10th Grade - Gateway 1

The materials reviewed for Grade 10 meet the criteria for anchor texts being of publishable quality and worthy of especially careful reading. Texts range in a variety of topics and student interests.

Examples include, but are not limited to:  

• An excerpt from Texas v. Johnson Majority Opinion by William J. Brennan. This is one of two comparison texts for this unit. In this court opinion, the Supreme Court explains why they have ruled to strike down a law that made burning the American flag illegal. The text is complex and the content is engaging. 
• “Coming to our Senses” by Neil Degrasse Tyson. This is a text that is a mentor text for a science essay. It takes a realistic approach to scientific principles, but is not overly didactic.  
• “Carry” by Linda Hogan. This poem continues the exploration of the natural world by contrasting the life-giving and life-taking qualities of water. It rounds out an exploration of nature and the complex relationship to human existence.
• "A Sound of Thunder" by Ray Bradbury. This science fiction text is staple of many high school classrooms. 
• "The Fever: How Malaria Has Ruled Humankind for 500,000 years" by Sonia Shah. This is a piece of investigative journalism that deals with the global issue of malaria, humanity, and expansion. This text requires students to look outside of their worldview.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 10 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.

The publisher provides the quantitative measure of each print text except poems as a Lexile measure. The Lexile Text Measure is listed in the teacher's edition as part of the instructional overview that prefaces each unit. The publisher explicitly describes the qualitative measures of the text in the “Plan” section before each text. Reader and task considerations for each text are explicitly described and include English learner support and suggestions for differentiation when students struggle. These supports are directly related to the content of the text, the qualitative elements.  Each text set is crafted to address an essential question, includes a mentor text for the end of unit writing task, and provides students an opportunity to engage in close reading and analysis of content building toward the final performance task. These elements of the Teacher's Edition illustrate attention to reader and task. 

Examples demonstrating this information:

In the Teacher's Edition, Unit 3: The Natural World

• The unit 3 text set includes short stories, an essay, a poem, and a public service advertisement. The Lexile range is 910L - 1170L, which falls mostly within the grade 9 band. 
• The mentor text, “Joyas Voladoras” by Brian Doyle measures 1170L.  The qualitative measures include;
• "Ideas presented: many explicit; also implied meanings and extended metaphors."
• "Structures used: primarily explicit; some implicit coherence between paragraphs."
• "Language used: many Tier II and III words; figurative language including metaphors and similes."
• "Knowledge required: some complex concepts; biology subject matter may not be familiar to all."
• "Differentiation for this text includes understanding denotation and connotation."

In the Teacher's Edition, Unit 6, Absolute Power

• The unit 6 text set includes the entire play Macbeth, a film clip, a short story, a manga (graphic text), and a book review. Only two of these texts are accompanied by quantitative measures, appropriate to the media. 
• “The Macbeth Murder Mystery” by James Thurber is a short story with a Lexile measure of 580L. This is far below the grade level and included in the set as an example of satire providing a sophisticated genre study relative to the weighty play referenced in the satire. This information is part of the “Plan” section of the teacher’s edition.
• "Ideas presented: multiple levels of meaning."
• "Structures used: simple, linear chronology; one consistent point of view."
• "Language used: some unfamiliar language and sentence structure."
• "Knowledge required: some literary knowledge useful."
• "The English learner supports include the use of cognates, identifying antecedents, and using pronouns correctly." 

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 10 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.

The materials reviewed for Grade 10 include mentor and supporting texts that allow for students to engage in a range and volume of texts in order to achieve grade level reading. There are six units that revolve around an essential question for students and provide multiple texts.

Throughout the year, students are exposed to a wide variety of texts in both print and multimedia formats which are identified in the table of contents for each unit. Each unit begins with an Analyze and Apply section that uses one text as a “Notice and Note reading model” along with another text which serves as a mentor text followed by other supporting texts. The next group of texts, Collaborate and Compare, provide a comparative analysis of two different selections, both of which connect to the essential question/topic but which may be different in “genre, craft, or focus”. In addition, there are independent reading selections which can be accessed with the digital edition. Finally, there are suggested texts provided which can give educators even more options for text selection.

