371: Phonics Based Reading & Decoding week 1 Dq 2

4 Instructional Routines for Word Study and Fluency

Throughout this book, we describe instructional strategies that help young readers develop fluency, learn words, and learn how to solve problems related to words. These are fine strategies. They work. But effective instruction is more than simply the sum of all these ideas; teachers must also consider how they fit together into a coherent and effective curriculum. In this chapter we offer some suggestions for planning a word‐learning, fluency‐building curriculum.

Teaching styles, learning needs, and teachers’ and students’ preferences differ from classroom to classroom, even at the same grade level in the same school building. Because of these differences, teaching must involve planning curriculum. Nobody knows the situation and children’s learning needs better than the teacher who interacts daily with children.

4.1 Planning a Word‐Learning Curriculum

The curriculum planning process begins with careful thought about broad aims for literacy learning. Teachers might consider such questions as:

• What do I believe about literacy learning?

• What do I believe about children as learners?

• What is the role of the teacher?

• What sort of physical and psychological environment best promotes learning?

• How would I characterize an excellent learning activity?

• What role should word learning play within an overall literacy program?

Questions like these help teachers articulate their philosophies of teaching, learning, and literacy. We recommend making notes about beliefs because they are useful for guiding curriculum planning, selecting instructional activities, and evaluating the impact of programs on children as learners. Moreover, the beliefs can be used to double‐check existing programs—​to see if children have sufficient opportunities to learn what’s important.

The next stage in curriculum planning is to establish a few broad instructional goals. These goals, which reflect the teacher’s beliefs, articulate expectations for children in a particular grade. Goals provide the foundation for a reading program; they describe the general areas within which literacy instruction occurs. Here, for example, are Lyndell’s goals for his kindergarten students:

• To develop interest in and appreciation for books and reading

• To develop and extend understanding of stories and informative text

• To learn concepts of print and gain an awareness of key features of books and printed language

• To develop phonemic awareness

In contrast, June’s goals for her second‐graders include:

• To develop interest in and appreciation for books and reading

• To develop and extend comprehension abilities with a variety of genres

• To read fluently

• To solve word‐related reading problems successfully

Note that both sets of goals are comprehensive. Lyndell and June develop their entire reading programs based on these goals by ensuring that children have daily opportunities to develop proficiency in the targeted areas. Note, too, that their first and second goals are similar. Indeed, teachers throughout their school have similar goals. This makes sense because positive attitudes about reading and the continued focus on comprehension are all teachers’ responsibilities.

The next stage in the curriculum planning process involves selecting or developing instructional routines. A routine is a regular block of time during which students engage in a predictable set of instructional activities related to a particular goal or set of goals. Teacher read‐aloud and Making and Writing Words (see Chapter 10) are instructional routines, for example. Routines are helpful in curriculum planning—​together they constitute the reading program. Routines also help students behave independently—​they know what to expect. Our focus in this book is on fluency development and word learning, so our discussion of routines will focus on these important aspects of reading programs.

4.2 Principles for Routines

Some routines, like teacher read‐aloud, are features of most classrooms. Others may be unique to the teacher or particular group of children. A few years ago in our summer reading program, for example, one child wanted to write a riddle on the chalkboard one day. This idea quickly caught on—​soon everybody was looking for riddles, and the chalkboard was covered with a new set each morning. So finding, writing, reading, and solving riddles became a much‐anticipated routine for this group of children. This riddle mania happened quite by accident and probably wouldn’t have been as effective if teachers had planned it. Despite the occasional serendipity, effective routines for promoting word learning are generally based on several important principles. In this section we comment briefly on each.

Base Routines on What Children Need

Base routines on what children need, not on a skills list or sequence of lessons in materials. Think back on your own early years in school. Were you taught things you already knew? Boring, wasn’t it? How about times when the lesson was not beneficial—​too abstract, say, or not immediately useful? If you can’t think of anything, try rules for determining accents in words or using semicolons. How many times did well‐meaning teachers try to help you learn these rules? And when—​if ever—​did you finally figure the rules out so that you could use them in your reading and writing? Our point here is not to criticize past educational practices; rather, we wish to underscore the importance of basing instructional routines on what children need.

