11th Grade - Gateway 2

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

StudySync materials include opportunities for both close reading and independent reading and allowing choices for students. The materials have a logical sequence of texts that allow students to read complex texts independently and proficiently by the end of the year. The materials include texts connected by a topic and an Essential Question in each unit. The materials include six topics—Breaking Away, The Highway, No Strangers Here, Living the Dream, The Wars We Wage, and With Malice Towards None.

Texts are connected by cohesive topics/themes/lines of inquiry. For example, some examples are as follows:

• In Unit 1, Breaking Away, students focus on fiction as a genre and the Essential Question, “Why do words matter?” Twelve texts connect to the theme and include opportunities to read across genres/text types, including but not limited to the historical document “The Constitution of the Iroquois Nations,” by Dekanawidah, an excerpt from the novel The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and the poem “On Being Brought from Africa to America,” by Phillis Wheatley.
• In Unit 2, The Highway, students read texts connected to the Essential Question, “How do journeys influence perspective?” Students read the poem “I never hear the word ‘Escape,’” by Emily Dickinson. The students analyze the transcendentalism and Romanticism focusing on the expression of emotions such as anxiety, awe, terror, and horror they notice in the unit’s previous selections. They talk about how they experience those same emotions through life’s journey as they write in their Writer’s Notebooks. Students also study the genre of fiction in this unit by reading excerpts and stories such as Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain and “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” by Flannery O’Connor while continuing their exploration of the unit’s Essential Question.
• In Unit 3, No Strangers Here, students focus on poetry as a genre and the Essential Question, “How does place shape the individual?” Thirteen texts connect to the theme, and the unit includes opportunities to read across genres/text types, including but not limited to an excerpt from the story Barracoon: The Story of the Last "Black Cargo," by Zora Neale Hurston, the poem “One Today,” by Richard Blanco, and the essay “We Contain Multitudes,” by Lauren Groff.
• In Unit 4, Living the Dream, students focus on the drama genre and the Essential Question, “What does home mean to you?” In an attempt to connect the understanding that the way we feel about home plays a significant part in the events that occur within our journeys, students read the poem “The Negro Speaks,” by Langston Hughes; students infer what the author means by the words he uses, and they discuss what the characters may have been thinking and feeling along their journey. Students also read a scene from the drama A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansberry and the essay “Eat, Memory: Orange Crush,” by Yiyun Li while exploring the unit’s Essential Question.
• In Unit 5, The Wars We Wage, students focus on argumentative texts as a genre and the Essential Question, “What does it mean to win?” Thirteen texts connect to the theme, including opportunities to read across genres/text types and apply their learning in an argumentative writing piece. Additional texts include but are not limited to the short story “A Rose for Emily,” by William Faulkner, an excerpt from the novel The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the speech “The Marshall Plan Speech,” by Secretary of State George Marshall, and the drama Death of a Salesman, by Arthur Miller.
• In Unit 6, With Malice Toward None, students ponder the Essential Question, “How can we attain justice for all?” Text selections explore the idea that justice is determined by an individual’s experiences during life’s journey and focus on the questions “What is the role of literature in attaining justice for all? What can we learn about other people’s experiences from a text that we would not have otherwise understood?” Students read Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man and make predictions by using the text features, evidence from the text, and their knowledge to determine what will happen and why as they read, while also examining the theme of racial injustice woven throughout the text. Additional texts used to explore the Essential Question include the poem “On Listening to Your Teacher Take Attendance” by Aimee Nezhukumatathil, the story “The Last Ride of Cowboy Bob” by Skip Hollandsworth, and the essay “The Color of an Awkward Conversation” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

The StudySync 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.

StudySync materials provide students the opportunity to apply their understanding of the skill(s) they have learned in conjunction with the text by participating in the Close Read of each text and using the Skills Focus questions to focus their second reading and annotation of the text. These questions guide students as they analyze and apply the author’s craft purposefully in preparation for their own written and oral projects and responses. Upon completion of the Close Read and Skills Focus Questions, students demonstrate their understanding of the author's purpose and craft by responding to a writing prompt. Students frequently respond to writing prompts throughout the year and track their work in their Writer’s notebook. By the end of the year, most items are embedded in students’ work rather than taught directly, increasing student independence.

For most texts, students are asked to analyze language and/or author’s word choice (according to grade-level standards). Examples include, but are not limited to the following:

• The materials contain coherently sequenced questions and tasks that address language and/or word choice. Examples include, but are not limited to the following:
• In Unit 2, The Highway, students read and annotate Chapter 1 of Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. During a Skill Lesson on language, style, and audience, students answer multiple choice questions about Twain’s specific word choice and syntax. One such example is “What effect do Miss Watson’s repetitious commands to Huck have on the reader?” After a close read of the text, students write in response to the following prompt: “Analyze how Mark Twain's choices regarding words and syntax help develop the main character's tone towards traditional society. Support your response with textual evidence.”
• In Unit 3, No Strangers Here, students complete a close read of “My True South: Why I Decided to Return Home,” by Jesmyn Ward, and analyze the way the author uses evidence and figurative language to support and strengthen her claims. Through literary analysis, students respond to the following prompt: “In ‘My True South: Why I Decided to Return Home,’ Jesmyn Ward uses narrative nonfiction and employs figurative language to strengthen her argument that while she is critical of the South, it is her home and is worth fighting for. Identify the reasons and evidence that Ward provides to support her claim. Then, analyze how her use of figurative language throughout the essay serves to strengthen her claim. Use textual evidence to support your response.”

