity 2, students examine the image(s) in small groups. They use the Guiding Questions Handout from the Literacy Toolbox to help with the task of answering questions, such as “What details stand out to me as I examine this image? What do I think this image is mainly about? How do specific details help me understand what is being depicted in the image?”
• In Unit 2, Part 1, Activity 3, students participate in a close read of an excerpt of Sojourner Truth’s speech, “Ain’t I a Woman?” Students participate in a whole class discussion and answer the question “What in the text makes you reach your observation or conclusion? Point to the specific words or sentences.”
• In Unit 2, Part 3, Activity 6, students work in pairs and/or groups to discuss their evidence-based claims. Pairs are encouraged to present their evidence-based claims to the class.
• In Unit 3, Part 1, Activity 2, students begin the research process by exploring a topic. Students work in reading teams in which they read sections of the website. They use Guiding Questions Handout from the Literacy Toolbox to help them answer text-dependent questions to guide their close reading. After students summarize, they share with the class what other information that may want to know about the topic, Animals and Humans - How are We Connected?
• In Unit 4, Part 5, Activity 1, students work on developing skills to write collaboratively and are encouraged to hold informal text-centered check-in discussions with a peer or teacher.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria for materials supporting students’ listening and speaking about what they are reading and researching (including presentation opportunities) with relevant follow-up questions and supports.

Grade 8 materials support students’ practice and application of their speaking and listening skills in concert with their practice in reading for understanding. Students are provided multiple opportunities to work with partners, small groups, and when appropriate, large groups, to practice sharing information they have summarized and synthesized and present research they have conducted individually and/or in groups. Students work through various tasks throughout units using provided graphic organizers from the Literacy Toolbox as well as using collaboration and discussions to assist students in refining their work. Appropriate scaffolds help guide students through activities in the units, leading to and supporting the culminating tasks. Speaking and listening work is embedded across the year's instruction to support students increasing skills. Examples include, but are not limited to:

• In Unit 1, Part 2, Activity 1, students begin practicing analyzing text 5, “On the Trail of the Immigrant." Working in pairs using a Guiding Question, such as “In paragraph 6, what details does Steiner provide about the Polish woman he encounters, and how do those details evoke feelings in us as readers?” Student pairs discuss the text, answer questions, and compare their annotations. They then meet with another student pair to further discuss their findings and listen to other findings.
• In Unit 2, Part 2, Activity 4, students develop evidence-based claims. After working in pairs, students present the evidence they have gathered to support their claims and present it to the class. There is a class discussion on how evidence supports claims. The teacher models how to evaluate evidence and then guides the discussion. Students are asked to include text evidence in the discussion. These tasks support students to learn how to write evidence-based claims successfully which is the culminating task for this unit.
• In Unit 2, Part 4, Activity 8, students work with partners or small groups and read their evidence-based claims they have written. The student then listens to the feedback of the group and the group has a discussion about the drafts using specific evidence. The purpose of this activity is to refine student work using peer feedback.

• In Unit 3, Part 2, Activity 7, students work in collaborative teams to conduct research using a research frame graphic organizer to guide their research. Student teams study similar topics and discuss information gathered on their research frames and share summaries. Teams provide feedback to each other to refine and guide the research process.
• In Unit 3, Part 5, Activity 2, students use the model given to articulate and share their text-based responses and constructive reviewer claims, as if their review partner (or the teacher) has written the model narrative. Students will then be asked to volunteer to present their responses to the whole class, and discuss how the responses are (or are not) specific, constructive, and text-based.
• In Unit 4, Part 1, Activity 7, students write an analysis of one of the following texts: “The Easy Problem” by David Brooks, “Immigration Policy Should Be Overhauled to Take National Identity Seriously” by Amy Chua, “Is This Our America Anymore?” by Pat Buchanan, Remarks at the Signing of the 1965 Immigration Bill by Lyndon B. Johnson, “Shut the Door” by Ellison Durant Smith, and “An Un-American Bill” by Robert H. Clancy. Students work in groups to review and improve their draft analysis.

The materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria for materials including a mix of on-demand and process writing (e.g., multiple drafts, revisions over time) and short, focused projects, incorporating digital resources where appropriate.

Materials include a mix of both on-demand and process writing that covers a year’s worth of instruction and includes encouraging the building of knowledge about a topic. Many opportunities for students to revise and/or edit are found. There are digital resources, short and longer writing tasks as well as culminating projects supported and connected to texts and/or text sets. Writing tasks and projects are aligned to Grade 8 Common Core State Standards.

