Shauna Thompson (University of Calgary APSY 693) Spring 2009

Of all the things that children have to learn when they go to school, reading and writing are the most basic, the most central and the most essential. Practically everything else that they do there will be permeated by these two skills. Hardly a lesson can be understood, hardly a project finished unless the children can read the books in front of them and write about what they have done. They must read and write or their time in school will be largely wasted.
Bradley and Bryant (1985. p. 1)

 Reading, school, and life

The Matthew Effect and reading Consequences of low levels of literacy Statistics Risk Factors Effective instruction for students with learning disabilities Reading skills, deficits, and intervention strategies Instructional strategies should involve

Future considerations

 Children have different literacy backgrounds and experiences Individual children learn individual ways

All children do not benefit equally from regular classroom instruction

 Reading is a complex process that puts considerable demands on the cognitive system, and requires the use of a network of brain systems and pathways
(Fiorello, Hale & Snyder, 2006)

Attention, memory, language, and motivation also affect reading Reading affects everything you do
(Nine-year old struggling reader)

Stanovich (1986)

Dislike reading, unmotivated to get more practice

Frustration and Learned Hopelessness

Less involvement in reading-related activities

Low self esteem Difficulty in school Learned helplessness Behaviour problems Low tolerance for frustration

Difficulty reading and understanding grade-level material

Less skill in reading-related activities, fall behind peers

Rewarding reading experience

Success and praise for reading skills and abilities

More involvement in reading-related activities

Reading at or above gradelevel; Skills become stronger

Increasing fluency and comprehension through practice

International Adult Literacy and Skills Survey (IALSS), Statistics Canada (2005)

4 out of 10 people struggle with low literacy

o o 15% of those have serious problems dealing with any printed materials Another 27% of those can only deal with simple reading tasks

Lowest literacy skills range from 14%-24% of population (by province)

o NL, NB, and QC have the highest percentages of this population

18-38% of Canadas youth (ages 16-25) do not attain minimum literacy proficiency 60% of immigrants have low literacy

In the US
75% of unemployed workers 85% of young offenders 60% of prison inmates

10,000,000 children have difficulty learning to read

o 10-15% eventually drop out of high school & only 2% complete a four-year program of college.

Individual
Cognitive deficiencies and clinical conditions Sensory deficiencies
(Wallace & Hooper, 1997; Conrad, 1979)

Familial
Family history of reading difficulties (Snow, Burns, & Griffin, 1998)
Low value placed on literacy

Early language impairment (ELI) (Bashir & Scavuzzo, 1992) or limited proficiency in English

Fewer opportunities for quality language experiences in the home (Hart & Risley, 1995; Mason & Dunning,
1986)

Attention Deficits (BA Shaywitz et al., 1995; SE Low expectations for Shaywitz et al., 1994) achievement Low levels of exposure to literacy in early years McCormick &
Mason, 1986; Snow, Burns, & Griffin, 1998)

Language spoken at home other than English (August & Hakuta, 1997) Non-standard English dialect *Low socioeconomic status (SES)

Attending a school with chronically low achievement

Skills and Interventions for Successful Readers

Letter Knowledge Alphabetic Principle Phonological and Phonemic Awareness Word Decoding and Phonics Vocabulary

Fluency
Comprehension Other

Interventions collected from various online sources, including Reading Rockets, National Reading Panel Report, Put Reading First, and the Savvy Teachers Guide, all of which are found in my references.

Familiar and comfortable with the letters of the alphabet, able to identify them without hesitation or confusion Knows the distinctive features of each letter, can easily and automatically discriminate them from other letters, numbers, and letter-like symbols (e.g. $)

Understands that letters are used to represent speech sounds Knows that there are systematic and predictable relationships between written letters, symbols, and spoken words

 Have child sort manipulative letters by their common shapes, narrowing the inclusion criteria to identify common features among letter (e.g. O-Q/ d-p-b-q) Sing the alphabet song as kids play with alphabet books, blocks, and magnetic letters Have children say the alphabet as they jump a rope, ride a see-saw, push back and forth on a swing, or go up and down the stairs Put cornmeal or sand in a cake pan or on a cookie sheet. Say a letter and have kids draw the letter in the cornmeal or sand

