11th Grade - Gateway 2

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 11 meet the criteria for texts are organized around a topic/topics or themes to build students’ knowledge and their ability to read and comprehend and analyze complex texts proficiently.

The materials for Grade 11 are organized into four topic-based units of study. Each unit is centered around a topic or text genre, and students build knowledge through inquiry via a variety of literary genres and different types of informational text. Units are designed for students to utilize the texts to comprehend complex texts/topics. Activities within each unit develop student’s knowledge through structured learning activities that provide scaffolding of content leading students towards independent and proficient comprehension. Students also read independently and complete tasks in response to their independent reading texts to build their knowledge about topics/themes within complex texts.

The opening page of each unit features a visual prompt and a quote aligned to the topic to initiate a classroom conversation. The first activity of each unit is a preview of the unit that includes Essential Questions linked to the topic of the unit. Additionally, the units contain connected sub-topics that build upon one another as the instructional year progresses. The design of the materials supports students’ comprehension of complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently due to scaffolding, gradual release, and increasingly demanding texts and tasks as the units progress.

Some examples are as follows:

• In Unit 1: The American Dream, students read a variety of contemporary and historical texts across multiple genres to explore the theme of the “American Dream.” Essential Questions include “What does it mean to be an American? What is the ‘American Dream?’ Does America still provide access to the ‘American Dream?’” The unit objective is for students to “synthesize information from these texts to write an essay about who has access to the American Dream.” To prepare for this, students complete tasks such as Activity 1.3, An American Story, in which they read a short story titled “America and I” by Anzia Yezierska and evaluate how the author’s diction and syntax contribute to the tone of the text. The first half of the unit introduces students to multiple perspectives of the American Dream through poetry by authors such as Langston Hughes and Julia Alvarez, as well as essays and speeches on freedom, immigration, and rights. After writing a definition essay for the first Embedded Assessment, students read articles, essays, a series of poems, and an excerpt from A Raisin in the Sun on the theme of immigration or being a minority in America. For the second Embedded Assessment, students synthesize all they have studied to write an argumentative essay on the attainability of the American Dream.
• In Unit 2: The Power of Persuasion, instruction builds on the argumentative focus of the first unit with more of a focus on information texts. Texts such as drama and speeches help students answer the Essential Questions “How can artistic expression advance social commentary?” and “How is rhetoric applied to the creation and delivery of persuasive speeches?”
• In Unit 3: American Forums: The Marketplace for Ideas, students examine both editorial texts and satire as key genres to understand how writers use careful reasoning and sufficient evidence versus “those that rely on manipulation, biased language, and fallacious reasoning.” In this unit, students focus on democracy and the way in which “writers use language to influence public opinion.” Lesson activities center students’ work around answering the following Essential Questions: “What is the role of media in our society, and how can we become responsible consumers and producers of information in a digital age? How can writers use satire to bring about change in society?” For example, in Activity 3.10, Where is the Proof, students analyze the effectiveness and appeal of evidence in one of the unit’s editorials. Students complete multiple tasks like this to prepare for the first Embedded Assessment in which they write an informational article on a “debatable issue of significance.” This is followed with lessons on satire including Activity 3.16, Analyzing Satirical Cartoons, that asks students to analyze cartoons for their satirical content and techniques. Other activities require students to look at editorial cartoons and write a parody before completing the second Embedded Assessment which requires students to “develop a satirical piece on some aspect of our society.”
• In Unit 4: An American Journey, students learn about the Harlem Renaissance through texts including poetry, literary criticism, and informational texts. Students research and present about the Harlem Renaissance for the first Embedded Assessment, answering one of the unit’s Essential Questions, “How do cultural movements such as the Harlem Renaissance reflect and create people’s attitudes and beliefs?” This provides historical context for the second part of the unit in which students use what they learned to read and analyze short stories and the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neal Hurston. For the second Embedded Assessment, students argue whether Hurston’s novel was an example or departure of the Harlem Renaissance to answer the unit’s other Essential Question, “How is one writer’s work both a natural product of and a departure from the ideas of a specific literary movement in American literature?”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 11 meet the criteria that materials contain sets of coherently sequenced higher-order thinking questions and tasks that require students to analyze the language (words/phrases), key ideas, details, craft, and structure of individual texts in order to make meaning and build understanding of texts and topics.

