Prioritizing questions

Table 1: Why is Byron the oldest and baddest?
Youngan's answer: "Because he grew up in a bad neighborhood. Bad neighborhoods effect on people. I think it influence on people and kids. I think sometimes bad thing have negotine in your heart."
Table 2: How is Kenny going to be the bad one?
Alex's answer: "He is probaly going to bully on Joetta like byron did Kenny. And do the thing byron did to Kenny. Byron treated Kenny badly so Kenny might hurt Joey's felling's. I think byron is going to be good and Kenny might become daddy-cool.
Table 3: How do the Weird Watsons work out their problems?
Zeke's answer: "I think they work out theire problems by threatening, giving more chances, and forgiving each other."
Sunshine's answer: "My answer is like when Kenny and Rufus where fight when Kenny where laugh a Rufus with the other he went to his house and both of them solve there problem. When Joey did't like the angle her mother ask Joey and her mother help Joey solve her problem about the angle that Mz. Davidson gave her that how the Watson solve there problem."
Table 4: Why do Byron be disobedient to his family?
Rashad's answer: Byron be disobedient to his family because he think he daddy cool and buphead put that street mess in his head, and he don't listen when his mom told him not to play with fire. He don't follow rules. He get into lots of trouble. I can't blame him because his parent treat him from Kenny and Joetta. He also thinks his parents are not going to do nothing. he skips school. he trying to be a bad person. He's setting a bad example for Joetta and Kenny. If he keep setting bad examples for his family he and his family wouldn't be good and probably have to have bail money for their kids."
Table 5: Why do family members always love each other?
Shimya's answer: "I think every family member should always love each other because they sopose to. I think family supose to stay by each other becaus thats whats family's for and to protect each other.
Table 6: Why do Byron curse and don't get in trouble?
Kim's answer: "I think byron curse and dont get in trouble because he the oldest and he bad and I think there MaMa dont care about Byron because that his usall thing is curseing and Kennny want tell or Joey because they scared of Byron because they know that they going to get the beat down if they tell on byron and byron want taek up for Kenny at school no more."

Observations while prioritizing was happening:
Tyshaun: I like this one because we can really go deep into the text and find different ideas.

Zeke: I think that's a question people could answer right away no one would disagree.

Sample justifications of prioritized question from sheet:
-"Because I have a connection to when I curse" (Kim)
-"Because you can explain it in many different ways." (Riana)
-"Because it tell me more about the story" (Jaymon)
-"Because we can go deeper into the question." (Antwanay)
-"Because Kenny started to talk back to Byron." (Alex)
-"It makes sense and it's a important question and Kenny talks back to Byron." (Khalil)
-"Because there is more than one answer so it should make you think." (Zeke)


Random notes:
-I'm going to do differentiated Socratic Seminars next week (one high and one low). I'm going to ask people to read their question but not give their answer until everyone else in the group has discussed it. I want other people to put up their answers first.
-After this round of Socratic Seminar, I want to explicitly teach students about how questions can be within, beyond, or about the text. I want them to discuss the merits of each, and hopefully they'll start to generate some "about the text" questions, of which there are none right now. I also should at a later date teach them about question rigor (right there, inference, critical thinking)

categorizing questions

Today they categorized their questions as open or closed. Miscategorizations are in bold. Overall they did really well, with only 2 questions being miscategorized. I think them knowing the pattern for which words usually come at the start of open questions and which come at the start of closed questions really helped them. A couple of times they relied on it too heavily with the questions that began with "what" because the reference sheet I gave them said it could be open or closed, so a few times they just wanted to write open/closed without discussing whether it might just be one or the other.


Table 1:
-Why is Byron the oldest but the badest? OPEN
-Why is the family getting things for the Brown Bomber? OPEN
-Why did they send Byron to Grandma Sand house? OPEN
-Why is Kenny enjoying Byron leaving?OPEN
-How come the littlest look up to the biggest? OPEN
-Is the momma mad at Byron for being bad? CLOSED
-What does the daddy think about byron going to Grandma Sands? OPEN/CLOSED
-How come family have ot lookout for each other? OPEN

Table 2:
-Why is the Grandma in each family the meanest? OPEN
-Why didn't Byron mom and dad then send Byron to the grandma Sands the first time? OPEN
-Why do the dad alway be funny? OPEN
-Why do kid give there family a hard time? OPEN
-Why do people alway say they going to do some but don't? OPEN
-Why is mom makeing Byron go to Grandma Sand? OPEN
-Why do kid used bad word in there family? OPEN

