PROGRAMME GUIDE - Meryl-Lynn Pluck - Rainbow Reading
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PROGRAMME GUIDE Mer yl-Lynn Pluck
This edition text and artwork © 2018 Rainbow Reading Programme Ltd. Design and production by Chameleon Creative, Nelson Published 2018 by Rainbow Reading Programme Ltd. PO Box 561, Nelson, New Zealand www.rainbowreading.org.nz www.newheightsreading.com Text Copyright © Rainbow Reading 2018 ISBN 978-1-86974-622-3
Contents
Introduction..................................................................4 Assessment............................................................... 24
How to Use This Programme Guide.................................. 5 Running Records
How the New Heights Programme Works......................6 Using New Heights Assessment......................................26
Using the New Heights Programme................................. 7 Administering New Heights Assessment....................28
Scoring New Heights Assessment
Components of the New Heights Programme................8
New Heights Comprehension Check
Student Titles
Determining the Student’s Instructional Reading
Audio Support
Level..................................................................................................29
Activities............................................................................................ 9
Assessment Using a Simple Count of
Additional Resources Uncorrected Errors...................................................................31
Features of the New Heights Stages.......................... 10 Assessment Using Cloze Activities
Who Can Use the New Heights Programme?.............. 12 Fluency and the New Heights Programme......................... 32
Leveling Assessing Fluency
How to Implement the New Heights Programme........ 13 T he New Heights Programme and English
Organisation Language Learners.................................................... 34
Assessing the Student’s Starting Level Supporting English Language Learners......................35
Book Selection Managing the New Heights Programme..................... 36
Introducing the Student Handbook.................... 14 Time Required for the New Heights Programme
Using the Orientation and Conferencing Plans... 14 Students Working Outside the Classroom
Reading Practice............................................... 16 Students Working Within the Classroom
Supported Practice Using Tutors and Volunteers...............................................37
Independent Practice Managing the Resources and Equipment
Prompts for Teachers to Use During
Conferences...................................................... 17 Reading at Home with the New Heights Programme.. 38
Deciding What the Student Does Next....................... 18 Frequently Asked Questions....................................... 39
Teacher-initiated Conferences T he Research Base of Audio-facilitated Reading........ 41
Giving Written Feedback The Research Base of the
Activities........................................................... 19 New Heights Programme......................................................43
Using the Progress Graph.................................. 22 Overview Charts......................................................... 45
Using the Record of Students’ Work................... 23 References................................................................ 70
Recording Students’ Oral Reading
Acknowledgements.................................................... 71
Moving OnIntroduction
The New Heights programme is designed to use After an initial orientation with the teacher,
with students whose reading levels are below students are able to practise with the books
what is expected for their ages. The students may and accompanying audio support on their own.
be struggling or reluctant readers, or they may be Activity sheets associated with the books, which
English language learners. are on CDs, allow students to consolidate and
The New Heights programme is designed to further develop the skills they have learned while
complement rather than replace existing literacy reading.
programmes. It provides supported reading that The methods used in this programme are
consolidates skills learned elsewhere. based on extensive research and have been
Teachers are able to accurately monitor the successfully used by teachers for a number of
progress of students as their reading skills years. Evaluation in the field has linked audio-
accelerate, using assessment sheets. assisted reading methods with observable gains
in students’ literacy achievement.
Teachers can decide whether to implement New
Heights as a withdrawal programme or to use it
within the classroom.
Targeted Support for Struggling Readers
Valencia and Riddle Buly (2004) conducted research to find out what students who failed standardised
9 year old reading tests were actually doing. The following chart summarises their findings and shows
how New Heights can provide support.
Cluster Descriptors Possible Interventions New Heights provides:
Automatic word callers •• slow down reading pace and check to see •• orientations that alert students to meaning before reading
•• read words quickly and accurately but if comprehension improves •• conferences to check comprehension
fail to read for meaning •• build English vocabulary and •• activities that require understanding
•• often second language learners comprehension
•• ELL support for every book
•• audio support that models a correct pace
Struggling word callers •• instruction in decoding, oral language, •• high-interest texts with audio support
•• stronger in fluency and word and comprehension in a rich, meaningful •• individually paced instruction at appropriate difficulty levels
identification than meaning context
•• ELL support, often with instruction in decoding
•• some difficulty with word identification •• teacher or peer read-alouds and oral language
Word stumblers •• word identification and fluency with •• introductions to new or challenging vocabulary
•• slow readers emphasis on reading for meaning •• audio support and repeated readings
•• difficulty with word identification •• repeated reading •• activities that support word identification and meaning
•• audio assistance
Slow and steady comprehenders •• focus on fluency •• accuracy, comprehension, and fluency assessments to find
•• read very slowly •• reading high-interest, easy material appropriate levels
•• word identification and comprehension to build automatic word identification •• repeated readings to build confidence
relatively strong and rate •• audio support to develop pace and meaning
•• may need explicit instruction in decoding •• high-interest texts
multisyllabic words
Slow word callers •• build fluency and meaning •• repeated readings with audio support
•• accurate word callers but lack fluency •• instruction on maintaining meaning over •• a gradual increase in word length and text difficulty over
•• struggle with meaning longer texts the stages
•• extensive independent reading and •• opportunities to introduce new or challenging vocabulary
teacher read-alouds
Disabled readers •• in-depth intervention (beyond what most •• a valuable adjunct to specialist instruction
•• very low word identification classroom teachers can provide) •• audio support and repeated readings that foster
•• poor fluency •• high-interest texts at students’ confidence and fluency
instructional level •• high-interest, engaging texts
•• poor comprehension
Adapted with permission from Valencia and Riddle Buly (2004)
4How to Use This Programme Guide
The New Heights Programme Guide and CDs
provide planning and teaching support material
for the New Heights titles. They are designed
to help you plan and implement a literacy
programme that meets the individual needs of
older struggling readers or English language
learners.
