Artifact Reflection Artifact Title: Child Study Date Completed: October 2013 November 2013 Artifact Description In the

e fall of 2013, I completed a Child Study with a student in Mr. Fleschs kindergarten class at Neal Wilkins Elementary School in Platteville, Wisconsin. This study shows the students reading interest, progress in literacy, assessment of content knowledge, and professional report of the students overall literacy skills and recommendations for future development. Wisconsin Teaching Standard Alignment This artifact aligns with Wisconsin Teaching Standard 8: The teacher understands and uses formal and informal assessment strategies to evaluate and ensure the continuo us intellectual, social, and physical development of the pupil. This artifact aligns best with Standard 8 because I have acquired the experience of properly using formal and informal assessments to evaluate the literacy abilities of a particular student. The results of the Child Study allowed me to see the progress of the student, and with the assessments given, I could develop a professional report of his knowledge of literacy and the necessary steps needed to continue the intellectual, social, and physical development of this student and his literacy skills. An example of my understanding of how to test for student progress was the daily meetings I had with one of my pre-student teaching students for my Child Study. This study was made up of multiple tools used for assessment. It included informal tests such as the Elementary Reading Attitude Survey (ERAS) with Garfield and scoring sheet, and Print Awareness Observation Checklist. I also used a formal assessment known as the Sight Word Proficiency and Automaticity Test (Dolche List). With the student only being in kindergarten, I had to adjust the tests by relating them to his interests and age appropriateness. I used the ERAS to help fined his interest level for reading so that it was a fun activity. When I reviewed sight words from the Dolche List with the student, he had some struggles with some silent vowel sounds, but mostly struggled with blends in words. To help the student develop a better understanding of these words, we practiced with magnet letters and flash cards with pictures, and over time his proficiency with sight words increased. By the end the Child Study, the student showed great strides in intellectual and social development and an increase in literacy skills. These series of different tests allowed me to formally and informally assess the student I was working with by checking his level of reading comprehension and basic literacy skills. It helped me determine where he was, academically, so that I could recommend changes to help him succeed in school and become more fluent in literacy. After the assessments were completed, I recommended that the student continue to work with site words, blends, digraphs, and appropriate reading levels to help him become more fluent because it will help develop a more social behavior as well as physical development as he grows into a more mature and fluent reader.

Artifact Reflection With this experience, I have gained more skill in this standard because this experience has taught me how to properly evaluate a students academic status using formal and informal assessments and the different strategies I can use to help the student progress more over time. Having this ability allows me adjust or create assessments that will help students continue the development of higher levels in literacy.

UW Platteville School of Education Knowledge, Skill, Disposition Statement Alignment This experience best aligns with KSD1.f. Assesses Student Learning The candidate understands, is committed to, and can develop assessments that are clearly stated and congruent with instructional goals. The students are aware of how they are meeting the established standards and are involved in the goal setting process. This artifact best aligns with KSD1.f. because it allowed me to explore my understanding of how to successfully instruct and assess a childs learning by working with them on literacy skills on a regular basis. My experience with the Child Study was a great way for me to use an already created assessment tool and apply it to the students background knowledge to help achieve progress. The assessments also helped demonstrate my awareness of the age appropriateness and their learning ability.
After this experience, I have gained a higher level of competency because I had the

chance to learn how to assess a students learning about literacy in a professional manner. My ability to assess student learning demonstrates that I am capable of expanding my experience of assessment to more students on an individual level. Secondary KSDs: KSD4.b. Maintain accurate Records KSD4.e. Grows and Develops Professionally KS1.e. Demonstrates Flexibility and Responsiveness Reflection What I learned about teaching/learning from this experience: From this experience, I have learned how to work with a student one-on-one and use sets of formal and informal assessments to evaluate their reading interests, current status on literacy, and then work with them to improve those skills to become a more proficient reader, writer and student. With this new found experience, I now know what tools to utilize when assessing a students knowledge about literacy. Knowing how the student learns is important when assessing because you may have to adjust to an interest level, just as I did when assessing

Artifact Reflection my student. I have also learned how to create a professional report to explain the overall status of the Child Study and the recommendations needed for that student to succeed. What I learned about myself as a prospective educator as a result of this experience: As a result of this experience, I have learned that using different types of assessment tools can be helpful when working with students that you may have to make adjustments for and still be able to provide a proper assessment so they can continue to grow as a regular student. I have also learned that the Child Study is a good tool for teachers to utilize when learning about their students interest in reading and knowledge about literacy on a more personal level and have the resources to test and practice with them to help them become better readers and writers. As an educator, it is important to know your students, their interests, reading abilities, and how to assess and evaluate them based on their learning abilities so they can become more fluent readers and overall successful students.