Chapter 4

"The diagnostic teaching session places a premium on tailoring programs that specifically fit problem readers." p.59

I think all teachers need to tailor a specific program for all the students in their class. They also need to make it a priority!! Teachers need to determine where a child is currently at, not where they should be, and devise a specific plan of action for each child.

"Familiar text time (FTT)is the rereading of books and poems that the student enjoys." p.61

I have always utilized familiar text time in my primary classrooms with great success. I use book baskets on the student's tables, which I fill with familiar texts. These are books that I have read to my students during class read alouds, shared reading and books we have read together during guided reading.

"If a high degree of support is needed, such as rereading the text together six times rather than just once or twice, then the diagnostic teachers considers selecting easier material (see chapter9)." p.63

YIKES! Rereading the text together SIX times-I hope that is a typo!! The rereading of the text one more time is more than sufficient. Depending on what category (Independent, Instructional or Frustration) the student fell into after administering the QRI, would determine how and if I would adjust the text. This "snapshot" assessment combined with the informal assessment of already reading the text together, is a great gauge for teachers to see where their student is at and to determine what strategies are needed to help construct better meaning.

"If support is needed, he reviews the charts that suggest techniques to use during instruction (Tables 11-1 and 11-2 in chapter 11)." p.64

The classifying techniques by instructional framework for meaning and print processing are great references for teachers. I love how organized the table is, and how they break all the information down, which makes it very user friendly. I will definitely use these tables in the future. While reading these tables I had a text-to-text connection with these tables and some of the components of the Everyday Math Program used in my district.

"After the selected story is read, readers theater script (see "Readers Theater" in part 2) could be constructed from the story so that increasing oral reading fluency becomes purposeful." p.65

The majority of my primary students have enjoyed readers theater. I have used it as a literacy center, closely monitored by myself or by a reading aide. I have seen gains in comprehension and oral fluency by using this strategy. I will continue to offer readers theater as a literacy center and HIGHLY recommend it.