1. LITERATE
ENVIRONMENT
ANALYSIS
Iberia Randle
Walden University
EDUC 6706: The Beginning Reader, PreK-3
Instructor: Dr. Martha Moore

2. Getting to know your students is very important when
planning effective instruction to meet the diverse needs of
every student. Afflerbach reminded us that “students in
our classrooms possess a complex array of reading skills
and strategies”(p.27). The results of the following
cognitive and noncognitive assessments below can help
teachers, according to Moon (2005), “to effectively
address students’ diverse education needs” and “engage in
good decision making”(p.226).
 Interest Inventory
 Learning Styles Inventory
 Literacy Autobiographies
 Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS)
 Assesses phonemic awareness, alphabetic principle,
fluency, reading comprehension, vocabulary

3.  MORE USEFUL ASSESSMENT TOOLS
 Elementary Reading Attitude Survey(1990)
 Motivation to Read Profile (1996)
 International Reading Association Resources on
Assessment
 www.reading.org

4.  Toeffectively implement the Framework for
Literacy Instruction(2011), we must have a
strong knowledge of the stages of literacy
development and where our students are in
those stages.
 Stages of Literacy Development
 Emergent-birth through kindergarten
 Beginning- late kindergarten through first or second
grade
 Transitional-mid-second grade through third grade
 Intermediate- late third grade and middle school
 Advanced- middle school through adult

5.  When selecting texts, difficulty levels have
to be taken into consideration. Hartman
provided us with a Literacy Matrix
for analyzing text (Laureate
Education, Inc.,2009) which
characterizes text in the
following ways:
 Narrative
 Informational
 Linguistic (word oriented)
 Semiotic (tell story with picture)

6.  Additional considerations when selecting text
 Readability
 Sentence length
 Number of syllables
 Singletons-unique new words; can make
text more difficult to read
 Text structure
 Informational, descriptive, cause/effect,
problem/solution, compare/contrast, poetic
 Text length
 Size of print
 Visual supports
 Add meanings and can be useful for English Language
Learners

7.  The ultimate goal of the interactive
according to Almasi(Laureate Education, Inc.,
2009b) is to help students to become
strategic readers and writers.
 Teaching students to be strategic processors
and thinkers.
 Strategies to enhance interactive perspective
 using interview questions related to the theme or
unit of your lesson
 interactive read-aloud strategies
 using key phrases in interactive read-aloud

8.  Teach students how to critically analyze text
 Allow opportunity to experience and respond to
text
 During the critical perspective, Almasi (Laureate
Education, Inc., 2009c) reminded us that
students need to think about the following
questions:
 Who created the text?
 What perspective might the author have?
 Was the author male or female? How do you know?
 What was the role of race, ethnicity, or social status?

9.  The response perspective involves the
readers’ lived experiences. It deals a great
deal with emotions. The following are ways
of responding to texts:
 Journaling
 Dramatic Response
 Artistic Interpretation
 Multi-sensory Experiences
 Quiet Time to Respond

10.  The information provided in this presentation
was very instrumental in promoting a more
literate environment within my classroom.
My students were actively involved in all
aspects of the literacy lessons. The main
selections and leveled readers used in my
lessons were chosen based on the
considerations a teacher should consider
when meeting the individual needs of his or
her students. All three perspectives
(interactive, critical, and response) were
evident in my literacy lessons.

11. I hope you found the presentation helpful. Please
respond to the questions below.
1. What insights did you gain about literacy and
literacy instruction from viewing this
presentation?
2. How might the information presented change
your literacy practices and/or your literacy
interactions with students?
3. In what ways can I support you in the literacy
development of your students or children? How
might you support me in my work with students
or your students?
4. What questions do you have?

12.  Afflerbach, P. (2007). Understanding and using reading assessment, K-12. Newark, DE: International
Reading Association, Inc.
 Framework for Literacy Instruction [Lecture notes]. (2011). Retrieved from
http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/courses/63694/CRS-WUPSYC6205-
5362594/Framework_for_Literacy_Instruction_02-09.doc
 Gambrell, L.B., Palmer, B.M., Codling, R.M., & Mazzoni, S.A. (1996). Assessing motivation to read.
The Reading Teacher, 49(7), 518-533.
 International Reading Association www.reading.org
 Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2009). Video Program Three: The beginning reader. [DVD].The
beginning reader, preK-3. Baltimore, MD: Author.
 McKenna, M.C., & Kear, D.J. (1990). Measuring attitude toward reading: A new tool for teachers.
The Reading Teacher, 43(9), 626-639.
 Moon, T. (2005, Summer). The role of assessment in differentiation. Theory into practice, 44(3),
226-233 Retrieved from Business Source Premier Database.