Certify Teacher Content EC-6 ELA

Suitable for the age of the learner, as in materials and activities. (Material on Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development is helpful here).

American Psychological Association's standards for documentation and format of written texts.

An experience that fits "the original pattern or model of which all things of the same type are representations or copies." A human experience shared by all regardless of gender, culture, ethnicity, class, etc., e.g., quest for happiness, birth, and death.

A form of discourse, the purpose of which is to convince a reader or hearer by establishing the truth or falsity of a proposition. It is often combined with exposition. It differs from exposition technically in its aim, exposition being content with simply making an explanation. Taking a position and persuasive essays are forms of argumentation.

The ability to differentiate and recognize sounds. A child can respond appropriately to a request for a "bat" as opposed to a "ball," because the child can hear the difference in the final phoneme of each word.

An understanding of author's intention, style and presentation, and impact on audience.

The reader's prior knowledge about a topic. Readers create meaning when prior knowledge is integrated with new knowledge. When students can draw upon their experiences and background knowledge, their understanding is enhanced, and reading comprehension is greatly improved. To relate unfamiliar text to their prior world knowledge and/or personal experience—those connections generally take three forms: text-to-self connections; text-to-text connections; and text-to- world connections.

Is the combination of individual sounds, as when the teacher asks what /c/, /a/, /t/ spell and a student replies "cat."

Benjamin Bloom created this taxonomy for categorizing the level of abstraction of questions that commonly occur in educational settings. The taxonomy provides a useful structure in which to categorize questions in order to direct student thinking to appropriate levels.

Observation and recall of information; knowledge of dates, events, places; knowledge of major ideas; mastery of subject matter. Question Cues: list, define, tell, describe, identify, show, label, collect, examine, tabulate, quote, name, who, when, where, etc.

Understanding information; grasping meaning; translating knowledge into new context; interpreting facts, comparing, contrasting; ordering, grouping, inferring causes; predicting consequences. Question Cues: summarize, describe, interpret, contrast, predict, associate, distinguish, estimate, differentiate, discuss, extend.

Use of information; using methods, concepts, theories in new situations; solving problems using required skills or knowledge. Question Cues: apply, demonstrate, calculate, complete, illustrate, show, solve, examine, modify, relate, change, classify, experiment, discover.

Seeing patterns; organization of parts; recognition of hidden meanings; identification of components. Question Cues :analyze, separate, order, explain, connect, classify, arrange, divide, compare, select, explain, infer.

Use of old ideas to create new ones; generalization from given facts; relating knowledge from several areas predicting, drawing conclusions. Question Cues: combine, integrate, modify, rearrange, substitute, plan, create, design, invent, what if?, compose, formulate, prepare, generalize, rewrite.

Comparison and discrimination between and among; assessing value of theories, presentations; making choices based on reasoned argument; verifying value of evidence; recognizing subjectivity. Question Cues: assess, decide, rank, grade, test, measure, recommend, convince, select, judge, explain, discriminate, support, conclude, compare, summarize.

The force behind an effect or result. Cause/effect is an expository text structure.

Components of texts that make them similar to other texts in a particular genre, for example, title page, table of contents, glossary, boldface headings, and index for informational texts.

Students and teacher reading aloud from a text as the teacher models fluency and expression. This reading in unison helps children understand that print is speech written down as they hear the patterns of language and see the words. Choral reading also develops sight word vocabulary.

Texts that have remained important since a considerably earlier time because of their literary merit.

Events, objects, and practices of significance to all people in a particular culture as a result of their common history.

Texts that are clearly not classical but are more significant in literary history than those termed currently popular.

Context is the most helpful tool students use to unlock the meaning of print. This meaning comes from the words themselves, the word order, and the combination of the words. Children need to examine the context and then predict a word or word approximation that makes sense in the sentence.

Accepted practices in spoken or written language, such as rules for grammar and language; "mechanics" in/of writing.

MEAP multiple choice questions which are inferential in nature and focus on important ideas in the selection. Students are required to stand apart from the text and analyze and evaluate the quality, effectiveness, relevance, and consistency of the message, rhetorical features, motivation of the author/character, and the author's purpose and credibility.

Used to understand and evaluate the content of what someone is saying.

Personal, shared, and academic criteria for judging the quality of oral, written, and visual texts. It is the label for Content Standard 12.

