EDUC 6400: Materials Analysis 1 (Take Home Exam 1)

Fall 2015
Dr. Debbie Rowe

Take Home Exam 1:

Analyzing Instructional Interactions and Materials
from a Models of Reading Perspective
USE THESE PROMPTS TO ANALYZE THE
JOURNEYS MATERIALS

1) Overarching Question: What model of reading seems to guide

the design of this reading instructional program?
a) Looking at the Unit Overview and Day 1 lesson plans, which of the models
(Adams, Goodman, Rumelhart. Rosenblatt) is the basis for this instructional plan?
Name the model.
-The Marilyn Jager Adams model of Connections Between Word Recognition and
Reading is the model that best fits the given instructional reading unit. Multiple ideas
and concepts are seen throughout this reading unit that relate to her beliefs on how
students understand meaning from the text. Marilyn Adams believes that students need
to be able to decode and breakdown words to construct meaning.

2) Reading Cue Systems and Reading Processes

The Adams, Goodman, and Rumelhart models identify several different cue
systems/knowledge sources used during reading. These cue systems are identified
somewhat differently in each model, but generally deal with graphophonics, semantics,
syntax etc. Using the terminology appropriate to the reading model you selected in your
answer to #1 above, in this question I ask you to analyze how the Journeys instruction
puts into to practice the key tenets of the reading model you identified in #1 above.
a) What cue systems/knowledge sources are targeted for explicit instruction or
teacher demonstration in the Journeys program? Cite examples from the Journeys
materials to support your points.
-Marilyn Jager Adams' model consists of four processors that are utilized throughout the
reading process. The Tennessee Journey's materials, supplied by Dr. Rowe, utilize the
majority of Adams' processors thoroughly throughout the first day of the lesson. The first
processor discussed throughout the Adams article is the orthographic processor.
According to Adams text, "The orthographic processor is the learned association between
and among individual letters that are responsible for the easy, holistic manner in which
skillful readers respond to printed words" (Adams 1227). Adams then discusses how
skillful readers process every letter of every word when reading. For readers to have a
true understanding of a word, they must be able to process the word as a whole. This
starts with being able to decode every letter of the listed word. As the reader is
identifying a word, each individual letter receives a visual stimulation. Adams believes
that reader will initially identify each letter to have a true understanding of the

EDUC 6400: Materials Analysis 1 (Take Home Exam 1)

2
Fall 2015
Dr. Debbie Rowe
word. Once the reader can learn the associations amongst the letters in a given word,
they are able to easily identify and respond to printed words. In addition, students will
start to identify strings of speech sound when reading, such as syllables. Adams then
discusses that students tend to associate words with pictures, instead of analyzing the
string of letters. This can tend to make the comprehension of a word more challenging
for the students. However, the more a student is exposed to a series of letters, the easier it
will be to recognize the strand at a later time. The orthographic processor is seen
multiple times throughout the Journey's lesson. One instance in the Journeys unit is with
the sound-by-sound blending routine. During this activity, students are working to blend
the word, Dan. Students are given a letter card, starting with D and must identify the
sound of each letter. After a letter is added, the student is to say all of the sounds of the
word and blend them together as a whole unit. This is associated with the orthographic
processor as students are recognizing the breakdown and decoding of each letter seen in
the word, starting with D and ending with n. Students are able to see the visual
breakdown of the word, as well as decode each letter in stages. At the conclusion of the
word, students are able to say the word as a whole and understand the sound and purpose
behind each letter. The Journeys lessons state that it is important for the teacher to
model the sound of each letter as they are being touched throughout the activity.
Modeling this for students will help them have an authentic understanding of the letter by
being able to see the letter and then associate with how it should be decoded. As seen
later in the lesson, the teacher is still working with the sound/spelling cards. However,
students are working with more challenging words that require deeper thinking. The
teacher continues to model spelling of words, as well as the sounds that are produced
with each letter. The spelling cards allow the students to decode individual letters as well
as how they are being used in the word. This activity definitely meshes with the
orthographic processor as multiple strategies and techniques are relatable to this
processor. Similarly, the activity on t-18 relates to the orthographic processor, as well as
the phonological processor. On the spelling card, an apple and the letter a is scribed.
Students are able to see the visual of the apple and relate it to the letter on the card. This
relates to the orthographic processor because students are decoding the specific sound of
the letter on the card and then relating it back to the apple. The student must be able to
recognize and decode the letter a as it relates to the written letter. Another area in the
lesson where the orthographic processor is seen is located on t-17 in the Journeys unit.
The activity in the bottom right corner has students working on decoding each letter in a
CVC strand. On the handout, the students are to fill in the missing letter, and then read
the word. For students to be able to do this activity correctly, they must be able to decode
letters orthographically and understand where they go in a given word. After filling in
the letters, the students must then read the word out loud, requiring them to decode the
sounds of each letter and how it should be said. Adams states, Skillful readers visually
process virtually every letter of every word they read, translating print to speech as they
go (Adams 1226). Students are breaking down each letter of the word to construct
meaning, which is what occurs in the orthographic processor.
The context processor follows the orthographic processor in Adams reading
model. In this processor, the reader is constructing a coherent, ongoing interpretation of
the text and is responsible for priming and selecting word meanings that are appropriate
to the text (Adams 1230). During this processor, the reader is able to determine the