Across the four instructional units, there is a common pattern to activities within and across lessons. The lessons are organized into recurrent sections that require students to draw on texts directly multiple times over the course of a lesson and unit: Making Observations, Focus on the Sentence, Returning to the Text, and Working from the Text. Students work from initial thoughts about key details in a text, to focusing on specific sentences in the text. Then, students answer a series of text-dependent/specific questions about the text. The majority of these tasks almost always include an analysis of the key ideas, structure, craft, and language, and require students to seek evidence from the text to support their thinking. The Teacher Edition also includes multiple text boxes per lesson titled Scaffolding the Text-dependent Questions which provides a sequence of questions teachers can ask during the reading.

For most texts, students are asked to analyze language and/or author’s word choice (according to grade-level standards). Some examples are as follows:

• The materials contain coherently sequenced questions and tasks that address language and/or word choice.
• In Unit 1, The American Dream, Activity 1.19, students analyze the use of language to explain the impact the poet’s choices have on his/her readers. After reading “Ellis Island” by Joseph Bruchac, students answer questions such as “In line 4 of the poem, what might the word quarantine mean in the context of the opening lines?” and “How does the author’s choice of the word invaded (line 22) help the perception of the reader?” Students respond to similar questions after reading two other poems “Europe and America” by David Ignatow and “My Uncle’s Favorite Coffee Shop” by Naomi Shihab Nye. Students work with all three texts to identify the denotation and connotation of the key images found within the poems. The lesson concludes with students writing a response to a literary analysis prompt.

For most texts, students analyze key ideas and details, structure, and craft (according to grade-level standards). Examples include, but are not limited to:

• The materials contain coherently sequenced questions and tasks that address key ideas and details.
• In Unit 3, American Forums: The Marketplace of Ideas, Activity 3.9, students read two editorials, “Pro and Con: Raising Graduation for High School Students: Time to Raise the Bar in High Schools” by Jack O’Connell and “New Michigan Graduation Requirements Shortchange Many Students” by Nick Thomas, as they prepare to craft their own editorials. Students use a chart to organize their annotations while reading each editorial. Then, students use the chart to compare the key ideas presented by each author. Students must explain which writer made the stronger case. At the conclusion of the lesson, students respond to an argumentative writing prompt and “compose an editorial that responds to your original editorial. Write from an alternate perspective.”
• The materials contain coherently sequenced questions and tasks that address structure.
• In Unit 2, The Power of Persuasion, Activity 2.22, students complete the Check Your Understanding section after reading Abraham Lincoln’s “The Gettysburg Address.” Series of questions include “What appeals in this speech would likely be most memorable to Lincoln's audience? Which kind of appeal is most prevalent in Lincoln's speech? What effect would it have on the audience?” After considering this question, the lesson wraps up with Working from the Text. In this section, students return to the text to answer “What is the structure of Lincoln's speech? How does he work to provide a convincing conclusion?” and then work with a partner to find examples of pathos, logos, and ethos to complete a provided graphic organizer. After studying other historical speeches and similar tasks, students complete Embedded Assessment 2 in which they write a persuasive speech that addresses a contemporary issue.
• The materials contain coherently sequenced questions and tasks that address craft.
• In Unit 4, An American Journey, Activity 4.16, students read the last chapter of Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston and evaluate how Hurston’s use of literary elements including plot, character, setting, and point of view develops the theme and supports the author’s purpose. Prior to this lesson students analyze the author’s use of characterization, analyze how historical, social, and economic contexts influence the plot, characterization, and theme. These tasks prepare students for Embedded Assessment 2 when students must write an analytical essay that discusses how Hurston’s writing is “both a reflection of and a departure from the ideas of the Harlem Renaissance.”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 11 meet the criteria that materials contain a coherently sequenced set of text-dependent and text-specific questions and tasks that require students to build knowledge and integrate ideas across both individual and multiple texts.

