Using Response Groups and Skill Builders with DBQs

Strategy: Response Groups and Skill Builders
Form: Teacher Resource
Source: TCI

Teacher resource and guide for using Response Groups and Skill Builders to support student success in document analysis.

RH: Simple but possibly helpful steps to assist student performance.

Using Primary Sources to Spark Student Interest

Strategy: Using Primary Sources 
Form: Teacher Resource
Source: TCI

Teacher resource and guideline suggestions for using primary source documents. Pages 3 and 4 list resources.



RH: Rather lengthy document that includes guidelines, suggestions, and primary source document resources and ideas. This even has a DBQ with student responses included. Some are a little elementary but the ideas are transferable. We have to start at the beginning.

Skill Builder Handout

Strategy: Skill Builder Handout Document Analysis
Form: Student Handout
Source: TCI

Student group handout to assist in organization of document analysis.

RH: A tool for guiding and supporting students on their document analysis journey. 

Response Group Activity Scored Discussion Tally Sheet

Strategy: Response Group Tally Sheet
Form: Student Group Handout
Source: TCI

Form for helping student group accountability when analyzing documents for DBQ and PLT.

Sample DBQ (PLT)

Strategy: Sample DBQ (PLT)
Form: PDF Teacher Resource
Source: TCI

Sample DBQ for US History that includes a sample student response.

RH: PLTs (Performance Literacy Tasks) are closely related to DBQs (Document Based Questions). DBQs follow a scaffold form with a question or two on each document to help students actually analyze each document. Students will need a lot of modeling and practice analyzing documents in order to be successful at the essay portion of the task. [Just my personal feeling.] Please look for other strategies on this blog that may support student success.

PLT Grading Strategy

Strategy: PLT Grading Coding
Form: Students Code Own Essays
Source: TCI

Students color code their own essay answer sheets per teacher direction.

RH: After taking a PLT, students can color code their own essay per teacher request and thus highlighting the areas that you want to focus per your grading rubric. This is a great tool as students get instant feedback on their instruction following skills. They will need guidance to be able to do this correctly but it can make your grading much easier. The sample shows a typed essay but we have used the method with hand written essays as well. That way you don't waste time on poor typing or printing issues. Because of the time element, we color coded the next day and before we graded them.

Big Paper

Strategy: Group Collaboration for Documents
Form: Student Group Work
Source: TCI

Student group collaboration tool to analyze a document.


RH: Using this "Big Paper" strategy students may work together to analyze a document and bounce ideas off each other and students that "get it" may model for others. There is no form here. Click on the image to enlarge to get an idea of what goes onto the "Big Paper."