Week Thirteen Assignment Two

How can you build assessment into your instruction? 

         Teachers are actively assessing their students throughout all of their lessons. When teachers ask students questions to ensure comprehension, they are gaining feedback from the students to determine if they understand the material or if need for further instruction or explanation is necessary. We can take anecdotal notes throughout the school day, maybe by observing 3-5 students per day, to see progress in these students.

How can you document ongoing classroom assessment? 

         By taking anecdotal notes we are constantly checking our students for understanding. It is important to observe our students on a daily or weekly basis to ensure that they do not fall behind and is able to keep up with the material. If a child shows signs that they are falling behind a teacher can be sure to notice this at an early stage and begin to intervene. There are a variety of different documents used to take anecdotal notes. In all of these types of documentation there should be content standards present in each note taken. Teachers will be looking for signs that content-related material is understood and the students are able to meet these standards.

What is the difference between standards and benchmarks, and how do they impact your teaching? 

         Standards are classified as global statements. These statements are what our students should be able to perform or comprehend. Benchmarks, on the other hand, are what teachers expect their students to be able to perform or comprehend by their specific grade level. The benchmarks are brought down from standards that say what a specific grade-level student should be able to do by the end of that school year.

How do end-of-the-year benchmarks influence daily assessment? 

We need to ensure that our students are making progress daily for a larger goal that teachers have in mind. Teachers should be working together with the other grades to help student reach the expectations that we have of our students by the end of the year. The idea is describes as a staircase effect. Our kindergarten teacher has the students take the first step. The first grade teacher helps the students reach the second step and so on. We need to be seeking this evidence of comprehension as we are teaching. That is, we are constantly using different types of assessments such as having our students answer questions or writing a short piece to demonstrate progress.

How can you make anecdotal records useful and manageable? 

Our anecdotal records need to be neat and organized. We also want to ensure that there is no unnecessary language in the anecdotal records. That is, our notes should be quick and to the point. It is also important that teachers are observing approximately 3-5 students per school day. This will ensure that the teacher is able to write down significant events rather than losing their notes because they are simply trying to remember too much information. It is also important that the teacher observes a few students at a time to ensure that the information will not be lost due to short term memory confusion.

Discuss your experience using rubrics. What changes might you make after watching the video? 

                  I enjoy using rubrics because it provides students with information that tells them my expectations. If students have no idea what is expected of them than we really cannot grade them accurately or fairly. Every child should have an equal opportunity to do well. By using a rubric I am telling my students, “This is the assignment and what I expect of you. In order to receive a good grade follow the key points I outlined and you will do well.” After watching the video, I will provide my students with a rubric of every assignment that is given to them. If I am asking my students to perform at a certain level than they should be equipped with all the necessary material to ensure that they have an equal opportunity to do so.

How can students use rubrics to guide learning? 

                  Students can guide their assessment by following the rubric exactly. If the rubric says, “Provide three examples from the text” and the student only provides one they can assume they will not receive a good grade. Rubrics also motivate and inspire students to perform well. If a child knows what is expected than they are more likely to complete everything they can to the best of their ability to do well.

Describe how portfolios are developed and how they can be used as an assessment tool. 

Portfolios are a collection of material that the student has produced throughout the school year. The selection of material that goes into the portfolio should show progress and not just “good graded assignments”. Students can reflect back on what they learned and how they understand it better later. For example, teachers can show students their writing at the beginning of the year in comparison to the end of the year. Students will be able to see the improvements they have made and learn more about themselves. Teacher can see if the students are making progress throughout the year. It is a guided tool that tells the teacher if the students need to relearn something or if they are on the correct path towards achieving their long-term goal. 

Why are high-stakes tests not always accurate measures of student learning? 

                  High-stakes tests are assessments taken one time. This does not show progression of student learning and is not designed to address higher-level skills. A student taking a high-stakes test could be having a bad day on the day of the test or could not feel well prior to taking the test. Students are not generally motivated to taking high-stakes tests and often do not care about the scores they receive on these tests.

What are the best ways to prepare students for high-stakes assessments? 

                  The best way to prepare students for high-stakes assessments is to ensure that they have a rich curriculum prior to taking the test. We can also teach our students how to bubble in an answer and write about a specific topic in a certain time period. Our students need to have a solid foundation of learning prior to taking the high-stakes test. We need to have our students take away from this learning experience. In order for our students to perform well on thee high-stakes test we need to offer the assessment as just another challenge for our students.

How does assessment help differentiate instruction? 