• In Teacher's Edition, Unit 2: How We See Things, the following texts are provided: 
• Notice and Note Reading model: “Coming to Our Senses” by Neil DeGrasse Tyson (science essay)
• Mentor Text: “The Night Face Up” by Julio Cortazar (short story)
• Supporting texts: “Mirror” by Sylvia Plath (poem) 
• Collaborate and Compare texts: “The World as 100 People” by Jack Hagley (infographic) 
• Poem: “A Contribution to Statistics” by Wislawa Szymborska 
• Independent Reading Texts: “Before I got my eye put out” by Emily Dickinson (poem)
• Essay: “What Our Telescopes Couldn’t See” by Pippa Goldschmidt 
• Informational text: from Big Bang: The Origin of the Universe by Simon Singh
• Short story: “By the Waters of Babylon” by Stephen Vincent Benet
• Suggested Novel Connection: Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
• In Student Edition, Unit 4: Hard-Won Liberty, whole class reading
• Argument: Letter From a Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King Jr.
• Poem: “Elsewhere” by Derek Walcott
• Memoir: The Hawk Can Soar by Randi Davenport
• Argument: from Letter to Viceroy, Lord Irwin by Mohandas K. Gandhi. Mentor text
• Documentary film: from Gandhi: the Rise to Fame by BBC
• Independent reading
• Speech: from Speech at the March on Washington by Josephine Baker
• Short story: “The Book of the Dead” by Edwidge Danticat
• Poem: “Cloudy Day” by Jimmy Santiago Baca
• History writing: from Crispus Attucks by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
• Suggested novel: Why We Can’t Wait by Martin Luther King Jr. 

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 10 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 instructional materials include questions and tasks that require careful reading over the course of a school year. The majority of questions are text dependent and require students read closely for content and author’s craft, such as word choice. Students are required to reinforce their responses and answers to questions using evidence from specific texts that students are required to read. Each unit includes a mentor text with annotation and reflection tasks focused on the primary learning goal of the unit writing task.  Within each of the six units, students experience recurring sections, such as Analyze & Apply and Collaborate & Compare; these sections reinforce concepts, theories, ideas, and critical thinking directly related to each text read. Also, throughout each text, students experience a sidebar on the page that support student annotations to assist in going back to the text for future tasks that require students to re-engage with said text, and are presented with questions that push them to infer, analyze, predict, summarize, among other skills, which directly relate to the passage(s) the sidebar note is next to. The text is linked throughout the units, requiring students to draw evidence from what they have read, as well as inviting them to make inferences.

Examples of how the materials use text dependent questions include, but are not limited to:

• In Student Edition, Unit 1, students read the mentor text, a memoir, By Any Other Name, by Santha Rama Rau. Within the Analyze the Text section, students are given questions that ask them to support their “responses with evidence from the text:”
• "2. Cite Evidence: Name two ways in which the Indian girls who have been at the school for a while imitate the English girls. How do these examples reflect the historical context of the memoir?"
• In Student Edition, Unit 2, students must compare two texts: “The World as 100 People,” an infographic by Jack Hagley, and “A Contribution to Statistics,” a poem by Wislawa Szymborska. Within the Collaborate & Compare section, under Analyze the Texts, students must discuss questions in groups. For example:
•  "Compare: What are the similarities between the infographic and poem?"
• "Contrast: What are the differences between the two?"
• In the Student Edition, Unit 3, “My Life as a Bat,” Create and Present,
• "Write an analysis - write a 3-4 paragraph essay in which you compare and contrast the facts that you found in your research and those that were included in the selection."
• In Student Edition, Unit 4, students read “The Briefcase,” a short story by Rebecca Makkai. At the close of the text, students complete the Check Your Understanding section; there are three questions located within this section. Students must “Answer these questions before moving on to the Analyze the Text section on the following page:”
• "1. Why does the chef have the professor’s briefcase?" 
• "2. What is the chef’s strategy for survival?"
• In the Student Edition, Unit 5, students read “A Sound of Thunder” and do the following:
• Making inferences - There is a graphic on page 345 to help students understand text details and predictions to make an inference
• Analyze - "Why do you think the consequences are so severe? Make a prediction about what Eckels will do later in the story based on the official’s warning." 
• In Student Edition, Unit 6, students read The Tragedy of Macbeth, a play, by William Shakespeare. Within the sidebar of the student text, students must annotate: “Mark words in the Captain’s speech that reveal Macbeth’s character traits.” Then, students must predict: “What kind of person is Macbeth?”

