Reading/Language Arts Literacy Curriculum

Overview for Grades 4 and 5

 

The acquisition of reading skills is a developmental process. Reading instruction will meet the needs of the individual reader. Differentiated instruction, materials, and strategies will be employed that address students at their instructional level and maximize their potential. Students will be supported in their efforts to become active, self-directed readers and writers who can respond to a variety of texts in various ways.

 

Introduction to the Literature will provide instruction and strategies for pre-reading, vocabulary and word study. Activating prior knowledge, brainstorming, predicting, skimming/previewing, posing pre-reading questions and making connections personally and cross-curricular will be supported. Instruction will address the introduction and use of vocabulary, as well as word study.

 

Through the Literature will support students in the acquisition of fluency and comprehension. Strategies such as monitoring and adjusting speed and intonation, rereading, skimming and scanning, using illustrations, confirming and adjusting predictions, note taking, summarizing, and answering a variety of comprehension questions. Different genres will be presented to offer personal connections, and connections across curriculum areas.

 

Beyond the Literature will assist students in developing oral and written expression skills. Students will be instructed in inferential, evaluative, literal and creative questioning to stimulate discussion. They will be provided with opportunities to express themselves orally in one-on-one conversations, small group, and/or large group. Speaking may be in an informal or a formal presentation format. Appropriate speaking and presentation skills, and giving and receiving feedback will be modeled.

 

Students will reflect upon literature in written formats also. Writing tasks will include creative self-expression and specific writing styles, including stories, essays, poetry, and research. Written work will provide an avenue to reflect and make meaningful connections from text to writing. The writing process will be implemented for exposure to essential skills which include pre-writing strategies, drafting, revising, editing and publishing.

 

The specific skills of listening will be addressed and practiced throughout each activity and modeled during instruction. Looking at the speaker, taking notes, maintaining focus, listening for specific information will be fostered for this critical life skill.

 

Study skills will be integrated in all units (Intro, Through, and Beyond). Students will have exposure and time to utilize skills with various resources and reference materials that will assist them in making connections. It will also enable them to expand upon their responses both written and orally. Essential skills of highlighting, note-taking, outlining, using graphic organizers, and accessing electronic information sources will be presented.

 

Technology, its influence and impact, are important to present as well. Promoting careful and critical viewing of everything from television to internet is essential. Students will engage in teacher guided experiences for accessing, viewing, evaluating, and responding to print, non-print, and electronic texts and resources.

 

Checklist of Strategies Students Use Before Reading

 

 

Student’s Name: ________________________________ Observation Date: _______________

 

Before Reading Strategies	Behaviors That Indicate Student is Using Strategy	Notes
Brainstorm, Cluster, Fast-Write, Web, K-W-H-L, List	Activates prior knowledge and experiences to make them acceptable during reading.
Predict	Uses pictures, the title, and some text to support predictions.
Skim	Reads captions, boldface headings, words, charts, and graphs to familiarize self with material.
Question	Uses pictures, chapter headings, boldface headings and words, captions, graphs, and charts to generate meaningful questions.
Predict Meaning of New Vocabulary	Uses knowledge of roots, prefixes and suffixes to predict meanings. Take risks. Has broad word knowledge.
Visualize	Creates mental pictures of words, concepts, and predictions.
Set Purposes	Creates specific purposes for reading.
Additional Comments and Notes:

 

SAMPLE MISCUE SUMMARY/ANALYSIS

 

Text Wording	Reader’s Wording	Type of Miscue (substitution, omission, insertion, reversal, repetition)	Uses cues? (semantic, syntactic, graphophonic)	Self-correction? Yes/No	Meaning retained? Yes/No

Analysis of Miscues   Do the miscues retain meaning (semantics)? Are the miscues syntactically correct? Does the child use beginning, middle, and/or ending sounds (graphophonic)?

Reading Strategies Used by the Student   Chunking (little words in big words) Asks for help Goes back to find word somewhere else Thinks of another word that is similar Sound out words Skip word/reads on/rereads sentence Goes back to the beginning of the sentence Other: ______________________

Reading Fluency   1. Word by word reading……………………………………………….. Reads in phrases 2. Too slow or too fast………………………………………………….. Appropriate pacing 3. No expression………………………………………………………... Appropriate expression 4. Not aware of punctuation……………………………………………. Aware of punctuation 5. Poor sight word recognition…………………………………………. Automatic sight word recognition

Reading Accuracy Rate   Words read correctly = ___________ = ________________% (Independent/Instructional/Frustrational) Total number of words

 

ACTIVITIES

 

ORAL AND SILENT READING CHECKLIST

 

