Score 4 Reading

Successful readers read independently while comfortably making sense out of what they have read.  They feel comfortable when they read silently and sound natural when they read aloud. 

Using a simple four-point Scoring Guide, an adult monitors the progress of up to five readers through stories that have been separated into at least four parts.  Readers must score a 4 on each of three elements for each story part, one part at a time:

· Accuracy – 100%

· Fluency – natural phrasing, smooth flow, and conversational pace

· Comprehension – complete understanding 

Score 4 Reading focuses on the process of successful reading rather than speedy reading, or some other non-integrated aspect of reading.  Readers receive frequent feedback throughout each session. 

During the recommended two to five, thirty-minute sessions per week, one adult can work with up to five readers.  Each reader: listens to wonderfully modeled, natural sounding reading; engages in silent and oral reading practice; reads independently; and has their comprehension verified.  

Score 4 Reading stories have at least four parts.  The first parts, recorded on CDs, serve as models of natural sounding reading.  Readers read the last part without a recorded model.  Readers must still score a 4 on the last part, even though that part has not been modeled for them. 

Teachers are urged to hold the readers to the highest standard of excellence using the scoring guide provided.  Once readers have scored a 4 on all parts of a story, have silently reread the entire story, and then read it to an adult, they move to the next story.  They then repeat the process with a new story, each time stretching their abilities in reading. 

Independent practice & a writing assignment following the completion of each story is built into the program.  Readers are given a copy of the completed story in paragraph form and are expected to practice and complete a writing assignment.  When readers reread the stories and what they have written about them to parents and others, they build their critical thinking skills and solidify the essential neural pathway for reading.  It’s also wonderful to watch their self-esteem soar when they realize how capable they are. 

The experience of generating successful reading for all parts of the Score 4 stories, and continued independent practice is what enables readers to implicitly reconstruct the neural pathway for reading, and become successful readers forever. 

Assessment 

Each reader needs to have an initial assessment to establish a baseline.  Score 4 Reading provides everything needed for this with the exception of a cassette recorder (Score 4 even provides the first few cassette tapes for you).  We recommend reassessing after every 20 hours of instruction.  The results of the assessments are kept with the student’s envelope and charted using the software provided.

The teacher selects a grade-leveled story from the two sets of assessment stories that are provided in the Score 4 manual.

The manual also trains the assessor in what markings to use.  There is a CD with a recording of a struggling reader and a corresponding,filled-in assessor page so that the teacher can practice assessing and check his or her markings with colleagues as well.

A semi-private area with a table and chairs is all that is needed.  The initial assessment session requires 5-7 minutes per student.  While tape recording the assessment, the teacher marks all types of fluency issues and accuracy miscues, including errors, self-corrections, and changes that work.  Comprehension is checked through a reader retell.  Accuracy % and rate (words per minute) is calculated on the software that comes with the program. 

Intervention Sessions 

Everything needed for conducting 30-minute intervention sessions is provided with the Score 4 Reading package except for CD Players and headphones.  A sample layout with tables and chairs is included in the manual.   

There is a 4 point scoring guide and readers are expected to score a 4 on each part of a story before moving to the next part. Teachers provide support and feedback discussed in the manual and then share with the reader the score they achieved.  When a score of 4 is achieved, the student moves on to the next story part or a new story. If the score is less than 4, they continue to work on the existing part. 

Most of this process is actually monitored by the reader, and an adult is needed only when the reader has made him or herself ready to read to the adult.  There are 6 simple steps for modeled reading, repeated reading, silent reading, and partner reading.

Throughout the intervention sessions, records are kept of each encounter the student has reading to the teacher so that progress can be charted.  A simple form for this purpose is provided.

Independent Reading And Writing Assignment 

Each story that has been formatted into parts for the intervention sessions is also provided with normal paragraph formatting in a booklet.  The reader is given one of these stories after completing the story during the intervention session.  The reader takes the story home to practice until an adult listener agrees that a score of 4 has been reached.  There is also a short writing assignment asking the readers to write about something they've learned, or something they've thought about because they've read the story.

Support Materials

Detailed information on training the readers in the intervention sessions, assessments and record keeping are provided in the Score 4 Reading Manual.  Assessment tracking software, certificates of achievement, letters to parents (English and Spanish), a wall chart of the Score 4 Reading Scoring Guide, a flow chart of the intervention process, and reader phones are included with each package.