Table 3:
-How do the Weird Watsons work out their problems? OPEN
-Why do the neighbors next door call the Watsons the Weird Watsons? OPEN
-Why do Byron be mean to his mother and father but they try to give him everything not like parents for their kids? OPEN
-What is important about family? OPEN
-Is Kenny going to get picked on when Byron's not there? CLOSED
-Why do Byron be mean to his family? OPEN
-Why do Byron be cursing around his family? OPEN
-Is Byron going to get in fights in Birmingham? CLOSED
-Is Byron really adopted? CLOSED
-Why is Grandma Sands strict? OPEN
-Is Kenny going to get picked on when Byron's not there? CLOSED
-Why do Byron be mean to his family? OPEN
-Why do Byron be cursin around his family? OPEN
-Is Byron going to get in fights in Birmingham? CLOSED
-Is Byron really adopted? CLOSED
-Why is Grandma Sands strict? OPEN
-Is Byron going to pull pranks when he's in Birmingham? CLOSED
-Why is Byron stupid? OPEN
-Why is Byron mean? OPEN

Table 4:
-Why do the Watsons decide to go to Birmingham for their summer vacation? OPEN
-why do Byron be disobedient to his family? OPEN
-Will Granda Sands whoop Byron if he be bad? CLOSED
-Why do people call the Watson family weird? OPEN
-Why is the Watsons different from other families? OPEN
-Why are some families mean to others even if that family didn't do anything? OPEN
-Why do the Watsons tease Byron? OPEN
-Is the Watsons going to get stuck with Byron in Birmingham? CLOSED
-Do Grandma Sands live in Birmingham or Alabama? CLOSED
-How old is Byron? OPEN
-When Byron gets back from Birmingham is he still going to be a juvenile delinquent? OPEN/CLOSED
-Will Byron find a way to get to Birmingham? CLOSED
-Is Byron going to make the boys in Alabama mean and a juvenile delinquent? OPEN/CLOSED

Table 5:
-Can family members always love each other? CLOSED
-Why do some families have bad kids? OPEN
-Why do some family members hate each other? OPEN
-Do familys care about each other all the time? CLOSED
-Why does Byron not like his family OPEN
-Can some family members do bad all the time CLOSED
-Do family all way's love each other CLOSED
-Why does familys have family reunus? OPEN
-Can family members do things that hurts there family badly? CLOSED
-Why family is important? OPEN

Table 6:
-Why is Byron mean and everyone else is nice? OPEN
-What is the Watsons going to do in Alabama? OPEN
-Why do family fight? OPEN
-I wonder if Sands is going to put up with Byrons mess? CLOSED
-Why do Byron sometimes be mean to Kenny and sometimes nice? OPEN
-Why do family do stuff to make people mad? OPEN
-Why do byron do things to make his family mad? OPEN
-Why did Byron do all of those things? OPEN
-Why did Byron say the s word? OPEN
-I wonder if Wilona is going to tell them about the baby? CLOSED
-Why is family important? OPEN
-Why do byron curse and don't get in trouble? OPEN


Students were very successful at switching their open question to closed and vice versa. For the question about how changing the question changes what answers they might get, some general trends from closed to open were:
-"you're saying more than yes or no"
-"it has more words"/"make the statement longer"/"it have a longer explanation to answer"
-"you can say he did this or that"
-"you might answer with a because"

general trends from open to closed were:
-"you might answer with a simple answer"
-"you will say yes or no"
-"your answer will be shorter"

New York guided reading session

Alex:
I asked I wonder why does Brian have to survive in the wild for 54 days? is he going to die? is his mom going to find him and take him home?
Zeke: maybe they're looking for him and they can't find him.
Amaya: He doesn't know what to do
Zeke: He does know what to do, first he found these nasty seeds but then he found these better seeds
Me; so what do you think that says about Brian
Amaya: He's smart and brave. I think he's still sad but he's doing what he needs to survive. I've got a question about the shelter, I haven't read up to that part. Is there anything else in there?

Brandon: Is there going to be a wolf later in the story? because why'd they put a wolf on the cover?
Amaya thinks it's a statue
Zeke: why would a statue be in the middle of the wilderness.

Zeke talks about the berries and when Brian walked into Brian.
I wonder why the bear walked away from Brian and ate the berries?
Amaya: he probably didn't want to eat him, smelled his blood, and wanted to eat animals not humans
Alex: He sensed the poison from the berries that Brian ate.
Zeke: I don't think that's realistic. I think he likes berries more than humans.
Me: What could you research online to get a better understanding of what happened between Brian and the bear.
Zeke: do bears like berries more than humans? do they eat humans?


How's this process going?
Zeke: i think it's good because if you gave us a topic we might not have an answer. I think its good because we can do our own questions that we can have good answers for.
Me: How do you
Zeke: so if we do our own questions, you should know how to answer it.
Me: Why?
Amaya: You said the question so you can understand it.

Alex: it's going ok, but when we come together we haven't read the same amount.
Zeke: if you read on your own you can ask more questions but some people can't discuss the answers with you.

