COOPERSTEIN, J.

EDR 317/318
SLO Case Study
Examiner: JULIA COOPERSTEIN
PART 1 - CLASSROOM CONTEXT
1
Class/Course Lauren McDonald (Pseudonym) Class Frequency Typical Class Duration
Reading Practicum
A EDR 317/318 Readers Workshop- Daily Readers Workshop- 55 minutes

Class size Grade Level West Chester Area School Fern Hill Elementary
27 4th District

1 CLASSROOM CONTEXT

Analysis of Student
West Chester Area School District uses the Words Their Way Elementary Spelling Inventory to assess each students spelling stage. This provides
Performance
(Stage 1) teachers with the information on where to being spelling and word study instruction for each student based on spelling features that were commonly
Danielson 1b missed throughout the inventory. On the Elementary Spelling Inventory, Lauren spelled 10 out of 25 words correctly and scored a total of 40 out of a
possible 62 feature points. Typically, fourth graders fall into the spelling stage Syllables and Affixes. Lauren was assessed using this inventory in
Describe the data sources
May of third grade and in September of fourth grade. Based on her inventory, it was determined that Lauren falls in the Within Word Pattern
used (NWEA, DIBELS,
Unit test, and etc.) that spelling stage. In the Within Word Pattern stage, students are learning long vowel patterns, r-controlled vowels and inflected endings. The
provide evidence of a inventory indicated that Laurens spelling began to break down in the other vowels feature. This included words such as serving, chewed, carries
potential instructional and marched. This presented a concern since most beginning fourth graders are ready to move on to the Syllables and Affixes spelling stage and
concern that warrants
Lauren was still in the middle of the Within Word Pattern Stage.
significant academic
support.
Describe your analysis of In order to further validate this concern, Laurens writing samples were analyzed to determine if this same pattern or area of need was appearing.
the data and areas of Within Laurens writing, many words containing r-controlled vowels were spelled incorrectly, which provided more evidence to validate the concern
concern with respect to
in regards to her spelling stage. It was also noted that Lauren spelled many sight words incorrectly within her writing such as said, should, because,
one academic standard.
etc. This presented another area of concern to be addressed with supports since those sight words should be automatic in writing by fourth grade.

In observing Lauren working in writing, her largest roadblock seems to be spelling. She frequently asks the teacher how to spell words and sees it as
a struggle that she tries to overcome before the revision/editing stage. Writing is not a preferred task for Lauren because her spelling holds her back
from getting her ideas down on paper.

Identification of
Instructional Need &
Based on Laurens Elementary Spelling Inventory and writing samples, it was determined that her instructional need is spelling and word study. Her
Identification of Target
Population writing samples validate the fact that she falls in the Within Word Pattern spelling stage, determined by the inventory. Instruction in word study
COOPERSTEIN, J. 2

(Stage 1) began with common long-vowel patterns and moved into less common long-vowel patterns. Interventions will begin in these middle stages of
Danielson 1b Within Word Pattern. Based on Words Their Way, examples of common long-vowel patterns include toad, rode, bloom, eat, etc.
Based on the data Examples of less common long-vowel patterns include blue, grew, bright, cry, etc.
collected above identify
the instructional needs
and how it will relate to
your goal, essential
question and standards.
What research was
conducted on students
(Individualized Education
Plan [IEP], English
Language Leaner [ELL])
and rational for selecting
the target group

Goal Statement Lauren will be able to determine the structural analysis of words in order to spell them correctly within her writing.
Danielson 1c

A description of the
enduring understanding
or big ideas that students
C will possess at the end of
the Learning plan based
on grade level content
standards and
curriculum.

Essential Questions Why is it important to understand the patterns that govern our spelling?
Danielson 1c

Essential questions center How do you generalize patterns of word study into pieces of writing?
on major issues,
problems, concerns,
interests, or themes
relevant to the classroom.
Essential questions should
lead students to discover
the goal (enduring
D understandings). They
need to go beyond who,
what and where. They
need to lead to the how
and why.

PA Standards

http://www.pdesas.org/Sta CC.1.4.4.F
ndard/view or
https://www.pdesas.org/P Demonstrate a grade- appropriate command of the conventions of standard English grammar, usage, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
age?pageId=11
COOPERSTEIN, J. 3

ISTE Standards
www.iste.org

Academic Language What key terms are essential to this content?

