Jesslyn Kellerman
EDRD 4200
March 14, 2010
INTERVENTION PLAN:
Background Information:
The student I chose to do my intervention plan for is a 3rd grader who has difficulty with a lot of
subjects, Kali. We had a meeting with Kali’s parents last week to get permission to have her tested for
any learning disabilities because she tries very hard in all subjects but has a difficult time comprehending
the information in the amount of time that we have to spend on specific subjects. When I spent time
reading with Kali, I noticed that she enjoyed reading and remembered most of what she had read, but
she was reading very low books. I had an idea that she read easy books so that she could feel successful,
which seemed like a logical idea since she was struggling in other areas during school. So, I decided to
test Kali to see if I could find some ways to help her grow in her reading and comprehension abilities.
She loves to read, and I want to continue to encourage a love for reading, but I think that some focused
help could help Kali learn strategies to help her become an even more successful reader.
One thing that is very nice about Kali’s situation is that her parents are involved and want to do
what they can to help her become a better reader and a more successful student. Many students who
are struggling in school don’t have the at-home support that could help them become more successful
at school. So, I know that I can send home some worksheets or some descriptions of what we are doing
at school and Kali’s parents will supplement what I am doing at school in the evenings when they read
with Kali.
Assessment:
Kali was DRA tested at the beginning of the year, and she tested at an 8, which is the level of a
first-grader at the beginning of September. When she was tested again in March, she was at a 20, which
is the beginning of second-grade. So, she has improved over the course of the year so far, but is still over
a grade behind the level where she should be at this point in time during the year. What I found during
my testing showed that Kali was above a second-grade level, but not quite at a third-grade level. So, my
testing showed that Kali was higher than the DRA test that she took.
I tested Kali using the QRI-4 in February. I started by having her read the first-grade word list so
that she felt confident as we got into harder words. She was at the independent level for that list, so we
moved onto second grade. The second grade list proved to be fairly difficult for her. She was at the
frustration level. Not wanting to go on to the third grade list, we stopped there and I decided to give her
second grade leveled texts to read. She read “The Lucky Cricket” which is a Level 2 text. She was reading
very confidently with that selection and her retelling was extremely detailed. The analysis of her reading
is as follows:
“The Lucky Cricket”
-Concept Questions: 6/12
-Total Number of Miscues: 6
-Total Number of Meaning-Changing Miscues: 4
-Similar Beginning: 3 miscues
-Similar Ending: 2 miscues
-Similar Vowel: 2 miscues
-Retains Grammar: 4 miscues
-Retains Meaning: 3 miscues
-Self-corrects: 2 miscues
-61 WPM – 4 Errors = 61 WCPM
-Retelling- 33/52 ideas recalled
-Comp. Questions: 8/8 correct
Because she read so well at the Level 2 passage, I decided to give her a Level 3 passage to read
for her second reading. This passage was much more difficult for her. The results of that reading were
very different from the analysis of her reading the Level 2 passage.
“Where Do People Live?”
-Concept Questions: 5/12
-Total Number of Miscues: 15
-Total Number of Meaning-Changing Miscues: 12
-Similar Beginning: 7 miscues
-Similar Ending: 9 miscues
-Similar Vowel: 8 miscues
-Retains Grammar: 2 miscues
-Retains Meaning: 1 miscues
-Self-corrects: 1 miscues
-43 WPM – 12 Errors = 31 WCPM
-Retelling- 14/51 ideas recalled
-Comp. Questions: 3/8 correct (several were close but I didn’t give
credit because they weren’t correct)
Even though she didn’t get credit for comprehension questions, her answers showed that she
understood the topic and she gave answers that were reasonable. For example, when a question asked
“what type of crop would farmers who raised animals grow?” the answer was “hay,” but Kali answered
“grass, dirt, and mud for pigs.” So, this shows that she understands the ideas behind farming, but it also
shows that she is most likely drawing on her previous knowledge instead of using the answers that she
would find by reading the passage.
The results tell me that she is reading above a Level 2, but below a Level 3. I would say that if
there were such a thing, she would be reading at a Level 2.5. It was also apparent to me that she
enjoyed the fiction passage more than the non-fiction piece. She remembered more for the retelling and
was more engaged in the reading by responding to different things that she had read. One thing that
was very obvious about this student’s reading is that she is very persistent. She self-corrected a lot of
the words that she had difficulty with. She would try very hard to sound out the chunks of the word
before she put them together to form the whole word. There were also several times when she said the
word wrong after sounding it out, but when she finished the sentence, she went back and fixed the
incorrect word because she knew what it was with the help of the context of the story. I really
appreciated how hard she tried to sound out the words that she didn’t know.
