A focused reading intervention lesson for middle school resource students targeting central idea identification and citing two supporting pieces of text evidence.
Why it works: Proves deliberate problem-solving & tool use.
Evidence Piece #2 Exemplar Par. 3
“Crows remember individual human faces for years and warn other crows about people who treated them unkindly.”
Why it works: Proves deep memory and communication.
Completed Student Written Paragraph (Model Anchor) Sentence Frames Assembled
In the text “City Crows Are Master Problem Solvers,” the central idea is that crows have extraordinary intelligence and adapt to city life by solving daily challenges. One piece of evidence from paragraph 2 is that crows drop nuts in crosswalks so passing car tires crack the shells open safely. Another piece of evidence from paragraph 3 is that researchers found crows remember human faces for years and teach neighboring birds to avoid dangerous people.
IEP Goal Progress Scoring Rubric (4-Point Scale)
4 • Mastered (100%)
States accurate central idea. Cites 2 distinct text evidence details with correct paragraph references.
3 • Proficient (80%)
States accurate central idea. Cites 2 relevant pieces of evidence (minor citation or grammar slip).
2 • Emerging (60%)
Identifies topic or central idea with prompt; cites only 1 relevant evidence piece or personal opinion.
1 • Needs Support (<50%)
Confuses minor detail for main idea. Unable to locate text evidence without full direct modeling.
IEP Progress-Monitoring Data Entry: File in student portfolio / Progress report
Date: ___________
Score: [ 4 ] [ 3 ] [ 2 ] [ 1 ]
Prompting: Indep / Cue / Mod
Goal Met: □ Yes □ No
Teacher Key • Page 2 of 2 Special Education Intervention • Reading Comprehension
Always ask yourself: Does this fact prove the author’s big point? Slide 4 of 5
Put It Together: Sentence Frames
Writing Frame
1
State Central Idea
“In the text, the central idea is that [crows have high intelligence and solve hard problems].”
2
Cite Evidence #1
“One piece of evidence from paragraph 2 is that [crows drop nuts in crosswalks for cars to crack].”
3
Cite Evidence #2
“Another piece of evidence from paragraph 3 is that [crows remember human faces for several years].”
Self-Check: Complete sentence? • 2 text facts? • Paragraph numbers? Ready to Write!
