Friday, July 22, 2016

WEBB'S DOK Question Stems

WEBB'S DOK Question Stems | Student-Friendly Reading Comprehension Question Stems | Higher Order Thinking Reading Comprehension Sample Test Question Stems

Reading Comprehension Connections: Students need to go beyond

the text and find the deeper meaning and understanding of complex concepts. Teacher need to use HOT (Higher Order Thinking) question stems while reading to develop students reasoning skills, connecting prior knowledge with new information. Questions Stems help Students Apply New Thinking Comprehension Strategies, Building Background Knowledge, Develop Effective Questioning Skills, Reflective Thinking Skills, and Making Connections with Complex Texts. Reading Comprehension Questions: Text to Self, Text to Text, Text to World.

Knowing questions focus on making clear, recalling, naming and listing

Which resources would give more information about ...?
Organizing questions focus on arranging information, comparing similarities/differences, classifying, and order
Which experience is most similar to ...'s experience in the story?
In what way are these stories the same?
Which experience is most similar to the author's?
What modern symbol can be used to compare... to...?
How are... and... similar?
Applying questions focus on prior knowledge to solve a problem
A theme of both selections might be...
What other things cause...?

Analyzing questions focus on examining parts, qualities/ relationships/ patterns, and main idea

Which experience most likely helped the author write this...?
How do you think... felt after...?
What are some effects that people experience because of this...?
People who ... would most likely have which characteristics?
Who would most likely need...?
Generating questions focus on producing new information, inferring, predicting, and adding more details
How would this experience help... the next time he...?
How do you think this experience will change in the future?
Which is an example of an activity that would result in...?
Which would most people who share this author's opinion believe?
What are some other ways... could have...?

Integrating questions focus on connecting/combining/summarizing information, and restructuring existing information to incorporate new information

Which relationship is most similar to the relationship below? X:Y (based on personal knowledge, initial relationships from text, others from outside experience) ...'s relationship to... is most like...

Evaluation of the Author's Skills: Evaluating questions focus on reasonableness and quality of ideas, criteria for making judgments, and confirming accuracy of claims

What is the most likely reason... instead of... ?
What part of this story could happen in real life? (Or not happen in real life?)
Critical Stance: Evaluate the author's craft. Analyze by determining the impact of literary elements/word choice/purpose/decision, comparing and contrasting, and evaluating the accuracy of information and ideas.
Knowing questions focus on clarifying, recalling, naming, and listing
Which words aroused emotion? Which emotion?

Organizing questions focus on arranging information, comparing similarities /differences, classifying, and putting in order

How is... different from...?
What do... and ... have in common?
Which word would have been a better word to use in this sentence?
Applying questions focus on prior knowledge to solve a problem
What are some specific elements of this author's style?
What technique does the author use to create an effect? (a dramatic beginning, short quick sentences, long sentences, repetition)
This is an example of...? (technical language, slang, informal speech, formal speech)
What supporting evidence does... give for her argument?
What is the impact of the organization of the selection?
Why does the author use flashbacks?
What generalization does the author probably want you to make about... ?
In the statement..., why is the word... in (quotations marks, italics, bold, etc.)?
Why is ... in italics? (or underlined?)

Analyzing questions focus on examining parts, identifying qualities /relationships /patterns, and main idea

How does... change from the beginning to the end of the story? (Also considered an interpretation)
What is the effect of beginning the selection with a... (simile/metaphor)?
Based on the information in the selection, which relationship is most similar to the relationship below? X:Y (based on the selection and all relationships found in the text)
What technique does the author use to make his selection colorful? (precise details, short sentences, slang, figurative language)
How does the author make the story colorful?
The author alludes to... ... is a symbol of what?
What is the message of this ironic selection?
What is ...'s attitude to...?
What is the most likely reason the... is included in the selection?
What is the impact of the author's word choice?
What words are clue to the author's feelings?
What is the impact of the use of a propaganda technique?
Which statement is the main idea of paragraph...?
What evidence reflects the author's biases?
Why does the author compare... to...?
Why did the author choose this title?
Why does the author use... to stand for...?
What could the author have added that would made his position stronger?
How is the selection organized?
Why did the author choose to use dialect/slang/regional speech in this selection?
What effect does... have on the selection?
What is the purpose of comparing... to...?
In what way does the author of this selection best help the reader to understand...?

Generating questions focus on producing new information, inferring, predicting, and elaborating with details

How does... justify her position?
What impact does the author's use of foreshadowing have on the selection?
In what way could the author make... more believable?
Why does the author most likely (include...?)(begin/end the selection by saying...?)(mention...?)

Integrating questions focus on connecting/ combining/ summarizing information, and restructuring existing information to incorporate new information

How are...'s and...'s feelings at the end of this selection similar?
What are some things the author does to make sure this selection... (entertains, informs, persuades, etc.)?
Which details offer support of the author's suggested solution?
What are some details the author uses to help you visualize the images in the selection?
What details help you to visualize the story?

Evaluating questions focus on reasonableness and quality of ideas, standards for making judgments, and confirming accuracy of claims

Which... does the author believe is the most important reason for...?
What is the author's most important reason for ...?
Which details are most relevant to the author's point of view?
What could the author have added to make his opinion more valid?
Which detail is irrelevant to the author's judgment?
With which statement would the author most likely agree?

Cognition: Develop an initial understanding. Identify purpose, main ideas, supporting details, vocabulary in context, parts of books.

