The Reading Process of an Elementary Student - Assignment Example

A Reader’s View of the Reading Process An Interview (When writing this page paper, why you are interviewing this J. A Cycle: 2 Year: 2010 Date: Jan 27 2010 1. When you are reading and you come to a word you don’t know, what do you do? I will skip the word and ask someone what it means. 2. Do you ever do anything else? I sometimes look in a dictionary. 3. Who is a good reader who you know? My teacher. 4. What makes him/her a good reader? Her voice is loud and she likes to read a lot. 5. Do you think that (s)he ever comes to something that (s)he doesn’t know? Never, nope never. 6. What do you think (s)he would do? She would look in the dictionary. 7. If you knew someone who was having difficulty reading, how would you help them? I would use syllables, give hints and ideas and after saying the word have them repeat it. 8. What would a teacher do to help that person? The teacher gives hints and if the word is too hard, the teacher will say the word. 9. Who helped you learn how to read? How did they help you? My mommy would read stories to me and when I would make a mistake, she corrects me. 10. What would you like to de better when you are reading? To learn and understand most of the words right away. 11. Do you think you are a good reader? Why or why not? Yes because I have a good voice when reading out loud and can follow when people read. The Reading Process of an Elementary Student I chose to interview this particular student because she is a typical elementary school student. Based on my initial observation she appears to have advanced skills in the areas of reading and learning. Although students vary greatly in their ability to understand, interpret and retain information that they read, it can be difficult to evaluate this unless you talk with them about their interpretation of their own skills and understand how they process information Reading is the foundation of all other learning. As we learned through class lectures and the reading material there is a response process, strategies and a self assessment component to the reading process for children. (Class lecture Power Point Presentation 2). They learn the information, figure out how it makes sense to them and then apply it to their world. They also make their own assessment of their skills. That assessment is then also reviewed by their teachers, educators and parents. A child’s assessment of their own reading skills can be very different than how others view their ability. Children typically learn better when the process comes easy to them. Those children that have difficulty learning and processing information may struggle in school. The student that I chose to interview gives no indication that she struggles in school, or that she dislikes school or learning in any way. I believe that she is an above average student who is developing well within the standards used to gage students on their learning skills. This student seems to have a good understanding of what it means to read and to understand the material she takes in. Her response to the questions specifically numbers one and two indicate to me that she knows that there will be words that she doesn’t understand and she knows how to get these answers. Additionally her answers show that she has made her own assessment of her skills. She asks for help and knows how to get help when she needs it. Her answer to the last question also indicates that she knows that reading is not just about reading but understanding the concepts when others read, being comfortable reading to herself as well as reading aloud. She also knows about the components of the reading process such as learning words, syllables and sounding out words. She looks at those around her such as her teacher and her mother as people who are good readers. She mentions that good readers like to read. She sees that in order to be good at something you have to practice. This student appears to be on track in all of the areas that make someone a good reader. Her interview shows me that she is a good reader who probably does well in the rest of her subjects because she has mastered the core objectives of learning how to read and master language arts. The student that I interviewed already possesses many of the abilities that are seen as those of excellent readers. Our goal is to develop readers who are independent, can monitor their own learning, are happy to learn, are expansive thinkers, problem solvers and set their own goals for their learning. This student based on my interview has met these goals. (Class lecture Power Point Presentation 2). I would continue to move this student forward in her reading by using a number of methods. Knowing and developing good reading habits comes from practice. Routman suggests that there are five ways to ensure excellent readers (2002). I would continue to work with this student to solidify the efforts she has made on her previous goals and move her forward as a reader by applying some of Routmans suggestions and adding my own personal style to them. I would also take into consideration the reading strategies of the student. I would focus on the student as a reader and identify her progress in terms of the four cuing systems (QEP, n.d). As they learn students tend to be stronger in one of these areas than the others. I would make it a point to tie in all of the strategies of reading by picking one of these each week to focus on in my work with the student. She will develop each of these at her own pace. Slowing introducing different techniques and strategies will help her slowly begin to incorporate these into her learning toolbox. Praise and encouragement coupled with advice and strategies will encourage students to continue to learn as a reader in a supportive learning environment. Demonstrating that you are a reader yourself provides the role modeling for children that they need to keep reading. To move this student forward in her reading progress I would make it a habit of reading with her. Providing a classroom library allows the resources and availability of reading material. It shows that you are committed to reading. I would encourage the student to choose a book and then this could be the one that we read together. A mini book club with teacher involvement may be a fun way to for students to stay interested and practice reading. This would also tie in some of the role modeling and provide a natural opportunity for the teacher to provide general strategies and techniques during the process of the book club. I would also work with the student to set goals for herself. Using a timeline or a calendar would allow the student to have control over her progress, goal setting and goal evaluation. I may encourage her to choose a challenging book to read and identify when she will be able to complete the book. When that date arrives we could discuss the book together. This encourages goal setting while allowing us to talk about her progress with difficult reading tasks and strategies for improvement. Activities are a natural way for the student and teacher to work together to achieve a common goal (Routman, 2002). Moving students ahead in their learning is the goal for any teacher. Regardless of the subject a teacher’s job is to challenge the student to learn. Learning is different for each student. Establishing a baseline reading level for each student is important for a teacher. A baseline helps to assess growth in the subject (Weaver, 1999). A formal baseline can be assessed through standardized testing, or an exam. Conducting an interview such as the one that we used for this paper is a way of making an informal assessment about the student as a reader. Understanding the student as a reader and as a learner as well as their level of enjoyment and commitment can make a great deal of difference in the student’s progress. Reading is the necessary foundation for any type of academic learning. “Strategies, skills and understandings are the essential knowledge’s that are fundamental to the development of literacy. Literacy is demonstrated when the student uses his/her understanding of written, spoken and visual texts in contexts that are personally relevant and that influence her/his personal development, social relationships and/or community” (QEP document). Knowing where your students are in terms of their baseline can help you as a teacher identify the best way to work with them as an individual and to make progress with language arts (Weaver, 1999). Had I done the interview with a different student, perhaps one that is a poor reader, I may have come up with different methods for moving him or her forward. I would have had to make a plan based on where that student was at in their learning and their personal commitment to the reading process and adjust my methods accordingly. Based on our readings and class lectures there are many things that make a good reader. Knowing what will make sense to them, encouraging their ability while working to improve their areas of weakness in a supportive environment can make reading a successful experience for every student. Routman discusses the importance of focusing on what matters most in the learning process. What matters most is a combination of love of learning, strategies that are individualized to the student and a guarantee for success (Routman, 2002). Elementary language arts combines the use of all of these things into a method that allows students to become competent readers who are able to use their literacy stills to understand and communicate effectively with the world around them. References Class lecture Power Point Presentation 1 Class lecture Power Point Presentation 2 QEP. (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.mels.gouv.qc.ca/dfgi/dp/programme_de?formation/primaire/pdf/educprg2001/educprg2001-051pdf Routman, R. (2003). Reading Essentials: The Specifics You Need to Teach Reading Well. Virginia: Heinemann Educational Books. Weaver, B. (1999) Best Practices Assessment. Retrieved from http://content.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=4443 Read More