Danielson 1a and 1b
Structural analysis
What key terms are Generalization
essential to this content? Word study
What terms are essential
to develop and extend
Patterns
students vocabulary?
What opportunities will What terms are essential to develop and extend students vocabulary?
you provide for students Patterns
to practice the new
language and develop Generalize
E
fluency, both written and Spelling
oral? Structure
Word Study

What opportunities will you provide for students to practice the new language and develop fluency, both written and oral?
Lauren will be encouraged to review her writing for spelling errors. If unable to identify her errors, she will be guided to words that have
already been practiced in her weekly word study sorts as well as sight words.
During Readers Workshop, Lauren will be provided with an opportunity to practice words with a small group of students or one other
student in her class. This session will be teacher led so that the teacher can monitor work.
Lauren will be provided with the Spin It game used throughout the instructional sessions to take home and practice with her words in a
fun, game-like manner.
Though the examiner is not Laurens typical word study teacher, she will review Laurens weekly sort and have an understanding of it so
that she can provide guidance in practicing during Readers Workshop.

2 PRE- AND POST-ASSESSMENT PLAN (STAGE 2 SLO RUBRIC)

The various tools/assessments which will be used to measure student achievement toward a specific goal.

The Words Their Way Elementary Spelling Inventory is the pre-assessment that was used to pinpoint Laurens specific area of need in
Describe the pre and post
spelling/word study. The results of this inventory showed that Lauren fell into the, Within Word Pattern stage of spelling. Specifically, the
assessment (such as
performance task and inventory is showing that Laurens spelling is beginning to break down in the Other Vowels feature.
rubrics) that measure
students understanding
F of the goal.

How will you ensure the

This assessment is valid and reliable because it comes from a well-known program called Words Their Way. This program is used for word study
assessments are valid and
G reliable data? If using a and spelling instruction across all elementary grades throughout the district. Since this tool is used across grade levels, data is kept consistent and
proprietary assessment students will progress throughout theses same stages, receiving the same form of instruction based on their spelling stage. The inventory is broken up
provide information on into common spelling features and highlights the feature multiple times withing the 25 words. This breakdown of features is able to pinpoint exactly
COOPERSTEIN, J. 4

the tool and why it was where each students spelling begins to break down by analyzing which features were most commonly missed. This provides an exact starting point
selected. If the tool is not
for spelling and word study instruction.
proprietary discuss how
you will ensure content
validity and reliability?

Assessment Window:
Assessment window
Pre- Assessment Date:
H should not be included as August 30, 2017
part of the learning plan
activities. Pre-assessment Post- Assessment Date:
should be administered
December 1, 2017
well in advance of
instructional delivery.
Post-assessment should
be administered after the
last day of formal
instruction.

Baseline and Trend Data
After administering the
pre-assessment, describe
the data used to identify
assessment and growth
I targets. Explain how this
data helped you identify
the growth targets for
your students. How was
the assessment done?
What were the results of
the data gathered?
West Chester Area School District uses the Words Their Way Elementary Spelling Inventory to assess each students spelling stage. This provides
teachers with the information on where to being spelling and word study instruction for each student based on spelling features that were commonly
missed throughout the inventory. On the Elementary Spelling Inventory, Lauren spelled 10 out of 25 words correctly and scored a total of 40 out of a
possible 62 feature points. Typically, fourth graders fall into the spelling stage Syllables and Affixes. Lauren was assessed using this inventory in
May of third grade and in August of fourth grade. Since this inventory can be used to determine all spelling levels from Emergent spellers through
Derivational Relations spellers, it was administered as a whole class. Based on her inventory, it was determined that Lauren falls in the Within
Word Pattern spelling stage. The inventory indicated that Laurens spelling began to break down in the other vowels feature. This included words
such as serving, chewed, carries and marched. Respectively, she spelled these words srving, chued, cares, and marcht. This presented a concern
since most beginning fourth graders are moving into the Syllables and Affixes spelling stage and Lauren was still in the middle of the Within
Word Pattern stage.
The inventory provides an exact starting point for the instructional sessions. Progress will be tracked through looking at Laurens weekly word study
assessments. The window since the pre-assessment was given is small. This means that it is likely that Laurens data on the inventory will not change
dramatically. Therefore, progress will be tracked through assessments within her spelling stage.

