Lucy Makuro, a second-grade teacher at Alain Locke Charter Academy in Chicago, talks about how text-dependent questioning can help her students focus on evidence rather than jumping to conclusions.
“Sometimes we seem to be too enthusiastic in ‘I know this, I know this, I know this.’ I need to talk all the time to them: No, take a break; listen to the other person. Which is the author, sometimes. Listen to what they are saying to you before you put in what you think it is about.
“And sometimes it’s a challenge, because the little ones have a lot to say, and them taking a back seat to listen to the author—who’s not even there visually—sometimes is challenging. But they’re getting there.”