There are three interrelated signals or systems used in the reading process: • Semantic (meaning related) - semantic cues refer to the meaning attached to individual words and the interrelationships of words (knowledge of language). Readers use semantic cues to make sense of the text. • Syntactic (structural or grammar related) - syntactic cues concern the order of words in phrases and sentences. Readers use syntactic cues to predict and confirm words. • Graphphonic (visual or letter related) - Readers use graphphonic or visual cues to identify and associate print with letter sounds.

Final product/outcome, usually referring to an end-of-semester, end-of-course, or end-of-high-school assessment task.

Strategies used to assist in the pronunciation of unknown words.

A form of discourse, the purpose of which is to picture a scene or setting. Though often used apart for its own sake, it more frequently is subordinated to one of the other types of writing; especially to narration, with which it most frequently goes hand in hand.

Refers to the conversations between a teacher and students about a story that lhas just been read.

List of basic sight words most frequently used in the English language.

A reading activity used to guide students to activate prior knowledge, make informed guesses as to what the text might contain, and determine a purpose for reading. (See the Michigan Reading Association Reading Bookmarks for further information.)

An expository text structure in which ideas are listed in a prescribed order.

A long narrative poem, usually about the great deeds of a folk hero, stated in lofty, elevated language, as homer's Iliad.

Study of the origin and historical development of words.

Making assumptions and assertions about the content and merit of text that is supported and expressed.

Assumptions and assertions about the content and merit of written text (by self and others) that is supported and expressed.

A form of discourse, the purpose of which is to explain the nature of an object, an idea, or a theme. Exposition may exist apart from the other types of composition, but frequently two or more of the types are blended, description aiding exposition, argument being supported by exposition, narration reinforcing by example an exposition.

Text that is written by authors to explain, to describe, to present information, or to persuade. Expository text is subject- oriented and contains facts and information using little dialogue. Examples of expository text structures: Compare/contrast, cause/effect, enumeration, classification, chronology, problem solving.

A category of artistic, musical, or literary composition characterized by a particular style, form, or content; in English Language Arts, the type of text. The two main categories separating the different genres in English Language Arts are fiction and nonfiction.

Understanding text as a whole by extracting and inferring information (getting the gist).

An approach for teaching reading and writing strategies to students, it incorporates teacher modeling, guided practice, independent practice, and application of the strategies in authentic contests.

Visual organizer, such as a story map, web, chart, or diagram, used to create a visual organization of ideas.

The teacher works with a small homogeneous group of students, guiding them through a selected text and helping them develop and practice reading strategies. In guided reading, the text is carefully chosen for the students and each child has a copy. Students and teacher read together and the teacher stops briefly to give direct instruction.

Presentation software that uses a card stack format.

Selection of a research topic of personal interest; information obtained through interviews.

The comparison, contrasting, and connection of content, characters, ideas, and themes across text.

MEAP multiple choice questions which are based on the theme, key concepts, and major ideas of the reading passage. These questions often require students to interpret information from across parts of a text and to connect knowledge from the text with their own general background knowledge.

A knowledge view and curriculum approach that consciously applies methodology and language from more than one discipline to examine a central theme, issue, problem, topic, or experience" (Jacobs, 1989).

A predictable pattern of children's spelling that progresses through developmental stages. With this method, students use their personal logic, knowledge of phonics, and print conventions to spell words. It is also decodable!

A specialized vocabulary of those in the same work or profession; redundant or wordy writing.

Journals provide a place for students to retell and reflect on happenings from their lives. Journals are informal and used as a vehicle to encourage students to get their thoughts and experiences on paper. They can serve as a source of ideas for writing projects in writers' workshop.

A common log in which to record observations about a class pet, activity, field trip, etc.

Provides a place for written conversation between students or between student and teacher. Entries are usually brief, personal and informal; may center on a specific subject or concept, or may be purely conversational.

A quiet way to end the day. Students can be asked to write about the best part of the day, the most fun, something important that happened, etc.

A place to record what and how the student has understood about a concept or unit of study. May also include description of the learning process. May be used in any subject.

Similar to a diary; may contain personal thoughts, also stories or partial stories.

A place to copy favorite poems, write original poems, or keep track of images to us hen writing poetry.

Students reflect on what they've learned and what they're still wondering about.

A place to record favorite phrases and words discovered in reading and or everyday life. Useful as a reference notebook when writing original pieces in writing workshop.

