Paraphrasing Practice Sessions with Scrible
Paraphrasing is a fundamental skill in academic writing that enables students to convey information accurately in their own words while maintaining the original message's integrity. Using Scrible, students can engage in a dynamic learning process, honing their paraphrasing ability by distinguishing between crucial concepts and peripheral details.
Objective: Students will develop paraphrasing skills and learn to rephrase text while accurately preserving essential ideas and accurate terminology.
Learning Outcome: Students will be able to create clear, accurate paraphrases of provided texts, demonstrating an understanding of the material and the ability to distinguish and retain core ideas.
Layer 1: Highlighting Key Concepts and Terms
Rationale: This activity teaches students to identify and focus on the most important elements of a text, which are essential for effective paraphrasing. Highlighting in Scrible aids in visually distinguishing these elements, reinforcing their significance.
Activity: Students read a provided paragraph and use Scrible to highlight key concepts and terms crucial to the text's meaning.
Layer 2: Paraphrasing with Focus on Core Ideas
Rationale: By paraphrasing with an emphasis on core ideas, students practice articulating complex information in their own words, a skill vital for academic integrity and effective communication.
Activity: Students attempt to paraphrase the paragraph, ensuring that the highlighted key concepts and terms are accurately represented in their new version.
Layer 3: Peer Review and Feedback
Rationale: Peer review encourages students to critically engage with their own and others' paraphrasing efforts, enhancing their understanding of paraphrasing's nuances and fostering a collaborative learning environment.
Activity: In a digital classroom, students share paraphrased paragraphs via Scrible. Peers review each other's work, providing constructive feedback on clarity, accuracy, and whether the paraphrasing maintains the original text's meaning.
Layer 4: Revision and Reflection
Rationale: This reflective practice allows students to internalize effective paraphrasing strategies, fostering continuous improvement and deeper learning.
Activity: Using feedback, students revise their paraphrases. They reflect on the revision process, noting strategies that helped them improve their paraphrasing skills.
Students practice and refine their paraphrasing skills through these activities, which are essential for academic writing and research. Scrible is a vital tool in this learning process, providing a platform for students to annotate, share, and review their work, thus enhancing their understanding and ability to communicate ideas effectively.
Standards Alignment:
- CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.9-10.2 & RI.11-12.2:** Determine central ideas of a text and analyze their development, summarize the key supporting details and ideas, essential for effective paraphrasing.
- CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.9-10.5 & W.11-12.5:** Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach, focusing on addressing what is most significant for a specific purpose and audience, which includes effective paraphrasing.
*If your school or district references standards other than Common Core for writing, please reach out, and our team can provide the Scrible standard alignment for your set of standards.