Download Ppt - Michigan`s Mission: Literacy

Reading to the Core
Michigan Standards:
Close, Critical, Conceptual, and
Generative
Dr. Elaine Weber
Macomb Intermediate School District
Michigan Reading Association
July 8 and 9, 2015
Goals for the Presentation
• Revisit the four questions of Close and Critical
Reading and how they are supported by the
Michigan Reading Standards.
• Note how Michigan Standards prepare for the
SAT Essay assessment.
• The third question, “What does the text
mean?” has been difficult and we have a
different way of approaching this question.
• Two standards RI 7 and RI 9 fall into the
category of Critical Reading but expect two or
more texts. These will also be addressed.
Close and Critical Reading and
Michigan Reading Standards
Handout
Key Ideas and Details
1. Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences
from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions
drawn from the text.
2. Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize
the key supporting details and ideas.
3. Analyze how and why individuals, events, and ideas develop and interact over the
course of a text.
Craft and Structure
4. Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical,
connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape
meaning or tone.
5. Analyze the structure of texts, including how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger
portions of the text (e.g., a section, chapter, scene, or stanza) relate to each other and
the whole.
6. Assess how point of view or purpose shapes the content and style of a text.
Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
7. Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse media and formats, including
visually and quantitatively, as well as in words.
8. Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity
of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.
9. Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build
knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.
A “Snapshot” of the Cognitive Rigor Matrix (Hess, Carlock, Jones, & Walkup, 2009)
Depth of Thinking
(Webb)
+
Type of Thinking
(Revised Bloom,
2001)
DOK Level 1
DOK Level 2
DOK Level 3
Recall & Reproduction Basic Skills & Concepts Strategic Thinking &
Reasoning
Remember
- Recall, locate basic facts,
definitions, details, events
Understand
- Select appropriate words
for use when intended
meaning is clearly evident
- Specify, explain
relationships
- Summarize
- Identify central ideas
Apply
- Use language structure
(pre/suffix) or word
relationships
(synonym/antonym) to
determine meaning
- Use context to identify word
meanings
- Devise an approach among
- Use concepts to solve non- Obtain and interpret
many alternatives to research
routine problems
information using text
a novel problem
features
Analyze
- Identify the kind of
information contained in a
graphic, table, visual, etc.
- Analyze or interpret
- Compare literary elements,
author’s craft (e.g., literary
facts, terms, events
devices, viewpoint, or
- Analyze format,
potential bias) to critique a
organization, & text structures
text
Handout
Evaluate
Create
DOK Level 4
Extended Thinking
- Brainstorm ideas,
concepts, problems, or
perspectives related to a
topic or concept
- Generate conjectures or
hypotheses based on
observations or prior
knowledge and experience
- Explain, generalize, or
connect ideas using
supporting evidence (quote,
text evidence, example…)
- Explain how concepts or
ideas specifically relate to
other content domains or
concepts
- Analyze multiple sources or
texts
- Analyze complex/ abstract
themes
- Cite evidence and develop
a logical argument for
conjectures based on one
text or problem
- Evaluate relevancy,
accuracy, & completeness of
information across texts/
sources
- Develop a complex model
for a given situation
- Develop an alternative
solution
- Synthesize information
across multiple sources or
texts
- Articulate a new voice,
alternate theme, new
knowledge or perspective
Evolution of Close and Critical Reading
Reading Comprehension
What does the text say? RI 1 and RI 2
Critical Analysis
• How does the text say it? RI 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9,
and L5
Generative Reading
• What does the text mean? DOK “Create”
Handout
How addiction hijacks the brain
What do you want your students
to learn from this text?
What the text says
Reading Comprehension
How addiction hijacks the brain
What does the text say? (READING COMPREHENSION)
General Understanding RI 2
• What is the subject of this text?
• How did the perception of addiction change because of new
knowledge?
Key Details RI 1
• Definition of addiction and its manifestations
• How addiction changes the function and structure of the brain
• How the brain motivates the continued use of addictive
substances.
