Math Assessment Profile

From the beginning of September through the beginning of December in 2010, I worked with a 5th grade class. After observing several math classes, I noticed that one of the students was struggling with fractions, specifically simplifying fractions. I completed a math assessment profile on this particular student so that I could pinpoint his math challenges and give him some extra one-on-one math tutoring. The following link leads to an assessment profile showing some interview questions, planned tasks, discussion, and an overall analysis of the student's math abilities and challenges. https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=1kcBDKHjiTA9qmel_Vv3dFugeYu9cLnI266POTx0AigE

Hands-On-Minds-On Math!

I believe that manipulatives need to be incorporated into as many math lessons as possible, no matter what the grade level. These include visuals, artwork, pattern blocks, geoboards, tangram pieces, candy, cereal, or anything else your students can touch and sort. The more the students can both see and touch the math concepts they are exploring and learning about, the better they will understand and be able to apply the math to problem-solving. The more they use their hands, the more engaged and interested they are in the lesson. I have noticed that if they have something to work with in their hands, they are more focused and do not get as easily distracted or bored. The following link provides a fun, hands-on lesson plan through which I taught probability word problems. https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=1JkHbRDBNX_MtQJYQJ-S5Dp2g2vzcd8xKosOD7VNDzq4

Below, I have included some photographs of this manipulative math lesson.

~To the left are two 5th grade students working cooperatively to write their own probability word problem.

~Pictured below are the manipulatives I used to teach this lesson. The styrofoam cups are labelled by table numbers, so each table got a cup with a handful of skittles inside it to work with.

~Pictured below are some sample probability word problems written by the students:

Background Information

A little bit about me...

My name is Jacquelyn Poirier and this is my professional online portfolio. I will graduate from the University of South Alabama in May 2011 with a bachelor's degree in Elementary Education. I will be certified to teach K - 6 grade. I am currently working with and teaching 5th graders, but have had experience with 2nd grade as well. I would like to be able to have experience teaching all grade levels. I love learning as much as I love children, and want to encourge my young students to be curious and eager to learn as well!

Fun facts:

~RED is my favorite color!

~FALL is my favorite season!

~CATS are my favorite animal!

~NEW ORLEANS is my favorite city!

~READING is my favorite thing to do!

~I can't pick a favorite food, since I love to eat such a large variety!

~I am the oldest of six!

Reading Assessments

Teachers must have helpful ways to assess their students. By assessing their students individually and as a whole group, teachers can see more clearly what their students need and how they themselves can teach them more effectively and meaningfully. Assessments can be done formally or informally, and it is best to use a combination of both in your elementary classroom. There are several ways to assess reading in particular.

Assessments do not always have to be written assessments, but can be oral as well. One informative way to assess reading is to simply ask questions about what the student is reading. I ask questions about the setting, the plot, the characters, etc. I also ask the students comprehension questions and teach them strategies to use as they read, so that they fully understand the content of what they are reading and what it means.

Another way to assess reading is to pull an individual student aside along with a book, a pencil and a piece of paper and do a quick running record. Running records are helpful in assessing students’ reading fluency and word decoding skills. They also provide precise documentation to show principals, reading coaches, and parents where the student is in their reading development and learning.

A third way to assess reading is to utilize a Dominie Kit for lower elementary grades, or a QRI Kit for upper elementary grades. QRI stands for Qualitative Reading Inventory, and assesses word decoding skills and fluency, as well as comprehension. I have done all these different types of assessments in the elementary classroom.

The following link is a summary on my reading assessment of a 5th grade male student. https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=1GSpBMWH1x50hD33zqV7KRmUuByLtxNaVVctbEaKEpzA

Explanation of 5 Essential Components

1. PHONEMIC AWARENESS — The knowledge and manipulation of sounds in spoken words.

2. PHONICS — The relationship between written and spoken letters and sounds.

3. READING FLUENCY, INCLUDING ORAL READING SKILLS — The ability to read with accuracy, and with appropriate rate, expression, and phrasing.

4. VOCABULARY DEVELOPMENT — The knowledge of words, their definitions, and context.

5. READING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES — The understanding of meaning in text.
Must be based on scientifically based research.
Must include classroom-based screening, and instructional and diagnostic reading assessments.
Should provide ongoing, high-quality professional development focused on essential elements of reading.


For a more detailed and in-depth explanation of the 5 essential conponents of reading, please click on the following link to read my position paper on reading instruction: https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=1f0i0F8QG3dhmtoMWJjvaD_sjnrJBih_8Ut5gbJo2LbY

Guided Reading/Small Groups

Doing guided reading and pulling small groups of students in my classroom will be a very important part of the reading block every day. Guided reading can be implemented by providing students with just-right books in their own bags or boxes. They can then pull these appropriate books out during independent reading time. As they are reading, I will monitor and guide my students. Small group intervention and instruction is necessary for all students to succeed in reading. Through small group intervention, I will differentiate and customize instruction for each individual student and can give them focused, one-on-one reading time. Small group time will be engaging and fun for all students in my elementary classroom.

