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QtA Part 1
Sin Cheung
National Louis University

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For my QtA assignment I had five fourth grade students who are all at different reading
levels. They were selected because I had them in small groups for math right before and I felt
that since they were already calm and settled, that they would be the perfect group. From what I
understand, their literacy teacher does some text-based discussions in class so I am assuming
that they are exposed it. In general, out of the 5 students, 1 of them loves to read and can
comprehend the text well. Two of the students love to read fictional chapter books with female
characters in them but struggle with comprehension. The other two students are more into fun
facts, cool science or books with pictures in them for them to look at. My observations are all
based on the engagement level I see and the choice of books they read during the 30 minute
independent reading time they have each day in our class.
The text selected was a nonfiction science article adapted from NEWSELA called, Lava
path leads to small town in Hawaii town written by the Los Angeles Times newspaper. I believe
that this was a suitable article for my students because in the past we have learned about the
different types of nature disasters. I felt that this would be a great way to expose them to a type
of volcano that they have never heard of. This way I am able to expand their knowledge and
experience to a whole new level. This article was also a good QtA lesson because it allowed
open discussion where students really had to put themselves in the shoes of the father and the

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sons point of views to develop ideas and understanding of what they author may want them to
know about life in Kalapana, Hawaii.
From the article I wanted my students to understand a different type of lifestyle that they
are not used to. That is, living in a town where houses can easily be relocated and
understanding and experiencing life that goes on in places where volcanoes exist. I wanted my
students to understand those ideas by reading about the the fathers point of view and the sons
point of view as they had slightly different but a lot of the same opinions about life in Kalapana.
For example, the author begins by discussing about the volcano and how it has threatened
homes and the area in Kalapana. However, to the father and the son, living in Kalapana is very
normal for them. The father talks about his 25 plus years living in Kalapana where he has
learned to love and not be afraid of it. On the other hand, although it has also been apart of the
sons life, he talks about his worries and struggles growing up with the volcano. I wanted my
students to explore upon the fact of the results from the volcano and what has actually
happened to the city but at the same time, understand the two points of views from the father
and the son.
A potential roadblock I envisioned was that students will have a hard time understanding
and comprehending the text due to the lack of background knowledge they have about life
where volcanoes exist especially a volcano that was unfamiliar to them. With that in mind, I
knew I had to engrain some background information before reading it to them. This was also a
way to get them interested in what we were going to read. Another roadblock was some of the
unfamiliar vocabulary in the text such as pahoehoe and generation that may be hard for them

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to understand unless I had given them a friendly definition, which I did. I also envisioned the
article being boring to them because it was about volcanoes so I knew I had to make sure I
had to show enthusiasm to get them hooked during the QtA.
During the QtA, I had five query questions. I started right after the first paragraph with
the question, What do you think the author is talking about?. I felt that was a legitimate place to
stop because I want them to have a solid understanding of what they article was about from the
very beginning so that everyone was somewhat on the same page. That spot was also where
the author explained how the volcano has destroyed Kalapana throughout the years. My next
initial query question was, What emotions do you think the author wants you to feel right now?
followed with what makes you think that?. This question was asked because that part was
where the author further described and elaborated on the effects of the volcano to the city. At
the same time, the author also introduced two people who have lived through it. I thought this
question can develop discussion because there are three different stories from three points of
view to discuss and talk about. At the same time, having them recognize that people actually live
in Kalapana with the volcano might potentially trigger and spark their interest to want to continue
to read. My next two queries were How is the author making you feel right now about the
pahoehoe? and The author says, Kalapana is lovely in its own way. What do you think the
author means by this? I chose to ask those queries and at the specific stopping points because
those were the places where the son and the fathers side of the story came in play. I wanted the
students to understand what their story was and how they lived through it. Lastly, I ended the
QtA with, What do you think the author is telling us with this story?. This was where I wanted

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them to start synthesizing what they have understood about the stories and facts about the
volcano and how it has affected the lives and space of Kalapana and the people who lived there.
Potential followups I would plan for my QtA are to be consistent to having students support their
thoughts with the text each time a query was asked. I would also change the last question from,
What do you think the author is telling us with this story? to What do you think the author is
telling us with this story about the volcano and living in Kalapana?. The reason for this is
because I feel the first question can be a bit vague while the second question is more objective
guided yet very open for open discussion. Discussion moves that I used during my QtA was turn
and talk and cold calling with sticks. I used both strategies to keep students accountable and at
the same time increase engagement to the lesson. Using those strategies also allowed
everyone to have a voice in the questions being asked. I also purposely asked questions such
as, Does anyone want to respectfully disagree? or Does anyone want to add on to that? so I
am setting the classroom culture I want for small group work. Another move I used was helping
or summarizing my students thoughts by rewording their responses to the group so it clearer for
the group to understand and follow along.
I think it was extremely helpful that I started off the lesson by asking them what they think
or know about when they hear the word volcanoes. I also gave them some time with a turn and
talk to discuss their thoughts on it. This was a way to activate prior knowledge and also
introduce the misconception that, in fact, people do live near volcanoes and the lava they are
used to isnt the only type of lava. While this conversation got them discussing about volcanoes I
also used that time to show them a couple pictures of what pahoehoe and mobilized houses

