Study Guide: Daddy, Where Did the Words Go?  (Flanigan, 2005)

Name: Blair Stone

1. What role does finger pointing play in developing concept of word and phonemic awareness?

Finger pointing plays a large role in developing the concept or word and phonemic awareness. When children are younger and are speaking, they don’t understand where a word begins and ends. But, when they are read to, the concept of words and phonemic awareness can be broken down much more easily. for younger students to understand by finger pointing. Words can be sounded out and the spaces in between every word help develop the concept of a word.

2. Describe the 4-stage model of early literacy.

Stage one consists of beginning consonant knowledge. This stage begins the process of     matching written and spoken words, being practiced with the use of finger-pointing.  Stage two includes the concept of words in text. Stage three is phoneme segmentation ability. In this stage, students should have the ability to match their spoken and printed words. Once this happens, these words can be broken down into phonemes. Stage four consists of word recognition. Full phoneme recognition, which occurs in this stage, allows students to begin to hold multiple words in their memory.

3. Describe what this means: “It is not in the telling, but it is in the very act of reading that Jack will actually learn how to read.” p. 10

This comment, I believe, holds true for many aspects of a teacher’s responsibilities. We     can teach students about specific concepts and ways to understand certain things we go over in class. But, they won’t learn to read simply by us telling them how to read. They must be put in  situations, time and time again, in which they must practice what they are taught. In a sense, this comment is rewording an old saying I’m sure many of us have heard ever since we were little “Practice makes perfect.”

4. What instruction helps develop beginning readers’ awareness of words and phonemes?

There are multiple types of instruction teachers can apply to educating their students on    how to read. These include, but are not limited to: choral reading, modeling finger pointing, read aloud, echo reading, partner reading, buddy reading, and text copies. The Language Experience Approach is one of the oldest and widely used devices to help    beginning readers learn the ins and outs of the process of reading. Word Center and Cut up A Sentence are also tasks that allow students to begin understanding the basics of reading.

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Study Guide for Reading Storybooks to Kindergartners Helps Them Learn New Vocabulary Words (Robbins & Ehri, 1994)

How do children increase their vocabularies?

Children increase their vocabularies either through direct contact with parents OR making inferences themselves after hearing or seeing a specific word being used numerous times.

What evidence is there that reading aloud to children can increase their vocabularies?

The Robbins and Ehri Study gives a plethora of evidence that children can increase their vocabularies through reading aloud.

Does it matter what teachers read to students? In other words, if you are reading aloud to students in your kindergarten class, should you care about the richness in the language that a book does or does not have? What kinds of books are best to read aloud to students if we want to build their vocabularies?

It does matter what teachers decide to read to their students. In order for students to start to build their vocabulary with the basics, it is essential that teachers pick stories that are going to grab the students’ attention, have a simple plot, a picture book that allows students to find clues as to what a word could mean, etc.

Why do you think you should focus on emphasizing vocabulary in your lessons with students? Does this apply to read aloud activities?

It is essential as an educator for us to emphasize vocabulary in our lessons with our students. Vocabulary will be the basis of what they will learn for many years to come. Vocabulary definitely applies to read aloud activities seeing that these activities are where students pick up a large amount of word meaning and recognition.

What role will reading to students play in your teaching?

Reading to my students will play a very large role in my teaching. As mentioned above, I believe it is the basis for everything my students will have to face in the future, academically wise. It is our job to give our students all of the knowledge that we can in order to have them succeed then as well as later on in life.

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Text Talk Reading Response

Important Points given in this journal:

• One must be very specific when choosing the correct text. It should be challenging enough to require understanding of the ideas proposed in the story as well as the ability to identify their meanings.
• These texts can also be read aloud.
• The type of talk has a large impact on the success of this program.
• Valuable points for their future in literacy should be made.
• The talking portion of this program should engourage children to focus on the important ideas in the story.
• But most importantly, instead of having only one right answer, the teacher should allow the students to reflect on the questions asked of them to encourage independent thinking and the ability to find their own opinion on something.

Key Steps in Planning and Performing a Text Talk Lesson

1. Ensure you have chosen an appropriate text not only for the grade level, but for the reasons stated above as well.
2. Plan out initial questions about the story you are reading. (Initial questions and follow up questions)
3. Ask initial questions to class.
4. Begin reading chosen story.
5. Read a couple pages without showing the children the pictures.
6. Ask them a few questions about what you just read. (Make sure you don’t just have one right answer in your head. Allow your children to reflect upon the question you asked and come up with their own assumption and answer. Questions can cover background knowledge, vocabulary, etc.)
7. Show students the illustrations.
8. Repeat steps 5-7 until you finish the story.
9. Ask follow up questions about the story as a whole.

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Every Child Reading (Ch. 2 Study guide)

Explain what Morris means by the traditional role of kindergarten is “to level the playing field” in terms of literacy experience.

