SIERRA

Developing Language and Literacy Case Study

Sierra
Sierra is a 7-year-old girl in the 2nd grade. She is the second of three children. Has long blonde hair and dimples, she is of average height and weight for her age. Sierra is of English and Irish descent her skin is fair however she says that she tans easily. Her mom refers to her as her mini mamma. Sierra spends most days working on schoolwork, which she is very happy and diligent to do. She has chores around the house, like cleaning and organizing the schoolroom and feeding Kona their sweet black lab. Sierra also participates in extra curricular activities like; American Heritage Girls (AHG), hula, soccer and swimming. Outside of academic and extracurricular activities sierra and her younger sister spend a lot of time playing dress up with their build a bear collection and making crafts. Sierra has many friends in all walks of her life from the groups to which she belongs to being very close with her siblings and also playing with the other children living on their block. Sierra is a well-rounded young lady who also has a very special and compassionate heart; she can be caught supporting her sister, asking for ways to assist her mother or making something special for a friend.

Instructional Environment
Sierra is a home school student Her family has been participating in a Home school co-op for almost a year. Her parents made the decision to home school before they moved to Hawaii to prepare for the coming year because it gave the family more freedom during the week and allowed them to spend the time they had, together. Sierras mother Lynelle is a highly motivated home school parent, she is constantly reading literature by homeschooling theorists, reviewing curriculum, and seeking out alternative avenues to learning for her kids. Sierras instructional environment is usually flexible, she is allowed to complete her schoolwork wherever she sees fit in the home, but is expected to complete her work during a certain period of the day concurrent with her siblings. Other times, the family packs up and heads to the beach to explore the coral or to the museum for a day trip.

Classroom Observation
I arrived at the house in the morning at 8am, at which point the children had just finished their chores and were having breakfast. While the kids had breakfast, I interviewed Sierra and had a chat with her mom. After they were finished eating their mother told them it was time to get their school work done. Sierra put her plate in the sink and went into her cubby to get her school books. I followed her to a table upstairs which was specifically set up for school work. It was in the loft space on the second floor of the home. Surrounded by shelves full of books and drawers full of school supplies. There was art and assignments showcased near pictures of family and friends on the walls. The room also had couches and a computer nook in the back corner. Sierra sat quietly across from her younger sister and they each worked on their work silently. At a few points the younger sister needed help reading instructions for her assignments, she opted to ask Sierra rather than ask her Mom. Sierra had a question at one point and went downstairs to ask her mom for help. The rest of the time she did her work quietly. This went on for a little over an hour. Sierra worked from two books, one was for language arts and one was for Math. When she was finished she went down stairs to ask her mother what she should do next. Lynelle, asked her about her work for classical conversations co-op for that week. Sierra said that she was finished with it but she did need to color a map. So, Sierra went up to the school room and got color pencils and colored the map according to the countries. Then she reviewed a song that put the countries names to song for memory. Most of sierras work was independent unless she had a question. Then she listened to her mother read a story and answered questions. Sierra answered all of the questions correctly. Then the school day was done. The total time that they worked was 3 hours. When she was finished Sierra was allowed to do what she wanted but no TV. Sierra opted to work on a badge for AHG.

Interview
Do you like to read? Yes What are your favorite kinds of books? Silly books that are funny

Do you read mostly alone or with other people? I read alone for school work and read books with my mom and dad
How often do you read? Every day, I read lots of stuff.

What kind of reading activities are you doing in school? Um, I read my phonics books for school, I read before bed with my dad, I read for my sister where her homework tells her what to do.

Previous Assessment
Sierras reading level has not been tested since the family moved to the island of Oahu.

However the homework she is expected to do is from a 2nd grade curriculum.

Analysis
Syllabic Analysis

Accuracy 81.3%

Words107 Errors 20

Self correction rate 1:5

Below 90% these texts have too many challenges for the child to read

Students identify some words by associating them with words they already know. This procedure is known as decoding by analogy. This word identification strategy is dependant students phonological knowledge. Students who can break word into onsets rimes and substitute sounds in words are more successful than those who cannot (Tompkins 167).

Accuracy 81.3%

Analysis

Words107 Errors 20

Self correction rate 1:5

Below 90% these texts have too many challenges for the child to read

After completing the running record assessment, taking notes and listening for cues, I did the count and input the numbers to find that Sierra scored 81.3%. When referring to the understanding percentages section in the instructions for how to take running records, I found that Sierras percentage left her below the comfortable reading level. She scored below a 90% which is detailed as, these texts have too many challenges for this child to read. I feel like the most common mistake that Sierra made was guessing a word because she recognized the first letter or two. This is an example of a visual cueing system. Sierra does have the inclination to pause on words that she guesses, as though she knows that she is going to be wrong, then when she reads the word incorrectly she continues quickly to the next word. Perhaps trying to move forward before the audience realizes it was an error. What I did notice about Sierras reading that was extremely positive was her fluency and inflection. She seemed to know how to pace her phrases in this rhyming book, her voice went higher as she came upon a question mark, she even made a scolding voice when the dinosaur was naughty. There was a point in the story when the word broccoli was to be read and just to make sure Sierra checked the picture to be sure it was broccoli. In all of this Sierras self correction rate was 1:5 which shows that Sierra is using self monitoring an decoding strategies while she reads. This is a positive deduction, however her score is still low. Too low in fact for her to be truly comprehending the story being read, this means that she will need some supportive strategy to progress her toward fluency.

Recommendation For a Plan of Action

My suggestion for a teaching strategy for Sierra is to build on her knowledge of diagraphs and word blends. Sierra knew how to sound out the first few letters in unknown words but she quickly gave up to move on to words that she knew more fluently, especially in the case of words that had more than one syllable. I recommend some word building strategies, which would be a fun way to practice reading through words with the same beginning or ending. Sierra is a highly active student who is accustomed to learning in every day activities. For this reason, I have selected a few different activities that meet her interests, which will be more motivating than filling out a work sheet or reading from a book. The idea that I had was for Sierra to make a craft, I chose 4 different craft ideas that sierra could make and then practice a couple of times a week with her mom.

Action

Date

Practice

Whom

Materials
Running Records Form appropriate literature

Example

Assessment of reading level

Dec 3 rd

45 min

Assessor

Create a Diagraph Wheel

Jan 20th 30 min

20 min 3X pr/wk

Sierra with Teacher

Paper Markers Brads

Create a Diagraph Roll

Jan 27th 30 min

20 min 3x pr/wk

Sierra with Teacher

Cardboard rolls markers

Create a Diagraph Window chart

Feb 3 30 min

20 min 3x pr/wk

Sierra with Teacher

Paint chips Square punch/scissors markers

Create a Phonics Flip Book

Feb 10 30 min

20 min 3x pr/wk

Sierra with Teacher

Spiral note pad/book pen

Works Cited
Tompkins, G. E. . Literacy for the 21st century, a balanced approach. 4th. upper saddle river, new jersey: Pearson Merril prentice hall, 2006. 167-168. print. Personal Interview, Sierra McElhannon. 12/3/13 Personal Interview, Lynelle McElhannon. 12/3/13

2006 Pearson Achievement Solutions. Running Records. Co-nect Professional Development. <http://exchange.co- nect.net>