A journal in which every page is divided in half down the center. On the left, the student writes his/her reactions and perceptions about a particular topic of study, life experience, or literary piece. Later, on the right side, the student reflects on his/her reactions and perceptions (useful as a reference notebook when writing original pieces in writing workshop).

Student uses a cassette to record thoughts and perceptions, rather than writing them. (Can be helpful for students who have a hard time with writing. Can help these students gain the confidence needed to move to a written journal).

The systematic arrangement of elements of a language based on their regularities and predictable qualities, as the way morphemes are grouped into words in English or the way pitch indicates meaning in Chinese.

Language Experience Approach is a commonly used instructional method that integrates oral and written language skills.

MEAP multiple choice questions which focus on ideas directly stated in the text, but not necessarily word for word. The information to respond to these questions will not usually be found in one sentence, but in two to four sentences of contiguous text.

Character can be revealed through the character's actions, speech, and appearance. It also can be revealed by the comments of other characters and of the author.

The central character (person, animal, or personified object) in the plot's conflict.

The force in conflict with the protagonist. It may be society, nature, or fate, as well as another person. It can also be the protagonist's own self, if he or she has an internal conflict.

Character whose traits are in direct contrast to those of the principal character.

A character who possesses expected traits of a group rather than being an individual.

One who is not fully developed; we know only one side of the character

One who is fully-developed, with many traits-bad and good-shown in the story.

One who does not experience a basic character change during the course of the story

One who experiences a basic change in character through the events of the story. This change is internal and may be sudden, but the events of the post should make it seem inevitable.

The sequence of events which involves the characters in conflict.

Book is made up of a series of chapters or stories, each of which has its own plot, builds to an end, and has its own climax.

Plot has incidents and conflict, but tension and suspense are minimal, and plot does not rise to a definite climax.

Plot has definite conflict, tension, and suspense which rises to a climax; plot ends at that point without fully resolving the outcome.

Plot has definite conflict, tension and suspense which rises to a climax; climax is followed by the denouement in which the outcome is resolved.

Two plots which have similar incidents are described simultaneously or one after the other; plots may (usually do) intersect at some point.

An explanation of the situation and the condition of the characters.

Incidents which either help or hinder the protagonist in finding a solution.

The peak or turning point of the action

The part after the climax. It gives any necessary explanation and ends with resolution.

Various parts of the plot are tied together the reader feels a sense of completion.

Readers must draw their own conclusions; they do not know what will happen.

Abrupt ending at an exciting and often dangerous time in the plot.

A state of tension, a sense of uncertainty, an emotional pull which keeps the reader reading.

Planting of hints about what will happen later in the story.

Events are told in the order they happen

An event that took place in the past, before the current time of the story.

The story skips a period of time that seems unusual compared to the rest of the plot.

The protagonist struggles within himself or herself.

Pits the protagonist against someone else.

Protagonist is in conflict with the values of his or her society.

Protagonist is threatened by an element of nature.

Protagonist must contend against a fact or life or death over which people have little control.

Essential to the plot; influences action, character or theme.

Is relatively unimportant to the plot.

Is the most important theme in the story.

Is stated openly and in universal terms.

Is not directly stated, but is one which the reader can infer.

Struggle between the protagonist and an opposing force.

The place and the time period in which the story takes place.

The underlying meaning of the story, a universal truth, a significant statement the story is making about society, human nature, or the human condition.

A usually recurring salient thematic thread (as in the arts) that connects elements in episodic plots.

is the language used in a text, the way the words are put together to create the story and to make the story aesthetically pleasing.

A comparison in which one kind of thing, quality, or action is applied to another without express indication of a relationship between them.

A figure of speech in which "the characteristics of a human being are attributed to an animal, a thing, or an idea.

A comparison between two essentially different items expressly indicated by a term such as "like" or ''as.''

An appeal to the senses touch, taste, sight, sound, smell. It paints a picture in the mind.

A play on words that are identical or similar in sound but have sharply diverse meanings, or the use of a single word or phrase with two incongruous meanings, both relevant.

Exaggeration

An indirect reference to something outside the current literary work; to something in literature, history, modern culture, or another area.

A person, object, situation, or action which operates on two levels, the literal and the symbolic.

A figure of speech in which the literal meaning of the words is the opposite of their intended meaning.

A caustic and heavy use of apparent praise for actual dispraise.

