Sam

1. Sam Reading Portfolio for Sam, Age 7 Compiled by Cara LeClair, Reading Tutor April. 2013

2. Table of Contents • Sam: About Me • Assessments: Tests and Results • Tutoring Sessions: Our Time Together • Books We Read! • For Parents: Recommendations and Next Steps

3. SAM

4. About Sam • Sam is in first grade at Sagamore Hills Elementary School; he is 7-years-old . • Sam was chosen for tutoring, in part, because his reading comprehension score on the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) was lower than average. • Sam is an only child who likes to play soccer and basketball, play with his friends, conquer Wii games and eat macaroni and cheese. • Sam is a Math Superstar!

5. Assessments • Interest Inventory • Qualitative Reading Inventory-5 • Fry Sight Word Inventory • Multidimensional Fluency Scale • Running Records • Burke Reading Inventory

6. Interest Inventory I conducted an Oral Interest Inventory during our first tutoring session together. What is an Interest Inventory? An Interest Inventory is an informal assessment consisting of questions about interests, both inside and outside of school, as well as feelings and attitudes about reading.

7. Interest Inventory Results • Sam likes playing soccer and basketball, hanging out with his friends and playing Wii • His favorite foods include goldfish, macaroni and cheese and Nutella on bread. • Sam enjoys books that are a part of the Magic Tree house series. • Sam thinks school is “really fun.” • His favorite thing to do with his parents is go to a “bouncy place” like Monkey Joe’s

8. Qualitative Reading Inventory-5 What is the Qualitative Inventory-5? • The QI-5 is an informal assessment that consists of leveled word lists and leveled expository and narrative reading passages. • Students read word lists first to determine which level passage to start with. • Results of the QI-5 show a students independent, instructional and frustration levels in identifying words and comprehending texts. Leslie, L. & Caldwell, J. S. (2011). Qualitative reading inventory-5. Boston, MA: Pearson.

9. Qualitative Reading Inventory-5 Results of the QRI-5 are broken up into three levels: • Independent Level: The level where a student can read and comprehend without help from outside sources. • Instructional Level: The level at which a student can read and comprehend with help from outside sources (teacher, parent, tutor, etc.) • Frustration Level : The level where a student is unable to read and comprehend, even with help from outside sources.

10. QRI-5 Results-Word Lists I administered different levels of word lists until Sam reached his frustration level. Pre-Primer 2/3 List: • Total=15/20 correct =75%(instructional level) Primer List: • Total=18/20 correct=90% (independent level) First Grade List: • Total=11/20 correct=55% (frustration level) Based on the results of the word lists below, I decided to administer narrative and expository passages at the Primer level as a starting point.

11. QRI-5 Results-Narrative Passage Primer Narrative Passage, “A Trip” • Overall 92% reading accuracy rate (instructional level) • Retelling of the passage was low, recalling 2/22 total ideas. • Comprehension Questions: 3/6 correct, representing a frustration level Results: • Instructional Level for Narrative Passages is Primer Level • Independent Level for Narrative Passages is Pre-Primer Level

12. QRI-5 Results-Expository Passage Primer Expository Passage, “Living and Not Living” • Overall 89% reading accuracy rate (frustration level) • Recalling of the passage was low, recalling 5/14 ideas • Comprehension Questions: 3/6 correct, representing a frustration level Results: • Instructional Level for Expository Passages is Pre-Primer 2/3 Level • Independent Level for Expository Passages is Pre-Primer 1 Level

13. QRI-5 Summary of Results • Sam reads narrative passages at a slightly higher level than expository passages; this is normal. • In both genres, Sam reads slightly below his grade level at both the instructional and independent levels. • Comprehension recall in both genres is low.

14. Fry Sight Word Assessment What is the Fry Sight Word Assessment? The Fry Sight Word Assessment assesses a student’s “ability to recognize 300 frequently occurring words, as selected by Edward B. Fry (1980).” McKenna, M.C. & Stahl, K.A.D. (2009). Assessment for reading instruction, New York, NY: The Guilford Press.

15. Fry Sight Word Assessment Results • Out of 300 words read, Sam read 240 words correctly • Missed 29 words • Self-Corrected 11 words (said the word wrong initially and then corrected himself) How did he do? There is no formal score for this assessment. Words missed need to be practiced until they are recognized automatically!

16. Multidimensional Fluency Scale Assessment What is the Multidimensional Fluency Scale? The Multidimensional Fluency Scale Assessment is an assessment that rates expression and volume, phrasing, smoothness and pace. Each of the four categories receives a score of 1-4, with total scores ranging from 4-16. McKenna, M.C. & Stahl, K.A.D,(2009). Assessment for reading instruction. New York, NY: The Guilford Press

17. Multidimensional Fluency Scale Assessment Results • Sam read an 80 word passage called “Kim’s Flowers” • Expression and Volume: 2/4-uses some expression. • Phrasing: 3/4-mixture of run-ons, mid-sentence pauses for breath, and possibly some choppiness. • Smoothness: 2/4-several rough spots in text where extended pauses, hesitation, etc are more frequent and disruptive. • Pace: 3/4-uneven mixture of fast and slow reading Sam’s overall score was 10/16. Scores of 8 or higher indicate that accurate progress in fluency is being made.

18. Running Records What are Running Records? Running Records is an informal assessment where the teacher records errors a student makes while he or she reads a passage or portion of text out loud to the teacher. • One nice function of this assessment is that the student can read from reading material they are reading on their own, it doesn’t have to be a set text or passage.