Evidence showing how students draw on textual evidence to support both what is explicit as well as valid inferences from the text includes:

• In Student Edition, Unit 1, students read the mentor text, a memoir, By Any Other Name, by Santha Rama Rau. Within the Analyze the Text section, students Infer: "Based on the last paragraph, explain how Santha views the conflict with the headmistress. How does this view fit the author’s purpose for writing this memoir?"
• In Student Edition, Unit 2, students are asked to read the short story, “The Night Face Up,” by Julio Cortazar. At the beginning of the text students are asked in the section Setting a Purpose to “pay attention to the details that help you develop a mental image of the story’s two cultural and historical settings.” Then, on the next page, in the sidebar titled Analyze Plot Structure, students are asked to “mark several details in paragraph 2 that help establish the setting of the first parallel plot.” Then, they are asked the question: “Based on these details, how would you describe the tone of this part of the story? Cite evidence in your answer." 
• In Student Edition, Unit 3, students are asked to read the poem, “Carry,” by Linda Hogan. Before they begin, in the section Analyze Symbol and Theme, students are presented with the definition of what a theme is, how to determine it and what a symbol is. Then, they are asked to pay attention to how the author uses these devices in the poem by filling out a chart. The three categories at the top are “Text Evidence to Consider,” “Examples,” and “Analysis and Questions.” The three rows are labeled “metaphors and similes that create strong images,” “descriptive details that create a mood or feeling,” and “personification that conveys feelings or emotions.” 
• In the Student Edition, Unit 6, the entire play of Macbeth can be found. There are multiple analysis, Notice & Note, Interpret for meaning, Check your Understandings and guiding questions throughout the entire Chapter and play.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 10 meet the criteria for materials containing sets of sequences of text-dependent/text-specific questions with activities that build to a culminating task which integrates skills to demonstrate understanding.

Each unit is organized around an essential question and a mentor text to guide students’ thinking around a topic. Close reading of the mentor text focuses on topic development and writer’s craft. Within each individual lesson, after every reading assignment, students are presented with various sections to complete to represent their understanding of the text and how their understandings and empathizing connects to the outside, “real” world; these tasks that build up to the cumulative tasks at the end of the unit consist of, but are not limited to, the following: Analyze the Text, Create and Discuss, Analyze Podcasts, Research, Create and Present, and Collaborate & Compare. The lessons include sequences of text-dependent questions that guide their understanding of the selections in the unit and build to the culminating writing task. Lessons leading up to culminating tasks require the demonstration of various skills, including reading, writing, speaking, and listening.

• In Student Edition, Unit 2, the culminating tasks are to write a short story that reveals things to be different than they first appeared then adapt the story to create a podcast. 
• The mentor text for the unit is “The Night Face Up,” a short story by Julio Cortazar. 
• After reading, students write an analysis of the story’s central theme about human nature and human experience. The task is to explain how the topic is developed through details in the essay. 
• While reading “Coming to Our Senses” by Neil deGrasse Tyson, students are directed to pay attention to the five senses as presented by the author. After reading, students research a scientific topic and write an explanation. 
• Students read “Mirror” by Sylvia Plath which is surprising as it is written from the mirror’s perspective. Students then write a poem from the perspective of someone or something else in the poem. This is direct practice of developing the essential element of the culminating task. 
• Students collaborate to explore statistics, different ways to present statistics, and how to make sense of statistics. They write a letter to someone identified within their study of statistics. This prepares students to consider the possibilities of various perspectives or points of view. 
• In Student Edition, Unit 3, the culminating tasks are to write an explanatory essay about a specific aspect of nature and our relationship to it then deliver a multimodal presentation of the adapted essay. The mentor text is an essay by Brian Doyle, “Joyas Voladoras.” Students are directed to pay attention to author’s purpose and how the arrangement of the ideas makes the reader think and feel. 
• Students research the heart and record information in a graphic organizer. 
• They then write an explanation.
• Unit 3 includes two short stories, a poem, and a public service announcement. All address the relationship between humans (or a human) and the natural world.
• Students read “My Life as a Bat” by Margaret Atwood then research facts about bats. They write a compare and contrast essay to explore and explain Atwood’s story and fact.

In Teacher's Edition, Unit 4, students must compose an argument: “This unit explores the idea of freedom, what it means, and what people have done to become free. For this writing task, you will write an argument that reveals what freedom means to you. For an example of a well-written argumentative text you can use as a mentor text, review Gandhi’s ‘Letter to Viceroy, Lord Irwin’ or King’s ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail.’ As you write your argument, you will want to look at the notes you made in your Response Log after reading the texts in this unit.” And, the prompt is as follows: “Write an argument about what freedom means to you.” Students will complete the following sections: Plan, Develop a Draft, Revise, Edit, and Publish. Students are required to include relevant evidence and valid reasoning. Once students complete the writing task, students must adapt their argument for a presentation. 