Zeke's notebook has exploded with questions, research, theories about what's happening in Hatchett. He had a lot to say during guided reading today. I think he really likes being able to generate his own questions because it removes the anxiety of trying to find the answers that he thinks I'm looking for. He can research and think more freely this way.

second qfocus of Watsons go to Birmingham

Qfocus: Family

Table 1:
-Why is Byron the oldest but the badest?
-Why is the family getting things for the Brown Bomber?
-Why did they send Byron to Grandma Sand house?
-Why is Kenny enjoying Byron leaving?
-How come the littlest look up to the biggest?
-Is the momma mad at Byron for being bad?
-What does the daddy think about byron going to Grandma Sands?
-How come family have ot lookout for each other?

Table 2:
-Why is the Grandma in each family the meanest?
-Why didn't Byron mom and dad then send Byron to the grandma Sands the first time?
-Why do the dad alway be funny?
-Why do kid give there family a hard time?
-Why do people alway say they going to do some but don't?
-Why is mom makeing Byron go to Grandma Sand?
-Why do kid used bad word in there family?

Table 3:
-How do the Weird Watsons work out their problems?
-Why do the neighbors next door call the Watsons the Weird Watsons?
-Why do Byron be mean to his mother and father but they try to give him everything not like parents for their kids?
-What is important about family?
-Is Kenny going to get picked on when Byron's not there?
-Why do Byron be mean to his family?
-Why do Byron be cursing around his family?
-Is Byron going to get in fights in Birmingham?
-Is Byron really adopted?
-Why is Grandma Sands strict?
-Is Kenny going to get picked on when Byron's not there?
-Why do Byron be mean to his family?
-Why do Byron be cursin around his family?
-Is Byron going to get in fights in Birmingham?
-Is Byron really adopted?
-Why is Grandma Sands strict?
-Is Byron going to pull pranks when he's in Birmingham?
-Why is Byron stupid?
-Why is Byron mean?

Table 4:
-Why do the Watsons decide to go to Birmingham for their summer vacation?
-why do Byron be disobedient to his family?
-Will Granda Sands whoop Byron if he be bad?
-Why do people call the Watson family weird?
-Why is the Watsons different from other families?
-Why are some families mean to others even if that family didn't do anything?
-Why do the Watsons tease Byron?
-Is the Watsons going to get stuck with Byron in Birmingham?
-Do Grandma Sands live in Birmingham or Alabama?
-How old is Byron?
-When Byron gets back from Birmingham is he still going to be a juvenile delinquent?
-Will Byron find a way to get to Birmingham?
-Is Byron going to make the boys in Alabama mean and a juvenile delinquent?

Table 5:
-Can family members always love each other?
-Why do some families have bad kids?
-Why do some family members hate each other?
-Do familys care about each other all the time?
-Why does Byron not like his family
-Can some family members do bad all the time
-Do family all way's love each other
-Why does familys have family reunus?
-Can family members do things that hurts there family badly?
-Why family is important?

Table 6:
-Why is Byron mean and everyone else is nice?
-What is the Watsons going to do in Alabama?
-Why do family fight?
-I wonder if Sands is going to put up with Byrons mess?
-Why do Byron sometimes be mean to Kenny and sometimes nice?
-Why do family do stuff to make people mad?
-Why do byron do things to make his family mad?
-Why did Byron do all of those things?
-Why did Byron say the s word?
-I wonder if Wilona is going to tell them about the baby?
-Why is family important?
-Why do byron curse and don't get in trouble?

michigan guided reading group

sharing of questions and answers:
Tyshaun:
Which bees are poisonous?
I think it's the killer bee because poison can kill you and the killer bee if it stings you will kill you.
Olajuwon: Why do think the killer bee is poisonous?
Tyshaun:repeats thinking
Olajuwon: ok
I step in and direct them to page 11 of Magic School Bus that deals with some people being allergic and dying after being stung by any bee

Rashad:
Why do bees sting people?
Bees sting people because they think you're a flower
Tyshaun thumbs down. Olajuwon says you can't judge. I clear up the difference between judging questions and research.
Tyshaun: I think they do it to protect themselves.
Me: Text evidence?
Tyshaun: page 10 "stinging is a way bees protect their hive and they usually sting because they have to."
Rashad: it said on google.
We talk about citing websites.

Olajuwon:
How do bees talk?
I went on answers.com and found out that the way they talk is by buzzing.
Rashad: he had 2 answers because right here on page 23 it say "if the bee wiggles striaght up, the other bee flies straight toward the sun..."
Tyshaun: You all wrong because the waggle dance tells what the food source is.
Rashad: I know but they talking because they tellin them to go that way towards the food. That's still talking.
Olajuwon: I've got text evidence: "Doesn't the dance language of bees give you a sense of wonder?" They are talking becuase they called it a language.
Tyshaun: it says they talk by smell on page 18. "Bees don't talk in words but they do communicate."

What did we learn about research?
Josh: We can all find different things
Olajuwon: there can be more than one answer to a question
Rashad: answers can be in the internet and book
Tyshaun: copy your link because you need text evidence because you can search in the computer