Reading Across the Disciplines

1
Reading Across the Disciplines

• RAD Camp
• Sept. 26, 2007

2
The History

• 1D1 steering committee spent one and a half years
  reviewing research before making a recommendation.

3
The Result
Developing Strategic
Readers
4
What do strategic readers do?

• Understand and use strategies that help them more
  easily acquire knowledge in the content areas
  through
• non-linguistic representations,
• study of text structures,
• specific comprehension and vocabulary strategies.

5
DEVELOPING STRATEGIC READERS
Reading is a process of constructing meaning in
the mind of the reader. Reading comprehension
is the process of deriving meaning from text and
is key to learning in all content areas.
(BILL MEYER)
READER
TEXT
CONTEXT
6
What is RAD?

• Introduces, models and teaches a sequential list
  of reading/study strategies
• A vehicle for researched-based instruction
• Uses existing school structure to implement
• Reading, writing, speaking and listening
  processes are taught as they relate to the
  content area of every class

7
What is RAD? (Continued)

• Taught by ALL teachers with the material used in
  their classes
• All teachers use a common knowledge base,
  consistent language and units that support
  classroom learning
• Addresses the needs of a wide range of students
  and targets at risk students for success

8
Reading Across DisciplinesFramework

• Organization
• Study Skills
• Self-Management/
• Classroom Behavior
• Content Area Reading Skills
• Independent Reading Skills

9
Organization

• 3 Ring Binder and Peer Inspection
• Assignment Notebook
• Home Study Space

10
Study Skills

• Double-Column Notes
• - AKA Cornell Notes
• - Some have experience from elementary school
• - Basic system for taking notes
• - Teacher provides some of the notes
• - Make a great study guide!

11
RAD Listening Behaviors
12
Listening Skills

• Eye contact with speaker
• Good posturefacing and leaning slightly toward
  the speaker. If seated, feet flat on the floor,
  back straight, head up.
• No side talking.
• Concentrate on every word and gesture made by the
  speaker.

13
Content AreaReading Skills
14
PRE-READING ACTIVITIES
15
What will help you understand and remember a
reading assignment longer?
Spending a few minutes before reading on
pre-reading preparation -or- spending thirty
minutes after reading answering questions.
16
Your comprehension can be improved as much as
200 by applying the right pre-reading
preparation as opposed to completing post-reading
exercises.
17
Previewing a Textbook

• A quick sense of the books purpose and
  organization
• Check the publishing date
• Read the introduction completely
• Skim the table of contents
• Flip through the book
• Note the headings
• Notice the study aids
• Look at the back of the book for the glossary,
  appendix, or other reference sections

18
Previewing an assigned reading

• Read the title
• Skim the introduction
• Read the headings and subheadings
• Look at the visuals
• Scan for special terms
• Skim the summary
• Skim the review questions

19
Anticipation Guide

• Anticipating the content of a passage before you
  read can help build purpose, interest, and energy
  for reading.

20
Another step you can addPrediction

• Take a moment to predict based upon the preview
• Sets purpose
• Provides a focus on the main ideas and important
  details
• Relates what you already know about a subject to
  the new information you are going to read

21
Predicting and Previewing will metamorphose your
reading into an ACTIVE process!
22
Main Idea

• Topic the subject of the passage
• Main Idea the central thought or message
• Details support the main idea

23
VOCABULARY
A Key to Success
24
Whats one thing successful people have in common?
Its tested on aptitude, achievement, and
intelligence tests. A students level of active
vocabulary is a determiner of future success.
25
Matching Students to Text Lexiles, Readability,
and Other Stuff I Need to Know

• To help my students
• Develop into Strategic Readers, A.K.A. The
  District Initiative

26
What is a Lexile?

• A Lexile is the most widely adopted reading
  measure in use today.
• Lexiles give educators a tool to help them choose
  materials that will improve student reading
  skills across the curriculum.
• Its purpose is to provide a way to match students
  to appropriately challenging texts.

