What is the Grade 2 literacy assessment?
There are five parts to the Grade 2 literacy assessment: phonemic awareness, phonics, sight word reading, spelling (encoding) and Oral Reading Fluency and Comprehension. The fall (November) district check-in requests data from Oral Reading Fluence and Comprehension.
Teachers identify and monitor their learners’ strengths and needs to ensure continuous growth in literacy. This assessment tool focuses on critical skills that indicate literacy development and is designed for classroom teachers to use at multiple points in the year.
Why is Comox Valley School District collecting Grade 2 literacy data?
Information gathered through the tool informs instructional decisions as part of ongoing teaching and learning cycles throughout the year. In addition, this data collection is useful to pass on to future teachers in support of transitions and for the school to determine literacy goals.
Within the SD71 Literacy Framework, the fall of Grade 2 helps to monitor how our learners are doing. The district will be extracting the data from Oral Reading Fluency component of the tool by the end of the first week of November of each school year. This data will be used to inform decision-making regarding learning initiatives, professional learning opportunities, and resources.
This data information was selected as respected research tells us that early detection of reading difficulties is critical to providing intervention that can change the course of a child's development as a reader. It is important to ensure that students receive instruction in all areas of literacy in an integrated and meaningful way. Word reading and language comprehension are the foundations of reading comprehension. Readers write better, writers read better, and speaking and thinking are connected intimately to both. The core competencies of communicating, thinking, and personal and social identity are integral to being successful as a literacy learner.
How do I administer the assessment?
The Oral Reading Fluency (district assessment) assessment can be completed in person, on Zoom or in Seesaw (activity here). The other parts of the assessment can be administered according to teacher preference.
Assessment tools:
Full Grade 2 assessment
Profile Tracking Sheet (overview)
Oral Reading Fluency Class Profile (send to Admin first Friday of November)
Seesaw Oral Reading Fluency activity
After you complete the assessments, see these next steps ideas for learners who are emerging/developing, developing/proficient, proficient/extending