Since Kindergarten is a year of a lot of firsts, there is a lot of adjusting to be done. Children come into a classroom from all different backgrounds, lifestyles, and family situations. Some students come into the classroom having been read to and already know how to write their name and maybe even some of the alphabet. Others come into a classroom rarely ever being read to, and don’t even know a few letters of the alphabet. Therefore, it is the Kindergarten teacher’s responsibility to put all of their students “on the same playing field.” Even though students come in knowing different amounts of information, they all leave knowing the same amount in which they were taught over the course of the year. All this would be in addition to what they came in knowing.

What literacy activities should be included in a kindergarten reading program?

A Kindergarten reading program should include four main parts: reading aloud to children, guided contextual reading, letter-sound study, and writing.

Why read aloud to children? (5 things children learn)

There are numerous reasons in which reading aloud to children puts them at an obvious advantage. Reading aloud allows children to develop thoughts that are further beyond their immediate surroundings. Another advantage includes allowing children to paint an image in their head and use it, and change it over time. “Making words fit the world,” is another leg up reading aloud to children gives to our students. After students hear the same word over and over again, while looking at pictures, they will begin to match the word not only with the correct picture, but its meaning as well. Reading aloud also extends a young child’s vocabulary extensively, and also gets students more familiar with the ins and outs of written language.

Why is guided contextual reading important in kindergarten?

Guided contextual reading is important in Kindergarten for various reasons. This strategy encourages students learn to read in so many different ways.  The most important aspect of guided contextual reading is the focus on repetition. Since so many words are repeated, and the language patterns are very easy to follow, reading becomes a much easier task. Teachers can also lead by example and have students follow their lead, while practicing finger pointing. Choral reading alleviates pressure off of students and makes what many students see as a frustrating lesson, a fun and exciting experience.

Describe dictated experience stories (language experience approach—LEA)

This method is also known as language experience approach. The teacher leads the class in a discussion on a common experience, like making popcorn. Afterwards, the teacher develops a story off of the comments made during the discussion, and choral reading follows along with finger-pointing practice. The teacher then asks students questions about the reading. The story is transferred from a large poster board to individual piece of lined paper for each student. Next, the teacher goes around in groups and helps students follow along as they read it again. Shortly after, the students are then asked to draw an illustration that goes along with the class’s story at the top of the page. The last step in this process is going on a one on basis with each student, seeing how successfully they are finger pointing and matching the spoken words with the written words.

Describe big book approach (shared reading approach)

This approach is also known as the shared-book experience. The two main parts of a “big book,” consist of pictures and repetitive language and high-frequency words. On the first day, the teacher reads the story aloud to the class along with questions throughout the reading. The next day, the class choral reads the story one or two times, while finger pointing. On the last day of the lesson, teachers work individually with students and test their finger-pointing skills.

Why include both LEA and shared reading methods in kindergarten?

Although these two methods are extremely similar and offer a lot of the same advantages, there are two major differences that can have a large impact on young readers. As with many aspects of teaching, like mathematics, it is best to teach a topic from as many different approaches as possible. This will ensure that your students have found a way that best works for them and allows them to learn with the best capability. The language patterns in dictated stories focus on the spoken sentence patterns while big books work with written sentence patterns. Obviously, it is imperative that students know and have the ability to understand both. Furthermore, dictated stories allow students to think about and put their own experiences in writing, whereas big books introduce new experiences to children.

Is there a role for independent reading in kindergarten?

There is most definitely a role for independent reading in Kindergarten. Just as parents and teachers reading aloud to students has a lasting impact, so does independent reading. Once teachers have taught their students the basics, it is essential in the progression of learning to read to practice, practice, and more practice! The more students practice, the more comfortable they become with reading.

Every Child Reading (Ch. 3 Studyguide)

What does Fraatz (1987) mean by “paradox of collective instruction”?

“The paradox of collective instruction,” is a term used by Fraatz to describe the tough job laid out before first grade teachers. Their job is to be able to teach everyone with correct and effective instruction, while also addressing individual issues. These individual issues can include students who fall behind. If students fall behind in first grade, they have a much harder time catching up with their peers academically. Individual issues could also include the other end of the spectrum: gifted students who are much above the average reading level of a fad.

What are the three critical components of learning to read?

Beginning readers must be able to go through three steps on the road to learning to read. They must attend to individual sounds within words and decode printed words by matching letters to sounds. Furthermore, the last step includes the ability to automatize decoding or word processing so that the mind can concentrate on the meaning of what is being read.

List the four tasks that the first-grade teacher can use to assess individual children’s reading ability during the first week of school. Describe what each task is used to assess?

There are many different tests teachers can utilize throughout the first week of school to assess children’s individual reading ability. This test assesses a child’s knowledge of alphabet, concept of word in text, spelling, and word recognition.

How does Supported Oral Reading (SOR) differ from round robin reading in guiding children’s contextual reading?

SOR is a different approach when compared to Round Robin reading. This is simply due to the fact that Supported Oral Reading includes many aspects of guiding contextual reading as well while Round Robin reading does not.

Why is appropriate leveling of books important and how has it been used in intervention and classroom settings?