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 following:

• The materials contain coherently sequenced questions and tasks that address key ideas and details. Examples include, but are not limited to the following:
• In Unit 1, Breaking Away, students identify and restate the text’s key ideas and details during a First Read of “Life After High School.” Students read the text and answer Think questions, such as “What are some of the benefits of staying near home after high school? Cite at least three examples from the ‘Counterpoint’ essay to support your answer.” After reading and discussing “Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street,” by Herman Melville, students analyze the relationship between thematic development, topic, and details of dialogue. Students address these questions: “How does the reader relate the description of Bartleby to the topic and developing theme? How does the reader analyze a detail about dialogue and its relationship to the theme? How will this thinking help the reader analyze the development of themes in other texts?”
• In Unit 4, Living the Dream, students read Zora Neale Hurston’s essay “How It Feels to Be Colored Me.” Students annotate for inferences as they read, and teachers remind students to ask themselves how the inferences they make enhance their understanding of Hurston’s message. Text Talk questions require students to identify the key details in the text. A Skill lesson on central or main idea requires students to identify the main idea of the essay and identify evidence to support their response. The Think questions require students to write about the key ideas and details from the text. “Summarize Hurston’s position on this part of her cultural history. What does Hurston’s anecdote about ‘The New World Cabaret’ convey to readers? How is life in Jacksonville different for Zora than it was in Eatonville? What are the significant changes, and how do they affect her?” Each answer must be supported with evidence from the text.
• The materials contain coherently sequenced questions and tasks that address structure. Examples include, but are not limited to the following:
• In Unit 1, Breaking Away, after reading and discussing “Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street,” by Herman Melville, students analyze the relationship between figurative language and story elements. Students address these questions: “How does the reader explain the impact of the author’s use of a hyperbole? How does the reader explain how contradictory words or phrases enhance his understanding of a character? How will this thinking help the reader analyze the use of figurative language in other texts?”
• In Unit 3, No Strangers Here, students reread “One Today,” by Richard Blanco and identify the choices an author makes when structuring specific parts of a poem and how these choices affect the reader and contribute to the meaning of the text. Students complete a Your Turn task by rereading stanzas of the poem and answering the following questions: “What best describes the meter of the first two lines of stanza 6? What is the author’s purpose for including many different languages in stanza 6? How does the poem’s ending in stanzas 8 and 9 relate to its beginning?”
• The materials contain coherently sequenced questions and tasks that address craft. Examples include, but are not limited to the following:
• In Unit 5, The Wars We Wage, after reading and discussing ”The Marshall Plan Speech,” by George Marshall, students articulate the author’s purpose and point of view. Students complete the Watch and Discuss SkillsTV Project and pause at the following times to prompt discussion: “0:30-What is the difference between an author's purpose and an author’s message? 1:30-How does Marshall make his argument relevant to his audience, most of whom lived in the United States, even though the war took place in Europe? 3:09-What do the students determine is Marshall’s purpose in giving this speech? Do you think he is successful in achieving this purpose? Why or why not?”
• In Unit 6, With Malice Towards None, students read and annotate Louise Erdrich’s short story “American Horse.” During a close read, students examine the author’s use of flashbacks and the impact this structure has on the characters and the overall meaning of the story. Students also analyze the complex points of view presented in the text. Teachers are encouraged to have students explain how a Skill Model “connects the use of understatement to point of view.” Finally, students write a literary analysis explaining how the author structures the story to develop a theme of isolation using evidence to support their ideas.

The StudySync 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.

StudySync materials provide students with the opportunity to deep dive into various reading skills and deepen their analysis of texts through the Skill Lessons. Tasks associated with these lessons include analyzing language, discussing the impact of word choice, identifying key ideas and details, and analyzing structure and craft. Paired texts usually provide opportunities for students to compare and contrast while practicing a reading skill across texts or a genre. Think questions frequently include higher-level questions that students complete independently after practicing skills previously covered in the unit or across the school year. Throughout all the units of study, students engage in a variety of writing activities in response to the reading of texts, including note-taking, annotating, creating short constructed responses, and completing Extended Writing Projects.

