Literacy Assessments Guiding our Teaching

Observe Children’s Responses For competencies and confusions for strengths and weaknesses for the processes and strategies used for evidence of what the child already understands

The Reading Process Involves messages expressed in language Involves knowing about the conventions used to print language Involves visual patterns -clusters of words/syllables/blends/letters The flow of language does not always make the breaks between words clear and children may have trouble breaking messages into words

Literacy Assessments Running Records Letter ID Concepts about Print - CAP Word Tests Writing Dictation

Text Difficulty & Text Type Easy text (95-100% correct) Instructional Text (90-94% correct) Hard/Frustration Text (80-89% correct)

Learning to Take A Running Record Record everything the child says and does as he tries to read the book (tape recorder) Know the conventions/abbreviations Use ticks for each correct response Make a record of each child reading his three little books or selections. A sample reading of words required

Analyzing Running Records Use conventions for scoring records Check directional movement Calculate the error rate Learn from child’s error behavior Does the child use meaning, structure, visual information, word memory??? How about cross-checking strategies? Self checking?

Letter Identification Administration –introduce task, point to each letter, ask questions, move to other letters Scoring the record –Mark A for alphabetical response, S for sound or W for word beginning similarly - record everything child says-including incorrect Interpretation of scores

Concepts about Print (CAP) Use Sand or Stones Book Follow directions exactly Measures knowledge about front of book, print tells a story, letters, clusters of letters are called words, first letters and last letters, spaces, punctuation marks, upper and lower case letters

Word Tests Administration - Read one list of words Use of test - will tell which children are accumulating a reading vocabulary Scoring - stanine scores Interpretation - can be used for grouping children for skill teaching or to measure if progressive changes are occurring in skills

Writing Ask children to write all the words they know - can give them suggestions Record: Language level, message quality, and directional principles Interpreting the observation Connecting the progress between reading and writing - visual differences in print

Dictation Task Ask children to record a dictated sentence Choose from five sentences Read slowly while child writes Record & Score the writing Retesting - important for recording changes over time

Summarizing the Observation Survey Results Book reading - Instructional Level? Analysis of strategies used by the child Useful strategies on text, with words, and with letters Write up the survey summary Read example - p. 77 USE THE RESULTS IN TEACHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!