EDUC 6400: Materials Analysis 1 (Take Home Exam 1)

3
Fall 2015
Dr. Debbie Rowe
proper use of the word in the context being read. An example from the article talks about
the term bug having multiple meanings. It is during this stage where the student is able
to make meaning on what is the proper use of the term in the text. As students continue
to expand their vocabulary and internalize words, decoding of the words will become
more automatic for the students. This automatic decoding will allow for students to have
a swift understanding of what is the proper form of the word being used in context. The
best way to support students throughout this processor is to encourage them to read
interesting materials, in addition to texts being below the frustration-level. When
reading, the role of the context is to help the reader make the most of the information on a
given page of text, both quickly and efficiently (Adams 1230). This processor is also
seen throughout the Journeys unit in multiple areas. The first example of this is seen on
page t-13 of the text. With this activity, the teacher is to review words that are unfamiliar
to the children. The teacher points out a few challenge words for the students to review.
After the challenge words have been identified, the students are to use context clues from
the pictures in the text to confirm the meanings of the words. This relates directly to
Adams context processor. As stated previously, the context processor is choosing
appropriate and meaningful words in a given text. The words must make sense with how
they are being used in the story. Here, the student is verifying the proper use of the word
in the text by using the context clues from the picture. At the conclusion of the activity,
the teacher rereads with the children to help build fluency, which relates back to the
orthographic processor. Similarly, the context processor is seen earlier in the unit.
When, My Colors, My World, is being re-read, the students are using the context and
re-reading to confirm he understanding of word meanings. The context processor
selectively emphasizes those aspects of a words total meaning that are relevant to its
ongoing interpretation (Adams 1230). Here the students are trying to determine whether
the meanings of the words make sense when used in the text. Lastly, on t-14, the teacher
is conducting a read aloud. The teacher is reading an excerpt from the text and reads a
word incorrectly to the students. At the conclusion of the reading, the teacher asks the
students to identify the word that was mispronounced. Students were able to realize that
the word did not make sense in context, even though it was pronounced correctly when
read. This relates directly back to the orthographic processor as the initial word did not
make sense. Students were able to see the word misused in text and inform the teacher in
discussion. Correcting the word shows that students are able to understand the true
meaning of the word and correctly apply it to the text.
The meaning processor is looked upon as a similar processor to the orthographic,
but is different in multiple ways. As spellings of familiar words are represented in the
orthographic processor as interassociated sets of letters, their meanings are represented in
the meaning processor as interassociated sets of more primitive meaning elements
(Adams 1232). When reading, a word will reach the meaning processor. When the word
gets to the meaning processor, it will find a pattern of activation brought on by the
context processor. One way to help with making meaning from the text is to promote
direct vocabulary instruction to the students. It is vital that the students are exposed to
multiple examples of a given word in a text. Similarly, this stage is often tied with the
orthographical processor due to the focus on prefixes, suffixes and roots. Understanding
morphological clues are beneficial in the student being able to infer the meaning to the
exposure of new words. When students have a high recognition of patterns seen within

EDUC 6400: Materials Analysis 1 (Take Home Exam 1)

