reading standards file for molly, a year 1 below level 1...

1 of 24 The National Strategies Primary Primary Framework for literacy and mathematics, Molly reading

QCA 00022-2009DWO-EN-01 © Crown copyright 2009

Molly Year 1 Below level 1

Reading standards file



Recalling events from The Three Little Pigs

After a class reading of The Three Little Pigs, children were given a formatted page to sketch and write what they could recall of the story. In this piece of work, Molly shows that she can distinguish ‘writing’ from pictures, suggesting that she knows that print carries meaning. The work provides evidence for attainment on the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (EYFSP), Reading scale point 2. Molly could talk about what happened in the story and sequence events orally (EYFSP Reading scale point 5). Her teacher commented that Molly relied heavily on the illustrations for comprehension and as a cue for what the words say (AF1 BL1).



Teacher’s notes and reading new words

Ongoing records of words read show that Molly is beginning to read some high frequency words automatically, although her teacher notes that she needs support to help her identify the first sound of a phonically irregular word. Molly is beginning to use phonic knowledge, but tends to guess first rather than working from the initial sound. Evidence for FSP Reading scale point 3.



Molly was keen to choose to read words she knew, pointing to these on the word wall.

Assessment commentary Molly began by reading words that she was already familiar with and pointing to them as she read. She read ’not’ as ‘hot’. With

support she could segment the word into individual sounds (AF1 L1 b1).

Molly found it difficult to blend sounds together. She read ‘no’ as ‘on’ but was able to correct with a prompt identifying the first sound (AF1 BL1).



Working with words

Molly used an alphabet mat and a programmable robot to spell words. She worked with the support of her teacher in this activity as can be seen from the DVD clip.

Bee-Bot Floor Robot © Virtual School Consultancy. Used with kind permission.

Assessment commentary With her teacher’s support, Molly is able to use the individual sounds and programme the ‘Bee-Bot’ to spell out a high

frequency word: ‘my’ (AF1 BL1).

The video evidence shows Molly's tendency to rely on the pictures rather than decoding the text. She applies her general knowledge about families to enable her to recall items of interest, 'when they are babies, they don't look like ladybirds'.



Molly is generally able to locate the letters from the sound. However, when playing a ‘full circle’ game from Letters and Sounds she needed support to identify some digraphs such as ‘ch’ in ‘chop’ which she attempted to blend letter by letter as ‘c-h-o-p’ (AF1 BL1).



Evidence from independent writing

Children frequently wrote short recounts of events out of school, sometimes using the computer to generate images. Two pieces of writing separated by a couple of months show Molly’s progress from somewhat random word order and incomplete letter strings and clauses, to writing a complete sentence. At the same time, Molly worked on the ‘challenge table’, where the task was to find words that rhymed with ‘hat’ and ‘log’.

Image created using The Infant Video Toolkit © 2Simple Software www.2Simple.com. Used with kind permission.



Assessment commentary Molly draws on phonic knowledge to find rhyming words and makes phonically plausible attempts at simple CVC words (‘meat’, ‘tea’). She also draws on phonics to attempt ‘Yorkshire pudding’ (AF1 L1 b1).



Reading and writing about minibeasts

As part of the class work on minibeasts, Molly used several books to find out information. The video evidence shows her reading Are you a Ladybird? by Judy Allen with her teacher. She then uses some of this information to write about ladybirds and read this to others in the class. Her teacher comments on Molly’s work in the unit as a whole, pointing out her tendency to rely on memory and on cues from illustrations to compensate for uncertainties in decoding words.

Assessment commentary In the context of reading continuous text, Molly struggles with reading some high frequency words and forgets to use phonic

strategies to decode unfamiliar words (AF1 BL1).

The video evidence shows Molly using the pictures as clues to decoding the text and also applying her general knowledge about families. This enables her to recall items of interest, ‘when they are babies, they don’t look like ladybirds’ (AF2 L1 b1 and b2; AF3 L1 b2).

The video evidence also shows Molly reading her writing aloud, supported by prompts from her teacher. Once again, it is evident that she is hesitant in tackling a number of apparently familiar words (AF1 BL1).



Evidence of reading from writing

Molly’s minibeast book 1



Molly’s minibeast book 2



Assessment commentary Molly shows some awareness of text organisation, e.g. in ‘Minibeast book 1’ she matched a simple statement to a picture,

wrote about one statement on each page then wrote ‘the end’ on the last page. She wrote the book from left to right but did not include titles, page numbers or a contents page (some evidence for AF4 L1, but more appropriately considered in relation to FSP Writing scale point 6).

Molly wrote ‘Minibeast book 2’ in the writing centre with support from another child. She needed to extract information from reference texts, e.g. when identifying how many legs the different minibeasts had (AF2 L1 b1).



Further observational notes about Molly’s reading Teacher notes made during classroom work over time, and additional lists of words read. From the lists of words read, it can be seen that Molly is beginning to read digraphs in addition to simple CVC words.