                  Assessments show the teacher a point at which all of the students are. If teachers need to reteach material to a small group of students, they can have the other students work on a different assignment while they give small-group instruction. Sometimes teacher receive assessment scores that state a handful of students are having trouble transitioning paragraphs. If the entire class does not need to relearn this material than the teacher can take a few students aside to work on this material. There are, however, some moments that the teacher needs to use whole-group instruction to learn a new idea. This is beneficial when introducing a new topic or of it is something that all of the students are required to know.

How can you use assessment results to create small, flexible groupings in your classroom? 

                  The results of an assessment tell the teacher how the students are performing. We can group students by ability due to their performance on an assessment or we can group students based on high/low performance on an assessment. The ideas of grouping students based on assessment results are endless. As I have already stated, teachers can take a small group of students that did not perform well on an assessment and reteach the lesson that the rest of the class was able to comprehend. The other student can then work on another assignment that might ask of higher level thinking skills.

Based on what you learned in the video, what changes might you make in your assessment practices? 

                   I would definitely want to use anecdotal records to measure student progress. This is also an extremely useful tool when having a parent-teacher conference. We can bring up specific dates that the student demonstrates a specific behavior and measure progress with the material. For example, the standards of a third grader might be to read for comprehension. One ESL student might not even be able to recognize the English language on paper. If by the end of the year that same student is able to read a few paragraphs of English material but not able to understand it, we as the teacher have made progress with the student. It does not matter that he or she is not meeting third grade standards but that he or she learned something and made tremendous strides throughout the school year.

Week Thirteen Assignment One

            The Anecdotal Records Assessment, ARA, allows teachers to monitor student progress over a long period of time. This type of assessment is authentic and meaningful as it explores various content standards and demonstration of understanding to these standards. In the bigger picture, standard-based assessments use quantitative measurements. On the smaller scale, using rubrics, student profiles and anecdotal records use qualitative measurements. While using anecdotal records we might record an unintended outcome of a learning activity. Anecdotal records also prove to be a useful tool when approaching parents or administrators about a student with specific needs. The idea of ARA is to observe the children in their natural instructional settings. This requires planning and preparation on the teachers’ part. The only issue teachers’ run into is the idea of a limited time frame. As long as the teachers write observable data, use abbreviations, write records in the past tense and avoid redundancy this type of measured assessment will help gain perspective on how much the student has progressed or regressed. I will be able to see insight as to how much a student has grown in a short period of time and also be able to look out for intervention that might be necessary.

Week Twelve Assignment Two

My Prezi Presentation is linked below. Enjoy!

http://prezi.com/94a4qfbugb29/present/?auth_key=p7i33ot&follow=t_glrufnxued&kw=present-94a4qfbugb29&rc=ref-38788147

Week Twelve Assignment One

After viewing all of the different links on the website provided, I learned a lot of new things about literacy instruction.  One of the tools I enjoyed the most was the Story Spine. This is a structured outline that takes a story from beginning to end. There are unfinished sentences such as, “Once upon a time… Everyday… But one day… Because of that… Until finally… Ever since then… and the moral of the story…” The author also suggests having the students’ “improv” a story where each student adds a new line to create a truly unique story.

It is also important to have students create a story using paper first. This will allow students to write a authentic story before adding all of the animation with the use of a computer. Beranjean Porter state, “A story should be remembered for its soul and not the bells and whistles.” Porter’s statement is important because it reminds teachers and students that the most important part of a story is the moral or the creative writing within it. Some students mistake the idea that the teacher wants to hear all of the animation going on in the story rather than listening to the moral of the story or learning something new about the story.

One of the authors of the articles that I viewed suggested that when students are struggling with writing should record their oral story using a microphone. I really like this idea because for some students writing does not come natural to them. Instead students that struggle with the written language might find it easier to tell their story verbally. When the students record their stories using a microphone they can playback the soundtrack and write their story from there.

Teachers need to be careful when they are planning lessons that involve a key piece of technology. Some questions that the teachers need to ask themselves are, “How ill I teach with technology? What technology centers will I have this week? How will I manage the center? What will my students write about this week? How will my students illustrate their stories? What stage of writing are my students at this week?” All of these questions need to be answered prior to the production of the lesson. If the lesson involves the use of a computer or a SmartBoard, the teacher should ensure that they have an alternative lesson plan in case technical difficulties occur.

In today’s society, our children need to be computer literate. It becomes difficult to participate in this technologically advanced world if students are unable to efficiently use Microsoft Word or even Goggle Doc’s. Google Doc’s allows students to collaborate with one another from distant locations. In one of my other classes I am using Google Doc’s to work with two other students on one collaborative project. The demand for higher technology is asking our students to learn the latest material and the latest programs. Our students will lead the new generation with the tools necessary to improve our world.