This Programme Guide contains four main
sections:
1. Overview of the New Heights Programme
The first section introduces the contents
of the programme, outlines how the
programme works, and describes the
New Heights learner.
2. How to Implement the New
Heights Programme
The second section provides guidance on
implementing the programme, assessing
students, using the programme with
English language learners, managing the
programme in the classroom, and involving
family members in the programme.
3. Research
The third section describes the
methodology of the New Heights
programme.
4. Overview Charts
The fourth section provides Overview
Charts for each title that describe the skills
and strategies that can be taught using
each title.
Your Road Map
For detailed instructions on how to
implement the New Heights programme,
see pages 13 to 23.
To learn more about using the activities to
support New Heights readers, see pages
19 to 21.
To find out about assessment, see pages
24 to 33.
For information about using the New Heights
programme with English language learners, see
pages 34 to 35.
5How the New Heights Programme Works
The New Heights programme is an audio-facilitated
reading programme. The teacher assesses the
student to identify their instructional reading level,
that is, the highest level at which the student can
read with 90 to 94 percent accuracy (see page 24
for an explanation of the assessment process).
Following a brief orientation, the student practises
reading books at their instructional reading level
with audio support. The student practises with the
same book until they can read it easily without the
audio support. The student requests a conference
with the teacher, when the teacher checks for
accuracy, fluency, and a good understanding of
the text.
The teacher recommends that the student:
•• has more practice with the same book or The student keeps a record of their reading in the
with a new book at the same level; personal Student Handbook. The teacher uses a
•• does an activity to reinforce and extend the Progress Graph and a Record of the Students’ Work
skills learned while reading; or to track their progress.
•• is assessed for promotion to the next Note: Detailed instructions on how to implement
reading level. the New Heights programme start on page 13.
6Using the New Heights Programme
1. Build your understanding of the programme by reading
all the materials, including this Programme Guide.
2. Select a student who is reading below expected levels.
3. Assess the student’s starting level using an
assessment sheet.
4. When an appropriate level has been identified, help
the student to choose a book from the correct stage.
5. Orientate the student with the book.
6. The student reads the book, while listening to the
audio support, at least twice a day until they can
read the book without support.
7. The student keeps a record of their reading in their
Student Handbook, including when they have
practised with the audio support and when they
have read independently.
8. The student practises independently, reading the
book without the audio support, either silently
or aloud.
9a) If the
student reads
well, offer 9. Hold a conference with the student. 9b) If the
praise and help student needs
them to choose more practice,
another book. suggest that
10. When the student has read a sufficient number they continue
of books with increasing ease and fluency, conduct reading with
an assessment to determine whether they are ready the audio
for promotion. support or give
them one of
the activities
to complete.
7Components of the New Heights Programme
The New Heights programme is divided into stages
with increasing levels of difficulty. Each stage of the
New Heights programme comprises:
•• 20 audio-supported titles for the
students’ use
•• 2 reading pens that accompany the
supported titles
•• 1 CD with printable resources, including
teacher information and activities for each
supported title and assessment sheets
•• 1 Programme Guide
Student Titles
Twenty titles are accompanied by audio support
for the students to use for supported reading.
The books can also be used for assessment, in
conjunction with the Assessment sheets provided
on the CD.
Red Level
Activity
le Text Sequencing
Car Troub
Red Level
le Cloze Activity
Car Troub .................
Date: ......... a remote
.............. wheels and
.................. Errors with mag
.................. has to fix
it when
M S ht me a car friend,
.................. owner – but
guess who
Dad boug sister, my
Name: ......... except the my little
ontrol car
let my dad,
control. I
remote-c
with it.
the
plays with
: Everyone
play
Introduction a brother all
wrong?
bought me
things go
ping. Dad and my big on the remo
te.
I went shop ol. Red Level ed the lever
Dad and remote contr They push
On Saturday, ls and Search Activ
ity forward.
mag whee thelelever Word The car went
car it. He Car Troub
play with went .........
rd.
ed rd. ................
g forwa
Dad want forwa
................
It went racin
................
........... Date: te.
car went on the remo
remote. The
................
lever.
................
d the ................
................
pulle d the lever
on pulle ................
................
p They
Name: ................ ward over
................
................
l w backward
.
the floor. d
racing over racing back e n The car went .
. It with it.r i l g backward
backward Words can
a play f w a It went racin
car went sister want
ed
be found
n e it.
. My little
in these
rd. i n to play with
direction
went forwa
s:
g o n a I wanted
the
. The l . e d
the lever the lever l l
u y
She chair. She o backlward
p t didn’t go!
under the e v p
the lever
. The car
It went ward. It went a b I pushed car didn’
t go!
