Constructed Response Questions

During the Reading Comprehension portion of the March ISTEP, students will be asked to write a response about what they just read. The week of the snowstorm, I went to a Reading Conference put on by Kristina Smekens. It was tons of fantastic information that is guiding the 3rd grade's preparations for ISTEP Reading and IREAD.

High Scoring Responses:
*Question was restated
*Response was more than a summary
*Specific details from the text
*Stand-alone paragraph (you didn't need the question to understand the paragraph)

Process (EVERY TIME)
1.  Understand the question
2.  Restate the question
3.  Provide a general answer
4.  Skim the text
5.  Give two reasons from the text
*6. End with why the evidence fits (due to limited line space and time, this is something that will be more appropriate for 4th grade and on)
7. Reread only your response

Product:  Yes, Ma'am
We're talking lots about The Test Lady as we practice. She's the Ma'am we're writing to!

Use this format for any written responses that come home. And ask your own questions about what you read together--even if it's an oral response, getting your child into the habit of thinking through these sentences will help!

Example: 
What do fossils tell us about the past?
Fossils tell us about the past. The text says they show what plants and animals looked like. The text also says that fossils show what dinosaurs lived in groups. That's what fossils tell us about the past.