ACTIVATE: 
Content Skills T-Chart

• Plan for reading by incorporating the critical reading process (activate, engage, extend) with one or more texts.

• Determine the course, unit, lesson, standards, and learning objectives/Essential Question associated with the overall learning experience.

• Become familiar with the four academic thinking skills. 

• Identify when it is appropriate for students to reflect on their learning from a metacognitive standpoint and clarify with students why metacognition is important for learning.

• Have students collaborate in small groups to complete a rapid brainstorm of the activities that were completed during the “activate” (before), “engage” (during), and “extend” (after) stages of the reading process. 

• Ask students to classify the key content that was learned and the academic thinking skills that were developed with each activity. 

• Share the standards that were addressed and the learning objectives with students. Ask students to add any new ideas to their list after considering these additional components of the lesson.

• Continuing in small groups, ask students to organize their learning in Student Resource: Content/Skills T-Chart by identifying the content that was learned as well as the academic skills that were developed throughout the reading process.

• Display selected reflection questions on a whiteboard, in a PowerPoint presentation, or within a shared collaborative technology space and then ask students to complete the reflection questions,  either as a group Think-Aloud or individually in their own writing, depending on where students are within the gradual release of responsibility cycle.

Educators can use the questions below to refine their thinking as they consider the balance of content and skills in their current instructional practices.

1. What personal philosophies influence your teaching of content vs. the teaching of skills? How do these philosophies shape your instruction?

2. Take a moment to visualize a typical day of instruction. At first glance, do you tend to lean more toward the content side or the skills side? Why do you think that might be?

3. If you lean more toward one end of the spectrum, what learning opportunities might students be missing?

4. Choose three to five of the state or national standards within your discipline. Within each standard, what do you notice about content and/or skills? Are your standards emphasizing content, skills, or both? How might this further inform your planning?

5. Think about a lesson within your discipline. What might that lesson look like if students were developing a balance of both key content and academic thinking skills?

6. To create a balance between content and skills in your instruction, what first steps might you need to take?

7. What texts do you currently use that lend themselves to both content and skill development? What are the features of these texts? Why are they good for teaching both content and skills?

8. What further resources might you need, and where can you find them?