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Assessment and Instruction: Helping

Every Child Succeed 6th Edition
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Brief Contents
Preface xix
6 Reading Fluency 178

1 Strategic Reading Instruction 1 7 Reading Vocabulary 211

2 Response to Intervention (RTI): 8 Reading Comprehension:

Differentiating Reading Instruction Narrative Texts 240
for All Readers  14
9 Teaching with Informational Texts  289
3 Oral Language and Listening:
The Foundation of Literacy 33 10 Extending our Reach: Summer
Learning Loss, Family Involvement,
4 Early Literacy Skills: Phonological and Professional Learning
and Phonemic Awareness, Letter Communities  352
Name Knowledge, and Concepts
about Print  68
References 364
5 Phonics, Decoding and Word Name Index 386
Recognition Skills 118 Subject Index 393

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Contents
Preface xix
3 Oral Language and Listening:
1 Strategic Reading Instruction 1 The Foundation of Literacy 33
 1 Background Briefing for Teachers 33
Putting It All Together: The Teaching and Learning Cycle 2 Speaking and Listening in the Common Core State
Standards 34
Background Briefing for Teachers: The Foundation Skills
Expressive Language: Speaking and Oral Language
of Reading 4
Development 34
Overview of the Evidence-Based Reading Foundations 4
THEORIES OF ORAL LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
When Are The Foundation Reading Skills Taught? 6 THE BIRTH OF ORAL LANGUAGE
About The Common Core State Standards 7 THE PHASES OF ORAL LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
Reading Assessment: The Basics 7 INFUSE ACADEMIC VOCABULARY INTO ORAL LANGUAGE
Principles of Reading Assessment 7 DEVELOPMENT
PRINCIPLE 1: ASSESSMENT INFORMS INSTRUCTION EFFECTS OF POVERTY ON LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
PRINCIPLE 2: BE PREPARED: GATHER YOUR ASSESSMENT CREATE LANGUAGE-RICH CLASSROOM ENVIRONMENTS
MATERIALS IN ADVANCE Receptive Language: Listening 38
PRINCIPLE 3: DOCUMENT STUDENTS’ GROWTH OVER TIME
Assessing Oral Language Development 39
The Four Purposes of Reading Assessment 8 Mean Length of Utterance (MLU) Assessment
Types of Reading Assessments Found in This Book 9 Using Technology 39
FORMATIVE READING ASSESSMENTS PURPOSE
SUMMATIVE READING ASSESSMENTS MATERIALS
CRITERION REFERENCED READING ASSESSMENTS
Informal Language Inventory 41
NORM-REFERENCED READING ASSESSMENTS
PURPOSE
Characteristics of High Quality Reading Assessment 11 MATERIALS
Reliability 11 The Student Oral Language Observation Matrix
Validity 12 (SOLOM) 41
Validity and Reliability in the Real World 12 PURPOSE
MATERIALS

2 Response to Intervention (RTI): Teacher Rating of Oral Language and Literacy

PURPOSE
43

Differentiating Reading Instruction MATERIALS

for All Readers 14 The Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills
Word Use Fluency Test 46
What Is RTI? 15
PURPOSE
RTI as a Reading Safety Net 16
MATERIALS
How Is RTI Implemented? 18
Picture Naming Test 47
Implementing Effective Tier 1 Literacy Instruction 19 PURPOSE
Essential Components of Evidence-Based Literacy MATERIALS
Instruction 19
Oral Language Checklist 48
Essential Components of Standards-Based Literacy PURPOSE
Instruction 20
MATERIALS
Leading and Managing a Classroom Effectively 23 PROCEDURE
Establishing Classroom Routines 24
Assessing Listening Ability 49
Systematic Instruction 25
The Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test/Expressive
Explicit Instruction 25 Vocabulary Test (English & Spanish versions) 49
Implementing Effective Tier 2 Literacy Instruction: PURPOSE
Triage in Classrooms 27 MATERIALS
Small-Group Tier 2 Reading Instruction 27 PROCEDURE
Managing a Classroom When Implementing Tier 2 Story Retelling Evaluation Guide: A Listening
Instruction 29 Comprehension Assessment 50
Implementing Effective Tier 3 Literacy Instruction 30 Summary of Oral Language and Listening Assessment
“Outsourcing” Is Out 31 Strategies 52
ix
x Contents

Using Student Assessment Data to Guide Instruction: Not All Letters Are Created Equal! (Or Require The
A Classroom Profile and an If-Then Teaching Strategy Same Amount of Instruction) 71
Guide 53 Allocated Instruction Time: Short is Sweet 72
Teaching Strategies for Developing Oral Language Explicit Instruction is Key 72
and Listening 53 Background Briefing for Teachers – Part III: Concepts
Alphaboxes 55 about Print 72
PURPOSE Functions of Print 73
MATERIALS Mapping Speech onto Print 73
PROCEDURE Technical Aspects of Print 74
Text Talk: Building Academic Vocabulary Using Assessing Early Literacy Skills 75
Online Resources 56
Assessing Phonological Awareness 77
PURPOSE
MATERIALS
Same–Different Word Pair Task 77
PURPOSE
PROCEDURE
MATERIALS
Rule of Five: Improving Mean Length of Utterance
PROCEDURE
(MLU) 57
PURPOSE Syllable and Sound Counting Task 77
MATERIALS PURPOSE

PROCEDURE MATERIALS
PROCEDURE
Let’s Talk! 58
PURPOSE Auditory Sound Blending Task 78
MATERIALS PURPOSE

PROCEDURE MATERIALS
PROCEDURE
One Looks, One Doesn’t 59
PURPOSE Segmenting Sounds 79
MATERIALS PURPOSE

PROCEDURE MATERIALS
PROCEDURE
Poetry Potpourri (Appropriate for English Learners) 60
PURPOSE Dictation 80
MATERIALS Assesing Phonemic Awareness 81
PROCEDURE Initial Consonant Sounds Assessment 81
Storytelling 62 PURPOSE
PURPOSE MATERIALS
MATERIALS Blending Sounds Assessment 82
PROCEDURE PURPOSE
Dialogic Reading 64 MATERIALS
PURPOSE PROCEDURE
MATERIALS Phonemic Segmentation Assessment 84
PROCEDURE PURPOSE
Critical Dialogues 65 MATERIALS
PURPOSE PROCEDURE
MATERIALS Assessing Letter Name Knowledge 86
PROCEDURE Letter Identification 86
Adapting Instruction for Those Who Struggle 67 PURPOSE
MATERIALS

4
PROCEDURE
Early Literacy Skills: Phonological Letter Production Task 87
and Phonemic Awareness, Letter PURPOSE
Name Knowledge, and Concepts MATERIALS

about Print 68 PROCEDURE

DIBELS Letter Naming Fluency (LNF) 87
The Foundations of Early Literacy 68 PURPOSE
Background Briefing for Teachers – Part I: Phonological MATERIALS
and Phonemic Awareness 69 PROCEDURE
Background Briefing for Teachers – Part II: Letter Name Alphabet Knowledge Test (AKT) 89
Knowledge 70 PURPOSE
Should We Teach a Letter a Week? 71 MATERIALS
 Contents xi

PROCEDURE Instructional Strategies for Helping Students

Assessing Applications for Early Literacy Instruction 92 Learn Concepts about Print 109
Assessing Children’s Concepts about Print 94 The Language Experience Approach: Working with
Concepts About Print Test 94 English-first and English Language Learners 110
PURPOSE PURPOSE

MATERIALS MATERIALS NEEDED FOR A GROUP EXPERIENCE CHART

PROCEDURE PROCEDURE FOR A GROUP EXPERIENCE CHART

MATERIALS NEEDED FOR THE INDIVIDUAL LANGUAGE
Mow Motorcycle Task 95
EXPERIENCE STORY
PURPOSE
PROCEDURE FOR INDIVIDUAL LANGUAGE EXPERIENCE STORY
MATERIALS
Voice Pointing 113
PROCEDURE
PURPOSE
Using Student Assessment Data to Guide Instruction: MATERIALS
A Classroom Profile and an if-then Chart for Early PROCEDURE
Reading Skills 96
Verbal Punctuation 114
Instructional Strategies for Teaching Phonological PURPOSE
and Phonemic Awareness 101 MATERIALS
Grab the Odd One Out 101 PROCEDURE
PURPOSE E Books: Using Technology to Teach Concepts About
MATERIALS Print 116
PROCEDURE PURPOSE
Word Rubber Banding 102 MATERIALS
PURPOSE PROCEDURE
MATERIALS