Appropriate leveling of books is important because it is a guide to the progression of young student’s ability to read. The more advanced the student’s reading level, the higher their leveling would be as the year came to a close.

Describe the developmental sequence of word study instruction. What does the continuum consist of? Why is it recommended that teachers follow such a sequence of instruction?

The developmental sequence of word study instruction consists of word families, short-vowel patterns, beginning consonants, and long-vowel patterns. The “continuum” is an explanation as to where the individual student is in their instructional sequencing; how advanced they were with their reading skills, or how far behind they were in comparison to all other students. This strategy lays the groundwork for educators to follow, while it is also simplistic enough for students to understand as well.

How could you assess where a beginning reader is at on the continuum of word recognition skill?

Inventive spelling can assess where a beginning reader is at on the continuum of word recognition skill.

Describe word sorting activities to teach beginning sound consonants and short-vowel word families.

Beginning sound consonants: Practice picture sorting picture cards into columns by beginning consonant sounds. Then they start sound-letter pairings. As they begin to master the beginning consonant letter-sound relationships, educators should encourage students to use this new-found knowledge while reading.

What skills does word sorting help develop in beginning readers coupled with word games and spell checks?

Word sorting helps develop many skills in beginning readers. After utilizing this task, a child can do many things with an unrecognized word. Young children can change the initial consonant, and then blend the consonant with the rhyming vowel-consonant ending. Pairing this task with word games and spell checks, first graders can expand their vocabulary, as well as develop sight vocabulary and word decoding ability. Students learn to read many short vowel words at sight and to decode (“sound out”) words that are not considered sight words.  

What is instructional pacing? What factors were found by Barr (1974, 1982) to affect effective pacing?

Pacing refers to an educator’s skill in guiding his/her students through a set of graded reading materials. The four factors that affect effective pacing include difficulty of the classroom reading materials and time allocated to reading instruction. The third factor Barr found is the number of low readers in the classroom. The last factor to affect effective pacing is the teacher’s years of experience teaching first grade.

In what ways can writing help beginning reader’s development?

Writing can help the beginning reader’s development in multiple ways. Writing at a young age allows children to develop phonemic awareness. When children get to first grade, it is important that they take on the stance of an author. This way, they can read and reread their own texts and other texts. Furthermore, writing allows children to practice internalizing letter-sounds, spelling patterns, and sight words.

What are three tasks that could be used to assess end-of-year reading achievement? Describe the tasks briefly.

• Word Recognition Task: children attempt to read a list of 40 words, graded in difficulty from early first grade to mid-second grade
• Spelling Task: children attempt to spell a list of 15 words- each of the 15 words is scored according to a developmental rubric (devised by Morris and Perney)
• Passage Reading Task: children read aloud up to six passages increasing in
• difficulty from early first grade to late second grade

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Words Their Way Reading Response

Emergent (Preliterate) Stage

• 0-5 years of age
• Their writing basically consists of scribbles and drawing.
• Writing may occur in any given direction, but usually is linear.
• During the middle of the stage, students will put “pretend writing,” next to pictures they have drawn.
• Children begin to learn how to spell their name and recognize the letters in their name.
• Students begin to sound out words and write them as they hear the sounds.
• The Alphabetic Principle is required in order to move onto the next stage.( learning that letters represent sounds in a systematic way)
• End of stage: students begin to write the same words over and over again. (ie. Mom, Dad, and love)

Letter Name-Alphabetic (Letter Name) Stage

• Early Kindergartners to second semester second graders (5-8 years old)
• These students use the letter name to represent the sound they wish to make. (ie. Y (wie) for the W in when )
• This stage is broken down into three stage of its own (early, middle, and late periods) due to the rapid amount of growth in this stage.
• Students in the early stage will represent only the first couple and last couple letters with the letter name. This is also known as semiphonetic because only some of the sounds and letters are represented.
• Students in the middle period have the ability to spell many high frequency words correctly and their consistent use of vowels sets them apart from the first period. Since these children can correctly correlate the given sounds with letters, their spelling achievement is seen as phonetic.
• By the last period, students have full phonemic segmentation. They have the ability to represent most short vowel sounds, digraphs, and consonant blends.
• These students will begin to “use but confuse,” silent vowel markers.

Within Word Pattern Spelling Stage

• This stage begins with independent reading and occurs throughout third and fourth grade. (ages 7-10)
• Students within this stage can read and spell many words correctly.
• This stage is also known as the period of orthographic development
• These students move away from the linear spelling and work more with abstract spelling – spelling words by chunks, or patterns of letter sequences.
• These children are sometimes referred to as transitional spellers because they are in between the alphabetic layer and the meaning layer of spelling and comprehension.
• The most difficult patterns to these students are ambiguous vowels because the vowel is neither long nor short and does not always follow along with other patterns.

