Home Library Product Reviews

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Author: Penny McCulloch
Special Education and Learning Difficulties Consultant
Spectronics

It is always a challenge for educators to find motivating and high interest reading materials for older students who are struggling or reluctant readers. Even harder to find appropriate materials for older learners who are at emergent stages of reading. To provide these students with meaningful reading experiences, classrooms need a variety of reading choices. Many educators develop their own printed or electronic reading materials that support student interests or curriculum topics. However, creating individualised readers for each student, although fun, can be time consuming.

Don Johnson Incoporated has developed an expanded collection of high interest reading resources for beginning, struggling and reluctant readers at middle primary through to secondary school. These are great additions for the school library, support room or individual classroom and provide a continuum of support. The resources are ready to use, can be configured to suit students at different ability levels, reducing the need for teachers to modify materials. They are ready to use and can be used to supplement existing classroom resources, to support curriculum activities as well as provide opportunities for self selected reading.

Brief overview of the Start-to-Finish Series

Literacy Starters

These books are designed for beginning readers and consist of ten topics with three texts in each package. Each pack contains three paperback books, a CD of computer based reading material, printed vocabulary cards and many ready-made teacher resources on an additional CD.

The Gold and Blue Series

The Gold Series are high-interest readers designed to promote independent reading for struggling readers aged 9 to 17 years but who are reading at a grade 2/3 level.

The Blue Series consist of readers with a reading level of grade 4/5.
The formats for these resources include a computer based book, audio and paperback versions. The books introduce students to manageable chapter readers with clear story structure and careful introduction to vocabulary. Supportive features include auditory support, word or sentence highlighting and comprehension quizzes.

The Blue and Gold Series readers have numerous titles that are divided into categories consisting of:

• Required and suggested reading
  
• Self selected reading
  
• Reading across the curriculum
  
• Core Content books

The Core Content readers integrate with the SOLO software package, enabling students to utilise Read:OutLoud for reading the text and collecting main points, Draft:Builder for creating a graphic map and ready-made Co:Writer topic dictionairies to assist in completing written reports on the books read.

Some of the titles focus on topics covered in the US curriculum, however there are plenty of titles to choose from that could easily be incorporated into curriculum activities in both Australia and New Zealand. Generic titles like Volcanoes, Recycling, Plants and the Solar System for example are universal topics that are covered in primary or secondary school.

All three series have inbuilt universal design features ensuring access for all students. Each can be scaffolded in different ways according to the intervention focus for any particular individual. Data collection on usage and comprehension is available. The resources are also suitable for home use.

Literacy Starters – Background

The Literacy Starters are designed for older learners at beginning stages of reading. Research has shown that many of these readers may get little exposure to text on a regular basis. It is certainly a challenge finding high interest, low readability texts. However, the readers in this Series can provide meaningful reading experiences throughout the day that relate to both the curriculum and student interests. Students can read using paperback or electronic versions of the readers.

Like other readers in the Start-to-Finish Series, they have been developed in collaboration with researchers in the field of literacy and numeracy. These include respected names in the literacy research field: Karen Erickson, Caroline Ramsay Musselwhite and Jerry Stemach.

The Literacy Starter Series focus on the skills that beginning readers need to increase their vocabulary and independent word recognition. Don Johnson has called this The Beginning Literacy Framework. This recognises multiple areas of importance in the reading process, including

• Literacy goals
  
• Methods of instruction
  
• Text features
  
• Graphic support and features
  
• Universal design and inclusion issues and
  
• Technology support.

Click here to download/view Don Johnston’s Beginning Literacy Framework (PDF file opens in a new window)

The readers are designed for use by educators and parents/carers.

The Titles

Civil War – States and Slavery
Continents and Countries – Africa
Early Settlers – Changes and Challenges
Insects – Necessity or Nuisance
Life Cycles – Birth and Beyond
Plants – Science and Surroundings
Recycling – Cash in the Trash
Solar System – Surprises in Space
Sports – Safety and Success
Volcanoes – Force and Fury

Note: Any money displayed in the books is US currency.

What you get with the pack

• CD with three books per CD
• Three paperback books
• Printed vocabulary cards (key topic words and pictures as well as sight words)
• CD of teacher guide and printable resources
• Storage pouch for keeping all the resources together (This is a great storage solution for the classroom reading corner or library )

Implementation in the classroom

Starter books and the teacher materials included in each pack focus on the development of:

• Oral language and vocabulary
  
• Background knowledge of the topic
  
• Knowledge of text structures
  
• Word recognition
  
• Phonological awareness (decoding unknown words)
  
• Reading fluency
  
• Comprehension.