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looked like. Looking back at the video, students seemed very engaged during this part. This part
clarified a lot of the roadblocks I anticipated as far as comprehension. The students seem to
able to grasp how the volcano has interrupted the lives and land in Kalapana. What I struggled
with was having them understand that some people like the father despite what the volcano had
caused, thought all of it was normal and actually found beauty in it. It seemed like they still have
that perception of the type of volcanoes they were used to and how dangerous and horrifying
they can be that they werent able to put themselves in the shoes of the father. One roadblock I
felt that hindered comprehension was when I sensed the students losing interest throughout the
story. Throughout the video, I saw heads down, wandering eyes and even complaints about
wanting to leave the group to do their own independent reading. I think that I wasnt
differentiating my instruction in ways to satisfy my visual learners. As I am naturally a visual
learner myself, if I were the students I wouldnt be able to comprehend or persevere through the
text without something in front of me. While I was losing their interest, their comprehension was
also plummeting. With that being said, my next step would be to make sure I have a copy for
each of them the next time around.
I believe my queries were from weak to strong. As I mentioned before the first query
question was right after the first paragraph to let me know if they are getting the surface of what
the story was going to be about. As they story went on, my queries became deeper and drawing
from the text was much more necessary as there were more and more points of views being
added on. When I asked students questions like how is the author making you feel right now
about the pahoehoe?, students were giving me answers with either the sons perspective or the

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fathers perspective. It was evident if they comprehended the text or not because they were
referring back to the characters. At one point, Octavia had given a response based on the
experiences of the son and Jazzmine raised her hand and said she agree but also disagree and
elaborated on her thinking by talking about the fathers experiences. The last query question
was the hardest one as it involved synthesizing and adding everything up to conclude the story.
This was definitely a struggle for my students as they couldnt seem to grasp the idea that the
volcano was normal to these people and be able to analyze the story to realize that Kalapana
was their home. Despite the volcano, those people were still living there for a reason. During the
video, all them gave me answers such as the father and son were sad and scared. I tried really
hard to get them to leave their own perception what volcanoes were and could do behind so
they can try to understand what the father and son were actually trying to say. Unfortunately, I
wasnt able to.
Some of the moves I implemented were turn and talks and helping students summarize
their thoughts by paraphrasing it after they spoke. I also acted as a facilitator to keep the
discussion flowing. I would ask specific questions such as would anyone like to add on to that
idea? or even directly asking certain students, especially those who were very quiet, about their
thoughts during turn and talks. At times, to lift their thinking to a response they gave, I proposed
another question to help me understand if they were comprehending the text. For example,
Octavia was using evidence from the text to support the conditions of Kalapana so I asked her if
she thought the people living there were sad. Even though it wasnt my query question but it was
a question I thought would help guide them to think in ways to meet my goal for this lesson.

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What I have observed was that, using the same example as just mentioned, was that students
were hearing only how horrible the volcano has done to the houses and the citizens living there.
They were missing or opting out on parts of the story that talked about the tranquility and
normality of the situation and how they have learned to accept it and even find beauty in it. I
think that, again, they still had this preconceived notion that volcanoes are terrifying and deadly
from prior knowledge.
Overall, I am not 100% satisfied with the participation but I think it was alright. Even
though one student left the group during the lesson I felt there were engaging discussions. I did
notice that Martrell didnt speak much at all while Octavia and Jazzmine participated a lot during
the lesson. Kania had some participation but not much. It was due to some issue she had with
Justin, the student that left the group, when they were sitting at the regular tables in whole group
discussion. After looking at the video, I saw that I kept calling on Octavia and Jazzmine as their
hands were raised the most. I also saw that my body lowered and moved closer to them when I
was implementing this lesson to keep myself at their level and to make sure everyone knew I
was watching them. During turn and talks I saw that half the table talked while the other half
didnt. I saw myself noticing that in the lesson that I turned my head and started talking to those
who werent talking to each other to some what help facilitate the discussion. I used that time to
hear their thoughts too. Looking at my facial expression, I saw my eyes widen multiple times and
have exaggerated facial expressions when reading and talking to hopefully get them more
engaged. Unfortunately, I failed at keeping a poker face when listening to the students

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responses. I saw myself being more dramatic and nodding my head more when a student has
said something I wanted to hear.
I thought the text was an effective selection because it was informative and they learned
something that was new to them. Though the text was informational, it was also a story of reallife people and story. It exposed them of a whole new lifestyle that they are not used to but now
know it exists. My thought on my next lesson would be another science NEWSELA article
because it fits the subject I teach in our math/science room. However, I will make sure I have
copies and pictures so they can have at hand to better understand the story. I think that will also
help keep them more engaged. Having the text in front of them would also be more helpful for
them to draw evidence from the text. One goal for my next lesson is to consistently ask students
to draw evidence from the text. And if the evidence from the text doesnt match what the student
is saying then actually go back a reread the text. I know that was something I didnt do but how it
could have been very useful if I had. Going along with the first goal, my next goal would be
remembering to ask questions such as I know the author said this, but what do you think he
means by that?. The reason I want this to be another focused goal because some of my
students were just repeating what the author said. By asking that question, I would be able to
know if my students actually comprehended that the author meant because they would have to
express it in their own words. These two goals would fit with the QtA framework because both
goals definitely work towards comprehending the text. I would attain these goals scripting it my
article how I want to exactly ask my students those questions. I would really need to put myself
in my students thinking and think of potential answers they may give. With those potential

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answers, I need to script out exactly how I should respond to each of those questions to really
push their thinking and push the need of drawing from evidence.