The letter
in
b it.i e t lever. The
went back be to play n u I pulled the
each square
can onlyed i e
The friend wantused in one . It t n the batte
ries.
chair. r d o I took out
under the . The car
went
word.
g m . g t
the d the t d
push ed . He pulle e o o
He table o n t o
g under l r .
went racin racin g backward h t in some new ones
. It went i t v k I put
w e h .
The car went h c ed the lever rug, I push the
n t i racing along the floor.
. e e , and over
the table w
a e e The car went r the chair ing.com
right)
e r table, unde © 2017 www.newh
eightsread
S = Syntax
(sounds
d r t under the play with
it!
uUnseen n r
Errors (makes sense)
r Now, I could
nt only) M = Meaning
Chart (Exact
word replaceme
Seen
e r I’d fixed it.
Accuracy Score
Level Heard
s t
Words Entered Independ
ent
Commen
ts:
s i car
More than
11 correct Instructio
nal
ing.com brother little
correct Frustratio
n
© 2017 www.newh
eightsread
big it
10 or 11 and play
Fewer than
10 correct
along in over
go took
Words friend on the
to find: new sister
me put with
pulled went
wanted
under rd.
car go forwa
make the
pushed to
...
................
Dad ................
to tell what
................
................
are left ................
letters that
................
................
Use the
................
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Audio Support
The reading pens contain audio files for all •• A tone change will generally indicate
supported titles in the programme. They have a change from narrative to dialogue
the following features: and vice versa.
•• The reader introduces the title, the author, •• The books are read at varying speeds,
and the illustrator or photographer of the according to their different levels of difficulty,
book. so that the student can easily read along.
•• The books are read naturally, with clarity •• There are no distracting noises on the
and expression. The reader pauses after audio support. This enables the student to
phrases so that the student can easily read concentrate on listening to the words and
along. following the text in the book.
•• Punctuation is observed; for example, there
is a brief pause when a comma occurs in
the text.
8Activities (CD) Additional Resources (CD)
Text-related activities accompany each supported Student Handbook Student Handbook ne e ghts
student title. The activities present text from the
The Student Handbook is a personal
Name: ...........................................................................................................................................................
Using a Reading Pen
Choose
books in new and refreshing ways. The five kinds
Care • Your teacher will tell you what colour books to start with.
• Look after your reading pen.
• Choose a book that interests you.
booklet for each student. It contains:
• Ask for help if you need it.
• Discuss the book with your teacher.
Read
• Press long on the power button to turn on the pen.
of activities are:
• Plug in the earbuds.
• Touch the cover with the pen. (If you touch the pages first,
the audio won’t work.)
• Now, touch the pages with the pen.
e ghts
Pause or Stop
ne
•• simple instructions on how to use
• A short press on the power button pauses the audio.
• Press long on the power button to stop.
•• cloze activities, in which the student fills in
the programme and the reading
Fold
Page 8 ne e ghts © 2017 www.newheightsreading.com Cover Page
gaps in text, for assessing and improving
pens;
comprehension;
•• simple information on how to conference
•• text-sequencing activities, in which the
with teachers;
student reads and arranges summaries
of a text in sequence, for improving •• a place for you to write helpful advice for the
comprehension skills; student;
•• word search activities, in which the student •• a place for the student to record how many
locates words that are hidden in grids, for times they practised reading a book with
improving spelling and identifying words; audio support and how many times they
read independently.
•• board game activities, in which the student
plays board games, for practising reading and Progress Graph
Progress Graph
Name: ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Using the Progress Graph
The progress graph allows you to monitor each student’s progress. To use the graph:
following instructions;
• Write the student’s name at the top.
• Record the date and the title used for assessment.
• Record the student’s level using:
to indicate that the student is reading at a frustration level (too hard);
The Progress Graph enables you to
to indicate that the student is reading at an instructional level;
to indicate that the student is reading at an independent level and can be promoted.
• Draw a line between the closed circles to show progress at an independent level
over time.
11 - 12
•• writing activities, in which the student uses record the progress of your students.
10 - 11
9 - 10
8-9
text as a model and incentive for writing, for
7-8
6-7
5.5 - 6
improving writing and reading skills. Record of Students’ Work
5 - 5.5
READING LEVEL
Date:
Date:
Date:
Date:
Date:
Date:
Date:
Date:
Date:
Date:
Date:
Date:
Date:
Date:
Date:
Title:
Title:
Title:
Title:
Title:
Title:
Title:
Title:
Title:
Title:
Title:
Title:
Title:
Title:
Title:
ne e ghts © 2017 www.newheightsreading.com
The cloze, text-sequencing, and board game The Record of Students’ Work allows
activities are designed to: you to keep track of which books each student
has read, how many times they have listened,
•• reinforce the skills learned while reading the
when they have independently read the book
text;
(without the audio), when they have conferenced,
•• provide the opportunity to revisit the text in and which activities they have completed.
different formats;
•• provide further practice in reading, Awards Awards
comprehending, and organising text. The awards provide positive
ne
ne
e ghts
e ghts
reinforcement for students as they
The word search activities provide:
progress through the New Heights
ne
•• practice in identifying words in a different ne
e ghts
e ghts
programme.
context; ne e ghts © 2017 www.newheightsreading.com
•• opportunities for searching across words in Notes for Families Take Home Notes
Using the praise, wait, and then tell method
When you listen to your child reading, please: ne e ghts
sequence. To enable families to help students
when he/she tries hard.
