Day 3 of series, reading assessment: what counts, what is measured, what is valued, what informs our daily instruction. A sampling of instructional sequences with high ceilings and low floors.

1. A Systems Look at Reading
Growth, Continuing the
Conversation
MRCL
Nov 4,5, 2015, Feb 16, 2016
Faye Brownlie
h<p://www.slideshare.net/FayeBrownlie/
mrlc.nov.reading

2. Learning Intentions-Oct 2015
• I have a be<er understanding of how to use the data
from my reading assessments to guide my teaching.
• We have a plan to use a performance-based reading
assessment.
• I have a plan to use the IEYE to help guide my
instrucNon.
• I am be<er able to use formaNve assessment, day by
day, in my reading instrucNon.
• As a team, we can describe what counts in quality
reading and how to teach toward this for all students.

3. Learning Intentions-Feb 2016
• I have a be<er understanding of how to use the
data from my reading assessments to guide my
teaching.
• I have a plan for a new strategic sequence to use
with my students to directly support them as
readers and thinkers.
• I have a plan to use the IEYE to help guide my
instrucNon.
• I am be<er able to use formaNve assessment, day
by day, in my reading instrucNon.

4. • What have you tried?
• How did it go?
• What did you noNce about the results for your
learners?
• 10 minutes to tell your story to someone NOT at
your table
• 15 minutes to share your stories and what you
learned from others AT your table

5. Reading is understanding.
Reading is thinking.
Reading is making sense in
disciplines.

6. • Language arts curricula across Canada idenNfy
-comprehension,
-interpretaNon,
-response and reflecNon
as major organizing aspects of reading literacy.
• PCAP 2013 Contextual Report

7. Comprehension:
• Students understand the explicit and implicit
informaNon provided by the text. In parNcular
they understand the vocabulary, parts,
elements, and events of the text.

8. Interpreta0on:
• Students make meaning by analyzing and
synthesizing the parts/elements/events to
develop a broader perspecNve and/or
meaning for the text. They may idenNfy
theme/thesis and support that with
references to details, events, symbols,
pa<erns, and/or text features.

9. Response to text:
• In responding, the readers engage with the
text in many ways: by making personal
connecNons between aspects of the text and
their own real/vicarious/prior experiences,
knowledge, values, and/or points of view; by
responding emoNonally to central ideas or
aspects of the text; and/or by taking an
evaluaNve stance about the quality or value of
the text, possibly in relaNon to other texts
and/or social or cultural factors.

10. Reading Assessment
• The goal of teaching reading is to create
readers who read with understanding and
who choose to read.
• The goal of a formaNve reading assessment is
to determine the strengths and areas to
strengthen of a student’s reading with
understanding.

11. Is your data collection counter-
productive to good instruction?

12. Fountas & Pinnell
• Measure accuracy, fluency, comprehension,
independent reading level, instrucNonal
reading level
• Goal: instrucNonal reading level

13. • Some districts measure all students in the fall
and in the spring, some measure 4 Nmes a
year.
• Is there too much measuring and not enough
response to the informaNon? Are we seang
teaching/learning goals from this data – or
simply collecNng levels/numbers?

14. • If we want to change achievement, we must
change instrucNon.

15. Some points to consider:
• It is not the accuracy that is so important it is
what you noNce in terms of reading behaviour so
you can use this informaNon to teach with.
• M – meaning
– Did that make sense?
• S – sound, syntax
– Did that sound right?
• V – visual
– Did that look right?

16. • Self correcNon
– “In the highly proficient reader around the middle of grade
2, we would not expect to hear a great deal of overt self-
correcNon if the reading is taking place with ease.”
• Is the student monitoring for sense?
• Students before Level L (mid grade 2) need 90%
accuracy; aler need 95%
– As texts become longer, readers need to accurately process
in order to maintain the meaning and have built up more
automaNcity with recognizing words.

17. • Comprehension conversaNon
– 3 levels of quesNons
• Within the text
• Beyond the text
• About the text
Are these levels of quesNons reflected in
your on-going reading with the students?

18. 20 minutes
• Aler the data collecNon and student reading levels have
been established, how is the data analyzed?
• Strengths and areas to strengthen for each student?
• Strengths and areas to strengthen for the small groups?
• Strengths and areas to strengthen for the class?
• Who analyzes the informaNon?
• How is it shared?
• How do you know that your teaching is making a
difference?
• When you analyze how a student spends Nme during the
day, in literacy situaNons, what is the focus of the Nme?

19. Support for Vulnerable Students
• Good classroom teaching
• Daily 1:1 or small group teaching
– Word work
– Reading of just right or instrucNonal text
– WriNng about reading
Fountas & Pinnell

20. Sharon Hoffinger, 6/7,
Cougar Canyon
• Inquiry-based learning with a focus on skills:
– Accessing, comprehending and synthesizing
informaNon
– New meaning from new and prior knowledge
– Think criNcally, creaNvely, and reflecNvely about
the new learning

21. How can I use my new knowledge to
transform my thinking or my acNons?
• Modeled:
– noNce, think, wonder with a picture
• Students in groups of 3 – noNce, think, wonder
• Add on to 2nd picture.
• Share out what is going on in your picture, 2 things you
noNced, 1 quesNon.
• Modeled:
– explode the sentence
• Explode another sentence in small groups.
• Explain to an adult what you now think is happening.