Week Eleven Assignment Three

Mini Lesson One

(The Three Little Pigs)

Description of Lesson:

Students will listen to the story, The Three Little Pigs. After listening to the story, students will work together in groups of three or four to complete a Cause and Effect chart using specific details from the story. Each group will receive their own copy of the book for comprehension purposes. Once each group had finished their Cause and Effect chart we will work as a class to create a class Cause and Effect chart using the SmartBoard. Students will discuss briefly about what they learned when creating their chart and ways to improve their comprehension using the chart.

Standards Addressed:

ü      Describe characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events.

ü      Recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text.

ü      Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers

Step-by-Step Procedure:

1)      Students will join the teacher on the reading carpet to listen to the story of The Three Little Pigs.

2)      Students will get together into groups of 3-4 and complete their own Cause and Effect chart.

3)      Students will briefly discuss what they learned in their group and what details they used to determine what the causes of the story were and the effect occurred.

4)      Students will work together to create a class Cause and Effect chart.

5)      Students will choose from a list of three stories including, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, The Boy who cried Wolf, and Jack and the Beanstalk.

6)      Students will read the book that they have chose for homework and complete their own Cause and Effect Chart that will be collected the following day.

Adaptations:

            Larger print text will be available to students who have visual impairments. Audio recording will also be provided for students with disabilities.

Homework/Extended Learning:

Students will choose from a list of three stories including, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, The Boy who cried Wolf, and Jack and the Beanstalk. They will read the book that they have chose for homework and complete their own Cause and Effect Chart that will be collected the following day.

Mini Lesson Two

(Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs)

Description of Lesson:

            Students will listen to the story Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. After listening to the story, students will work together on the reading carpet to successfully complete an Idea Web. Students will decide on a specific idea that they can all agree would be the main point of the story. With the use of open-ended questions and guided questions, students will slowly branch out different ideas for their idea web. After the Idea Web is complete, students will return to their seats and write approximately one to two paragraphs about how the Idea Web helped them understand the story and how they came up with the ideas for the class Idea Web. Students will share their reflections with the class. As a homework assignment, students will create their own Idea Web by putting their name in the middle and branching out different things about themselves that the class might not have known.

Standards Addressed:

ü      Describe characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events.

ü      Recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text.

ü      Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers

Step-by-Step Procedure:

1)      Students will get together on the reading carpet in order to listen to the story, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

2)      Students will participate in a class discussion about what the main idea or main point of the story was.

3)      Students will continue to discuss various ideas that branch off of the main idea that they came up with earlier.

4)      Students will support their answers with specific details from the story.

5)      Students will return to their desks and write approximately one to two paragraphs about how the Idea Web that the class created helped them understand the story and how they came up with their ideas for the different branches.

6)      Students will write their name in the Idea Web and complete their own Idea Web for homework about what the class may or may not have known about them.

7)      Students will share their Idea Web the following day.

Adaptations:

            An example of an Idea Web will be shown to students who are having difficulty coming up with their own different branches of ideas. They will be able to use the guided Idea Web to show their parents at home so that the parents will know what is to be expected for homework.

Homework/Extended Learning:

            Students will create their own Idea Web with their name and fill in different things about themselves that others may or may not have known. They will share their Idea Web the following day with the class.

Mini Lesson Three

(Frederick Douglass)

Description of Lesson:

            Students will have just finished learning about Frederick Douglass and his influence on the Civil Rights Movement in their history lesson. Students will be grouped into pairs based on their ability level in history-related content area and will be given a short biography about Frederick Douglass. A short preview of what a Timeline chart would be expected to look like when finished will be shown. This preview will include a timeline of how the students spend their normal day in my classroom. (Students enter class, students take out homework, students copy down notes on the board…etc) With the use of a Timeline, students will work together to try and piece the different parts of Frederick Douglass’ life in chronological order. After each pair has finished their Timeline chart we will share our ideas about the important events that occurred in Frederick Douglass’ life.

           

Standards Addressed:\

ü      Describe characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events.

ü      Recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text.

ü      Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers

Step-by-Step Procedure:

1)      Students will be grouped into pairs based on history-content level ability.

2)      Students will follow a demonstration about how to use a Timeline chart.

3)      Students will read together a short biography on Frederick Douglass and his influence on the Civil Rights Movement.

4)      Students will work together to complete a Timeline chart about the important events that occurred in Frederick Douglass’ life.

5)      Students will participate in a class discussion about which events they believed were significant in Frederick Douglass’s life.

6)      Students will write in their history journals for homework about their experience with using a Timeline chart and how it can be useful for different types of projects.

Adaptations:

             Students with visual impairments will be given larger print text to read. Students with disabilities will also be given an alternative worksheet that will specifically outline how the Timeline chart should look when finished.

Homework/Extended Learning:

             Students will write in their history journals about their experience with the Timeline chart and how it can be useful for different types of projects. Their journals will be checked the following day.