The materials provide sequences of texts and accompanying text-dependent tasks that promote the building of knowledge and integration of ideas within texts and across texts. The Shared Instructional Vision of the materials is rooted in four principles that are designed to promote this type of learning: close observation and analysis, evidence-based writing, higher-order questioning, and academic conversations. Each unit follows a similar pattern to build student knowledge through close attention to a series of texts that when synthesized help students address the unit Essential Questions.

Within each unit activity there are sequences of text-specific and text-dependent questions designed to continuously bring students back to a deeper engagement with the texts. The sequence of questions first appear in the Working from the Text section. Additional sections such as Returning to the Text, Focus on Sentences, Writing Prompt, and Check Your Understanding also include text-specific questions and writing prompts to deepen students’ understanding of individual texts and genres. Certain features of the text encourage the integration of knowledge within and across texts such as the Knowledge Quest section that requires students to read a collection of texts on a specific topic, build knowledge and vocabulary on the topic and develop new understandings and considerations as they progress through the reading selections. Essential Questions at the beginning of each unit also provide students the opportunity to integrate and develop ideas across texts as they return to these questions throughout the unit and examine how their thinking has changed. Tasks throughout the unit require students to demonstrate this evolving understanding across texts. The tasks also prepare students for the two Embedded Assessments in each unit.

Some examples are as follows:

• In Unit 1, The American Dream, students read the short story “America and I” by Anzia Yezierska and evaluate how the author’s diction and syntax contribute to the tone of the text during Activity 1.3. Students begin by playing a tone game to study words used in the story and make predictions about the tone. Second, students listen to the teacher read an excerpt, then they respond to a writing prompt: “Based on the diction and syntax in the excerpt, what is the author’s tone toward America and the American Dream? What details about word choice and syntax support your answer?” Next students read the story and answer a series of text-specific questions such as “How has the author been affected by her experience working for an American family? What decision does the experience lead her to make in paragraph 42?” After a second reading of the text, students return to the text and underline words, phrases, and sentences that show the tone and answer another series of questions such as “Cite two or three examples of the narrator’s use of some form of the word America in paragraphs 10–13. What idea does each use communicate?” Next they respond to a Check for Understanding question: “Explain how the author’s diction and syntax in the final paragraph convey her hope for America.” Lastly, they complete a writing prompt: “Think about the experience of the narrator you read about in ‘America and I’ and how she describes a difficult experience in her life. Write a three to five paragraph narrative about a difficult moment from your own life.”
• In Unit 2, The Power of Persuasion, students look at literary and informational argumentative texts. In Activity 2.2, students read a range of texts to develop background knowledge for the anchor text The Crucible by Arthur Miller. Students read a series of texts: the sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” by Johnathan Edwards, the historical document “The New England Primer”, an essay “The Trial of Martha Carrier” by Cotton Mather, an illustration “Sorcerer Exchanging Gospels for a Book of Black Magic (no author cited); and a legal document “The Deposition of Joseph Hutchinson” by Joseph Hutchinson. After completing a KWL chart on Puritan New England, students read each text to complete a Knowledge Quest. Students answer questions after each reading that align to the question “What is the connection between religion and witchcraft in colonial New England?” Examples of questions include these: “In paragraph 1, what does Edwards mean by divine when he refers to ‘divine justice’?”; “What religious imagery or words do you notice?”; “In section 1, what does Mather mean by bewitching when he refers to the charges brought against Martha Carrier?”; “What do you think the figures in the image represent?”; and “How does Hutchinson’s deposition provide historical context about the connection between religion and witchcraft in colonial New England?”
• In Unit 4, An American Journey, students focus on literature of the Harlem Renaissance to learn how social and historical context shape a work’s literary elements. The novel Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston is the anchor text for the unit. Activity 4.12 uses chapters 3 and 4 for students to “analyze a character’s behavior, motivations, and moral dilemmas and how they influence plot.” As students read, they complete a graphic organizer to record notes about Janie’s behaviors and motivations. They then think about what moral dilemmas result and how her choices about the dilemmas influence the plot. In the Making Connections to the Harlem Renaissance section, students work in groups to discuss questions and take notes on the discussion. Questions include “Discuss how Janie’s frustration helps her growing self-awareness.” and “What other images add meaning to the text and define Hurston’s style as a Harlem Renaissance writer?” The activity ends with the Check Your Understanding section which asks “What symbolic act does Janie perform when she leaves Logan? How does Hurston’s word choice echo the optimism of the Harlem Renaissance?”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 11 meet the criteria that the questions and tasks support students’ ability to complete culminating tasks in which they demonstrate their knowledge of a topic through integrated skills (e.g., combination of reading, writing, speaking, listening).