3 ACHIEVEMENT GOAL (STAGE 1 SLO RUBRIC)

Select the type of growth that will be used for the SLO
__Tiered __ Uniform Growth Target X Individualized Growth Target (Half-Split Target)
COOPERSTEIN, J. 5

Identify actual
performance (e.g., grades,
test or rubric score)
targets from the baseline
data collected. Include
patterns and themes and
J qualitative data collected.
The data should be
presented in a table
format.
From November 15, 2017 to December 6, 2017, Lauren will demonstrate her spelling ability by achieving an average score of 85% on her weekly
word study assessments from the Words Their Way program.
During writing activities, the examiner noticed that Lauren begins to become distracted or go to the bathroom since it is not a preferred task. Through
dissucion with Lauren, the examiner has learned that writing is not her favorite activitiy because spelling is challenging for her. Lauren frequently
asks the examiner how to spell words before she is in the editing/revising stage of the writing process. Though spelling is something that frustrates
her, she is self-aware and realizes that it is holding her back and is very willing to work on it.
Student Name Baseline Growth or Final Score Exceeds/Meets
(use a pseudonym) (Pre-assessment Achievement Goal (Post Assessment) Goal (yes/no)
score)

Lauren 10/25 total points 85% 79% No

40/62 feature
points

Achievement Goal From November 15, 2017 to December 6, 2017, Lauren will demonstrate her spelling ability by achieving an average score of 85% on her weekly
word study assessments from the Words Their Way program.

3 INSTRUCTIONAL PLAN OUTLINE: Outline the daily evidenced based instructional strategies and/or grouping strategies that will be used to teach the content. (STAGE 2 SLO RUBRIC)

Outline or brief Instructional Window

description of
instructional strategies to
support the learning goal.
First session: Wednesday, November 15th
Reflection on Planning:
theory or research that Last Session: Friday, December 1st
supports the selection of
the strategies.
Outline of Instructional Strategies
Instructional Window
Session #1: Wednesday, November 15th-
___Start (first formal
instruction after the
administration of the pre- Lauren and a friend played a game called Spin It (APPENDIX A) that had her practice the words in her weekly sort: Within Word
assessment) Pattern Sort 21 (short u and long u: Open syllable ew and ue) (APPENDIX B) in different ways. The game incorporates spelling
practice, observation of patterns, using the word in context, etc.
___ End (last day of
formal instruction before
K administration of the
post-assessment )
COOPERSTEIN, J. 6

Session #2: Friday, December 1st (morning)-

**Note- Thanksgiving break fell in the middle of the session #1 and session #2, therefore Lauren had one week off of word study and
practice with spelling. She was absent on Wednesday of this week (November 29th) so practice for this weeks word study assessment
was limited. Friday, December 1st consisted of two sessions before her assessment.

Lauren and a friend will sort her weekly sort and justify how she sorted them. She will then play Spin It again to practice with her new
set of words: Within Word Pattern Sort 22 (Short i and long i: CVCe, CVCC igh, and CV Open syllable y) (APPENDIX C). She will
begin to work on a correct my spelling story (APPENDIX D) that the examiner created for her consisting of words from this weeks sort
and the previous weeks sort.
**APPENDIX D1- Laurens copy of the story
***APPENDIX D2- Notes on what Lauren missed before correction.

Session #3: Friday, December 1st(afternoon)-

Lauren and her friend will continue to work on the correct my spelling story. After finishing the story and discussing her mistakes
throughout, she will write her own short story (APPENDIX E) using at least 5 of her words from the weekly sort.

Reflection on Planning

I first made the decision to allow Lauren to choose a friend who was also in her word study class to complete these activities with. I
thought that this would be more fun for her to play with one of her friends than just myself since spelling is not a preferred task. I also
wanted Lauren to be able to talk about her words. If there were disagreements in anything throughout the activities, the discussion and
justification between the two students would be an effective teaching tool for me and would provide me with an understanding of how
much she knows and is able to verbalize what she is thinking in regards to word study and spelling practice.

I created a game called Spin It to play with Lauren in my sessions. While I know that Lauren is already intrinsically motivated to do
well, games are a highly motivating and engaging way to practice an unpreferred task. To support the learning goal that includes the
weekly word study assessments, the words from the weekly sort are used to play this game. Knowing how frustrating spelling can be to
Lauren, this decision was made so as not to overwhelm her with a completely new set of words to practice. Each section of the spinner
has the player work with the word in a different way so that their practice is well-rounded and hits all aspects of spelling and word study
instruction. These categories include:
Which category does your word fit into? Why?- demonstrates an understanding of the pattern.
Spell and Tell- practices spelling
Say it, Spell it, Write it- practices spelling and writing
Find another word in the same category- practices generalization of a pattern
Correct My Spelling- integrates spelling practice and understanding of the pattern
Write the Word in a Sentence- puts the spelling into context
In session #2, I begin by having Lauren and her friend complete the weeks sort. I made this instructional decision because I want to be
sure that Lauren understands the sort before we begin the activities. I will first lay out the headings for the weeks sort and have Lauren
describe the categories. The girls will take turns sorting but will have to agree or disagree with the others decision so that Lauren is
thinking about all of the words, not just her own.
COOPERSTEIN, J. 7