4
Fall 2015
Dr. Debbie Rowe
words, initially seen in the orthography processor, the easier it will be for the student to
construct meaning. It is vital for students to have meaningful experiences with words, as
it is aspect of vocab acquisition. Throughout this lesson, it is difficult to find explicit
examples of the meaning processor, in the context of how Adams explains it throughout
her article. Adams discusses that the meaning processor heavily consists of breaking
words down into morphemes to construct deeper meaning. Focus points of the prefixes,
suffixes and roots are important aspects of this area. Throughout this Journeys text, this
processor is not near as evident as the other three that make up the model. This type of
processor requires deeper thinking and understanding than the first grade level.
The last processor discussed in Adams model is the phonological processor. The
phonological processor is portrayed as a back-up system to the orthographic processor.
The phonological processor also is vital for student comprehension when reading a given
text. In addition, the phonological processor works hand in hand with the orthographic
and meaning processor when reading and decoding words. As the orthographic processor
is relaying the strands of letters, it is relaying the units of letters to the phonological
processor. At this same time, the pronunciation of the word is relaying a specific
meaning to the reader. For a student to have an understanding of the meaning of the
word, the orthographic and phonological processor work together to construct meaning.
However, it is possible for a student to understand new words outside of his or her
vocabulary simply by recognizing the pronunciation of the word. The phonological
processor is seen in multiple areas throughout the Journeys unit. At the beginning of the
lesson on day one, the teacher has the students identifying sounds located at the
beginning of words. Students have to use their orthographic processing skills when
reading the words, as well as their phonological processing skills to determine the proper
sound made from each word. As stated previously, the orthographic and phonological
processor tend to work hand in hand with each other. The pronunciation of the word is
vital in having an authentic understanding of the spoken word. Similarly, on t-16, the
phonological processor in displayed again. The activity is a phonemic awareness warmup for the students, focusing on the short a vowel. The students have to go through and
speak the blended sounds of the word. Once again, the students are also working with the
orthographic processor by decoding each individual letter when speaking the word. Later
in the warm-up, the students then have to speak the words Sam, sad and sat. Improper
pronunciation of the word can lead to a different meaning, therefore making it harder to
comprehend the text.
b) What cue systems/knowledge sources get the most instructional emphasis when
you look at the Journeys Day 1 lesson as a whole? How does this instructional
emphasis reflect the identified model of reading?
-In this Journeys text, the phonological and orthographical processors get the most
emphasis throughout this lesson. It is evident that the focus of this lesson is for students
to be able to decode words and understand their pronunciation. A majority of the
activities are related to phonemic awareness and phonics as a whole. Many of the lessons
are focused on students being able to properly decode sounds to both consonants and
vowels. The Journeys lesson is concerned with students being able to identify the

EDUC 6400: Materials Analysis 1 (Take Home Exam 1)

5
Fall 2015
Dr. Debbie Rowe
sounds correctly from an orthographic and phonological stance. Many aspects of this
lesson have students working from an orthographic stance, where students are visually
working with the decoding of individual letters of a given word. As the student decodes
the word, the Journeys lesson has the students then speak the blends for specific word
sets. This relates back to Adams model as both the orthographic and phonological
processor are working together to help construct meaning on words. In Adams model,
the phonological processor and orthographic processor work hand in hand to construct
meaning in a given text. The Journeys model lesson does an explicit job of focusing
initially on the orthographic and phonological processors to help construct meaning in the
text. Similarly, the context process is used often throughout the reader, due to the high
level of vocab instruction.

3) Analyze texts from a models perspective:

In the Journeys excerpts I have provided (Day 1 lesson and Overview), students
encounter 4 texts:
1. Big Book (teacher read aloud): Note: We did not have a copy of Chucks Truck in
our curriculum lab, so Ive included the other big book mentioned in the
overview, My Colors, My World. (Teachers Manual, xxiv)
2. Teacher Read Aloud: The Lion and the Mouse (Teachers Manual, start page
T14)
3. Decodable Reader (student text): Dan and Nan (Teachers Manual, start page
T19)
4. Anchor Text: What is a pal? (student text) (Teachers Manual start page, T20.)
a) Analyze the characteristics of the two texts read aloud by teachers.
-The two texts read by the teacher each have unique qualities. The text, My Colors, My
World, is a picture book written by Maya Gonzalez, while the Lion and the Mouse is a
more complex text that is written as an excerpt from a novel. My Colors, My World is a
text that is composed of simple sentences. The story is a quick read that focuses on the
different colors the main character sees throughout her daily life. Within these simple
sentences is common sight words students at this grade level should be aware of. The
words in this story can easily be decoded and broke down by each student. Each page
has a picture to supplement the sentence written at the bottom of the page. This is a
major help for students who have a comprehension struggles as it pertains to reading.
Also, as the colors are mentioned in the text, the author highlights the color accordingly.
This is a great way for students to become familiar with specific colors and make
connections to real life experiences. However, The Lion and the Mouse, is slightly
different. This text is written in small paragraphs, rather than the simple sentences of My
Colors, My World. Students do not have pictures to help them understand and
comprehend what is occurring in the excerpt. A major difference is the long and complex
sentences that are used throughout the paragraphs listed. This can make decoding and
comprehension a challenge for the students listening to the text. Lastly, the language and

EDUC 6400: Materials Analysis 1 (Take Home Exam 1)