Syllables and Affixes Stage (Syllable Juncture)

• This stage occurs from 9-14 years of age.
• Inflected endings and unaccented final syllables give students difficulty in this stage.
• They move away from the linear, sound-by-sound approach of the letter name-alphabetic spellers and begin to include patterns or chunks of letter sequences.
• Students usually can spell single-syllable, short-vowel words, consonant blends, digraphs, and preconsonantal nasals correctly during this stage.
• Towards the end of this stage, students begin to struggle with affixes that change the meaning of the word. (ie. desloyal)

Derivational Relations (Derivational Constancies)

• This is the last stage in the developmental model.
• This stage can be found anywhere from 4th or 5th grade all the way up to high school.
• Students study how words share common derivations and related base words and word roots.
• Vocabulary is greatly enriched in this stage, utilizing Greek and even Latin origin.
• Reduced vowels often give people in this stage great difficulty. ( ie. competition)

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Stahl, S. A. (2003).

Q1. What is the Simple View of Reading? Explain how it works.

The simple view is a model for understanding the effects of storybook reading on children’s achievement. The Simple View of Reading states that there are two, non-intersecting factors behind reading comprehension. Storybook reading might have an effect on language comprehension, word recognition, or both.

What part of the Simple View of Reading does storybook reading most likely impact?

Storybook reading most likely impacts language comprehension, in comparison to word recognition.

Q2. What are Ehri’s 4 stages of word recognition? Name each and give a short description.

Stage 1: Children recognize words through distinctive reading. This is also known as “visual cue reading.”

Stage 2: Children use salient letters to identify words. This strategy is also known as phonemic cue reading or partial alphabetic coding

Stage 3: Children begin to examine each part (and letter) of an individual word in order to understand it. This is called full alphabetic coding.

Stage 4: In this stage, children become fully aware of phonemes and the individual parts of a  word.

Q3. On page 368, there is a good definition of Phonemic Awareness. What is it? (Remember it.)

Phonemic Awareness is a part of phonological awareness, which refers to “a broad class of skills that involve attending to, thinking about; and other intellectually manipulating the phonological aspects of the spoken language.”

Q4. On page 370, we learn that knowledge of the alphabet is necessary for beginning to learn to read and spell words. There is a developmental sequence to learning about the alphabet: What is it?

The developmental sequence to learning the alphabet consists of recitation of the alphabet ( abc song), the naming of individual letters, the printing of those letters, and the identification of letter sounds.

Q5. What is the value in “reading to” or having children “read” alphabet books?

The relationship between letter name knowledge and phonemic awareness may be meditated by exposure to children’s alphabet books. Children who read alphabet books may develop the insight that one can think about words as containing sounds.

Q6. What is the value in children’s finger-pointing as they read?

There is great value in having children finger-point as they read. It is considered one of the most positive interactions between storybook reading and word recognition development.  It is also related to childrens’ ability to use initial letter cues, and eventually final cues, to recognize words. Letter identification has also been correlated to repeated exposure to finger pointing, as well as early letter name spellers.

Q7. What is a predictable book and what is its value in helping children learn to read?

A predictable book contains a repeated linguistic pattern that children can use to support their reading. Predictability can come from text placement, the amount of support given my pictures, familiarity of the content, as well as linguistic patterns. These books can help children learn to read because they can focus on the words, using the text as support. They are typically shared reading experiences, in which children are expected to take on most of the responsibility themselves. The purpose of these books is to learn to read more accurately, not enjoy the story.

Q8. So, in the end, what role does storybook reading play in helping children learn to read?

Specifically, what role does storybook reading play in developing vocabulary and comprehension?

Storybook reading helps with the concept of the consonant and vowel. It also helps develop phonemic awareness in young children.

What role does storybook reading play in developing children’s word recognition skills?

Storybook reading helps develop children’s word recognition skills by allowing them to match print to speech. These books are also great for repetition, so students can learn high-frequency words quickly.

What other things can help with children’s development of word recognition skills?

Along with the development of word recognition skills comes the relationship to counting. Additionally, the increase in word recognition is related to kind of home children are raised in. If they have been introduced to reading at a young age, and have practiced multiple time, children are more likely to succeed at word recognition skills.

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Rosenthal & Ehri Reading Response (2–7)

1. What was the hypothesis tested by the researchers?

Experiment with 2^nd graders: (1) The hypothesis tested by the researchers was that students will learn pronunciations and meanings of new words better when they see spellings of the words during study periods than when they don’t.

Experiment with 5^th graders:  (1) Spellings will help fifth graders learn the pronunciations and meanings of new vocabulary words better than no spellings. (2) Students with stronger orthographic knowledge (higher level readers) will benefit more from spellings than those with weaker orthographic knowledge ( lower level readers).

2. Who were the subjects?

Experiment with 2^nd graders: The subjects were 20 second graders. (Their mean age was 7 years and 7 months old.) They were enrolled in an urban school with a large minority population.

Experiment with 5^th graders: The subjects were 32 fifth graders. These students came from the same lower SES schools as the 2^nd graders.