Week Eleven Assignment Two

            The video narrated by Professor Duke and outlined comprehension taught me a variety of different things. Teaching comes naturally to those who are destined to do so. It is in our nature to understand how to help students and to be enthusiastic about students’ progress. Educators go to school to fine tune these skills and to practically apply it to practice. The video that was provided demonstrated a variety of different strategies I could use to ensure that my students comprehend the material that is introduced to them.

            I am not currently teaching at this point in time. However, every strategy that is outlined in the video would be a prime example of what I would do in my classroom. It is clear to me on how to help students’ comprehension in their reading.. The video was useful because it confirmed what I had already believed and also helped me see that I was on the correct path towards comprehension strategies. I would like to implement many of these strategies in my classroom. One of my favorite things to do is to model what I want the students to be able to do. It is important for my students to be able to look up to someone for an example of how to behave. When I am reading a story to my students I would love to stop and ponder different thoughts as I am reading and include my students on the discussion I am having with myself.

            One of my other favorite things to do is to have group discussions. I enjoy when students can toss their ideas back and forth in an environment that they feel safe to do so. The classroom should be an environment of which students feel safe to try new things and new ideas in front of their peers. Class discussions help students learn from each other and have an opportunity to ask a fellow classmate his or her opinion on the same topic. When I enter a classroom I am eager to try all of these new ideas and to help as many students become good readers as I can. I will ensure that my students have plenty of independent reading time where I can work with small groups or individual students. I want my students to have the love for reading that I had as a student. The students that are able to read frequently will typically be able to exercise the most comprehension.

Week Eleven Assignment One

What do good readers do?

            The video describes various strategies that students can use to ensure that they comprehend the text. One strategy that stuck with me was the think aloud strategy. This is when a student is reading and actively thinking aloud about what they are reading. It may suggest that after a student reads a paragraph or a main idea that he or she is able to talk out loud about what it is that he or she just read. The video also discussed that good readers are able to react to the text. If a child is reading a book about a young student who feels left out because she is new at school, a good reader would being to express the emotions that he or she is feeling while they are reading about this young student. It is possible that the reader could know a young student just like the one in the book and that he or she can relate or understand how the young student in the book is feeling based on prior life experience.

            Another strategy that I really enjoyed is that good readers ask themselves questions. If a child is able to ask a question out loud than he or she is actively thinking about the situation of which that question is applied. This will also help students make meaning of the material as they read along. It is also important for students to preview the text and see what type of style it is written in. A good reader may want to skim through the book prior to reading it to determine how the book is structured and why the author might have used the illustrations that they used.

What can teachers do to develop comprehension?

            The video provided a long list of ideas that teachers can do to help improve comprehension in their students. These suggestions are teaching strategies, building vocabulary, building background knowledge, providing opportunities to comprehend, teaching about the text, enabling discussions, encouraging writing, and ensuring authenticity. Each of these suggestions is important towards improving students reading comprehension. It is great when a teacher can sit with a small group of students or individual students to monitor progress and go over different comprehension strategies. It is also important for teachers to be able to model the different comprehension strategies. For example when students are participating in a shared reading activity in which the teacher is reading to the students, it would be beneficial for the teacher to demonstrating thinking aloud while he or she is reading and asking questions as the text continues.

            Another important suggestion that the video provided was asking open-ended questions. A child can gain a wider knowledge span if the teacher is able to ask question that do not have a simple yes or no answer. The open-ended questions encourage the students to think about the text and to make connections with their own life that they would have had trouble doing on their own. Teachers should also make as many opportunities for students to read as possible. Anytime that a child can get his or her hands on a piece of text along with a worksheet or a handout to help boost comprehension is helpful. One of the research projects that Professor Duke was working on showed that teachers that had their students write a lot proved to be more effective in comprehension. Students that are writing in other content areas are increasing their knowledge on different topics and are also learning to read to understand.

What can teachers do to help struggling readers?                                         

            In the video Professor Duke suggests that students who are identified as struggling readers need a more intense coaching experience. The teacher should meet with the struggling readers at least twice a week for a one-on-one or a small group experience to go over the comprehension strategies and to ensure that they are not falling behind but instead that they are making progress. These small group learning experiences also help the teacher monitor the students both with reading and with text structure.

Teachers should be teaching their students to make adjustments while they are reading. A child should be aware if they do not understand what they are reading. If they do not understand the text than the teacher should be teaching them different strategies towards adjusting their reading to ensure comprehension is taking place. One of the adjustment strategies suggests that students reread what it is they did not comprehend. Another type of strategy would be the use of graphic organizers or alternative material provided by the teacher to help boost comprehension.