6
Fall 2015
Dr. Debbie Rowe
vocabulary of the Lion and the Mouse text is significantly more challenging than those
displayed in the picture book.
b) What parts of the reading process are developed through teacher read alouds.
-Read alouds are a great way for teachers to instill positive examples of the reading
process to students in the classroom. One aspect of the reading process that is seen
throughout both of the listed texts is fluency. When teachers read to their students, they
are modeling a fluent reader. This includes reading with expression and prosody to keep
the audience engaged at all times. In addition, both of these texts supplement vocabulary
instruction for the readers to know. Each text has specific sections for explicit vocab
instruction to the students. These terms will help the reader better understand and
comprehend the story being read to them. Each text has students identify whether or not
the vocab is being used in the correct context. This is associated with Adams model of
comprehension, more specifically the context processor. The teacher, using both texts,
will ask students at some point whether or not the proper words are being used
throughout the text. The students are then to determine whether or not term is being used
correctly, which relates directly to the context processor. Specifically in the longer text,
the teacher messes up on purpose to see how well the students are making meaning with
the terms. Vocab instruction can also be tied together with phonics instruction, which
can directly relate to both the orthographical, phonological and meaning processors.
With phonics, students are trying to make a connection to a specific letter and the sound
it makes, also known as decoding. Incorporating phonics instruction with vocab is
another way for teachers to build meaning of words. Students will have to be able to
recognize the word visually, as well as be able to speak it. Teacher read-alouds also
allow for students to display a comprehension of what is being read throughout the
article. Each of these texts have some sort of follow up questions for the students to
answer, which will give the teacher a better understanding of the overall comprehension
of the text.
c) Describe the characteristics of materials to be read by students.
-The materials that are to be read by the student both have short and simple sentences.
Each text being read by students has pictures that are associated to the sentences seen on
each page. While the students are reading, they are able to look at the picture to help
construct meaning of the text. As stated above in the question, these are decodable texts,
which allow the student to decode the individual letters used in words throughout the
story. Each of the texts also has a focus point during the activity, ranging from
pronunciation and recognition of short vowels to identifying irregularly spelled words.

EDUC 6400: Materials Analysis 1 (Take Home Exam 1)

Fall 2015
Dr. Debbie Rowe
d) How does the design of these student texts reflect the underlying model of
reading?

-Both of these texts do a good job of reflecting the Adams model of reading
comprehension. Each text is unique within itself and focuses on different aspects of the
Adams model. At the beginning of the text, Dan and Nan, the reader is to review the
short a vowel sound, in addition to other words they have learned. After review, the
students are to track the words silently form left to right, then they are to choral read the
text. The students are using both the orthographic and phonological processor as they are
going through and reviewing the text. With students previewing the text silently, they are
using the orthographic processor to become familiar with the decoding of each word seen
in the story. As the students continue to go through with the activity, they are to choral
read the article, which ties directly to the phonological processor and being able to
recognize and decode the words on a given page. During the time of choral reading, the
student is also incorporating the orthographic processor by being able to decode the
written text and speak it properly. It is difficult to see the use of the context processor
and the meaning processor within the text of Dan and Nan. In the text, What is a Pal?,
the orthographic, phonological and context processor are all seen throughout the text. At
the beginning of the lesson, the students are to preview the vocab in context cards.
During this time, the students are to read the word once alone and then together. While
students are reading the terms, they are using both the orthographic processor, as well as
the phonological processor. Students have to be able to decode the individual letters seen
in the words and then apply it to the proper pronunciation. After reading the word aloud,
students are to then read the definition of the listed vocab words. After discussing the
meaning of the terms, students are to read, What is a Pal? After reading the sentence
on the front of the card, the students are to try and use the term in a new sentence. This is
the context processor as students are determining if the meaning makes sense when being
used in the context of a sentence. The backs of the cards also do a great job in
supplementing support for students to use the term correctly in a different context.

4) The Journeys Overview discusses how these materials were

designed to help students meet CCSS related to text
complexity and close reading.
a) In what way(s) is text complexity incorporated in the Day 1 lesson we are
analyzing? What is your evaluation of text complexity in these lessons?
- Text complexity is incorporated throughout the Journeys lessons on day 1. Text
complexity is broken down into a three parts; the qualitative, quantitative and reader and
task. The focus of this discussion will relate to the text, What is a Pal? The qualitative
task, according to the Common Core Standards, is broken down in to multiple categories,
ranging from levels of meaning, structure, language convention, and clarity and
knowledge demands. After reading the text, "What is a Pal?," students are able to draw
multiple meanings of the true meaning of a pal. The author does not offer only one
correct answer as to what a pal is in the reading. I feel the implicit goal for the author is
to inform the reader of what a pal is, in addition to having the student determine whether

EDUC 6400: Materials Analysis 1 (Take Home Exam 1)