Each grade level contains four units of study that have two Embedded Assessments each. These assessments serve as culminating tasks for a skill set driving the unit instruction. They require students to demonstrate their learning through interpretation, synthesis of research, and various types of analysis. Students may be prompted to present their work through a variety of ways: dramatic interpretation, creative writing, analysis essays, arguments, media presentations, or debates. The unit tasks and texts build student knowledge and capacity to complete the assessments which include reading, writing, research, speaking, presenting, and listening over the course of the year. The assessments and daily tasks within the unit include collaborative group projects along with independent work. To prepare for the assessments, students answer constructive response questions, annotate texts, complete graphic organizers, and write both short and full-length essay responses.

Within units, students also complete Knowledge Quests in which they read collections of texts to build their knowledge around a topic and its related vocabulary. Each Knowledge Quest begins with a central question and supporting questions that focus on student learning. After reading the collection of texts, students return to the knowledge question in order to synthesize what they learned through the readings and associated tasks, thus demonstrating their accumulated knowledge on the topic. This is accomplished through a writing prompt or academic discussion. Both the Embedded Assessments and the Knowledge Quests provide opportunities for students to demonstrate what they learned through reading, writing, speaking, and listening.

Some examples are as follows:

• In Unit 2, The Power of Persuasion, students read several historical documents and essays as they prepare to read The Crucible by Arthur Miller. Students focus on the representation of historical social issues and how persuasion impacts perception as they work toward Embedded Assessment 1: “As a small group, choose a modern social conflict. Then write and perform a dramatic scene set in a different historical time period that makes a statement about the conflict. Your performance should demonstrate your understanding of Arthur Miller’s purpose for writing The Crucible and how the play’s historical setting supports his purpose.” Students then finish the play as they focus on rhetoric and persuasion. In Activity 2.25, students practice analyzing how an author builds an argument leading to an understanding of what elements are necessary for an effective persuasive speech. Activity 2.26 shows students what elements, both physical and rhetorical, make an effective speech by watching or listening to two speeches and evaluating what the speaker does in these areas. Students then discuss in small groups and debate which speech was more effective. These tasks develop students’ skills for completing Embedded Assessment 2, during which students “write and present an original, persuasive two to three minute speech.” After presenting their speech, students reflect on “How was writing something meant to be performed in front of an audience different from writing a traditional essay?”
• In Unit 3, American Forums: The Marketplace of Ideas, students read various editorials and articles on current social issues. To prepare for the first assessment, students practice writing their own editorial in Activity 3.11: “Write a letter to the editor in response to one of the editorials you have read in this unit. Use the steps outlined in the How to Write a Letter to the Editor section to guide your writing.” For Embedded Assessment 1, students complete a culminating task that requires a combination of reading, writing, speaking, and listening: “Working in groups, your assignment is to plan, develop, write, revise, and present an informational article on a timely and debatable issue of significance to your school community, your local community, or a national audience. Be creative with your editorial products and include at least two different pieces, such as cartoons, editorials, letters, posters, photos, and so on.” After the first assessment, students turn their focus to analyzing and writing satire. After reading several current and historical pieces of satire, students prepare for their final assessment with tasks such as this final task in Activity 3:18: “Write a parody of some aspect of TV programming. Choose a partner and a subject (a genre like soap operas, sports broadcasts, reality shows, children’s television programs or a specific show). Next, write your parody using the format of a script.” Students then complete Embedded Assessment 2: “You have been studying how opinions are expressed and perceived in a democratic society through a variety of rhetorical formats including satire. Your assignment is to develop a satirical piece critiquing some aspect of our society.”
• In Unit 4, An American Journey, students complete a Knowledge Quest in response to this Knowledge Question: “What makes up a community?” Across Activity 4.3, students study the historical context of the Harlem Renaissance by reading an informational text about the Harlem community, “Introduction to The New Negro” by Alain Locke, two poems about Harlem, “To Usward” by Gwendolyn B. Bennett and “Lift Every Voice and Sing” by James Weldon Johnson, and a literary criticism piece that analyzes a poem about community life in Harlem, an excerpt from “On ‘From the Dark Tower’” by Eugenia W. Collier. As students read the selections, they consider their answer to the knowledge question and participate in a class discussion of text-dependent questions about the readings. Lastly, they discuss their thoughts on the knowledge question with a partner then complete a culminating task on the set of texts: “After reading these texts about communities, think about what makes up a community and why. With a partner, write an informative text about the makeup of a community. Respond to the following questions: “What is a community you know? Who is in this community? Is it big, small, or somewhere in between? How else can you describe your community? How do you feel about the ways in which you belong to this community?” Tasks like this build student knowledge and skill to complete Embedded Assessment 1 in which students collaboratively present an aspect of the Harlem Renaissance through an interactive multimedia presentation. Students then read the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston and analyze the text alongside their study of the Harlem Renaissance. In Activity 4.12, students complete a final task as preparation for their Embedded Assessment 2: “Review Chapters 2 and 3. Think about Nanny’s desires for Janie to have a life far different from her own and Leafy’s as well as Nanny’s belief ‘that freedom is symbolized by achieving the position on high.’ Write a paragraph explaining how these ideas are contrary to Hurston’s own ideas. Include information about how Nanny represents ideas held during the Harlem Renaissance and if and how Hurston departs from those.” For the final assessment, students write an essay to this prompt: “Write an analytical essay in which you discuss how Zora Neale Hurston’s writing is both a reflection of and a departure from the ideas of the Harlem Renaissance.”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 11 meet the criteria that materials include a cohesive, consistent approach for students to regularly interact with word relationships and build academic vocabulary/language in context.

