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ProactiveParent.com
Resources on this Page
Resources
for Testing for Dyslexia
Spelling Inventory Assessment for
Primary and Elementary Students (Informal Test)
Assessment Tools for Testing Kindergarten
Through 2nd Grade Students
Reasons Not to Wait to
Intervene
Background Information
There are many different tools used by professionals to assess reading
abilities and disabilities. You may want to discuss the pros and cons of the tools
below with a professional testor. Please note that not all testors are qualified for
all types of testing. You should discuss your concerns regarding your child
thoroughly with any testor to determine if they are qualified to administer and interpret
the results of tests meant to assess a particular skill or disability. Testing can
be expensive and time consuming, so it is very important to seek out a qualified
professional and for them to administer the most appropriate tests.
A simple test you can administer yourself as an initial screening is
included below, along with instructions for its use. This is an informal screening
only, and we urge parents to seek professional assistance if they have serious concerns
regarding their child.
Go to
Informal Test
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| Spelling
Inventory to Use as an Informal Assessment of Spelling Skills: Directions for Administering the
Primary & Elementary Spelling Inventories
These two tests are designed to assess the
word knowledge elementary students have to bring to the tasks of reading and spelling.
Students are not to study these words. That would invalidate the purpose of this inventory
which is to find out what they truly know. You can administer this same list of words
three times: in Sept, Jan and May; to measure children's progress.
These words are ordered in terms of their
relative difficulty for children in grades K to 5. For this reason you need only call out
the words which sample features your children are likely to master during the year.
However, do call out enough words to give you a sense of the range of ability in your
class. For kindergarten you may only call out the first five to eight words on the primary
list for most children. For the first grade call out at least 15. For 2nd and 3rd use the
entire primary 1ist. Use the entire elementary spelling inventory for grades 4 and 5 and
for any 3rd graders who are able to spell more than 20 of the words on the primary list.
You should also call out additional words for any children who are spelling most of the
words correctly at the K or lst grade level.
Testing. Call the words as
you would for any test. Use them in a sentence to be sure your children know the exact
word. Assure your students that this is not for a grade but to help you plan better for
their needs. Seat the children to minimize copying or test the children in small groups
(recommended for K and early 1st grade).
Scoring the test. Copy a
scoring sheet for each child and simply check off the features for each word which are
spelled according to the descriptors at the top. Add an additional point in the
"correct" column if the entire word is correct. Note that some words are scored
for some features and not others and the number of possible points varies by words.
Assigning points and analyzing the
results. Total the number of points under each feature and across each word.
Staple the child's spelling test to the individual form. The total point score will give
you a number which can be compared over time but the most useful information will be the
feature analysis. Look down each feature column to determine the needs of individual
students. Transfer these numbers to a class composite sheet to get a sense of your group
as a whole and to form groups for instruction. Highlight children who are making two or
more errors on a particular feature. For example, a child who gets 6 of 7 short vowels
correct on the primary list can be considered in pretty good shape although some review
work might be in order. A child who gets only 2 or 3 of the 7 short vowels needs a lot of
work on that feature. Since the total possible number will vary depending on how many
words you call out, the criteria for mastery will vary. I generally think like this. If X
is the number of possible correct responses, then x or x-1 indicates good control of the
feature, while x-2, or more indicates the need for instruction. If the child did not get
any points for a feature it is beyond their instructional range and earlier features need
to be addressed first. |
PLEASE NOTE: THE TABLE BELOW CAN BE CUT AND PASTED INTO
A WORD PROCESSOR SUCH AS MICROSOFT WORD, AND THEN ITS
PRINTING CAN BE ADJUSTED.
Elementary Spelling Inventory – Individual Score Sheet
(adapted from Francine Johnston, 7/98)
Name of Child_________________ Teacher__________________
Grade_____Date________Total Pts._____
| ---Word--- |
Short
Vowel |
Blend/ Digraph |
Long
Vowel |
Other
Vowel |
Complex Conson- ant |
Inflection |
Syllable Juncture |
Syllable |
Suffix |
Number Corrrect
|
Word Total |
1. speck
|
e |
sp |
-- |
-- |
ck |
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
____
|
____
|
| 2. switch
|
i
|
sw
|
--
|
--
|
tch
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
____
|
____
|
| 3. throat
|
--
|
--
|
oa
|
--
|
thr
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
____
|
____
|
| 4. nurse
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
ur
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
____
|
____
|
| 5. scrape
|
--
|
--
|
a-e
|
--
|
scr
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
____
|
____
|
| 6. charge
|
--
|
ch
|
--
|
ar
|
ge
|
ai
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
____
|
____
|
| 7. phone
|
--
|
ph
|
o-e
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
____
|
____
|
| 8. smudge
|
u
|
sm
|
--
|
--
|
dge
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
____
|
____
|
| 9. point
|
--
|
nt
|
--
|
oi
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
____
|
____
|
| 10. squirt
|
--
|
squ
|
--
|
ir
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
____
|
____
|
| 11. drawing
|
--
|
dr
|
--
|
aw
|
--
|
-ing
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
____
|
____
|
| 12. trapped
|
--
|
tr
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
-pped
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
____
|
____
|
| 13. waving
|
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-ving |
-- |
-- |
-- |
____ |
____ |
| 14.
