Week 12

What do good readers do?

Make predictions, use prior knowledge, relate the text they are reading to their own lives, build vocabulary, they dig deeper and think outside of the box. Active when they are reading, look at text structure, they infer, thinking constantly and reacting to the text of what they are reading, and the ideas they are getting from their ideas and the ideas of their peers.

How can teachers help develop comprehension?

Teaching comprehension strategies, building students vocabulary, engaging students in discussion and writing, allow them to discuss amongst their peers their ideas and allow students to evaluate the ideas of their peers and compare and contrast their ideas with one another, to broaden their horizons in comprehension. Build students’ knowledge base, and provide rich experiences in reading and comprehension.

How can teachers help their struggling readers?  

Apply the same techniques and strategies they use when improving comprehension. The only difference is the teacher will make and enforce these techniques more strongly with the struggling readers and make it more intense. The teacher will also monitor and pay closer attention to the struggling readers to keep track of if they are making progress or not, and what they can continue to do for these students.

After watching this video, I was able to take many of the strategies and techniques and apply it to when I become a teacher and how I can use these ideas and strategies with my own students of the future. This video demonstrated how to help struggling readers, and how to help develop comprehension to all students inside of the classroom. These effective strategies play a huge role in a student’s academic life when it comes to reading and comprehension and it is our job as future teachers to make sure we enforce these strategies with our students to make them strong and effective readers. 

Dibels vs. QRI-5

In my opinion, the QRI-5 is a better assessment tool than the Dibels. Although this was my first time using the Dibels, and last week was my first time assessing a student with the QRI-5, I found the QRI-5 a more effective and influential assessment, that benefits both the student and the teacher. The Dibels, I found to be too complicated. Due to the fact, that maybe, the assessment grading is technology-based, however, I feel that it slows down the assessment between the student and the teacher. I felt I was too fixacted on learning how to use the Dibels technology tool, rather than focusing on the students assessment and results. The QRI-5 gave me and the student the opportunity to prepare them first, and to boost their confidence by starting on a lower grade level than their actual level. The Dibels did not allow the student to build enough confidence on the assessment they were about to face. The Dibels did give a few examples, however, I do not feel it was enough to give the students the confidence and assurance that they will do probably do well on the assessment. What I did like about the Dibels was the fact that it gave tools and suggestions on what to do with the student based on their result. The Dibels gave the teacher an idea and stepping stone on what measures to take with a struggling student and even a student that outstanding results. With the QRI-5, it was up to the teacher to create tools, strategies, and measures on what to do with struggling students. The Dibels, in my opinion, was not a direct and concrete source in finding out a students struggles and difficulties. The QRI-5 attacked more areas than the Dibels did, such as prediction, sufficeient comprehension questions, and allowing the student to create their own idea of what the story they will be reading is about. The Dibels did not allow that. The Dibels did not have comprehension questions. It only allowed the student to retell ideas, which doesn't give me, as the teacher, a concrete idea of if the student was sufficient in comprehension. Overall, I perfer the QRI-5 assessment over the Dibels. Perhaps, If I had been more familiarized with it, I would give the Dibels more credit, but as of now, I found better results with the QRI-5.

Observations 04/08/11

On April 8, 2011, was the last day of my observations, but the most enjoyable day during my stay with Mrs. Hershafts 3rd grade class. I was able to witness my students dance the Samba in a dance recital that was held during the school day. I was also able to complete the QRI-5 assessment with my ELL student Stephanie, which she found to be a fun activity. Both, Stephanie and I learned a lot about each other, and developed a bond, something I did not expect to happen. In addition to all of this. I received a stack of "thank you" and "we will miss you Ms. Green" cards from all of the students in the class. This was one of the most touching moments of my life, and my first time encountering that. It made my stay with Mrs. Hershafts class all worth it :-)