Knowing questions focus on clarifying, recalling, naming and listing

1. Based on the context of paragraph..., what does... mean? (vocabulary in context)
2. Which best describes...? (clearly stated in the selection)
3. What metaphor does the author use to compare... to...?
4. Which word would best be substituted for the word... in paragraph/line...?
5. When and where did this story occur?
6. What is the selection supposed to help you do?
7. What does the word... mean in paragraph...?
8. Which clue helped you determine the meaning of the word... as it is used in this selection?
9. What is the purpose of guide words?
10. How is the text organized?
11. When the author used the word..., which meaning does she want you to associate with it?
12. What is the plot of the story?
13. Based on this story, how would you describe...?
14. What is another meaning for the word...?
15. What is the purpose of the stage directions?
16. What kind of source would you use to find information about...?
17. What is the rhyme scheme?
18. Who is the speaker in this selection?
19. What can you tell from the conversation about ... ?

Organizing question focus on arranging information, comparing similarities/ differences, classifying, and putting in order

Which detail best completes the graphic organizer?
The author compares... to...?
What are some words the author uses that are clues to her feelings?
What is the difference between a primary source and a secondary source?
What are the characteristics of this specific genre that make it different from others?
Applying questions focus on prior knowledge to solve a problem
What is the purpose of the... subheading in the selection?
Which details support his opinion?
What is the extended metaphor the author uses?
What did the author want you to consider as you read this selection?

Analyzing questions focus on examining parts, identifying attributes/ relationships/ patterns, and main idea

Why does the selection include illustrations/a list of materials, etc.?
What is the main idea of the selection? (purpose, summary)
What piece of information is missing from the selection?
What is the author's purpose?
Which is the most important reason for... ?
What is the author's message?
Which is the best statement of the theme of this selection?
What significance does the title have?
What is the main problem or conflict in the selection?
What does... symbolize in this selection?
If this skit was performed, what costumes would the characters wear?

Generating questions focus on producing new information, inferring, predicting, and elaborating with details

What can you tell from the dialogue/conversation about...?
Why did the author write this selection?

Integrating questions focus on connecting/ combining/ summarizing information, and restructuring existing information to incorporate new information

Why did the author write this selection?
Based on the information in the selection, how would you describe...?
Which is the best summary for this selection?
What is the author's general attitude about...?
What are the multiple effects of...?
What does the author think about this topic?

Evaluating questions focus on reasonableness and quality of ideas, criteria for making judgments, and confirming accuracy of claims

Which is the most important reason for...?

Interpretation: Dig deeper. Clarify, explain by making inferences, drawing conclusions, making generalizations and predictions, determining the meaning of figurative language.

Knowing questions focus on clarifying, recalling, naming, and listing
During the selection, the mood changes from... to...
Which word means the same as...?
Based on the selection, which is the best definition of...?
Which words can the author use that have a more positive connotation?
How did the plot develop, from the beginning to the end?
What does... think about...?
What is... (part of the selection) supposed to help you do?
How did... feel at the end of this selection?
Why did...?
Which is an example of figurative speech?

Organizing questions focus on arranging information, comparing similarities/differences, classifying, and putting in order

How is... different from...?
Which detail belongs in the empty circle?
People who... are most likely to have which characteristics?
How are... (e.g., a modern fable) and... (e.g., an ancient fable) different?
Applying questions focus on prior knowledge to solve a problem
What is the tone/mood of this selection?
How did... solve the problem?
What will be the result of this step in the directions?
In what ways are these ideas important to the topic/theme?
How does the setting impact the mood or tone?
Why does the author compare this problem to...?
How does the author's use of... (irony, humor, personification) contribute to...?
Which... is an example of...?
How is informational text organized differently from a narrative text?
What are strategies for reading...?
What is the result of...?
In which part of the selection does the author give information about what happened before the story began?

Analyzing questions focus on examining parts, identifying attributes/relationships/patterns, and main idea

What is the significance of...'s decision to...?
What was the significance of...?
Which statement about... is supported by the selection?
Which best describes...?(not clearly stated in the selection)
Which quotation from the selection tells the most about...?
This character could be described as...?
What is the main problem?
What caused this event/problem?
Which detail explains the significance of...?
What is the significance of the author's statement that...?
Which particular group is the author targeting?
What caused... to...? Use information from the selection to support your answer.
Which... does the author offer as evidence of the effect of...?
What has been the effect of...'s decision, actions, etc.
What mood does the author create? How?
What is most likely true about...?
In which situation would you use this...?
What is most likely the reason... ?
Which is the most important information about... given in the selection?
What lesson should... have learned about...?
What is the lesson that the reader can learn from this selection?
According to the selection, how does... affect...?
What is the main message of this selection?
What is the main reason...?
Which characteristics are given to...?
Why was... important to...?

Generating questions focus on producing new information, inferring, predicting, and elaborating with details

What conclusion about... can be made from...?
What might be inferred from the fact that...?
Where might the author have gotten the idea for this selection?
What is another possible solution to this problem?
What might be another cause that is suggested but not clearly stated?
What will most likely happen? ...next? If...?
What could you infer about the author from this information?
With which opinion would the author probably agree?
If..., what else would be true?
What was most likely the situation at the beginning of the selection?
What is the story meant to explain?
What does the final paragraph/stanza suggest about...?
Which... best expresses...'s attitude toward ... as shown in the beginning of the selection?

Integrating questions focus on connecting/ combining/ summarizing information, and restructuring existing information to incorporate new information

How would the mood change if the setting were...?
How would ...'s actions be different if the setting were...?
Which group of people might this problem impact most?
Why is this information significant to this topic?
What can a reader tell about... from...?
Evaluating questions focus on reasonableness and quality of ideas, criteria for making judgments, and confirming accuracy of claims
What could the author add to this selection to help you understand it better?
Which theme best fits the story?
Which facts and details that support the author's view are important?
Which statement is true? Which... is most important in this story?

