Differentiated Reading Instruction: Strategies for the Primary Grades Sharon Walpole Michael C. McKenna.

Differentiated Reading Instruction:

Strategies for the Primary Grades

Sharon Walpole

Michael C. McKenna

Overall Goals:

1. Place differentiation inside the reading program

2. Consider targeted, temporary differentiation

3. Commit to improvements

StrategiesWe’ll do some theory building work

We’ll provide models of use of time in small groups

We’ll direct you to additional resources

Our Web site

http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/reading/projects/garf




Approaches to Differentiation

By instructional level

By fluency level

By assessed needs

• Informal reading inventories• Traditional basal instruction• Groups move at same pace• Groups are all but permanent• Differentiation is in all areas • Parallel skill “strands” used



By fluency level

By assessed needs

• Differentiation by leveled books• Decoding skills not a target• Fountas & Pinnell



By fluency level

By assessed needs

• Assess for differentiation• Screening + diagnostic• Groups are temporary• Groups are flexible• Target areas of greatest need• Goal is “upward mobility”

Differentiation is

“instruction that helps [children] accomplish challenging tasks that are just out of their reach”

“instruction that targets a particular group of children’s needs directly and temporarily”

“instruction that applies a developmental model”

Walpole, S., & McKenna, M. C. (2007). Differentiated reading instruction: Strategies for the primary grades. New York: Guilford Press.

Guided Readingand

Differentiated Instruction

Determining Group Membership

Overall leveled placement assessment, such the DRA

This process ignores the specific skill deficits in the areas of phonological awareness and word recognition

Screening and diagnostic assessments in phonological awareness, phonics, sight words, and/or oral reading fluency.

Diagnostic Assessment

Running records are used to analyze oral reading errors (miscues), a practice that has been called into question in light of current views of the reading process.

The cognitive model of reading assessment is used to systematically determine skill needs on the basis of developmental stage theories of reading acquisition.

Stage models of readingWhen children are

acquiring literacy – developing the skills necessary for reading comprehension – they tend to move through stages in which their focus is very different. All along, during each stage, they are developing oral language skills.

Oral Language

Fluency

Alphabetic Principle

Phonemic Awareness

Three Cuing Systems

Decoding

Syntactic Context

Semantic Context

We want to move children to the point where they decode first and then use context to select the intended meaning of a word.

We do not want to encourage them to predict the word from context and only “sample” its letters to the extent needed to confirm this prediction.

Three Cuing Systems

Decoding

Syntactic Context

Semantic Context

Instructional Focus

Fluency is always the primary focus.

In guided reading, the teacher coordinates reading components (comprehension, word recognition, fluency)

Fluency is the focus

1. only for grade 1 and above

2. only if decoding skills are strong.

In differentiated instruction, the teacher isolates reading components to address deficits

Fluency Instruction

Fluency techniques do not proceed from most to least supportive.

Fluency techniques progress from most to least supportive:

1. Echo reading

2. Choral reading

3. Partner reading

4. Whisper reading

Text Types

Predictable books are preferred for beginning readers in order to promote fluency. Such books provide little basis for decoding instruction.

Decodable books are preferred for beginning readers in order to promote decoding in context. Such books provide little basis for comprehension instruction–so there is none.

Comprehension Instruction

Comprehension instruction is based on texts at fluency level.

This means that the easiest texts provide very little basis for asking reasonable questions or modeling strategies, but this practice is still encouraged.

In the primary grades, comprehension instruction is based on small-group read-alouds for children who are at benchmark in word recognition.

Comprehension instruction is linked with fluency or vocabulary but not with word recognition instruction.

Word Recognition Instruction

Word recognition needs are not systematically addressed during guided reading.

Rather, they are addressed on an as-needed basis.

Word recognition needs are identified through the cognitive model of assessment and are addressed on this basis.

MeasuringProgress

Running records are used to determine readiness for the next text level.

Three-week post-assessment focuses on areas targeted by instruction.The assessment question is whether a child should move to a more advanced focus, remain at current focus, or move to a more basic focus.

MeasuringProgress

Our focus, then, is different from the focus of Guided Reading

Consider whether this difference is justified for your school, given your current resources and your current level of student achievement

A Basic Template

Whole-Group Instruction

Lowest Group Center or Intervention

Center

Center Middle Group Center

Center Center Highest Group

Whole-Group Instruction

The concept of three tiers of instructionThe 3-tier model (University of Texas

System/Texas Education Agency, 2005) is a general framework — and just a framework — for explaining how any research-based program can be executed in a school.

(http://www.texasreading.org/utcrla/materials/3tier_letter.asp)

Tier I: Core Classroom Reading Instruction1. A core reading program grounded in

scientifically based reading research

2. Benchmark testing of all kindergarten through third-grade students to determine instructional needs at least three times per year (fall, winter, and spring)

3. Ongoing professional development to provide teachers with the necessary tools to ensure every student receives quality reading instruction

Tier II: Supplemental InstructionFor some students, core classroom reading

instruction is not enough. Tier II is designed to meet the needs of these students by providing them with additional small-group reading instruction daily.

Tier III: Instruction for Intensive InterventionA small percentage of students require more

support in acquiring vital reading skills than Tier II instruction can provide. For these students, Tier III provides instruction that is more explicit, more intensive, and specifically designed to meet their individual needs.

