Teachers: 3rd Gr. LA SOLs... any advice for a first-time teacher?

Question

I am currently a 4th grade teacher, but my administrator believes I "will be more of an asset with my strengths" in 3rd grade next year. Anyway, I'm trying to plan ahead and get very familiar with the LA content over the summer.

So far, I plan to take the LA Units/TE home this summer; compile the released SOL tests from the last few years for 3rd Gr. LA; and talk with our LA specialist about what I should look for in 3rd grade writing.

What else can I do (from your own teaching experience) to better prepare to teach LA all day to two classes? And no, I can't change my assignment... he wants us to teach it this way, so that's not an option. I just need advice in bringing up their SOL scores in the classroom... typically for some reason, our school's third grades do exceedingly well in Math SOLs, but not LA. "No one" seems to know why, but with half the grade level's scores on my shoulders alone, I need help!! Thanks!

Answer 1

Adje J,

We "talked" before; so instead of copy/paste something, I'll try to give some of my best advice. Take it for what it is worth.

First, you must understand your audience, then your administrator's spoken expectations, your administrator's unspoken expectations, and finally, what is best for your students. Several of these things will be in conflict with each other though.

One can infer your audience--students--are not proficient readers (some might be proficient and we'll discuss them later.) Moreover, third graders tend to be "teacher pleasers" still, which is not true of fourth graders.

Next, but you didn't clarify, SOL tests are a Virginia "thing"--meaning, "Standards of Learning" tests. Another way of saying, "grade level expectations."

---Grade 3 SOLs in WORD FORMAT are located:
http://www.pen.k12.va.us/VDOE/Instruction/English/EnglishCF-3.doc

Grade 3 "non-writing" SOLs scheduled test dates for next year (07-08) are in late April--plenty of time.

---Grade 3 Schedule in Acrobat .pdf is located:
http://www.pen.k12.va.us/VDOE/Assessment/TestingScheduleChart07-08.pdf

Grade 3 does not take a writing SOL--only elementary grade 5 in Virginia.

With this learned, (remember I teach in Florida) one can infer your administrator's spoken expectations are to concentrate on language arts skills with an inference to bring up SOLs scores.

From experience, I can infer your administrator's unspoken expectations are bring up the READING test scores of your lowest 25% students--and at least maintain everyone else's SOLs reading level.

My advice is to concentrate on the reading SOLs, this is not to say ignore the "speaking skills" or the "writing skills", but they are not testable for third grade. Reading skills will be the measured success or failure of your administrator's expectations.

Thus, very quickly determine what your third graders can do and what they cannot do in terms of the reading SOLs. Hammer away at the skills they cannot do. It will be the higher level SOLs--they always are.

Trim all wasted, useless activities or adjust them to meet the SOLs.

Ensure that you are maintaining/practicing the other skills they know how to do.

OK, I should have made my point with the above.

Next, you must take a reality check. It is extremely likely your lowest 25% cannot read functionally or at all. Teach them to read and the scores will jump leaps and bounds because their previous scores are bottom of the barrel anyways--probably just guessing at answers because THEY CAN'T READ!

Reading theory aside, these kids probably do not know what good reading sounds like. Audio Books and Books-on-Tape can be your salvation. Who doesn't like to be read to?

Audio books provide the sound of good reading while kids learn what good reading sounds like.

Another tip, Novels, not the textbook, will improve your scores.

One can infer this is what your school may have been doing wrong; thus, getting the same results. Low test scores, teach the textbook; lower test scores, teach more of the textbook--blah....

A suggestion?

Browse over the textbook and pinpoint all the good stories you think may help--10 stories is the most I've ever seen in any one reading textbook--and skip the rest. My eighth grade literature book has 3 such stories!

Instead, go get interesting--grade-level appropriate--novels and use them to bring up the scores. You can't just read the novel together or assign them in literature circles; you must have SOL skill-related assignments that go with the novel reading. Mix up the type of assignments you give.

You may be of the philosophy to have separate reading groups--again started by reading textbook publishers to sell more products. This philosophy only alienates the poor reading and establishes a thick, thick ceiling for their potential.

If you read together as a class, one novel, and modify expectations individually, then you will be surprised what expectations can be surpassed.

Again, you really are only looking for improvement. higher SOLs score students will improve, and seemingly lower SOLs score students do not need to improve as mush to still show growth. Again, you will be surprised what successes they will do.

Reading is interactive, kids NEED to discuss the reading--you probably know this; but, kids also need to reinforce the reading AND the discussion by WRITING. The process of writing allows students to organize their ideas about what they are thinking.

TOO often teachers separate the writing from the reading. Any writing should be connected to the reading, and any reading should be connected to the writing.

Finally, for this answer, you must do what is best for your students. Cramming reading down their throats with practice test after practice test; reading workbook worksheet after worksheet will only teach ALL kids--good readers and poor readers--to detest reading.

I read all the time; and since college, I have never written an essay after I finished a novel or sought a vocabulary worksheet for the words I didn't know.

They are students and they will need to write essays and complete worksheets, but avoid a system or a format--they will come to detest it. Reading Logs one month, diaries the next; and a project the next--that sort of thing.

For the best interest of your kids make reading fun! Choose textbook stories and novels YOU like. Kids will see right through you if you do not like reading the material as well.

Next year, I challenge you to be that teacher--the one who makes a difference in the lives of your students. It will not be easy!

Again, take my advice for what it is worth. I'm sure their are other answerers out there who can debate "all the horrible advice" I gave you. The world is filled with nay-sayers and pessimists.

Good Luck....

Answer 2

Well, it sounds like you're in the state of Virginia similar to me because you're talking about SOL's. In my opinion, I would familiarize myself very well with the curriculum and the frameworks for 3rd grade. To raise the SOL scores, maybe do a daily reading with them where they have to answer questions each day after reading a passage to get them into the groove of SOL testing. In addition, do lots of games and hands on activities. Also, try to go to inservices for Lang. Arts in the summer. Hope this helps! :) Feel free to email me at [e-mail] if you need anything else. :)

Answer 3

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Answer 4

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