How addiction hijacks the brain
Handout
What does the text say? (READING COMPREHENSION)
General Understanding (RI 2)
•
The perception of addiction has changed because of new knowledge. Addiction takes
control of the brain by changing the structure and function because the brain is flooded
with dopamine and it reacts by reducing the pleasure while building demand. 23 million
Americans are addicted to alcohol or drugs.
Key Details (RI 1)
•
•
•
•
•
•
Perception of addiction has changed from thinking the person lacked self control to
recognizing it as a chronic disease, and that it is caused not only by alcohol and powerful
drugs, but by other pleasurable activities.
Addiction manifests in three ways: craving, loss of control and continuing involvement
with it.
Addiction changes how the brain handles the addictive substance or activity caused by
the flooding of the nucleus accumbens (brain) with the neurotransmitter, dopamine.
Over time, the brain reduces the pleasure from the substance or activity causing a need
to increase the substance or activity to derive the same pleasure.
ln addition, the learning and memory function of the brain takes over the reward-related
learning, moving the wanting to needing the substance or activity.
Recovery strategies include self-help, psychotherapy, and rehabilitation and medication.
How addiction hijacks the brain
Guided Highlighted Reading (Reading Comprehension)
Handout
Key Ideas (RI 2)
•
Look through the text and every time you find the words “addiction, addicted, addictions or addictive” highlight them. (There are 35 of
them)
•
In paragraph 2, find and highlight what tells you how the author will tell about addiction. (…craving for the object of addiction, loss of
control over its use, and continuing involvement with it despite adverse consequences.)
•
In paragraph 3, find and highlight what researchers in 1930 thought about people who developed addictions. (…morally flawed or
lacking in willpower.)
•
In paragraph 4, find and highlight what is the scientific consensus about addiction. (chronic disease)
Details (RI 1)
•
In paragraph 4, find and highlight the multiple strategies for breaking the grip of addiction. (psychotherapy, medication and self-care)
•
In paragraph 5, find and highlight what neuroimaging techniques and more research have shown about addiction. (…certain pleasurable
activities, such as gambling, shopping and sex can also co-op the brain.)
•
In paragraph 7, find and highlight the distinct signature of pleasure. (the release of the neurotransmitter dopamine in the nucleus
accumbens.)
•
In paragraph 8, find and highlight what all drugs of abuse cause in the nucleus accumbens. (a particularly powerful surge of dopamine…)
•
In paragraph 9, find and highlight what we now know about that prompts people to continue seeking addictive substance and behavior
beyond pleasure. (Dopamine not only contributes to the experience of pleasure, but also plays a role in learning and memory.)
•
In paragraph 11, find and highlight what causes the addicted person to “…take action to seek out the source of pleasure.” (Repeated
exposure to an addictive substance causes in the nucleus accumbens and prefrontal cortex to communicate in a way that couples “liking
something” to “wanting it”)
•
In paragraph 13, find and highlight what addictive drugs and behaviors do to the brain. (…flood the brain with dopamine and other
neurotransmitters.)
•
In paragraph 14, find and highlight how the brain responds to the onslaught of dopamine. (…producing less dopamine or eliminating
dopamine receptors ---and adaptation similar to turning the volume down on a loudspeaker when noise becomes too loud.)
•
In paragraph 15, find and highlight what is the effect known as tolerance. (“…the desired substance no longer gives them as much
pleasure. They have to take more of it to obtain the same dopamine “high” because their brains have adapted…)
•
In paragraph 16, find and highlight what causes the insidious part of addiction when compulsion takes over. (…pleasure associated with
an addictive drug or behavior subsides---and yet the memory of the desired effect and the need to create it “the wanting” persists)
•
In paragraph 18, find and highlight what explains why people who develop an addiction risk relapse even after years of abstinence.
(conditioned learning)
What do you want your
students to learn from this
text?
How the text says it
Critical Reading
How addiction hijacks the brain
How Does the Text Say It? (CRITICAL READING)
Text Development (RI 3)
• How does the author show how addiction affects the brain?
