Action Plan
Action Plan
What was Implemented in the Classroom
Embedded Files
What was implemented?
What was implemented?
The purpose of my study was to determine if the use of targeted summarizing strategies would increase students’ ability to determine the main idea and supporting details within informational text. The targeted strategies that were implemented are as follows.
Read, Reread, List, & Compose Strategy (RRLC)
This strategy requires students to purposefully read the text, reread it for clarity, create a list of key words/phrases from the text, and then compose a summary statement using the important words.
Journalist's Questions: 5 W's (Who, What, When, Where, Why/How)
This strategy has students answer several important questions about what they have read, in a news “journalist” format. These questions include “Who was important in the story? What happened? When did it take place? Where did it take place? Why/how did the events happen?”
Main Idea and Detail Graphic Organizers
Graphic organizers are helpful for the visual learners in my classroom by assisting them in organizing their thoughts. The format of these organizers will provide consistency and help students apply their skills to various texts.
How was the plan implemented?
How was the plan implemented?
The strategies were taught, practiced, and assessed within whole group and small group reading time during the reading block in the school day. The groups consisted of 2-6 students, and each group met with me either once a week or twice a week for 15 minutes. To determine the groupings, I referenced MAP (Measure of Academic Progress) data from the Fall of 2020 and Winter of 2021. The MAP tests assessed students on many skills, and provided educators with detailed reports of students’ strengths and weaknesses in Reading and Math. These scores showed me how proficient my students currently were at summarizing and determining the main idea and key details in informational text. Students were placed in a group with 1-5 other students who were at a similar skill level as themselves so they could be instructed and assessed at their level.
Link to tentative calendar: Action Plan Calendar
Pre-Test
Pre-Test
On January 19th, I conducted a pretest with the class during the whole group reading time. This assessment required students to read/listen to a short informational passage, and then provide a main idea summary statement and three supporting details.
Post-Test
Post-Test
On March 12th, I conducted a posttest with the class during the whole group reading time. This assessment was very similar to the pretest (a short, informational passage was read, and students composed a summary statement and selected three supporting details). However, the passage was over a different topic than the pretest. The data I received from this study, in addition to the pretest and posttest, determined if the strategies I implemented were effective for my students’ learning.
Why was the plan implemented?
Why was the plan implemented?
Differentiation
Differentiation
Diverse learning needs were met within this study by meeting with small groups that were designated based on level of reading skills and student readiness. Some of the students in the class needed additional support and scaffolding when summarizing text, while others could take on the task more independently. The passages that the groups read and summarized were differentiated as well. For groups that struggled the most with reading comprehension, the texts were shorter and contained simpler text. For groups that were at or above grade level, the texts were 6th grade level or above and contained longer passages in order to challenge these students.
In addition to differentiated reading passages, the strategies that I chose for the study were designated for groups for which they would be the best fit. The RRLC (Read, Reread, List, Compose) Strategy was implemented with my above grade level group. This strategy is more open-ended and allowed students more independence when reading and searching for key information. The 5 W’s (Journalist’s Questions) strategy was implemented with my on grade level groups. This strategy provided a structure for students to follow and certain information to search for when reading, while still allowing for independence. The main idea and key detail graphic organizers were used with my below grade level group. These organizers were incredibly versatile and allowed me to provide students with very targeted support and structure to their thinking, which is most beneficial for struggling readers.
Another form of differentiation in my study was student reflection. Students reflected on their individual goals at the beginning and at the end of the study. During the first small group meeting with each group, I asked the group members to independently reflect on the following questions:
How do you feel when you are reading informational/nonfiction text?
What strategies can you use to help understand the text you are reading?
After reflecting on these questions, students shared their thoughts, and this became critical information in my anecdotal notes. Students were encouraged to continue to reflect on these questions throughout the course of the study and use the strategies they learned whenever they were reading informational passages. At the end of the study, students once again reflected on these questions and I analyzed changes in their thinking throughout the course of the study. The goal was that students would develop a more positive attitude towards reading informational texts and be able to employ a variety of strategies for comprehension.
Cultural Responsiveness
Cultural Responsiveness
My study supported culturally responsive teaching by providing students with opportunities to show their learning in the way that they felt comfortable and confident. For example, several students in my class could more effectively verbalize their learning than they could express it in writing. I differentiated the method of assessment by providing students choice in how they expressed the main ideas and details within the texts. If students would benefit from the use of assistive technology (typing responses on their iPads, using speech to text, and predictive text), they could use these accommodations as well in order to be successful.
Another culturally responsive practice is the continuous focus on growth mindset in my classroom. This intervention has been in place since the beginning of the school year, and it has benefitted my students when it comes to challenging tasks. I chose summarizing as the skill for this study specifically because it was one of the most difficult skills for my students to master. The regular practice of growth mindset will help students persevere through challenges and continue to grow and make progress with their reading skills.
I fostered equity in the classroom by differentiating my summarizing texts and activities based on what individual students need to effectively learn. This looked like shorter reading passages for some of the groups, and longer, above-grade level reading passages for the groups that would benefit from enrichment. In addition, I used my knowledge of my students’ interests and hobbies to provide them with texts that they enjoyed and could relate back to their own lives. This not only increased engagement, but improved comprehension and summarizing abilities.
Collaboration with Stakeholders
Collaboration with Stakeholders
Internal: Grade-Level teammate
While planning for and executing my study, I relied on the support and advice from my grade level teammate. She primarily assisted me on accessing a data program through our school district that I used to group my students into ability levels for our summarizing groups based on their standardized test data. We worked together to discuss students' strengths and areas for growth, which was very helpful in determining my small groups. In addition, she was able to meet with groups of students from my class during our intervention time while I met with my groups for this study. This was helpful to keep my entire class on track while practicing a variety of skills.
External: Program Associate, Program peers, University instructors
I collaborated with several external stakeholders throughout this study. First, my Program Associate provided research-based summarizing strategies for me to implement with my small groups. She also assisted with the planning of my study when I first developed the rationale and purpose for the study. In addition to my Associate, I have also held many discussions with my peers in my academic program. These teachers have provided me with meaningful feedback and ideas to apply to my study. Finally, I had the opportunity to receive valuable support and feedback throughout my study from my university instructors. I was able to use this feedback to strengthen my teaching and, therefore increase positive outcomes for my students.
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