Examples of on-demand writing tasks include:

• In Unit 1, Part 1, Activity 4, students view Ellis Island Deconstructed, The Ellis Island Medical Examination, and Island of Hope-Island of Tears. After viewing the videos several times, students create a two column chart (What was important in the video? in the first column and Why was it important? in the second column). Then students use the two column chart to “write a few sentences explaining something they have learned from the video.”
• In Unit 2, Part 4, Activity 3, students work in pairs to write a draft Evidence-Based Claim. This draft will “focus on less formal, more fluent writing, trying first to get their ideas out on paper so that they and others can examine them.”
• In Unit 3, Part 5, Activity 3, students write a bibliography for their Evidence-Based Perspective. Students use all of their sources to complete the Potential Sources Tool.
• In Unit 4, Part 2, Activity 7, students use their notes from one of the texts that they read for this unit to write paragraphs analyzing one of the arguments. The analysis must include the following:
  • State the author’s position
  • Identify the elements of the argument
  • Make an evidence-based claim about how the author’s perspective shapes the position and argumentation.
  • Use evidence from the text to support analysis

Examples of process writing tasks include, but are not limited to:

• In Unit 1, Part 3 Activity 3, students write a comparative analyses of an excerpt from The Future in America: A Search after Realities by H. G. Wells and The New Colossus by Emma Lazarus. Students are asked to include a comparative question, sentences explaining analysis of both texts, and sentences that connect the two texts addressing the comparative question. After constructing the paragraph, small groups conduct a peer review and students are given time for revisions.
• In Unit 2, Part 5, Activity 4, students draft an evidence-based essay that supports a claim. In Activity 5, Students collaborate to revise before presenting final essays in Activity 6.
• In Unit 4, Part 5, Activities 1-5, students write an evidence-based argument essay as a culminating task for the unit. This is a multi-step process where students make an outline and use some of the graphic organizers found in the Literacy Toolbox to complete their draft. Students revise their drafts collaboratively and present their final copy to the class.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria for materials including frequent opportunities for evidence-based writing to support careful analyses, well-defended claims, and clear information appropriate for the grade level.

Grade 8 materials provide frequent opportunities across the school year for students to learn, practice, and apply writing using evidence. Writing opportunities are focused around students’ analyses and claims developed from reading closely and working with texts and sources to provide supporting evidence.

• In Unit 1, Part 2, Activity 5, students write a short paragraph explaining their analysis of On the Trail of an Immigrant, Chapter 5, “At the Gateway” and reference or list support textual details. In Unit 1, Part 4, Activity 5, students continue the process by using their analysis to independently write a text-based explanation of one of the texts read previously in the unit.
• In Unit 2, Part 3, Activity 1, students read “Wimbledon Has Sent Me a Message: I’m Only a Second Class Champion” by Serena Williams. Students complete the Forming Evidence-Based Claim Tool by asking a question from the Questioning Path Tool. Students record “key details, connections, and/or evidence-based claims.”
• In Unit 2, Part 4, Activity 7, students independently complete an Organizing Evidence-Based Claim Tool for the claim they have formed in Activity 5 and draft a one-to-two paragraph evidence-based claim from the text of “Wimbledon Has Sent Me a Message: I’m Only a Second Class Champion.” In Activity 8, students use the collaborative review process and revise one aspect of their draft evidence-based claims paragraph.
• In Unit 3, the culminating writing activity involves students researching to deepen their understanding. Students are asked to write a narrative by telling a story about what they have learned, use the notes and claims from previously written assignments, connect ideas, and reflect on what they have learned.
• In Unit 3, Part 5, Activity 2, students draft their own reflective research narratives, working from the draft narrative and statement of their perspectives they have developed previously, using evidence from their tools, and incorporating claims they have developed in response to inquiry questions.
• In Unit 4, Part 2, Activity 7, students read immigration texts and write paragraphs analyzing one of the arguments that they have read by:
  • Stating the author’s purpose
  • Identifying the elements of the argument
  • Making an evidence-based claim about how the author’s perspective shapes the position and argumentation
  • Using evidence from the text to support the analysis
• In Unit 4, Part 5, students work with their teachers and peers to draft, revise, and publish their own argumentative essay on “Immigration.” In this argumentative essay, students state a claim and use evidence from texts to support their position.