• Sets of questions and tasks provide opportunities to analyze within single texts. Examples include, but are not limited to the following:
• In Unit 1, Breaking Away, students read and annotate the poem “Verses upon the Burning of Our House,” by Anne Bradstreet. Students annotate for descriptive language and unfamiliar vocabulary. Multiple-choice questions help students summarize the issues presented in the text. For example, “Which sentence best summarizes the following passage (lines 21-27)?” Later, students fill out a chart to identify elements of style and major concepts from the text.
• In Unit 3, No Strangers Here, students independently read an excerpt from Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston. Students answer multiple-choice questions that assess their understanding of the text. For example, “The following passage (paragraph 3) adds to the development of the text mainly by-.” Teacher guidance is available to help students deepen their understanding. “Project onto the board exemplar methods for monitoring comprehension as a model for students as they continue reading.” Students also write a literary response analyzing analogies in the text and supporting their ideas with evidence from the text.
• In Unit 6, With Malice Toward None, students read “The Night Before Christmas,” by Tomás Rivera and analyze how story elements, such as setting, dialogue, and characterization, influence the development of the plot. Students answer questions, such as “How does the internal dialogue in paragraph 28 intensify the conflict? How does the description of the setting in paragraph 29 impact the climax of the story?”, before completing the writing task. Students then respond to a literary analysis prompt: “How does Tomás Rivera use dialogue to shape what you know about his characters? How does dialogue affect the plot of the story? What insight does the dialogue in this story provide the reader, and what is its impact? In a written response, analyze the author’s use of dialogue in this short story. Cite evidence from the text to support your analysis.”
• Sets of questions and tasks provide opportunities to analyze across multiple texts. Examples include, but are not limited to the following:
• In Unit 2, The Highway, students practice “Comparing Within and Across Genres” when reading “Because I could not stop for Death,” by Emily Dickinson and “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” by Flannery O’Connor. Before the writing task, students answer questions to assist in preparing them for the literary analysis. Examples include: “What impact does the author’s narration of this scene have on the reader? In this scene the reader encounters The Misfit. How does the revelation about who he is contribute to the suspense of this scene? The grandmother has a feeling that she recognizes the driver. How does this realization lead to the story’s climax?” Students respond to a prompt after reading both texts: “Compare and contrast the way the short story ‘A Good Man Is Hard to Find’ and the poem ‘Because I could not stop for Death’ use text structure to express and contribute to each text’s overall meaning about death. Provide analysis and textual evidence from both the poem and the short story to support your response.”
• In Unit 3, No Strangers Here, students read a text set that includes the poems “South,” by Natasha Trethewey, “‘N’em,” by Jericho Brown, and “Given to Rust,” by Vievee Francis. While reviewing the texts, students analyze descriptive details, figurative language, and main ideas. The materials include teacher guidance to help lead conversations and deepen students’ understanding of the texts. Students write in response to the following prompt: “‘Given to Rust,’ ‘South,’ and ‘N’em’ each present an individual navigating the connections between the past and the present. Compare and contrast how this idea is presented across each of the poems.”
• In Unit 5, The Wars We Wage, students read excerpts from The Moor’s Account, by Laila Lalami and Othello, by William Shakespeare together. First, students prepare and engage in a discussion on the characters’ actions. Skill Lessons support students with analyzing language, style, and audience as well as character relationships in the text. Lastly, students compare and contrast across texts by responding to the following prompt: “Analyze how each author’s word choice helps portray each man’s judgment in order to foreshadow the reversal of fortune. Support your response with evidence from the text.”

The StudySync 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).

StudySync materials provide students the opportunity to apply previously practiced skills from the Integrated Reading and Writing lessons during the Extended Writing Project or Extended Oral Project. The lessons incorporate questions for consideration and oral or written tasks that allow students to demonstrate their knowledge of a topic or theme. The lessons and Extended Writing or Oral Projects relate to each unit’s Essential Question. Earlier questions and tasks give the teacher usable information about the student's readiness (or whether they are “on track”) to complete culminating tasks. The questions students consider in each lesson, as well as the writing and discussion prompts associated with the texts students read, relate to the Essential Question and the common theme woven throughout each unit. Teachers can determine their students’ readiness during the completion of these tasks and provide support when necessary to help them achieve proficiency with the longer culminating tasks.

Culminating tasks are provided and they are multifaceted, requiring students to demonstrate mastery of several different standards at the appropriate grade level. For example, some examples are as follows:

• In Unit 1, Breaking Away, students seek to answer the Essential Question, “Why do words matter?” as they read a variety of texts, such as “Constitution of the Iroquois Nation,” by Dekanawidah (Oral Tradition)“ and Declaration of Independence, by Thomas Jefferson. After reading both historical documents, students complete a Skill: Rhetoric lesson designed to support students with analyzing rhetorical devices and prepare them for a smaller culminating task. The materials include a Rhetoric Checklist for students. The checklist focuses on identifying details and statements that identify the author's point of view and purpose, as well as guiding questions, such as “How does the use of rhetorical devices affect the way the text is read and understood?” to use when analyzing the Skill Model. Students complete a multiple choice quiz before discussing and responding to a compare and contrast prompt. “‘Constitution of the Iroquois Nation’ and the Declaration of Independence use rhetoric to reveal the author’s purpose and point of view. Write a response in which you compare and contrast each text’s purpose and the rhetoric used to support it. Then evaluate which text more effectively uses rhetorical devices, using textual evidence and original commentary to support your response.” This task integrates reading, speaking, listening, and writing skills.
• In Unit 2, The Highway, students focus on the literary periods of Transcendentalism and Romanticism, reading texts, such as The Negro Motorist Green Book, by Victor H. Green as they explore the Essential Question, “How do journeys influence perspective?” Students complete several Skill lessons that prepare them to respond to an explanatory writing prompt about how the author uses visual media and text elements to enhance the reader’s understanding. During the Extended Writing Project students select two to three of the unit texts that connect to the idea of being on a journey and craft an informative essay in response to the question “What do we learn along the way?” This task integrates reading and writing skills.
• In Unit 3, No Strangers Here, students focus on the literary periods of Realism, Naturalism, and Regionalism, reading texts such as the personal essay “My True South: Why I Decided to Return Home,” by Jesmyn Ward, as they investigate the Essential Question, “How does place shape the individual?” Students practice analyzing figurative language during Skill lessons connected to Ward’s piece, the poem “Given to Rust,” by Vievee Francis, and the short story “The Midnight Zone,” by Lauren Groff. During the Extended Writing Project, students use their knowledge of texts read earlier in the unit to craft a literary analysis. The prompt states, “From texts in this unit, select three individuals… examine how these individuals are shaped by and interact with their immediate surroundings.” This task integrates reading and writing skills.
• In Unit 4, Living the Dream, students focus on the literary period of the Harlem Renaissance, reading texts such as Fences, by August Wilson as they probe the Essential Question, “What does home mean to you?” Students complete Skill lessons on dramatic elements and structure and summarizing to prepare for smaller culminating tasks, as well as the end-of-unit task. Upon completing the Close Read lesson for Fences, students discuss and respond to a literary analysis prompt: “Think about the setting and the action in this excerpt from Fences. How does the literal action—Troy constructing a fence in the backyard, and enlisting Cory to join him—coincide with what is happening in the dialogue? Analyze how the author uses dramatic elements and structure to develop the connection between literal action and the deeper relationship between the characters.” This task integrates reading, speaking, listening, and writing skills.
• In Unit 5, The Wars We Wage, the focus is on the literary period of American modernism. Students read texts such as William Shakespeare’s play Othello as they explore the Essential Question, “What does it mean to win?” Skill lessons on language, style, and audience as well as media support students in understanding word choice, foreshadowing, and style. complete a culminating writing task found in the Close Read: Othello lesson. After reading The Moor’s Account, by Laila Lalami, students complete a small culminating task, during which they discuss and respond to a literary analysis prompt that analyzes word choice and its connection to foreshadowing. “In Othello, the great Moroccan general Othello is brought down by lies. In The Moor’s Account, Estebanico, an enslaved Moroccan man, survives a dangerous trek through the unknown and eventually escapes to freedom. For both, their ability or inability to judge the people and situations around them causes a radical reversal of fortune. Analyze how each author’s word choice helps portray each man’s judgment in order to foreshadow the reversal of fortune. Support your response with evidence from the text.” This task integrates reading, speaking, listening, and writing skills.
• In Unit 6, With Malice Toward None, students focus on the literary period of Postmodernism as they read texts such as Rita Dove’s free verse poem “Demeter’s Prayer to Hades” and investigate the Essential Question, “How can we attain justice for all?” Students complete Skill lessons on poetic elements and structure and analyzing Postmodernism, and respond to a literary analysis prompt. During the Extended Oral Project, students plan, draft, revise, edit and publish a persuasive oral presentation in response to the question “How can we seek justice?” Students use evidence from unit texts or outside research to argue why a change in their school or society would result in a more just world. This task integrates reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills.

The StudySync 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.

StudySync materials allow students to revisit certain vocabulary words across multiple texts within each unit or across the school year. The instructional materials include opportunities to practice Academic Vocabulary during Skill lessons at the beginning of the unit and review Academic Vocabulary at the end of the unit. The materials attend to content vocabulary essential to understanding the text and analyzing the purpose of word choices. Vocabulary instruction and practice accompany the core program's selections to build vocabulary knowledge and improve students’ abilities to access complex texts. Opportunities for students to determine the meaning of vocabulary words using context clues consistently are available.

Vocabulary is repeated in various contexts (before texts, in texts, etc.) and across multiple texts. Examples include, but are not limited to the following:

• Vocabulary is repeated in contexts (before texts, in texts, etc.).
• In Unit 2, The Highway, between the First Read and the Close Read of Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, students complete a Skill lesson on language, style, and audience, during which they reread the text and evaluate how Twain uses word choice to affect the audience. Students access vocabulary learning opportunities in various contexts, such as watching the Concept Definition Video, completing a vocabulary chart, listening to students model formal and informal diction through SkillsTV, and then rereading the text to demonstrate knowledge of how Twain uses specific words for effect.
• In Unit 3, No Strangers Here, students complete a Skill: Academic Vocabulary lesson, learning the meanings of 10 Academic Vocabulary words and how the Academic Vocabulary words can be used in a variety of contexts. Terms students learn during the lesson include analogy, coincide, converse, inherent, minimal, overlap, plus, predominant, restrain, and rigid. A model is available for students to learn Academic Vocabulary to help them describe relationships. In the Your Turn section of the lesson, students answer questions and write a sentence for each vocabulary word. After students complete a close read of Barracoon: The Story of the Last ‘Black Cargo,’ by Zora Neale Hurston, they respond to a writing prompt. The prompt includes an Academic Vocabulary term from the previous list: “The authors of both ‘What to the Slave is The Fourth of July?’ and Barracoon: The Story of the Last ‘Black Cargo use writing to shed light as well as offer commentary on the institution of slavery. For each text, summarize what the author wants his or her audience to understand about the inherent brutality of slavery and what content or rhetorical choices the author makes to convey this message.”
• In Unit 4, Living the Dream, students begin the unit with a Skill lesson on Academic Vocabulary. Teachers provide direct instruction, helping students understand the multiple meanings of the unit’s terms. Students evaluate words like development, connection, and examination, in addition to others, and note similarities and differences in the multiple meanings that they learn. They also craft their sentences using the Academic Vocabulary. Throughout the unit, these words can be used for discussions about various texts if teachers so choose. For instance, before reading Langston Hughes’s poem, “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” students may revisit the Academic Vocabulary by “discussing mainstream print and cultural discourse.” Before reading the argumentative text “Dream House” (author not cited), they use the vocabulary words “when discussing definitions of the American dream.” Students are encouraged to use as many Academic Vocabulary words as they can during the discussion and other similar ones that happen throughout the unit.
• Vocabulary is repeated across multiple texts.
• In Unit 1, Breaking Away, students complete a Skill: Academic Vocabulary lesson, learning the meanings of 10 Academic Vocabulary words, as well as how the Academic Vocabulary words are used in a variety of contexts. Terms students learn during the lesson include account, bearing, concentration, determine, engage, insensible, plot, represent, settle, and temper. When students complete a close read of “The Story of an Hour,” by Kate Chopin, students respond to a writing prompt that includes an Academic Vocabulary word: “How does the author use story elements such as setting, character development, or theme to develop the plot of “The Story of an Hour?” In your response, evaluate at least two of the story elements used by the author and how they shape the plot.” After independently reading The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, students respond to a writing prompt which includes the same Academic Vocabulary word: “The Scarlet Letter depicts life in a society where Puritan values are the norm. What details about the historical and social setting of this society contribute to the plot and how people in the crowd perceive Hester?”
• In Unit 3, No Strangers Here, students complete the first read of “One Today,” by Richard Blanco and use context clues to make predictions about the following boldfaced vocabulary words: crescendoing, teeming, din, prejudice, and constellation. Students complete a Reading Quiz by matching each vocabulary word to its definition. Students then complete a close read of the same text and complete a vocabulary activity to define and write a sample sentence for each vocabulary word. In Unit 5, students circle back to the same content vocabulary word during a first read of The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald. During the reading, students use context clues to make predictions about the boldfaced vocabulary words. The vocabulary word prejudice is repeated across texts and units.
• In Unit 6, With Malice Toward None, students access Skill lessons under The Big Idea that are revisited throughout the unit. The Academic Vocabulary—Corroborating Evidence lesson includes ten words that are reintroduced in Close Read lessons throughout the unit, where students are encouraged to use them in discussions and writing responses. For example, in the close read lesson for the text “American Horse,” written by Louise Erdrich, students come back to the Academic Vocabulary word clarify and are encouraged to use it in their literary analysis response to both the “American Horse” and Invisible Man, by Ralph Ellison.

Students are supported to accelerate vocabulary learning with vocabulary in their reading, speaking, and writing tasks. Opportunities are present for students to learn, practice, apply and utilize vocabulary in multiple contexts. Examples include, but are not limited to the following:

• In Unit 1, Breaking Away, students complete a Skill lesson to analyze how rhetorical devices strengthen the argument in the Declaration of Independence by Thomas Jefferson, et al. Students learn the definitions of rhetoric and rhetorical device. A model is available for students to “look at how one reader analyzes the rhetorical devices from the Declaration of Independence.” In the Your Turn section of the lesson, students reread paragraph 33 of the text and answer questions. After students complete a close read of the Declaration of Independence, they respond to a writing prompt: “Constitution of the Iroquois Nation,” by Dekanawidah (Oral Tradition) and the Declaration of Independence use rhetoric to reveal the author’s purpose and point of view. Write a response in which you compare and contrast each text’s purpose and the rhetoric used to support it. Then evaluate which text more effectively uses rhetorical devices, using textual evidence and original commentary to support your response.” After reading The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavus Vassa, the African, by Olaudah Equiano, students engage in discussion to answer the question: “What kind of rhetorical devices and appeals does Equiano use at the end of the last paragraph?”
• In Unit 4, Living the Dream, students practice using Tier 3 vocabulary words in the lesson on technical language after reading “Letter from Chief John Ross,” written by John Ross. Students use the technical language in the lesson for the purpose of developing writing using word choice that is precise and accurate. To determine the meaning of technical vocabulary, students use a checklist that asks them to consider questions while reading, such as, “What is the subject of the informational text?” Students apply their knowledge in the Your Turn component of the lesson as they answer multiple-choice questions and determine the meaning of words in context.
• In Unit 5, The Wars We Wage, students complete a lesson about Academic Vocabulary—Preparing for the ACT and SAT: Part 4. Students learn ten words: address, blunt, convey, diffuse, execute, harbor, launch, resolution, sheer, and term. A model is available to help students expand their vocabulary. Then, students complete a Your Turn section of the lesson in which they answer questions to demonstrate an understanding of the Academic Vocabulary. While reading The Moor’s Account, by Laila Lalami, students engage in a discussion related to the reading and includes an Academic Vocabulary word. “The narrator feels ashamed when the soldiers launch their raid on the village. Why? Examine the root causes of Estebanico’s feelings.” At the end of the unit, students complete a Vocabulary Review of the same Academic Vocabulary words. The model allows students to try strategies such as the following: “1. Use the words in the context of slam poetry. With a group generate a topic and take turns creating a short slam poem using words in the list. Look up examples of slam poetry online, if needed. Using words in a new context can help you learn to use words with intention. (ex. The problems of the world, diffuse and exploding,/ Call me to launch some new ideas.)”
• In Unit 6, Origin Stories, students begin the unit with a list of 10 Academic Vocabulary terms. Throughout the unit, teachers may spiral back to the terms in discussions. At the end of the unit, students complete a Vocabulary Review. Teachers give direct instruction on various vocabulary strategies. Teachers encourage students to “look up the etymology of a word and explain how it relates to one or more of the words it is derived from.” Students may also create an art exhibit inspired by the vocabulary terms or develop an advertisement about them. They categorize the words before finally responding to a discussion prompt about themes from the unit. Teachers encourage students to use as many vocabulary terms as they can and write in response to the following prompt: "Discuss an example of an injustice from one of the texts that you have studied in this unit. How might postmodern thinkers view this issue? And based on that perspective, is there any way to achieve justice for all in a postmodern world? Use as many Literary Focus and Academic Vocabulary words in your discussion as you can.”