PRAISE
when he/she corrects mistakes.
when he/she reads with expression.
WAIT to give him/her time to work out problems or self-correct.
AND THEN
TELL your child the word that he/she is struggling with and ask him/her
to try reading again from the start of the sentence.
at home, a number of resources
REMEMBER Your child should hold the book.
If your child needs to point to keep his/her place, he/she should not point to every
word but should simply slide his/her left hand down the left margin.
The writing activities provide:
You should not point for him/her.
Ask questions about the book and discuss it so that you can check your child’s
understanding of the story.
✄
have been provided. These include: Dear .............................................................................................................................................................
Your child, ....................................................................., is taking part in the New Heights
programme at school to give him/her extra reading practice.
ne e ghts
•• opportunities to link text to writing. This
In the New Heights programme, students listen to stories as they silently read along.
This programme helps them to improve their reading and comprehension skills as well as
their attitude to reading.
•• a note explaining that their
If your child brings home a book and/or a reading pen, please follow the instructions on
the bookmark they bring with them.
If you would like to know more about the programme or would like to see it working in our
helps to improve writing and reading and
school, please contact me.
Signed ..........................................................................................................
child is taking part in the New ne e ghts © 2017 www.newheightsreading.com
allows further comprehension checks.
Heights programme;
Note: For a more detailed discussion of the •• a note explaining the “praise, wait, and then
different activities, see pages 19 to 21. tell” technique;
•• Bookmarks that explain which kind of
practice a student needs.
9Features of the New Heights Stages
The student books are colour-coded to indicate the different reading levels. The text becomes increasingly
complex, in a variety of ways, as the stages progress. The themes and language of the books have been
carefully selected to appeal to students at all levels and ages.
SILVER WHITE RED ORANGE
••5 - 5.5 year reading ••5.5 - 6 year reading ••6 - 7 year reading ••7 - 8 year reading
difficulty level; difficulty level; difficulty level; difficulty level;
••limited vocabulary ••limited vocabulary ••limited vocabulary ••high-frequency words
changes; changes within repeated changes within repeated used in preference to
sentence structures; sentence structures; more difficult vocabulary;
••repeated sentence
patterns; ••restricted variation in the ••some restricted variation ••interest vocabulary
way the same idea is in the way the same idea repeated within varying
••consistency in ways ideas expressed; is expressed; structures in the text;
are expressed;
••punctuated dialogue; ••punctuated dialogue; ••limited use of metaphors
••punctuated dialogue; and similes, clearly
••few difficult names, ••some difficult names, presented;
••simple sentences with the audio support with the audio support
containing one idea; providing a model for providing a model for ••repeated sentence
••repetition of high- pronunciation; pronunciation; structures at times;
frequency words; ••simple sentences ••simple sentences ••more use of complex
••content restricted to containing one idea containing one idea sentences;
single plot or idea; except where the story except where the story
structure is that of structure is that of a ••more use of sentences
••line breaks support a cumulative nature; cumulative nature; with embedded phrases;
fluency and ••text breaks that keep
understanding; ••high-frequency words ••high-frequency words
used in preference to used in preference to phrases intact;
••few characters; more difficult vocabulary; more difficult vocabulary; ••a greater variety of better-
••careful placement of text ••content restricted to ••content restricted to developed characters;
on page; a single plot, theme, a single plot, theme, ••more complex concepts
or idea; or idea; supported by added
••a strong picture–text
match. ••text breaks that keep ••text breaks that keep detail;
phrases intact; phrases intact; ••chapter headings, if
••few characters; ••few characters; appropriate;
••a close picture–text ••chapter headings, if ••tables of contents, if
match. appropriate; appropriate;
••tables of contents, if ••illustrations that support
appropriate; the text but do not show
every aspect.
••a close picture–text
match.
10Features of the New Heights Stages
As the stories have been carefully selected with the needs and interests of older students in mind, the
books can be used with those whose actual ages are higher than their reading ages. The books are
entertaining, informative, and educational. The aim is to provide the students with an assortment of
topics, styles, and genres from a variety of authors.