Shared Reading Section

Shared Reading is an instructional practice that is necessary to incorporate frequently into daily reading in the classroom. By reading along with the teacher and together with classmates, students can read texts that they may not be able to read independently. They are getting the practice and picking up on strategies they will need for independent reading through doing the shared readings. Shared reading should be short and have a focused reading strategy, such as fluency or grammar. Shared reading should be done with the step-by-step process of "I do, we do, you do." I do/show first to model and demonstrate proper technique and strategies. We do to practice together, as in guided reading. You (the students) then do independently. By clicking on the following link, you can view my shared reading lesson plan using poetry with a 5th grade class.
https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=17xrkh3QTu7bocBRat5BXhPJEu1ZlCniSIZO9cujUs1o

~Pictured to the right above is Ms. Poirier doing a shared reading lesson in a 2nd grade classroom.

Read Aloud Section

Read alouds are beneficial for students in all elementary grade levels. Through doing read alouds in my classroom, I am able to model proper fluency, voice articulation and inflection, and the correct pronunciations of vocabulary for my students. Read alouds can also be used to teach many useful strategies, such as comprehension strategies. Some of the comprehension strategies that can be taught through read alouds are predicting, questioning, inferencing, synthesizing and making connections. Click on the following link to see my read aloud lesson plan for the book "Pink & Say", through which I taught the comprehension strategy of questioning:
https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=19dSIziAXcoxRSjfydj4NoKQc80_S4f8EYT2Su0q5his

~Pictured above is Ms. Poirier doing a read aloud called "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day" in a 2nd grade classroom.

~To the left is a photograph of Ms. Poirier doing a read aloud of the book "Diary of a Wimpy Kid", which is a very popular series with 5th graders.

Using Reading Programs Effectively

Implementing pre-designed reading programs in elementary school can be done effectively, if teachers follow the scope and sequence of the program. Reading programs are designed to give teachers and students an organized outline to follow in the elementary classroom. Other materials, texts, and extension activities can and should be utilized for further instruction. Reading programs are designed for literacy, not just for reading. Literacy includes reading, writing, and language arts. Language arts encompasses grammar, spelling, and vocabulary. Reading programs give teachers and students time for whole group, small groups, guided reading, differentiated instruction, and independent reading, as well as a focus on specific skills and strategies. Some of the skills and strategies are things like determining the author's purpose, identifying story structure, answering questions, and drawing conclusions. In my classroom, I want to implement literacy centers, including a listening center for books on tape. I will also have an organized classroom library, with shelves and books labelled according to genre. The following lesson plan is based on a reading program called Reading Street. Click below on the link to view my lesson plan where I taught whole group and small group to a 5th grade class: https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=1gMOxo75Q8L8eTvQ97dGLoVGjWv1vTwvR2CaA9Y0xsWI

~This picture shows a well-organized elementary classroom library as a model for what I will have in my own classroom.

Independent Reading

This is a fantastic video of a middle school and their love of reading based on an appearance of The Black-Eyed Peas singing "I Got a Feeling" on the Oprah show.





I want my students to take reading home with them. I don't want them to think school is the only place for reading, but reading can be enjoyed whenever and wherever they are. Giving my students adequate time for independent reading will be a daily goal for myself as a teacher. Independent reading has so many benefits for students in all grades. Some of the many benefits include increased fluency and vocabulary, a building up of the students' background knowledge and schema, as well as practice with both old and new reading strategies. Independent reading is about choice. Students need to be provided with just-right books and given the opportunity to choose topics they would enjoy reading about based on their interests. Independent reading time will definitely be a regular procedure in my elementary classroom.

Parental Involvement

Parents are a child's first teachers. We're all on the same team! It is vital for me as a teacher to involve my students' parents in every aspect of their child's education. For reading, I plan on sending students home with a reading log, showing books they have read throughout the week. They will have to have their parents sign their reading logs to show that they have read for at least 15 minutes every day. Parents can see what types of books their students are reading in school. I will definitely encourage parents and students to read together at home. I will also invite parents into my classroom to do read alouds for the whole class. Parents will know they can contact me at any time, through various methods, in order to find out their students' AR goals, testing scores and results. I have planned to send out a welcome letter at the beginning of the school year to parents and students, and will give my contact information through that letter. I will conference with parents and students as often as possible to discuss their sons' and daughters' progress, strengths, abilities, and talents in reading and in all subjects.