Setting the stage for differentiation

requires careful analysis of the

curriculum.

Decide what to teach when.We are more likely to achieve

improvements in vocabulary and comprehension for K and 1st grade during whole-group read alouds, both from the core selection and from children’s literature.

We can introduce and practice phonemic awareness and phonics concepts during whole group, but we’re more likely to achieve mastery during small-group time.

Decide what to teach when.We are more likely to achieve

improvements in fluency and comprehension in 2nd and 3rd grade if we introduce them in whole-group and practice in small-group time.

We can introduce word recognition concepts during whole-group time, but we will likely achieve mastery only during small-group time.

Make more time for small groups.Literacy coaches and grade-level

teams must determine exactly how to use the core programSort core instructional

components from extension and enrichment activities

Moderate and control instructional pacing so that early introductions and reviews are fast

Make a very simple centers rotationLook for materials already in the core.

Consider daily paired readings and readings.

Consider a daily activity linked directly to your read aloud. Your children can write in response to that text every day.

Consider a daily activity linked directly to your small group instruction. Your children can practice the things you’ve introduced.

Now you have set the stage for differentiated reading instruction

It’s time to plan.

1. Gather your resources

2. Consider your children’s needs

3. Try it out.

Gather your instructional resourcesReview the state standards and

the scope and sequence in your instructional materials

Review the state assessments, the district assessments, and any assessments that come with your core; fill in gaps with informal assessments

Consider your children’s needsGiven your screening data, you will

know that some portion of children are likely at benchmark, some are just below grade level, and some are well below grade level

For children at benchmark, you can decide to focus small-group time on fluency and comprehension or on vocabulary and comprehension

Only the below-grade-level children need additional assessments

Consider your children’s needs

Using the Cognitive Model of Reading Instruction (McKenna and Stahl, 2003) choose your focus for each group: Phonemic awareness and phonicsPhonics and fluencyFluency and comprehensionVocabulary and comprehension

PA and Word Recognition

Word Recognition and Fluency

Fluency and Comprehension

Vocabulary & Comprehension

A Stairway to Proficiency

These Assignments are Temporary!

Challenging

Instruction, not practice

Explicit Every item modeled; Clear instructional talk

Engaged Every pupil response strategies

Systematic Repetitive instructional strategies each day; New content each day;Cumulative review each day

Phonemic awareness and phonicsThese children still need to work on

learning letter names and sounds, and they are not yet able to segment phonemes automatically

They will work on coordinated activities to manipulate phonemes, learn new letters and sounds and review letters previously taught

They will work with letters and words during small-group time

Every Day for 3 Weeks

Alphabet Review 3 Minutes

Initial Sound Sorting 3 Minutes

2 New Letter Sounds; Review Old

Letter Sounds3 Minutes

2 New HF Words;Review Old High

Frequency Words 3 Minutes

Concept of Word 3 Minutes

Pho

nem

ic A

war

enes

s an

d W

ord

Rec

Gro

up


Oral Segmenting and Blending

3 Minutes

Short Vowel Patterns 6 Minutes

4 New HF Words;Review Old High


Pho

nem

ic A

war

enes

s an

d W

ord

Rec

Gro

up 2

Phonics and fluencyThese children still need to work on

decoding, but they can segment and blend phonemes to read some words

They will work on coordinated activities to learn new letters patterns and review patterns previously taught

They will work with words and with phonic-focused texts during small-group time


Decodable text Whisper Reading

3 Minutes

Sounding and Blending

4 Minutes

New HF Words;Review Old High



4 Minutes

Wor

d R

ecog

nitio

n an

d F

luen

cy G

roup

1


Teaching Letter Patterns

6 Minutes

New HF Words;Review Old High



6 Minutes

Wor

d R

ecog

nitio

n an

d F

luen

cy G

roup

2

Fluency and comprehensionThese children have relatively few

decoding problems, but they lack automaticity

They will work in a guided reading format; they may review particularly challenging words (for their pronunciation or their meaning) but they will use most of their time reading and rereading challenging leveled texts and discussing text meaning


Preteach Difficult Words

2 Minutes

Choral or Echo Read New Text Portion

5 Minutes

Partner or Whisper Read Same Text

Portion5 Minutes

Summary or Inference Questions

3 Minutes

Flu

ency

and

C

ompr

ehen

sion

Gro

up

You can serve this group in many other ways too.

Vocabulary and comprehensionThese children are at grade level in

the areas of decoding and fluency

They will extend what they know into new texts and new text types; they will write in response to reading

Every Day

Preteach Vocabulary 3 Minutes

Review Comprehension

Strategy1 Minute

Teacher Read-Aloud or Children Whisper

Read7 Minutes

Comprehension Discussion

4 Minutes

Voc

abul

ary

and

Com

preh

ensi

on G

roup

In this example, you will role-play K or first-grade students, and I will use a read-aloud format.

You can serve this group in many other ways too.

Think about it

Are you current strategies targeted?

Are they reasonable and repetitive?

Are they designed to be temporary?

[email protected]@virginia.edu


How to find out more …

Differentiated Reading Instruction: Strategies for the Primary Grades Sharon Walpole Michael C. McKenna.

Documents

mckenna slide

reading process

guided reading

reading program

fluency level

needs differentiation

andor oral reading fluency

stage models of reading