Planning needs‐based instruction begins with determining needs. Observing students, listening to them read, and even analyzing their invented spellings are good ways to do this. Talking to children can also offer useful insights. We frequently ask children, “What do you do when you come to a word that you don’t know?” “What do you do if that doesn’t work?” “What does good reading sound like?” Children’s answers, especially when considered along with samples of their oral reading, often provide on‐target direction for instruction.

Next, classroom management issues must be resolved. The odds are slim that all children will have the same needs, so teachers must think about how to coordinate several classroom activities simultaneously. We offer two pieces of advice here. First, remember that the predictable nature of routines enables children to behave independently as learners. Second, remember that the best way to practice reading, frequently what the rest of the children do while the teacher works with some, is to read.

An effective record‐keeping system is also necessary. Some teachers make notes on index cards or large computer labels. Others keep charts with children’s names down one side and skills or strategies across the top. Another alternative is to keep lists of words or skills in children’s reading portfolios and to indicate the dates on which children demonstrate proficiency. The format of the records is a matter of personal preference, but their existence is not. Teachers need a way to keep track of what children know and what instruction can promote word‐learning growth.

Is all this effort worth it? We believe that it is, for two major reasons. First, for decades scholars have searched in vain for the single best way to teach all children to read. Nothing works for everyone, so attention to individual readers’ needs is warranted. The second reason is, most likely, related to the first: children are different. Here’s how Cunningham and Allington (1999) put it:

Anyone who has ever observed how different children from the same family behave knows that all children do not learn, respond, and think in the same manner. Successful parents recognize the differences in their children and adjust their rules, routines, and interactions accordingly, in order to maximize the potential of each of their children. (p. 15)

We believe that teachers can take a lesson from parents in this regard. Providing effective instruction depends on the teacher’s ability to determine both what children need to know and how they can best learn. No predetermined list of skills or sequence of instructional material can provide this insight.

Maximize Time on Task

It almost goes without saying that children need time to read in order to become readers. We say almost because sometimes instructional time is spent doing lots of reading‐related and reading‐like activities but very little reading. Surely responding to reading and working with words or even parts of words are important, but most important is time on task—​reading connected text. Time spent reading is related to achievement in reading (Anderson, Wilson, and Fielding 1988; Postlethwaite and Ross 1992; Rupley, Wise, and Logan 1986).

The focus of children’s attention during instruction is another issue related to time. This is especially true for children who struggle as readers. Descriptions of instruction for struggling readers show lack of opportunity for and emphasis on meaningful reading (Allington 1977, 1980; McDermott 1978). Instead, less able readers were asked to focus almost exclusively on decoding. As Allington (1977) has asked, “If they don’t read much, how they ever gonna get good?”

Sometimes we’re so busy teaching that we ignore this critical issue of time on the task of reading. Observing three readers for a couple of days is one way to begin to understand how much time students spend reading. A high‐achieving reader, an average reader, and a low‐achieving reader might be selected, and the teacher might tally minutes spent reading—​not engaging in reading‐related activity, but actually reading. This quick check is sometimes a real eye‐opener.

Word‐learning activities are important, but children need plentiful and daily opportunities to read and listen to texts read aloud. After all, that’s what all the word learning is for. Besides that, both reading and listening foster fluency development.

Make It Engaging, Varied, and Fun

Many of the word‐learning activities we describe in this book have a game‐like feel to them. This is purposeful. Children learn best when they are successful and enjoy what they are doing. We want students to be readers, to see the value in reading for their lives in and out of school, and to feel confident in their abilities to solve the inevitable problems readers encounter. Enjoyable, success‐oriented word‐learning activities can support the achievement of these goals.

