Reading Odyssey: 4 th Grade Benchmarks

2. From the Florida Department of Education www.fcatexplorer.com Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Program Overview

3. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Interactive program offers practice on the FCAT-tested benchmarks Reinforces reading comprehension skills Available at no costto all Florida public schools Accessible from any computer connected to the Internet

4. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Fidelity with the Official FCAT Strict adherence to the Sunshine State Standards and the DOE’s Test Item & Performance Task Specifications • Rigorous item development process • Items drafted by reading teachers and professional item writers • Items reviewed by instructional designers, testing specialists, bias reviewers, and professional editors

5. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Input from Education Professionals Exemplary classroom teachers • Recommended for expertise in subject area and grade level • National Board Certified • Recipients of Teacher of the Year awards • Experienced as FCAT coach and/or reading coach • Masters’ degrees

6. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Instructional Support

7. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Instructional Support • 1ST ATTEMPT CORRECT • Displays auditory and visual congratulations • Supplies correct answer explanation

8. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Instructional Support • 1ST ATTEMPT INCORRECT • Informs student that answer is incorrect • Delivers hint or takes student to yellow highlighted passage • Explanation of vocabulary-related skills and their application • Highlighting offers guidance to correct answer

9. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Instructional Support • 2nd ATTEMPT CORRECT or INCORRECT • Correct answer: Auditory congratulations and explanation • Incorrect answer: • Notification that selected answer is incorrect • Identification of correct answer • Explanation of why the correct answer choice is correct

10. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Passages and Practice Items

11. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks FCAT-like Passages • 45 passages grouped into three themes—land, sea, and space • Written to support FCAT-like practice on all tested benchmarks • Topics drawn from Sunshine State Standards subject areas • Science • Social Studies • The Arts • Health & Physical Education

12. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks FCAT-like Passages • Same average length and readability level as on the FCAT • Same varieties of passages: poems, plays, articles, and stories • Reviewed by teachers for interest & readability • Reinforced by illustrations

13. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks FCAT-like Practice Items • 332 FCAT-like practice items: From the passage Neptune, The Blue Planet • Multiple choice (MC) • Short-response (SR) • Items reflect real-world activities and situations From the passage Rosa’s Return

14. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks FCAT-like Practice Items PRACTICE ITEMS • Rigorous item development process • Written by professional item writers • Reviewed and approved by teachers • Revised as needed based on statistical item analysis • Same average number of items per passage as on the FCAT • Number of items per skill based on teacher recommendation for struggling readers • No fewer than 5 items per skill • From 5 to 50 items per benchmark • Same type, style, format, scope, & cognitive levelas on the FCAT

15. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks FCAT-like Practice Items MULTIPLE CHOICE (MC) Careful review of every item for psychometric criteria • Item must clearly support skill • Only plausible choices • All answer choices are parallel (e.g., grammatical form) • One clearly best answer • Correct answer supported in the text

16. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks FCAT-like Practice Items SIMULATED SRs & MCs • Short-response: Compare three responses & select the best one • Multiple-choice: Read four responses & choose the most correct • Simulation strategies recommended by teachers • Based on classroom instructional practices • Requires student to compare or assess critical attributes

17. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks FCAT-like Practice Items LET’S STOP AND THINK • Content questions embedded throughout passages modeling thought processes of good readers • Correct and incorrect responses identified • Recognition of crucial content in reading passages reinforced

18. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks FCAT-like Practice Items • Answer Explanations for Three-Response SRs • Correct answer: • Full credit given • Attributes that justify the assigned score • Compare this answer: • Partial credit given • Answer attributes and discrepancies supplied • Incorrect answer: • No credit given • Description of why this response received no credit

19. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks MAPS, TABLES, AND CHARTS Essential Support for Passages • Illustrate crucial passage content • Support items written on research benchmark (LA.A. 2.2.8 and LA.A. 2.2.5) • Supply critical additional information on the topic

20. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Special Features

21. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Special Features SEE QUESTIONS • Allows students to preview item stems (not answer choices) • Helps students establish a purpose for reading • Teacher requested feature SeeQuestions

22. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Special Features Passage GLOSSARY Student can clickthe word species to go to that glossary entry • Linked (blue) words in passage • “Ear icon” to hear word pronounced • Definition • Example sentence to show use • Spanish and Haitian Creole translations Glossary Entry

23. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Special Features • Explorer’s Report • Shows the number of items attempted for each benchmark • Gives percentage of items answered correctly • Includes daily, school-year, and custom reports • Accessible from Base Camp

24. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Special Features • CHALLENGE LIST • Available any time from the Base Camp menu • Land, sea, and space modules link to passages and items • Red circle items allow students to try again

25. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Motivational Features

26. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks • HIGH-INTEREST PASSAGE TOPICS • Topics drawn from other subject areas in the Sunshine State Standards • Passages reviewed by 4th grade teachers for potential to interest struggling 4th grade students

27. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Motivational Features • VIDEO LOG • Accessible from the Base Camp • Shows animated stories about the Reading Odyssey • Awards new chapters upon completion of four planets

28. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Motivational Features • ANIMATED VOCABULARY GAMES • Earn points for correct answers • Play one of five vocabulary games upon completing three passages and accompanying items • Scoring tally for correct responses • Repetition of questions for incorrect responses

29. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Motivational Features • PHOTOGRAPHS AND ILLUSTRATIONS • Reinforce important ideas in the passage • Pique curiosity • Maintain attention & endurance • Help students perceive reading as an interesting activity

30. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Educators’ Tools

31. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Educator’s Tools • Curriculum resources Classroom Teacher’s Desk • Skills location map • Table of benchmarks and skills • Item review • Letter to parents School Administrator’s Desk • Information management tools • Sign-in names and passwords • Progress reports • Messages to students District Administrator’s Desk

32. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Student Performance Reports At the Classroom Teacher’s Desk • Check progress on individuals or classes • View reading data by benchmark, skill, or passage • View math data by benchmark, strand, or theme • View science data by benchmark or strand • Compare percentage correct before and after instructional support

33. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks The Parent & Family Guide • Accessible from the home page without a password • Available in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole • Helps parents, guardians, and mentors understand the Sunshine State Standards and the FCAT • Provides Everyday Activitiesto help parents reinforce benchmarks and skills

34. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Educator Resources Page • Linked From the Home Page • Download this PowerPoint presentation • Download the School Administrator’s Desk Manual • Download the Teacher’s Desk Manual • Download other presentations • Reading Focus Overview • Math Focus Overview • Program-specific presentations

35. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks Toll-Free Help Desk • Accessible from the home page without a password • 1-888-750-FCAT1-888-750-3228 • Weekdays 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

36. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks To get sign-in names & passwords School Principals: Contact your district office and speak to the district administrator for the FCAT Explorer Teachers: Contact your school administrator for the FCAT Explorer FCAT Explorer Home Page (www.fcatexplorer.com)

37. Reading Odyssey: 4th Grade Benchmarks www.fcatexplorer.com Log on to the FCAT Explorer!