Name: ___________________________________ Grade: __________

 

 

	BEHAVIORS	DATES				ANECDOTAL NOTES
1	Reads word by word with finger or voice
2	Recognizes hi-frequency words in context
3	Recognizes hi-frequency words out of context
4	Enjoys shared reading experiences
5	Integrates reading strategies and cross check systems
6	**Re-reads when not making sense
7	**Self-corrects errors
8	**Relies on visual cues more than pictures
9	Understands while reading silently
10	Chooses to read independently
11	Comprehends what is being read
12	Can sight read fairly well
13	Identifies main idea and details
14	Sounds out unfamiliar text
						KEY: + Above average - At grade level x Needs improvement

 

 

 

 

Math Checklist and Group Behaviors Sheet

Writing Checklist

 

 

 

Sample Assessment of Student’s Reading Response

 

Student’s Name _________________________________________ Date: ___________________

 

Directions: Ask the student to write or give orally a personal response to a text (e.g., story, poem, piece of nonfiction). Tell the student that they will be reading or listening for their ability to:

 

• describe personal connections with the reading

• express opinions

• support their opinions with reasons

 

Circle one response for each section (initial understanding, developing an interpretation, and demonstrating a critical stance) and include anecdotal comments.

 

Initial Understanding

 

Students can provide an initial impression or understanding of what was read (e.g., What is the story about? How would you describe the main character? What does this article tell you about….? What does the author think?

 

Extensive and Insightful Incomplete or Unsatisfactory

 

 

Developing an Interpretation

 

Students go beyond the initial impression to develop a more complete understanding of what they have read (e.g., How did the plot develop? How did this character change from the beginning to the end of the story? Is this story similar to or different from your own experiences? What caused….. to happen? What are the important ideas? Does this fit with what you know about….?).

 

Extensive and Insightful Incomplete or Unsatisfactory

 

 

Demonstrating a Critical Stance

 

Students stand apart from the text and consider it (e.g., How could this story be rewritten with…..as a setting or……as a character? How did the author use (humor, description) to…? Explain how useful this article would be for… What could be added to improve the author’s explanation or argument?).

 

Extensive and Insightful Incomplete or Unsatisfactory

Sample Spelling Inventory

 

Student’s Name: _________________________________________ Date: ______________

 

Spelling Abilities and Attitudes

__ Views self as a capable speller

__ Considers and recognizes misspellings when proofreading

__ Locates the spelling of unfamiliar words in a dictionary, word wall, or other source

__ Employs temporary or invented spelling when unsure of a word

__ Recognizes spelling patterns and draws on spelling generalizations

__ Employs a strategy to learn the spelling of words

 

Stage of Spelling Development

Pre-conventional Speller

__ Stories and messages consist of scribbles and drawings

__ Strokes, symbols, and scribbles represent words

__ Identifiable letter formations appear

 

Emergent Speller

__ Uses one, two, or three-letter spellings for words

__ Uses significant consonant sounds (dg=dog)

__ Uses significant sounds (dagn=dragon)

__ Recognizes some familiar words

__ Uses key words in writing

__ Uses vowels in writing

__ Uses invented plus conventional spellings

__ One-half to three-quarters of the words are temporary spellings

 

Early Speller

__ Recognizes that word sounds represent segments or syllables

__ Matches sounds and letters (mak=make)

__ Vowels are used in most syllables

__ Refers to word banks, word wall, charts, and environmental print for spellings

 

Transitional Speller

__ One-half of spelling is conventional

__ Demonstrates sense of sentence

__ Three-quarters of spellings are conventional

__ Uses punctuation

__ Uses capital letters conventionally

 

Conventional Speller

__ Spells most words needed in writing correctly

__ Employs a spelling strategy

__ Builds a personal spelling list

__ Proofreads for spelling

__ Still struggles with consonant doubling and word affixes

 

Morphemic Speller

__ Spells multi-syllabic words

__ Recognizes derivational relationships

__ Identifies own spelling problems

__ Spells key content-area words

 

Writing Rubric Grades 2-5

 

Grade Level Rubric Score	Rubric Descriptor -
Above 4	An excellent writing sample: establishes and focuses on the purpose of the writing task shows a clear awareness of the intended audience organizers content and ideas in a logical way, and is fluent and cohesive includes appropriate details to clarify ideas.   Mistakes in grammar, mechanics and usage do not detract from clarity and meaning.
At 3	A good writing sample: focuses on the purpose of the writing task shows some awareness of the intended audience organizes content and ideas in a logical way, although transitions may not be fluent includes some details to clarify ideas.   Mistakes in grammar, mechanics, and usage do not detract from clarity and meaning.
Progressing 2	A fair writing sample: has some awareness of the purpose and intended audience attempts to organize content and idea, but is not particularly fluent or omits transitions includes some details.   Mistakes in grammar, mechanics, and usage do not detract from clarity and meaning.
Below 1	A poor writing sample: is confused in purpose or does not respond to the task does not present content in an organized or logical way includes few or no details.   Mistakes in grammar, mechanics, and usage do not detract from clarity and meaning.
Unscorable 0	An unscorable writing sample is blank, unreadable, incomplete, etc.