Vocabulary (RI 4)
• Miscreant
• Snare
• Neurotransmitter Dopamine
• Nucleus Accumbens
• Glutamate
Structure (RI 5, L5)
• How does the structure of the text help you understand the how addiction works? (RI 5)
• How does figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings
influence understanding? (L5)
Author’s Purpose and Point of View (RI 6 and 8)
• What is the author’s claim?
• What evidence (facts) does the author present to support her claim?
• Does the evidence support the claim?
• What reasoning does she offer?
• What was the rebuttal?
How addiction hijacks the brain (Possible Answers)
How Does the Text Say It? (CRITICAL READING)
Text Development (RI 3) The author describes how the new information about addiction affects the brain.
Vocabulary (RI 4)
Miscreant is a person who behaves badly often leading to breaking the law.
Snare is something that lures or entangles the unwary.
Neurotransmitter is any one of a number of chemicals that are used to transmit nerve signals across a synapse.
Dopamine is the chemical in your brain that makes you feel and do happy things... whatever they may be.
Nucleus Accumbens is part of the brain that's associated with motivation, pleasure, and addiction.
Glutamate is a nerve cell messenger that can cause harm when its messages are overwhelmed.
Handout
Language Standards (L5) Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.
The author used analogies to emphasize the damage addiction does to the brain. (Just as cardiovascular disease damages the heart and diabetes impairs
the pancreas.)
To point out the difficulty of the recovery, the author refers to a simple solution from l980, (“just say no”).
The author labels the conditioned response created by memories the hippocampus and the amygdala associate with the desired substance, (“intensive
craving”)
To show how insidious addiction is the author remarks, (…but many people get caught in its snare.)
Structure (RI 5)
The structure is description, cause and effect and problem and solution.
The author defines the concept, examines the change in perspective, gives a scientific explanation, provides examples and offers possible solutions.
Author’s Purpose and Point of View (RI 6 and 8)
What is the author’s claim? Addiction hijacks the brain
- What evidence (facts) does the author present to support the claim?
o
brain adapts in a way that actually makes the sought after substance or activity less pleasurable
o
produces less dopamine or eliminating dopamine receptors
o
when pleasure associated with the addicted behavior subsides…the memory of the desired effect and the need to recreate it persists. (the wanting)
o
creates conditioned responses or intense cravings.
- What is the Reasoning?
o
too much of a good thing
o
begins innocently
o
the way you get the substances determines whether it will be addictive
o
memory supports addiction.
Guided Highlighted Reading for Critical Reading
How addiction hijacks the brain
Handout
Text Development (RI 3)
In paragraph 2, find and highlight what the author summarizes as the essence of the article (Addiction …manifests in three distinct ways: craving for
the object of addiction, loss of control over its use, and continuing involvement with it despite adverse consequences; …overcoming addiction is
possible …process is long, slow and complicated; it took years to arrive at this understanding.)
Vocabulary (RI 4)
In paragraph 3, find and highlight the word that means a person who behaves badly often leading to breaking the law. (miscreant)
In paragraph 6, find and highlight the word that means something that lures or entangles the unwary. (snare)
In paragraph 7, find and highlight the word that means chemicals that are used to transmit nerve signals across a synapse. (neurotransmitter)
In paragraph 7, find the word that means the chemical in your brain that makes you feel and do happy things---whatever they may be. (dopamine)
In paragraph 7, find and highlight the part of the brain that is associated with motivation, pleasure, and addiction. (nucleus accumben)
In paragraph 10, find and highlight the word that means nerve cell messenger that can cause harm when its messages are overwhelmed. (glutamate)
Text Structure (RI 5)
Look through the text and find and highlight the headings that outline the author’s process for explaining, “How addiction hijacks the brain.” (From
liking to wanting; Pleasure principle; Learning process; Tolerance and compulsion; The long road to recovery)
Language (L 5)
The article begins with a phrase that summarizes the addictive process, find and highlight it. (Desire initiates the process, but learning sustains it.)
In paragraph 4, find and highlight the analogies the author uses to show the relationship of addiction and the effect on the brain. (…cardiovascular
disease damages the heart and diabetes impairs the pancreas…)
In paragraph 4, find and highlight how the author shows how what we thought about the solution to the drug addiction problem. (“just say no”)
In paragraph 14, find and highlight the analogy the author uses to emphasize why the brain reduces the dopamine or eliminates the dopamine
receptors. (…turning the volume down on a loudspeaker when noise becomes too loud.)