3. What were the experimental conditions?

Experiment with 2^nd graders: Each student was taught the pronunciations and meanings of six concrete nouns.                       Spellings were shown as students learned one set. Spellings were not shown as students learned the other set. The                              particular word set was counterbalanced across all conditions. The order that students completed the conditions                                was counterbalanced across students. During learning, the words were not only defined but also embedded in different sentences   to clarify meaning and connections to other words.

Experiment with 5^th graders: Students were divided into two groups that differed in their orthographic                                        knowledge; fourteen upper level readers and eighteen lower level readers. Each student was taught pronunciations                               and the meanings of 6 concrete nouns.

4. What did the treatment involve?

Experiment with 2^nd graders: Treatment vs. Control. Treatment (Words were accompanied by spellings during periods) vs. Control ( Students learned spoken words without spellings)

Experiment with 5^th graders: (see above Treatment vs. Control)

5. Which group (spelling-present vs. spelling-absent) gained more in vocabulary learning?  How were the groups’ recall of pronunciations affected by the treatment?

The fifth graders gained more in vocabulary learning. This is because those students with greater orthographic knowledge, in other words, higher level readers, have a stronger ability to learn new vocabulary. The spelling benefited recall for both reader groups during the first three trials , after which a ceiling effect was observed.

6. Why do you think that fifth graders who were high on a word reading task benefited more from the spelling aids than their peers with less orthographic experience and knowledge, even though the two groups did not differ on receptive vocabulary knowledge?

This is because higher level readers have greater knowledge of the ins and outs of reading. They have a better understanding for tasks that help one get through a reading. Syntax, word recognition, breaking apart a word’s meanings based upon prior knowledge, and many other similar activities make different words all fit together. The relationship between words is easier to see if you already have prior knowledge and understanding to pull from.

7. What general conclusions were derived from the study findings by the authors? What implications were offered for vocabulary learning and instruction?

• Students with stronger orthographic knowledge benefited more from seeing spelling than students with lower orthographic knowledge.
• When students are exposed to the spellings of new vocabulary words, grapho-phonemic connections are activated. This better secures them in the memory.
• Spellings become bound to pronunciations in memory and secure pronunciations earlier during the course of learning.
• Better secured pronunciations provide stronger bases for learning meanings.
• Spelling helped both 2^nd and 5^th graders, so it’s not limited developmentally.

8. What questions do you have from the article? List them here.

• Were all of the experimental conditions exactly the same? If not, wouldn’t they have had a large impact on the results?
• If students with higher orthographic knowledge get more use out of these studies, how can we get lower orthographic students up to the same level as the rest of their classmates?

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Curt Reading Assignment

1. Look at the spelling errors that Curt makes. What stage of word knowledge is Curt in?Why do you pick this stage of development? What are the key characteristics?

Curt is in the Phonetic/Within Word Pattern. I picked this stage of development. The  short vowels were correctly spelled and identified but the long vowels proved to show a little confusion and misunderstanding on Curt’s behalf, which are two key characteristics of this stage.

2. Describe partner reading.

Partner reading is one form of guided reading.

• Begin with a preview of the book. Have a “walk through” with your student and look at the pictures over the first 4-6 pages. This is the appropriate time to ask what our student may be thinking is occurring in the story before we read it together.
• The teacher alternates pages with their student, reading the story.
• Over the course of the reading, the teacher continuously asks comprehension questions, to ensure that the student is not only reading well but comprehending what they are reading as well.

3. Which is harder for a student, partner reading or DRTA? In my opinion, it is harder for a student to complete a DRTA. There is much more pressure within this strategy. The students will lose that feeling that their tutor is no       longer their equal, but a superior. Throughout a DRTA, students are not told when they        are wrong. Therefore, they may be misguided until they can figure out where they went wrong….if they can figure out where they went wrong.

4. In planning a DRTA, what is important about selecting places to stop?

The importance about selecting places to stop when planning a DRTA comes when the tutor can recognize the fact that an event in the story is right around the corner, and why they can recognize this. The realization of the information that lead to this                       assumption are what information needs to be revealed in the places you stop.

5. In planning a DRTA, what is important about deciding questions to ask? What kind of questions? How many?

It is important that when picking questions to ask your student that they are obvious enough and will grasp the child’s attention. The things that grasp their attention and the things that grasp the tutor’s attention should eventually be the same thing. The tutor should ask What, Why, Where, and How questions. Depending upon the length of the story, there should be approximately 4 to 5 stops per children’s story.

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Words Their Way Assignment #2

1. How does a Preliterate (Emergent) speller read and write?

Throughout the Emergent reader stage, adults will recognize the young children’s efforts to read and write as pretend rather than real efforts. Their writing resembles scribbles, become familiar with letters in their name, and sometimes even random letters that have no connection with what they are intending to write. This lack of knowledge of letter to  text connection gives this Emergent stage yet another name “Prealphabetic phase.” When reading, these students have the ability to “read,” a story from memory or take cues on what the text says from pictures on the page. This is also considered the “Pre-literate stage,” for this reason.

