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When students
are in the primary, and sometimes even the junior grades they are often
expected to write in a reading log so they, as well as their teacher and
guardian(s) can keep track of how much reading the student is doing.
Like any skill, reading requires practice, and lots of it! Its importance stretches
far beyond a student’s education in language and into nearly every subject they
study in school. Students will start with letters, words and small stories and
gradually increase the difficulty of the texts as they get older and become
more comfortable with reading comprehension. However, what happens when
students in the same grade are reading at different levels? How can teachers
accommodate this?
Creating
an Equitable Classroom through Multilevel Texts
One way for
teachers to accommodate different reading levels and ensure the classroom is
inclusive of all individuals is through multilevel texts. According to the
Overall Reading Expectations in the Ontario Curriculum students are expected to
be able to ‘use knowledge of words and cueing systems to read fluently’ and
‘reflect on and identify their strengths as readers, areas for improvement, and
the strategies they found most helpful before, during, and after reading.’
Multilevel texts encourage students to observe the above expectations.
Multilevel texts
are more commonly found in junior classrooms but are beneficial at all levels.
Sometimes, an issue arises for intermediate grades because it can be more
difficult to find suitable multilevel texts. However, as Catherine Cornford
explains in her article, ‘Using Multilevel Texts: Supporting Literacy in the Inclusive Classroom’, multilevel texts can be a very favorable resource for
teaching reading and are worth the search for all grade levels. Not only do
they promote equity by ensuring all students are reading at a level suited to
their needs and abilities but it also helps to create an inclusive classroom.
Multilevel texts allow all students in the class to contribute to classroom
discussions without having to single anyone out for being unable to read the
common text. Cornford also demonstrates the importance of multilevel texts to
student engagement. Studies have shown students to be more motivated when they
are interested or engaged in the text, and one of the main reasons for lower
engagement is if the texts are either too easy or too difficult for them.
There's Always Time to Practice Reading Comprehension
Multilevel texts are not
just for teaching reading in language class, they can be used for other
subjects as well. Currently, I am doing my first practicum in a grade 7 science
classroom. In all four classes I will be working with there are individuals with
IEP’s and/or who are ESL. Science can be an exceptionally hard subject to
accommodate for because it requires the knowledge of such specific terminology.
National Geographic has created leveled readings for all elementary grades. They
have books devoted to many different subjects including social science,
science, language and many more. Each topic they offer has three levels of
text: lower then the grade level, equivalent to the grade level and higher than
the grade level. All the books look exactly the same, differentiated only by
the colour of the back cover. By using National Geographic’s leveled texts, my
associate teacher has found a way to ensure the required terminology is included
in the lessons but is presented in a way that is appropriate and understandable
for all individuals while creating a sense of equality in the classroom.