• Within Unit 4, students read Martin Luther King Jr.’s iconic letter, “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” Within the Analyze the Text section, students are asked questions that follow Bloom’s Taxonomy. Examples are, but are not limited to, the following: 
• “1. Analyze: How does King define just and unjust laws? To what opposing view is he providing a counterargument? Consider how defining certain laws as unjust provides an incentive for his readers to support his actions.” 
• “4. Analyze: Discuss whether King uses valid reasoning when he states that ‘Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.’ What evidence does he provide to support this idea? What appeal does he use?”
• Students also read Derek Walcott’s poem, “Elsewhere.” Within the Create and Discuss section, students compose an analysis: “Write an analysis that argues the effectiveness of Walcott’s poem. Might it stir readers to find out more about the problems that exist ‘elsewhere?’ Why or why not? Cite evidence from the poem and your own experience.” 
• Students read Gandhi’s “Letter to Viceroy, Lord Irwin” in Unit 4. Within the Create and Discuss section, students compose an analysis: “Overall, how would you evaluate the strength of Gandhi’s argument?” For this portion of the Create and Discuss section, students are given an outline for what is expected in the first and second paragraph for the short essay response. Then, students are to share information: “Now that you have read and analyzed ‘Letter to Viceroy, Lord Irwin’ and researched another event of civil disobedience, meet with a partner to share what you have learned about civil disobedience. Delve deeper into the information by doing the following: 
• Support the information you share using pictures or timelines.
• Take notes during your discussion.
• Ask and respond to questions as needed.”
• In Student Edition, Unit 5, the culminating activity is to write a research report about how humans respond to changes in nature or life. Students have the opportunity throughout the unit to explore the power of nature and human reactions. The mentor text is a science writing from The Fever: How Malaria Has Ruled Humankind for 500,000 Years by Sonia Shah. While reading, students are directed to note the sources that the author uses to provide details. Students then investigate methods to prevent the spread of disease and write an informational brochure to inform the public. 
• Other texts in the unit include an essay, a short story, two poems, and a clip from a documentary film. 
• Students read an excerpt from the Annie Dillard essay “Total Eclipse” then research other accounts of the 2017 eclipse and write a comparison of those accounts with Dillard’s.
• Students read the poem “5 p.m.,Tuesday, August 23, 2005,” an account of Hurricane Katrina, by Patricia Smith. They compare figurative language in the poem to details from research and write a literary analysis of the poem. 
• Students watch clips from a documentary film about changes caused by rivers and tides. They then write a reflective essay about changes in nature and changes in culture or human behavior.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 10 meet the criteria for materials providing frequent opportunities and protocols to engage students in speaking and listening activities and discussions (small group, peer-to-peer, whole class) which encourage the modeling and use of academic vocabulary and syntax.

There are frequent opportunities where students are expected to participate in evidence-based discussions. After reading assignments, there are small group or one on one interactions that encourage the modeling and use of academic vocabulary and syntax. Specifically, within the online materials, students and instructors are presented with the Speaking & Listening Studio, where additional discussion supports are in place. Also, within the Teacher's Edition, at the beginning of most texts, when instructors are setting up the lesson, instructors are presented with two grouping strategies to support discussion titled Small-Group Options.  These opportunities can also be found in Respond sections after texts, where students are encouraged to work with a panel to discuss what they have learned from the text, as well as modeling the style of the reading assigned. This can also be seen in Critical Vocabulary sections in Respond at the end of a text, allowing students to model the language and syntax, as well as work with a peer. Speaking and listening instruction occurs frequently throughout the year and is supported through teacher resources and materials.

The evidence can be found:

• In the Student Edition, Unit 1, Writing Task, "Publish: Finalize your essay and choose the best way to share it with your audience. Consider these options: 

1. If your audience is your classmates, present your essay as a speech to the class, or post it as a blog on a classroom or school website.
2. If your audience is one person, send your essay as a letter.
3. If you wrote for members of a certain community - for example, younger children or people who enjoy the same activities or face the same challenges as you - ask permission to post your essay to website or share it in person where appropriate." 