2. How does a Letter Name-Alphabetic speller read and write?

The students within the Letter Name-Alphabetic spellers are considered beginningreaders. Although these students aren’t able to correctly spell words, they have come to understand that letters and sounds are connected. The beginning reader has stopped pretend reading, and began reading what they can. They use this new found letter – sound pairing to begin storing words in their memory. As these students grow in both their reading and writing skills, they begin to confuse vowels in words, as they read and write. When reading, these students must read aloud to sound out the letters in the words they are attempting to read. Readers in this stage benefit from both predictable texts and texts with many phonetically regular words. According to Chall, 1983, this stage consists of initial reading and decoding.

3. How does a Within Word Pattern speller read and write?

Within Word Pattern spellers are also known as Transitional Readers. Within this stage, readers begin to move letters into patterns or larger chunks and other spelling irregularities are internalized. This chunking approach is also considered a part of the Orthographic stage, in which readers use higher-order units of word structures to both        read and write. Ehri and McCormick refer to this stage as the Consolidated Alphabetic Phase, due to the support that frequently occurring pattern units have on students’ reading and writing. After focusing on the onset, students then move onto the rimes.     Students begin this stage needing support and multiple techniques in order to successfully        read. At the end of this stage, students have learned the ability to independently read.

4. How does a Syllable and Affixes speller read and write?

This stage consists of students having the ability to solve abstract problems and to reflect metacognitively on experiences. These students use reading to learn new information,   allowing their vocabulary to expand. These intermediate and advanced readers are also   fluent writers. Their writing displays analysis and interpretation, and reflects a more sophisticated, content-oriented vocabulary. These two stages correspond to Chall’s  multiple viewpoints as well as construction and reconstruction stages.

5. How does a Derivational Relations speller read and write?

Derivational Relations spellers have the ability to choose among a variety of reading styles to suit the text and their purposes for reading. These readers read according to what   they would like to read, or what information they need to learn. These same concepts are apparent in their writing skills as well. Students learn to write in a variety of different styles, and understand which style will get their given point across the best.

6. What is the existing research evidence on the relationship between spelling and reading. Briefly describe research findings discussed on page 20.

There have been six different studies in which the correlation between spelling and reading  range from sixty-eight to eighty-six percent. It has also been found that students who receive additional spelling instruction are more successful readers. Perfetti found that practice at spelling helps reading more than practice at reading helps spelling. Morris and Perney found that first graders’ invented spellings were a better predictor of end-of- grade reading than a standardized reading readiness test. In 1992, Ellis and Cataldo reported spelling to be the most consistent predictor of reading achievement.

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Study Guide: Dougherty Stahl, Katherine A. (2008)’ The Effects of Three Instructional Methods on the Reading Comprehension and Content Acquisition of Novice Readers.

1. Describe in broad stokes the reading processes that take place during comprehension of informational text (p. 362, under Construction of Meaning and Concept Development with Informational Texts).

Comprehension of informal texts requires accessing accurate, relevant knowledge, managing mental processes, during reading within confines of a limited working memory, and constructing a coherent mental representation through pruning and organizational processes. Good instruction includes applying these processes to students as well as guided social mediation. These actions allow students to develop the cognitive abilities to comprehend the text they are reading.

2. Specify the effect that background knowledge may have on constructing mental representations from informational text. Why should teachers be concerned about activating prior knowledge?

Background knowledge has a very large effect on constructing mental representations from informational texts. Students tend to pull from their previous knowledge time and time again when discussing text. Teachers should be concerned about activating prior knowledge, especially with young children. This is due to the fact that children who attempt to pull from their background knowledge, generally pull inaccurate background information. McKeown and Beck found through their studies with read-alouds in Kindergarten and first grade that extensive discussions about students’ experiences led to inaccurate or limited recollection of the text.

3. What are the three instructional approaches that can be used to help primary-grade students comprehend informational text? Describe their common (p. 365) and distinctive features (p. 363-5).

Three instructional approaches that can be used to help primary-grade students comprehend informational text include Picture walk, Know-Want to Learn-Learn, and Direct Reading-Thinking Activity. Within these three strategies come three common features.

(1) There is an emphasis on reader engagement and social mediation.

(2) An activation of present or prior knowledge is called upon during these three processes.

(3) Anticipation of what is come in the text is the last common feature.

Although as a whole, these instructional approaches have commonalities, there are distinctive features that set each approach apart from the next.

Picture Walk

With this instructional approach, students are take a walk through the book before reading it. Questions are asked such as “What do you think is happening in this picture?” “What do you think is going to happen next?” This is the only strategy in which the teacher preselects what the discussion points will be, leading their students in the right direction.

KWL (Know-Want to Learn-Learn)

KWL is a more open-ended in comparison to the other two strategies. KWL allows students to share with teachers anything they knew about the topic being read and discussed.

DRTA- Direct Reading-Thinking Activity

After a discussion pre-reading activity, students read the text and discuss as they go. This allows students to think about the text in chunks. This will most likely lead to a better ability to connect with real life situations, clarifications, and to synthesize learning.