In the opening pages of the text, the publisher explains the year-long, embedded approach to vocabulary incorporated in all grade levels. It explains, “Students are given ample opportunities to read and hear new words, explore their meanings, origins, and connotations, and use them in written and oral responses.” Students practice their vocabulary learning throughout lessons, activities, and assessments across the school year. Students not only learn the meanings of new vocabulary, they learn origins and connotations, and they apply their new knowledge through written and oral applications. The materials call out literary and academic vocabulary in boxes, and difficult vocabulary terms found in reading selections are glossed. Word Connections boxes also provide information for a “word with multiple meanings and nuances, an interesting etymology, a telling root or affix, a helpful Spanish cognate, a relationship to another word, or a connection to another content area.” At the beginning of each unit, there is a list of the literary and academic vocabulary for students, and the Teacher Wrap includes detailed information about vocabulary development including the importance of learning new vocabulary, what types of vocabulary students will encounter, and suggestions and resources for instruction. The Resources section at the conclusion of each grade level also contains a few strategies for working with vocabulary—Guided Reading, Question Heard Teach (QHT), Cloze Reading, Cognate Bridge, and Visual Prompts—as well as Graphic Organizers for working with vocabulary—Definition and Reflection, Verbal & Visual Word Association, and Word Map.

Attention is paid to vocabulary essential to understanding the text and to analyzing the purpose of word choices. Some examples are as follows:

• In Unit 1, The American Dream, students “read a short story and evaluate how the author’s diction and syntax contribute to the tone of the text” during Activity 1.3. The Teacher Wrap guides teachers to direct students to the Word Connections box and tell “students that learning the etymology and history of a word can enrich knowledge of its meaning.” Teachers “select a few compelling words from the text, such as ghetto, and ask students about the author’s possible intent for using them. Elicit other words that the author could have used.”
• In Unit 4, An American Journey, students read a variety of texts on the Harlem Renaissance. In Activity 4.3, the Learning Targets include integrating “ideas from multiple texts to build knowledge and vocabulary about communities.” For example, the materials include the following prompt for students: “Using a print or digital source, determine and list possible meanings of the word concentration. Which meaning is applicable to the word's use in the second sentence of paragraph 5? Explain. How does the author's definition of ‘race’ in paragraph 5 contribute to a greater understanding of the larger context and movement of the Harlem Renaissance? How does the author use the word pungent in line 30 to support the symbolism of a human experience? Explain the poet's use of the phrase rising sun as a metaphor in lines 9–10 of the poem. What message is being conveyed, and what is the tone of that message?”

