Blog Due 2/25

Case Study: Jonathan

According to the prompt about the student Jonathan, Mrs. Potter has only seen below grade level scores on one assessment. One score is not enough to classify him as below his reading level. Mrs. Potter should use multiple assessments over multiple days to assess his reading achievement. After multiple tests and assessments have shown that Jonathan is reading at below grade level, then Mrs. Potter can start to implement reading plans.

One idea I found was in the STAIR reading assessment article. According to this Afflerbach article, Mrs. Potter should allow Jonathan to pick a few books that motivate him. These books should be a bit below his grade level in order for Jonathan to work on fluency and reading comprehension. Allowing him to pick his own books serve as a bit of motivation and reward as Jonathan gets to read something that he chooses and enjoys.

Then after he has picked his book, use the STAIR resources and have Jonathan create a hypothesis of what he thinks his book will be about. She may need to probe him with scaffolding questions depending on what his ability is. After he has came up with a hypothesis, now it is time for him to read.

During Reading time, have Jonathan read the book to himself. Afterward, have him talk to his classmates about what he read (as Mrs. Potter listens). This will help her to get a better understanding if Jonathan is comprehending the material that he is reading or not. Hopefully by talking to his peers, Jonathan remains excited about the book he is reading.

After he has read for a bit, have him refer back to his hypothesis that he created before he started reading his book. Have him evaluate whether or not he believes that his hypothesis is accurate or not. Again, using the STAIR resource, have Jonathan provide supporting evidence that will support his hypothesis. This will allow Jonathan to not only read the text, but to comprehend, and learn how to support his ideas using information from the text (facts).

I would advise Mrs. Potter to use these resources for more than one book. After Jonathan has demonstrated a strong fluency and comprehension ability in the below grade level texts, allow him to chose a few books at his grade level and repeat the same process.