• In the Student Edition, Digital Resources for Grade 10, they have access to a Speaking and Listening Studio. Once students access that studio, they could go to one of the resources that is titled: “Participating in a collaborative discussion--what makes a strong discussion.”

Under that category students have to do the following:

• "Decide whether each behavior is likely to be constructive or disruptive to a group discussion."

Then, students are asked to listen to several sound clips that model a sample discussion. Then they are asked questions about what they hear. The questions include: 

• Which group members “seemed prepared for and supportive of this discussion”?
• "How did participants collaborate to enrich this part of the discussion?"
• “What constructive responses does the group have to Justin’s unconstructive behavior
• "Which of the participants is working to keep the discussion on track?”
• "Which are examples of strongly collaborative behavior as these participants wrap up their discussion? Finally students are given examples of constructive and destructive discussion behavior."
• In the Teacher's Edition, Unit 2, students read “Coming to Our Senses,” an essay by Neil deGrasse Tyson. At the bottom of the sidebar, teachers are presented with the section, Close Read Screencast, where the following instructions are presented: “Modeled Discussion: In their eBook, have students view the Close Read Screencast, in which readers discuss and annotate paragraph 3. As a class, view and discuss the video. Then have students pair up to do an independent close read of an additional passage--Tyson’s restatement of his central idea (paragraph 17). Students can record their answers on the Close Read Practice PDF.”
• In the Student Edition, Unit 3, students are asked to read the essay, “Joyas Voladoras,” by Brian Doyle. After reading the essay, students are asked under the heading Critical Vocabulary to “use the critical vocabulary words to answer each question. Discuss your responses with a partner.” The three questions include:
• "In what ways might a tightrope walker be affected by how taut the line is?"
• "What is an experiment that might leave you feeling harrowed?"
• "How can felled refer both to cutting down trees and to feeling strong emotions?"
• In Student Edition, Unit 5, Analyze and Apply, “Total Eclipse,” by Annie Dillard.
• Style is the particular way literature is written to produce a desired effect. Some of the key elements that contribute to style include word choice, tone, sentence structure.
• Research the 2017 eclipse and write a comparison to the author’s account. Have a discussion and share your opinion. 
• In Student Edition, Unit 6, at the very beginning of the unit on page 393, students are given five different academic vocabulary terms to focus on: comprise, incidence, predominant, priority, and ultimate. For each of the terms, students are asked to provide the definition, synonyms, antonyms, word root or origin, related words and clarifying example. The text models this activity for them by using the word compromise. After students complete that activity on their own, under the heading Write and Discuss students are asked to “discuss the completed compromise Word Network with a partner, making sure to talk through all of the boxes until you both understand the word, its synonyms, antonyms, and related forms.” 

Evidence is found throughout the six units in the Analyze and Apply section.  Examples include, 

• In Student Edition, Unit 1, Collaborate & Compare, “American Flag Stands for Tolerance” by Ronald J. Allen.
• Analyze rhetoric. Common rhetorical devices include the following: parallelism, antithesis, shifts, logical fallacy.
• You have read multiple opinions about the topic. Use your knowledge to form an opinion, and debate the issue. 
• In Student Edition, Unit 1, Analyze and Apply, “Without Title,” by Diane Glancy.
• Make inferences about theme. In addition to historical and cultural details, here are some other keys to inferring the theme of a poem: title, repetition, changes, and shifts. 
• Create a narrative that depicts the daily life of family in the poem. Present your narrative. 
• Speak using appropriate volume, pauses for effect, and meaningful gestures to enhance your ideas.
• Request feedback from listeners on your delivery and ideas. 
• In Student Edition, Unit 3, Analyze and Apply, “Joyas Voladoras,” by Brian Doyle.
• Analyze structure. Track main ideas, details, and central ideas with key details. 
• Write an explanation of research findings. Evaluate your research process and sources. 
• Participate in a panel discussion. Support your own ideas in the discussion with the information from your research. 
• In Student Edition, Unit 3, Collaborate & Compare, “The Seventh Man” Haruki Murakami.
• Analyze symbol and themes. Recurring symbols make up a pattern called a motif. Symbols and motifs help develop a text’s theme. 
• With some of your classmates, discuss the story’s use of symbols and motifs, and work together to write a statement of them that combines your perspectives. 
• Listen actively and respond appropriately to other group members, and ask clarifying questions if you’d like more information about what they’re thinking. 
• In Student Edition, Unit 5, Collaborate & Compare, Rivers and Tides, by Thomas Riedelsheimer.
• With a small group, discuss your opinions about the connections between changes in nature and changes in human beings.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 10 meet the criteria for materials supporting students’ listening and speaking (and discussions) about what they are reading and researching (shared projects) with relevant follow-up questions and supports.