We will play Spin It in two sessions because Lauren will have a new set of words. This way, she can practice in a variety of different
ways (listed above) with her new set of words, as she did with the previous set. Next, Lauren will complete a correct my spelling
activity in which she corrects spelling in a story that I have written. I chose create a short story using words from her current sort and
the previous weeks sort. I chose to use both sets of words because it is important to continue to practice old patterns as well as the
new patterns. Since Lauren has such difficulty in spelling, I want to make sure that she is continuing to work with words from previous
sorts as well. This will also show if the interventions used for the previous sort were successful. I was careful about the way I incorrectly
spelled the words within the story. I chose to spell them using other patterns from the sort or a combination of the patterns. I have
noticed this happen often in Laurens writing where she confuses and/or combines the patterns. I wanted to see if she would catch
these slight errors and then spell them using the correct pattern.

Finally, I chose to create a short writing activity for the last session. I wanted to see if the practice we did with the words would translate
into her writing since we had been practicing them in a semi-isolated context. I will have her choose 5 words from the current sort and
write a short story using those words. This will also show any other spelling errors and where instruction would need to continue from
this point forward.

4 REFLECTION: Identify the results of the pre- and post-assessment of the targeted population. (SLO RUBRIC STAGE 3 REFLECTION ONLY)

Not applicable for 317/318

Record the actual
number or percentage of
students who achieved
the target in a table
L (Danielson 4f)

What % or # of students
Lauren did not meet the target goal of receiving a average of 85% on her weekly word study assesements.
met your targets?

Candidate Self-Rating Based on the data gathered how would you rate your performance?
Does Not Meet---- 0
69% of students
performed worse than
Laurens average score on her word study assessments across the two week instructional window was a 79%. Assessments outside of
M expected the instructional window have ranged from 72-92%. This demonstrates that some sorts have been easier for Lauren to work with and
Needs Improvement- that providing more interventions as the sorts become more challenging may be able to push her to meet the original goal that was set.
70% - 79% of students
performed as expected
but overall the group is
COOPERSTEIN, J. 8

below expectation (need

a minimum of 80
percent)
Meets ---- 80% - 94% of
students performed as
expected
Exceeds over 95% of
student performed better
than expected.

Reflective Narrative:
Reflective Narrative
What did you learn
about the process? I believe that my instructional goal was not met because I did not provide enough support needed for the ability level of my student.
N Based on the data Reflecting on this process, I do not believe I did enough modeling in order for her to be successful. The activities I chose were more
gathered and self-rating guided practice and independent. I believe that in this case, modeling could have been the missing piece to get her to her goal. It was
what do you believe were
challenges or changes
challenging for me to think about and plan how to model spelling. I could have shown how to use the patterns to help me figure out how
you would have made in to spell a word, this would have given her a strategy to use when she is unsure. I feel as though I did not provide her with any strategies
the delivery of to use when she is spelling independently. At this stage, it is not enough to tell her to sound out the words because the vowel-patterns
instruction that will that we were working with often cannot be sounded out, this is where the patterns come into play.
support the learning
outcome?
What was the rationale I am hopeful that Lauren will continue to practice her spelling. She frequently asks if we can play Spin It, and has asked if we will
for selecting the learning practice together with her new words every week. Even though my instructional sessions for this SLO are complete, I will continue to
activities? work with her and provide her with the extra practice she needs to push her to meet the goal. In this regard, I believe that the activities
Please use the SLO
rubric to support the
that I designed for my sessions were fun and motivating for Lauren to continue to practice something that is very challenging for her. As
development of the I continue to work with her, I will be sure to provide more support through modeling in order to meet her needs.
narrative.
From this experience I have learned how challenging word study instruction can be. In this experience and through teaching word study
in school, I find that I often ask myself, How do I teach this effectively? In my teaching of word study in school, I am teaching the
Syllables and Affixes group. These are the students who are on target for fourth grade. If I find myself asking this question with grade
level students, I need to do more research on teaching both those students and the below grade level students, where Laurens
instruction was, in an effective manner. My goal to overcome this barrier is to do more research on the Words Their Way program and
how they recommend it is taught. This will provide me with more guidance in my day-to-day teaching and in my continued work with
Lauren.

Source: Document adapted from SLO template provided by Pennsylvania Department of Education pdesas.org. Some of the categories and descriptions were revised to meet the needs of teacher candidates.