Integrating Literacy and Social Studies Dear Michelle,
The ELA objective you chose, identifying topic and understanding author's purpose, is such an important skill for the developing reader and writer. One of the reasons that I love Writer's Workshop is that students need to take an active role in choosing their own topics and thinking about their audience (thus fine-tuning their own purposes for writing). Here are some of the ways I would integrate this standard:
1) Choose a mentor text from your social studies curriculum that has a clear author's purpose, for example: *I Could Do That: Esther Morris Gets Women the Vote* by Linda Arms White. After reading it from cover to cover, ask: "What was the topic of this book? Why do you think Linda Arms White wrote a book about Esther Morris?" Guide students to the understand that writers sometimes write to inform others -- in this case to inform others about a remarkable person. Suggest they think about people they know well. Could they teach us about this person through their writing? If you have students who pick up the invitation to write about a person (or if they're writing to inform), ask them to co-teach the minilesson with you the next day. After the student reads his or her piece, ask students: "What was the topic of this piece? What did you learn about _____?"
2) Revisit your mentor text. Remind students that they drew the conclusion that Linda White had written this book to inform others. Ask, "What did you learn about Esther Morris?" Write students' responses on chart paper. Choose one of the observations such as "Esther Morris didn't listen to people when they told her she couldn't do things." Ask, "How do you know this?" Return to places in the text where Linda White provides clues. (Remind students that writers show rather than tell.) Ask that they support statements in their writing with evidence (quality details).
Again, ask students who include supporting evidence to co-teach the mini-lesson with you. Or, point out supporting evidence during Author's Chair.
3) When conferencing with students, ask: "What is your topic? What is your purpose for writing this piece?" Or, "Why will readers want to read your piece?" Find the places where they have supported their statements with evidence and praise this technique: "You didn't just write, 'the beach is beautiful.' You wrote the water is a deeper blue than the sky, and the waves crash on the sand like bursts of fireworks."
4) Project student writing (not from your own class), or articles that tie into your social studies theme. Lead a discussion by asking: "What is the topic of this piece?" (If the piece does not have a clear topic, discuss the need for focus.) "What is the author's purpose?" "What parts of the writing help you to draw that conclusion?"
You'll want to explore these questions over and over again as you read books that have different purposes.
Hope this is helpful!
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