Materials in the Grade 10 curriculum provide ample opportunities for rich and rigorous evidence-based discussions about texts to build strong literacy skills. All discussions encountered required students to go directly back to the text, reference evidence, or repeated reading and analysis; and in many cases, instructors are presented possible student responses for additional support. Sections where questions and supports are seen within the Student and Teacher's Editions are: Reflect on the Unit, Introduce the Selection and Quick Start, the Revise section within all major cumulative writing tasks, Create & Discuss, Applying Academic Vocabulary, Create and Discuss, and Collaborate and Present.  The Speaking and Listening Studio is a digital resource that provides a quick reference for students to address specific speaking and listening actions. The margin notes remind students to use the Speaking and Listening Studio for more information about the task. The Speaking and Listening Studio also provides an opportunity for targeted instruction and supports teachers to help guide students in speaking and listening areas.

• In the Student Edition, Unit 1, students are asked to read the editorial, “American Flag Stands for Tolerance,” by Ronald J. Allen. After reading, under the heading Create and Present, students are asked to “Debate the Issue.” After writing an opinion statement as individuals, the directions explain that students should:
• “Form debate teams. One side should argue ‘Burning the Flag should be protected as free speech under the First Amendment.’ The other side should oppose this argument. If all the students in your class agree, choose a group to take the opposite side and find evidence to support it.” 
• In Student Edition, Unit 6, from Manga Shakespeare: Macbeth by Robert Deas and Richard Appignanesi/”Shakespeare and Samurai (and Robot Ninjas?),” by Caitlin Perry, students:
• "Deliver a Pitch. The Tragedy of Macbeth has been adapted to many different media, such as movies and manga. What kind of media adaptation of the play would you like to see? Deliver a pitch - a persuasive presentation to someone who can fund a project. 
• Anticipate questions that the potential funders might ask you and prepare answers to those questions. 
• Present your pitch to your group and answer their questions about your ideas. After other group members deliver their pitches, ask them to clarify anything you don’t understand about their ideas."

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 10 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. 

For every text that students read or view, there is a writing task that either clarifies and deepens understanding of the text, explores the essential question, or helps prepare the student for the end of unit writing task. These are both long assignments with multiple drafts, short assignments for in class responses, focused projects, and other short answer responses. These can be found both before and after a reading assignment within each unit.  At the end of every unit, students must complete a cumulative writing task that emulates one of the following: short story, personal narrative, explanatory essay, literary analysis, argumentative essay, and research essay. These process writing tasks have multiple layers for support. On-demand writing assignments, including shorter, more focused writing projects, are found throughout all six units.  

Evidence of on-demand writing includes, but is not limited to:

• In the Student Edition, Unit 3, after reading, “Find Your Park” PSA: The National Park Service, students are asked to:
• "Research one National Park: What features does it have?Why should people visit? What audience might enjoy it most? Record what you learn about your chosen park in the chart, and then create a poster advertising it." 
• "Write a letter to the editor advocating for a new National Park. Your proposed park may be a real place you have visited or a place you imagine. Your letter should be brief - about 100 - 200 words long."

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

• In the Student Edition, Unit 2, the final writing task for students is to write a short story. The directions ask students specifically to write a short story “in which things are revealed to be different from how they first appeared.” It also directs students to begin by “introducing a setting, narrator, main character and distinct point of view,” have an “engaging plot with a central conflict,” use a variety of techniques for character development, suspense, plot and theme, include description and end with a “logical and satisfying” resolution. After those instructions, students are shown how to organize their ideas, develop a draft, revise and edit, as well as publish. 
• In the Student Edition, Unit 4, students must compose an argument. The process writing directions are: “This unit explores the ideas of freedom, what it means, and what people have done to become free. For this writing task, you will write an argument that reveals what freedom means to you. For an example of a well-written argumentative text you can use as a mentor text, review Gandhi’s ‘Letter to Viceroy, Lord Irwin’ or King’s ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail.’ As you write your argument, you will want to look at the notes you made in your Response Log after reading the texts in this unit.” The prompt is: “Write an argument about what freedom means to you.” Students must follow the  guidelines below:
• “Make a clear, specific claim.”
• “Develop the claim with valid reasons and relevant evidence.”
• “Anticipate and address counterclaims, or opposing arguments, by providing counterarguments.”
• “Use transitions to link reasons and evidence to the claim.”
• “Maintain a formal tone through the use of standard English.”
• “Conclude by effectively summarizing the argument and leaving readers with a thought-provoking idea.”