5
PROCEDURE
Picture Box Sound Counting (Elkonin Boxes) 102
Phonics, Decoding and Word
PURPOSE Recognition Skills 118
MATERIALS
Background Briefing for Teachers 118
PROCEDURE
Phonics and the State Core Standards 118
Sing It Out 104
Research on Phonics 119
PURPOSE
The Need for Explicit and Systematic Phonics
MATERIALS
Instruction 121
PROCEDURE
Approaches to Phonics Instruction 121
Instructional Strategies for Teaching Letter Name
Phonics Students Must Know 121
Knowledge 104
Letter Names and Sounds 122
The Sounds Rhythm Band 104
Common Rules Governing Letter Sounds 123
PURPOSE
THE C RULE
MATERIALS
THE G RULE
PROCEDURE
THE CVC GENERALIZATION
Highlighting Letters Strategy 105
VOWEL DIGRAPHS
PURPOSE
THE VCE FINAL E GENERALIZATION
MATERIALS
THE CV GENERALIZATION
PROCEDURE
R-CONTROLLED VOWELS
Reading Published Alphabet Books 106 Special Consonant Rules 124
PURPOSE
SINGLE CONSONANTS
MATERIALS
CONSONANT DIGRAPHS, TRIGRAPHS, AND SILENT
PROCEDURE LETTER COMBINATIONS
English Language Learners: Letter Name and Sound INITIAL CONSONANT BLENDS OR “CLUSTERS”
Mnemonics 106 DOUBLE CONSONANTS
Standard: No Specific Standards Offered 106 PH AND THE /F/ SOUND
PURPOSE Special Vowel Rules 126
MATERIALS VOWEL DIGRAPHS OR “TEAMS”
PROCEDURE SCHWA / ∂ /
Planning Explicit Alphabet Letter Knowledge Lessons 108 DIPHTHONGS
PURPOSE Y RULES
MATERIALS Other Phonics they use 127
PROCEDURE Segmenting and Blending Sounds 127
xii Contents

Syllabication 128 PURPOSE

Onset and Rime: Word Families 128 MATERIALS

PROCEDURE
Body and Coda (Word “Chunks”) 130
Structural Analysis 130 Sequential Segmenting Strategy 161
PURPOSE
High-Frequency or “Sight” Words 130
MATERIALS
What Does A Good Decoding Program Look Like? 131
PROCEDURE
Assessing Students’ Decoding and Word Recognition 132 Hierarchical Segmenting 164
The Early? Names Test 132 Sequential Blending Strategy for Single-Syllable
PURPOSE Words 165
MATERIALS PURPOSE
PROCEDURE MATERIALS
The Starpoint Phonics Assessment (SPA) 135 PROCEDURE
PURPOSE Hierarchical Blending 167
MATERIALS
Spelling in Parts (SIP) 169
PROCEDURE
PURPOSE
The Consortium on Reading Excellence (CORE) MATERIALS
Phonics Survey 2nd Edition Section II, Decoding PROCEDURE
Skills (ESL Assessment) 137
Sound Swirl 171
PURPOSE
PURPOSE
MATERIALS
MATERIALS
PROCEDURE
PROCEDURE
Running Records 138
Word Boxes (Elkonin Boxes) 171
PURPOSE
PURPOSE
MATERIALS
MATERIALS
PROCEDURE
PROCEDURE
UNDERSTANDING MISCUES USING MSV ANALYSIS
The Drastic Strategy 173
THE MISCUE GRID: AN EFFICIENT RUNNING RECORDS SCHEME
PURPOSE
ANALYZING RUNNING RECORDS USING A MISCUE GRID:
MISCUE COUNTING AND QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS Using Technology to Teach Decoding and Word
IMPLEMENTING RUNNING RECORDS: A SELF-EVALUATION RUBRIC Recognition 174
PURPOSE
Assessing Sight Word Recognition: Thorndike-Lorge
Magazine Count High Frequency Word List 150 MATERIALS

PURPOSE
MATERIALS
PROCEDURE 6 Reading Fluency 178
Assessing Sight Word Recognition: Zeno 107 High
Background Briefing for Teachers 178
Frequency Word List 151
PURPOSE What is Fluency? 179
MATERIALS Fluency and the Common Core State Standards 181
PROCEDURE Assessing Children’s Reading Fluency 182
San Diego Quick Reading Assessment: Assessing DIBELS Oral Reading Fluency (DORF) Test
Word Recognition for Placing Students in Text 152 (Grades 1.5 and Up) 182
PURPOSE PURPOSE
MATERIALS MATERIALS
PROCEDURE PROCEDURE
Using Student Assessment Data to Guide Instruction: One-Minute of Reading Test Plus Prosody 183
A Classroom Profile 154 PURPOSE
Connecting Assessment Findings to Teaching MATERIALS
Strategies 156 PROCEDURE

Teaching Strategies: Helping Students Increase Analysis of the 1 Minute of Oral Reading 184
Decoding and Word Recognition 157 PURPOSE

Adapting Decoding and Word Recognition MATERIALS

Instruction for English Learners 158 PROCEDURE

Adaptations and Modification of Decoding Components of Fluency Assessment 185

and Word Recognition Instruction for English PURPOSE
Learners (Spanish) 158 MATERIALS
A Framework for Phonics Instruction 160 PROCEDURE
 Contents xiii

Using Student Assessment Data to Guide Instruction: TEACHING STUDENTS HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN WHOLECLASS
CHORAL READING STRATEGY STEPS: MONDAY
A Classroom Profile 188
TEACHER EVALUATION: CHORAL READING
Connecting Assessment Findings to Teaching
Strategies 188
Developing Reading Fluency for Each Student 191 7 Reading Vocabulary 211
Oral Recitation Lesson 191
Background Briefing for Teachers 212
PURPOSE
There Are Four Types of Vocabulary To Be Learned 212
MATERIALS
Morphology 212
PROCEDURE
Levels of Vocabulary Learning 213
Fluency-Oriented Reading Instruction 193
How Students Learn New Vocabulary 213
PURPOSE
Reading Vocabulary and State Standards 214
MATERIALS
PROCEDURE
Assessing Students’ Vocabulary Knowledge
and Needs 214
Repeated Readings 194
PURPOSE
Interactive Highlighting of Unknown Vocabulary
(Real Time Technology) 217
MATERIALS
PURPOSE
PROCEDURE
MATERIALS
Assisted and Partner Reading 195 PROCEDURE
PURPOSE
Oral Reading Assessment 218
MATERIALS
PURPOSE
PROCEDURE
MATERIALS
Readers’ Theater 196 PROCEDURE
PURPOSE Vocabulary Definition 219
MATERIALS PURPOSE
PROCEDURE MATERIALS
Radio Reading 197 PROCEDURE
PURPOSE Word Map 220
MATERIALS PURPOSE
PROCEDURE MATERIALS
Scaffolded Silent Reading (ScSR) 198 PROCEDURE
PURPOSE Multiple Dimensions of Word Knowledge 222
MATERIALS PURPOSE
PROCEDURE MATERIALS
Explicit Fluency Instruction 199 PROCEDURE

PURPOSE Cloze Test (Modified for Academic Vocabulary

MATERIALS Assessment) 223
PROCEDURE PURPOSE
MATERIALS
Neurological Impress Method 203
PROCEDURE
PURPOSE
HOW DOES THIS PROCESS DIFFER FROM A TRADITIONAL
MATERIALS
CLOZE PASSAGE?
PROCEDURE
Maze Test 225
English Language Learners 204 PURPOSE
Closed-Caption Television 204 MATERIALS
PURPOSE PROCEDURE
MATERIALS Using Student Assessment Data to Guide Instruction:
PROCEDURE A Classroom Profile and an If-Then Teaching Strategy
Read Naturally® 205 Guide 226
PURPOSE Connecting Assessment Findings to Teaching
MATERIALS Strategies 227
PROCEDURES Teaching Strategies for Vocabulary Development 227
Choral Reading 206 Word Walls 228
PURPOSE PURPOSE
MATERIALS MATERIALS
PROCEDURE PROCEDURE
PRETEACHING PREPARATIONS OTHER POPULAR WORD WALL ACTIVITIES
xiv Contents