Reading Comprehension

What resources would give more information about ...?
How are ... and ... similar?
What other things cause .... ?
Who would most likely need ... ?
What are some other ways ... could have ... ?
.......'s relationship to .... is most like ....
What part of the story could happen in real life? (Or not happen in real life?)
How do you think .... felt after ....?

Evaluation of the Author's Skills

Which words aroused emotion? (Which emotion?)
Which word would have been a better word to use in this sentence?
Why is ..... in italics? (or underlined?)
Why did the author choose this title?
What details help you to visualize the story?
What is the author's most important reason for ..... ?
How does the author make the story colorful? (imagery)
Which statement is the main idea of paragraph .......?

Initial Understanding

What is the plot of the story?
What words are clues to the author's feelings?
Which is an example of figurative speech?
What is the main problem or conflict in the story?
What can you tell from the conversation about ...?
Based on this story, how would you describe ........ ?
Which is the most important reason for .... ?
When and where did this story occur?
How would you describe ... ?
Who is the speaker in ..... ?

Interpretation

How did the plot develop, from the beginning to the end ?
How is ..... different from ..... ?
How did ..... solve the problem?
Why was ..... important?
What is another possible solution to this problem?
What can a reader tell about ... from .... ?
Which .... is most important in this story?
What does .... think about ... ?
In what part of the story does the author give information about what happened before the story began?
What lesson should .... have learned about ....?
Why was .... important to ....?
If ..... , what else would be true?
What is the story meant to explain?

Wednesday, July 20, 2016

"Withitness" with-it-ness | Classroom Management

"Withitness" with-it-ness is a pedagogical term created by Jacob Kounin to describe a teacher's situational awareness (Classroom Management Acumen). The teacher is constantly monitoring or sector scanning the classroom at all times, looking to reward and commend responsible behavior and extinguishing, preempting, or inhibiting poor behavior. The teacher makes eye contact, walks around the room, pauses and interacts with students and leans in and gives an ear; the classroom management tactics are used to ensure all students are on task and engaged 100% of the time.

Teachers will have very little academic success if students are not motivated and have a passion for learning. Even if the teachers are "with it"! Teachers that are not in tune with their student's passions, interest, strengths, weaknesses, or what really inspires them will fail to lead their students. Teachers need to know how to motivate their student on a personal level, help students develop their voice and ignite their passion for learning. (students' need to feel safe, valued, intelligent, loved, gifted, respected, appreciated, cherished, challenged, etc). Teacher NEED to praise and reward students openly when they demonstrate sustained effort, not just big academic achievement. Teachers that use continues non-verbal classroom management techniques that encourage students engagement and show students they are valued will have a miraculous academic year ( thumbs up, big smiles, lean in and listen, show real interest, pat on the shoulder, etc.). Students will go above and beyond when teachers demonstrate through actions that students are cared for and valued. When students understand classroom management and classroom rules are all about the well-being of all students and, we use manners because we cherish our students, they will buy in. The teacher needs to present well-thought-out logical suggestions to enlighten the student that their behavior is unacceptable and there are always at least two choices in life.

POSITIVE AFFIRMATION:

There are two ways of living: a person may be careless and simply exist, or usefully and deliberately try to do so. The productive idea implies a usefulness not only about one's own life, but about that of the world, and the future possibilities of mankind.

Teachers need to communicate to all students the purpose of high expectations and make clear the SUPERLATIVE reason we expect exemplary manners, and a dogged work ethic from our students is we care about our students' success! Model what a with-it student looks like, behaves like, communicates like, and thinks like, you can have "I Can Statements" displayed so every student can be "with-it".

TEACHERS NEED TO BE MOTIVATED BY COLLEAGUES WHEN THE SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION IS TO BUSY LOOKING AT DATA!

Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Teaching Hungry Children! The Real Cost of...

How do you teach children when they come to school hungry and have no food to eat at home? Going hungry is a third-world problem in our first-world classrooms.

I absolutely loved teaching Saturday Kindergarten with the silliest and cutest NES (None English

By DC Central Kitchen - Lunch at DC Public Schools

Speaking) and ELL students, teaching 12-14 little darlings with giant smiles and even bigger hearts was a treat, even going into school on Saturday.

I was very excited to get back to reading, singing, and playing with the little ones on Saturdays when the new school year started. The first day of "Saturday School" the kinders came in with their little backpacks and nervous apprehension about a new teacher "think Rubeus Hagrid". We did our normal introductions and told parents we would see them after lunch.

We got right into singing my favorite Spanish-English song that is usually a great ice breaker that gets kids smiling. "Amigos, Amigos, uno, dos, tres! "Todos mis amigos estan aqui! Tu eres mis amigos, Maria, es mi amiga, Jesus, es mi amigo, Franky, es mi amigo, Amigos, Amigos, uno ..."

"Con permiso?" "Con permiso?" This precious tiny girl was desperately trying to get my attention, she looked up at me with these big sad eyes, with tears rolling down her cheek, as she tried to ask me a question in English. I asked her in my broken Spanish what was wrong sweetie, thinking maybe she missed her mom and wanted to go home. She looked up at me with these sad eyes and said, "A qué hora desayunar", "A qué hora desayunar, Por favor" What time is breakfast. please? My heart sank, I was brought immediately to a sad realization, my mind was on teaching my Saturday English class, learning a new song and having fun, and her mind was on her real hunger and her need for someone to feed her breakfast. I was totally gutted, we stopped immediately and prepared breakfast for all the kids.

Her world had new light, joy, and color, all brought back with a simple breakfast that drove away the hunger. She had gone from a hurting darkness with no chance of learning anything to a world of light and joy with a renewed passion for learning. Our student's world will never be full of magic, love, sunshine, unicorns, and rainbows when they have had nothing to eat, sometimes for dinner and breakfast.

