Finding the best way to instill a love of books in children, is a challenge that many parents and teachers face. A student needs to become a fluent and independent reader. For over three decades, the Accelerated Reading program has been inciting youngsters to experience the joy of the written word, and giving adults a way to understand how to help them on that journey.
A mom who was searching for a way to help her children improve their comprehension and fluidity skills, developed the program in 1984. She would give them quick quizzes whenever they finished a book, as a way of finding out if they fully understood what they just read. In this way, she also came to realize there areas that were giving the kids trouble, and was able to focus on helping them resolve the problems.
The prime concept for the program is that children will choose books to read independently that are on their particular comprehension level. Upon completion, they take a quick computerized quiz, consisting of 5 to 10 questions, to assess just how well they understood the book. Their results are used to create a report which may be used determine the areas where that student may be struggling.
New quizzes are added to the database on a regular basis, though there are currently more than a 180,000 on hand. The range of titles span all school ages from kindergarten through High School, with a wide genre variety and subject matter, nonfiction and fiction. There are also tests that go along with different types of publications, such as magazines or textbooks.
Determining a child's reading level starts with a computerized test that last about 10 minutes, and assesses their skills interactively. Depending on how they respond to each question, the difficulty level will adjust automatically to determine the point at which their comprehension and fluidity are optimal, the zone of proximal development (ZPD). Periodic reassessment can determine whether the student is improving.
The program tries to offer quizzes for books that are most likely to be found in school libraries, that receive favorable reviews, are by popular authors, are part of trending series, award winners, and recommendations from parents and teachers. Each one is given a ranking based upon its difficulty level and the number of words it contains. While not every title is included on the recommendation list, there is a conversion scale to help find a ranking.
While the program itself does not offer any particular incentives, many teachers, libraries, and parents, have developed their own systems of rewards. Studies show that when children work toward a goal, they tend to be excited about the task and perform it more diligently. Through this, they practice their skills, honing them as they go, to become more proficient readers while learning to enjoy certain genres or subjects, and choosing to read on their own just for pleasure.
Using the AR program gets kids enthusiastic about learning to read with better comprehension. The quizzes are beneficial to assessing which areas require special attention. The effort to earn points incites them to put in the effort to work towards their goal, whether for an incentive, or just to satisfy their curiosity or ambition, resulting in them becoming more proficient readers.
A mom who was searching for a way to help her children improve their comprehension and fluidity skills, developed the program in 1984. She would give them quick quizzes whenever they finished a book, as a way of finding out if they fully understood what they just read. In this way, she also came to realize there areas that were giving the kids trouble, and was able to focus on helping them resolve the problems.
The prime concept for the program is that children will choose books to read independently that are on their particular comprehension level. Upon completion, they take a quick computerized quiz, consisting of 5 to 10 questions, to assess just how well they understood the book. Their results are used to create a report which may be used determine the areas where that student may be struggling.
New quizzes are added to the database on a regular basis, though there are currently more than a 180,000 on hand. The range of titles span all school ages from kindergarten through High School, with a wide genre variety and subject matter, nonfiction and fiction. There are also tests that go along with different types of publications, such as magazines or textbooks.
Determining a child's reading level starts with a computerized test that last about 10 minutes, and assesses their skills interactively. Depending on how they respond to each question, the difficulty level will adjust automatically to determine the point at which their comprehension and fluidity are optimal, the zone of proximal development (ZPD). Periodic reassessment can determine whether the student is improving.
The program tries to offer quizzes for books that are most likely to be found in school libraries, that receive favorable reviews, are by popular authors, are part of trending series, award winners, and recommendations from parents and teachers. Each one is given a ranking based upon its difficulty level and the number of words it contains. While not every title is included on the recommendation list, there is a conversion scale to help find a ranking.
While the program itself does not offer any particular incentives, many teachers, libraries, and parents, have developed their own systems of rewards. Studies show that when children work toward a goal, they tend to be excited about the task and perform it more diligently. Through this, they practice their skills, honing them as they go, to become more proficient readers while learning to enjoy certain genres or subjects, and choosing to read on their own just for pleasure.
Using the AR program gets kids enthusiastic about learning to read with better comprehension. The quizzes are beneficial to assessing which areas require special attention. The effort to earn points incites them to put in the effort to work towards their goal, whether for an incentive, or just to satisfy their curiosity or ambition, resulting in them becoming more proficient readers.
About the Author:
If you are interested in accelerated reading, the best thing to do is visit the Web and enter the keywords in a search engine. Alternatively, you may go directly to this website at http://www.speedreadingworld.com.