powerful
|
-- |
-- |
-- |
ow |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-er |
-ful |
____ |
____ |
| 15. battle
|
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
tt |
-tle |
-- |
____ |
____ |
| 16. fever
|
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
v |
-er |
-- |
____ |
____ |
| 17. lesson
|
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
ss |
-on |
-- |
____ |
____ |
| 18. pennies
|
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-ies |
nn |
-- |
-- |
____ |
____ |
| 19.
fraction
|
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-tion |
____ |
____ |
| 20. sailor
|
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
l |
-- |
-or |
____ |
____ |
| 21.
distance
|
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
st |
-- |
-ance |
____ |
____ |
| 22.
confusion
|
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-sion |
____ |
____ |
| 23.
discovery
|
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
dis- |
-ery |
____ |
____ |
| 24,
resident
|
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
si |
-dent |
____ |
____ |
| 25. visible
|
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-ible |
____ |
____ |
| Feature
Totals
|
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
____ |
Total Pts.____
|
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Assessment Tools to Identify K-2
Children At-Risk of Reading Difficulty
The list below includes the most common commercially available assessment
tools used to screen kindergarten through 2nd grade students on measures of pre-reading
and phonemic awareness skills in order to determine their level of risk of later reading
difficulties.
| Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing
(CTOPP), Richard K. Wagner, Joseph K. Torgesen, and Carol A. Rashotte, 1999 |
PRO-ED 8700 Shoal Creek Blvd.
Austin, TX. 78757-6897
800-897-3202
www.proedinc.com |
Tests 3 skills: phonological awareness,
phonological memory, and rapid naming. Subtests for 5 & 6 year olds include phoneme
elision, word blending, and matching the first and last sounds in a word. Also tests rapid
naming of colors and objects, and memory for a string of digits and non-word sounds. |
| Dynamic Indicators of Basic
Early Literacy Skills (5th Ed.), edited by Roland H. Good III and Ruth A.
Kaminski, University of Oregon |
Early Child\hood Research
Institute on Measuring Growth and Development
http://dibels.uoregon.edu |
K-3 Assessment tools. |
| Fox in a Box, Marilyn Adams, (1999) |
CTB/McGraw-Hill 20 Ryan Ranch Rd.
Monterey, CA 93940-5703 |
Assessment and intervention kit. Phonemic
awareness, phonics, reading/oral expressiveness, and listening/writing expressiveness. |
| Phonological Awareness Literacy
Screening (PALS), created through the Virginia Early Intervention Reading
Initiative |
PALS
853 W. Main St.
P.O. Box 800785
Charlottesville, VA 22908
888-882-7257
(see also LINKS)
http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/
curry/centers/pals |
Faculty from the Univ. of
Virginia's Curry School of Education created this assessment tool, which
is available for a nominal per student fee by those outside of
Virginia. Individual children's scores are tabulated, with links to
the activities on the website that support any student deficits. |
| The Phonological Awareness Test Robertson
& Salter, 1995 |
LinguiSystems
3100 4th Avenue
East Moline, IL 61244-0747
800-776-4332
http://www.linguisystems.com |
Contains 5 measures of phonemic awareness,
including segmentation, isolation, deletion, substitution, and blending. |
| Test of Phonological Awareness (TOPA), Joseph
K. Torgesen, Brian R. Bryant, 1994 |
PRO-ED
8700 Shoal Creek Blvd.
Austin, TX. 78757-6897
800-897-3202
www.proedinc.com |
Kindergarten and Early Elementary versions. In
the Kindergarten versions the student identifies which of 3 words begins with the same
sound as a stimulus word. Also which of 3 words has a different initial sound than a
stimulus word. |
| Test of Word Reading Efficiency (TOWRE), Joseph
K. Torgesen, Richard K. Wagner, and Carol A. Rashotte, 1999 |
PRO-ED
8700 Shoal Creek Blvd.
Austin, TX. 78757-6897
800-897-3202
www.proedinc.com |
Test used for first graders and above. There
are 2 subtests. One measures the child’s ability to read sight words, and the other
is a test of phonemic decoding of nonwords. |
| The Texas Primary Reading Inventory (K-2) |
Texas Education Agency
Publications Dept.
P.O. Box 13817
Austin, Texas 78711-3817
(512) 463-9744 |
Kit includes a teacher’s guide, an
intevention activities guide, magnetic board and set of magnetic letters, laminated story
cards, and 26 student record sheets for a K, 1, & 2 classroom. |
| The Yopp-Singer Test of Phoneme Segmentation, Haley
Yopp, 1995 |
The Reading Journal
Volume 49 (1995)
free |
This is a brief test that can be used for
kindergarten students. The 22 items ask the child to pronounce a phoneme in a word that
varies from 1-3 phonemes in length. |
| Reasons
Not to Wait to Intervene |
| 1. The longer you wait, the more hours of
intervention will be needed in the end.
2. Waiting increases the chance that your child will never catch
up.
3. There is a greater risk of loss of self-esteem as your child
fails for a longer period.
4. The child misses out on the reading content and vocabulary
growth that her peers are getting.
5. The longer she struggles in learning to read, the higher the
probability that she will never love reading. |
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