YELLOW GREEN BLUE VIOLET
••8 - 9 year reading ••9 - 10 year reading ••10 - 11 year reading ••11 - 12 year reading
difficulty level; difficulty level; difficulty level; difficulty level;
••interest vocabulary that is ••compound sentences; ••specialised language that ••increasingly difficult text
increasingly specialised; is explained; structure;
••descriptive language;
••some repetitive sentence ••in-depth explanations of ••specialised language that
structures; ••characters that are more complex subjects; is not always explained;
clearly drawn through
••compound (two- to three- dialogue and action; ••subject matter that is ••text that requires
idea) sentences; more sophisticated and increased use of
••topics that are less even less familiar; inference, analysis, and
••clear paragraphing; familiar; evaluation;
••text that requires
••concepts that are more ••more use of similes and increased use of ••subject matter, concepts,
sophisticated; metaphors; inference; and themes that are
••stories that require more ••more use of inference; increasingly sophisticated
••increasingly difficult and and complex;
use of inference; unfamiliar concepts,
••figurative language and
••better-developed wordplay; themes, and structures; ••characters with
characters and settings; multifaceted personalities
••increasing numbers ••a rich and varied and inferred motives;
••more complex plots with of multisyllabic and vocabulary with increasing
more characters; specialised words; use of specialised ••descriptive, colloquial,
vocabulary; and formal language;
••illustrations that are ••little support from
designed to enhance repetition, sentence ••descriptive, colloquial, ••rich and varied vocabulary
interpretation but do not patterns, and illustrations; and formal language; including words with
present new information; shades of meaning and
••clearly defined ••more complex character varying connotations;
••text breaks that no longer paragraphing, chapter development within
keep phrases intact; headings, tables of narratives. ••increased text density
contents, and glossaries. with clearly defined
••chapter headings, paragraphing.
tables of contents, and
glossaries, if appropriate.
11Who Can Use the New Heights Programme?
The New Heights programme is specifically Leveling
targeted to meet the needs and interests of
struggling or reluctant readers and English Books have been leveled and allocated to stages
language learners. Such students need practice using a variety of methods, which include:
at their instructional reading level (the highest
•• field testing texts with students of the target
level that they can read with 90 to 94 percent
reading and chronological age.
accuracy) to gain confidence and the skills that
will enable them to reach appropriate levels. Once •• the Elley noun count. This method assesses
they have caught up, they need further practice at the reading difficulty of a text, which is
their newly acquired level to consolidate the gains expressed in terms of a suitable age level
they have made. for readability, such as 8–9 years. Nouns
were graded according to how frequently
The New Heights programme is designed for
they occurred in samples of writing from
struggling readers who have attained some basic
children of different ages. A calculation
reading skills. The students using the programme
formula was applied and a mean noun
(including English language learners) must:
frequency rating obtained (Elley and Croft,
•• be able to recognise the English alphabet 1989).
and know how each letter sounds;
•• the professional judgment of a variety of
•• be able to recognise the basic high- teachers, consultants, and publishers.
frequency words;
Books are not leveled within stages as many
With a minimum of organisation, New Heights can factors, some exclusive to the individual student
be used as a supplement to the regular reading such as interest and background knowledge,
programme with: affect the readability of the books for struggling
•• individuals; readers and English language learners. You
should use your knowledge of the students and
•• groups; the books to guide your recommendation of titles
•• students from non-English-speaking to different readers. When students are expected
backgrounds; to read independently, they should use texts from
the lower levels. Because of the audio support
•• students in special programmes with reading
provided, you can use your discretion to allocate
support teachers, English language learner
books flexibly. Some students may simply need
(ELL) teachers, and special needs teachers.
more practice, with or without the audio support,
Such students will make even greater gains in when books are a little difficult for them.
their reading when their lessons are reinforced
by the New Heights programme. As these
students increase their reading mileage, both Colour Text Length Equivalent Student
with and without audio support, they practise and (words) Reading Interest
consolidate the skills they have learned during Difficulty Level
reading lessons.
Silver 100 - 150 5 - 5.5 years 6 years +
The programme can also be used in regular
White 130 - 175 5.5 - 6 years 6 years +
classrooms with the regular teacher.
Paraprofessionals may be able to assist in Red 150 - 300 6 - 7 years 7 years +
implementing the programme, but they will need Orange 200 - 400 7 - 8 years 8 years +
to be supervised by a trained teacher who can
give advice about the students’ starting levels Yellow 400 - 550 8 - 9 years 9 years +
and their readiness for promotion. Green 500 - 700 9 - 10 years 10 years +
Blue 650 - 900 10 - 11 years 11 years +
Violet 900 - 1200 11 - 12 years 12 years +
12How to Implement the New Heights Programme
Organisation
For each student, print out from the CD:
•• the relevant New Heights Running Record (for
the teacher’s use, not the student’s);
•• the Student Handbook;
•• Bookmarks;
•• Take-home Notes;
•• the activities associated with the chosen
book that you think the student might need.
(Not all the students will need to do all the
activities.)
Note: See pages 36 to 37 for a comprehensive
discussion of how to manage the New Heights
programme.
Assessing the Student’s Starting
The New Heights programme is designed Level
to supplement rather than replace existing
classroom and special reading programmes. It is recommended that teachers using the
programme use Running Records to assess
The New Heights programme is based on the the appropriate starting level for each student.
following beliefs: However, if you do not feel confident using this
•• Reading programmes should be student- procedure, use a New Heights assessment sheet,
centred. assess students by taking a simple count of
uncorrected errors, or use the cloze activity. The
•• Reading for meaning is paramount. chapter entitled Assessment (pages 24 to 31)
•• Literacy learning must be worthwhile. describes these procedures.
•• Reading and writing are powerful tools
for learning.
Book Selection
•• The best approach to teaching reading and Help the student to choose a book from the
writing is a combination of approaches. appropriate stage that relates to their interests
and/or prior knowledge.
•• Careful assessment of students’ literacy
learning is integral to sound teaching.
•• Reading and writing flourish in a supportive
environment.