Opportunities are present for students to learn, practice, apply, and utilize vocabulary in multiple contexts. Examples include, but are not limited to:

• In Unit 2, The Power of Persuasion, the Word Connections box in Activity 2.2 focused on suffixes and prefixes helps students define the word preternatural. In Activity 2.5, the vocabulary box focuses on the definition of the literary term foil. Students then apply the term to the reading from The Crucible by Arthur Miller.
• In Unit 3, American Forums: The Marketplace of Ideas, the Word Connection box in Activity 3.12 discusses foreign words. It shows how by knowing Greek and Latin roots, prefixes, and suffixes, students can make an educated guess at the meaning of a word. Then in Activity 3.15, students receive direct instruction on how to determine the meaning of words in context, followed by a Check your Understanding to see if students can use what they learned to determine the meaning of a word in context.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 11 meet the criteria that materials include a cohesive, year-long plan to support students’ increasing writing skills over the course of the school year, building students’ writing ability to demonstrate proficiency at grade level at the end of the school year.

The materials provide year-long comprehensive writing instruction throughout the four units of study via formative practice, frequent writing prompts, performance-based assessments, language checks, research tasks, and optional Writing Workshops. Writing tasks range from formal to informal, on-demand to multi-draft, and expressive to analytical. This includes short and full-length research tasks that require finding, analyzing, and synthesizing sources for evidence. Writing activities are incorporated daily for students to respond to texts for a variety of purposes such as making observations, analyzing content and author’s intent, and preparing for discussion or group work. Language and Writer’s Craft and Language Checkpoints give students practice in utilizing language and conventions in writing.

Each unit contains multiple writing prompts that build to the two Embedded Assessments in which students have the opportunity to write across multiple genres. Guided instruction, modeling, opportunities for practice, protocols, and rubrics help students build the skills necessary to complete tasks of increasing difficulty and for teachers and students alike to monitor growth. Supplemental materials include ten additional Writing Workshops that provide a closer look and additional practice of various writing genres. However, it is important to note that these are not a part of the core materials and will require additional time and teacher planning.

Some examples are as follows:

