Here is some further explanation of what I did when administering the DRA2
during the later part of the year. I wanted to make certain first and foremost
that my little kiddos understood what I was asking them to do. Their beginning
of the year attempts told me that they were not understanding what they were
being asked to do. Sometimes we assume they "get" what a retell is and we
refer to it in many different ways, comprehension, story map, summary, retell,
not to mention when I ask them to "respond in their own way" to a story or
question I have posed. My first graders (and many of the rest of us) can be
easily confused. Purpose. That has been my silent partner as I have planned
over the last year. I keep reminding myself of purpose...for EVERYTHING I do.
That doesn't neccessarily mean that everything I do is fabulous and rich, etc.,
but it has made me aware of when my lessons are flowing and when I have taken a
wrong turn and I am travelling alone without the children.
I actually teach my kiddos the REASON that teachers give the DRA2. I
explain that it is a tool for teachers to see and hear how they are progressing
as readers... NOT to see if they are good readers (because of course they are)
but for the teachers to see what they need to teach next. That takes the
pressure off of them. Now, I have also "taught" them how to retell a story by
doing it together with the picture books we have read. Right before DRA time I
refer back to the chart paper we have written together about each (or many) of
the picture books I have read. When those retells were happening we had great
discussions about the beginning of the story and the correct sequence of the
story, as well as the ending of the story and author's purpose for writing the
story. Not with every book and certainly we began with a very simple book and
basic retell. Sometimes it is the vocabulary in our directions to the children
that throws them off. I want them to be flexible thinkers BUT I have made a
conscious effot to explain the correct literary terms/words so the children
understand what their purpose is.
All of this teaching deepens their comprehension because, of course we are also
involved in strategy instruction across reading, writing, math and science. We
do a lot of partial re-reading for different purposes (authentic fluency) and
then we put it all together again for a complete retell. I like to look at it
as I teach them to retell by teaching them about text structure and patterns
and connections. Their questions are honored and the discussions about those
questions lead us to deeper understanding of the important parts of the story.
Depending where the student has broken down on the DRA2 I can see what part of
my teaching and their learning isn't matching. Of course I also have to ask
myself if the children aren't thinking..."DUH, I already read that beginning to
you, you heard it, why should I tell you about it again?" They have learned to
be pretty sophisticated readers by the time they are reading the Level 18 test
booklet. Those stories are a lot less "meaty" than the ones we have read and
discussed. :-)
Nancy
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