(AF3 L1 b1)

(AF2 L1 b1)

accurate retelling of familiar stories using features of story language such as ‘once upon a time’, selects dressing-up props to re-enact

able to extract information from a Big Book in the whole-class session and with support explain what a plant needs to grow



(AF7 L1 b1)

Reading conference: By the stream

At the end of the summer term, Molly’s teacher carried out a reading conference to assess her progress in AF1. To do this, she selected a book graded as Stage 3 from the Oxford Reading Tree series, and completed a running record as Molly read the text.

By the stream Mum and Dad sat on the rug. The children played by the stream. Biff went on the bridge. They dropped sticks in the water. Kipper couldn’t see. Kipper climbed up. He dropped Teddy in the water. ‘Get Teddy,’ said Kipper. Biff couldn’t get Teddy. ‘Get Teddy,’ said Kipper.

deduces type of book by presentation, e.g. photos or fantasy pictures



Mum couldn’t get Teddy. ‘I want Teddy,’ said Kipper. Dad couldn’t get Teddy. Dad fell in. Splash! ‘I am a frogman,’ said Dad.

Taken from By the Stream by Roderick Hunt, illustrated by Alex Brychta, Oxford Reading Tree Stage 3 Stories (OUP, 1986), copyright © Oxford University Press 1986. Reproduced by permission of Oxford University Press.

Assessment commentary Molly pointed to the title and read it. She knew it was fiction ‘because it is a story book’. She also pointed to and named front

and back cover (AF7 L1).

Misread ‘sat’ as ‘was’. With prompting, sounded out ‘s-a-t’ and read correctly (not quite AF1 L1).

Named the children; needed prompting to talk about the picture. Read fast but stopped at full stops (AF1 L1 b3).

Self-corrected ‘the’/‘they’. Hesitated on ‘couldn’t’ but read correctly. Read climbed as ‘couldn’t’ but self-corrected and read correctly (AF1 L1 b2).

Used expression for characters. Good use of intonation. Aware of speech marks (AF1 L1 b3).

Thought it funny when Dad fell in because of picture of eyes in the water. Thought ‘everyone fell in then’; needed prompting to discuss (AF6 L1).

Self-corrected ‘he said’/‘said Dad’ (AF1 L1 b1).

Teacher explained what frogmen were, then Molly said ‘I saw one when I went to Scarborough. Then we went on the bumper cars and crashed into Nanny. I went in the sea. It was cold.’ (AF6 L1).



Assessment summary

Molly is taught in a Year 1 class where the practice continues some of the philosophy and observational practices of the Early Years Foundation Stage. At the start of the year, her teacher commented that she mainly wanted to be in the home corner, engaged in role-play – typically being the teacher with a group of friends.

As the early evidence suggests, Molly relies on her memory of what she has heard or on pictures to support her ‘reading’ of words. Each child in the class has a ‘Reading Together’ book in which reading at home is recorded. In Molly’s book, comments at the start of the year say that she ‘needs to concentrate on words, not just pictures’, or that she ‘recognises a lot of words on flashcards’, but by the end of the year a parent comments ‘good to see her concentrating on reading first, then looking at the pictures’.



AF1 From Molly’s reading from the word wall and other reading activities it is evident that she is able to read some high frequency words in isolation, and to reproduce these in her writing. However, her ability to blend phonemes is limited. She is hesitant about blending to read digraphs but, on the evidence of her final reading conference, shows awareness of punctuation marks when reading. Overall, despite the considerable progress in the course of the year, the inconsistency of the evidence suggests an overall judgement of below level 1 in AF1.

AF2 Molly’s understanding of what is happening in books is usually clear, but the information is not always derived from actually reading the words. She can recall simple points from familiar texts, both fiction and non-fiction and use these in her writing and role-play. With support, she can locate specific information and points of interest in a book and retell stories accurately using the book as a prop. Level 1 awarded.

AF3 Given Molly’s inability to read many words in a text, there is as yet insufficient evidence (IE) for this assessment focus.

AF4 The evidence from the minibeast work demonstrates that Molly can apply her developing knowledge of text organisation by identifying a contents page, author and labels in a book. This is the first time she has attempted to use her knowledge of text organisation in her writing. Knowledge about simple text features also seen in reading conference. Just sufficient evidence for level 1 for this assessment focus.

AF5 Molly can comment on rhyming patterns and recognises rhyming words when listening to stories and rhymes, as noted by her teacher when reading The cat sat on the mat. Molly remarked ‘Oh that’s a rhyming story’. She was also able to find new words in a



rhyming pattern when working on the challenge table, but there is limited evidence to indicate that Molly appreciates the significance of other language patterns. IE for this assessment focus.

AF6

Molly will comment on a book she likes during small-group story reading or talk about characters, e.g. not liking the Wolf as a bad character. Her response to By the stream shows her linking simple comments on the text to her own experience. Just enough evidence for level 1 in AF6.

AF7 Molly is able to distinguish between good and bad characters and what happens to them. With support, she can talk about the differences between types of text in which photos and drawings are used, and sort books into fiction and non-fiction boxes when working with a partner, but does not yet make use of this understanding to pursue her own interests. Insufficient evidence for this assessment focus.

