Literacy Assessments at Mesa
At Mesa Elementary we use a variety of formal and informal literacy assessments to guide our instruction. Some of the assessments may include: mCLASS,Oral Reading Fluency assessments, spelling inventories, phonological awareness tasks, and phonics surveys.
mCLASS
What is mCLASS?
mCLASS is an assessment platform used by teachers to better understand how each student is developing as a reader. It provides detailed, research-based information to help match reading instruction to each student’s specific needs. The assessment platform includes DIBELS® 8th Edition (English) and Lectura (Spanish) assessments, which allow teachers to screen all students, monitor progress, and identify signs of reading difficulties—including risk for dyslexia—early on.
These assessments will be administered to students in grades K–5 three times a year and will include progress monitoring measures, as needed, to support students’ development of foundational literacy skills. mCLASS is an assessment tool approved by the Colorado Department of Education and is aligned with the Science of Reading.
What skills are measured by DIBELS 8th & Lectura?
DIBELS 8th Edition and Lectura are a series of quick, one-on-one assessments that help teachers monitor students’ progress in foundational reading skills. Each assessment typically takes between one and three minutes to administer and focuses on key areas of literacy, such as:
Phonemic awareness
Phonics
Word reading fluency
Spelling
Rapid automatic naming
Reading comprehension
These assessments help identify students at risk for reading difficulties and provide data to guide targeted interventions. Lectura is a series of Spanish assessments used in our dual language or bilingual programs. It measures similar foundational reading skills that support biliteracy and language development.
CORE Phonics
CORE Phonics Survey is a battery of assessments determining student understanding of key phonics categories in kindergarten through third grade. Assessments are administered to students one-on-one to monitor student growth, guide instruction, and target underdeveloped areas in student learning.