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Student: 2nd grade, age 7, July Birthday
School: Hemenway Elementary School, Framingham, MA
Teacher: Stacey Soto
Class Size: 24 Students
“I remember the first book we read, and William said, ‘I can read this whole thing!’ All of a sudden, a light bulb went on. His writing increased, his mechanics increased, his reading increased; his hand is up in the air. He feels like a new kid.”
Stacey Soto, second-grade teacher, commenting on William’s progress after moving to a new reading group.
When William, a friendly, outgoing boy, enters second grade, he is struggling to “keep up” with his reading group. William and his mother both report that in first grade he “hated to read” in school and at home. In this video, we follow William’s progress throughout the year. As he develops strong reading skills and strategies, his ambivalence about reading changes to genuine enthusiasm. His teacher, Stacey Soto, routinely uses running records to track his progress, to choose appropriate materials for both guided reading and independent reading, and to plan instruction tailored to his strengths and needs. By the end of second grade, William’s improved reading strategies for word identification and comprehension, and his new found confidence as a reader, motivate him to set goals for summer reading.
Factors that contribute to William’s literacy development:
William’s Progress:
“His reading is amazing. I can’t believe his reading. I mean, the improvement has been huge. Huge. And he likes to read.”
William’s mother
William is a second-grade student in a fully-inclusive classroom at the Hemenway Elementary School in Framingham, Massachusetts. Of William’s 23 classmates, 12 have special needs. The class has two full-time teachers — one general educator and one special education teacher — who share responsibility for teaching all students in the class.
An active, social boy, William loves to play sports, especially baseball. He is often critical of his performance. According to his mother, he expects to do the best all the time. After he experiences difficulty in an above-grade-level reading group in September, Ms. Soto, his teacher, regroups him so he can read books at his instructional reading level.
Ms. Soto assesses William throughout the year (as she does all students), using a running record to determine appropriate reading materials, and guided-reading groups, which change throughout the year. Ms. Soto makes it a point to review the Running Record with William and to share the indicators of his progress. She constructs an individual Browsing Box each week with each student to encourage independent reading.
As William’s skills increase, he enjoys reading books from the Magic Tree Houseseries and books about sports. He also enjoys reading at home to his sister and mother. By the end of the second grade William says, “I have a baseball collection and now I can read the cards better. I couldn’t read them, when I first got them, because I wasn’t really that good. I’m going to read more books over the summer and get books out of the library about sports and baseball.”
The following activities prepare you to observe this classroom video, whether alone or with a group. Taking notes on the Observational Checklist while you watch will help you focus on important aspects of teaching and learning in the classroom. You may also use the KWL chart to record your thoughts before and after watching the video.
Print out copies of the Observational Checklist (PDF) and Key Questions (PDF) to record your observations, reactions, and further questions throughout your viewing.
Review the definitions of the Literacy Teaching Practices (see section in Lens on Literacy):
Review the definitions of the Essential Components of Literacy Development:
Print out a copy of the KWL Chart (PDF) to record what you already know and what you would like to learn about teaching reading and writing in kindergarten. Groups can use the KWL chart to generate discussion and questions to consider while viewing.
On your first viewing, note how William’s reading accuracy and fluency develop over the year during guided reading, shared reading, and independent reading. Note the strategies he uses to read unfamiliar words in context and how he monitors his reading. How do his perceptions of his reading abilities change over time?
Review your notes on William’s Literacy Development Chart (PDF). Then consider the following questions:
As you reflect on these questions, write down your responses or discuss them as a group.
Take a second look at William’s reading development to deepen your understanding of his changing strengths and needs over the course of the year. What do you see now that you didn’t notice on your first viewing? Use the video images below to locate where to begin viewing.
Find this segment 2 minutes and 58 seconds after the beginning of the video. Watch for 3 minutes and 24 seconds.
Throughout the year, William’s teacher, Ms. Soto, takes running records of students reading classroom texts to determine reading achievement and progress. In this segment, in December of the school year, William’s guided-reading group is beginning a new book. He reads it to Ms. Soto while she takes a running record and the other students read the book on their own. Add any new insights about William’s strengths and needs to William’s Literacy Development Chart.