8
Fall 2015
Dr. Debbie Rowe
or not they are a pal. However, this is not explicitly stated in the reading. This concept is
related to the Addressing CCSS Anchor Standard 10: Text Complexity article, which
states, The purpose is withheld from the reader and complex interpretive skills are
required to make sense of the authors purpose (Fisher and Frey 239). With the author
of the text not explicitly stating the purpose and level of meaning in the article, it makes
the text more complex for the reader. The structure of this text is deemed to be rather
simple for the reader, as the sentences are simple concise, as well as supported by
multiple pictures. In addition, the pictures relate directly to the text being written on the
same page. According to Appendix A in the Common Core Standards, Graphics tend
to be simple and either unnecessary or merely supplementary to the meaning of texts of
low complexity (CCSS 5). The language used throughout this reader is rather simple
and has a low register for the student. Students should be familiar with many of the terms
seen throughout this text, therefore making the text easier to comprehend. When the
register is casual and familiar, complexity is reduced, as when a character tells a story in
a way that more easily engages the reader (Fisher and Frey 243). The last stage of
qualitative demands focuses on the knowledge demands of the readers. For this text, I
feel that many of the examples used in this text are relatable to the reader. When students
can relate to the text, it decreases the complexity. Further in the text complexity model is
the quantitative measure of the text. This focuses on the word choice, as well as the
sentence structure of the text. Multiple formulas are used to determine the overall
difficulty of the text. Appendix A of the Common Core Standards states, The
assumptions behind these formulas is that longer words and longer sentences are more
difficult to read than shorter ones (CCSS 7). The, What is a Pal? text consists of
multiple simple sentences and repeated vocab throughout the text, therefore diminishing
the complexity of the text. The reader and task dimension of the text complexity model
is appropriate for the given text. The text is appropriate for the suggested grade level of
the Journeys lesson and allows them to engage in the text in a meaningful way. The
purpose of the text is not explicitly stated to the student, which requires deeper thinking
on the student. However, at the same time, the student is able to engage in a text that
allows for them to be engaged in a rather simple text, which allows them to be successful
in both the comprehension and fluency of the text. Overall, I would say that this text is
complex for the lesson on day 1. I definitely feel that over time the text would need to be
more challenging for students. The, What is a Pal? text has multiple concepts that
require the student to think deeply about the purpose of the text. Even though the
sentence structure and vocab, associated with images, makes the text easier for the
student, this text is appropriate for the first day of the lesson.
b) In what way(s) is close reading incorporated into the lesson plans for Day 1?
What is your evaluation of close reading activities in these lessons?
-Close reading is incorporated on page t-15 of the Journeys lesson plan. As stated in the
Core Standards article by Douglas Fisher and Nancy Frey, Close readings provide
students with opportunities to develop their collaborative conversational skills,
integrating evidence form the text into their discussions (Fisher and Frey 2014). During
the Journeys lesson, the students are read aloud a story titled the Lion and the Mouse.
At the conclusion of the reading, the students are asked to collaborate with their peers to
retell the story. During the conversations, the students have to talk with their peers about

EDUC 6400: Materials Analysis 1 (Take Home Exam 1)

9
Fall 2015
Dr. Debbie Rowe
key information seen throughout the text. When retelling the story, the students have to
include evidence, or else the conversation would be about something other than the story
read. Students are also asking questions to their peers about the text, which in return,
requires the students to answer the question(s) with evidence read from the text. The text
being read to students was also significantly more challenging than the other texts
displayed throughout the lesson. This text was written in paragraph form, which is
different than the picture books and decodable readers read prior to this activity. Later in
the lesson, the students are required to read a text that is titled, What is a Pal? As seen
on t-24 of the manual, students are to read this text more than one time. Reading the text
multiple times is supported by Fisher and Frey as they state, Close reading requires that
students re-read the selected text a number of times (Fisher and Frey 2014). In the
Journeys lesson plan, the reader has different focuses during each read. Throughout this
reader, the students are required to construct meaning of the text by making predictions
with the text, drawing conclusions from the text while displaying deep comprehension.
The display of deep understanding is seen with students explaining the main idea of the
story, as well as summarizing the story at the conclusion of the reading. To construct
meaning from the text, students are to fill in a graphic organizer and draw conclusions
and details from the text that they feel are vital to the main idea. On page t-22, at the
conclusion of the reading, the students have to summarize and explain the story. Both of
these concepts are directly tied to Diane Lapps article on close reading. Lapp states, To
promote his deepening interpretations of the passage, he must be able to apply related
background knowledge to support connections, eliminate ambiguity, enable visualizing,
fill in informational gaps, predict, draw conclusions, and form logical opinionsall while
assessing the strength of his performance and his developing stance(s). He must be able
to deeply comprehend the message(s) of the text (Lapp 2). The close reading practice is
evident throughout the Journeys lesson to help ensure deep comprehension and
understanding of a given text, however, this practice is not seen consistently throughout
the other activities in the lessons.