What makes an activity enjoyable for children? Competition can be enjoyable, but only for the winners. Struggling readers, particularly, may not enjoy competitions that they regularly lose. Opportunities to win small prizes or other forms of external motivation can also be enjoyable; however, unlike internal motivation—​doing something for personal reasons—​external motivation ceases when the particular task is concluded (Sweet and Guthrie 1996). Too many competitions or activities dependent solely on external motivation, then, are probably not advisable. Aside from these general guidelines, each teacher will probably have to decide what makes an activity enjoyable. But remember, a teacher’s enthusiasm for an activity contributes to its allure.

Opportunities to be successful are also important. The repeated readings characteristic of fluency practice have success built in. Also, divergent thinking activities like open word sorts (see Chapter 11) invite success because of the many ways to complete them. One way to ensure success, then, is to provide frequent opportunities for children to engage in open‐ended word‐learning activities. Divergent thinking activities that pose problems for children to solve will engage them actively as learners. The level of difficulty of an activity also affects the likelihood of success. Here, teachers should strive for activities that are challenging but not frustrating, neither too easy nor too difficult.

Choice is motivating for students. For diverse students, such as English language learners (ELLs) or students with special needs in reading, motivation is linked to learner empowerment (see, e.g., Guthrie and Humenick 2004; Guthrie, Rueda, Gambrell and Morrison 2009). That is, when a student has an individual goal that has an immediate value, the student is more likely to be engaged.

Note that choice is not about whether or not to do something. It is a choice between two competing options. A parent may say, “Would you like broccoli or beans?” rather than, “Would you like a vegetable?” While you plan your curriculum, think about choice. You could list several word‐sorting activities, for example, and request that each student complete two. Likewise, fluency instruction can feature choice of texts.

Make It Consistent

Whether the instructional routine is a daily event or a series of activities that take place over the course of a week, try to keep the general structure of the routine as consistent and transparent as possible. If a routine changes markedly from one day to the next, precious time will be spent in explaining and implementing the change. Many teachers’ daily sustained silent reading (SSR) periods provide a good example of this principle. When done well, SSR takes place at the same time each day. Activities are consistent—​students select a book or two to read, choose a location for reading, and engage in independent silent reading for 15 to 20 minutes. The teacher might put on some classical music to set the mood and to mask distractions. A noise may mark the end of each session, after which students spend three minutes writing summaries or responses to their reading. Finally, the teacher may ask students to discuss their reading in some brief way. With the final response, the routine ends.

Develop Home‐School Connections

One clear conclusion from five years of research supported by the National Reading Research Center relates to this principle: “Literacy learning occurs both at school and home, and connections between home and school enhance children’s learning in both environments” (Baumann and Duffy 1997, p. 21). Effective teachers realize the importance of inviting the home and community into the classroom. They know that reading is not just for school; it’s for life.

Research is clear about the uniformly positive effects of promoting home‐school partnerships. In one multinational study, parental involvement and support was the most important characteristic of schools where children achieved exceptionally well as readers (Postlethwaite and Ross 1992). Another research project looked at the relationships among classroom support, home support, and low‐income children’s achievement in reading (Snow 1991). Results show the enormous impact of both of these factors on children’s achievement (see Figure 4.1). Chapter 18 offers many ways to nurture home‐school partnerships.

Figure 4.1 Home Support, Classroom Support, and the Percentage of Children Who Achieve Success

Source: Based on Snow (1991); adapted from Cunningham and Allington (1999), p. 2.

Use a Whole‐to‐Part‐to‐Whole Model for Teaching Skills and Strategies

Learning about words and parts of words is most successful and meaningful if students first focus on whole text. A narrower highlight on words or word parts follows, after which teachers and students explore the usefulness of new knowledge—​how knowing about the ‐it family, for example, can help students solve word‐related problems in reading. This focus on problem solving for authentic purposes seems natural to children because it mirrors the way they learned oral language:

Babies use a variety of strategies to discover relationships about language and thinking. . . . ​They find ways to distinguish the sounds of language from the sounds of cars, cats, and fire engines. In order to learn they do not have to isolate these sounds. . . . ​As a consequence of using language and thought authentically children have learned to sample, infer, predict, confirm, and integrate new information into their existing linguistic and pragmatic schema. These same strategies are used by students learning to read if they are permitted to capitalize on them in the classroom and if significant written context is available. (Goodman, Watson, and Burke 1996, p. 53)

A skill becomes a strategy with purposeful use. In the final analysis word‐learning skills are useful only if students can apply them when they need to, as in the case of an unknown word. Routines designed to foster word learning should seek to develop both skills and strategies. The best way to accomplish this is to begin an instructional routine within an authentic reading context, pull from that context the skills and content to be taught, and end by returning the focus to meaningful and authentic context.