Five-Step Method 231 Predictability Log (English Learners) 252

PURPOSE PURPOSE
MATERIALS MATERIALS
PROCEDURE PROCEDURE
Making Words (Modified for Academic Vocabulary) 232 Social Collaboration Performance Outcome Evaluation 253
PURPOSE PURPOSE
MATERIALS MATERIALS
PROCEDURE PROCEDURE

Frayer Model 233 Oral Story Retellings: Knowledge of Narrative Text

PURPOSE Structure 254
MATERIALS PURPOSE

PROCEDURE MATERIALS
PROCEDURE
Vocabulary Cluster: English Learners 234
PURPOSE Story Grammar Map Assessment 256
PURPOSE
MATERIALS
MATERIALS
PROCEDURE
PROCEDURE
Vocabulary Bingo! 235
PURPOSE
Reading Retelling Record (R3) 257
PURPOSE
MATERIALS
MATERIALS
PROCEDURE
PROCEDURE
Think-Pair-Share 236
Click or Clunk: Assessment and/or RTI Strategy 259
PURPOSE
PURPOSE
MATERIALS
MATERIALS
PROCEDURE
PROCEDURE
Decent Stories 238
Narrative Pyramid 260
PURPOSE
PURPOSE
MATERIALS
MATERIALS
PROCEDURE
PROCEDURE
Anecdotal Records: Technology Tools 261
8 Reading Comprehension: PURPOSE
MATERIALS
Narrative Texts 240
PROCEDURE
Background Briefing for Teachers 241 Digital Management Systems: E-Portfolios 264
What Research Says About Reading PURPOSE
Comprehension 241 MATERIALS
DIRECT EXPLANATION AND TRANSACTIONAL STRATEGY PROCEDURE
INSTRUCTION
Using Student Assessment Data To Guide Instruction:
NARRATIVE TEXT FEATURES AND STRUCTURE
If-Then Teaching Strategy Guide 264
A WORD ABOUT STATE STANDARDS AND NARRATIVE TEXT
READING
Teaching Strategies: Narrative Reading Comprehension 266
Joint Productive Activity (JPA): Cooperative
Assessing Students’ Narrative Text Comprehension 243
Learning and/or Response to Intervention (RTI) 266
Bloom’s Question Stems and Question Verbs 243 PURPOSE
PURPOSE
MATERIALS
MATERIALS
PROCEDURE
PROCEDURES
Story Grammar Instruction 268
The Reading Strategy Use Scale (Modified) 247 PURPOSE
PURPOSE MATERIALS
MATERIALS PROCEDURE
PROCEDURE
Graphic Organizers: Seeing the Structure of Stories 269
Flynt/Cooter Reading Attitude Survey (Motivation) 249 PURPOSE
PURPOSE MATERIALS
MATERIALS PROCEDURE
PROCEDURES Schema Stories: Using Story Structure Knowledge
Self-Regulation Questionnaire—Reading Motivation 249 to Guide Text Comprehension 274
PURPOSE PURPOSE
MATERIALS MATERIALS
PROCEDURE PROCEDURE
 Contents xv

Question–Answer Relationships (QAR): Answering Motivation for Reading Questionnaire,

Questions about Narrative Texts 275 Revised Version 303
PURPOSE PURPOSE
MATERIALS MATERIALS
PROCEDURE PROCEDURE
Summary Writing: Focus on Close Reading of Text 277 Student Reading Interest Survey 305
PURPOSE PURPOSE
MATERIALS MATERIALS
PROCEDURE PROCEDURE
Reciprocal Teaching (RT) – Narrative Text Application 279 Individual and Group Self-Assessment of
PURPOSE Interactions with Informational Text 306
MATERIALS PURPOSE
PROCEDURE MATERIALS
Directed Reading–Thinking Activity (DR-TA): 281 PROCEDURE
PURPOSE Question– Answer Relationships (QARs): Author
MATERIALS and Me and On My Own 308
PROCEDURE PURPOSE
K-W-L Strategy 284 MATERIALS
PURPOSE PROCEDURE
MATERIALS Assessing Comprehension of Informational Text:
PROCEDURE The Text 310
Yarning Circles (English Learners): Background Informational Text Oral Retellings 310
Knowledge, Motivation, and Close Reading 285 PURPOSE
PURPOSE MATERIALS
MATERIALS PROCEDURE
PROCEDURE Text Frames to Assess Comprehension of
Singing Routine: Technology 286 Informational Text 312
PURPOSE PURPOSE
MATERIALS MATERIALS

PROCEDURE PROCEDURE
Informational Text Structure Assessment: Selecting
a Graphic Organizer 313
9 Teaching with Informational Texts 289 PURPOSE
MATERIALS
Background Briefing for Teachers 289
PROCEDURE
Informational Text: A Tale of Neglect 290
Question– Answer Relationships (QARs): Right There,
Increased Informational Text Reading in Think and Search 316
Today’s Society 290 PURPOSE
Preparing the Reader to Successfully Read MATERIALS
Increasingly Complex Informational Texts 291 PROCEDURE
What Makes Informational Texts Challenging? 292 Assessing Text Complexity: Text Reader Match 317
Vocabulary 292
Connecting Assessment Findings to Informational Text:
Sentence Structure 293 Comprehension Instructional Strategies 322
Coherence 293 Connecting Assessment Findings to Teaching
Absence of Explicit Text Features 294 Strategies 323
Implicit Text Structure or Organization 295 Strategies for Teaching Comprehension of Informational
Reader, Text, and Task Considerations 296 Texts Focusing on the Reader 323
Assessing Informational Text Comprehension 297 Comprehension Process Motions: Engaging Movements
Assessing Comprehension of Informational Text 297 to Promote Primary Grade Comprehension 323
PURPOSE
Modified Informational Text Reading Strategy Use
Scale 297 MATERIALS

PURPOSE PROCEDURE

MATERIALS Building Students’ Background Knowledge 326

PROCEDURE The Picture Walk 326
Modified Meta-comprehension Strategy Index 299 PURPOSE
PURPOSE MATERIALS
MATERIALS PROCEDURE
xvi Contents

Think-Pair-Share: Readers Collaborate to Comprehend 327 English Language Learners 347

PURPOSE Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol 347
MATERIALS PURPOSE
PROCEDURE MATERIALS
Focusing on the Text 328 PROCEDURE

Becoming a Word Detective 329 Collaborative Strategic Reading: Helping Students

PURPOSE Who Struggle 350
MATERIALS PURPOSE
PROCEDURE MATERIALS

Graphic Organizers: Visual Representation of PROCEDURE

Informational Text Structures 332
PURPOSE 10 Extending our Reach: Summer Learning
MATERIALS Loss, Family Involvement, and
PROCEDURE Professional Learning Communities 352
Close Reading of Informational Texts 335
PURPOSE
How are the Kids Doing? 353
MATERIALS A Call to Action 353
PROCEDURE Professional Learning Communities 355
Increasing Text Complexity 337 What Effective PLCs Look Like 355
PURPOSE Addressing Summer Learning Loss 356
MATERIALS Why American Schools Have Summer Vacation 356
PROCEDURE What’s Wrong With Summer Vacation? 356
Teaching Informational Text: Comprehension Why Low-Income Students Suffer More Summer
Instruction Focused on the Task 338 Learning Loss 357
Question Answering 339 Why Preventing Summer Learning Loss Is Difficult
Question–Answer Relationships: Answering In America 357
Questions about Text—Text-Dependent Questions 339 Ways To Reverse Summer Learning Loss 358
PURPOSE Summer Programs Sponsored by Public Libraries 358
MATERIALS Summer Programs and Resources Sponsored by
PROCEDURE Non-Profit Organizations 359
Question Generation 340 Getting Families More Involved 360
Elaborative Interrogation 340 How Teachers Can Set The Stage 361
PURPOSE Easy Strategies For Parents To Use 361
MATERIALS
In Conclusion . . .  363
PROCEDURE

Retelling 342 References 364

Informational Text Oral Retellings 342 Name Index 386
PURPOSE
MATERIALS
Subject Index 393
PROCEDURE