27
How is a Lexile measured?

• The Scholastic Reading Inventory (SRI) is the
  test
• LS R-7 uses to measure Lexiles.
• A range of scores is assigned to each grade
  level.
• 7th Grade 850-1100
• 8th Grade 900-1150

28
The SRI and Lexiles at Our School

• All students will be tested in the fall and
  spring.
• 8th grade scores are sent to the high school.
• 7th grade scores will be helpful for spring
  placement.
• New students are tested at enrollment.

29
The Lexile Framework

• Beginning Reader Below 100
• Grade 1 100-400
• Grade 2 300-600
• Grade 3 500-800
• Grade 4 600-900
• Grade 5 700-1000
• Grade 6 800-1050
• Grade 7 850-1100
• Grade 8 900-1150
• Grade 9 1000-1200
• Grade 10 1025-1250
• Grade 11 1050-1300
• Advanced Text 1700 and above

Notice the range for each grade and the overlap
of ranges.
30
Why are the Lexile ranges so wide for each grade?

• There is not a direct translation from a specific
  Lexile measure to a specific grade level.
• Within any classroom, there will be a range of
  readers and a range of materials to be read.
• The Lexile Framework is intended to match readers
  with texts at whatever level the reader is
  reading.

31
Matching Students to Texts

• Matching students to texts at appropriate Lexile
  levels helps to increase their control and
  confidence in the reading process.
• To improve reading skills, students should read
  text that is 100 points below to 50 points above
  their Lexile score. Students learn when they are
  reading at independent and instructional levels,
  not at the frustration level.

32
Matching Texts to Readers

• Independent Level
• a student can read successfully without
  assistance
• Instructional Level
• a student can read with assistance from a
  teacher
• Frustration Level -
• a student is completely unable to read the
  material

33
Lexiles and OPAC at Our School

• Students can match their Lexile to the books in
  the library.
• Click on the Library and Media link on the school
  homepage, then click on your schools catalog.
• Pull down the Search Reading Programs menu and
  choose Lexile.

34
How do I know the Lexile of materials I use in my
classroom?

• www.lexile.com
• This site allows you to analyze Lexiles of your
  word documents and some textbook comprehension
  rates are analyzed as well.

35
(No Transcript)
36
(No Transcript)
37
(No Transcript)
38
Keep in mind. . .

• The Lexile Framework is not meant to label
  students.
• (e.g. Hes an 800.)
• Lexiles provide a way to match students to
  independent and instructional text.

39
How do Lexiles and readability tie together?

• Readability describes the ease with which
  material can be read.
• Lexiles are a measure of reading ability.
• Can your students actually read what you have
  assigned?

40
How is readability determined?

• Mathematical formula/Gives grade level
• The ease a document can be read
• Number of personal pronouns
• Average number of words in a sentence
• Percentage of difficult words
• Number of prepositional phrases
• Number of syllables per word
• www.gopdg.com/plainlanguage/readability.html

41
Determining Readability

• You can find the readability of any of your
  Microsoft word documents using a tool that is
  already available.
• Later you will have time to pull up an existing
  Microsoft word document that you hand out to your
  students, or type in a paragraph from a textbook
  to determine readability.

42
Readability

• On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click
  the Spelling Grammar Tab
• Select the Check grammar with spelling check box
• Select the show readability statistics check box,
  and then click OK
• Click Spelling and Grammar on the Standard
  toolbar. Reading level is displayed after the
  spelling and grammar check.

43
(No Transcript)
44
(No Transcript)
45
Readability The Flesch-Kincaid Grade Scale

• Not infallible
• Does not account for all factors
• such as interest, prior knowledge, background
• Quick and dirty estimate of finding out whether
  or not you can expect your students to be able to
  read your text

46
What if I need to change the readability of my
handouts?

• Too easy?
• Make sentences more complex and add grade level
  vocabulary.
• Too hard?
• Make format easier to read by shortening the
  sentences, reducing prepositional phrases, and
  simplifying the vocabulary.

47
One last thought to make you smile