4. What is the purpose of the experimental study reported?

The purpose of the experimental study reported was to explore how the three instructional strategies mentioned above: Picture Walk, Know-Want to Learn-Learn, and Direct Reading –Thinking Activity. These strategies were researched to see how they might influence developmental reading abilities and content acquisition when used with informational text in the primary reading group context.

5. Who were the subjects?

The subjects in this experiment were 31 second graders in two demographically similar schools, in the same district, in a midsize Midwest city. There were four groups of eight students; four groups in each of two cycles of instruction. But then, one child moved from School A, leaving 31 participants.

6. Describe the reading materials used during the intervention.

The texts that were utilized throughout this experiment were informational reading materials centered on subjects that most second graders would enjoy. Most of the books were science-related, utilizing and making the children more familiar with categories, sequencing, etc. To minimize the possibilities of different text structures, only the descriptive subgenre was used.

7. How long did the experiment last?

The experiment lasted over ten weeks.

8. What were the experimental conditions?

There were 31 second grade students in a Midwest city. These students were split up into four groups. The books chosen were all instructional, descriptive texts that second graders would be interested in. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of three instructional strategies on novice readers engaging with informational texts.

9. Describe the procedures specific to the Picture Walk, KWL, DRTA, and the Control Group conditions.

Control group conditions.

School A: Sessions were held at a table in a hallway.

School B: Sessions were held at a table in the kitchen or at a table in a partitioned room.

Picture Walk

This strategy includes a preview before reading the book, where questions are asked about what is to come from reading the book. Teachers introduce two to three vocabulary words within the reading of the book. This strategy is aimed at promoting fluency and comprehension. It is also flexible and provides to each student’s individual needs.

KWL

KWL consists of teachers finding out about their students’ prior knowledge. This strategy helps students develop their own purpose for reading expository text. The teacher generates discussion about a topic in the book, and used a chart to break down the process. The chart includes a section for what children already know (Know), what they would like to know (Want),and after reading, what they learned (Learn).

DRTA

This instructional strategy views reading as a problem-solving process. Teachers are to select instructional level text, divide it into meaningful sections, and facilitate discussions for each section of text. Students are responsible for finding their purpose for reading.

10. What measures were used to determine the relative effectiveness of the treatments? Describe the measures briefly.

A replicated Latin Square within-subjects repeated measures design was used to examine whether the three instructional strategies that promoted the same strategic processes on the same groups of children yielded similar or dissimilar task outcomes.

11. Which treatment(s) were found to be more effective in increasing students’ vocabulary knowledge and maze performance (p. 381)?

Vocabulary Knowledge: There were no significant differences between groups at pretest. There were also no significant gains by groups.

Maze Performance: Picture Walk and DRTA treatments achieved significant higher improvements when compared to the control condition.

12. Students’ comprehension of the texts was greater under the DRTA condition than KWL and the control conditions. What do you think explains DRTA’s advantage over the KWL condition (p. 382)?

DRTA has several features that many studies have found to be very successful and are associated with higher levels of achievement. This instructional strategy requires much higher level thinking. The immediate interaction around the text also helped promote consistent engagement, clarify confusions and provide a vehicle for creating an accurate representation of the text as well as assimilation with students’ prior knowledge.

13. It was found that the treatments did not differ in the quality and quantity of students’ retellings (p. 384). In other words, students were not differentially affected by the treatments in the way they integrated textual information with prior knowledge. What does this finding mean in terms of the different emphases employed by experience-based (KWL) vs. text-based (DRTA) treatments?

These findings correspond with the experience-based verses text-based treatments. The fact that there was no difference between these two treatments leads to the fact that each individual student learns differently. Just because one strategy wasn’t more successful than another, does not mean that they are not successful individually.

14. In light of the findings from this study, what conclusions can you draw about the role of teacher support in childrens’ construction of mental representations from informational text?

As with the majority of other instructional strategies used on students year after year, if teachers have not been properly educated on how to utilize these strategies to their fullest, the child will suffer. The better and more comfortable the educator is with these strategies, the more comfortable the students will feel while learning them. Great teacher support is absolutely imperative. Teachers leave a huge impact on students. The severity of this statement, I believe, is rarely realized.

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Rasinski Reading Response

1.    What are the three dimensions of fluency? How can you assess each dimension?
Accuracy in word decoding is the first dimension of fluency. Readers must be able to sound out the words in a text with minimal errors. This dimension refers to phonics and other strategies of decoding words. The second dimension is Automatic Processing. Readers need to expend as little energy as possible in the decoding aspect of reading so that they can use their finite cognitive resources for meaning making. This can be tested by looking at students’ reading       rates. Reading rates increase as students mature. Students can read a grade level passage for 60 seconds, and then the teacher can count how many words they read correctly within the given amount of time. The last dimension is Prosodic Reading. In this dimension, readers must parse the text into syntactically and semantically appropriate units. If students read quickly and accurately but not expressively, if they place equal emphasis on every word and have no sense of phrasing, and if they ignore most punctuation, blowing through periods and other markers that indicate pauses, then it is unlikely that they will fully understand the text.  The best way to assess Prosodic reading is to listen to a student read a grade-level passage. Then teachers grade their students’ quality of reading with a rubric that scores students on expression and volume,  phrasing, smoothness, and pace.

