Running Records
The How and Why
Purpose for Running Records
To determine student’s instructional levels
To determine student’s placement levels for guided reading
groups.
To show student growth over time
To select appropriate reading material for students
To provide data for teachers when making critical decisions
about student instruction and intervention.
To provide valuable information to parents and students.
Administering Running
Records
Always begin with a cold read (a text the student has never read before)
While listening to the student read, the teacher records information about the
student’s reading behaviors (using standardized coding)
After completing the running record, the teacher checks for comprehension
by asking within, beyond, and about the text questions, and using the F & P
comprehension rubric.
http://cbl.jordandistrict.org/assessments/fandp/
Check fluency using the F & P rubric
http://cbl.jordandistrict.org/reading/fluency/
MONTHLY RUNNING RECORDS SHOULD MIRROR
FOUNTAS AND PINNELL BENCHMARK ASSESSMENTS
How often should running
records be administered?
Each student should have a running record
administered at least one time each month
Teachers should use the two-a-day format for running
records
Teachers should create a schedule for doing running
records that insures each student receives a time to have a
running record one time each month
The schedule should be followed and repeated each
month
This should become part of the daily routine
What text should we use?
Running records should be administered using text from the guided
reading library. Alternate using informational text and literature.
It is best and highly recommended that teachers use a copy of actual
text to conduct the running record. This gives teachers the best
information about student’s reading behaviors. This text can be
obtained through:
•
Making a photocopy of one section of text
•
Using an overlay and photocopying the overlay on the page from
the book
•
Typing a passage of text from the book
Example 1
What can we learn about the
student’s reading abilities through
this running record form?
This form does not give us any
information except an accuracy rate
and reading rate. This is not enough
information to determine what
instructional needs the student has.
Example 2
What can we learn about the
student’s reading abilities through
this running record form?
The student has missed words that
have y at the end, r controlled vowels,
and the digraph /sh/ with a long
vowel. We also learn that the student
read for understanding when they
repeated and made a self correction.
We can see that the student may
need more instruction to solve big
words.
Example 3
What can we learn about the
student’s reading abilities through
this running record form?
In addition to the things we learned
in the previous method, we get a look
into the types of words the student is
able to read. This text becomes
meaningful when we are choosing
text for the student to read, planning
intervention if necessary, and
discussing student needs with
parents.
Now What?
We have gathered data about the student’s accuracy,
fluency/rate, comprehension, and the level of text the
student can read.
How do we determine the student’s instructional level?
“If you have recorded an easy, or independent level text
for the reader, then continue the assessment with
increasingly more difficult books (higher levels). You
want to find the benchmark instructional level.”
Fountas & Pinnell; Benchmark 1 Assessment
Guide, Heinemann (2008).
Guided Reading Rubric
Use the guided reading rubric to help make decisions regarding
student’s instructional levels.
Base decisions on multiple pieces of evidence such as classroom
observation, anecdotal notes, and running records.
http://cbl.jordandistrict.org/reading/guided/