Collaboration and Improvement

Brooke Brown

American College of Education

LIT5203 Strengthening Literacy

August 7, 2016

School-wide Literacy Need

• The first grade students at Frederick Douglass Elementary School had a 71% pass rate on the end of year reading assessment.

• All 33 students who did not meet the reading benchmark received additional reading services throughout the school year from specialized staff members.

• Currently there is NO additional intervention model or strategies available for teachers to assess when the county program is not effective.

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Research Summary• The Language Magazine (2014) composed an article highlighting various reading

experts’ tips for succeeding with all readers. • Dr. Sandra Iversen provided the following suggestions:

• All essential reading elements, phonemic awareness, phonics, comprehension, vocabulary, and fluency should be present from the very beginning

• Talking and writing should be part of every teachers’ daily reading instruction• Students should be provided with multiple opportunities for learning the same skills in different

contexts.• Judith Holbrook stated that…

• students need repeated exposure to the same text over multiple days in order to build essential reading skills.

• using the “key word” method when teaching students how to summarize texts. The “key word” method requires students to use five or six key words to write three or four sentences using those key words in order to write a concise summary.

• Cathy Puett Miller encourages teachers to…• create a classroom environment that not only encourages skill development but also the behavior

of reading. • be purposeful, personal, periodic and regular, and partner inside and outside your school.

• Patti Rommel suggested using graphic organizers to help students focus on essential information and enhance comprehension.

Research Summary• In the article “Helping Reluctant Readers,”

McCormick and Segal (2016) provide strategies for helping reluctant readers when they encounter text across the curriculum. • Students who experience low achievement in reading

will disengage when faced with reading in other content areas.

• In order for students to be more successful teachers can develop students’ prior knowledge, teach important vocabulary, and make connections from the topic to real life.

• Teachers can also modify the text for the reader by making the text easier to read and chunking the text. By chunking the reading selection, the text can be segmenting into manageable sections, making the concepts more accessible to the reader.

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Research Summary• Latham (2014) identifies several challenges readers may encounter that causes

them to struggle and provides teaching considerations for each challenge. • Teachers need to determine why a learner may be struggling to read and then provide

appropriate support by building on the existing reading strengths that the student already possesses.

• Schematic knowledge may cause some readers to struggle with the text because of the technical language present in the reading. Teachers can assist students in making connections to their prior knowledge before reading the text.

• Students may have difficulty decoding and teachers can provide opportunities for students to become language detectives when examining rhyming words, unusual plurals, and prefixes or suffixes.

• Teachers need to look for physical impairments that may hinder a student’s reading success and be aware of any disruptive environmental conditions that could hinder students.

• Using text that contains emotionally charged content or has a structure of text that is difficult. She suggests modeling and teaching students how to choose a “Just Right” book.

Research Summary

• Burns (2015) states that a one-size-fits-all approach to education does not work for every child. • She states that left-brain activity is often underdeveloped

in struggling readers and there are ways that teachers can aid struggling readers at a neurological level.

• Teachers can check for discrimination of similar sounds, provide instruction that is intense, motivating, and frequent, and engage in vocabulary activities from an early age. Research has shown that student who are exposed to more words as young children have greater pre-reading skills when they begin school.

• Teachers can also provide opportunities for students to work on listening accuracy, auditory sequencing, and phonological memory. Burns (2015) suggests using the intervention program Fast ForWord, which emphasizes these skills.

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Research Summary• In the article “Seven Ways to Help

Struggling Readers,” Meyer (2016) provides strategies used to help students achieve substantial reading gains. • Teachers should seek out research-based

interventions such as Fast ForWord and Reading Assistant and target the root cause of student’s reading difficulties.

• Educators need to empower students with a dedicated teacher and a blended learning approach.

• One-on-one support to strengthen fluency and comprehension is needed and students need opportunities to write every day.

• Teachers need to accelerate student progress with real-time data and students’ progress needs to be evaluated using multiple measures.

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School-wide Lesson Plan

• Lesson Title: Becoming a Language Detective-Finding the patterns in words.• Overview: Students at any grade level can become a language detective and find the

patterns in words whether they are rhyming words, irregular plurals, or prefixes or suffixes. Building students’ knowledge of word patterns will enable them to better decode unknown words and strengthen vocabulary knowledge, which can lead to better comprehension skills (Bromley, 2007).

• Standards: • K.7 The student will develop an understanding of basic phonetic principles.• 1.6 The student will apply phonetic principles to read and spell.• 2.5 The student will use phonetic strategies when reading and spelling.• 3.3 The student will apply word-analysis skills when reading.• 4.4 The student will expand vocabulary when reading.• 5.4 The student will expand vocabulary when reading.

School-wide Lesson Plan• Objectives/Learning Outcomes: Students will

create a poster that identifies a specific word pattern that addresses their current academic level. Posters may include writing, drawing, a combination of both, or technology.

• Materials, Resources, and Technology: Students will have various materials available to choose from in order to create their poster. Materials include markers, crayons, different colored construction paper, pencils, pens, colored pencils, poster board, rulers, and magazines. Available resources would include dictionaries, thesaurus, quick words, classroom posters, phonics poems, The Word Spy, and story books. Several technology programs such as Pixie, PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, online dictionary and thesaurus websites are available for student access.