The use of ridicule or scorn, often in a humorous or witty way, to expose vices and follies.

The use of words that sound like their meaning: a skirt "swishes" a bat "cracks" a hasty eater "gulps" his food.

Repetition of initial consonants: "the soft surge of the sea."

Repetition of consonants sounds anywhere in the words: "The sight of the apple and maple trees pleased the people."

The repetition of a stressed sound, usually the final syllable: "His aim was to blame the dame."

Repetition of vowel sounds in a phrase: The owl swept out of the woods and circled the house."

The recurring flow of strong and weak beats in a phrase: "Chicka, chicka, boom, boom! Will there be enough room?"

The regular rhythmic pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables found in a line of poetry. The less regular rhythm sometimes found in prose is often called cadence.

Language enriched by word images and figures of speech.

The outlook from which the events in a story are relayed; refers to who is telling us the story.

A character is telling the story.

The author speaks directly to the reader.

The author is telling about the characters.

Reader is told the thoughts and feelings of only one character.

Reader is told everything about the story, including the thoughts and feelings of all the characters, and even information in the author's mind which no character knows.

Reader is told only what happens and what is said; reader does not know any thoughts or feelings of the characters.

The author's attitude toward what he or she writes; the attitude that the reader gets from the author's words.

Words used to influence opinion; words that carry meaning beyond their "surface" definitions - for example, a word with an emotional association such as cult.

Reflection on the process of learning or knowing; thinking about one's thinking. Self-knowledge, monitoring, and selection of thinking and analytical strategies to promote understanding when reading text and create effective messages when using oral and written language. Application of strategies.

A short lesson on a topic, strategy, or skill needed by students. A mini-lesson should have only one focus. For example, a teacher uses literature to demonstrate a reading strategy to a small group, or she discusses procedures and expectations with a large group.

Modern Language Association: standards for documentation and format of written texts used in most language arts classrooms.

Memory strategy, for example using H.O.M.E.S. to remember the names of the Great Lakes.

Demonstrating application of a skill to develop a sense of language and comprehension skills. Children need to compare their reading and writing with a model they have heard or seen. The teacher might serve as an example in oral and silent reading, writing, or any other activity. For example, in modeled writing, the teacher writes in front of the students as she talks aloud about the process.

A collection of student work that may include computer presentation, pictures, audio and videotapes, artwork, pictures, charts, etc.

A study and description of word formation (as inflection, derivation, and compounding) in language; the system of word- forming elements and processes in a language.

On-the-spot evaluation such as draft writing or extemporaneous oral presentations.

A form of discourse, the purpose of which is to recount an event or a series of events and to interest and entertain, though, of course, this form may be used to instruct and inform. Narration may exist, of course, entirely by itself, but it is most likely to incorporate considerable description.

Text that is recounted in the form of a story (tale, novel, etc.); includes theme, plot, problem/resolution, characteristics, setting, events.

Computer presentation, pictures, audio and videotapes, artwork, pictures, charts, etc.

Ideas connected to personal experiences, text, and the world.

Author's, character's, or reader's points of view.

The auditory discrimination of individual sounds in spoken words.

Identification of sound-symbol relationships and spellings in written language (phonemes and graphemes).

Phonology is the study of how sounds are organized and used in natural languages. It is just one of several aspects of language; other aspects are phonetics, morphology, syntax, and pragmatics.

Text that is currently well-liked.

A collection of student-selected artifacts that reveals something about a learner's history. Portfolios can be an opportunity for self-assessment as students select and arrange their materials, reflect upon future work, and present to others, including parents.

A strategy in which good readers hypothesize what will happen next as they progress through a story. Children use the meaning of the text, their own language, and the book's language to predict words and events. They confirm their predictions by looking at the print, the pictures, and the whole context. Predictable books use repeated patterns of events and text to help young readers predict and confirm.

Any of a number of strategies used to connect a reader with a text (i.e. KWL, anticipation guide, prediction, etc.) before reading the text.

Knowledge about the features of a book. Print concepts include: directionality (left-right, top-bottom), spaces between words, uppercase and lowercase letters, and the knowledge that printed symbols carry a message.

Consists of rules for effective communication in different contexts. The rules that govern and describe how language is used in different contexts and environments. For example, the words and tone of voice will be more formal when talking with the principal and may be very casual and include slang when talking with other children.