Author’s Purpose and Point of View (RI 6 and 8)
In paragraph 4, find and highlight the claim the author makes. (Today, we recognize addiction as a chronic disease that changes both the brain
structure and function)
In paragraph 11, find and highlight what repeated exposure to an addictive substance or behavior causes nerve cells in the nucleus accumbens and
prefrontal cortex to do. (…communicate in a way that couples “liking” something to “wanting” it, in turn to go after it.)
In paragraph l2, find and highlight how the brain adapts. (…makes the sought-after substance or activity less pleasurable.)
In paragraph 14, find and highlight what happens when the brain receptors become overwhelmed. (The brain responds by producing less dopamine or
eliminating dopamine receptors.)
In paragraph l5, find and highlight what tolerance means. (People who develop an addiction typically find that, in time, the desired substance no
longer gives them as much pleasure. They have to take more of it to obtain the same dopamine “high” because their brains have adapted.)
In paragraph l6, find and highlight what happens when compulsion takes over. (…pleasure subsides; desired effect and need to recreate it persists)
SAT Essay Rubric
Attribute
Rubric Score 4
Rubric Score 3
Rubric Score 2
Rubric Score 1
Advanced
Proficient
Partial
Inadequate
The response
The response
The response
The response
•
demonstrates thorough
comprehension of the
source text
•
•
•
demonstrates little or
no comprehension of
the source text
•
shows an understanding •
of the text’s central
idea(s) and of most
important details and
how they interrelate,
demonstrating a
comprehensive
understanding of the
text
shows an understanding •
of the text’s central
idea(s) but not of
important details
fails to show an
understanding of the
text’s central idea(s),
and may include only
details without
reference to central
idea(s)
•
is free of errors of fact
or interpretation with
regard to the text
•
is free of substantive
errors of fact and
interpretation with
regard to the text
•
may contain errors of
fact and/or
interpretation with
regard to the text
•
may contain numerous
errors of fact and/or
interpretation with
regard to the text
•
makes skillful use of
textual evidence
(quotations,
paraphrases, or both),
demonstrating a
complete
understanding of the
source text.
•
makes appropriate use
of textual evidence
(quotations,
paraphrases, or both),
demonstrating an
understanding of the
source text.
•
makes limited and/or
haphazard use of
textual evidence
(quotations,
paraphrases, or both),
demonstrating some
understanding of the
source text.
•
makes little or no use
of textual evidence
(quotations,
paraphrases, or both),
demonstrating little or
no understanding of
the source text.
Reading
demonstrates effective
comprehension of the
source text
shows an understanding •
of the text’s central
idea(s) and important
details
demonstrates some
comprehension of the
source text
Attribute
Analysis
Rubric Score 4
Advanced
Rubric Score 3
Proficient
The response
The response
•
offers an insightful
•
offers an effective
analysis of the source
analysis of the source
text and demonstrates a
text and demonstrates
sophisticated
an understanding of
understanding of the
the analytical task
analytical task
•
offers a thorough, well- •
considered evaluation
of the author’s use of
evidence, reasoning,
and/or stylistic and
persuasive elements,
and/or feature(s) of the
student’s own choosing
•
contains relevant,
sufficient, and
strategically chosen
support for claim(s) or
point(s) made
•
focuses consistently on
those features of the
text that are most
relevant to addressing
the task.