Multiple Strategy Instruction 344

Reciprocal Teaching 344
PURPOSE
MATERIALS
PROCEDURE
Concept-Oriented Reading Instruction 346
PURPOSE
MATERIALS
PROCEDURE
About the Authors
D. Ray Reutzel is Dean of the College of Education at the University of Wyoming.
Previous to his current position, he was the Emma Eccles Jones Distinguished Professor
and Endowed Chair of Early Literacy Education at Utah State University, a position he held
for 14 years. He is the author of more than 230 published research reports in top tier
research journals, articles, books, book chapters, and monographs. He is the co-author
of the best selling textbook on the teaching of reading, Teaching Children to Read: The
Teacher Makes the Difference, 8th Edition published by Pearson Education, Boston, MA.
He has received more than 17 million dollars in research/professional development
grant funding. He has been active in securing legislative and private foundations gifts
in excess of 40 million dollars. He is the past Editor of – Literacy Research and Instruc-
tion, The Reading Teacher and the current Executive Editor of the Journal of Educational
Research. He received the 1999 A.B. Herr Award and the 2013 ALER Laureate Award
from the Association of Literacy Researchers and Educators. Ray served as President of the
Association of Literacy Educators and Researchers, ALER, from 2006–2007. He was
presented the John C. Manning Public School Service Award from the International Read-
ing Association, May 2007 in Toronto, Canada and served as a member of the Board of
Directors of the International Reading Association from 2007–2010. Ray was a member
of the Literacy Research Association’s Board of Directors from 2012–2015. Dr. Reutzel was
elected a member of the Reading Hall of Fame in 2011 and is serving as its President from
2017–2019. Ray was also named as a member of the International Literacy Association’s
prestigious Literacy Research Panel from 2018–2021. He is also an author of school-based
literacy instructional materials with Curriculum Associates® and is a newly appointed
member of the prestigious Literacy Research Panel of the International Reading Associa-
tion (ILA) until 2021.

xvii
xviii About the Authors

Robert B. Cooter, Jr. is Professor Emeritus of Literacy Education and Research at Bel-
larmine University. His primary work focuses on translating evidence-based research
into systemic, real classroom approaches for improving literacy learning for children
living at the poverty level. Cooter previously served as editor of The Reading Teacher
(International Literacy Association) and his best-selling college textbooks are used at
over 200 universities include: Teaching Children to Read: The Teacher Makes the Difference
(8th ed.), Strategies for Reading Assessment and Instruction (6th ed.), and The Flynt/Cooter
Comprehensive Reading Inventory-3 (CRI-3).
In the public schools, Dr. Cooter previously served as the “Reading Czar” (associ-
ate superintendent) for the Dallas Independent School District (TX) and was named
a Texas State Champion for Reading by the governor for DISD’s literacy improvement
successes. Robert and Kathleen Spencer Cooter and their colleague, J. Helen Perkins,
are recipients of the Urban Impact Award from the Council of Great City Schools for
their work designing and implementing effective training programs for teachers serv-
ing children in low SES elementary schools in Dallas and Memphis. Later, Cooter and
his team were awarded a $16 million academic literacy research project in Memphis
funded by the U.S. Department of Education using his literacy academy model for
teachers. These and other projects in various states are the basis for much of Cooter’s
writing and literacy work with schools today.
Preface

T
eaching reading effectively in today’s schools is arguably as much science as
it is art. To meet the literacy needs of all students, teachers necessarily begin
their twork with knowledge as to how reading and writing develop based on
evidence-based research and the English Language Arts Common Core Standards. Effective
literacy teachers are able to assess student progress quickly and efficiently, and then
provide effective literacy instruction to meet their needs. All of this and more must be
delivered in real time, with real children, in real classroom situations.

New to This Edition

MyLab Education
One of the most visible changes in the sixth edition, also one of the most significant,
is the expansion of the digital learning and assessment resources embedded in the
eText and the inclusion of MyLab Education in the text. MyLab Education is an online
assessment program designed to work with the text to engage learners and to improve
learning. Within its structured environment, learners see key concepts demonstrated
through real classroom video footage, practice what they learn, test their understand-
ing, and receive feedback to guide their learning. Designed to bring learners more
directly into the world of K-12 classrooms, the online resources in MyLab Education
include:
• Application Exercises utilize case studies and video to provide practice assessing
reading, analyzing results, and making instructional decisions. The questions in
these exercises are usually constructed-response. Once learners provide their own
answers to the questions, they receive feedback in the form of model answers written
by experts.
• Video Examples illustrate assessment and instruction strategies in action and
provide you with a clear understanding of how these strategies are used in the
classroom.
• Teacher Resources provide print- and download-friendly versions of documents
that are needed to carry out specific assessment and instruction strategies provided
in the text (e.g. flash cards, scoring sheets, etc.)
Strategies for Reading Assessment and Instruction has gained popularity as a quick and
effective reference tool for teachers of reading analogous to the Physicians’ Desk Reference
that many doctors use when treating patients. Our sixth edition of Strategies for Reading
Assessment and Instruction is a “point-of-teaching” resource that offers teachers the fol-
lowing new and updated content:

• State Standards in the English Language Arts (K–5) clearly aligned to assessment
and teaching strategies in our newly designed chapters
• New If-Then Strategy Guides, our popular and time-saving charts connecting stu-
dent assessment data to appropriate teaching strategies (i.e., if students need to
learn X, then these are the teaching strategies I could use to help them)
• New chapters containing the most up-to-date information about implementing a
Response to Intervention (RTI) model to differentiate instruction in your classroom
according to students’ needs
• Easy to implement tools and strategies for using assessment data to plan
instruction

xix
xx Preface

• Video links developed especially for this book are provided to help you apply
assessment and teaching strategies in your classroom
• New English Learner (EL) assessment and teaching strategies in Chapters 3-10
• Assessment case study application exercises provided to assist you in applying
what you learn in Chapters 3-10
• Technology applications and strategies provided throughout in Chapters 3-10
• Lesson plan examples are provided in Chapters 3-10 to help you apply new strate-
gies in your classroom
• New research-proven ideas for Professional Learning Communities (PLCs)
• Fresh ideas for increasing family involvement
• Successful strategies for overcoming children’s summer learning loss
• Updated Background Briefings for Teachers on important literacy research and
trends in such areas as oral language development, phonemic awareness, concepts
about print, phonics, vocabulary, comprehension, new literacies, and fluency
• New chapters on assessing and teaching literature and information texts specifi-
cally referenced to the State Standards
• New suggestions for teaching English language learners and learners having spe-
cial needs, integrated in Chapters 3 through 10

Resources Behind This Edition

The scholarly and practical resources behind the strategies in this book are many. We
based the contents of this book on our direct experiences as project designers on feder-
ally and state-funded reading reform projects, most especially in high-poverty schools
associated with the Reading First and Striving Readers projects funded by the U.S.
Department of Education (USDOE); from practices shared by incredibly talented lit-
eracy coaches in the Dallas, Memphis, Ogden, Granite, Louisville, Wyoming, and San
Juan school districts, to name just a few; from ideas published in The Reading Teacher
(International Reading Association) during our respective tenures as past editors of that
journal; and from our own direct experiences in the classroom. For contemporary trends
in assessment, we drew on research reported in literacy professional and research jour-
nals and books along with these landmark reports: the Report of the National Reading
Panel (2000), Developing Literacy in Second-Language Learners; Report of the National
Literacy Panel on Language-Minority Children and Youth (2006); The National Early
Literacy Panel (2008); What Works Clearinghouse; and a variety of Institute of Educa-
tion Sciences Practice Guides.

For The Practicing Educator

Classroom reading teachers will also discover that Strategies for Reading Assessment and
Instruction provides an extensive and recently updated selection of evidence-based
instructional practices and assessment tools that (1) inform instruction, (2) meet the
needs of individual learners, (3) specifically meet the challenges of the new English
Language Arts (K–5) Common Core State Standards, and (4) develop an understanding
of the essentials of evidence-based reading instruction in a Response to Intervention
(RTI)/multitiered systems of support (MTSS) instructional environment. Because of our
emphasis on RTI/MTSS models for meeting student needs, those who teach in special
education resource rooms, Title I reading programs, and university reading clinics will
find that this fifth edition is particularly useful for teaching groups of students with
diverse and special needs.
 Preface xxi

Advantages for Preservice Teachers

For preservice teachers, this sixth edition of Strategies for Reading Assessment and Instruc-
tion offers a practical resource for understanding past and present issues in reading
instruction and assessment. It also provides an introduction to assessment purposes,
types, and evidence, as well as access to information about RTI instructional models
and practices. Teachers in training will also find the updated, ready-to-use instructional
strategies useful in teacher education practicum experiences, classroom observations,
clinical experiences, and in student teaching.

