Mentor texts are a great way to have some fun with literature while delivering quality content. As an upper elementary teacher it can be hard to find a picture book that has the "perfect combination". I am always looking for a healthy mix of the following:
- length
- story line
- illustrations
- sentence structure
- vocabulary
The biographical picture book Separate Is Never Equal hits the mark in many categories. I love the timeline of the story and the illustrations. I especially love the opportunity for students to use some advanced vocabulary while discussing a complex social issue.
Separate Is Never Equal tells the story of the Mendez Family and their three year fight to desegregate California schools in 1944. The Mendez's court ruling led to similar rulings in Texas and Arizona and ultimately the landmark Supreme Court ruling in Brown v. Board of Education in 1954.
Told through the eyes of Sylvia Mendez, this book gives students an opportunity to listen to her story and understand the circumstances she faced. It gives teachers an excellent opportunity to lead discussions where students consider an alternate perspective and determine if the experience they are hearing is a "mirror" or a "window".
This is an excellent read aloud of the book:
Aside from all of the usual lessons that would accompany a picture book in the intermediate grades, this text also offers a unique dive into content-specific vocabulary. One of the best ways to use this text is to explore and learn the vocabulary associated with the desegregation movement in the United States.
MENTOR TEXT & VOCABULARY
The acquisition of vocabulary follows a particular path:
Hear the word.
Say the word.
Read the word.
Write the word.
When I know my students will be encountering some tough vocab I like to introduce the words by using them in discussions before we even open the book. In the case of Separate Is Never Equal, I will start using words such as "segregation" or "integrate" a few days before I read the book. I lead students in discussions that incorporates some of the vocabulary they will hear in the book. The initial lessons of the book will focus on the students hearing and saying the words in as many ways as possible. No reading or writing, not yet. In a perfect world, students would have a few days to hear and say the words as well as time to create some pathways to their long term memories.
Before Reading
Discussion Questions
As with many texts, it's good practice to talk with your students about the upcoming topic. I usually lead a discussion (sometimes whole group, sometimes with partners) through some discussion questions.
With this book, I will ask students questions that use the vocabulary I know will be coming up. For instance: "What do you think of when you hear the word 'segregation'?" and "Discuss a time when you felt unified with a person or a cause." Using some of the vocabulary within the discussion questions will help lay the foundation for deeper meanings and learning later on.
Knowledge Rating
I love knowledge ratings. They are a simple chart where students rank their knowledge about particular words. The listed words are the same words the students will be working with as we make our way through the text. Students determine how familiar they are with a particular word using a rank of 1-4. After rating their knowledge, the students add up all the numbers and get a total.
Once students have had an opportunity to read through the text and work with the words, they will complete a second rating. The goal is for the students to have a higher rating than they started with.
The first couple ratings I do with my students I take extra time to go over the process. I discuss how being honest with your rating is the way to make progress. There are some students who want to circle a 4 for every word. However, when asked to demonstrate their knowledge, students will quickly adjust their scores.
Once students are more comfortable with the words, we start to work with them in more specific ways. I like to use a variety of activities to engage the students and create as many pathways of learning.
During the Reading
Flip Books
Flip books are a great way for students to have a mini-glossary in front of them. I like to put 4-5 words on each book and use two books. I size them so the students can glue them side by side on a standard piece of paper; usually cardstock for durability. I have also had students glue them into composition notebooks as part of an interactive notebook (reduce to 80% when printing for best fit). Flap books are a handy reference tool for students when they want to quickly and easily locate the definition for one of the vocabulary words.
5 Square Organizers
I use 5 Square Organizers all the time. They are a flexible tool I like to use which helps reduce student cognitive load. With vocabulary, students write the word and definition in the center and then fill in information such as using the word in a sentence, antonyms, and synonyms. The last section asks students to draw/illustrate the word. These organizers help the students focus on one specific word.
Root Words Organizer
A root words organizer helps students break down a word and explore other words with the same root. Granted, this organizer works best with certain words, such as "equality". However, it can be a powerful tool to help students truly learn roots and how they impact the meaning of words.
Mentor texts are an excellent way to introduce and work with advanced or content-specific vocabulary. Whether you use every activity and break down each word or use a selection process that focuses on the most important vocabulary for your students, using a variety of vocabulary activities over a couple of weeks will give your students more opportunities to learn the words and their meanings which in turn will help those words wiggle their way into your students' long-term memory where they can access them at a later time.
Free Vocabulary Resources
Click below to get a vocabulary sampler pack for the book Separate Is Never Equal.