Working at a Title I school I see kids daily that get 90% of their nutritional needs met at school because they have no food or not enough food at home. Many parents of undocumented students are now afraid to seek federally subsidized free school lunch because the political climate "hatred" against Hispanics.

Starting out my career as a self-contained special education teacher I got in the habit of eating lunch daily with my students. I continue that practice even today, sharing a daily meal with my students is a blessing.

I am shocked and dismayed at lunch sometimes when my students bring a tiny bag of Cheerios or a few chips to eat at lunch. You can see their shame and embarrassment about not having a "school lunch", they will try to hide their sadness and disappointment to no avail. They will stare at what other students are eating and try to disappear or hide their emotions. It is always heart-breaking to see children suffer, and it makes me see politics through very different lenses.

16 years as a teacher, I stock my class with nutritious goodies for breakfast and lunch. Days when I cannot get the lunch ladies to provide a free lunch for my students, I will always buy them lunch because they need nourishment to learn. My heart breaks when I see kids not getting what they need to thrive, the racism and hatred in our country is suffered on a daily basis by our kids.

Monday, July 18, 2016

My First "Special Education" Reading Teacher! The Power of Believing in Students with Intellectual Disabilities

Special Education Reading Success: How Yvette Learned to Read Against All Odds | Teaching Students with Intellectual Disabilities

My First Reading Teacher: My Amazing Second Grader, Yvette

Inspiring story: How a 2nd grader with intellectual disabilities learned to read using sight words & high expectations. Special education success

Yvette was an absolute darling who could melt your heart with her infectious smile. On the first day of school, she was so excited you would have thought she was waiting to enter Disneyland for the first time. She radiated pure joy, happiness, and bliss. She had only one thing on her mind—one single goal that her new school was going to help her achieve: she was going to learn how to read Clifford the Big Red Dog. More importantly, she was going to read her favorite book to her mom.

Yvette clutched a tattered stuffed Clifford tightly under one arm and a well-worn Clifford book under the other, wearing that adorable, radiant smile that would become so familiar to me. She adored Clifford and wanted to share his adventures with her mother. "My mom can't read to me," Yvette explained, "so I want to learn how to read to her." This little girl possessed a mighty passion that could not be tamed or extinguished. Her giant smile became my introduction to teaching a Special Education Cross-Categorical classroom, and Yvette—with her boundless heart, burning desire, endless curiosity, unwavering passion, remarkable resilience, and contagious love of learning—changed my life as a teacher.

She was so eager to learn that she expected me to start teaching her that very moment. I was taken aback by her persistence and determination. Throughout the entire year, she maintained that giant smile and her giggly, infectious enthusiasm. She was excited every single moment of every day, sounding out words, practicing sight words, and listening intently to read-aloud stories with that same beaming smile. During four-plus hours of daily reading instruction—the school used two 90-minute reading blocks for all students not yet at grade level, including my self-contained classroom—she never complained or grew tired. The only things that would make her pause were her need for an impromptu hug or her excitement when she learned something new. In those moments, hugs were definitely in order. She amazed me and taught me more in that single year than I ever taught her.

Yvette's Marvelous Method

Yvette never quite grasped phonics—not the 44 phonemic sounds or any of the phonemic rules. With her learning disability and the complexity of the English language, she felt lost with most traditional instructional approaches. I was equally lost, being a first-year teacher in a cross-categorical, self-contained special education classroom. I didn't know how to teach reading, let alone how to help a student who had been classified as "mentally retarded" (a term no longer used in special education).

I desperately wanted to help her achieve the goal she had shared with me on that first day of school, so we tried what had worked for me when phonics failed. We treated every word as a sight word and simply practiced, and practiced, and practiced. We worked through the Dolch sight word list first, then made over seven hundred flashcards that year for all the words and phrases in her beloved Clifford books, classic fairy tales, songs, and nursery rhymes. She treasured those flashcards decorated with smiley faces and stickers that celebrated each new word or phrase she mastered. She seemed to measure her reading success by how many flashcards we created together.

We read stories, sang songs, and drilled sight words and Fry Instant Phrases over and over again, punctuating each session with hugs and stickers that celebrated every small victory. We spent three, sometimes four hours a day reading words, writing words in the air, and reading Clifford's stories "over and over" to reach her Clifford reading goal. When you dedicate that much time and energy to a single goal, a reading miracle becomes not just possible, but inevitable.

Yvette became the teacher who showed me how to think outside the box and teach students using whatever method actually works. Blindly following school or district curriculum can lead to failure for so many students who simply learn differently. At the end of the year, when her mom came to visit, Yvette was bursting with pride as she sat down and read Clifford to her mother. Yvette's mom was in tears as she listened to her daughter read. It truly was a miracle.

The Power of Believing

Yvette had been diagnosed with MIMR (mild intellectual disability, formerly called "mildly mentally retarded"), and according to her IEP (Individualized Education Program), she would never learn to read. Her IEP goals and objectives were heartbreakingly limited—her only goal for the entire year was to learn thirteen letters of the alphabet. Nothing more. Nothing else was expected of her.

But it was Yvette's burning desire and our willingness to try something different that made all the difference in the world. "It can't be done." "She can't do it." "It's impossible." "She's retarded." "They will never read." "The books are too hard." I've heard all this nonsense over the past ten years, and these limiting beliefs prevent teachers from truly believing in their students. But Yvette's courage and determination have kept me from ever saying "they can't" or "they won't." When a second-grade student with an intellectual disability learns to read fluently in one year, it forever changes your attitude and expectations as an educator.

We spent that magical year laughing, smiling, hugging, and learning to read—and then reading to learn. Yvette taught me what believing in high expectations truly means for student outcomes. She showed me that with enough love, determination, and creative teaching, miracles happen in classrooms every single day.