The paperback or computer-based reading material is ready to use in daily class reading activities such as:

• Guided reading with the teacher
  
• Support of curriculum topics being covered in class
  
• Small group or independent reading activities
  
• Self-selected reading activities where students are encouraged to choose their own reading material

The motivating topics and wealth of suggested strategies mean they can be used effectively as home readers as well.

Three types of text are included in each pack to support the development of beginning reading skills:

• Enrichment text – designed to be read to the beginning reader for enjoyment for the purpose of orienting the reader to the topic, developing vocabulary and oral language. Words, sentences and phrases are repeated in the text, however there is no focus on decoding words at this stage. The texts are designed to generate interest and discussion.
  
• Transitional text – is intended for reading with the beginning reader to encourage active participation in the reading process. The text is simpler in these books and includes features such as rhyming words, rhythm and repetitive text. Transitional texts focus the reader on the text rather than simply on the oral language component.
  
• Conventional Text – The student is expected to have a go at reading independently. These books have simple text and clear graphics. The words are chosen so as to be phonetically regular.

Computer-based Activities

Speech feedback is used to model fluent reading. Photographs enhance the meaning of the text. The format allows users to progressively engage in independent reading. Books can be read in three ways:

• Read to me, where a fluent reader reads the book aloud. Supports include text highlighting, sound effects and animation.
  
• Read with me, where readers can interact with the text and pause the narration. Words are highlighted by word and then repeated by phrase.
  
• Read by myself, where readers have the opportunity to read the text independently without supports.

Enrichment texts use highlighting text by phrase. Transitional texts use word by word then phrase highlighting. Conventional texts highlight the text by line.

Teacher Central

This area of the program allows you to set individual reader preferences as well as see and print a report related to specific titles in the Start to Finish Series.
In this section it is possible to set up a class reading list and then link preferences and settings to individual users. Reading preferences are:

• Auditory support – select whether the text is read aloud or whether the reader is offered the Read by myself version. It is possible to have the buttons on the screen spoken aloud when the mouse hovers over them giving confirmation of their function.
  
• Highlighting colour options
  
• Scanning options for switch users (scan speed, one button or two button scanning). Keyboard and mouser equivalents are also available as a means of access to the book’s content.
  
• One-button mode enables a reader to navigate through the program with simply a forward button (one-button mode.)
  
• Two-switch mode
  
• Collected Words clicked on for help. This feature keeps a record of the words that readers click on as they are reading in order to help word recognition. A record is kept of all these words and can be printed out. It is possible to print a report that shows what words were clicked on and how many times they were selected, for each book in the set.

Teacher Guide and Materials CD

The Teacher Guide and information on using switches and Teacher Central for setting up users and preferences, as well as other materials for planning, intervention, recording progress and resource development are included on this CD.

The intervention planning tool

This is intended to assist teachers develop a profile of the reader, identifying current reading behaviours and skills. The categories within the profile are concepts about print, alphabetic principle, oral language and phonological awareness. Suggested interventions are provided for each area.

Word cards for building vocabulary

Printed word cards are included in the pack and are also available in electronic format. Vocabulary cards for the emergent and transition books are not intended to be used as flashcards for drill and practice activities but rather to build oral language. Word cards for conventional readers are aimed at building word recognition skills.

Always Activities

These are guides that provide suggestions for developing a purpose for reading, further developing skills and motivating readers. Beginning readers can be assisted to sequence and summarise, identify and describe characters, make predictions and so on.

Reading Portfolio Tools

These printable sheets provide a motivating visual record of student’s reading preferences and progress and well as data for teacher records. They consist of:

• Reading volume graph for each month of the year maps the books read each month.
  
• Reader preferences graph and
  
• A reading chart to help you keep track of the books being read, how they are reading and what their thoughts on the book are.

Communication Boards for Book Talk

Communication displays are provided for readers who have limited vocabulary or who are using an Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) system. The displays have words and symbols and are intended to assist the reader be active throughout the reading experience. They are provided in electronic format in colour and black and white.

Picture resources

JPEG files of all of the pictures in each reader are included on the CD for use in other classroom materials and activities. They are also intended for use with Write:OutLoud SOLO and Read:OutLoud SOLO.

E-text files

E-text files of each of the books in the Series are available for use with Read:OutLoud, a component program within the SOLO package. Using an installer, the text will automatically install into Read:OutLoud’s e-text folder along with picture resources.

Literacy Starters packs are essential items for your classroom and school library, as well as home, providing supports to ensure beginning readers are motivated to gain knowledge and enjoyment through reading.