(Reading for Life, page 6)
Underachieving students need more reading
practice than most students, and the New
Heights programme provides many opportunities
for them to read in a supported environment.
Whether a student’s reading programme uses
basal readers, guided reading, or any other
approach, the New Heights programme will be
of immense benefit as it provides high-interest,
supported reading that consolidates skills
learned elsewhere.
13Introducing the Student Student Handbook
ne e ghts
Handbook
Name: ........................
Using a Read
ing Pen
........................
........................
•• Give each student a personalCacopy
re
of the ........................
........................
........................
...........
Student Handbook. These should be
• Look after you printed
r reading pen.
Choose
• Ask for help • Your teacher
if you need it.
out from the CD (Additional Resources
Read • Choose a boo
will tell you wha
k that interests
t colour books
to star t with.
you.
folder). • Press long on
the power button
to turn on the
pen.
• Discuss the
book with your
teacher.
• Plug in the ear
buds.
•• Show the student the different parts of the • Touch the cov
the audio won
er with the pen
’t work.)
. (If you touch the
pages first,
handbook, including where to record the • Now, touch the
pages with the
pen.
Pause or Stop
books read and the number• Aof shortpractices,
press on the pow
er button pauses
the information about conferences, and
e ghts
the audio.
ne
• Press long on
the pow er button to stop
.
the space where you will write advice after
conferences.
Page 8
•• Explain how the student should record their
Fold
practices.
ne e ghts © 2017 www
.new heightsreading.
com Cover Page
In the record of practices, the student writes the
title of the book. Each time they practise reading kind of practice the student is doing and how often
the book with the audio support, they should it is occurring. Most students can manage their
enter the date. When they practise reading the own record keeping. This should be encouraged as
book without the audio suport, they should write it fosters independence and self-management.
the date and circle it. This will inform you of the
Using the Orientation and Conferencing Plans
Before a student practises reading a book, they •• pose a question or encourage the student to
should be orientated to the story by means of a make a prediction and then challenge them
short introduction (up to five minutes). Refer to to find the answer during the reading;
the Orientation and Conferencing Plan (OCP) for •• ask the student to formulate questions
each book. (See the Activities folder on the CD.
about the book or topic before, during, and
The activities for each book are preceded by an
after they read. To find the answers, they
OCP.)
should discuss these questions with you or
An orientation serves to: others after the reading or refer to the library
•• activate prior knowledge; or Internet. (Please note: The student asks
•• foster interest; the questions silently, noting them on paper
•• help the student to predict what they are if they need to.)
about to read; When the students are English language learners,
•• facilitate understanding and enjoyment. the orientation could, if possible, be in their first
Any potentially difficult terms and concepts can be language. If this is not possible, a more detailed
discussed during the orientation. The OCPs and orientation may be needed to ensure that these
overview charts often provide specific examples students are well familiarised with the terms and
from each book. concepts they will meet in the book.
You read the summary aloud to the student. You If time or organisation prevents individual
should be familiar with the book that is being orientation, alternatives may include:
introduced to the student.
•• allowing the student to listen to the audio
During the orientation: support while looking at the illustrations
•• tell the student the title of the book; without reading along;
•• read the book summary; •• asking another student who has read the
•• talk about the illustrations, including the one book to discuss the story with the student.
on the cover; Students who tutor others may require
•• encourage as much conversation from the special training in how to do this if the
student as possible; situation is likely to recur.
14The OCPs include standard reminders to teachers. Once you are familiar
with the procedure, you may not need to refer to the OCPs as often.
Material that is unique to each book is indented. All OCPs have the
features shown below.
Comprehension Questions and Answers to the Comprehension
Questions
The main points of the story are addressed using open questions. The first
three questions require the student to recall information from the story.
The next two questions require the student to use the reading strategy of
inference.
Book Summary
To be read aloud
to the student
to capture their
interest and let
them know what
the book is about.
Introduction
• A standard
sentence
reminding you
of the main Supporting
points to be English
covered during Language
an introduction. Learners
• A paragraph A dedicated
specific to each section
book, giving containing
background background
information, information for
explaining teachers and
specialised activities that
vocabulary, will provide
and/or extra support for
suggesting English language
points for learners. (The
discussion. skills in these
activities
correlate to ELL
standards.)
Conferencing
A standard
reminder of the
procedure to be
followed when
the student has
requested a
conference.
15Reading Practice
Supported Practice •• Write the date on the table in their handbook
alongside the book title each time they
After a student has been orientated to a new
practise with the audio support.
story, they take the book and audio support to the
reading area for supported reading practice. •• Write the date and circle it each time they
practise independently without the audio
The student follows the steps as outlined in the
support.
Student Handbook.
The student should: Independent Practice
•• Listen to the story and read along with their
Once the student decides that they are able to
eyes (not voice) at least twice a day until they
read the story well without audio support (typically
feel they can read it alone.
after four to 10 practices), they read independently
–– Reading at this stage should be silent without the audio support, either silently or aloud,
so that the audio support can be heard and then decide whether to:
clearly.
•• do more practice with or without the audio
–– Pointing to each word or covering any text support;
should be discouraged as these interfere
•• complete an activity; or
with fluency, rereading, or reading on. A
finger of the left hand moving down the •• request a conference with the teacher.
left margin could be used as an interim
measure to help the student follow the text.
