Kentucky Teacher

Language arts teacher Erin Yates, center, shows 8th-grade students Deja Rozier and Olivia Lenberger the websites Tween Tribune and Teen Ink for their summer reading pleasure at Fredrick Law Olmstead Academy South (Jefferson County).

Traditionally, students are sent home at the end of the school year with a summer reading list chocked full of fictional literature.

That’s something that needs to change, according to Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) literacy consultants MK Hardaway and Synthia Shelby and teachers like Erin Yates.

Both Hardaway and Shelby agree that students deserve more freedom in book selection and that other avenues for different forms of text should be embraced.

“As adults, we enjoy choosing the books we read on a daily basis,” Hardaway said. “However, when we send home booklists for the summer, it seems much more structured for students. Why? Why don’t we give them a little more freedom by providing them with books that may interest them? We should provide websites that encourage not only reading, but also questioning, analyzing, critiquing, comparing, contrasting and synthesizing ideas.” Read the full story

Kentucky’s 4^th and 8^th graders made gains – and in some areas outperformed the nation – in reading and mathematics, according to results from the 2011 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).

Overall, the data indicate that:

• Both 4^th- and 8^th-grade mathematics scale scores in Kentucky improved from 2009 to 2011.
• In reading, both 4^th- and 8^th-grade scale scores in Kentucky are higher than the national average in 2011.
• Kentucky’s 8^th graders made gains in reading and mathematics when compared to the state’s performance in 2009; however, Kentucky’s 2011 4^th-grade reading scale score dropped one point when compared to 2009.
• Kentucky’s results have remained steady over the past few years, with minor gains and losses. Since 2000, Kentucky’s 4^th graders have gained 20 points on the NAEP mathematics assessment, and 8^th graders have gained 12 points. Since 1998, Kentucky’s 4^th graders have gained 7 points on the NAEP reading assessment, and 8^th graders have gained 7 points. Read the full story

Letters About Literature (LAL), a national reading and writing promotion program of the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress, invites young readers in grades 4-12 to enter this year’s LAL letter-writing competition. The contest challenges young readers to write a personal letters of reflection to authors that have changed their view of the world.

LAL awards prizes on both the state and national levels in three competition levels: Level 1 for children in grades 4-6; Level 2 for children in grades 7-8; and Level 3 for children in grades 9-12. Six national winners will each receive cash awards and earn the opportunity to nominate a school or community library to receive a $10,000 LAL Reading Promotion grant. Twelve national honor winners will receive cash awards and also will nominate a school or community library for a $1,000 LAL Reading Promotion grant.

Teachers, librarians and parents can download free teaching materials on LAL’s reader response and reflective writing program, including lesson plans, assessment checklists and student writing samples by visiting the LAL website. Submissions must be postmarked by Jan. 6, 2012. State winners will be notified in April 2012 and national winners by May 2012.

For more details, contact Catherine Gourley at (570) 262-7320.

In an effort to increase youth readership, First Lady Jane Beshear announced her Top 10 Fall Reads as a part of the First Lady’s Reading Recommendations Initiative. 

Beshear introduced the Reading Recommendations program in the summer of 2009 and issues reading lists four times per year.

 2011 Fall Reading List

1. It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, by Charles M. Schulz (ages 4-8)
2. The Hound of the Baskervilles, by Sir Conan Doyle (ages 13 and up)
3. The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything, by Linda Williams (ages 4-8)
4. Coraline, by Neil Gaiman (ages 9-12)
5. Go Away Big Green Monster, by Ed Emberley (ages birth – preschool)
6. The Westing Game, by Ellen Raskin (ages 9-12)
7. Who Came Down That Road?, by George Ella Lyon (ages 4-8)
8. The Witches, by Roald Dahl (ages 9-12)
9. The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak (ages 13 and up)
10. The Heckedy Peg, by Audrey and Don Wood (ages 4-8)

To increase youth readership and encourage student reading during summer vacation, First Lady Jane Beshear has announced her Top 10 Summer Reads as a part of the First Lady’s Reading Recommendations Initiative.

Beshear introduced the Reading Recommendations program in the summer of 2009 and issues reading lists four times per year.

2011 Summer Reading List

1. Tale of Despereaux, by Katie DiCamillo (ages 7-12)
2. The Name of this Book is Secret, by Pseudonymous Bosch (ages 8-12)
3. The Lorax, by Dr. Seuss (ages 5-8)
4. The Good Earth, by Pearl S. Buck (ages 14 and up)
5. Turtle in Paradise, by Jennifer L. Holm (ages 9-12)
6. The Very Hungry Caterpillar, by Eric Carl (birth – preschool)
7. The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald (ages 14 and up)
8. The Story of Babar, by Jean de Brunhoff (ages 3-8)
9. Ship Breaker, by Paolo Bacigalupi (ages 13 and up)
10. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, by Bill Martin Jr. (ages 4-8)

Courses help students
prepare for college curriculum

By Susan Riddell
susan.riddell@education.ky.gov

Jana Odom, an English teacher at Somerset High School (Somerset Independent) said she feels more comfortable sending students off to college if they have participated in a transitional course while still in high school.

“This program enables students to develop skills they need for college work while remaining in the ‘safer’ environment of high school,” Odom said. “It is a frightening thing to enter a new phase of life. This fear is somewhat tempered when one knows what to expect. I feel better about sending these students to college knowing that they are more prepared for the expectations of undergraduate coursework.” Read the full story

Charlotte Webb works with students on their reading skills during the Academy, an after-school program at Middlesboro Intermediate School (Middlesboro Independent) Jan. 19, 2011. Photo by Amy Wallot

By Susan Riddell
susan.riddell@education.ky.gov

Charlotte Webb, a 5th-grade teacher at East End Elementary School (Middlesboro Independent) has a student who started the academic year testing at a kindergarten reading level.

“When he tried to read he just repeated the word after I said it with the exception of a few sight words. When it came to written work, he couldn’t do it,” said Webb, who is in her 29th year of teaching at East End Elementary and 33rd overall. “We just took the winter MAP (Measures of Academic Progress) Test, and he scored in the middle of a 2nd-grade reading level. He is very confident, and where he was always looking at me to tell him the word, he is now decoding and reading fluently. Read the full story

Schools and districts are invited to host professional development workshops that explore what the Lexile and Quantile measures are and how administrators and educators can use them to monitor and improve student achievement in relation to state and national standards in reading and mathematics. Read the full story

Kentucky has adopted The Lexile Framework for Reading and The Quantile Framework for Mathematics, two measurement systems designed to provide instructional information to teachers, students and parents and enable accurate tailoring of instructional materials and intervention systems to benefit students. Read the full story