She was my first reading teacher, and she taught me the most important lesson of all: never, ever give up on a child's dreams.

My First Reading Teacher: My Amazing Second Grader, Yvette

Yvette clutched a new, stuffed Clifford tightly under one arm and a well-worn Clifford book under the other, wearing that adorable, radiant smile that would become so familiar to me. She adored Clifford and wanted to share his adventures with her mother. "My mom can't read to me," Yvette explained, "so I want to learn how to read to her." This little girl possessed a mighty passion that could not be tamed or extinguished. Her giant smile became my introduction to teaching a Special Education Cross-Categorical classroom, and Yvette—with her boundless heart, burning desire, endless curiosity, unwavering passion, remarkable resilience, and contagious love of learning—changed my life as a teacher.

Yvette's Marvelous Method

The Power of Believing

She was my first reading teacher, and she taught me the most important lesson of all: never, ever give up on a child's dreams.

Appendix: The SFA Foundation That Made Yvette's Miracle Possible

Looking back on Yvette's remarkable journey, I realize now that her success wasn't just about determination and love—it was also made possible by the comprehensive literacy framework already in place at our school. We were fortunate to be an SFA (Success for All) school that also implemented Kagan cooperative learning strategies, giving us a classroom environment rich with research-based, ready-to-use resources that aligned perfectly with Yvette's learning needs.

The SFA Word Wall System: A Perfect Match

The SFA program's 48-section word wall system proved to be exactly what Yvette needed, even though I didn't fully understand its theoretical foundation at the time. The color-coded approach—with "green words" representing decodable, phonemically regular words and "red words" for high-frequency or irregular words requiring memorization—gave us a systematic way to approach her sight word learning.

While SFA doesn't publish exact counts of green versus red words across all 48 sections, the program's comprehensive coverage spans all major high-frequency word lists used in K–3 literacy instruction. The foundational SFA books extensively overlap with both Dolch (220 service words plus 95 noun words) and Fry (first 1000 words) lists, though they're original leveled texts rather than direct replications. This meant that as Yvette mastered her beloved Clifford vocabulary, she was simultaneously building a foundation that would serve her across all her reading experiences.

Built-In Phonemic Awareness and Best Practices

What I didn't realize as a first-year teacher was that SFA is built on best practice research and incorporates Orton-Gillingham methodology—the gold standard for teaching children how to read, especially those with learning differences like Yvette. The program's daily phonemic awareness instruction includes:

Stretch and spell routines that help students break down words into component sounds
Segmentation and phoneme isolation activities that build sound awareness
Blending exercises that teach students to put sounds together
Explicit instruction in both decodable and irregular word recognition

Even though Yvette struggled with traditional phonics rules, she was still benefiting from this embedded phonemic awareness instruction every single day through our SFA activities.

Songs, Cooperation, and Classroom-Ready Resources

The SFA program came complete with songs, chants, and engaging activities that made our four hours of daily reading instruction feel more like play than work. Combined with our school's Kagan cooperative learning approach, students were constantly interacting with words, sounds, and stories in multiple ways. The 48 foundational SFA books provided a structured progression that supported both phonemic awareness and sight word mastery simultaneously.

What felt like my creative decision to make "over seven hundred flashcards" was actually supported by a research-based framework that systematically exposes students to high-frequency vocabulary through multiple modalities. The songs we sang, the word wall words we practiced, and even the cooperative learning structures we used were all part of a comprehensive approach designed to meet students exactly where they were in their literacy development.

The Miracle Was Built Into the System

Yvette's success wasn't just about thinking "outside the box"—it was about having access to a literacy system sophisticated enough to support multiple pathways to reading success. SFA's integration of both decodable and sight word approaches, combined with daily phonemic awareness instruction and engaging, leveled texts, created an environment where a student like Yvette could thrive.

The miracle was that we had a classroom already equipped with research-based tools that could adapt to meet her unique learning profile. While her IEP suggested she could only learn thirteen letters in a year, the SFA framework provided the structure and resources that allowed her to far exceed those limited expectations.

Lessons for Today's Teachers

Understanding now what I wish I had known then, I realize that Yvette's story illustrates the power of comprehensive, research-based literacy instruction. The Success for All program, grounded in Orton-Gillingham principles and supported by cooperative learning strategies, provided the foundation that made her remarkable progress possible.

For teachers working with students who have learning differences, having access to systematic, multi-sensory approaches like SFA can make all the difference. The program's careful balance of phonemic awareness, sight word instruction, and engaging texts creates multiple pathways to reading success—ensuring that students like Yvette don't have to wait for us to figure out what works.

Her infectious smile and determination were certainly the driving forces behind her success, but having a classroom equipped with proven, research-based tools gave that determination the best possible chance to flourish into the reading miracle we witnessed together.

Pretending to Read and Write! Dyslexia?

Pretending to Read and Write! Sean Taylor the Dyslexic Reading Teacher.

My first memories of school are feelings of inadequacy and shame,

not memories of joy and curiosity. One of my earliest memories is trying and trying to learn how to write my own four letter name, I remember everyone else in the class seemed to learn the task but I was stuck. I was lost from the start, learning the letter sound and even worse trying to print letters that were dancing all over the page. It was almost impossible for me to write or copy letters because they were reversed, upside down, transposed and illegible by the time my mind tried to decipher them. Most students learned to write their names in kindergarten. In first grade and beyond, I was not able to write my name unless I had an example to copy from, even in second grade and beyond I would focus and concentrate so hard on the shape and the direction the letters were facing, yet I would still transpose or reverse the letters. This constant failure just made me hate school and despise writing. Every time I tried to print, it was a like writing upside down and backwards while looking in a mirror, holding my paper and pencil using my big toes. The big change in my writing came in third grade with the introduction of cursive. Cursive was easier to learn and made more sense in part because it connected all the letters and it used muscle memory.