19. Running Records Results #1 • Sam read the passage “The Boy Who Cried Wolf.” He had no previous knowledge of this story before our reading. • Running Words (# of words in text)=413 • Number of Errors=18 • Number of Self Corrections (reads a word wrong and self corrects the word)=2 • Accuracy Rate of passage=95.64% • This first grade passage is at an instructional level for Sam.

20. Running Record Results #2 • Sam read the passage “The Little Bears.” He had no prior knowledge of this story. • Running Words (3 of words in text)=424 • Number of errors=6 • Number of self corrections=2 • Accuracy Rate=%98.58 • This first grade passage is at an independent level for Sam!

21. Burke Reading Inventory What is the Burke Reading Inventory? The Burke Reading Inventory is a series of questions used to determine what kind of strategies and knowledge of the reading process a reader possesses. This particular inventory is good for younger readers. McKenna, M.C. & Stahl, K.A.D (2009). Assessment for reading instruction. New York, NY: The Guilford Press.

22. Burke Reading Inventory Results • Sam’s primary strategy is sounding out words when he comes to an unknown or unfamiliar word. • He is confident in his skills as a reader and knows that it takes practice to become adept at reading.

23. Tutoring Goals-How We Spent Our Time Comprehension Strategies • We read both fiction and nonfiction, discussing elements of each genre and how they were similar and different • We also practiced before, during and after reading strategies to aid comprehension.

24. Tutoring Goals-How We Spent Our Time Comprehension Strategies-Before Reading • K-W-L Charts are charts composed of three columns representing what we know, what we want to know and what we learned (after reading). • Example: We filled out K-W-L charts for Abe Lincoln’s Hat and the non fiction passage “A Whale of a Good Time.”

25. Tutoring Goals-How We Spent Our Time Comprehension Strategies-During Reading • Predicting-coming up with ideas about what will happen next. • Visualizing-talking about the pictures we see in our minds as we read. Example: We practiced these strategies while reading The Lorax and The One and Only Ivan.

26. Tutoring Goals-How We Spent Our Time Comprehension Strategies-After Reading Story Maps-Maps that help walk a reader through key elements of the story, including characters, setting, problem and solution. Example: We used story maps while reading The Gingerbread Man, Curious George and The Lorax

27. Tutoring Goals-How We Spent our Time Sight Words Based on the Fry Sight Word Assessment, I created 40 flash cards for Sam to commit to memorization. Progress: After several weeks, and with the help of his parents, I was pleased to see that all but three words were read automatically!

28. Tutoring Sessions: How We Spent Our Time Together Decoding Words • I helped Sam learn how to break up larger words into chunks, as a strategy to help him determine an unknown word. • Example: Using a list comprised of compound words, we discovered how larger words can be broken down into smaller parts; we practiced reading words on the list before applying the strategy to books we read together.

29. Tutoring Sessions: How We Spent Our Time Together Phonics Practice Using interactive computer games on www.readwritethink.org Sam practiced the short and long vowel sounds by matching the appropriate vowel to the vowel sound of a given picture (for example “o” for a picture of a box). Results: Sam did excellent on these short and long vowel activities, with the exception of the long “u” sound, which gives him some trouble.

30. Tutoring Sessions: How We Spent Our Time Together Phonics Practice I noted early on, that Sam mixes up writing and reading his b’s and d’s. • We watched videos that showed differences in the two letters. • We practiced a hand trick to distinguish between the two letters. • I incorporated b and d sight words into his sight word pile to help him learn to distinguish between to the two letters more automatically.

31. Tutoring Sessions: How We Spent Our Time Together Shared Reading One of the best things Sam and I did was shared reading, where we alternated reading pages of a book. We were able to talk about the book as we read and I was able to correct mistakes and make suggestions. Two Notes: • One thing Sam does really well is use intonation when reading, especially when there are exclamation marks. • One think Sam needs to work on is stopping at period marks before moving on to the next sentence. He is often so rushed to get to the finish line that he forgets he needs to pause when he sees a punctuation mark.

32. Books We Read!Books with an asterisk were favorites • Go, Dog, Go!, Dr. Seuss* • A Color of His Own, Leo Lionni • The Lorax, Dr. Seuss* • Caps for Sale, Esphyr Slobodkina* • Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Judith Viorst* • Wacky Wednesday, Dr. Seuss • Frogs!, National Geographic

33. Books We Read!Books with an asterisk were favorites • Odd Birds!, Teresa Domnauer* • The Gingerbread Man • Abe Lincoln’s Hat, (Note: Sam requested to read a book about Abe Lincoln. I could only find a book that was a couple of levels higher than his actual reading level, but we read it together anyways. Even though the book was hard for him to read, Sam was motivated to continue reading because it was a book he chose!) • Magic Tree house: Pirates Past Noon, Mary Pope Osbourne • Those Darn Squirrels!, Adam Rubin* • Sheep in a Jeep, Nancy Shaw • Curious George, Librarian for a Day, Julie Tibbott

34. Suggestions for Parents • Incorporate sight words that start with the letters b and d into the sight word cards he has. This will help him learn to automatically recognize the difference between the two letters faster. • Remind him to slow down! Often he wanted to get to the end of the book or activity as quickly as possible. • Read books with him, perhaps at a set day or time of the week. • https://sites.google.com/site/boysreadk5/home The above link is a site I created that lists links to online educational activities, books lists by genres geared specifically towards boys and magazines for boys.