Using This Edition as a Tool for Professional Develop-

ment Workshops
Codistributed and published with the endorsement of the International Reading Asso-
ciation (IRA), now International Literacy Association (ILA), Strategies for Reading Assess-
ment and Instruction is a proven tool for ongoing professional development in this age
of evidence-based reading assessment and instruction. Widely used in such states as
Ohio, Florida, and Pennsylvania as an approved inservice reference, this book contains
the latest in research on assessment purposes, types, and tools, along with new infor-
mation about RTI/MTSS models of classroom instruction for more effectively meeting
the needs of students within the regular education classroom setting. In addition, the
updated and newly revised Chapters 1, 2, and 9 through 12 provide practicing teachers
access to highly effective, reliable, valid, and classroom-proven assessments and teach-
ing strategies that address the higher demands of the ELACCS (K–5), and presenting
this information in an easy-to-use format that makes the implementation of effective
reading assessment and appropriately selected instruction strategies in the classroom
quick and easy. In fact, each of the previous four editions of Strategies for Reading Assess-
ment and Instruction has been used as the primary resource in literally thousands of pro-
fessional development study groups, professional learning communities (PLCs), and
workshop sessions on evidence-based, effective, and standards-based reading instruc-
tion across the United States.

Acknowledgments
Our most sincere thanks go out to Barbara Strickland, who has been most helpful and
patient in the production of this edition of SRAI. Thanks also to the reviewers of this
edition:
Leania T. Alli, Linden STEM Academy; Laurie Etzel, Bailey Middle School; Susan
M. Hayward, The Ohio State University; Audrey Henry, Nova Southeastern University;
Michelle Kelley, University of Central Florida; and Michael Moore, Georgia Southern
University.
Thank you for choosing to purchase and use this fifth edition of Strategies for Read-
ing Assessment and Instruction: Helping Every Child Succeed, 6th Edition We know
from long experience and many thousands of comments from previous readers that
it will assist you in your efforts to develop effective, efficient reading assessment and
instruction plans. Please send us your comments and observations about whether we
have achieved our aim.
Best wishes as you work to help every child become a successful reader and realize
his or her full potential as an individual.

D. Ray Reutzel
ray.reutzel@uwyo.edu

Robert B. Cooter, Jr.

rcooter@bellarmine.edu
 This page intentionally left blank

A01_THOM6233_05_SE_WALK.indd 9 1/13/17 6:50 PM

Chapter 1
Strategic Reading
Instruction
Ms. Spears, a first-year third grade teacher, felt more than a bit unsure of herself. This
was especially true when it came to how literacy assessment fit in with a new emphasis
on implementing the Common Core Standards and the district’s newly implemented
Response to Intervention (RTI) model to differentiate instruction according to students’
developmental needs. Where to begin, and how? This came to a head for Ms. Spears
when a new student, Jason, transferred into her classroom in mid-October from a dis-
tant state.
Jason’s mother was not given access to his cumulative school records from his pre-
vious school, so Ms. Spears had nothing to go on in terms of understanding Jason’s
current or past literacy learning needs making the formulation of an appropriate lit-
eracy instruction plan difficult. Jason’s mom also informed the principal that Jason had
struggled in reading over the past year. Ms. Spears decided that she would need to pull
together a set of assessments to better understand Jason’s reading ability. But which
assessments should she use? What would these assessments need to assess? It seemed
that she had more questions than answers.

Introduction: How this Book

is Organized
The opening vignette is a true story that is repeated regularly in classrooms around
the globe. Teachers are asked to address the reading needs of a range of learners: those
developing at a typical or even at accelerated paces and invariably some learners who
struggle (National Center for Education Statistics [NCES], 2015; Polat, Zarecky-Hodge,
& Schreiber, 2016; Schulte, Stevens, Elliott, Tindal, & Nese, 2016).
Strategies for Reading Assessment and Instruction: Helping every child succeed is a prac-
tical resource offering research proven (evidence-based) assessment and instructional
strategies for teachers in real world classrooms. In chapters 3 through 10 of Strategies for
Reading Assessment and Instruction: Helping every child succeed we organize these chapters
into four critical areas that teachers in real-world classrooms need to know in order to
help every child become a competent reader:

• Background Briefing for Teachers – This section of each chapter explains how reading
develops and provides the critical foundation skills every student must learn to
become a fluent reader. With this information at your fingertips, it will be possible
to make informed decisions in planning instruction for every learner. You will
also have the assurance your instructional decisions are based on solid research
evidence.
• Assessment Strategies – Once you possess the background knowledge regarding
the “must have skills,” it becomes possible to choose assessment strategies that
align with each skill to be learned. In chapters 3 through 10 we have selected the

1
2 Chapter 1

Table 1.1 Classroom Profile Form: Phonological and Phonemic Awareness (A partial example)
Directions:

1. Using a colored marker, fill in each box for skills each student has learned (left to right).
2. Next, identify the NEXT skill each child needs to develop. (Note: It will be the first box to the right of the last box filled in.)
3. Form groups for instruction for students needing the same NEXT skill.
4. Using the IF – THEN TEACHING STRATEGY GUIDE, determine the evidence-based teaching strategy(s) to use for each group according to
the skill they need to learn.
5. Update the Classroom Profile for students as each new skill is learned.

Phonological Awareness (oral lang.) Phonemic Awareness (oral lang.)

Phoneme
Alliteration identity Phoneme
Word Rhyme Repetition & Syllable Onset/rime (beginning isolation (last Phoneme
­Awareness ­recognition creation counting manip. sound) sound) blending
Kevin
Mallory
Jose
Thom
Iris
Trevon

most effective and easy to use assessment strategies from the research. This will
help you determine which of the essential skills each learner has mastered and
which they yet need to learn. In most chapters we provide you with a convenient
­CLASSROOM PROFILE FORM for charting student progress in learning essential
skills. In Table 1.1 we share a partial example on phonics and decoding skills.
• IF – THEN TEACHING STRATEGY GUIDE: Analyzing Student Data To Plan Instruc-
tion – One of the more complex tasks for teachers is analyzing reading assess-
ment data gathered for each student to decide what you should teach to meet their
learning needs. Put another way, we sometimes get to be pretty good at gathering
assessment evidence, but then we may have difficulty analyzing our findings and
converting them into powerful classroom intervention plans.
Strategic data analysis involves what we call IF - THEN THINKING. Our basic
philosophy goes something like this: if we know that a child needs to an essential
skill in reading based on our assessments, then we know which of many strategies
are appropriate for teaching that skill. In each chapter, we provide you with an
“If-Then TEACHING STRATEGY GUIDE” located between the sections on assess-
ment and teaching strategies that will help you quickly identify evidence-based
teaching strategies for each essential reading skill to be learned. In Table 1.2 we
present a partial example of an IF-THEN TEACHING STRATEGY GUIDE related
to reading fluency development.
• Instructional Strategies – The final part of chapters 3 through 10 is a compendium
of evidence-based instructional strategies for the essential reading skills identified
in each chapter (e.g., phonics, fluency, vocabulary, etc.). We provide a description
of the purpose, step-by-step directions for implementing each strategy as well as a
list of any needed materials.