Worse than learning to print words was the entire reading process and the methods teachers tried to use to fix my illiteracy. I was suffering in silence, spending what seemed like all my time in school focused on reading tasks that made me feel stupid, and was a small death every day. Letter recognition and phonemic awareness seemed alien and incomprehensible. To me 'p,' 'b,' 'q,' and 'd' were all the same letter. I would focus and concentrate on a letters orientation trying to figures out first what the letter was and then try to make some kind of connection. I resorted to using my auditory memory saying the alphabet in my head until I got the letter I was trying to sound out. The amount of energy and concentration, plus all the extra tricks my brain was trying to use to figure out letters and words made comprehension mute. How do you learn to read using phonics based reading systems or letter recognition if the letters are always changing? You might as well have asked me to sound out Chinese calligraphy. I just resorted to fake reading, guessing or pretending to sound things out to make my teachers happy. The only respite was SSR because I did not have to pretend to read for awhile. I did learn to listen very carefully so I could memorize some books to pass as if I could actually read, but that only works so long. My writing never advanced passed perfunctory imitation. Even with the examples in front of me, my version was a transposed mess.

If it were admitted that the great object is to

read and enjoy a language, and the stress of

the teaching were placed on the few things

absolutely essential to this result, all might

in their own way arrive there, and rejoice in

its flowers.

Harriet Beecher Stowe

The horror of ability groups and reading circles.

When I was placed into reading groups, I was always in the lowest quartile ability group, or as I joke today, the "milkweed group," or the " vultures" -- never the "roses,” or the "eagles." Inevitably, I was stuck reading with the boy who never bathed and acted like he was operating on two pots of coffee. I would select a chapter book that looked interesting and the teacher would say “That is too difficult for you Sean”. What I heard was, “You’re too stupid to read it, Sean”. I spent most of my reading time looking at picture books or daydreaming-- never reading. By second grade I was feeling even more depressed and worthless. I was eventually diagnosed with a learning disability when I failed to learn to read by the end of third grade. The term dyslexia was used for the acrobatics that the letters were doing on the page that I was instructed to decipher.

Teaching me phonemic awareness and letter recognition was like trying to drive a car from the trunk. Three years of phonics and even more phonics didn't get me very far. Trepidation wasn’t the word I was feeling when initially evaluated for a learning disability but more a sense of relief that my charade was over. Finally, I was going to learn how to read. My happiness died quickly when the reality of more phonics was the prescription. I realized very quickly I was alone in my journey to learn how to read. I just could not make the connections between the sounds and the letters. None of the experts had a clue what to do except more of the same.

BRAIN BREAK SONGS READING BOOT CAMP 2016

Friday, July 15, 2016

EBSR Evidence‐Based Selected Response (EBSR) Multi‐Select

Reading Comprehension Test Questions | Evidence-Based Selected Response (EBSR)

Evidence-Based Selected Response (EBSR) are two-part reading

comprehension test items. Students read a paired text or a single passage and choose the best answer from the answer choices. The first part of the questions are usually a tier 3 literary concepts and a clarifying cognitive concept. Students will then be asked to support their answer or extended response with text evidence. Some questions require students to make multiple selections to support their initial answer with text evidence. The supporting text evidence may require students place statements, events, opinions in chronological or correct sequence. If students answer the first section incorrectly it is difficult to get the second part of the question correct. In order to receive full credit for correct answers, students must answer both sections of the item correctly. New reading assessments are up to 50% Evidence-Based Selected Response (EBSR) test items.

[PDF]ELA Sample Items - TN Core
Grade 9-11 Reading Language and Listening Training Test #1 – Multiple Choice. 28 ... and Listening Training Test #2 – Evidence Based Selected Response.

[PDF]ELA Type Questions Multiple Choice Multi-Select Evidence-Based ...
ELA Type Questions. Multiple Choice. Multi-Select. Evidence-Based. Selected-Response. Open Response. Only 1 correct answer. More than 1 correct answer.

[PDF]December 31, 2015 (.pdf) - AzMERIT Portal
Keyboard Commands for Test Selection Screens and Messages ................................................... .... version of the Computer-Based AzMERIT tests, including sample item formats. • Section IX. .... For multiple-choice questions, you can "eliminate” an option and focus on the options .... Evidence-Based Selected Response. Items.

[PDF]Grade 3 PARCC Sample Questions and Task Models
Questions identified as EBSR are EVIDENCE BASED SELECTED RESPONSE. ITEMS--items that include multiple choice options in the following sequence:.

[PDF]Gr. 6-8 English/Lang Arts PARCC Test Design:
PARCC: Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers. ... EBSR: Evidence-Based Selected Response questions are two-part items (where ...

[PDF]PARCC Practice Test Guidance: Grades 3-5 ELA
Jan 27, 2015 - Include tasks with both multiple-choice questions and a ... Practice all item types: prose constructed response (PCR), evidence-based selected ...

Listening Comprehension vs. Reading Comprehension

Measuring a student's listening comprehension, fluency rate, word

analysis, and reading comprehension ability gives teachers a complete picture of a student's ability and potential reading success. The student that has a high proficiency in all of these domains has the ability to exceed in all academic activities. Learning language and reading is a function of auditory learning (listening), students learn 6 times faster when listening, reading orally, and speaking with peers making connections with new information. Language, reading, words and vocabulary concepts are mastered with repeated listening and modeling. Teachers need to focus on reading comprehension skills and go deeper into listening comprehension instruction to maximize their students potential.

[PDF]On the importance of listening comprehension - Amazon S3reading comprehension is the product of two primary factors: word recogni- tion, or the ability to translate printed text ...

