What Is the Spot the Difference Text Analysis Strategy?
"The Day of a Student" video illustrates the frustration students often encounter with text prompts, text passages, etc. on a daily basis as they go from class to class. If students do not know which words are the key ones that make a text effective, they struggle understanding or analyze one text, let alone comparing different texts. The Spot the Difference Strategy provides students with the tools to be (more) successful with text across all subjects and grade levels.
Before Students Can Compare, They Need to Notice
Spot the Difference is an instructional strategy aimed to help students of all grade levels in all subjects understand text better.
The Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts across grade levels emphasize
two areas regarding close-reading skills:
(1) students are required to understand and interpret a singular text,
looking at its structure, word choice, meaning, etc.
(2) students are required to read and compare/contrast different texts.
However, before students can compare different texts, we need to help students practice pay attention to what matters in one text. But students do not know what matters until key words are changed and they experience the difference of that word swap on the reader.
MISSING GAP
Leading Question:
What makes ONE text effective?
We do not know that until we see how the text would not be effective.
STEP 2
Understand the Effect
How do these differences change the effect on the reader?
STEP 1
Spot the Difference
What differences can you spot between two different versions of the same text?
STEP 3
CCSS Across Grade Levels Requires Students To:
Understand & Interpret
Understand a singular text, looking at its structure, word choice, meaning, etc.
Compare & Contrast
Read and compare/contrast different texts.
STARTING POINT
(STEP 1 & 2)
THE TWO STEPS BACK
(MISSING GAP)
CURRENT POSITION/
THE GOAL (STEP 3)
One Text. Two Versions. A Difference Students Can See.
For example, if the story says, “Jane crept to the podium,” we often ask our students something like, “How is Jane characterized?” Many students struggle with that question. However, once given another variation to spot the difference such as “Jane paraded to the podium,” students’ light bulbs go on, especially for those who used to struggle with analysis. Now, after comparing two different versions of one sentence, they are able to see the difference in how one word contributes to how Jane is characterized.
Therefore, students need to be exposed to different versions of the same passage so they can spot the difference by building their database of “what ifs.” What if this text had been written differently?
Spot the Difference Fills a Gap
To be clear: the Spot the Difference strategy is not supposed to replace how we typically teach close reading but it is aimed to fill a gap, so that when we do ask students to analyze a singular text or compare multiple texts as well as produce their own writing, they are ready.
Same Situation. Different Words. Different Meaning.
Steps of the Strategy
01
Students are encouraged to spot the difference between two versions of the same passage the published text versus the draft text.
02
Students identify how the difference changes the tone and meaning of the text.
03
Students write their own versions of a given text passage, describe changes they made, and the impact those changes may have on readers.
04
Optional Step:
Students compare and contrast different drafts of the same short passage of authors' published work
05
Students compare and contrast different texts, e.g. a passage from Out of My Mind with a passage from Wonder.
(Differentiation opportunity: advanced students may begin with this step.)
Since authors are experienced writers and revisers, comparing these different drafts of a passage can be complex. Therefore, students need to practice Steps 1-3 before moving on to Step 4.