Reading Rockets, 2009

Incorporate activities that promote the alphabetic principle into daily routines Point to words as you read from a restaurant menu, posters or billboards, or labels at the grocery store Provide practice opportunities that include new sound-letter relationships, as well as cumulatively reviewing previously taught relationships

Reading Rockets, 2009

I don't know any words that rhyme with cat I'm not sure how many syllables are in my name

She has difficulty thinking of rhyming words for a simple word like cat (such as rat or bat) He doesn't show interest in language play, word games, or rhyming

He doesn't correctly complete blending activities; E.g. put together sounds /k/ /i/ /ck/ to make the word kick

I don't know what sounds are the same in bit and hit

She doesn't correctly complete phoneme substitution activities; E.g. change the /m/ in mate to /cr/ in order to make crate

Be willing to play word and sounds games with parents or teachers Practice hearing the individual sounds in words. It may help to use a plastic chip as a counter for each sound you hear in a word Be willing to practice writing. This will give you a chance to match sounds with letters

Play simple rhyming or blending games with your child, such as taking turns coming up with words that rhyme or blending simple words
Reading Rockets, 2009

Read books with rhymes. Teach your child rhymes, short poems, and songs Practice the alphabet by pointing out letters wherever you see them and by reading alphabet books

Learn all about phonemes (there are more than 40 speech sounds that may not be obvious to fluent readers and speakers!!) If children are past the age at which phonemic awareness and phonological skill-building are addressed, attend to these skills one-on-one or in a small group. Identify the precise phoneme awareness task you want to focus on and select fun and exciting activities play with sounds, don't drill them

She often gets stuck on words when reading. I end up telling her many of the words

Reading Rockets, 2009

Figuring out the words takes so much of my energy, I can't even think about what it means
I don't know how to sound out these words I know my letters and sounds, but I just can't read words on a page

She's not able to understand much about what she's read because she's so busy trying to sound out the words Saying "sound it out" to her just seems to make her more frustrated

She has difficulty matching sounds and letters, which can affect reading and spelling He guesses at words based on the first couple of letters Even though I taught certain letter patterns, she isn't able to recognize them when reading words

Play with magnetic letters. See how quickly you can put them in alphabetical order while singing the alphabet song

Word Decoding and Phonics Strategies

Look at written materials around your house and at road signs to see if you can spot familiar words and letter patterns When you're trying to sound out a word, pay close attention to the print. Try to look at all the letters in the word, not just the first one or two

Reading Rockets, 2009

For a younger reader, help your child learn the letters and sounds of the alphabet. Occasionally point to letters and ask your child to name them

Encourage your child to write and spell notes, e-mails, and letters using what he knows about sounds and letters
Talk with your child about the "irregular" words that she'll often see in what she's reading. These are the words that don't follow the usual letter-sound rules. These words include said, are, and was. Students must learn to recognize them "at sight"

Have students sort pictures and objects by the sound you're teaching. At each stage, have children say the letter sound over and over again Teach phonics in a systematic and explicit way. Use manipulatives to help teach letter-sound relationships. These can include counters, sound boxes, and magnetic letters

Reading Rockets, 2009

She misuses common words I feel like I just use the same words over and over again in my writing I don't like to read on my own because I don't understand lots of the words in the book He doesn't link words from a book to similar words from another book or from real life He's often not able to find the right word to describe something She has questions about a lot of word meanings in a grade appropriate text

She is not able to make connections among words in various texts

Find books to read on your own. The more you read, the more new words you'll see, and the more you'll learn about the words Look ahead in textbooks to learn new vocabulary and concepts before your teacher goes over the section in class

Vocabulary Strategies

Keep a list of key vocabulary and transition words

Engage your child in conversations every day. If possible, include new and interesting words in your conversation
Reading Rockets, 2009

Read to your child each day. When the book contains a new or interesting word, pause and define the word for your child. After you're done reading, engage your child in a conversation about the book Encourage your child to read on his own. The more children read, the more words they encounter and learn