5) Analyze the Journeys lessons from a sociocultural perspective

(Gee):
Gee argues that as children engage in the Discourse of reading instruction in school
they acquire social practices that involve specific ways with printed words.
Children co-construct an identity as a particular type of reader and acquire cultural
models about what reading is (for children of their age and experience level).
a) If students participated in these Journeys lessons (as written in the teachers guide)
what cultural model of reading would they form? What would they think reading
was like? What purposes, values, attitudes about reading are part of this cultural
model? What reading roles are first grade students expected to take? What
stances or actions toward text are part of these roles? What reading roles are not
yet offered to first grade readers?
-As discussed in, A Sociocultural Perspective, Gee explains that a cultural model tells
people what is typical or normal from the perspective of a particular Discourse (Gee 36).

EDUC 6400: Materials Analysis 1 (Take Home Exam 1)

10
Fall 2015
Dr. Debbie Rowe
If students participated in the Journeys lessons, I feel that they would form the cultural
model of reading focused on the decoding of letters and words in a given text to enhance
comprehension. Gee also states in his piece that, Cultural models define for people in a
Discourse what counts as normal and natural and what counts as inappropriate and
deviant (Gee 37). Students who complete the Journeys lessons will acquire these skills
and concepts and look at them as a norm to the cultural reading model. Students
participating in the Journeys lesson would think that reading looks like decoding and
breaking down letters and words to construct meaning of the text. They would think this
way due to the fact that at the beginning of the lessons, the students are breaking down
words orthographically and phonologically. The words are then applied throughout a
written text in which students are able to recognize and construct meaning. Students will
look at the purpose of reading to build knowledge in both general academic
understanding, as well as vocabulary acquisition and application. The value of this
cultural model is that all students will have a solid background in the phonological and
orthographic processing of letters and sounds. This will allow for students to easily
construct meaning from new words as they continue to expand their vocabulary, which
correlates directly to Adams context processor. Students will have a positive attitude of
reading due to this model. This lesson does a great job of starting with simple concepts
and growing to become more challenging throughout the lesson. The early stages of
reading could be difficult for readers; however, the Journeys reader will give the
students a solid foundation pertaining to reading skills as it relates to decoding letters and
words. With the Journeys lesson, students are required to be active readers and
participate in the daily lessons. Students will acquire vital reading concepts throughout
the lessons as it pertains to reading. While acquiring these skills, students are also
heavily dependent on the images associated with the text. Students are able to view the
images to help construct meaning and make connections to the sentences on the page of
the text. Whether it is the teacher completing a read-aloud, or the student working on a
phonics activity, they need to be actively engaged. Each of the lessons in this unit has a
large amount of material being discussed. If the student is not focused and engaged, the
student may not acquire some of the material discussed. Students are also to be engaged
with both literary and informational texts throughout this unit. This allows for students to
not become dependent on a specific style of text when reading. This unit ensures that
students will have acquired skills to be successful readers of balanced texts in the
classroom. When analyzing and comprehending during the reading process, the text
plays a crucial role. Certain texts are deemed to be easier to read than others. This unit
allows for students to have balanced exposure to multiple texts, from shorter texts, to
extended texts in addition to the informational and literary texts. In addition, this unit
offers a text that has the translation to both the English and Spanish languages. A
Discourse of native Spanish speakers is seen throughout the text. This Discourse relates
directly to the Journeys unit using the My Colors, My World text. To have a text that
acclimates to the diverse community of learners at the school shows that this text is a
sociocultural acceptable piece to use. Students are able to see both the English and
Spanish version when reading, therefore allowing students to have exposure to multiple
languages. One reading role that was not yet offered to first graders was being able to
breakdown words to construct meaning. This would be the meaning processor as seen in
Adams model of reading comprehension. The students are being exposed to the

EDUC 6400: Materials Analysis 1 (Take Home Exam 1)

11
Fall 2015
Dr. Debbie Rowe
orthographic, phonological and context processors, but not yet the meaning. During the
meaning processor, the students are able to break a word down into its morphemes to
help construct meaning. This process is not yet seen in the Journeys lesson.