Putting It All Together: The Teaching and Learning Cycle

The four sections presented in Chapters 3 through 10 – background briefing, assessment
strategies, IF-THEN TEACHING STRATEGY GUIDE, and Instructional Strategies – can
and should be applied in the classroom using an organizing structure. In Figure 1.1 we
share our own organizational model drawn from reading research and our own class-
room experiences. We call it the Teaching and Learning Cycle.
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
head, and a spider that has lost half its legs, are not worth a place in
a cabinet.
To get together even a small cabinet of objects in natural history,
takes time, care, and patience. I knew a girl who was carefully
collecting and mounting beetles. In a whole summer she got only
twenty-five. But each one was perfect, different from the rest, nicely
fastened in place, and had its name written beside it. So her
collection was of real value.
After you have secured a nice little cabinet, the trouble will be to
keep it safe, and in order. Specimens must be taken care of. All
specimens of plants, and insects, are very liable to be destroyed by
little bugs. Only the things kept in alcohol are really safe from being
eaten.
Camphor and red pepper are of some use to keep out these
enemies. Your teachers will know, or can easily learn, how to
prepare the specimens with poisons, which will kill the mites and not
harm you or the specimens. You must leave it to them.
It is nice to have a case with glass doors. If you cannot have that,
arrange as many of the objects as you can in boxes with panes of
glass laid over them. For open cabinets it is well to have a piece of
fine gauze to lay over each shelf, or over the whole set of shelves,
when the cabinet is not in immediate use.
Dust makes a cabinet look very ugly. But you cannot clean off
beetles and butterflies with a dusting cloth or brush. It would ruin
such delicate things.
You can gently move the boxes and specimens, and wipe off the
shelves, and the sides of the boxes. Then blow, or fan, the dust from
the specimens. Even minerals should have the dust blown from
them, not wiped off. It is easy to rub the bloom and the little fine
points, and edges, from a mineral specimen.
When you have made up your minds to have a cabinet in your
school, look about and see what your friends have to give you for it.
Many people have a few natural history curiosities, for which they do
not really care. Such persons would gladly give their treasures to a
school cabinet. But there should be some bright little lad or lass to
say: “Oh, we have a cabinet at our school. Would you not be willing
to send these things there?”
Correct pictures of birds, fish, insects, and flowers, are useful in a
cabinet, but you must be sure that they are correct before you give
them a place. You must not put the pictures into your cabinet merely
because they are pretty. If they are wrong they will give you false
ideas. I have seen colored pictures of insects with some of the legs
set upon the hinder part of the body instead of all upon the chest
part. Such a picture is of no use.
Keen eyes to see what comes in your own way, and keen wits to
suggest to other people what they can do for you, will steadily help to
build up the school cabinet.
 LESSON XVI.
THE OLD MAN OF THE MEADOW.

THE OLD MAN AND HIS FAMILY.

When I was about seven years old, I caught a grasshopper and put
him into a bottle.
Then I sat down outside the bottle, and looked at the grasshopper.
He sat inside the bottle, and looked at me.
It began to grow upon my mind that the grasshopper looked much
like an old man. His face, with the big, solemn eyes, and straight
mouth, was like an old man’s face.
He wore a gray coat, like a loose duster. He had a wrinkled greenish
vest. He wore knee-breeches and long red stockings.
The more I looked at him, the more he looked like a little, grave, old-
time man who came to visit my aged grandfather.
I had a cousin who at dusk would sit with me in a corner of the big
sofa, and repeat to me a poem, called the “Prisoner of Chillon.” That
sad poem had made me feel very sorry for all prisoners. I thought my
grasshopper in the bottle felt like a prisoner. I said, “Now you may
go, my Old Man of the Meadow.”
I took the cork out of the bottle. The grasshopper at once leaped up,
and sat on the rim of the bottle. Then a strange thing happened! The
Old Man of the Meadow spread out two wide brown wings. They had
a broad, lemon-colored band on them. They were gay as the wings
of a butterfly! On them he sailed away!
I could hardly believe my eyes. I ran after him to a tall stalk of
golden-rod. There he sat a plain, gray-green old man. But again he
spread out the wide wings, and was gone!
My Old Man of the Meadow had then this splendid dress-coat under
his sober overcoat! Seated at rest, he looked plain and quiet,—a
creature of the earth. Lifted into the air, he was nearly as fine as a
butterfly.
Do you not wish to know something more of this Old Man of the
Meadow, the grasshopper? The name of this insect at once tells you
something about him. He lives much in the grass, and his chief
motion is in hops, or long jumps. He has another name, “the
murmurer.” This is given because of the noise or song he makes. He
sings to Mrs. Grasshopper. His song is loud and shrill. It is made by
rubbing his wings one upon the other.
He has a little piece of skin like a tight drum-head set in each wing.
As he moves his wings, this tiny drum vibrates, or trembles, and
makes the shrill sound.
Mrs. Grasshopper does not have this drum in her wings. She has,
however, at the end of her body, a nice little sword. The French call
her “the jumper with the sword.” Is her sword to fight with? No. This
little sword opens into several blades. She uses it to place her eggs
snugly in the ground. The sword blades open, and the eggs slide
safely down between them, into the little earth-bed. There they lie
until the young grasshoppers hatch out.
You will find as we study about grasshoppers, that they do not all live
in the grass. Some spend most of their time in trees.
Let us take a closer look at the grasshopper. As he is an insect,[13]
he should have a body made in rings, in three parts, with four wings
and six legs set on the second, or chest part.
Just here let us say, that if you will look closely you will see that the
head of an insect is made of four rings, and its chest is made of
three rings. They are rings grown wider than the rest.
Our Old Man of the Meadow does not lack any of the parts which a
proper insect should have.
The order which he belongs to is called the straight-wings, because
the insects belonging to it do not fold their wings crosswise.
The grasshopper family is called the family of “the murmurers,” from
their music.
There are six families of the straight-wings. In this book we shall
study a little about three of them,—the grasshoppers, the crickets,
and the locusts. If you wish, also, to learn about their cousin, the
cockroach, suppose you, who live in city houses, go down to the
kitchen, and catch him about the water pipes, and study him for
yourselves!
The order of straight-wings is often divided in this way: The runners,
—as the cockroach; the snatchers, a kind which have their fore-feet
something like hands, to snatch with; the walkers, who seldom fly or
jump; and the jumpers. The grasshopper is one of the jumpers.
If you look well at the grasshopper, you will see that his front pair of
legs is shorter than the others. This hinders him in walking over a
level surface. But it helps him in walking up a tree, or small plant, or
a wall.
See the hind legs! They are more than twice as long as the others.
The thigh, or upper part, is very long and strong. By means of these
big legs, the grasshopper is a famous jumper.
Now, if you have a grasshopper to look at, you will see that the feet
have four parts. The part of the leg between the foot and the thigh
has sharp points like the teeth of a comb.
The hind part of the body is long and slender, and, being made of
rings, can bend easily. In the great, green grasshopper all the body
is of a fine green tint.
Let us look at the wings. The upper pair, or wing-covers, are large
and long. Notice two things about the wings; they lap at the tips, and
are high in the middle. When they are shut, they have a shape like a
slanting roof. The upper ones are longer than the lower ones.
These wing-cases have large veins. Lift up a wing-case and pull out
a lower wing. It is folded very closely, in lengthwise plaits. Where
these wings join Mr. Grasshopper’s body, you will find his drum-plate
for making music. One kind of grasshopper has very short wing-
covers. In that kind, both Mr. and Mrs. Grasshopper make music.
There is also one grasshopper, a little, green fellow, that has no
drum; he is silent.
The upper side of the grasshopper’s chest is shaped like a large,
horny collar. The head is large, and has two big, glossy eyes. There
is, also, a knob on the forehead. Between the eyes, are set the
feelers. They are very long; even longer than all the body.
The mouth of the grasshopper is wide, and it has strong jaws. But
they are not so strong as those of his cousin, the cricket.
Grasshoppers prefer vegetable food. They will sometimes eat animal
food. When shut up in a box, they will fight, and the one which gets
killed will be eaten by the victor.
A grasshopper which lost its leg while being put into a box, ate its
leg. Like the other winged creatures, grasshoppers lose their legs
easily, and do not seem to mind it.
If you could look inside the grasshopper’s body, you would see that
he has a gizzard, much like that of a chicken. It is made of little
bands set with fine teeth. These teeth chew up into a pulp the leaves
which the grasshopper has eaten.