28. Three Syrian brothers, a new life in Europe brings trials
and triumphs.
5 week, 8 countries, 3400 kilometers.
Globe, Nov 20, 2015
New Linkh<p://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/
for-three-syrian-brothers-a-new-start-in-europe-and-a-
host-of-new-challengestoo/arNcle27393837/

29. • Here he was, in a place with constant
electricity, he would tell himself, while his
mother and father lived by candlelight.

30. Response to Poetry – Gr 10
with Susan Telfer, Gibsons
• Day 1: As a class, review the performance
standard, read a poem, take notes, discuss in
small groups, report to class, write response
• Day 2:
-choice of 3 poems
-take notes
-discuss in groups Day 3 & 4:
-report to class -individual response
-write response -peer & self feedback

31. • “What He Took with Him”
• “Short order Cook”
• “Terry”

32. Images QuesNons
Feelings/emoNons QuotaNons
ConnecNons:
ReflecNons:

33. Short order Cook – Jim Daniels
An average joe comes in
and orders thirty cheeseburgers and thirty
fries.
I wait for him to pay before I start cooking.
He pays.
He ain’t no average joe.
The grill is just big enough for ten rows of
three.
I slap the burgers down
throw two buckets of fries in the deep frier
and they pop pop spit spit …
pss…
The counter girls laugh.
I concentrate.
It is the crucial point –
They are ready for the cheese:
my fingers shake as I tear off slices
toss them on the burgers/fries done/
dump/
refill buckets/burgers ready/flip into buns/
beat that melNng cheese/wrap burgers in
plasNc/
into paper bags/fries done/dump/fill thirty
bags/
bring them to the counter/wipe sweat on
sleeve
and smile at the counter girls.
I puff my chest out and bellow:
“Thirty cheeseburgers, thirty fries!”
They look at me funny.
I grab a handful of ice, toss it in my mouth
do a li<le dance and walk back to the grill.
Pressure, responsibility, success,
Thirty cheeseburgers, thirty fries.

36. Short-Order Cook response
I believe that this poem is about something deeper than just
burgers. I think that the author is symbolizing that there is
a huge challenge ahead and you can do anything you put
your mind to. I think pracNce makes perfect and that is
exactly what the author is trying to say because the cook
had to train hard for this. I can connect to this because I
play basketball and I have to pracNce a lot. When it says
‘Pressure, responsibility, success’ I think that it means he
had PRESSURE to get it done, a RESPONSABILITY to get it
done, and he was SUCCESSFUL. The author was trying to
tell you that if you are determined if doesn’t ma<er if
people are bringing you down, you can get through it, and
the cook proved that.

37. 6
The six response is superior in its depth of discussion and synthesis of ideas. Demonstrates an insighuul
understanding of the texts at an interpreNve level. May make inferences. May show understanding of
literary techniques appropriate to genre. Support, explicit or implicit, is thoughuul and well-integrated.
Despite its clarity, response need not be flawless.
5
The five response is proficient in its depth of discussion and synthesis of ideas. Demonstrates a clear
understanding of the texts at an interpreNve level. May show understanding of literary techniques
appropriate to genre. Support, explicit or implicit, is convincing and relevant.
4
The four response is competent in its discussion of ideas. Demonstrates some understanding of the texts at an
interpreNve level. Response is organized and straighuorward, but may miss subtle or complex ideas.
Supported by relevant details from the texts.
3
The three response is somewhat adequate in its discussion of ideas. Demonstrates some understanding of the
texts at a literal level. Response may be unclear, incomplete or lack detail. AsserNons are olen simplisNc or
unevenly developed. Support may consist of long references to the texts which are not clearly connected
to the central idea.
2
The two response is inadequate. Demonstrates a misreading or significant misunderstanding of the texts or
task. Response may be incomplete or restatements of texts, or consists of underdeveloped, limited ideas.
Support is absent or flawed, with li<le evidence of relaNonships or connecNons. Does not meet the
expectaNons of the task.
1
The one response is unacceptable. Demonstrates a misreading or significant misunderstanding of the texts, or
task. Response may be irrelevant. No evidence of support or connecNons between ideas. May be too short
to meet the requirements of the quesNon.
0
Makes no a<empt to address the topic or simply restates the quesNon.

38. Note: This is a first-dra@ response and should be
assessed as such.
The response is to be assessed holisBcally.
WriBng convenBons are to be considered only to
the extent that they impede meaning.
A variety of types of responses such as graphic
representaBons, tables or lists are acceptable
and shall be assessed according to the rubric.
Students who do not discuss both passages will
receive a maximum scale point of 4.

39. Transportation
Now and then
An ABC Book
-Leigh Hambly & Kirsten Philips
Doubledutch Books

40. A a airplane
L l limousine

41. • Model together
– Answer the leading quesNon
– Brainstorm “Did you know?” for ‘now’ and ‘then’
– Read to compare
– Research to find the answer to “I wonder”
– What other wonders do you have?
• Work in partners to learn about each mode of
transportaNon and present to others

42. K – Building Connections/Response
to Reading
• PracNce making connecNons
• Choose a symbol
• Talk about how this helps our reading
• Read together and make connecNons
• Students show their connecNons by drawing
and wriNng
• with Jessica Chan, Inman, Burnaby