The results that I found from the data supports what I see in the classroom. It was obvious
during the assessment that Kali is a slow reader. She spends her time trying to sound out any words she
doesn’t know. She is somewhat of a perfectionist. This being the case, I understand why she seems to be
so far behind where we are as a class during a lesson. She takes her time reading questions and making
sure she understands them instead of using her resources. In math, for example, I will read a question
out loud, and then find Kali reading it to herself even though we already have read it and talked about
the important information. In a lot of situations, Kali is smart enough to complete the work, but she
needs more time than most students to complete the assignment and many times needs assistance
from a teacher to help encourage her as she is working.
Multi-Week Overview:
In the first week, we will start off working on vowel combinations and how vowels are
pronounced differently depending on what letters are around them. After she works on vowel
combinations, she will move on to learning how the silent “e” affects the other vowels in the words. I
chose to do this during the first week because Kali struggled with words that had two vowels combined
together because she didn’t know what vowel to pronounce. Also, she self-corrected a lot of words that
had an “e” at the end. So, this shows me that she understands how the “e” works, but some extra help
will make those words easier for her to decode.
In week two, we will work on simple diagraphs to help Kali decode quicker. Even though she
knows the simple diagraphs, she will sometimes struggle to sound out letter by letter when she sees
“ch” or “th” instead of knowing that these diagraphs have specific sounds. Also, we will work on word
endings that are difficult to sound out. If Kali doesn’t have to sound out these endings that don’t decode
like they look like they should, she will be able to read words quicker.
In week three of my intervention plan, I will work to help Kali learn how to chunk words that she
doesn’t know. When Kali came to a multi-syllabic word that she didn’t know, she would start from the
beginning and decode letter by letter. This proved to be difficult for her because there were times when
she couldn’t decode a word by sounding out every letter. If she learns to find chunks, or smaller words,
that she can see in a larger word, it will be easier for her to decode bigger words.
The strategies I will be working with Kali on may be considered rules, but I will make sure that
she knows that there are always exceptions to the rules and that sometimes the strategies we are
learning may not work for all words.
Specific Areas of Struggle:
Vowel Patterns:
Kali has some difficulty knowing what sound specific vowels make when in combination
with other vowels. She struggled to pronounce words like “weather, museums, either, and grain.”
When two vowels are combined together in a word, Kali has a difficult time deciding what vowel to
pronounce, or when to pronounce both of them together. I will spend the first part of the time I spend
with Kali I will focus on helping her recognize common vowel combinations so that she won’t have to
spend as much time trying to decode words.
Week 1
Monday:
-Focus on
-ai
-oa
-ea
-“When two
vowels go walking,
the first one does
the talking”
Tuesday:
Wednesday:
-Review rule from
Monday and use
flash cards to
practice
Thursday:
Friday:
-Silent “e”
-Makes vowel say
its name.
Monday:
On Monday we will spend time helping Kali recognize that when two vowels are together, the
first vowel will say their sound. There is a drawing that I will draw to help them with these vowel
combinations. The three words that I will use to help her understand this rule are the words “sail, boat,
and sea.” I will draw a picture of a boat with a sail on the sea. With this picture, I will show that in the
word “sail,” the “a” says it’s sound, so you would said “s-ah-l.” With “boat,” you would say “b-oh-t.”
Following the same rule, “sea” is pronounced by saying “s-ee.”
Wednesday:
On Wednesday, we will review the strategy that we learned on Monday and then I will give her
some words to practice on. I will use flashcards with words to help Kali put the rule into place and read
words that she may struggle with. (See attached paper).
Friday:
Although Kali didn’t have a lot of trouble with words that have an “e” at the end, this is still a
rule that will help her with her decoding. Since Kali is good at self-correcting, I noticed that she selfcorrected a lot with words that have a silent “e” at the end. The more strategies she learns, the quicker
she can decode words and she won’t have to spend her time focusing on specific words and can focus
more on the meaning.
To help Kali learn how the silent “e” changes the pronunciation of a word, I will start with having
her do an activity with words she already knows. She will have to draw pictures of the words that I give
her so that she can find the difference that the “e” makes. Here is the word list that I will use with her:
-Can………..Cane
-Cap……….Cape
-Man………Mane
-Pin..………Pine
As Kali reads these words, she will be able to notice that they are pronounced differently, and I
will teach her that the silent “e” makes the vowel in the middle say its name. This is different from the
first rule we learned, because the vowel says its name, not its sound. So, in “cape,” the “a” doesn’t make
an “ah” sound, but it actually says “a,” how we would say the word when saying the alphabet.
