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We know that students’ ability to read and comprehend texts is highly predictive of future success (1). Moreover, “students who are not reading at grade level by third grade begin having difficulty comprehending the written material that is a central part of the educational process in the grades that follow. Meeting increased educational demands becomes more difficult for students who struggle to read” (1). Yet, the reality for many struggling readers and English Language Learners comes in the fact that in fifth grade they ARE still learning to read. My aim is to support students in accessing and comprehending grade level appropriate material, in order to level the playing field. These students need to be both supported in reading instructional level texts at their Zone of Proximal Development, but while also having opportunities to access fifth grade level texts for comprehension. One of the challenges that comes with teaching upper elementary students who are learning to read, write, and speak English comes in the fact that many of the reading materials geared towards students learning to read have content appropriate to K-1 students, not 5th grade students. While these books support students in learning to read, it is difficult for students to engage with them using higher order thinking skills, and making deep comprehension connections. Knowing that students often learn to speak and orally comprehend a new language before learning to read it (2), listening to upper grade level (2-5) audio books while following along in a physical copy of the book will allow my students to engage with increasingly complex texts, and thus in the higher level of thinking they are capable of in fifth grade. Access to such texts will also support all in my class who struggle with reading, not just those still learning English. (1)www.paschoolperformance.org/doc/11 (2)https://esolonline.tki.org.nz/content/download/16009/.../file/ELLP+Introduction.pdf
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