•
•
competently evaluates
the author’s use of
evidence, reasoning,
and/or stylistic and
persuasive elements,
and/or feature(s) of
the student’s own
choosing
Rubric Score 2
Partial
Rubric Score 1
Inadequate
The response
•
offers limited analysis
of the source text and
demonstrates only
partial understanding
of the analytical task
The response
•
offers little or no
analysis or ineffective
analysis of the source
text and demonstrates
little or no
understanding of the
analytic task
•
contains relevant and
sufficient support for
claim(s) or point(s)
made
focuses primarily on
those features of the
text that are most
relevant to addressing
the task.
identifies and attempts
to describe the author’s •
use of evidence,
reasoning, and/or
stylistic and persuasive
elements, and/or
feature(s) of the
student’s own
choosing, but merely
asserts rather than
explains their
importance, or one or
more aspects of the
response’s analysis are
unwarranted based on
the text
•
•
contains little or no
support for claim(s) or
point(s) made
•
may lack a clear focus
on those features of
the text that are most
relevant to addressing
the task
•
identifies without
explanation some
aspects of the author’s
use of evidence,
reasoning, and/or
stylistic and persuasive
elements, and/or
feature(s) of the
student’s choosing; Or
numerous aspects of
the response’s analysis
are unwarranted based
on the text
contains little or no
support for claim(s) or
point(s) made, or
support is largely
irrelevant
may not focus on
features of the text that
are relevant to
addressing the task.
Attribute
Writing
Rubric Score 4
Advanced
Rubric Score 3
Proficient
The response
The response
•
is cohesive and
•
is mostly cohesive and
demonstrates a highly
demonstrates effective
effective use and
use and control of
command of language.
language.
Rubric Score 2
Partial
Rubric Score 1
Inadequate
The response
•
demonstrates little or no
cohesion and limited skill in
the use and control of
language.
The response
•
demonstrates little or
no cohesion and
inadequate skill in the
use and control of
language.
•
•
includes a precise
central claim.
•
includes a skillful
introduction and
conclusion.
•
•
includes a central claim
or implicit controlling
idea.
•
includes an effective
introduction and
conclusion.
demonstrates a
deliberate and highly
•
effective progression of
ideas both within
paragraphs and
throughout the essay.
demonstrates a clear
progression of ideas
both within paragraphs
and throughout the
essay.
•
•
•
•
has a wide variety in
sentence structures.
•
demonstrates a
consistent use of
precise word choice.
•
demonstrates some
precise word choice.
maintains a formal
style and objective
tone.
•
maintains a formal style •
and objective tone.
•
shows a good control of
•
the conventions of
standard written English
and is free of significant
errors that detract from
the quality of writing.
•
•
shows a strong
command of the
conventions of
standard written
English and is free or
virtually free of errors
•
has variety in sentence
structures.
•
may lack a clear central claim
or controlling idea or may
•
deviate from the claim or
idea over the course of the
response.
•
may include an ineffective
introduction and/or
conclusion.
•
may demonstrate some
progression of ideas within
paragraphs but not
throughout the response.
•
has limited variety in
sentence structures;
sentence structures may be
repetitive.
•
demonstrates general or
vague word choice; word
choice may be repetitive.
•
may deviate noticeably from
a formal style and objective
tone.
•
shows a limited control of
the conventions of standard
written English and contains
errors that detract from the
quality of writing and may
may lack a clear central
claim or controlling
idea.
lacks a recognizable
introduction and
conclusion.
does not have a
discernible progression
of ideas.
lacks variety in
sentence structures;
sentence structures
may be repetitive.
demonstrates general
and vague word
choice; word choice
may be poor or
inaccurate.
may lack a formal style
and objective tone.
shows a weak control
of the conventions of
standard written
English and may
contain numerous
errors that undermine
the quality of writing.
What can your students
learn from this text?
What the text means
Generative Reading
Levels of Meaning
Facts/Argument /
Evidence
Topic
Concepts
Principles /
Generalizations
Theory
• Truth
• Can be proven true
• Evidence
• Refers to a body of
related facts/
evidence
• Something you can
learn about
• A mental construct
that frames a set of
examples that share
common attributes.
• One or two words
• Abstract and broad
• Timeless
• Universal
• Universal truths
• Enduring
understandings
• Statements of
conceptual relationship
that transfer across
examples
• Ask the questions:
 How?
 Why?
 So what?
• Explanation of the nature
or behavior of a specified
set of phenomena based
on the best evidence
available (assumptions,
accepted principles and
procedures
• Hypothesis/ Speculation
based on considerable
evidence in support of a
formulated general
principle
• May change over time.
