Intra-Act Procedure

Contributed by Lisa Holton

Rationale

Group problem solving tasks are a good way to develop peer listening skills as well as challenge preconcieved notions about a topic. Intra-act procedure provides an opportunity to "reflect on what they read by predicting how the meaning that they construct of a particular text is likely to be the same, different from or some cobination of how others in their peer group construct the same message" (Alvermann, 2007 p279).  It is a flexible strategy that can be used with any text that students are able to discuss and take positions on.

Procedure

PLANNING

1. Choose a text that is at the independent reading level of the students

2. Create discussioin points and major thematic ideas that students should attend to when reading and put them in a format that is avaible to the students (overhead, paper, etc)

3. CREATE a chart that has spaces for student names horizonally across the top and positions listed verically on the left. In each square (not prompt or name squares) insert "A  D" (agree, disagree) with room enough to circle one.

INSTRUCTION

1. If this is a new strategy, explictly model the expectations and explain the strategy

2. Give students the major points that you have identified (discuss as wanted/needed)

3. Provide the text and allow students time for reading  (break into groups before or after reading and assign a group discussion leader)

4. After reading, have the discussion leader walk the group through the major points given earlier and discuss how the text informed, challenged, reinforced, surprised, confused, etc them on the topic. Students should be actively listening and questioning each other to understand how each person percieves the topic and what his/her position is.

5. Hand out the inter-act guide created earlier. Have students respond to the prompts from their own perspective as well as how they predict the other students in their group will respond given the discussion they just had.

6. After all the students have completed the guide, allow them to discuss their predictions and find out how accurate they were. You may adapt this to be a 'game' or a score to determine their level of active listening.

7. Bring back to the larger group as needed to clarify and highlight any insightful discussion pieces.

SAMPLE: intra act sample.doc

RESOURCES

Alvermann, Donna, et. al.  (2007). Content Area Reading and Literacy: Succeeding in Today's Diverse Classrooms (5^th ed).  Boston: Pearson.

Procedures Added by Others