The StudySync 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.

StudySync materials provide students the opportunity to participate in a wide range of writing tasks, including short-response questions, Think questions, and Extended Writing Projects throughout the year. The tasks vary in length and purpose and help students develop their informational and narrative writing skills. Students must defend their writing and ideas with textual evidence. Extended Writing Projects walk students through each stage of the writing process and allow students to monitor their progress with rubrics, checklists, and graphic organizers. Writing instruction and assignments scale up in difficulty throughout the year.

Writing instruction supports students’ growth in writing skills over the course of the school year, building students’ writing ability to demonstrate proficiency at grade level at the end of the year. For example, some examples are as follows:

• In Unit 2, The Highway, students practice citing evidence to support a written response during the First Read of Chapter 1 of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain The prompt is as follows: “How does Huck describe living with the Widow Douglas? What does Huck’s view of the widow reveal about himself? Cite evidence from the text to support your response.” Students practice the skill of citing evidence again after engaging in a Close Read and discussion of the same text. Students respond to the following literary analysis writing prompt: “Summarize the main character’s tone towards traditional society. Then, analyze how Mark Twain's choices regarding words and syntax help develop the main character's tone towards traditional society. Support your response with textual evidence.”
• In Unit 3, No Strangers Here, after reading the poem, “One Today,” by Richard Blanco, students begin the first of many lessons around this poem by identifying pronouns and their impact in this poem. During the First Read lesson, students use a thesaurus or dictionary as they read. The materials include a paragraph guide to help students during the Text Talk that requires them to identify stanzas and respond to questions. This lesson provides the support students need to write a literary analysis during the Close Read: One Today lesson. The First Read, along with the Skill lessons on poetic elements and structure and media, are specifically designed to build skills necessary for students to write proficiently to the literary analysis writing response.
• In Unit 5, The Wars We Wage, students read the play Othello, written by William Shakespeare, and then analyze his literal and figurative word choice. Students must also make a connection between the multiple layers of meaning created by Shakespeare and the play’s plot and theme. Materials provide supports such as the Skill: Language, Style, and Audience Lesson and the Close Read: Othello lesson that develop students’ ability to analyze word choice and how it advances the plot. Students write a literary analysis demonstrating their understanding of two different author’s word choices and how it impacts the plot.

Instructional materials include a variety of well-designed guidance, protocols, models, and support for teachers to implement and monitor students’ writing development. Examples include, but are not limited to the following:

• In Unit 2, The Highway, students independently read an excerpt from the memoir Mississippi Solo, by Eddy L. Harris and respond to a writing prompt. The Teacher Edition includes guidance to Check for Success: “If students are struggling to respond to the prompt, ask them scaffolded questions, such as: Why does the author of ‘Mississippi Solo’ go on his journey? How does the author’s planned trip reflect his perspective on the world?”
• In Unit 3, No Strangers Here, three texts, found in the beginning, middle and end of the unit, which build the skill of analyzing figurative language for purpose and impact are, “My True South: Why I Decided to Return Home,” written by Jesmyn Ward, “Given to Rust,” written by Vievee Francis, and “The Midnight Zone,” written by Lauren Groff. Students begin learning about figurative language within the first text introduced in the unit, “My True South: Why I Decided to Return Home,” during the Skill: Figurative Language lesson. The Skill lesson introduces students to types of figurative language such as simile, metaphor, personification, and figures of speech. In the Close Read lesson following the Skill lesson, students respond to a literary analysis prompt that requires them to analyze the author’s use of figurative language along with identifying reasons and evidence to support the claim. Eight texts later, students read “Given to Rust,” by Vievee Francis and engage in another Skill: Figurative Language lesson. Materials provide a Checklist for Figurative Language that adds to the previous lesson by including extended metaphor and implied metaphor. A Close Read lesson follows where students write a literary analysis comparing and contrasting three poems while analyzing the author's use of figurative language. Finally, students access the last text of the unit and continue to build on figurative language in yet another Skill: Figurative Language lesson. This lesson contains a SkillsTV video to build meaning around figurative language. Students again have a Checklist for Figurative Language with additional details such as hyperbole. Students again practice applying their knowledge about figurative language during a compare and contrast writing prompt that requires them to identify different authors' use of figurative language and its effect on the reader.
• In Unit 6, With Malice Toward None, students complete a Timed Writing: Interpreting the Constitution as the final piece of the Instructional Path within Integrated Reading and Writing. The Timed Writing takes place before an End-of-Unit Assessment. Students respond to a writing prompt, and students use a graphic organizer to “plan out your position on whether the Supreme Court justices should interpret the Constitution as a stable or living document. Include your claim, reasons, and evidence.” The Teacher Edition includes additional guidance for the Timed Writing task: “Scaffolds are provided to assist students as they practice timed writing. To replicate the testing environment, turn off scaffolds, but allow students to ask clarifying questions about unknown words or phrases in the prompt.”