[PDF]a comparative study of listening and reading comprehension in ...READING AND LISTENING COMPREHENSION. IN PRIMARY SCHOOL ....

[PDF]Listening is the same as reading. - The University of Michigan PressThis was the era of the Communicative Revolution—or so we. 1. Listening Myths: ... skills. Both reading and listening used to be thought of as passive skills,.

[PDF]The Importance of Listening Comprehension in Language LearningMany studies in language learning have indicated that listening comprehension plays an important role in the learning process.

[PDF]The Significance of Listening Comprehension in ... - Semantic Scholarlistening comprehension in language teaching has been repeatedly .....

[PDF]Listening Comprehension Research - Semantic ScholarListening Comprehension Research: A Brief Review of the Past Thirty Years.

[PDF]Learners' Listening Comprehension Difficulties in English ... - ERICStudents have critical difficulties in listening comprehension .....

[PDF]The Teaching of Listening Comprehension - English Agenda | British ...organised approach to developing the skill of listening comprehension. Beginning language teaching is traditionally organised around pedagogic text since it is ...

[PDF]Developing second-language listening comprehensionDeveloping second-language listening comprehension: Effects of training lower-order skills versus higher-order strategy.

[PDF]An overview of listening comprehension - Assets - Cambridge ...Listening comprehension is a process, a very complex process, and if we want to measure it, we must first understand how that process works. An understanding ...
SAMPLE LISTENING COMPREHENSION TEST
ENGLISH (Listening Comprehension) TEST
ENGLISH LANGUAGE PRACTICE PROFICIENCY EXAM
Listening Comprehension Section TEST TOEFL

When a reading teacher relies too heavily on silent reading and silent writing activities, the speed of auditory learning is lost.

Rethinking Ability Grouping and Differentiation Using Listening Comprehension!

Teachers are trained to use reading assessment data to differentiate and ability group students based on reading comprehension scores, yet many teachers never ability group based on the students listening levels. Many teachers never test the students listening comprehensions ability. Why? Basing reading instruction and lessons on grade level reading scores alone is a mistake, student’s grade level listening comprehension levels are a clue to your students’ potential ability. The students listening level can be a measure of the upper limits for growth in a classroom. A teacher that relies on a basal reading program alone is not exposing students their upper listing comprehension levels. The classroom that uses sophisticated literature, Socratic seminars, and adroit thinks-alouds will have students grow above and beyond the upper limits. The teacher that is frontloading complex literary concepts using think-alouds will blow past the students base reading levels and the upper limits of their listening levels. My students make double and even triple expected growth using students listening levels as my guide to teaching complex literary concepts. I teach reading and language art using literature that is usually two years above grade level. The teachable moments that are created while reading books like Howl's Moving Castle are the perfect connection to the adroit think alouds.

My Experience with Low Reading Comprehension Scores and High Listening Comprehension!

Special educations students like me, that could barely decode at a first grade level in 5th grade, yet I could have easily understood literary concepts many years higher than my grade level. I never had a chance to test my ability and tackle complex literary concepts because I was always in a special education ability grouped reading class (differentiated) my whole public school career! My education choices were accommodated, modified and differentiated to the point of being mute; I was warehoused in a public school daycare.

Thursday, July 14, 2016

Twenty Questions Vocabulary Game | Test Vocabulary Games

Twenty Questions Academic Vocabulary Games: This investigative vocabulary game encourages Creativity, Curiosity, Deductive Reasoning, Making Inferences and Drawing Conclusions.

Twenty Questions is a spoken parlor game which encourages deductive reasoning and creativity. It originated in the United States and was played widely in the 19th century. It escalated in popularity during the late 1940s when it became the format for a successful weekly radio quiz program. WIKI

Teaching students Socratic/Investigative questioning or purposeful Higher Order Thinking (HOT) methods that involve uncovering ideas and facts and making connections to prior knowledge is the key to academic success. The Socratic questioning methods is an effective stress-free way for students to learn disciplined questioning practices. The disciplined questioning that must be used to find the mystery word and distinguish what we know from what we don't know, to follow up with new questions based on logical inferential thought and solve the mystery in 20 questions is a powerful learning protocol.

The Academic Vocabulary Game can be used to pursue many ideas in a systematic hierarchy and for many academic purposes, including: to explore complex vocabulary and text ideas, to get to the new facts, to explore new information and seek clarification, to uncover and make connections, and to analyze concepts. The key to distinguishing Socratic questioning from everyday formative teacher questioning per se is that Socratic questioning is systematic, disciplined, deep and usually focuses on fundamental concepts, principles, theories, issues or designed to solve problems.

The Twenty Questions Vocabulary Game is played with one player or cooperative group that is chosen to be the answerer. That person or cooperative group chooses an academic subject and a tier 3 academic word associated with that subject but does not reveal this to the other students. All other students are questioners. The students each take turns asking a question which can be answered with a simple "Yes" or "No."

Sample questions could be:

FIRST QUESTION, Is the concept related to Reading, Writing and or Arithmetic?
Can you read/write/talk about it?
Is the concept taught in the primary/intermediated/middle school/high school?
Is the vocabulary word related to a math operation?
Is the word related grammar/text features/poetry?
Does it require learned knowledge to use it?
Is the vocabulary word a noun/verb?
Is it an abstract or figurative language concept?
Are there different types?
Is it used to calculate?

Deceiving is never allowed during the game. If a student guesses the correct answer, that student wins and becomes the answerer for the next game round. If 20 questions are asked without a correct guess, then the answerer has stumped the questioners and gets to be the answerer for another round.

The game can be played with cooperative partners, and the teacher can give test prep tier 3 academic vocabulary to review.