WEEK 2
Monday:
-Review familiar
diagraphs
Tuesday:
Wednesday:
-Review familiar
ending patterns
Thursday:
Friday:
-Use diagraphs
and ending
patterns to help
read long words
Monday:
On Monday, we will spend time discussing spelling patters that will help Kali pronounce words.
These aren’t small words that can be chunked, but they are spelling patterns. I will give her a list of a
few spelling patterns and tell her where they might be found in words. After she learns how to
pronounce these spelling patterns, she can use that strategy to help her pronounce words she may not
know. Even though Kali knows some of the spelling patterns that I will show her, she still tried to sound
them out letter by letter, so if she is more confident with the sound the letters make, then she will be
able to read the words better.
I will start with a couple easy diagraphs: “th” and “ch.” I will give words where she can practice
these diagraphs.
-touch, each, reach, chew, child, coach, ditch, cheese, lunch, teach, beach, ouch, beach
-then, although, math, they, there, that, though, bath, this, their, there, these
Wednesday:
Once Kali understands how these simple diagraphs work in a word, I will move on to a few
simple spelling patterns that are usually found at the end of words. These endings may be difficult to
sound out, but if Kali learns how to put them together, then she will be able to decode words easier. I
will review these endings with her:
-tion
-ious
-ure
-ght
Once she can recognize these endings without having to sound out, Kali will be able to read
multisyllabic words easier and quicker without getting hung up on difficult spellings.
Friday:
Today we will use the strategies we have worked on this week to work on reading longer words.
I will give Kali a list of words and we will talk about what strategies we can use to read the words
without having to sound out every letter from the beginning of the word to the end. Here are the words
that we will work through together.
-children, checking, chicken, chunking
-caution, brought, ensure, adventure, vicious, cautious
Week 3:
Monday:
-learning to find
chunks
Tuesday:
Wednesday:
-learning to use
chunks to read big
words
Thursday:
Friday:
-review- use all
the strategies we
have learned to
read big words.
Monday:
Today we will work on finding chunks in multisyllabic words to help Kali read longer words
better. These chunks are little words within bigger words that can be used to help read larger words.
The first step toward being able to use chunks to read bigger words is being able to find chunks in
words. I will give a list of words that have smaller words in them and have Kali find the smaller words
within the bigger word. I don’t expect her to be able to read these words right away, but she just needs
to find the smaller word within the big word.
-arbitrary, invented, adventurer, appropriate, lessons, assessment, isolate, approach, determine
Wednesday:
After learning how to find the chunks, I will teach Kali to start with the chunk and pronounce
that, then start back at the beginning to decode. When she comes to the chunk she knows, she will
know how to read that part. This will make reading large words easier. The great thing about reading
using chunks is that there are all different kinds of chunks that can be used to help read. There are
actual three or four letter words, but there are also spelling patterns that may not be actual words but
will help them read larger words. I will give her the same list of words from Monday, but this time I want
her to decode the difficult words using the chunks that she already knows.
-arbitrary, invented, adventurer, appropriate, lessons, assessment, isolate, approach, determine
Friday:
Today will be our review day where Kali uses all the strategies that she has learned to help her
read larger words. I will give her a list of words, and then she will talk me through what she is thinking as
she is reading them. I want her to tell me what strategy she is using to read the words. Having her
explain her reasoning will help her understand how she is reading the long words. This will make her
more aware of the strategies that she can use.
-following, sometimes, reasoning, decoding, advise, opportunity, employment, independence,
communication, development, friendship, celebration, leisure
Assessment:
This last day will double as her assessment. As she reads the words and explains what she is
doing, she will also be showing that she has learned the different techniques for reading long words. I
will make notes on any strategies that she doesn’t know how to use, and then I will know what we need
to continue to work on.
Parent Involvement:
Since Kali has a supportive family at home, I will write a letter for her parents to know what we
are working on at school. I will give them the information that I will be using so that they can encourage
the same strategies at home. I will send home word lists for her to practice on. I will make sure that the
parents know that she should be explaining her reasoning as she reads the words to show that she
understands what she is doing. Some of the words she may know already, but using the strategies we
worked on will help her understand how to read all different kinds of words.