The StudySync 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.

StudySync materials provide opportunities for students to engage in online research and discussion around Blast topics and cite evidence from multiple sources in Extended Writing Projects and Extended Oral Projects. Materials support teachers in employing projects that develop students’ knowledge of different aspects of a topic. The research for each Blast gives students direct links. As students work on culminating tasks that require research, the prompts give them suggestions on figures, topics, or themes to help them begin. Teacher-facing materials provide instructors with guidance on how to help struggling students complete their research, along with scaffolds to build student independence. The Extended Writing Projects and Extended Oral Projects that are at the end of the units require students to go through the entire writing process, and they work together in groups or pairs for editing and revising tasks. They are required to synthesize information from multiple texts in the unit, and must often include outside research as well. The materials provide guidance and support to teachers, including but not limited to, questions to prompt student thinking, graphic organizers to assist students, and an option for teachers to provide various scaffolds for students.

Research projects are varied throughout materials, and students are provided with opportunities for both “short” and “long” projects across the course of a year and grade bands. Examples include, but are not limited to the following:

• Students have opportunities to engage in “short” projects across grades and grade bands.
• In Unit 2, The Highway, students engage in First Read: Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain and use research skills. Students may work in small groups to do a five-minute online search to gather information on whether the perception of the main character, Huck Finn, has changed over time. Students continue to gather information as they use context clues to determine the meaning of bold words, ask questions about unclear texts, and identify connections between events, characters and key details.
• In Unit 4, Living the Dream, students read and annotate an informative text to gain background knowledge about the impact of magnetic fields on humans and animals, and “finding the way home.” Students annotate key ideas, ask questions regarding text that is unclear, and highlight textual information that relates to the driving question: “How do we know the way home?” Teachers may assign small groups of students to jigsaw different links to research and provide them with guiding questions to gather information during Blast: Homeward Bound.
• In Unit 5, The Wars We Wage, during the Big Blast “ The Cold War on Ice,” students explore background information and research links about a topic. There are five research links, each followed by a description:
• “Lake Placid 1980 Web Page: The International Olympic Committee breaks down the rest of the highlights from the 1980 Winter Games.
• The 1980 Moscow Olympics Boycott Video: Did you know the United States actually boycotted the Olympics one year? After a successful Winter Games, find out what led to this controversial decision.
• Remembering the USA's Miracle On Ice Video: How did an amateur team of college students coached by a former hockey player make history? This video from the International Olympic Committee explains how the U.S. team pulled it off.
• US Hockey Team Makes Miracle on Ice Article/Video: On February 22, 1980, the U.S. Olympic Hockey team made history. How did their historic win affect the politics of the time?
• The 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team Web Page: For all the hockey fans out there, this U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame web page describes the game in its entirety.”

Using these tools, students write a 140-character response to a question.

• Students have opportunities to engage in “long” projects across grades and grade bands.
• In Unit 2, The Highway, students engage in an informative writing project at the end of the unit. Students gather information for this writing project from two or three texts as well as research links in the Blasts to describe the journey taken and the learning along the way found within each text. During the Draft phase of the Extended Writing Project, students use a graphic organizer to gather and record evidence on a thesis statement and supporting information found in three different texts.
• In Unit 4, Living the Dream, students engage in both short-term and sustained recursive inquiry processes as they conduct research during the Extended Writing Project. During the Plan lesson, students practice annotating research writing with a Student Model. The Teacher Edition provides questions with sample answers to help students understand how to research and take notes: “What information did Daniela include on each source card? How did that information help Daniela in her research process? What information did Daniela write on each note card? How did that information help Daniela? How did reviewing notecards help Daniela synthesize information?”
• In Unit 6, With Malice Toward None, students work on an oral presentation project. During Oral Presentation: Process, students learn about the four characteristics of argumentative oral presentations and determine which ones they will need to know more about in order to answer the prompt effectively. Students annotate a Student Model as they highlight logical structure, accurate evidence, speaking techniques, and relevant visual aids. Students then gather information around a change that would create a “more just world.”

The StudySync 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.

StudySync materials provide students with the opportunity to participate in independent reading selections within each unit. These selections pair with a core text that receives full instructional support; students also participate in a Self-Selected Blast at the end of each unit. Students may access texts in the StudySync library for self-selected reading; these texts “fit with the theme and Lexile range for that particular unit, so teachers can be sure the options are appropriate for their students.” The Pacing Guide has been updated to include the Self-Selected Readings and the Program Guide now includes a section titled Building an Outside Independent Reading Program. There is a tracking system to track independent reading.