Careful selection of questions can greatly improve the odds of the questioner winning the game. For example, a question such as "Does the word involve written communications, reading and writing?", "Does the word involve a short amount of time to complete? can allow the questioners to cover a broad range of areas using a single question that can be answered with a simple "yes" or "no". If the answerer responds with "yes," the questioner can use the next question to narrow down the answer; if the answerer responds with "no," the questioner has successfully eliminated a number of possibilities for the answer.

Variants: Twenty Questions Vocabulary Game

One lifeline question allowed, "Can you give me an antonym/synonym or word in the same family?"

3Rs "Reading, Writing and Arithmetic" This version starts with the answerer telling the questioners whether the academic subject belongs to Reading, Writing and or Arithmetic.

YES, NO, or MAYBE! Yes, No, Maybe, Always, Sometimes, Unknown, Irrelevant, Probably, Mostly, Depends, Rarely, Partly

[PDF] 20 Questions Lesson Plan - CS Unplugged For either version, ask the students if they have everplayed 20 questions. If yes, have a ... Tell the students that you have picked an object in the classroom, and they need to figure out what it is.

[PDF]Effective Questioning and Classroom Talk - NSEADTeachers ask questions from the start of the lesson until the ... How and why do we use Questions and Talk in the classroom? ...... Long term over 20 years .... ideas on Post-It notes, living graphs and fortune lines, role play, mantle of the expert ...

[PDF] Classroom QuestioningWhat are the purposes of teachers' classroom questions? ... twenty-six—are concerned with the relative effects on student learning produced by questions at ...

[PDF]Building Relationships with your students - Milwaukee Public SchoolsCan take time and have students do questions as a whole class or attach the dice roll to ... If they made a movie of your life what actor would play you? What two ...

[PDF]Hot Seat: Student-Generated Interactive Questions and Conversation ...have limited experience in the classroom, this student-led process of asking and ... At the end of the session, the teacher has the list of questions that students ...
Missing: 20 ‎| Must include: 20

[PDF]Interactive Techniques (Kevin Yee)Think Break – Ask a rhetorical question, and then allow 20 seconds for students to .... Make It Personal – Design class activities (or even essays) to address the real ...... student or multiple students participating in the role-play.

[PDF] fun activities for teaching english - YWAM Montanasomeone asks you to teach an impromptu English class with little time and zero preparation. ..... Digital Scavenger Hunt (A2), Newspaper Role Play (A4), 20 Questions (B1), ..... Download PDF in varying sizes (one, two, or nine cards per page)

Why is Arts Education Just as Important as Math and Reading?

5 Reasons Why Teaching Art is So Important for Kids Creativity, Curiosity, Imagination, Resiliency, and Academic Performance.

Teaching and Incorporating the Visual Arts in Daily Lessons Grows Critical and Higher Order Thinking Skills. Arts are an essential part of education, they build curiosity, creativity, and the instill high standards when student understand the connection between creativity and production. This value goes beyond the discipline of the arts as a career path for fine arts, media, art and design, marketing and communications. Teaching the arts in public schools has added value in benefits of long-term learning outcomes, supporting creative and critical thinking, improving life and learning skills, enhancing social skills and social cohesion and offers value added for career development. Arts education is a great model for teaching standards, quality, task completion, and project-based learning. Understanding “quality” develops and improves judgment, perseverance, an understanding of procedures, encourages students to internalize high standards, develops greater intelligence and industriousness. All of these benefits touch young people of all ages and have repercussions for society as a whole. They speak loud and clear to the importance of keeping the arts in public schools for generations to come.

Unfortunately, part of the predominant political agenda that has dominated the US in recent decades has lead to a rise of profane school reforms, an intensity of institutional blame, aspirant standardized testing, educator accountability and a drastic slashing of public budgets for essential services. Public education and social services are the 21st-century whipping boys of politicians and media. The past few decades have seen a huge decline in learning outcomes and standards in terms of overall skill testing. Further to this, the impact of the mistakes made by politicians and Wall Street are now costing us the future of our children. It’s time now, more than ever, to understand the importance of the arts and how it’s so much more than just a class in school – it’s the foundation of our society’s future!
The arts include a wide range of discipline, including music, visual arts, acting, game development, reading and writing, creative thinking, drama and dance to name but a few. All of these disciplines are essential to the development of young minds. They raise children and youth’s self-esteem, self-confidence, and the experience of success in these areas can help them perform better in other areas of academics, such as science and academics. By investing in the arts, we are supporting our youth in developing other skills. Studies show that children who learn music perform better in mathematics and youth who are involved in theater are far stronger readers and writers. These skills reinforce other areas of the curriculum and build on each other and for this reason, they are essential.

1. BUILDING IMAGINATION, CURIOSITY, and CREATIVITY!

Supporting creative and critical thinking

The arts support creative and critical thinking, which is a foundation of post-secondary education. Youth who are involved in the arts develop stronger creative and critical thinking skills, which are essential for them on the job market in any field, and can help them develop the types of intellectual skills required to pursue further education.

Improved life and learning skills

Studies also demonstrated that children and youth who enjoy creative time also enjoy learning more and are more likely to be a part of extracurricular activities, and less involved in self-destructive behaviors like alcoholism and drug experimentation. They are more focused on their education and have stronger learning outcomes over their lifetime.

Enhanced social skills and social cohesion

Since so many aspects of the arts, such as theater and dance also involve elements of social skills and cooperation, youth who are involved in these activities, or any of the arts, have stronger social skills and are more interested in the common good. They are often the students who take on care and volunteer work, which is the backbone of our society.

Value-added career development

Keeping the arts in public schools help youth maintain healthy lifestyles and keeps them invested in their own education, which will be very valuable for encouraging them to pursue post-secondary education and continuing life-long learning, which is also essential in today’s job market. The arts are a proven way to make sure that youth has the advantage for today’s competitive job market.

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