Literacy Development in Elementary & Middle School

1. Literacy Development in Elementary & Middle School Week 3 Course 05:300:495 Joseph Campisi

2. Assessment of Week 2 – Assigned Reading • Please complete the Assessment of the Week 2 Assigned Reading. • If you have the article with you or on your laptop please feel free to use it. • This will count as part of your participation & reading response grade.

3. Week 2 Discussion of Mini-Lessons Literacy Centers Fluency - Scenario Vocabulary - Scenario Assessment

4. Knowledge of Variance K – 6 months K + 6 months 1st grade – 1 yr 1st grade + 1 yr 2nd grade – 1.5 yrs 2nd grade + 1.5 yrs 3rd grade – 2 yrs 3rd grade + 2 yrs 4th grade teachers have to prepare for a span of students that are developmentally 2 years below through 2 years above grade level (and the lower end aren’t usually learning disabled)…

5. Mini-Lessons • Review of Rubric for Mini-Lesson

6. Formative Assessments @ different levels • Low to High • Depending on skill • Use curricula materials but tailor to specific needs

7. Comparison of Types of Assessment

8. Literacy Centers • Options for implementing Literacy Centers: • Rotations • Stationary (based on needs) • Partial Rotations • Learning Contracts • Flex grouping by readiness, interest or learning profile

9. Fluency Fluency refers to a student's speed, smoothness, and ease of oral reading. Fluent readers read more quickly and smoothly, allowing them to focus on comprehension. Fluent readers gain more meaning from the text they read. Because fluency leads to comprehension, fluent readers enjoy reading more than students who devote all their energy to sounding out words. 

10. Teaching Fluency • One-on-One: Read a fluency assessment passage to the student so she or he can hear fluent reading. Have the student read the passage. If the student gets stuck on a word, read the word and have her or him repeat it. Repeated one-on-one readings will increase speed, accuracy, smoothness and expression. • Independent Timed Reading: Have a student start a stopwatch as she or he begins a passage, and stop it at the end of the passage. The student can record the reading time on a chart or graph. Reading time will drop as the student repeats the reading. You can also calculate the words read per minute and record it on the bottom of the passage. • Paired Readings: One partner times the other partner reading a passage. At the end of one minute, the partner says "Stop" and circles the last word the reader has read. The partner then marks the number of words read on the words-per-minute chart at the bottom of the page. After several readings the partners then switch roles.

11. Fluency Scenario • Create 3 to 5 literacy centers that could be implemented after you have already completed your 20 minute mini-lesson revolving around fluency to your 5th grade class. • You have the option of creating centers for rotations 10 to 20 minute rotations or specific centers that only specific groups of students will go to. • Your pre-assessment indicated that this class has 8 students on a 3st grade literacy level, 7 students on-grade level in literacy, 6 students on a seventh grade literacy level and 1 student on a 9th grade level. • Integrate any topic you wish that involves a topic from science or social studies. • List how you will (flexible) group the students. • List the objective and assessment for each center.

12. Vocabulary Vocabulary is one of the five pillars of reading comprehension as set forth in No Child Left Behind legislation. Reading comprehension depends upon the meaning readers give words. The more vocabulary words students know, the better they are able to comprehend. A large vocabulary opens students up to a wider range of reading materials. A rich vocabulary also improves students’ ability to communicate through speaking, listening, and writing. 

13. Vocabulary Deficiencies • Researchers have stated that vocabulary deficiencies are a primary cause of academic failure in grades 3 through 12 (Baumann & Kameenui, 1991; Stanovich, 1986; Becker, 1977). These researchers profess that direct and explicit instruction of a set number of vocabulary words will improve academic success in all content areas. Stahl and Fairbanks (1986) suggest that teaching students 350 words each year may improve learning by as much as 10 to 30%. Further, in 1982, Beck, Perfetti, and McKeown found that students who were given direct instruction in word meanings were better able to discern the meanings of untaught words than control subjects. 

14. Teaching Vocabulary • Though no particular method for teaching vocabulary has been identified as best (Beck & McKeown, 1991), a number of instructional strategies such as identifying synonyms and antonyms, providing examples and nonexamples, and relating words to one’s own life, have yielded growth in students’ vocabulary

15. Vocabulary Scenario Create 3 to 5 literacy centers that could be implemented after you have already completed your 20 minute mini-lesson revolving around vocabulary to your 7th grade class. You have the option of creating centers for rotations 10 to 20 minute rotations or specific centers that only specific groups of students will go to. Your pre-assessment indicated that this class has 3 students on a 5th grade literacy level, 13 students on-grade level in literacy, and 4 students are on a 10th grade level. Integrate any topic you wish that involves a topic from science or social studies. List how you will (flexible) group the students. List the objective and assessment for each center.

16. Scenario Create 3 to 5 literacy centers that could be implemented after you have already completed your 20 minute mini-lesson revolving around phonemic awareness and phonics for your 3rd grade class. Each center should be designed for 15 to 20 minute rotations. Your pre-assessment indicated that this class has 5 students on a 1st grade literacy level, 10 students on-grade level in literacy & 5 students on a fifth grade literacy level. Integrate any topic you wish that involves a topic from science or social studies. List how you will (flexible) group the students. List the objective and assessment for each center.

17. Mini-Lesson Introduction orLiteracy Center Assessment

18. Exit Card/Assessment Please complete the exit card/assessment. This will count towards the participation portion of your grade.