GRADE: Second Grade
TECHNOLOGY: Spreadsheets
Using Spreadsheets to Allow Students to Track Their Own Reading and Writing Progress throughout the Year
Subject/Grade: Reading/Language
Arts for a second grade class
Objectives: 1. Students will record daily the number of pages read and words written in their journal into a spreadsheet program
2. Throughout the year, students will increase the number of pages and words read.
Lesson Rationale
Students
at this age focus on the concrete aspects of learning. When trying to improve their reading
and writing skills, kids like to know where they stand in relation to where
they were before. Simply telling a
student that his or her reading or writing is improving is often not
enough. Numbers are something these
students can and do understand.
This program is not designed to encourage competition among
students. It is designed to
demonstrate progress by individual students and accountability. This program is also designed to help
the class set and reach goals involving their reading and writing. For example, the class will receive a
treat or I will add a new book to the class library each time our class total
reaches 500 pages or 500 written as group. Throughout the year the target number goals will grow
according to the improvement in our class’s abilities.
It
is also important to note that this program’s focus is to increase the
pages read and words written: the quantity. The focus on quality will be addressed in other classroom
practices. First of all, the books
assigned for homework will be appropriate for each student’s current
reading level. Therefore,
students will not be reading easy books to increase the number or pages they
are reading. Secondly, our class
will have Writer’s Workshop everyday in which we focus on the multiple
phases of writing. This will give
me an opportunity to work with students on various writing conventions and
practices. The daily journal in
which students respond will not be corrected for spelling, grammar, structure
or mechanics. Rather this is a
place for students to respond to writing prompts and show what they know or how
they feel. The only thing I will
monitor is making sure students are writing responses appropriate to the
subject or topic assigned. I want
my students to know that what they write is what matters the most, not the
spelling or grammar. While those
are important elements certainly, it is more important for students just
entering the world of reading and writing that while how it is said is important, what is said
is the most important.
Materials
1. Program designed on Microsoft Excell which would allow students to record daily their reading and writing. This program will also include formulas calculating individual student progress as well as class totals and averages.
2. Student participation- daily
4. Books and journals readily accessible
for students to use
5. A poster to hang near the computer center or class
library detailing class goals and current standing.
Lesson Description
This
“lesson” will be an ongoing project throughout the year. In the beginning of the year I will
introduce the spreadsheet program to the students and do an entire lesson on
the procedure in which students should follow to enter the daily information. Students will only be allowed to enter
the information into the computer after our reading group has met. During our sessions after students read
their journal entries aloud, they pass them to me so that I may comment and
count the words. Soon students
will be counting the numbers on their own prior to group. I will spot check to see that honesty
prevails. At the end of each
reading group’s session, I explain that night’s homework reading
and writing assignment. Next
I will write the assignment in each student’s journal by hand. One by one as I finish writing in their
journals, they will procede to the computer and enter the latest data.
From
here on out, the project will carry itself. I will be sure that students do not turn this into any sort
of competition among individuals or groups. That will be made extremely clear from the beginning. I will monitor each student’s
progress weekly to see how everyone is doing. I will conference with any students who I feel need it when
appropriate. However,
half-way through each marking period, I will conference with each student about
his or her progress. Using Excell,
I will print out graphs to show the student so he or she can see the increase,
decrease, or steadiness of his or her work. This will also give me an opportunity to discuss with students
what things they may need to work
on and keep in mind. I will
also use the information from the spreadsheet in any parent conferences in
which I feel necessary. It
will allow me to show parents their child’s progression, regression, or
consistent level of reading and writing.
Once
the class is comfortable with the procedure of entering data on their own, I
will introduce the concept of class reading and writing goals. This should take three or four weeks. At this point, I will analyze the information
gathered and have an idea of what goals I would like the class to set. In class, I will present the students
with various information such as, the number of pages the class has read and
the number of words they have written in a week. I will then challenge the students to beat those numbers by
50 words and 25 pages the following week.
If they meet this challenge, I will reward them with a new book for the
class library, free time on Friday afternoon, or a candy treat. Knowing children at this age, they will
want to try to meet another goal.
This time I will suggest that we try to meet a target number of words
and pages. I will set the number
at approximately 3 times what they read the week before. I will post the target number in the
class and update the class progress each morning. Upon setting the target number, we will decide upon a
reward for meeting the goal.
Through out the year, the target numbers will increase. And as their math skills develop, students will be looking at the data and together we will be setting target goals. The data will also be useful during math when we are working on new skills and applications. For example, when working with addition students can add together their own totals. I will also keep a running total of the number of pages and words. As these numbers will continue to grow into the thousands, we can also work on place value. Analysis of the data will result in graphs which students will learn how to read and interpret. Another option for this program is to create a place for students to enter their independent reading progress. Students can keep a log and enter the number of pages they are reading at home or during free time. Implementation of this program would not take place until almost half way through the year and would be adjusted accordingly.
Evaluation
Objective 1: At the beginning of the year, I will
check before everyone goes home that they entered their data into the computer
simply by scrolling down the spreadsheet.
Once students learn the routine, I will occasionally ask at the end of
the day, “Did everyone enter their numbers?” If it seems to be a problem for some
students, I will assign one student a week to check the spreadsheet daily to
see that information is added for each student who was present. If a student does not complete his or
her homework, he or she must enter a zero into the computer. I will be keeping track of those students
to see that not completing the work is not becoming a habit. On a weekly basis, I will check each
students progress which will allow me to be sure each student is entering their
data.
Objective 2: I will monitor the numbers of pages and words daily at first and also look at weekly performance. Once the program is off the ground, I will examine each student’s progress by analyzing individual data weekly. Because each student’s reading and writing levels are different, I can not provide a certain percentage or number that each student needs to meet weekly. Rather as their teacher, I will be looking for an upward trend appropriate for each student’s level of performance. For the students who are on lower reading levels, I will begin the year by having the weekly conference in which we will look at their past week and past weeks progress. If needed, a student and I can set individual weekly goals for him or her.