Grade Level	Rubric Score	Length of Writing
2	4	One or more paragraphs of four or five sentences.
	3	One paragraph of four or five sentences.
3	4	Two or more paragraphs of four or five sentences.
	3	Two paragraphs of four or five sentences.
4	4	Three or more paragraphs composition with introduction, supporting and conclusion paragraphs.
5	4	Four or more paragraph composition with introduction, supporting and conclusion paragraphs.
	3	Three paragraphs composition with introduction, supporting and conclusion paragraphs.

 

SAMPLE WRITING ASSESSMENT: FORM ONE

 

Student’s Name _________________________________________ Date ________________

Writing Topic or Title _____________________________________________________________

 

Note: Students writing behaviors can be observed and analyzed. Each piece of writing will make different demands on the writer depending on the purpose, audience, topic, and the writer’s needs. Based on observation and examination of the student’s writing samples, what does the student know about the writing process and strategies for writing? Does the student use any or all of the following strategies?

 

 

Pre-Writing

__ generating ideas for writing (e.g., brainstorming, conferencing)

__ jotting down ideas

__ selecting and focusing on a topic

__ identifying and collecting information resources

__ organizing ideas (e.g., web)

__ choosing a writing format that is appropriate for purpose and audience

__ other: ____________________________________________________

 

 

 

Drafting

__ recording ideas and thoughts in words and pictures

__ developing ideas through sentences and/or paragraphs

__ describing images or events

__ other: ____________________________________________________

 

 

 

Revising

__ improving the first draft

__ examining and changing content and ideas

__ proofreading

__ other: ____________________________________________________

 

 

 

Sharing

__ reading a composition aloud

__ exchanging compositions

__ other: ____________________________________________________

 

SAMPLE WRITING ASSESSMENT: FORM TWO

 

Student’s Name _________________________________________ Date ________________

Writing Topic or Title _____________________________________________________________

 

Pragmatic Conventions

__ includes the information the intended audience needs to know

__ uses language appropriate for the intended audience and purpose

__ demonstrates an understanding of a range of writing forms including:

__ letter (friendly and business)

__ poem

__ story

__ script

__ report

__ journal or log

__ other: _____________________________________________

 

Other observations:

 

 

 

Textual Conventions

__ includes an obvious beginning and ending

__ has enough information to support the main ideas

__ uses a clear organizational pattern

 

Other observations:

 

 

 

Syntactical and Semantic Conventions

__ each sentence makes sense

__ uses various sentence structures

__ uses appropriate word choices

 

Other observations:

 

 

 

Mechanics

__ spells all high-frequency words and most other words correctly

__ uses consistent and proper punctuation

__ uses consistent and proper capitalization

__ uses legible handwriting

__ demonstrates concern for overall appearance and neatness

 

Other observations:

Report Rubric

 

	Beginning 1	Developing 2	Accomplished 3	Exemplary 4	Score
Topic	Totally Unrelated	Remotely Related	Somewhat Relevant	Directly Relevant
Organization	Not organized, events make no sense	Some organization, events jump around, start and end are unclear	Organized, events are somewhat jumpy	Good organization, events are logically ordered, sharp sense of beginning and end
Quality of Information	Unable to find specific details	Details are somewhat sketchy	Some details are non-supporting to the subject	Supporting details specific to subject
Grammar and Spelling	Very frequent grammar and/or spelling errors	More than two errors	Only one or two errors	All grammar and spelling are correct
Interest Level	Needs descriptive words	Vocabulary is constant, details lack “color”	Vocabulary is varied, supporting details needs work	Vocabulary varied, supporting details vivid
Neatness	Illegible writing, loose pages	Legible writing, some ill-formed letters, print too small or too large, papers stapled together	Legible writing, well-formed characters, clean and neatly bound in a report cover, illustrations provided	Word processed or typed, clean and neatly bound in a report cover, illustrations provided
Timeliness	Report handed in more than one week late	Up to one week late	Up to two days late	Report handed in on time
				Total