FOOTNOTES:
[13] See Nature Reader, No. 2, Lessons 1-4.
 LESSON XVII.
THE LIFE OF THE OLD MAN OF THE MEADOW.
Many years ago, a great poet wrote a song to the grasshopper. The
poet said the grasshopper was the happiest of living things. It did
nothing but dance and sing. It ate fresh leaves, and drank cool dew.
When the glad summer of its life was done, it died. It did not live to
be sick, or hungry, or cold.
This poet called the grasshopper “the earth-born,” and said that it
was man’s little brother.
Yes, the grasshopper is earth-born. The mother grasshopper makes,
with the sword of which I told you, a hole in the ground. In that she
lays her eggs, in a case made of something like glue. Then she
closes up the hole, and the eggs lie all winter, safe in the ground.
In the spring, the larvæ hatch from the egg, and creep out of the
ground. They are very small, but shaped much like the parent, only
they have no wings. They molt, or change their skins several times.
At first, the little ones are all alike, but after several changes of skin,
the larvæ become pupæ. Then you can see the coming wings under
a little sheath. You can also see Mrs. Grasshopper’s sword growing.
About six or eight weeks, after hatching, the final change is made.
The perfect insect comes out of its last-shed skin. It has now two
pairs of wings. Mr. Grasshopper plays on his new drum, and Mrs.
Grasshopper marches about with her new sword.
The young grasshoppers are very greedy while larvæ and pupæ.
They eat all the time. When they are grown, they do not give all their
time to eating. Mr. Grasshopper must sing, and he does not do this
while either flying or eating.
He stands quite still, fixes himself firmly by his fore-feet, and presses
his body downward. There is a little quiver through all his body as
long as the sound lasts.
The people of Italy call him “the screamer,” or “the squealer,” from
his shrill noise.
The grasshopper has a very odd habit. After he has eaten for a long
time, he sits quite still. He looks as if he were doing some serious
thinking. Sometimes when he sits in this way, he moves his mouth
as if chewing. From this action, people used to think that he chewed
the cud, as cows and sheep do.
But he does not chew the cud. If you watch him well, in these silent
times, you will see him gravely licking his long feelers, and his lips.
He seems to be cleaning them.
To do this, he runs out a long, limber tongue, shaped much like
yours. You remember that the ants have this habit of cleaning and
dressing themselves, after eating.[14]
The great, green grasshopper, which lives on the trees, has wings of
a gray-green. He has a little bronze, or russet color, on his feet, and
on the under part of his body. The rest of his body is a fine leaf-
green.
The color in the grasshopper does not seem to be laid on the surface
of his coat, as on that of the beetle. It is not put on in plumes and
scales, as the butterfly has it. But it is dyed through and through the
wings and body.
The wing-cases of the grasshopper, and the rings of the body, are
not hard, and like horn or shell, as in the beetle tribe. They are of a
tough skin, and are dyed with the color.
Let us have a look at some of these fine fellows. Although the color
of the great, green grasshopper is so gay, it will be hard to find him.
His coat is just the tint of the leaves he likes to live among. You can
scarcely see him even if you look straight at him.
You will find in the grass a smaller, lighter-green hopper that is very
easily caught, because in his hurry to get away he flies right up in
your face, when he hears you coming.
The grasshoppers are a very timid family, and are very sensitive to
sound. Some say that their long feelers serve them for ears. But that
is not true.
The garden grasshopper has very small wings. Its color is brownish
gray. It likes to live in the garden walls or under the leaves in the
borders. Both Mr. and Mrs. Grasshopper sing in this garden family.
They keep up fine music for those who like to hear them, as one
answers the song of the other.
I think we most of us like the cry of the grasshopper. It brings to our
mind the warm, dry, sunny days, the time of flowers.
Out in the meadow you will find our Old Man, the common great,
gray hopper. As the great, green one in the trees is hidden by his
color, so is the great, gray one hidden in the grass. His coat is the
hue of the half-dry grass, with little tinges of green along it.
He seems a very plain insect at first. But watch him and notice the
light red and yellowish bands on his legs. He has spots of soot color
on his wing cases. When he spreads his wide wings, note the brown
and yellow stripes. He is fine enough after all.
In the woods, among the pine and fir trees, you will find a light-green,
small, slim grasshopper a deal like the garden singer.
There is a very handsome, large grasshopper called the wart-biter.
The boys in Sweden give him this name, because they think he can
cure warts. They think that if he bites a wart, and puts some dark
brown juice on it, the wart will go away.
The wart-biter is nearly two inches long. It is a green-gray with
reddish legs and feet. It lays its eggs in little balls in the earth.
In South America there are very large and splendid grasshoppers.
Their wings are so gay that when they fly they look much like
butterflies. The wings, in flight, cover most of the body.
But when you see the large, long legs stretched out behind, and the
very long feelers waving to the tips of the wings, you will know that
this is a grasshopper. All this brown and black and crimson splendor
is the Old Man of the Meadow, with a very fine coat.
The grasshopper is not migratory. It does not change its home. It
dies near where it was born. Frost and cold kill it. It does not outlive
the winter, as butterflies, bees, and wasps do.
Grasshoppers appear in great numbers, but they do not go in
swarms as locusts do.
Each grasshopper lives alone. He does nothing for his neighbor, and
his neighbor does nothing for him.
When grasshoppers are numerous they damage the grass and the
young crops.

FOOTNOTES:
[14] See Nature Reader, No. 2. Lessons on Ants.
 LESSON XVIII.
THE ROBBER COUSIN.
The Old Man of the Meadow is, in his way, like a quiet country
gentleman. He roams about the fields, and likes to sing, and is fond
of moonlight. He likes the shade, and the cool, still places under the
green herbs.
He has a fierce cousin, who is a great robber, a kind of land pirate.
His name is locust.
I asked a class of boys, “What is a locust?” One said: “It is a great,
big grasshopper.”
Another said: “It is a greedy grasshopper that eats everything.”
A third said: “A locust is a grasshopper that travels in swarms.”
Now these were pretty good answers. Each had some truth in it. A
locust is not a grasshopper. But it is much like a grasshopper. It is his
very near relative.
The locust is not always larger than the grasshopper. The great
green, or the wart-biter grasshopper, is larger than the Rocky
Mountain locust. That locust is called “the hateful,” because he does
so much harm.
The locust is generally larger than the grasshopper, and one very big
locust is much larger than any grasshopper that ever was known.
And, too, the locust is much more greedy.
The locust destroys all plants that come in its way. It will eat the bark
off the trees.
Locusts live and move in swarms. Instead of living and dying in the
places where they were born, they are given to travel. They migrate
like the birds you will read of in this book.
It is not quite surely known what is the motive for their journeys.
Probably it is to get food. The locust is the child of hot lands. His first
home was, no doubt, in the great sandy plains of Asia. He is very
common in Africa. In Europe and the eastern part of the United
States he is not very common. In the Western States he has done
much damage.
If you take up a locust to examine, you will at once notice that his
feelers are much shorter than those of the grasshopper. Mrs. Locust
also is without the sword for placing her eggs. She lays them in the
earth in long tubes.
The front of the locust’s head is harder and thicker than the
grasshoppers. The hind legs are also much thicker and stronger than
even the big strong ones of the grasshopper.
The locust’s coat is of light brown or sand color. There is a delicate
green tinge on the wings. The breast has a soft vest of down. The
legs are often striped in bands of brown and yellow.
The locust does not make his music as the grasshopper does. When
he wishes to sing, Mr. Locust stands on his two front pairs of legs.
Then he lifts his hind legs, and draws them one by one, or both
together, over his wings.
The inner side of the hind legs has rough file-like edges. The wings
have thick veins, which stand like cords above the wing surface.
The file parts of the legs rub on these cords, and produce the sound.
The sound takes different tones, as one or both legs are used at a
time in making it. Sometimes the sound is very loud, sometimes it is
very low.
In the latter part of the summer, Mrs. Locust lays her eggs, fifty or
one hundred together, in a tube hidden in the earth. In places where
locusts do much harm, rewards are given for baskets full of these
tubes. Many boys make a living by digging them from the earth, and
selling them to be destroyed.
For you must know that locusts being very greedy, and very
numerous, do much harm. They move quickly, and in great swarms.
Though they live in swarms they have no queen as the bees have,
and they do no work as bees and ants do.
Probably there is no living thing seen in such numbers as the
locusts. We can scarcely believe or understand what we are told
about the multitudes of these insects which appear in the East.
They fill the sky like a great cloud, so that the day is darkened. When
they see a green place, they settle to feed. In a few minutes the
green is all gone. The place is as brown and bare as if a fire had
swept over it.
People hear with terror that the locusts are coming. They know the
crops will be eaten up. Then food will be scarce, and the people will
be poor.
If by chance a swarm is destroyed by other means than by fire, all
the air for miles will be filled with the bad smell of the decaying
bodies.
The only good that poor people can get from the locusts is by eating
them. They pull off the wings, and legs, and dry the bodies. They eat
them fried in oil and salt, or ground into meal, after roasting.
The locusts cannot fly against the wind. They go with the wind. It
brings them, and if it changes, it sweeps them away. Sometimes the
wind drives them out to sea. If they become too weary to fly, they
drop into the waves and are drowned. This often happens. Then the
water washes their bodies ashore. The coast of Africa has been
found covered thick with them, for the space of fifty miles.
But they do not always drop into the sea. They are very strong on
the wing. A great swarm of locusts was met by a ship, twelve
hundred miles from shore. They surrounded the ship, and hid the
sun.
As their flight is so strong, locusts can go from one country to
another. They pass from Africa to the south of Europe. They go from
the mainland to the islands.
Usually the locusts fly during the day, while the air is hot and dry.
Late in the day they settle to feed, and where they stop they stay
until all green things are eaten up. Of course they do not feed when
on the wing. They run along the ground to eat.
People try many ways of killing locusts. Sometimes deep trenches
are cut, and filled with water, so that the young unwinged locusts, as
they run along the ground, will fall in and be drowned. But the locusts
are in such numbers that the drowned ones soon fill the trenches.
The others run safely over the dead bodies.
Sometimes great fires are lit across their path. Then the hordes of
locusts crowd on, and at last, the fires are put out by the burned
bodies. After that, the others pass on unhurt.
You must know that the young locust is quite as greedy, and as great
a terror as his parents. In the larval and pupal states, they migrate as
well as when they have wings. They seem born to eat and to travel.
At this stage they go by walking. They march in a solid column like
soldiers. They move straight on, nothing turning them aside. Is a
house in the way? Over it and into it they go. You know some ants
move in swarms in this way.[15]
The locust, being larger, more numerous, and more greedy than the
ants, do much harm. If they find a town in their path, through it they
go. Countless numbers may be killed, but there are countless
numbers to follow. Is a river in the way? Into it they tumble, and
when enough dead bodies lie on the water to make a raft, the other
locusts pass safely over.
One great trouble about the locust is, that when a full-grown swarm
passes through a place the ground is left full of eggs. The next year
these hatch, and the larvæ and pupæ eat up all that has grown since
their parents ravaged the land.
Famines of two or three years duration have been caused in this
way. You will not wonder at the strength of locusts and the amount of
food they need, when I tell you that one kind is quite a foot broad
from tip to tip of the wings.
The great foreign locusts are very splendid to look at. They are
dressed like soldiers in crimson and blue. Their fierce eyes shine,
and the rush of their wings makes a sound like the coming of an
army.
Did I not give this locust a good name, when I called him the robber
cousin?