Knowledge
Knowledge /
Comprehension
Analysis/Synthesis
Analysis/Synthesis
Synthesis
Concepts
Adaptation: Revision (Change)
Structure: Construction
Function: Role
Paradox: Contradiction
Dependency: Reliance
Excess: Superfluous; Surplus
Returns: Yields
Tolerance: Acceptance
How addiction hijacks the brain
What does the text mean? (GENERATIVE READING)
Concepts
• What concepts are developed in this selection?
Inter Conceptual Connections
• What concepts joined together form a generalization that can be applied to
other disciplines?
Enduring Understanding or Lesson Learned
• Think about the enduring understanding or lesson learned relating the role of
adaptation or change in the ability to survive.
How addiction hijacks the brain (Possible Answers)
What does the text mean? (GENERATIVE THINKING)
Conceptual Connections
Handout
• Adaptation: revision (Change) The Nucleus accumbens, the Hippocampus and Amygdala all
change their function
• Structure: Construction and Function: Role – the author claims addiction changes both.
• Paradox: Contradiction – In addiction the brain decreases the pleasure derived from the
substance and at the same time the brain develops memories that create a conditioned response
causing “intense cravings.”---Encouraging an undesireable behavior.
• Dependency: Reliance – The brain creates the dependency on substance.
• Excess: Superfluous; surplus – It is the excessive amount of dopamine that floods the Nucleus
Accumbens and begins the addiction
• Returns: Yields – The Nucleus Accumbens reduces the pleasure (returns) for the same level of
substance
• Tolerance: Acceptance – The reduction in returns for the substances is the brain’s way to tolerate
the flood of dopamine.
Inter Conceptual Connections
•
•
•
Excess leads to decreased returns and increased dependence.
The flood of dopamine to the brain leads to reduction in pleasure and the memory of the pleasure leads to
dependency.
Adaptation creates dependency (changes in the brain create an increase in the substances needed with fewer
returns)
Inter Conceptual Application
•
Think about how excess creates dependency and decreased returns apply in other situations.
Guided Highlighted Reading for concepts
How addiction hijacks the brain
Handout
• Look through the entire text and find and highlight the evidence
that the addiction causes the brain to adapt.
• Look through the entire text to find and highlight reference to
excess.
• Look through the entire text to find reference to dependency.
• Look for the example of paradox.
Concept
A concept is an organizing idea;
a mental construct...
•
•
•
•
•
Timeless
Universal
Abstract
Represented by 1 or 2 words
Examples share common
attributes
24
It is the conceptual mind that…
 creates connections to prior experience and
finds relevance
 synergistically works with factual level knowledge
to develop the intellect
 creates deeper understanding at the factual and
conceptual levels
 recognizes the transferability of knowledge
 creates the motivation for learning
25
When we teach to the
levels of concepts and
enduring understanding
we are teaching for deep
understanding and the
transfer of knowledge.
26
Sample Conceptual Lenses
Conflict
Complexity
Beliefs/Values
Paradox
Interdependence
Interactions
Freedom
Transformations
Identity
Patterns
Relationships
Origins
Change
Revolution
Perspective
Reform
Power
Influence
System
Balance
Structure/Function
Innovation
Design
Genius
Aesthetic
Heroes
Force
Creativity
27
GENERALIZATION=
Enduring Understanding
Two or more concepts in a
relationship...
Concept
Concept
• CONCEPTUAL IDEAS THAT TRANSFER
• DEVELOP “DEEP UNDERSTANDING”
28
Enduring Understanding
Enduring understanding goes beyond facts and
skills to focus on larger concepts, principles, or
processes.
• Broad and Abstract
• Universal in Application
• Generally Timeless
• Represented by different examples that
support the generalization
The Structure of Knowledge
Dependency is created by excess
and decreased returns.
Adaptation causes dependency.
•
•
•
•
Adaptation
Dependency
Returns
Excess
Addiction changes the structure and function
of the brain.
Perception of addiction
has change to be a
chronic disease that
changes the brain.
Dopamine floods the
brain; causes changes that
reduce returns and build
memories that make the
substance needed. 30
How addiction hijacks the brain
So what? (What does the
Handout
message/theme/concept/ enduring understanding
mean in your life and/or in the lives of others?