Making a level judgement

Molly’s reading was assessed using the L1/L2 assessment guidelines. Despite considerable progress in AF1, the evidence shows she is working below level 1, with relatively few high frequency words able to be read fluently and automatically, and some difficulties in blending phonemes in both familiar and unfamiliar words. Molly has however achieved level 1 in AF2, AF4 and AF6 when working in supportive contexts. At this stage there insufficient evidence for AF3, AF5 or AF7, although there is partial highlighting in AF5 and AF7.



Using the flow chart to support the making of a judgement in reading, the minimum requirement for level 1 is for AF1 and AF2 with some highlighting in AF3. Without level 1 for AF1 Molly’s reading does not meet the minimum requirements for level 1, despite some highlighting in other AFs. Therefore Molly’s reading is judged to be below level 1.

This judgement can be considered alongside the FSP also completed for Molly. Here too it can be seen that Molly’s main difficulties stem from analysing words phonemically, and applying her knowledge of individual words to a longer sequence of sentence length. She relies on support from both teacher and classmates in both reading and writing. Molly has however progressed to a point where her teacher’s view is that she is ‘on the cusp of just flying’.



Reading assessment guidelines: levels 1 and 2

Pupil name Molly Class/ Group Year 1 Date Summer term

AF1 – use a range of strategies, including accurate decoding of text, to read for meaning

AF2 – understand, describe, select or retrieve information, events or ideas from texts and use quotation and reference to text

AF3 – deduce, infer or interpret information, events or ideas from texts

AF4 – identify and comment on the structure and organisation of texts, including grammatical and presentational features at text level

AF5 – explain and comment on writers' use of language, including grammatical and literary features at word and sentence level

AF6 – identify and comment on writers' purposes and viewpoints, and the overall effect of the text on the reader

AF7 – relate texts to their social, cultural and historical traditions

In some reading:

range of key words read on sight

unfamiliar words decoded using appropriate strategies, e.g. blending sounds

some fluency and expression, e.g. taking account of punctuation, speech marks

In some reading:

some specific, straightforward information recalled, e.g. names of characters, main ingredients

generally clear idea of where to look for information, e.g. about characters, topics

In some reading:

simple, plausible inference about events and information, using evidence from text, e.g. how a character is feeling, what makes a plant grow

comments based on textual cues, sometimes misunderstood

In some reading:

some awareness of use of features of organisation, e.g. beginning and ending of story, types of punctuation

In some reading:

some effective language choices noted, e.g. ‘slimy’ is a good word there

some familiar patterns of language identified, e.g. once upon a time; first, next, last

In some reading:

some awareness that writers have viewpoints and purposes, e.g. ‘it tells you how to do something’, ‘she thinks it’s not fair’

simple statements about likes and dislikes in reading, sometimes with reasons

In some reading:

general features of a few text types identified, e.g. information books, stories, print media

some awareness that books are set in different times and places

Level 2

In some reading, usually with support:

some high frequency and familiar words read fluently and automatically

decode familiar and some unfamiliar words using blending as the prime approach

some awareness of punctuation marks, e.g. pausing at full stops


some simple points from familiar texts recalled

some pages/sections of interest located, e.g. favourite characters/events/information/pictures


reasonable inference at a basic level, e.g. identifying who is speaking in a story

comments/questions about meaning of parts of text, e.g. details of illustrations diagrams, changes in font style


some awareness of meaning of simple text features, e.g. font style, labels, titles


comments on obvious features of language, e.g. rhymes and refrains, significant words and phrases


some simple comments about preferences, mostly linked to own experience


a few basic features of well known story and information texts distinguished, e.g. what typically happens to good and bad characters, differences between type of text in which photos or drawings used

Level

1

BL

IE

Overall assessment (tick one box only) Low 1 Secure 1 High 1 Low 2 Secure 2 High 2



Next steps

It will be important to develop Molly’s confidence in phonics, using Letters and Sounds or a similar systematic phonics programme. She will also need to be taught to recognise more high frequency words so that she reads these words automatically as soon as possible. Molly can then move into Phase 3 of the phonics programme, working on two-letter graphemes, within the teaching sequence of revisiting and reviewing, teaching, practising and applying.

At the same time, Molly needs to continue to hear, read and enjoy a wide range of books, both fiction and non-fiction and be continually encouraged to see that the words of a text often give more or different information than contained in the pictures. There are a number of age-appropriate story books as well as high-quality information texts that would help develop this awareness.



Acknowledgements

Bee-Bot Floor Robot © Virtual School Consultancy. Used with kind permission.

Taken from By the Stream by Roderick Hunt, illustrated by Alex Brychta, Oxford Reading Tree Stage 3 Stories (OUP, 1986), copyright © Oxford University Press 1986. Reproduced by permission of Oxford University Press.

Image created using The Infant Video Toolkit © 2Simple Software www.2Simple.com. Used with kind permission.

reading standards file for molly, a year 1 below level 1...

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