International Reading Association Newsletter Weekly Project: Effective Literacy Website #7

Read With Me (RWM) (https://readwithmeapp.com)  was created by teachers and developers who were tired of the daily mundane work of checking reading fluency assessments. This site offers an easier way of assessing and checking those assessments through a mobile app. The student fluency tests can be administered on tablets, with the student reading while the teacher is following along and marking any miscues along the way. The fluency assessments and practices RWM has to offer are meant to  be done anywhere and anytime.

RWM allows flexibility in how students are assessed. The student could be reading and decide to restart and the teacher can interrupt the students’ reading. The goal is to have the student read and comprehend. If reading all over again is an opportunity  for the child to comprehend the reading material, then that is allowed. All this is up to the teacher.

Reading passages for grades K-8^th with short comprehension questions after each one are available. The teacher has the option to assign students with the appropriate grade level passage. Each passage has a description of the number of words, how many of those words are considered unique as well as the Lexile Level. The passages are short enough for students to read without taking away too much time from other subject areas. Should a teacher want another passage that is not offered, the option to include that passage for assessment is available.

International Reading Association Newsletter Weekly Project: Effective Literacy Website #6

ABCya ( https://www.abcya.com) is a site that offers over 400 free educational games for PreK – 6 that will enrich their learning experiences while having fun. I have explored the site and found out some of what it has to offer. Anytime making learning easy, fun, and free is available, is certainly something I am willing to look into.

Alan and Lisa are former public-school teachers that wanted to share how enjoyable education in the classroom can be. Unfortunately, finding the resources and funding became a problem so they decided to venture into gamifying educational lessons. After developing programs that other teachers enjoyed, the birth of ABCya came to fruition.

To make things easier for the user the sight has categorized its activities by grade and subject. The variety of activities are used by over 100 million kids, all learning levels and styles each year, which I think proves that the site must be truly fun. These activities are designed by parents and educators, who know and understand how children learn better by having fun doing it. So that parents and educators are reassured that their children and students are on track with what they should be learning, ABCya has aligned these activities with the Common Core State Standards. To make things easier for the user, each standard on the site has a game that it recommends to correspond with it, just as each game has the corresponding standard.

One example of a game is the ”Fuzz Bug Farm Consonant Blends.” This game is great for teaching consonant blends. When the student spins they are able to play by choosing the correct sounds. The student is able to click on the selections and listen to each sound it makes before making their choice. When the student determines the right consonant blend, they match it with the other letters provided. Excellent for Kindergarteners who are just learning to read or ESL students learning how to read as well. As the game continues it identifies who wins in the end and goes on to another round.