A theoretical construct to guide students' thinking. The scale was devised to aid readers in determining and evaluating the profundity of authors' themes. The scale consists of five levels or planes: physical, mental, moral, psychological, and philosophical.

The spreading of ideas, information, or rumor for the purpose of helping or injuring an institution, a cause, or a person.

The melody (rhythm) and flow of language.

A variety of text written depending on purpose and needs (to inform, to persuade, etc).

Creating a script from a narrative text and performing it for an audience. Students work cooperatively to write a dialogue, rehearse it, and read it to the class. Props are minimal. It can be used to dramatize and retell one scene or chapter of a book; it can also be used as a fun activity to promote rereading of a familiar text to encourage fluency" (Routman (1991).

A developmental behavior observed in young children who are not yet reading. Children imitate reading a story they have heard many times. They recreate the text from memory or with the help of the illustrations. They turn the pages, but not necessarily to correspond with the words, and their oral story line may or may not match the text in the book.

Written account of student reading including reflection.

Skills enumerated in the Reading Recovery intervention program for first graders.

Mental strategies used by readers to help them make sense of what they read. Some strategies enable readers to determine the exact word (decoding or word identification); others enable them to understand the message. Reading strategies include substituting words, using context clues, predicting and confirming, monitoring and self-correcting, and rereading, reciprocal teaching, anticipation guides, Question-Answer Relationships, literature circles, reader response, etc.

Serious and careful consideration or concentrated thought regarding one's work.

A strategy in which a student retells or writes the action of a story in his or her own words. Retelling can take many forms and be used for different purposes, such as recalling the sequence of events or summarizing the story. Retellings are a valuable assessment tool for the teacher.

Refers to repetition if sounds at the ends of words. Example of a word that rhymes with another: "Awake" is a rhyme for "lake".

An established and written-down set of criteria for scoring or rating students' work on tests portfolios, writing samples, or other performance tasks; also known as "scoring guides."

To visually search for a specific term or definition.

A strategy in which readers self-check meaning and visual information as they read a selection. A reader monitors comprehension by asking, "Does this make sense? Does it sound right?" then self-corrects when it does not.

A method in which students and teachers read together. As the teacher reads aloud from an enlarged text, children connect visual to oral language, grow in their awareness of how print works, enjoy reading, and gain confidence in their abilities. Children should be free to participate in the reading. At the primary level, shared reading texts should have a supportive structure (predictable stories) and pictures closely related to the print.

A form of modeled writing. The teacher listens to what the students say and scribes for them. For example, she may create complete sentences from a brainstormed list of words. The teacher supports students' efforts, suggests words and ideas, and invites them to reflect upon what they want to write. This interaction provides an opportunity for the teacher to model the thought processes that occur in writing.

Is the division of words into sounds, as when a teacher asks a child to identify the first sounds in "cat" and the child says "c" or makes a /c/ sound.

To visually review a given passage to gather the main ideas of the text.

The conditions of human society under which something happens.

Not simply class discussion. A Socratic seminar fosters active learning as participants explore and evaluate the ideas, issues, and values in a particular text. A good seminar consists of four interdependent elements: (1) the text being considered, (2) the questions raised, (3) the seminar leader, and (4) the participants.

Frequently misspelled or misused words (can be either personal or common).

A visual representation of the main characters, setting, sequence of events, problems, theme, and ending. It helps children understand story structure and organize story content into a coherent whole.

Refers to the structure of a phrase or sentence. Taken together, syntax and morphology (set of rules for combining sounds into meaningful units) constitute the grammar of a language.

Instruction addresses central ideas of a topic or discipline with enough thoroughness to explore connections and relationships and to produce relatively complex understanding.

Instruction involves students in manipulating information and ideas by synthesizing, generalizing, explaining or arriving at conclusions that produce new meaning and understanding of them.

Students engage in extended conversational exchanges with the teacher and/or peers about subject matter in a way that builds an improved and shared understanding of ideas or topics.

Students make connections between substantive knowledge and either public problems or personal experiences.

Text refers broadly to any communication product: oral (e.g., speeches, conversations, and audiotapes); written (e.g., essays, stories, articles, novels, and poems); and visual (e.g. illustrations, films, or computer displays).

Also known as wordless books, consist of sequence of pictures but no print. Asking young children to "read" a textless book out loud allows them to practice vocabulary and to apply their emerging appreciation of narrative.