There are multiple steps in this process writing assignment:

• 1. Plan
• 2. Develop a Draft
• 3. Revise
• 4. Edit
• 5. Publish

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 10 meet the criteria for materials provide opportunities for students to address different text types of writing that reflect the distribution required by the standards. (Writing opportunities incorporate digital resources/multimodal literacy materials where appropriate. Opportunities may include blended writing styles that reflect the distribution required by the standards.)

The text types students must compose that reflect the standards are short story, personal narrative, explanatory essay, literary analysis, argumentative essay, and research essay.  Students write after each reading or viewing experience. Most writing experiences are elements of the writing process and may be completed as a stand-alone product or part of a larger task or learning experience. Digital application is expected and some writing tasks are specifically designed for digital media. A few of the writing tasks are primarily visual, supporting learning about an element of written and spoken presentation: the graphic representation of an idea. Across the entire school year, students write six process essays that reflect deep understanding of the unit’s essential question and of the genre study within each unit.  

In the Student Editions, End of unit writing tasks:

• Unit 1: Write a personal essay (W2).
• Unit 2: Write a research report; create a podcast (W2).
• Unit 3: Write an explanatory essay (W2).
• Unit 4: Write an argument (W1).
• Unit 5: Write a research report (W2).
• Unit 6: Write an literary analysis (W1, W2).

Examples of how the materials support students engagement with different writing types can be seen in these representative examples:

In the Student Edition, Unit 1, in-unit writing tasks

• “What, of this Goldfish, Would You Wish?” by Etgar Keret: write a fable.
• “By Any Other Name” by Santha Rama Rau: write a poem.
• “Without Title” by Diane Glancy: write a narrative.
• From Texas v. Johnson Majority Opinion by William J. Brennan and “American Flag Stands for Tolerance” by Ronald J. Allen: write a letter to the editor.

In the Student Edition, Unit 3 in-unit writing tasks

• “My Life as a Bat” by Margaret Atwood: write an analysis.
• Joyas Voladoras by Brian Doyle: write an explanation.
• “Find Your Park” by National Park Service: write a letter to the editor.
• “The Seventh Man” by Haruki Murakami and “Carry” by Linda Hogan: write a vignette; write a free-verse poem.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 10 meet the criteria for materials including frequent opportunities for evidence-based writing to support sophisticated analysis, argumentation, and synthesis.

Each unit contains multiple opportunities for students to compose and refine research-based and evidence-based writing. Students are offered opportunities to evaluate and support claims both in formal assignments and informal in-class assignments. This can be seen in the Respond section of readings, where students have opportunities in both Research and Create and Present. In some texts, there are also opportunities to research and analyze in Respond to the Essential Question. This asks students to review annotations and notes to develop support for specific questions. The Teacher's Edition provides a road map of the year which is presented in six units. Each text - or sometimes pair of texts - in the unit is followed by both a brief research prompt and a writing assignment informed by the research. The on-demand writing tasks reflect development of skills necessary to complete the end of unit writing task. 

Specific evidence of how materials include frequent opportunities for evidence-based writing include, but are not limited to:

• In the Student Edition, Unit 3, students are asked to read the poem “Carry” by Linda Hogan. After reading the text, they look online for photographs of “surprising occurrences in nature.” Then they record their findings, the source it came from, and a brief description as well as an explanation of what makes the picture unusual. Then, they share their research with a partner, examine the photos for any alterations, and find new photos if necessary. 
• In the Student Edition, Unit 6, students are asked to read the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare. At the end of the play they research film and television adaptations of Macbeth and if possible, view a clip of one of these other adaptations. Then, they compare and contrast that clip with the version they saw with the text as well as record the atmosphere conveyed. Students record all their findings in a chart provided.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 10 meet  the criteria for materials including instruction and practice of the grammar and conventions/language standards for grade level as applied in increasingly sophisticated contexts, with opportunities for application in context.