Conferences
Conferences are usually informal meetings in which to allow them time to solve problems
the student reads all or part of the book they have independently;
been practising to you in a private situation. The •• praise if the student does solve a problem
student also answers questions that demonstrate independently or employs a useful strategy to
their understanding of the book. Conferences may help solve the problem;
be initiated by the student or you.
•• check for accuracy (by counting mistakes) and
Typical conferences: fluency.
•• last between three and six minutes; If the student can’t solve a problem after five
•• are positive and rewarding for the student; seconds, you should:
•• are long enough for you to hear the student •• discern which kind of problem the student is
read the entire book when they are reading experiencing;
shorter texts at the lower reading levels; •• decide which kind of prompt would be useful;
•• are long enough for you to hear parts of the •• prompt the student. (See page 17.)
longer books. With these books at the higher
When the student has finished reading the book,
levels, the student chooses a piece to read,
check for understanding by:
and then you select a piece. To minimise
confusion, it is advisable for the student to •• asking the comprehension questions provided
start reading at the beginning of the text. on the OCP (and any others that seem
You will need to summarise or question the necessary);
student to bridge the gap between where they •• asking the student to retell the story in their
finish reading and where you want the next own words;
reading to begin. •• asking questions about and discussing
While the student reads the book, you: aspects of the story, such as theme, plot,
main ideas, sequence, and characters;
•• praise occasionally for fluent reading and
•• confirming predictions made during the
using strategies appropriately and well;
orientation.
•• pause when the student makes an error
16Prompts for Teachers to Use Prompts for Syntax and Structure
During Conferences A student may need prompting if they make an
error in syntax and structure. If what the student
You should always remain as detached as reads is syntactically incorrect, for example,
possible so that students solve problems they read “My dad drive a truck” instead of “My
independently. Do not give any comment or prompt dad drives a truck,” they have used a word level
until a student has had time to make an attempt strategy and possibly meaning. You will then
or to self-correct. Your role is to encourage the need to help them use what they know about
student to attend to the cues they have missed so the English language (possibly from hearing it on
that they begin to cross-check and integrate cues the audio support). That is, the student needs to
for themselves. Avoid repeating the student’s error attend to syntax and/or structure. The prompts
as this will be what they remember and correction used in this instance might include:
will become more difficult. After two unsuccessful •• “Did that sound right?”
prompts, tell the student the word.
•• “Is that how we say it in English?”
•• “Try that again and think about what would
“Try That Again” Prompt
sound right.”
A useful prompt is the “try that again” prompt.
•• “Try that again and think about how we say it
Use this when you think the student has become
correctly.”
confused and you consider they may be able to
solve the problem by rerunning their reading from
the beginning of the sentence. “Try that again”
Prompts for Visual Cues
gives minimal help, but it signals to the student Students may need prompts that encourage them
that something is wrong and it would be advisable to attend to visual (graphophonic) cues. If the
to make another attempt by rereading. student’s error makes sense and is grammatically
correct, for example, they read “My dad drives
“Try that again” can also be used with the
a van” instead of “My dad drives a truck,” help
following prompts, cuing the student to try again
them attend to the visual aspects of the text or to
and suggesting that it would be advisable to
use their knowledge of letter–sound relationships
attend to meaning, structure, and/or visual cues.
by using prompts that focus on the way the word
looks. The prompts used might include:
Prompts for Meaning
•• “Does that look right?”
A student may need prompting if they make an
error in meaning. For example, if the student reads •• “Try that again and think what word would
“My dad drives a track” instead of “My dad drives look right.”
a truck,” they have used a word level strategy •• “Try that again and make sure this word
and possibly syntax. You will then need to help looks right.”
them make sense of the sentence based on the
context. That is, the student needs to attend to Prompt for Cross-checking and Using
meaning. Multiple Cue Sources
Some prompts might include: The prompt that encourages cross-checking and
•• “Did that make sense?” paying attention to more than one source of cues
•• “Is that really what the dad drives?” is: “Try that again and think about what would
sound right and look right.”
•• “Try that again and think about what the dad
drives.”
For English language learners, you could say “Try
that again and think about how it was said on
the reading pen” or simply “In English, we say
‘My dad drives a truck’” as the student may not
have enough knowledge of English to work it out
independently. These points also apply to prompts
for syntax and structure.
17Deciding What the Although most conferences do not involve formal
assessment, you may choose to occasionally use
Student Does Next an Assessment sheet on the CD (Assessment
folder) in order to assess:
•• accuracy
At the end of the conference, advise the student
what to do next and write a comment in their •• self-correction rate
handbook. •• cues used and neglected
•• If the student reads easily and fluently •• comprehension.
with good comprehension, offer praise and
help them to choose another story from In this case, you should request the conference
the current stage. The easy, conferenced before the student has listened to the audio
books can now be used in the classroom or support of the book many times. (Sometimes it
taken home by the student for independent will be before the student has listened at all.)
reading. No teaching should take place during an
•• If the student does not read easily and assessment conference until the assessment is
fluently, give positive advice and ask them to complete.
continue practising with the same book (and Use the orientation and conferencing information
maybe the audio support) for a little longer provided on the OCPs.
before returning for another conference.