Enhancement of children’s sight vocabularies—​those words they recognize immediately without thought—​is another goal of word‐learning activities. Essentially this memorization process happens as a result of many meaningful encounters with words. We do not foster sight vocabulary growth by solely and extensively asking children to look at words in isolation, as on flash cards; instead, words become known by sight because children have seen and used them successfully in multiple contexts. Also, teachers should look for opportunities to focus children’s attention on the visual features of the words. Here are several ways to do this (also see word bank activities listed in Chapter 11):

• Ask children to locate and circle all examples of a sight word in a story they are reading.

• Place the words on word walls and practice reading the words (see Chapter 9).

• Record the words in personal or class dictionaries or add them to students’ word banks.

• Make word collages—​cut the words out of old magazines and paste on construction paper.

• Construct the words with magnetic letters; write the words in the sand tray, in finger paint, or in shaving cream.

• Play word games with the words (see Chapter 14).

Remember the Overall Goal: Grow Readers

The final principle for establishing word‐learning routines reminds us to keep word learning in perspective, not to lose the forest for the trees. As Baumann and Duffy (1997) note, “Reading skills and strategies can be taught effectively and efficiently when instruction is systematic and integrated with quality children’s literature” (p. 17). In other words, although important, instruction in words and word learning should not be the focus of the reading program. Reading aloud to children, guiding children to read texts themselves, and encouraging students to read and write independently and with one another are also essential. Next we explore some ways to plan instruction so that all these features receive the emphasis they deserve.

4.3 Types of Routines

Designing a classroom reading program involves making some decisions about using space. For example, some teachers create centers, such as a book nook for independent reading, a writing center filled with writing tools (including computers), and a words center where children can complete word‐related activities either independently or with partners. Others prefer for children to work at their tables or desks. In either case, the classroom should be organized to promote independent learning. Daily lists of things to do or simply written charts posted around the classroom can save lots of time. Children won’t have to wait for instructions; they will be able to get about the business of learning.

Teachers must also decide how to break up the larger block of reading time. In part, this decision may involve thinking about how large the instructional group will be—​Whole class? Small groups? Individual activity? Many of the activities we describe in this book can work well within any of these formats. We offer a word of caution, however, about whole‐group instruction—​for this organizational scheme to work effectively, all children must be appropriately engaged all the time. This is a time‐on‐task issue.

The Four Blocks design, developed by Pat Cunningham and her colleagues, is a particularly promising curriculum framework. (See Chapter 1 for a description of Four Blocks.) Over a decade of research has shown its effectiveness with all young learners, particularly those who struggle with learning to read (Cunningham 2006; Cunningham, Hall, and Defee 1998). We find the model useful for teachers at all grade levels. Devoting approximately equal time (Cunningham and colleagues suggest about 30 minutes each day) to each of the four blocks—​self‐selected reading, guided reading, working with words, and writing—​ensures a balanced reading and writing program that gives children ample opportunities to achieve the goals that the teacher has set.

Within each of the four blocks, teachers design smaller‐scale routines of related activities. For example, in one classroom the daily self‐selected reading routine may consist of 10 minutes of teacher read‐aloud, 15 minutes of student silent reading, and 5 minutes of writing in response journals. In another classroom, the same block may involve student silent reading for 20 minutes followed by 10 minutes of oral sharing and response.

The routines for the working with words block might consist of activities described in this book. Here’s one example:

Teachers do not need to march children through the blocks each day. Indeed, some effective lessons involve several of the blocks simultaneously. The Fluency Development Lesson (see Chapter 16) is an example, since children participate in both guided reading and word‐related activities in a brief 10‐ to 15‐minute period. Books and poetry (see Chapter 5) can be used for word family instruction, word sorts, word walls, repeated readings, and paired readings. So the point is not to shift reading‐related gears every 30 minutes; rather, when thinking about children’s learning opportunities in a day or a week, teachers should see that the various areas receive appropriate emphasis.