Instructional Strategies• Instructional Strategy 1: Students will become language detectives and work to identify

patterns in words (Latham, 2014). Students may use available classroom resources to identify words that fit the word pattern that they selected from a set of word patterns provide by the classroom teacher. Learning various word patterns will increases students’ knowledge of words and enable them to make connections to new words.

• Instructional Strategy 2: Students will investigate the meaning of words they encounter that they do not know the meaning of and the teacher will aid students in making connections to other words to help build from the known to the new. Bromley (2007) states that words are learned because of associations that connect the new with the known and direct instruction in vocabulary influences reading comprehension more than any other factor.

• Instructional Strategy 3: The teacher will chose several word patterns that address the appropriate ability levels of the students. Students will be given the opportunity to choose their own word pattern to investigate and choose their mode of presenting their information. In the article titled “Help for Every Struggling Reader,” by Language Magazine (2014) Cathy Puett Miller suggests that teachers tap into student motivation and by giving the students choices in their learning process it increases student engagement and strengthens motivation to learn.

Instructional Strategies• Instructional Strategy 4: Students will be able to analyze word patterns and

observe other students word patterns in order to increase their decoding skills. Students will be given opportunities to read books in guided reading that will enable them to apply what they have learned about various word patterns. According to Rasinski, Rupley, and Nichols (2008), phonics and reading fluency have been identified as two critical components in early elementary reading instruction.

• Instructional Strategy 5: After students gather a list of words that meets their identified word pattern they will be expected to create a visual poster that presents their information. Some students may choose to use words, drawings, or the computer to organize their information. At the younger levels students may rely heavily on drawings and illustrations due to a lack of strong writing skills. Mackenzie and Veresov (2013) state that drawing should be a valued and critical element of early writing curriculum.

School-wide Lesson Plan• Student Groupings: Students will be grouped based on their individual

ability levels and the teacher will provide suggested word patterns based on their current spelling and reading levels. • Students may work individually while the teacher works with small groups of students

who may experience difficulty beginning the assignment or require extra assistance. • The teacher will monitor student work and check in with students periodically

throughout the assignment. • This project will take several days and will be segmented into various tasks• Additional time will be provided to those students who require it.

• Presentation: Students will share their presentations with their classmates. • Presentations will be spread out over several days in order to sustain student attention. • Students will also use their presentations to create a class book of word patterns that

will be available for students to read. • Posters will then be displayed in the hallway for other students and staff members to

view.

Assessment/Evaluation• Formative assessment will take place throughout the lesson to monitor

student understanding and guide future instruction. • Students will be given a summative grade on their presentation at the

conclusion of the assignment. • Grading criteria will vary based on the word pattern that the student is

investigating. • Prior to beginning the assignment the teacher will review the grading

criteria with the students so that there is a clear understanding of what is expected.

• Students will also be expected to apply their word pattern when they are decoding words in guided reading. Reading application will be assessed by teacher observation and anecdotal notes during guided reading.

• Feedback will be provided in a one-on-one format with the teacher conferencing with the student.

Closure/Reflection• After each presentation students will reflect on what they learned and share any

connections that they were able to form. • When all students have shared their posters they will use the presentation

information to create a class book of word patterns that will be available to read during independent reading time.

• Students will also be asked to self-reflect on the lesson and identify what went well, what was difficult, and what adjustments they might have needed to make throughout the lesson.

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Survey Questions

• 1. Do you feel this lesson addresses reading needs at all grade levels?• 2. What strategy do you feel is most effective?• 3. Is there any additional strategies that you would suggest using

during the lesson?• 4. Do you have any questions or concerns about the lesson?• 5. What changes, if any, would you make to the lesson?

References• Bromley, K. (2007). Nine things every teacher should know about words and vocabulary instruction.

Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 50(7), 528-536.• Burns, M. (2015, February). Inside the brain of a struggling reader. Why a one- size-fits-all

approach does not work for every child. District Administration, 51(2), 60. • Carpenter, J. P. (2016, May). Teachers at the wheel. New modes of professional learning put

educators in the driver’s seat. Educational Leadership, 73(8), 30-35.• Language Magazine. (2014, April). 13(8), 24-27.• Lathan, G. (2014, October). Struggling readers: A complex label. Practically Primary, 19(3), 33-35.• McCormick, M. K., & Segal, P. H. (2016). Helping reluctant readers. The Science Teacher, 83(4), 41-

45.• Meyer, C. (2016). Seven ways to help struggling readers. Principal, 95(3), 36-37.• Mackenzie, N., & Veresov, N. (2013, December). How drawing can support writing acquisition: Text

construction in early writing from a Vygotskian perspective. Australian Journal of Early Childhood, 38(4), 22-29.

• Rasinski, T., Rupley, W. H., Nichols, W. D. (2008). Synergistic Phonics and Fluency Instruction: The Magic of Rhyming Poetry! The New England Reading Association Journal, 44(1), 9-14.