Find the first segment 8 minutes and 4 seconds after the beginning of the video. Watch for 1 minute and 17 seconds. Find the second segment 18 minutes and 50 seconds after the beginning of the video. Watch for 2 minutes and 46 seconds.
As William progresses, he becomes more interested in independent reading, both at home and in school. In the first segment, in December, Ms. Soto describes her independent reading program and William discusses his favorite books. In the second segment, in April, William’s mother discusses William’s reading at home and William meets with Ms. Soto to choose new books for his Browsing Box.
Find this segment 13 minutes and 31 seconds after the beginning of the video. Watch for 1 minute and 48 seconds.
William has many opportunities to write each day: for example, personal journal writing, written response to reading, and observations in science. In this segment, in January, William writes in his journal about his weekend and meets with Ms. Soto to review what he wrote.
Find this segment 21 minutes and 38 seconds after the beginning of the video. Watch for 3 minutes and 54 seconds.
Parent/teacher conferences at William’s school occur twice a year. In April, William’s teachers — Ms. Soto and Ms. Watson — his mother, and William meet to discuss his literacy achievements and progress. William uses his notebook to describe his work and his growth in reading and writing. William, his mother, and his teachers all provide information on his reading progress and his goals for the summer.
Review your Observational Checklist and other notes such as your
Review your notes on William’s progress throughout the year. Consider the following questions for discussion:
As you reflect on these questions, write down your responses or discuss them as a group.
Here are some opportunities to apply and extend what you’ve seen.
Compare reading strategies described in this article with the strategies William used on the tape:
Building an Early Reading Process: Part 1 | 2 | 3 (PDFs)
Askew, B. J., and I. C. Fountas. “Building an Early Reading Process: Active from the Start.” The Reading Teacher 52 (1998): 126-134.
View the other second-grade videos in the Teaching Reading library, “Staying on Topic” and “100 Days of Reading.” How would you compare the practices in instruction and assessment in these tapes with William’s second-grade program? Did viewing this video enhance your understanding of William’s literacy development?
For more information, see Staying on Topic and 100 Days of Reading.
Resources Used By William
Barrett, Judith. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. New York, N.Y.: Simon & Schuster Children’s, 1982.
Berenstain, Stan, and Jan Berenstain. Berenstain Bears Series. New York, N.Y.: Random House, Inc.
Osborne, Mary Pope. Dinosaurs Before Dark. Magic Tree House Series, no. 1. New York, N.Y.: Random House, Inc., 1992.
Showers, Paul. What Happens to a Hamburger? New York, N.Y.: Harper Collins, 2001.
Additional Resources
Books and Articles:
Allington, R. What Really Matters for Struggling Readers: Designing Research- Based Programs. New York, N.Y.: Addison-Wesley-Longman, 2001.
Baker, L., M. J. Dreher, and J. T. Guthrie. Engaging Young Readers: Promoting Achievement and Motivation. New York, N.Y.: The Guilford Press, 2000.
Harp. B., and J. Brewer. “Assessing Reading and Writing in the Early Years.” In Strickland, D., and L. Morrow. eds. Beginning Reading and Writing. New York, N.Y.: Teachers College Press, 2000.
Harvey, S., and A. Goudvis. Strategies That Work: Teaching Comprehension to Enhance Understanding. York, Maine: Stenhouse, 2000.
Hiebert, E. H. “Standards, Assessments, and Text Difficulty.” In Farstrup, A. E., and S. J. Samuels. eds. What Research Has to Say About Reading Instruction. Newark, Del.: International Reading Association, 2002.
Paratore, J. “Home and School Together: Helping Beginning Readers Succeed.” In Farstrup, A. E., and S. J. Samuels. eds. What Research Has to Say About Reading Instruction. Newark, Del.: International Reading Association, 2002.
Samuels, S. J. “Reading Fluency: Its Development and Assessment.” In Farstrup, A. E., and S. J. Samuels. eds. What Research Has to Say About Reading Instruction. Newark, Del.: International Reading Association, 2002.
Winograd, P., and H. Arrington. “Best Practices in Literacy Assessment.” In Gambell, L., et al. eds. Best Practices in Literacy Instruction. New York, N.Y.: Guilford Press, 1999.