Help build language skills in class by playing oral and written word exercises and games Teach students about the important, useful, and difficult vocabulary words before students read the text to help them remember the words and improve comprehension Offer students many opportunities to encounter target vocabulary words beyond the context in which they are taught

Reading Rockets, 2009

I just seem to get stuck when I try to read a lot of the words in this chapter It takes me so long to read something Reading through this book takes so much of my energy, I can't even think about what it means

He knows how to read words but seems to take a long time to read a short book or passage silently She reads a book with no expression

She has difficulty and grows frustrated when reading aloud, either because of speed or accuracy

She moves her mouth when reading silently (subvocalizes)

She does not "chunk" words into meaningful units

When reading, he doesn't pause at meaningful breaks within sentences or paragraphs

Track the words with your finger as a parent or teacher reads a passage aloud. Then you read it. Have a parent or teacher read aloud to you. Then, match your voice to theirs. Read your favorite books and poems over and over again. Practice getting smoother and reading with expression.

Fluency Strategies

Support and encourage your child. Realize that he or she is likely frustrated by reading.
Reading Rockets, 2009

Read aloud to your child to provide an example of how fluent reading sounds. Give your child books with predictable vocabulary and clear rhythmic patterns so the child can "hear" the sound of fluent reading as he or she reads the book aloud. Use books on tapes; have the child follow along in the print copy.

Give the student independent level texts that he or she can practice again and again. Time the student and calculate words-correct-perminute regularly. The student can chart his or her own improvement. Ask the student to match his or her voice to yours when reading aloud or to a tape recorded reading. Read a short passage and then have the student immediately read it back to you.

Reading Rockets, 2009

She's not able to summarize a passage or a book I didn't really get what that book was about He might be able to tell you what happened in a story, but can't explain why events went the way they did She can't explain what a character's thoughts or feelings might have been He seems to focus on the "wrong" aspect of a passage; for example, he concentrates so much on the details that the main idea is lost She brings up irrelevant information when trying to relate a passage to something in her own life He cannot tell the clear, logical sequence of events in a story

Why did that character do that? I just don't get it

I'm not sure what the most important parts of the book were

Read stories or passages in short sections and make sure you know what happened before you continue reading

Comprehension Strategies

Ask yourself, "Does this make sense?" If it doesn't, reread the part that didn't make sense As you read, try to form mental pictures or images that match the story

Help your child monitor his or her understanding. Teach her to continually ask herself whether she understands what she's reading.
Reading Rockets, 2009

Help your child go back to the text to support his or her answers. Discuss the meanings of unknown words, both those he reads and those he hears. Discuss what your child has learned from reading informational text such as a science or social studies book.

As students read, ask them open-ended questions such as "Why did things happen that way?" or "What is the author trying to do here?" Discuss the meaning of words as you go through the text. Target a few words for deeper teaching, really probing what those words mean and how they can be used Teach students to monitor their own understanding. Show them how, for example, to ask themselves "What information am I missing?" and "What else should the author be telling me?"

Processing
Auditory processing, phonological processing, and language processing

Memory
Short term, long-term, working memory

Attention English Language Learning

(Joseph, 2002; Calgary Learning Centre, 2009)

Provide opportunities for students to read, read, read! Combination of Direct Instruction and Strategy Instruction Explicit, intensive, extensive instruction

Scaffolding
Connect new concepts with prior knowledge

Motivate and encourage students

Verbal information accompanied by visual supports

 Should be offered as early as possible Must significantly increase the intensity of instruction and practice Must provide the opportunity for direct, systematic instruction and practice Must provide good error correction procedures, with many opportunities for immediate positive feedback and reward Must be guided by and responsive to student progress Must be motivating, engaging, and supportive; a positive atmosphere is essential

 Discrepancy-analysis: The preferred method for assessment? Investigations in effective comprehension and fluency interventions Design assessment tools to more accurately determine the specific needs of struggling readers Longitudinal studies to determine the optimal methods and intensity of instruction More research on effective practice for preparing teachers to provide services to struggling readers Increased awareness to parents and community about the importance of foundational literacy skills, and how they can help our children become readers Affordable, available, informed community support and intervention programs to help children who might not get enough help at home or school

Thanks for being here for my presentation!