FOOTNOTES:
[15] See Nature Reader, No. 2. Lessons on Ants.
 LESSON XIX.
THE MERRY COUSINS.
You have heard about the robber cousin of the Old Man of the
Meadow. Now you shall hear about a very happy and harmless little
cousin. Here he is!
Did you ever meet him in your walks? Did he ever come creeping out
of a hole in the wall, or from a chink in the bricks in the hearth, and
sit down by you before the fire?
Did you notice how he waved his long feelers gently in the heat, and
seemed to bask in the glow as pussy does? If you were very still,
perhaps all at once he burst into a shrill, gay little song.
Did you notice what a shining, dark-brown coat he had? Did you see
that his tail had two long, stiff hairs, or bristles, spread out from each
other? Did you think that they were like the long tail hairs of the
bright and dainty May-fly?[16]
When you saw all this did you know your little friend well? Did you
call him by his name, “How are you, Mr. Cricket”?
Ah, the cricket is a right-jolly little fellow; let us take a good look at
him.
There are three kinds of crickets which we shall talk about. The
house cricket, the field cricket, the mole cricket.
The body of the cricket is not so slender as that of the grasshopper,
it is short and thick. It is much the shape of the first joint of your
thumb. The color is a dark, glossy brown, sometimes almost black.
The feelers are very long, longer than the whole body. The eyes are
large and round. The under wings are very large, much larger than
the wing-cases. When they are folded up, they reach out beyond the
covers and the body, in a long needle-like roll. It looks as if Mr.
Cricket were carrying home something under his arm.
Near where the wing cover joins his body, Mr. Cricket has a little, thin
drum-head for his music. He is very fond of making a noise. The
French call him “Cri-cri”[17] from the sound he makes. We call him
“cricket” for the same reason.
The cricket has strong jaws, sharp teeth, and a thick round tongue.
His feet are not broad and thick, like the grasshopper’s. He does not
run up plants as the grasshopper does. The cricket runs about the
ground. He has sharp, thin feet. Sometimes they have stiff hairs on
them.
As he runs about the ground, his long feelers warn him of any
danger in front. What do you think he has to tell him of danger
behind? He has that pair of long, stiff tail hairs, which look so much
like feelers.
Mrs. Cricket does not sing. It is Mr. Cricket that makes all the noise.
How does he make it? He has three strong veins under his left wing
cover. The largest of these is rough, like a file. This vein he uses as
a man uses the bow of a violin.
When the rough vein is drawn across the right wing cover, all the
cover trembles, or quivers, and gives out a sound, as when the bow
is drawn over the strings of a violin.
The field cricket will sing all day. The house and mole crickets sing
only at night.
Field crickets and house crickets are very much alike. The field
cricket is darker than the house cricket. He is also noisy by day. In
the winter he creeps into the earth and is torpid, unless the early cold
kills him.
I think house crickets are field crickets that have taken to living in
doors. So, in course of time, they have changed a little. But they
were all field crickets once.
Crickets are fond of moisture. They are thirsty creatures. They will
drink any liquid left in their way. They drink water, milk, soup, tea,
beer, vinegar, yeast. I have known them to come to my ink bottle to
try to drink the ink! But that killed them!
Crickets eat vegetables. They like potato. They are greedy, and will
eat whatever is in their way. They eat bread crumbs, soft grease, and
are very fond of meat. They catch and eat small insects. They eat
leather. Also they will eat woollen cloth, stockings, clothes.
Once our cook laid upon the grass a large piece of woollen blanket,
on which she had spilled some bread sponge. She left it there thirty-
six hours. When she went for it, the crickets had eaten nearly all of it.
It was so full of holes it was like a net. There were more holes than
there was blanket.
Crickets do not like to change their homes. They prefer to stay near
where they were born. If you carry them away they will use their big
wings to get home. Unless they fly to move from home to home, they
do not use their big wings very much. They walk, or hop.
The poets and story-tellers are very fond of crickets. Many people
think it is lucky to have them sing in the hearth. But there is no luck
about it. It is very pleasant and cheery to hear them sing.
In hot weather the house cricket sometimes goes into the garden to
live. In October he comes in, and finds a home in the house-wall. He
likes new houses where the mortar is not too hard for him to pull
some of it out and make his little home. He chooses the kitchen and
other well-warmed rooms to live in.
If the house is shut up and without fires for some days the cricket
becomes torpid. What do you suppose these little fellows did before
they found men to build houses for them?
In houses they keep quiet all day. They are timid things. Perhaps
they sleep. At night they come out. One wise old man who wrote
about crickets said that the tiny, new crickets came out on the
hearth-stone by hundreds. They were about the size of fleas. He
found all sizes at the same time. So he thought that they hatch at
any time if they live in a warm place.
The field cricket makes his house in the earth. He seeks a hot, sunny
spot. Then he digs out a hole with his strong jaws. This hole is often
from six to twelve inches deep.
The cricket is very timid and runs into his hole if any one comes by.
But if he is not afraid, he sits in the door of his house to catch insects
that come near. He also eats leaves and grass, that grow about his
door.
Little French children fish for crickets by tying an ant to a thread and
dropping it into the hole. You can also make Mr. Cricket come out, by
poking a blade of grass into his hole. He runs up to see what is the
matter.
Down in the bottom of the hole, Mrs. Cricket lays her eggs. They are
fastened to each other, and to the ground by a kind of glue. She lays
about three hundred eggs each year. She does not put them all in
one place.
As soon as the larvæ come out of the eggs, they run up to the top of
the ground. Each one then begins to dig a new burrow. Now and
then they get tired of a burrow, and go off to make a new one.
The little crickets in the larva and pupa state look much like the
grown ones, only they have no wings. When they are about half-
grown, they hop about, and look, and act, much like tiny toads. If the
crickets come out of the egg in July, they will reach the perfect state
the next May.
When they are full grown, they have wings, and can play a tune.
They like that. They sit in their doors and sing.
In Spain, the people like the cricket’s song so much that they keep
crickets in little cages, to sing for them. If they have plenty to eat and
drink, they will sing and be happy.
Each cricket will need a cage all for himself. Two crickets shut up
together will fight, until one is killed. Crickets always live alone.

FOOTNOTES:
[16] See Nature Reader, No. 2. “Child of an Hour.”