The dimensions of content that relate the ideas in text; in narrative text: setting, characters, events, problem, solution, and theme; in expository text: central purpose, major ideas, and supporting details.

The various patterns of ideas embedded in the organization of text. Common patters include cause-effect, comparison- contrast, problem-solution, description, and sequence.

The basic argument put forward by a speaker or writer who attempts to prove the argument; the subject or major argument of a composition.

A sentence intended to express the main idea of a paragraph or passage.

Texas Primary Reading Inventory (TPRI) is used for assessing skills such as phonemic awareness, listening comprehension, and reading, among children ranging from kindergarten through second grade

Commercial books, other than basal readers used for reading instruction

Abstract concepts and/or social issues found frequently in classic and contemporary literature.

The focus on specific meanings of words in text (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) through understanding of prefixes, suffixes, and base works, origins, context clues, definitions, multiple meanings, word types (such as antonyms and synonyms), and word expressions (such as idioms, figurative language, etc.).

A part of the author's style is voice. It is being able to "hear" the person behind the words. The text is lively, has conviction, has a tone that is compelling, and is expressive. Confidence in one's knowledge about a topic.

Are lists of words that students are currently learning, posted in places that the entire class can see.

Knowledge and application of the writing process (pre-writing, drafting, revising, editing, publishing)and strategies to support meaningful writing.

One student is elected (or serves on a rotating schedule) as minute-taker for each daily class session and must produce a set of official "minutes" by the following class. Minutes are either posted in a regular spot or are copied for distribution to the group. Reading and correcting these minutes provides an excellent focusing activity for the start of each day's class; having everyone's captive attention gives each student author a chance to shine. In practice, authors usually try to infuse the minutes with as much personality as accuracy will permit.

A special form of writing-to-learn using a kind of right-brained outlining. Students put key concep term, or name in a circle at the center of a page and then free-associate, jotting down all the ideas which occur to them in circles arrayed around the kernel term, in whatever patter "seems right." Often clustering reveals unrecognized connections and relationships.

One of the ways to help students to internalize, verbalize, and further organize their thinking is to work with one or two other students in actually drafting pieces of writing together. This may be done in pairs or small teams, and it works especially well on a quick paragraph, short observation report, or response to a reading.

Completions - Students write quick, spontaneous completions to teacher-supplied starters like: "The main reason Lincoln abolished slavery was..., The main thing I got from the video tape was..., My favorite artist from this period was_______ because..." Be careful not to recreate workbooks that typically try to prompt the same few words in the form of a "right" answer. These completions should be designed to start students on an individually unique, original, exploratory, several-sentence response.

Teacher stops students at key point in a reading, an activity, or a lecture and invites them to write briefly (and perhaps discuss a bit) what they think will happen next.

Divide a page in half. Left side is used for note-taking during reading, lecture, or activity. The right half is used for reactions and questions. In mathematics, one side can be used for doing problems and the other for telling in words how kids attacked them.

Dramatic dialogues between opposing characters, historical figures, points of view, scientific traditions, etc.

Last five minutes of class time each day is regularly set aside for writing that reviews the events and learnings of the day.

When a new topic is being introduced, students begin by making two lists side-by-side; on the left, things they know to be facts about the topics; on the right, things they believe, feel, or suspect about it. Later in the lesson, students can check back to validate their facts and values.

When the class shifts to a new activity or discussion, students do focused free-write writing for 2-3 minutes to tune in to what they know about the topic at hand. Helps students to clear their minds of previous issues and activate their prior knowledge about the new topic used to focus on day's topic or upcoming activity.

The "how-to" is one of the most primitive and inherently engaging forms of writing. Classroom possibilities: how to conduct a science experiment, how to build a birdhouse, how to hem a skirt, how to plan a battle strategy, how to solve a quadratic equation.

This is a shared writing technique in which students and teacher share the role of scribe. Students decide what words they want and write as much as they are capable. For example, a student writes the beginning and ending letters of a word, and the teacher completes the word by filling in the missing letters. If the student can write the entire word, the teacher does not intervene.

When a new topic is being introduced (or reviewed or assessed) students make a list of all the things they already Know (or believe they know) about the subject. Then they make a list of things they Want to know or investigate. When the lesson is done, they make a list of what they've Learned.

The written version of brainstorming. Here, the students quickly write down everything that they know, believe, or feel about a given subject, without editing or second guessing themselves. Later, lists can be used in many ways: pairs or teams can compare and discuss their lists; frequency tallies for certain items can be totaled and announced, etc.