•• If fluency and/or comprehension are poor,
further discussion and practice should take Giving Written Feedback
place. Alternatively, you could recommend The Student Handbook contains a page for you to
the text-related activities to a student who write helpful advice after a conference. Examples
needs to work further on the text. The cloze of comments include:
activities, text-sequencing activities, and •• “Great reading. Interesting voice. When it
board games give the students additional doesn’t sound right, try to fix it up yourself.
opportunities to work on different formats of Have one more practice without the reading
the text. pen.”
•• If the student’s fluency when reading is poor, •• “Well done – you are noticing when you
then you should recommend further practice make a mistake, and you are correcting
with the audio support. Students with poor yourself. Choose a new book from the same
fluency should be instructed to read “like the stage.”
voice on the reading pen” or to make their
reading “sound like talking.” •• “You’re doing well. Listen one more time and
do the cloze activity. This will help you to
think about what makes sense.”
Teacher-initiated Conferences •• “Your reading is really improving. Do the
From time to time, you’ll want to know how a word search to help you read some of the
student is managing a text before it has been tricky words.”
thoroughly practised in order to: •• “Fantastic! You’ve listened once, and it was
•• find out the kind of miscues the student easy. Try reading another book without the
is making; reading pen. Tomorrow, we will check how
well you can read a book from the next
•• find out what cues the student is attending
stage.”
to;
A template for award certificates is provided on
•• find out what strategies the student is using
the CD (Additional Resources folder). Good times
on a book they have not yet mastered;
to present these include when a student has
•• teach skills or strategies in which you believe worked consistently well, moved to a new level, or
the student is not yet proficient. achieved a personal goal.
18Activities Cloze Activities
Students learn to read by reading, and no “Cloze” activities, in
activity can substitute for the valuable skills which the student fills
learned from interaction with meaningful gaps in a text, are
text. Some activities can, however, extend useful for improving
and enrich the skills learned during reading. comprehension. You
The activities in the New Heights programme may use copies of
have been designed for maximum educational the activities for
advantage, but it is not intended that every assessment purposes,
student should complete every activity for and students may use
every book. Activities can be used: them for reading practice.
•• for practice in the classroom and at The first part of each New Heights title (enough
home; or to allow for 25 gaps in the text) is featured. After
•• when you believe that the student needs the first sentence, every fifth word is deleted for
further practice with the text but they are the students to fill in. Proper nouns (such as Drew,
reluctant to read the book again. Sarah, Francisco) and words that are difficult to
predict are excluded from this procedure, and a
There are five kinds of activities:
neighbouring word has been deleted instead. In
•• cloze Silver level, there are fewer gaps in the text and
•• text sequencing additional picture support is provided.
•• word search Cloze activities can be used in a variety of ways,
for various purposes, as described below. This is
•• board game not a copying exercise, so the student should not
•• writing. have access to the corresponding book.
The layout of the text on the activity sheets
Comprehension Check
differs from the corresponding books, where
text size, pictures, and layout are appropriate •• Use cloze activities after reading as a
to the different reading levels. Because of comprehension check that will assist
these differences, for other reading-based with diagnosing the student’s strengths
activities, students should read from the and weaknesses in using semantics and
books and not from the activity sheets. structure cues when reading. By analysing
the kinds of answers the student gives, you
Activity sheets are provided in the Activities will be able to make decisions about what
folder on the CD. they need to learn and the books they can
Note: If you copy the text-sequencing sheets read in the future that might help to address
and games onto colored card stock and/or those needs. See page 31 for a detailed
laminate them, they can be used many times. discussion of how to use cloze activities for
assessment.
Practice
•• Use cloze activities to encourage the
student to use meaning and structure cues
and to predict language structure, using
context cues, when reading. Group work
can be beneficial, with discussion enabling
low-achieving students to hear more able
readers explain how they use context as an
aid to understanding a text.
19Text-Sequencing Activities Word Search Activities
Text-sequencing Word search activities
activities feature require the student
text from the to locate words that
titles presented have been hidden in
in summary a grid of letters. This
form for the provides practice in:
student to read •• recognising
and arrange in words in
sequence. These a different
activities provide context;
a powerful means
for developing •• spelling words;
and checking •• searching for
comprehension and words in
reading for meaning. a sequence.
To prepare the activity, copy the self-checking Words from the titles have been hidden in grids
message on the back, cut the sheet along the of different sizes that correlate with the reading
marked lines. Present the pieces as an activity levels of the books. The word search activities
to the students after they have practised reading have the following features:
the corresponding book.
•• Because the student needs to remember
them this way, words are written only:
–– from left to right (across or diagonally); or
–– from top to bottom (down).
•• All the letters are lowercase.
•• Every word in every grid has its own set
of letters, that is, letters are not shared with
any other word.
•• The letters that are left after all the
words have been found form another word
from the book. A clue is given for this extra
word.
•• At the earlier levels (especially Silver, White
and Red), high-frequency words feature more
often than interest or content words.
•• As the levels become progressively more
difficult, interest or content words are
introduced with increasing frequency.
•• Answers are provided in the Activities folder
on the CD.
•• A blank Word Search template is provided in
the Additional Resources folder on the CD
for any teachers or students who wish to
make their own word search activities.
20You can also read