(Wisdom)
• Why is it worth sharing/telling?
• What significance does it have to your life
and/or to the lives of others?
• What will you do with this information?
(Action Plan)
Note:
These standards
need two or
more texts!
Michigan Reading
Standards
RI 7 and RI 9
Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
7. Integrate and evaluate content presented in
diverse media and formats, including visually and
quantitatively, as well as in words.
9. Analyze how two or more texts address similar
themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to
compare the approaches the authors take.
Michigan Reading Standard RI 7
• Integrate (put together) and evaluate (assess or
judge) content (information) presented in
diverse media and formats, including visually
and quantitatively, as well as in words.
What Happens to Your Brain When You Take Drugs?
Handout
(Adapted from FAQ) http://www.phoenixhouse.org/faq/what-happens-to-your-brain-when-you-take-drugs/
Drugs contain chemicals that tap into the brain’s communication system and disrupt the way nerve
cells normally send, receive, and process information. There are at least two ways that drugs cause
this disruption: (1) by imitating the brain’s natural chemical messengers and (2) by overstimulating
the “reward circuit” of the brain.
Some drugs (e.g., marijuana and heroin) have a similar structure to chemical messengers called
neurotransmitters, which are naturally produced by the brain. This similarity allows the drugs to
“fool” the brain’s receptors and activate nerve cells to send abnormal messages.
Other drugs, such as cocaine or methamphetamine, can cause the nerve cells to release abnormally
large amounts of natural neurotransmitters (mainly dopamine) or to prevent the normal recycling of
these brain chemicals, which is needed to shut off the signaling between neurons. The result is a
brain awash in dopamine, a neurotransmitter present in brain regions that control movement,
emotion, motivation, and feelings of pleasure. The overstimulation of this reward system, which
normally responds to natural behaviors linked to survival (eating, spending time with loved ones,
etc.), produces euphoric effects in response to psychoactive drugs. This reaction sets in motion a
reinforcing pattern that “teaches” people to repeat the rewarding behavior of abusing drugs.
As a person continues to abuse drugs, the brain adapts to the overwhelming surges in dopamine by
producing less dopamine or by reducing the number of dopamine receptors in the reward circuit. The
result is a lessening of dopamine’s impact on the reward circuit, which reduces the abuser’s ability to
enjoy not only the drugs but also other events in life that previously brought pleasure. This decrease
compels the addicted person to keep abusing drugs in an attempt to bring the dopamine function
back to normal, but now larger amounts of the drug are required to achieve the same dopamine
high—an effect known as tolerance.
Long-term abuse causes changes in other brain chemical systems and circuits as well. Glutamate is a
neurotransmitter that influences the reward circuit and the ability to learn. When the optimal
concentration of glutamate is altered by drug abuse, the brain attempts to compensate, which can
impair cognitive function. Brain imaging studies of drug-addicted individuals show changes in areas
of the brain that are critical to judgment, decision making, learning and memory, and behavior
control. Together, these changes can drive an abuser to seek out and take drugs compulsively despite
adverse, even devastating consequences—that is the nature of addiction.
M-Step Performance Task (Sample)
After reading two articles, watching the video,
and studying the diagrams, write an
informational essay explaining how addiction
changes the structure and function of the brain.
Cite information from each of the selections.
http://www.phoenixhouse.org/
www.youtube.com/watch?v=5f1nmqiHIII
Michigan Reading Standard 9
9. Analyze how two or more texts
address similar themes or topics
in order to build knowledge
or to compare the approaches the authors take.
Analyze how each text handles the
same topic of Addiction and the Brain
What Happens to Your Brain When
You Take Drugs?
http://www.phoenixhouse.org/
and
How addiction hijacks the brain
How many times did
you read How
addiction hijacks
the brain for
different reasons?
How many ways did
you “think” about
this text?
Thanks for joining me today to think
about the Michigan Reading Standards
and the potential they hold for
expanding our students’ thinking .
Questions or comments are welcome
Elaine Weber
[email protected]