Monica Izzo

8/31/15
As you examine and read the weekly assigned chapters, use this template to
stimulate your thinking and analysis. Come prepared to engage and lead
discussion during class.
Essential Understandings from Text Readings/Articles

*Note: Reference title of

book/reading

How well children score on state assessments is one of the main

indicators of a teachers success in the school Page #34 Reading
and learning to read

Language is for learning Page #45 Reading and Learning to read

Assessments need to show a students growth rather than simply
to compare a student to other students of similar age Page #161
Reading and learning to read

The English-Language Arts Content Standards define what skills

and knowledge children should acquire at each grade level Page
#3 Ready for Revised RICA

A far greater challenge for teachers is to teach children

themselves to select books at appropriate levels of difficulty Page
#9 Ready for Revised RICA

Teacher observation of student behavior during instruction is also

an important source of data Page #15 Ready for Revised RICA
Key Discussion Questions / Perspectives

Is the score on a state assessment really one of the main

indicators of a teachers success?

What does it mean language is for learning?

If assessments are to measure growth, what is used to show where

a child at a particular age should be?

How do they know what knowledge should be acquired for each

grade level?

How do you teach a child to select appropriate levels of difficulty

without causing them to think they arent good or smart
enough for the next level?

Why would teacher observations of student behavior be important?

Professional Application / Observation

In this part of the text, Premala feels pressured with the new
program, I feel like as a future teacher it can become overwhelming
trying to teach the state standards in order to prove our success,
but it can also get us too caught up in teaching in a style that isnt
ours just to get the right score on state assessments.

In this part of the text it discusses how teachers believe that

systems of language should not be separated. It then goes on to
say that learning is a series of connections, I believe that by saying
language is for learning, it means that language is incorporated in
all we learn.

In this part of the text multiple different assessment tools are listed
and defined in order to keep track of the childs progress in
becoming literate. When it provides the example of the running
record sheet, the child being assessed is placed at a grade level,
but assessments are to show progress not compare to other
children in the same age group.

In this part of the text it discusses what is appropriate for each

grade level by determining if the level would be too difficult if not
impossible to reach at an earlier grade.

In this part of the text it discusses tricks to teaching children to

select the appropriate level of difficulty for reading. These tricks
include fun ways to test a childs ability lf selecting the appropriate
book. Its important to always encourage the child that they will get
to that level with the more they read, because you never want to
cause a child to think they arent good or smart enough.

In this part of the text it discusses how teacher observations of

student behavior is something else to do, besides just assessing the
student with test like materials. This is important because the
teacher can read social cues by observing the students facial
expressions, and body language. As a teacher we begin to know our
students, observing is a more natural way to see if the material is
understandable for them.
**Use the back for reflection notes after class discussion.