• In Unit 1, The American Dream, students read a mixture of informational and literary texts to craft an extended definition of the American Dream. For example, in Activity 1.4, students read “‘America and I” by Anzia Yezierska, and then “draft an essay evaluating how Yezierska's use of diction and syntax affects the evolution of tone in the narrative.” In Activity 1.6, students revisit a reading of Teresa M. Bejan’s essay “The Two Clashing Meanings of ‘Free Speech,’” and write an analysis of the author’s use of definition strategies such as classification, exemplification, function, or negation. Tasks like these prepare students for Embedded Assessment 1 in which they write a definition essay on what it means to be American. The second half of the unit presents poetry, drama, and essays on multiple perspectives of the American Dream. For Embedded Assessment 2, students then synthesize evidence from three to five sources and write an argumentative essay to “defend, challenge, or qualify the statement that America still provides access to the American Dream.”
• In Unit 2, The Power of Persuasion, students study how social commentary impacts social injustice. Students study The Crucible by Arthur Miller and a variety of historical documents, speeches, and essays. During Activity 2.25, students read a speech by Alfred M. Green and complete a timed analysis of the passage: “Write an essay in which you explain how Alfred M. Green builds an argument to persuade his audience that they, African Americans, should fight for the United States even though they do not yet have equal rights. In your essay, analyze how Green uses one or more of the listed features (or features of your own choice) to strengthen the logic and persuasiveness of his argument.” Tasks like these help students prepare to compose a dramatic scene on a social conflict for Embedded Assessment 1. After analyzing a mix of informational texts, students “write and present an original, persuasive two to three minute speech that addresses a contemporary issue” for Embedded Assessment 2.
• In Unit 3, American Forums: The Marketplace of Ideas, students continue their argumentative writing focus. The unit begins with a close look at media, bias, and rhetoric. The writing focuses on editorials and supporting opinions. For example, in Activity 3.11, students evaluate the effectiveness of several letters to the editor and learn how to write their own letter. At the end of the lesson in the Opening Writing Prompt section, students “Write a letter to the editor in response to one of the editorials you have read in this unit. Use the steps outlined in the How to Write a Letter to the Editor section to guide your writing.” The support for students includes several guidelines for organization structure, rhetorical techniques, and a conclusion. Embedded Assessment 1 requires students to collaborate to write an informational article on a significant issue and then adds this prompt: “After your group completes its article, you will individually develop a variety of editorial products that reflect your point of view (agreement, alternative, or opposing) on the topic. Be creative with your editorial products and include at least two different pieces, such as cartoons, editorials, letters, posters, photos, and so on.” The second part of the unit shifts toward past and present examples of satire to prepare students to compose their own piece of satire for Embedded Assessment 2.
• In Unit 4, An American Journey, students return to literary analysis and take a cultural journey through the Harlem Renaissance. Students first read multiple informational texts and poetry examples from the Harlem Renaissance to prepare an informational presentation for Embedded Assessment 1. Students utilize the unit texts and independent reading “to create an interactive multimedia research presentation about a topic related to the Harlem Renaissance.” The instructional year wraps up with a focus on literary criticism. For example, in Activity 4.17, students read and evaluate multiple critical reviews of the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston and complete an argumentative writing prompt: “Once you have discussed the critical reviews, choose one and defend or challenge. Connect your understanding of the critical review to the values, historical context, arts, or daily life championed by the movement known as the Harlem Renaissance.” Analytical tasks like these prepare students for Embedded Assessment 2: “Write an analytical essay in which you discuss how Zora Neale Hurston’s writing is both a reflection of and a departure from the ideas of the Harlem Renaissance.”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 11 meet the criteria that materials include a progression of focused, shared research and writing projects to encourage students to develop and synthesize knowledge and understanding of a topic using texts and other source materials.

The materials provide ample opportunities for students to practice evaluating sources, gathering relevant evidence, and citing and reporting findings accurately through shorter, focused, research tasks as well as more in-depth research projects. Throughout the year, students work collaboratively and independently to build their research skills. The Teacher Wrap provides suggestions for resources for teachers to bring to the classroom for students to explore and also provides students with choice in pursuing research avenues. Students analyze embedded selections and outside research brought to the classroom conversation. The units provide students shorter practice tasks that build their capacity to complete more extensive research projects generally through one or both of the Embedded Assessment.

Some examples are as follows:

• In Unit 1, The American Dream, during Embedded Assessment 2, students complete a culminating task combining research and writing: “Your assignment is to synthesize at least three to five sources and your own observations to defend, challenge, or qualify the statement that ‘America still provides access to the American Dream.’ This question requires you to integrate a variety of sources (three to five) into a coherent, well-written argumentative essay. Be sure to refer to the sources and employ your own observations to support your position. Your argument should be the focus of your essay; the sources and your observations should support this argument.”
• In Unit 3, American Forums: The Marketplace of Ideas, students read the editorial “Abolish High School Football!” by Raymond A. Schroth during Activity 3.7. In the Gaining Perspectives section, students conduct on-the-spot research: “You have heard one person’s opinion of why football should be banned in high school. With a partner, imagine you are a principal in a school who has a meeting with a parent regarding the safety of student football players. Compare a variety of online sources to gather information about the possible dangers. Then role-play talking with a parent in the school about your research as you negotiate and work together to reduce the safety and health risks for not only football players but all student-athletes. When you are done, summarize the outcome of the discussion in your Reader/Writer Notebook.” In Activity 3.10, students continue analyzing rhetoric of various arguments and editorials. In the section Art of Evidence, students complete a graphic organizer of various categories of collected evidence such as illustrative examples, testimony, and hypothetical cases across the editorials they have read so far. This prepares students to gather evidence to collaboratively write an editorial on an issue of their choice for Embedded Assessment 1.
• In Unit 4, An American Journey, students read multiple informational and literary texts on the Harlem Renaissance to build their knowledge of the historical movement. In Activity 4.4, students begin targeted research for their presentation on the movement. In the Locating Relevant Sources section, student directions state: “For this exercise, your teacher and your class will locate a relevant source in response to the question What was the role of visual artists during the Harlem Renaissance? Create a research plan by listing the types of visual arts common during the time of the Harlem Renaissance (approximately 1918–1937)” and “constructing online searches designed to locate informative sources about these Harlem Renaissance art types.” Students also learn to properly document their sources in Activity 4.5 before completing Embedded Assessment 1: “our assignment is to work in pairs or a small group to create an interactive multimedia research presentation about a topic related to the Harlem Renaissance. This presentation to your classmates should include a variety of media and must also include an annotated bibliography.”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 11 meet the criteria that materials provide a design, including accountability, for how students will regularly engage in a volume of independent reading either in or outside of class.