Each (written) text includes a Language Conventions section at the beginning of the reading that provides information about a convention relative to the text, and directions for what to look for while reading. Texts often include prompts in the margin notes to annotate and respond to the convention identified. After reading, students extend the learning with direct instruction of the language convention and practice by applying what they have learned. In the Create and Apply section, there is another heading labeled Language Conventions which provides additional instruction to students in that grammatical category as well as a “practice and apply” formative assessment in which students can demonstrate their understanding in that particular category. The Grammar Studio is a digital resources that provides students with additional information and practice about specific components of the grammar standards. Students explore spelling, punctuation, parts of speech, clauses, and more throughout the Studio. Teachers can assign specific lessons for students to study independently or in small groups. Teachers can also assign module assessments to track student progress with the topic/standard. 

• In the Student Edition, Unit 2, students are asked to read the science essay, “Coming to Our Senses” by Neil deGrasse Tyson. After students read the text, they are given a mini-lesson on parallel structure under the heading Language Conventions. In the passage, students are given a definition of parallel structure, a sentence from the text that uses parallel structure, and then further explanation on its usage. Finally, students are given further instructions under the heading Practice and Apply. In this section, students have to write one to two paragraphs that express their support on the issue “Do you believe it is important for humans to explore space?”. Then, they are given further instructions to “use parallel structure both within a sentence and between sentences by starting or ending two sentences in similar ways. When you are finished, share your sentences with a partner. Ask your partner to mark the examples of parallel structure.”
• In Student Edition, Unit 2, students read several selections including: “The Night Face Up” by Julio Cortazar. Before reading students learn that a "complex sentence has an independent clause and one or more dependent clauses. An independent clause can stand alone as a sentence; a dependent, or subordinate, clause cannot. Complex sentences like the one below from the story show the relationship between ideas or events:
• "When he saw that the woman standing on the corner had rushed into the crosswalk while he still had the green light, it was already somewhat too late for a simple solution." 
• "In the example text, the dependent clause is underlined twice and the independent clause is underlined once. This complex sentence reflects the character’s thought process." 
• "While reading: (prompt in margin notes) Annotate: Place brackets around the second-to-last sentence in paragraph 10. Underline the independent clause within this sentence. Then circle the dependent, or subordinate clause". 
• "Apply: Take a closer look at a piece of your own writing, such as the writing you did in response to “The Night Face Up.” Revise it by combining shorter sentences to create three complex sentences. Check for and correct any fragments or run-on sentences in your work." 
• "End of unit task: write a short story"
• "Edit: Use complex sentences.  A complex sentence includes an independent clause and one or more dependent clauses." 
• In Teacher's Edition, Unit 4, students are asked to read the argument “Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King Jr. Before reading the text, students are given a mini-lesson on the difference between parallelism and repetition. Then, following the text, students are given definitions of parallelism and repetition then a chart with examples from the text as well as effects. Finally, under the heading “Practice and Apply”, students are asked to “locate other examples of repetition and parallel structure in King’s letter and consider their effects. Then look back at the speech you wrote in this selection’s Create and Present activity. Revise your speech to include an example of repetition and parallelism. Discuss with a partner the effects of your revisions.” In addition, the teacher sidebar provides teachers with additional instruction on the nuances between the two terms and where there are additional examples to be found.   
• In Student Edition, Unit 5, students are asked to read the short story “A Sound of Thunder” by Ray Bradbury. Before reading the text, students are given a grammar mini-lesson on the word transition along with a model from the story. Specifically, the Teacher's Edition explains to teachers that they could “Point out other examples of cause and effect transition words”. Then it explains that when students encounter transitions, they should ask “What is the important detail here? What kind of change has it produced? Following the text, students are again provided with the definition of the term, several examples and a Practice and Apply section that reads, “Revise your time travel story to add at least two transitional phrases that show cause-and-effect relationships. Discuss with a partner how each transition improves the meaning, flow and cohesion of your writing.”
• In Student Edition, Unit 5, students read several selections including: 
• “A Sound of thunder” by Ray Bradbury
• Authors use transitions, or connecting words, to show readers how the details in a paragraph are related. Some common transitions show relationships of comparison and contrast. Other transitions point out a cause-and-effect relationship.
• While reading: (prompt in margin notes) Annotate: In paragraph 38, number the steps in the cause-and-effect sequence chain, and mark the transition words that connect the steps. Analyze: What point is Travis trying to impress on the travelers? How do transitions emphasize this point?
• Apply: Revise your time travel story to add at least two transitional phrases that show cause-and-effect relationships.