Sara+Module+5+Response

[|wilkiesa@msu.edu] Tasks 1&2

Gifford is 10.9 years old and will be entering 4th grade in the Fall. According to the year-end assessment, Gifford is reading at grade-level. He scored at an appropriate “letter” (T) for developing readers exiting third grade/entering fourth grade, using the district endorsed Fountas & Pinnell assessment. I have also given Gifford the Reading Interest/Attitude Survey as a pre-assessment, more to get a feel for his interest in/attitude about reading before we get started.
 * **Task 1**: A synopsis of my case study

A fast-paced and proud “reader”, Gifford says he enjoys any opportunity to “read aloud” to the class, a small group or in paired reading. His teacher reports that he also seems to enjoy choral reading opportunities, as well as any chance he gets to record himself reading a paragraph, passage or page. Despite the fact that his classroom library is stocked with a range of books across all genres and levels, Gifford apparently struggles to find a chapter book he enjoys enough to stick with. In addition, his teacher has noticed that although he is a fast reader and is able to pronounce most words with a great deal of accuracy, Gifford does not always understand the content of what he is reading.

There seems to be a more noticeable discrepancy when it comes to informational text. This is where I have chosen to center my focus for this project. When it comes to reading informational text, what opportunities can we explicitly provide students to develop strategies for reading fluency? I am aligning my lessons with the Common Core State Standards, working off the following as the key standards for this project:
 * W.3.7: Conduct short research projects that build knowledge about a topic
 * W.3.8: Recall information from experiences or gather information from print and digital sources; take brief notes on sources and sort evidence into provided categories

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 * **Task 2**: Vocab & Comprehension Instruction
 * My case study does include vocabulary comprehension in both instruction and assessment. During the initial class reading, students are introduced to new-meaning vocabulary (Guideline 1, Morrow & Gambrell, pg. 227). Vocabulary terms are identified and recorded in a class "word bank" from the anticipatory set/prior knowledge activity, throughout the research process and during the project. As students are discovering more about the different types of rocks and how they are formed, they are documenting their observations with text and images, as well as finding descriptive words ("flood of words") to support and extend their vocabulary (see Guideline 1, Morrow & Gambrell, pg 225). In addition, as students write the "stories of their rocks", they are asked to include at least five words from the class "cool words" list (word bank). The context in which they use their selected terms in their story will indicate student understanding of the vocabulary and meaning. Our class has a standing routine of what we call "dinner table questions". These are the questions students take home to ask their parents or caregivers during dinner. This is often where incidental word learning plays a significant role, and this routine will be included among the series of activities in this project.
 * My case study includes comprehension instruction and assessment, as well. During the initial class reading, new-meaning vocabulary is introduced to students through explicit instruction (see Guideline 1, Morrow & Gambrell, pg 225). They are learning to understand these words in the context of science and our discovery of rocks (Morrow & Gambrell, pg. 231). In addition, students are asked to create what I call "mind maps" (graphic organizers) that include the content and concept vocabulary critical to their study of rocks (igneous, metamorphic, sedimentary). As we learn about each type of rock, students will add connections to their maps, being sure to label the lines so their connecting thoughts are clear and visible for others to see. By labeling their connecting lines, their maps can also serve as an assessment tool for me, as I work to understand the connections and relationships each student is drawing between and among the key concepts (Morrow & Gambrell, p. 233). Another activity/assessment idea I am considering is the Color-Symbol-Image thinking routine. This activity gives students an opportunity to express their understanding about a particular concept using a single color, symbol and image. These can act as windows into the students minds, and provide powerful insights into their understanding, especially for English Language Learners. For more information on Thinking Routines, see link in discussion area.