6) Analyze the Journeys lessons from a critical literacy

perspective (Luke; Lewison, Leland, & Harste):
a) Luke and Freebody propose a Four Resources Model of Reading. Which of the
resources are targeted for instruction in this set of materials? For each resource
you name, give a brief (2-3 sentence) example or explanation that will let me
understand how the Journeys lessons support (or do not support) childrens
learning of that resource.
-Coding Practices- In a culturally diverse society, many students will require explicit
instruction to the code (Luke 454). Journeys implements multiple lessons where
students receive direct exposure to phonics and phonemic awareness prior to reading a
specific text. Students are working with identifying sounds to specific letters seen
throughout specific texts.
-Text Meaning Practices- Students are reading a text (My Colors, My World) that many
can potentially relate to when reading, due to the potential discourse being heavily
dependent on Spanish. Teacher asks students questions that follow the reading to verify
comprehension of the text. In addition, the teacher is to discuss special letters can convey
meaning in a given text, which relates to coding seen during this stage, as discussed in the
Critical Literacy in Australia article.
-Pragmatic Meaning- During this stage, the students are learning and acquiring skills
that are to be used in every day life. This resource is not heavily displayed throughout
the Journeys reader.
-Critical Meaning- Throughout the lesson, Journeys uses a great text, My Colors, My
World that is culturally diverse for students to read. However, many of the ideas and
concepts seen in this stage that are described by Luke are not displayed in this first grade
lesson. The class does not discuss the social significance of this book during the read
aloud to the students.
b) We read about a variety of ways that students can begin to take a critical
perspective as readers. Lewison, Leland, and Harste propose four dimensions of
critical literacy. Briefly describe an extension activity you might add to these
lessons to help your students begin to take a critical perspective. Name the
dimension of critical literacy that you are targeting in the extension lesson.
A brief extension activity I would do with this text relates back to the section in the
Lewison article, which discusses disrupting the commonplace. Lewison states,
Teachers and students focus on seeing the everyday through new lenses, whether it
is a teaching practice or an issue addressed in a piece of literature (Lewison 386).

EDUC 6400: Materials Analysis 1 (Take Home Exam 1)

12
Fall 2015
Dr. Debbie Rowe
Many students at this age may have a certain assumption on certain social situations
and are unfamiliar with daily routines of others outside of themself. As an educator, I
would talk with the class about the importance in understanding that families are from
various parts of the world and have different ethnic backgrounds. With this being a
first grade classroom, I would gently discuss that everyone in the school is unique. I
would recall back to the text and have students look in-depth at the images portrayed
by the author. This would allow students to understand and see the world from a
different lens. The text, My Colors, My World, portrays a family that is of a nonwhite ethnicity living in an area that many students may be unfamiliar with. Seeing
these types of families and locations may not be a common understanding for some
students. It is important for these students to be aware of the social diversity seen
throughout the text. This extension activity would relate to Lewison because many
students would be seeing the lens of other peoples lifestyles, which is described in
her article as disrupting the commonplace of her students.

7) Analyze supports for English learners in the Journeys lessons.

Gregory discussed ways of supporting young children who are learning a new
language at the same time they are learning to read. As you prepared for class, you
create your own Top 5 list for supporting English Learners. Use your Top 5 list and
course readings to analyze the Journeys lesson and materials.
a) What kinds of appropriate supports for English learners are provided in Journeys
lessons?
-One appropriate support the Journeys reader uses throughout the lesson is the
implementation of read alouds to the class. According to the article Learning to Read
in a New Language, Their teacher is using a top down approach whereby she reads
aloud to the children everyday using a Big Book (Gregory 114). Gregory then goes
on to discuss that during and after reading, the teacher will discuss the phonemic
makeup of certain words. The read alouds are directly seen throughout the Journeys
reader. In the Journey reader, the teacher introduces the Big Book to the students at
the beginning of the lesson. As stated in previous questions, the teacher is modeling a
read aloud by going through the, My Colors, My World, text with the students.
The teachers are supposed to track sentences and point to the words when reading the
text. This is a skill that Gregory states students should be doing throughout a read
aloud. Later in the read aloud, the class is to revisit the text and review the concepts
of print and how special letters convey meaning, in addition to sentence structure.
Students are also looking at using vocab in context to help with meaning. The ideas
implemented through read alouds in the Journeys text are an appropriate support for
English language learners according to the Gregory article. In addition, Gregory
discusses the importance of the graphophonic and phonological clues with English
language learners. Gregory states, First, learning to match symbols to sounds is a
confined task. It does not demand the sophistication of needing fluent or colloquial
English and consequently gives children confidence (Gregory 124). Gregory is

EDUC 6400: Materials Analysis 1 (Take Home Exam 1)