Students write to describe their own thinking processes in the subject, perhaps up to the point where difficulties are encountered, for example, showing how a math problem is tackled and worked through up to the point where the student becomes stumped.

Science labs have always offered a special and valuable kind of composing experienc reporting data from the class observation of physical objects, processes, phenomena, and events. This sort of writing can be extended to data-gathering and observational reports in a number of other subject areas and formats.

Students regularly write for the first five minutes of class time each day, on the topic of the day.

Formal writing assignments derived from writing-to-learn "starts." Any piece begun in one of the above writing activities can be pushed toward a more formal, more transactional, more edited paper. In fact, this program of frequent, exploratory, natural daily writing-to-learn is almost guaranteed to produce ideas which kids will be eager to develop. One nice next step is MICROTHEMES, in which students write essays or reports that fit one note card (various sizes), thus encouraging compact, terse writing while shortening grading time. Teachers can use analytic scales along with micro-themes both to show students what's called for in advance and to yield a score letter.

The distance between a child's actual developmental level as determined through independent problem solving and his/her potential development (level) as determined through problem solving under adult guidance or a collaboration with more capable peers" (Vygotsky, 1978).

It refers to the letter or letters that represent a phoneme. For example, the word "ball" consists of three graphemes: a "b" for the /b/ sound, an "a" for the /a/ sound, and an "ll" for the /l/ sound.

It refers to knowledge about specific relationships between graphemes and phonemes; that is, between letters and sounds.

The ability to recognize printed letters based on their distinct shapes

It refers to children's beliefs about experiences with reading and writing prior to formal instruction.

It consists of the identification of morphemes, the smallest units of meaning in a word.

It refers to the reconstruction of the meaning of a written text.

The repetition of the same sounds or of the same kinds of sounds at the beginning of words or in stressed syllables as in "round the rugged rock the ragged rascal ran."

It refers to the understanding of information that is explicitly stated in a written passage.

It refers to the understanding of information that is not explicitly given but rather implied in a written passage.

It refers to the ability to use critical thinking skills, logical analysis, and aesthetic considerations to evaluate a text.

A visual representation of textual content; it is used to show the relationships between concepts in a text, to relate new concepts to familiar ones, or to assist comprehension in other ways.

Use of these manipulative helps teachers move children from the concrete through the abstract stages of reasoning necessary for learning higher-level mathematical concepts.

Teachers ask and then help students answer questions by proposing hypotheses, gathering and evaluating data, and generating conclusions. It is essential to the development of critical thinking. In Social Studies instruction, inquiry teaching becomes increasingly important in helping students solve problems and make decision about real-life issues.

Consists of information and experiences a learner has and uses to relate to new information. Prior knowledge enhances comprehension.

It refers to the use of creative drawing, painting, collage, photography, and other art forms to help explore the possibility of understanding the world through its images and symbols.

It refers to the ways of processing information and developing self awareness as it relates to the exploration of the environment though movement, sight, sound, and taste.

The instructional usage of different strategies to teach reading, such as phonemic awareness, basal readers, and language experience.

A collection of literary stories and poems that match the instructional level of students (often the book series adopted by the school for reading).

Refers to thinking; gaining concepts, ideas, and other language components.

Understanding the meaning of spoken language and written language often through the use of a taxonomy such as Bloom's.

An identified period of independent silent reading experienced by all learners, including the teacher.

A type of independent silent reading.

The ability to read text-sources with speed, accuracy, voice expression, and adequate comprehension.

Books that allow the reader to predict text meaning from pictures and frequency of word patterns used in the text.

Acquiring the literal or inferential meaning of text-sources.

Words used very often that students can pronounce instantly on sight without using other decoding strategies (examples are: the, them, mom, when, etc.).

A graphic representation of the various elements presented in narrative text-sources.

Instructionally generated learning activities that center on an umbrella topic of interest (pumpkins, bats, apples, butterflies, etc.) with a variety of content areas brought to relate to that topic.

Top-down model suggests that the learner predicts meaning of a word and then identifies a word; the bottom-up model suggests that the learner first identifies a word then considers the meaning of the word.

An instructional philosophy of teaching and learning that teachers use to incorporate a more natural approach to assist students in gaining literacy skills (students learn through experiences, integration of various contents, etc.).