Each unit begins with a Planning the Unit section for teachers that includes a text list called Suggestions for Independent Reading which relate to topics, themes, and genres featured in the unit. The lists include a list for literary and nonfiction/informational texts, each with author, title, and Lexile level where applicable. Spanish selections are also provided. These lists can also be found in the Resources section along with a student independent reading log. Throughout the year, materials include frequent opportunities for students to engage in independent reading through lessons and self-selected materials. The beginning of each unit features a preview of the unit’s focus and guiding questions connected to the topic to support students in selecting the most appropriate independent reading texts and developing a reading plan. Twice per unit, the materials include Independent Reading Checkpoints that require students to complete an informal discussion or writing assignment. Students also respond to Independent Reading Links that require them to articulate connections between their independent reading and the skills/concepts they are learning about in the classroom, which also holds them accountable for completing their independent reading books and required reading logs. The Teacher Wrap also includes additional guidance for teachers to foster independence for all readers. When students read and analyze longer texts across the Activities, the materials suggest scaffolding strategies to support students along the way, gradually leading to their reading independence across the year. Additional readings can be found in the digital resource Zinc Reading Labs.

Some examples are as follows:

• In Unit 1, The American Dream, the Previewing the Unit section of Activity 1.1 invites students to explore the big ideas and tasks of the unit to come and make plans for their own independent reading. Student guidance recommends that they consider nonfiction essays, memoirs, autobiographies, or biographies that will help them understand how others define the American Dream. The Teacher Wrap prompts teachers to consider helping students build oral fluency by requiring them to provide a book talk about their selected texts. Some suggestions for independent reading include Nothing but the Truth by Avi, Snow in August by Pete Hamil, and Illegal by Bettina Restrepo (fiction); An American Childhood by Annie Dillard, Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell, and Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand (nonfiction).
• In Unit 2, The Power of Persuasion, students establish a routine for analyzing the development of characters in the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller during Activity 2.5. In the activity, students complete an Independent Reading Link that requires them to discuss the types of characters or people they’ve encountered in their independent reading with classmates. The materials direct students to take notes in their Reader/Writer Notebook regarding how these characters or people fit within the setting of the work. The materials include additional guiding questions such as the following: “What inferences are you able to make about characters and their motivations? What predictions are you able to make regarding these characters, and why?”
• In Unit 3, American Forums: The Marketplace of Ideas, students read two satirical pieces and use them as guides to begin working on their own during Activity 3.21. The materials include an Independent Reading Checkpoint that prompts students to respond to the following questions: “Which independent reading text did you have the best personal connection to? Did you connect to the text because of the topic or purpose of the satire? Did you connect to the text because of the language and style of the satire?” Students write a paragraph including the title of the text and an explanation of why they had a personal connection to it. Throughout this unit, students also read a local, national, or online newspaper every day, create a log to track what and when they read, and write down the titles of significant articles that they encountered in each section.
• In Unit 4, An American Journey, during Activity 4.17, students read and evaluate multiple critical reviews of the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neal Hurston and choose one to defend or challenge. At the end of the activity, students complete an Independent Reading Checkpoint that requires them to review their independent reading and consider if they would write a critical review for it. The materials suggest that students use the book reviews in this activity as a model to identify at least two thematic interpretations of the selection. Students are told to think about how they might use this information in a critical review and share their ideas with a group.