For example, some examples are as follows:

• In Unit 1, Breaking Away, supports are in place for independent reading, such as the independent read of “On Being Brought from Africa to America,” by Phillis Wheatley when the materials include guidance that reminds students to monitor comprehension by “Using context clues to make predictions about the boldfaced vocabulary words.” “Text Talk questions help teachers gauge student comprehension of a text, but additional questions for beyond grade-level students encourage deeper consideration of a text, allowing students to begin preliminary analysis.” Another option for student self-selection is an excerpt from The Crucible, by Arthur Miller. The StudySync Library provides an option to “Add to bookshelf” and annotate the text. The selection is an excerpt from the play, and students should be able to complete it within the same class period. The materials do not indicate if any additional time should be allotted outside of class for students to complete the selections and what to anticipate for independent reading.
• In Unit 2, The Highway, supports are in place for students to independently read a variety of interactive digital texts to explore the Essential Question, “How do journeys influence perspective?” The essay “Walden,” by Henry David Thoreau, is read independently but the text also has a Skill Lesson to deepen students’ understanding. Emily Dickinson’s poems “I never hear the word Escape” and “Because I could not stop for Death,” an excerpt from the nonfiction text Mississippi Solo, by Eddy Harris, and an excerpt from The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration, by Isabel Wilkerson are read independently but are also paired with other texts that share common themes. A scene excerpt from Little Miss Sunshine, by Michael Arndt is read independently without paired texts. While independently reading, students are encouraged to annotate and identify the following: context clues for vocabulary, questions about the text, key details, and examples of descriptive language. Teacher materials include the following support: “Ask small groups to provide examples of how to monitor comprehension when understanding breaks down. Project onto the board exemplar methods for monitoring comprehension as a model for students as they continue reading.” Following each independent read, students assess their comprehension through a short online quiz or written response.
• In Unit 3, No Strangers Here, supports are in place for students to read an independent reading selection paired with a core text that receives full instructional support. For example, students “Analyze Differing Perspectives” when independently reading “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July,” by Frederick Douglaass paired with an excerpt from Barracoon:The Story of the Last “Black Cargo,” by Zora Neal Hurston. Additional supports assist students with drawing inferences using textual evidence, summarizing portions in order to understand the development of central ideas in the text, and summarizing an author’s message. The independent reading schedule also includes a Self-Selected Blast at the end of each unit. In Unit 3, the materials recommend options to select another related text by asking questions, such as “Do I want to read another stream of consciousness novel by William Faulkner? Perhaps you might try The Sound and the Fury.”
• In Unit 4, Living the Dream,” supports are in place for students to independently read a variety of interactive digital texts to explore the Essential Question, “What does home mean to you?” The poems “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” by Langston Hughes and “The Old Cabin,” by Paul Laurence Dunbar and short stories “The Fall of the House of Usher,” by Edgar Allan Poe and “In Our Neighborhood,” by Alice Dunbar-Nelson are all read independently and also paired with other texts that share common themes. The argumentative text “Dream House” (authors not cited) and the essay “Eat, Memory: Orange Crush,” by Yiyun Li are read independently without paired texts. While independently reading, students are encouraged to annotate and identify the following: context clues for vocabulary, questions about the text, key details, and examples of descriptive language. Teacher materials provide the following guidance, “Ask small groups to provide examples of visualizations they have made. Project exemplar visualizations onto the board as a model for students as they continue reading.” Following each independent read, students assess their comprehension through a short online quiz or written response.
• In Unit 5, The Wars We Wage, supports are in place for students to choose independent reading selections through the StudySync library and to self-monitor. Examples of independent selections within the unit include but are not limited to the essay “‘These Wild Young People’ by One of Them,” by John F. Carter, Jr., the short story “A Rose for Emily,” by William Faulkner, and an excerpt from the drama Death of a Salesman,” by Arthur Miller. Examples of self-selected texts connecting to the genre include but are not limited to The Sun Also Rises, by Ernest Hemingway, the speech “War Message to Congress,” by Woodrow Wilson, John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address, and Two Trains Running, by August Wilson.
• In Unit 6, “With Malice Toward None,” supports are in place for students to independently read a variety of interactive digital texts to explore the Essential Question, “How can we attain justice for all?” An excerpt from Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man, Christine Kitano’s poem “Gaman,” the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and Dalia Rosenfeld’s short story “The Four Foods” are all read independently and also paired with other texts that share common themes. Aimee Nezhukumatathil’s poem “On Listening to Your Teacher Take Attendance,” the short story “The Last Ride of Cowboy Bob,” by Skip Hollandsworth, and the essay “The Color of an Awkward Conversation,” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie are read independently without paired texts. While independently reading, students are encouraged to annotate and identify the following: context clues for vocabulary, questions about the text, key details, and examples of descriptive language. Teacher materials include these directions, “Circulate as students read independently and encourage them to use the reading comprehension strategy of Making Connections to deepen their understanding of the text.” Following each independent read, students assess their comprehension through a short online quiz or written response.