Over several years fourth‐grade teacher Lorraine Griffith has created a very successful 20‐ to 30‐minute daily fluency routine (Griffith and Rasinski 2004). Each week a new passage (poem, speech, readers theater script, monologue, dialogue, etc.) is introduced to small groups of students or individuals. Early in the week Lorraine models fluent readings of the texts as students follow along. As the week progresses, students read and practice the texts with partners and on their own, in school and at home, with the teacher (and parents) coaching and giving feedback and plenty of praise. On Fridays students perform their texts for the teacher, fellow students, parents, and others. The following week the routine begins again.

Griffith and Rasinski (2004) report remarkable yearly gains in reading fluency and overall reading achievement as a result of this instructional routine. Analyses of three years of data revealed that struggling fourth‐grade readers made, on average, close to three years’ growth in reading achievement in their year with her!

4.4 When Readers Struggle

Young children struggle with the learning‐to‐read process for many reasons. Some have language barriers; others have special needs. Some may have had little exposure to books and print prior to school entrance. Still others may simply be late bloomers—​children who are not yet developmentally ready to learn what the school system has designated for them. Regardless of the reasons, these children need all the support we can provide. Here, we offer several guidelines and adaptations that may help struggling readers to succeed (Cunningham and Allington 1999; Five and Dionisio 1999).

Chief among the guidelines is, we believe, to forget about the child’s age or what other children are doing and to focus instead on the struggling reader’s needs. Successful learning experiences, important for all, are doubly important for struggling readers. Teachers must focus on students’ strengths, not their weaknesses, and must plan many daily opportunities for children to succeed with reading and reading‐related activity. Sometimes this involves slowing down, allowing children time to grow and progress at their own rates. Often, teachers must find texts the child can read successfully. Other times, instructional adaptations may be necessary. For example, children might listen to an audio version of a book the class is using while reading the book. Or a buddy or tutor may read to or with the child. These strategies allow the child to be an active and successful participant in classroom activities.

Another general principle for working with struggling readers is this: keep it real. Sometimes we think that breaking reading down into minute skills or subskills will make it easier for children to learn. Not so. Some instructional programs for struggling readers even focus on shapes, pictures, or nonsense words. These are not effective: “Numerous studies have shown that matching shapes and pictures as preliminary instruction for letter and word discrimination is useless. . . . ​If we want students to visually identify the distinguishing features of letters and words, [lessons] should include letters and words, not nonword forms” (McCormick 1999, p. 477).

So what might a routine for struggling readers look like? First, it’s essential that children can successfully read most materials. More invitations to read familiar books may accomplish this goal. Moreover, careful observation, including numerous opportunities to listen to and analyze the child’s reading, will help determine the focus for instruction, which may differ from other students’ mini‐lessons. Multiple opportunities to read successfully coupled with needs‐based instruction (and frequent celebrations of success) will go a long way toward ensuring that struggling readers achieve.

Coordination is another guideline. Coordinating with other teachers, whether Title I, special education, ELL/bilingual education, or Reading Recovery, is absolutely essential. Without joint planning, what begins as an effort to provide additional assistance may result in a “confusing and unhelpful conglomeration of reading lessons and activities” (Cunningham and Allington 1999, p. 202). Some teachers accomplish coordinated instruction by team‐teaching; others plan jointly. All keep in close contact about the child’s needs and what’s happening in the child’s classroom. This close coordination pays off:

What is common among the very best programs is that children spend most of their time actually reading and writing in a way that supports classroom success. The support children receive from the specialist teacher provides immediate returns in improved reading and writing during classroom instruction. (Cunningham and Allington 1999, p. 203)

Volunteers, such as parent helpers, tutors, older students, or senior citizens, can also provide extra support for struggling readers. Before eliciting tutors’ assistance, however, teachers should decide what tutors might do and how to teach them what they need to know to work successfully with children. Many of the activities we describe in this book can easily and successfully be adapted for tutoring. For example, tutors and children can play word games, or the tutor can listen to the child read a poem, dictated account, or pattern book. Most children can make considerable progress in reading if their strong classroom program is supplemented with the extra opportunities that one‐on‐one tutoring can provide. The time it takes to plan these tutoring opportunities and to help tutors learn about their roles is well worth it in the long run.

