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Beyond the Basal: Examining Texts
No significant learning occurs without a significant relationship!" -James Comer
Today’s Agenda• Discuss Readability and how it affects
students• Examine Children’s Literature• Describe Text Sets and discuss how
they can be used in the classroom
Reading Level and Readability- Think/Pair/Share
• What does this mean to you?• How is it used in your classroom? Your
school?• What is used to determine readability?
(What tools do you know of and use?)
Your School and Classroom
What Matters: Children need texts they can read• Decide where you and your school fall
in terms of texts and text selection• Mark where you think you fall in each
of the areas
Readability• Readability - The difficulty level of the book
or selection in terms of grade level.
Why is it important to know this?• Teachers need to help children select books that fall in
their reading level• Teachers will assess students to determine their reading
levels• Teachers will determine the reading level of a text in order
to match appropriate level books to the student
Readability Readability is based on the following assumptions• As reading material becomes more difficult, the
length of the words tend to become longer.
• Since reading material becomes more difficult according to grade level, it is possible to develop a scale which will reflect this.
Leveling Texts• Smog Readability Scale• Word Readability• Online Resources • Lexile Measures
o Ranges from 200L to 1700Lo Used in many districts around the country and has been around for about
50 yearso Children are assessed and given an “lexile score”o Database contains the lexile measures
Article Discussion
• In groups, discuss the Really Reading article
• Use the discussion guide to record your thoughts
• Be prepared for a whole group share
Taking a Critical Look at the Process
What are some things teachers need to consider about readability?Why might a child be able to navigate a text with a readability above his/her reading level?What else do we need to consider along with readability when matching books and readers?
Turn and TalkImagine entering a place where you have never been, all by yourself. What do you do, who or what do you look for or notice? Describe your feelings to your neighbor.
The Achievement GapIn 2005, the percentage of Caucasian 4th graders who met or exceeded state learning outcomes for reading was 78%. Only 44% of the Hispanic and 35% of African American students met or exceeded the outcomes. For eighth grade, 85% of the Caucasian students met or exceeded standards compared to 65% of Hispanic and 53% African American students (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2005).
Some More Statistics• In Illinois, the number of students with Limited
English Proficiency has risen to over 190,000, an 80% increase in the past ten years (National Clearing House for English Language Acquisition, 2005).
• The most predominantly spoken language is Spanish.
• This increase in non-English speaking students has classroom teachers looking for ways to teach these students in ways that are culturally relevant.
Funds of Knowledgefunds of knowledge -the expansive cognitive resources that children and their families have available that could be used in the classrooms.
• The idea is to better match the students’ home backgrounds and literacies with the practices of the school
• Teachers can use the language, culture and customs of their students as a springboard for learning
Ladson-Billings, 1995
Sociocultutal/Sociolinguistic Learning Theory
• Children are active learners• Literacy practices are reflective of
culture• Children enact their social and cultural
identities through literacy• Language and thought are related
In the Classroom: Beyond the Heroes and Holidays
Consider Community Literacies• Use the rich literacy experiences children bring to the
classroom• Mediators/ interpreters, conversations, documents• Folk tales and familiar stories • Other texts: music, art, drama, technology• Use books, poems, text (pictures, characters, stories)
portraying diversity• Incorporate students’ cultural values in readings (rhythm,
family life)
Levels of Approaches• Contributions (holidays, crafts, customs)• Ethnic Additive (multicultural themes are
approached but not embedded in the curriculum)• Transformation (curriculum is changed to allow
perspectives of diverse cultures to be represented
• Social Action (children identify social problems through literature and seek solutions)
Multicultural Literature• About African Americans, Asian Americans,
Native Americans, and Latinos. • Books by and about women, religious groups,
regional groups, gender groups and people with disabilities
• Literature that represents voices outside of the traditional canon of literature used in the classroom or that of the dominant culture
Bishop, 1997
Windows and Mirrors• Readers can read the world around them
through texts.• Readers can learn about others and
themselves• Texts can be windows into the lives and
experiences of others• Texts can be mirrors, reflecting our own lives
and experiences. Reading becomes a means of self-affirmation. Readers may seek their mirrors in books.
Examining TextsWhen children cannot find themselves reflected in the books they read, or when the images they see are distorted, negative, or laughable, they learn a powerful lesson about how they are devalued in the society of which they are a part. Our classrooms need to be places where all the children from all the cultures that make up the salad bowl of American society can find their mirrors. (Rudine Sims Bishop, Mirrors, Windows and Sliding Glass Doors, 1990)
Read Aloud: Princess Grace, by Mary Hoffman
Discussion
Your Turn• Select a book• Work with a partner and fill out the
Matrix• Share your book with the class
Structuring your Classroom• Get to know your students
o Discover your students’ home literacies (Remember, these may not be “school” literacies)
o Measure students’ prior knowledge and interest in independent reading
Structuring your Classroom• Build a strong classroom library.
o This should have a wide variety of unleveled texts that children WANT to read
Structuring you Classroom• Teach your students the self-selection process
o Discuss how people go about selecting a booko What is a “just right” book?o How do you know a book is right for you?o What do you do when you pick a just “right
book”?o What do you do when a book isn’t a “just right
book”?
BOOKMATCH• Lesson Plan
B- Book lengthO- Ordinary LanguageO- OrganizationK- Knowledge Prior to the bookM- Manageable TextA- Appeal to genreT- Topic AppropriatenessC- ConnectionH- High Interest
Choosing a Text Set
What is the purpose of the lesson for the text set? Choose a theme or strand for the text set that relates to the theme.
Consider what type of texts would be most appropriate to the purpose of the lesson.
Research and gather texts- remember to use other professionals as a resource and to truncate websites.
Remember that texts can be defined broadly.
More Web Tools
• Photostory http://www.windowsphotostory.com/
• Vocaroo http://vocaroo.com/
• VoiceThread http://voicethread.com/
• Glogster http://edu.glogster.com/
Inquiry GroupsGuidelines are posted on the Wiki
Structure of the Presentation:1.Why did you choose this topic? What led you to it?2.Describe what you’ve learned?3.What are your first steps when school starts?4.What do you feel will be a challenge?What you will turn in:1.Your questions2.A list of the references/resources you used