Literate Environment Analysis Presentation

1. Literate Environment
Analysis
Jessica Crow
Walden University
Instructor: Gina Pink
EDUC 6706: The Beginning Reader, PreK-3

2. Getting to Know Literacy Learners
PreK-3
• To better understand them as individuals
• To find texts and topics that engage them in literacy
learning
• To provide developmentally appropriate instruction
(Laureate Education Inc., n.d.)
Why should you get to know your
learners?

3. Getting to Know Literacy Learners
PreK-3 (continued)
Non-cognitive assessments:
• Interest Inventories
• Motivation to Read Profiles
• Student Interviews
• Literacy Autobiographies
Through non-cognitive assessments, teachers can learn
about a student’s motivation, self-concept, interests, and
attitudes (Afflerbach, 2012).

4. Getting to Know Literacy Learners
PreK-3 (continued)
Cognitive assessments:
• Observations
• Checklists
• Running records
• Reading inventories
• Teacher-made assessments
Cognitive assessments focus on the skills and strategies
used by a student as they develop as a reader (Afflerbach,
2012).

5. Selecting Text
The Literary Matrix
• As an instructional decision maker,
the matrix helps you to see the
landscape of texts that you are using
in the classroom. It gives you a “big
picture” that is often times missed and
helps keeps goals ever-present in your
mind (Laureate Education Inc., n.d.b).
The matrix is intended to help educators ensure that
they have a balance among the texts they use in the
classroom (Laureate Education Inc., n.d.b).
Linguistic Texts
(word oriented)
Semiotic Texts
(picture oriented)
Narrative Texts Informational Texts

6. Selecting Text (continued)
What should you consider when selecting text?
• Readability
▫ Sentence length
▫ Number of syllables
▫ Concept density
• Text Length
• Size of Print
• Visual Support
• Text Structure
▫ Informative
▫ Descriptive
▫ Cause/Effect
▫ Problem/Solution
▫ Compare/Contrast
▫ Poetry
Text difficulty should be considered
when analyzing texts from different
dimensions (Laureate Education Inc.,
n.d.b).

7. Interactive Perspective
“The Big 5”
1. Phonics
2. Vocabulary
3. Fluency
4. Comprehension
5. Phonemic Awareness
The primary goal of the Interactive Perspective is to teach
children how to be literate learners who can
independently navigate through the textual world
(Laureate Education Inc., n.d.c).
The goal is to
teach students to
be strategic
thinkers in “The
Big 5” areas of
literacy.

8. Interactive Perspective (continued)
•Teaching students how to read
•Building on what students already know
•Engaging dialogue before, during, and after reading
•Direct instruction
•Teaching scaffolding
•Modeling
•Gradual release strategy
“A crucial part of reading development is the shifting of control for
using strategies-first in response to others and later as self-
initiated strategies” (Afflerbach, 2007, p.389).

9. Critical and Response
Perspectives
Critical Thinking Responding to Text
• Examine a text from multiple
perspectives
• Critically evaluate a text
• Judge validity of a text
• Think deeply about a text
• Evaluate websites for credibility
• Connect with a text on a personal
level
• Relate to a text personally
• Emotionally respond to a text
• Respond to a text by:
▫ Answering questions
▫ Journal entries
▫ Reading logs
Why was
this story
written?
What was
the author’s
reason for
writing this
story?
What is the
main
character’s
motive?

10. Critical and Response Perspectives
(continued)
Critical Perspective
Allowing time for students to activate their critical thinking skills helps
them analyze texts (Laureate Education Inc., n.d.d).
Response Perspective
Helping students make personal connections to texts strengthens their
comprehension and has an impact on their being (Laureate Education
Inc., n.d.e).
The Critical and Response Perspectives provide opportunities
for students to think analytically about texts and respond to
texts through personal connections and reflections upon their
feelings (Laureate Education Inc., n.d.d).

11. Feedback from Colleagues and Family
Members of Students
• What insights did you gain about literacy and literacy instruction
from viewing this presentation?
• How might the information presented change your literacy practices
and/or your literacy interactions with students?
• In what ways can I support you in the literacy development of your
students or children? How might you support me in my work with
students or your children?
• What questions do you have?

12. References
•Afflerbach, P., Pearson, P. D., & Paris, S. G. (2008). Clarifying differences between reading skills and reading strategies.
Reading Teacher, 61(5), 364–373.
•Afflerbach, P. (2012). Understanding and using reading assessment, K–12 (2nd ed). Newark, DE: International Reading
Association.
•Laureate Education (Producer). (n.d.a). Getting to know your students. [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecut
e%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_4743380_1%26url%3D
•Laureate Education (Producer). (n.d.b). Analyzing and selecting text [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecut
e%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_4743380_1%26url%3D
•Laureate Education (Producer). (n.d.c). Interactive perspective: Strategic processing. [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://class.waldenu.edu
•Laureate Education (Producer). (n.d.d). Critical perspective. [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecut
e%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_4743380_1%26url%3D
•Laureate Education (Producer). (n.d.e). Response perspective. [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecut
e%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_4743380_1%26url%3D