Teaching a young child who struggles with reading is sometimes a challenge, but it can also be very rewarding because doing so gives a child the gift of literacy. Although we have no easy answers for assisting struggling readers, we agree with Five and Dionisio (1999), who note that nearly all children “can succeed when we include them as valued members of [the classroom], enable them to work and learn collaboratively with peers, build on their strengths and knowledge, and meet their individual needs through explicit instruction” (p. 5).

Response to Intervention—​RTI

In recent years a new concept called Response to Intervention (RTI) has captured the interest of educators and educational policy makers (Fuchs, Fuchs, and Vaughn 2008). Actually, RTI is not new at all; it is what good teachers have always done with students—​make needs‐based decisions about instruction. Essentially, RTI is an overarching, formalized instructional routine that aims to ensure that the instructional needs of all students are being met.

RTI assumes various levels and types of instruction to meet students’ needs. Usually this takes the form of three tiers of instruction. Tier 1 instruction is the common core curriculum provided to all students. In any given classroom most students (e.g., 80 percent) should make good progress as a result of Tier 1 instruction. Regular assessments allow teachers to determine the students who are progressing well and those who are not. Students who are not progressing move to Tier 2 instruction, which is additional targeted instruction that supplements but does not supplant Tier 1. Tier 3 adds another layer of instruction and instructional intensity for those students who are not making sufficient progress in Tier 2. Special education personnel are ordinarily involved in Tier 3 instruction.

Molly teaches third‐graders. She assesses students early in the year by asking them to read several grade‐level passages. She notices that about a third of her students appear to have word recognition and/or fluency difficulties. These students are placed in Tier 2 intervention in addition to the reading curriculum she offers to all students. In her Tier 2 instruction, children receive 15 extra instructional minutes each day. They do word sorts with high‐frequency words and engage in word‐building activities (e.g., Making and Writing Words). Molly’s home‐involvement program asks parents to do paired and repeated reading with students (Fast Start; see Chapter 18) nightly for 15 minutes. After several weeks, Molly reassesses students and adjusts instruction as needed. She finds that one or two students need Tier 3 support each year, but she notes: “Nearly all students achieve their goals. One of the things I like about RTI is that everyone gets the same curriculum. It only differs in intensity and time. I think that’s better for the children.”

In Conclusion

Michael Pressley (2002) reviewed several studies of classrooms of highly effective reading teachers, looking for commonalities. He found that these teachers:

• Had excellent classroom management

• Communicated a positive tone

• Taught skills explicitly in the context of real reading and writing

• Had lots of books available; provided lots of time for children to read real books

• Taught in very academically busy classrooms

• Used an assess—​plan—​teach model; children did what they needed to do; teachers used assessment results to make instructional decisions

• Scaffolded, monitored, and provided just the right amount of support

• Encouraged self‐regulation

• Fostered strong connections across curriculum

Teacher decision making is central to the creation of such a classroom: “There are no quick fixes with regard to improving children’s literacy. There’s no reform package that a school can buy that delivers improved achievement with certainty. The influences of packaged reforms are often uneven or small” (Pressley 2002, p. 180).

Children will learn what they have the opportunity to learn. Moreover, no one knows children’s needs and interests as readers better than their classroom teacher. For these reasons, curriculum planning must be part of the teacher’s responsibility. Effective instruction in word learning is more than just the sum of interesting and engaging activities. To plan effective instruction, the teacher must first look at the big picture—​think about beliefs and establish instructional goals. These ideas are used to develop complete programs, which are designed to make the best use of children’s time and to help them achieve the goal of proficient reading.