13
Fall 2015
Dr. Debbie Rowe
discussing the importance of having students be able to match symbols to a specific
sound a letter makes. This characteristic of the Gregory article is seen throughout the
Journeys lesson plan on t-18 in the lesson plan. The student is to point to the letter
a that is listed on the letter card. After that, the student is to say the term apple, as it
is listed on the card. With this sound/spelling card, the student is able to associate a
picture with the sound the letter a makes when saying apple. This relates directly
back to the Gregory article where it states that students must be able to match
symbols to sounds, using both the orthographic and phonological processor to
construct meaning of the given word and or letter. Understanding these connections
allow the reader to become more fluent and have a higher volume of word
recognition. The Journeys text does an excellent job in associating pictures to both
the texts and activities completed by the students. Lastly, the Gregory article
discusses the importance of including oral and visual labels when reading a text.
Both oral and visual labels give the beginner something to hang on to and to pick out
the in a stream of soundsHis eye is drawn to the written symbol, but the teacher
then links the sound to the symbol and includes the word in her reading, pointing to it
every time (Gregory 130). This concept seen in the Gregory article is also seen
throughout the, My Colors, My World, read aloud. In this story, the author is
focusing on describing colors seen throughout the main characters life. However,
when the author writes the color in the text, she matches the color of the letter to the
color she is talking about on that specific page. When looking at the pager in the text,
students are able to see a specific word with a specific color labeled. After the
student is able visually see the word and color, they are able to see and hear the oral
and visual labels to construct meaning to the specific color listed on a particular page.
Seeing the specific color on the page allows students to make an association with
sound of the word and then applying the sound to the visual representation of the
actual color of the word. At the end of the graphophonic and phonological clues
summary section in the text, Gregory discusses two distinct challenges that will be
faced when working with new readers. The first challenge is, The problems of
pronunciation and the feel for what sounds are allowed in language. The second
hurdle involves understanding words and their contexts and is much more difficult
(Gregory 129). Overall, the Journeys lesson does an excellent job in trying to correct
these challenges. Throughout the lessons, students have multiple opportunities to
work with and understand the feel for sounds and what is acceptable when reading.
Similarly, students also have the ability to determine whether or not words are being
used correctly in context. This is implemented throughout multiple read alouds and
vocab instruction throughout the lesson. The Journeys lesson supports multiple ideas
that Gregory discusses throughout his article about supporting English language
learners.
b) Briefly describe one way you could extend/revise these lessons to make them
more accessible and supportive of young English learners.
One way to make an extension to the spelling/sound activity is to expand the concepts
being displayed on card. On the card listed in the Journeys lesson, we only see an
apple and the letter a. To extend this lesson, the teacher could include consonant

EDUC 6400: Materials Analysis 1 (Take Home Exam 1)

14
Fall 2015
Dr. Debbie Rowe
blends on the spelling/sound card. In the lesson, the student only has to decode one
letter on the card and make meaning. If consonant blends are included, it could be a
next step approach to help students decode two letters that are sounded together.
The words would not be too challenging for the students, but it would be a step
further than what is initially completed in the Journeys text. As stated previously in
the Gregory text, First, learning to match symbols to sounds is a confined task. It
does not demand the sophistication of needing fluent or colloquial English and
consequently gives children confidence (Gregory 124). Student being able to
recognize these blends will allow them to become more confident and fluent readers,
as stated by Gregory.

References
Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts & Literacy in History/Social
Studies, Science and Technical Subjects. Appendix A: Research Supporting Key

EDUC 6400: Materials Analysis 1 (Take Home Exam 1)

15
Fall 2015
Dr. Debbie Rowe
Elements of the Standards. Glossary of Key Terms. (2015). Retrieved October
27, 2015.
Dickinson, D., & Gee, J. (2002). A Sociocultural Perspective on Early Literacy
Development. In Handbook of early literacy research (pp. 30-42). New York,
New York: Guilford Press.
Fisher, D., & Frey, N. (2014). Addressing CCSS Anchor Standard 10: Text Complexity.
Language Arts, 91(4), 236-250.
Fisher, D., & Frey, N. (2013). Whats the Secret to Successful Close Reading: Strategic
Preparation and Follow Up. Reading Today, 31(2), 16-17.
Gregory, E., & Gregory, E. (2008). Learning to read in a new language making sense of
words and worlds (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE Publications.
Lapp, D., Moss, B., Johnson, K., & Grant, M. (2013). Teaching Students to Closely Read
Texts: How and When? Rigorous Real-World Teaching and Learning, 1-12.
Lewison, M., Flint, A., Van Sleuys, K., & Henkin, R. (2002). Taking on Critical Literacy:
The Journey of Newcomers and Novices. Language Arts, 79(5), 382-392.
Luke, A. (2000). Critical Literacy in Australia: A Matter of context and standpoint.
Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 43(5), 448-461.
Ruddell, R., & Adams, M. (2004). Modeling the Connections Between Word
Recognition and Reading. In Theoretical models and processes of reading (4th
ed., pp. 1219-1243). Newark, DE: International Reading Association.