Part 1 Project Description
Read- to have such knowledge of (a language) as to be able to understand things written http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/read If gaining understanding is the definition of what reading is then it is the crucial to focus on making sure the students gain understanding.
I t.each at the Phoenix Science and Technology Center in Buena Vista School District. Our school receives 100 percent free lunch. This means that I work in a district whose students live below the poverty line and who have unique and difficult challenges. Eighty percent of our students read below grade level and approximately thirty percent of our eight grade students are below the 25 percentile. This means those students are at least two years behind their present grade level. The students often lack experiences and do not have the prior knowledge needed to understand new topics. If students do not have the prior knowledge they struggle to understand the new information.
What I hope to see through the use of implementing and activating prior knowledge is that the students will increase their reading comprehension level by at least 20 percent. I am required to use Study Island to help the students, but while this has helped some of the students have success in their language arts class, they are only making limited success on their Aimsweb benchmark test. The present success rate is not enough to get students who are below grade level back at grade level.
I will use distance learning field trips, you tube videos, kindle touch, digital cameras, video cameras, mind maps, graphic organizers, and various web 2.0 sites.
The students in the 25 percentile and below will have additional differentiated lessons but all students will take part in the introduction of prior knowledge lesson.
Through the use of study Island I will be able to compare their scores to the
scores of the last two years in order to ascertain if this intervention has worked.
In addition I will have the students blog at least three times a week, to better
understand their learning. Using Popplet, students will be able to organize their thinking in a concept map.
Aimsweb will be used for benchmark testing for all students and progress monitoring for those students below the 25 percentile.