2.     Rasinski refers to fluency as a “bridge” between decoding and comprehension. What does he     mean by the “bridge” metaphor?

The term “bridge,” refers to the missing link between decoding and comprehension. Once a student understands how to decode words and sentences, fluency MUST come next. In order to get to the next step, comprehension,  students must gain fluency in their reading. Fluency consists of four main parts, according to Rasinki: Expression and Volume, Phrasing, Smoothness, and Pace. Once these things are mastered, it is understood that children will begin to  understand and comprehend what they are reading.

3.    What instructional methods does Rasinski suggest for students with difficulties in automatic and prosodic reading?

Assisted readings and repeated readings were two methods Rasinski suggested for students     having difficulties in automatic and prosodic reading. These methods are known to improve reading fluency. Students need to hear what fluent reading sounds like and how fluent readers interpret text with their voices.

4.    Multidimensional Fluency Scale (MFS) is used to measure prosodic quality of oral reading. List components of the MFS and describe briefly what each refers to (p. 49)

(1) Expression and Volume:

1. 1. Student reads words as to simply get them out. Little attempt to make text sound natural.
2. 2. Begins to make text sound like natural language.
3. 3. Makes language sound natural for the majority of the text.
4. 4. Reads with good enthusiasm throughout the story.

(2) Phrasing

1. 1. Reads in monotone with little sense of phrase boundaries.
2. 2. Frequently reads in two and three word phrases.
3. 3. Reads with a high frequency of run-ons, mid-sentence pauses for breath, and some choppiness.
4. 4. Generally reads with good phrasing, mostly in clause and sentence units.

(3) Smoothness

1. 1. Makes frequent pauses and hesitations while reading.
2. 2. Experiences several rough spots in reading.
3. 3. Occasionally makes short breaks in reading because of difficulties with specific words or phrases.
4. 4. Generally reads smoothly with minimal breaks, resolving their issues through self-correction.

(4) Pace

1. 1. Reads slowly and laboriously.
2. 2. Reads moderately slow.
3. 3. Reads with an uneven mixture of fast and slow pace.
4. 4. Consistently reads at conversational pace.

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Curt Reading Response #2

1. What grade is Curt in?

Curt is in third grade.

2. What was the flash score for words at: first-grade level? second-grade level? third-grade level?

The flash score for words at the first grade level: 75%

The flash score for words at the second grade level: 50%

The flash score for words at the third grade level: 20%

3. What was the accuracy score at: 1-2 level? 2-1 level? 2-2 level?

The accuracy score at the 1-2 level was: 97%

The accuracy score at the 2-1 level was: 90%

The accuracy score at the 2-2 level was: 84%

4. What was the rate score at: 1-2 level? 2-1 level? 2-2 level?

The rate score at the 1-2 level was: 65%

The rate score at the 2-1 level was: 44%

The rate score at the 2-2 level was: 36%

5. What was the percentage correct score for: first-grade words? second-grade words?

The percentage correct score for first grade words was: 60%

The percentage correct score for second grade words was: 0%

Consider the following expected scores, then compare those expectations to the scores Curt produced. With the Word Recognition Test, flash scores are generally interpreted as follows: 90-100% indicates Independent Level; 60-85% indicates Instruction Level; Below 50% indicates Frustration Level.

With oral reading accuracy, scores are generally interpreted as follows: 98-100% indicates Independent Level; 95-97% indicates Instruction Level; Below 92%   indicates Frustration Level.

With oral reading rate, expected grade-level ranges are as follows:

Grade–Words per minute

1^st–45-85

2^nd–80-120

3^rd–95-135

With spelling scores, around 50% correct indicates Instruction Level.\

6.  Which grade-level flash score is the best choice for Instruction Level? (*Note: 92- 94% accuracy is marginal; take a close look at Rate.)

Grade level 2-2 is the closest to Instruction level, since it was at 50% and Instruction level is from 50-89%.

7. Which grade-level accuracy score is the best choice for Instruction Level?

Grade 1-2 is the best choice for the Instruction Level since the accuracy score was a strong 97.

8. What do Curt’s rate scores indicate about his grade-level reading? Where is he  instructional according to rate?

Curt’s rate scores show that his words per minute were decreasing in comparison to someone his age.

9.  What do Curt’s spelling scores indicate about his Instruction Level.

Curt’s spelling scores on the first grade spelling list hit at the Instructional Level, being at 60%. His spelling scores on the second grade spelling list is at Frustration level because he did not spell any of the words correctly, therefore he is below 40%.

10.  Put all of these scores together, and what do they indicate Curt’s reading level to  be?

Curt is a late-first grade to early second grade reader due to the fact that there is an obvious lack of word-recognition automaticity, which most likely results in his slower reading.

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