So what’s the problem

So What’s The Problem? Selecting skills to target for intervention

He has trouble with reading… Because… he doesn’t have phonemic awareness, isn’t using phonics skills doesn’t read with fluency has poor vocabulary isn’t comprehending what he reads …or what exactly?

How would you describe a student’s comprehension problem? He gets specifics but can’t answer higher order questions about the story He does poorly on multiple choice questions about the story He can’t retell a story orally He can’t answer questions orally in class about what we are reading He can’t summarize or write out thoughts about a story All of the above!

Let’s consider each type of problem He doesn’t get higher order questions. Why? Is he able to do so on topics of interest e.g. science class discussions/projects? (and thus maybe it is a reading comprehension problem) Is he rarely able to “get” more abstract concepts (and thus maybe has an ability problem)? CogAt can provide a clue.

He scores poorly on multiple choice questions about the text But does he do better if the test is read aloud? (thus maybe it’s a more basic reading problem) Does he get more concrete questions but miss the more abstract (maybe we are back to basic ability?) Do his answers suggest a vocabulary problem? (he misses questions that require vocabulary knowledge)

He can answer questions in class but not on a test! So maybe he understood the story when it was discussed but couldn’t read it well enough himself to gain understanding? (reading problem) He can’t retell a story or tell me key features of it, even after discussion (ability? Memory?) He does better in history tests than on reading tests. (memory for facts, higher interest items, less abstraction in non-fiction vs fiction?)

He can do multiple choice but can’t write a summary Does the summary have good content but poor mechanics? (writing problem) Can he talk about but not write about the story (written expression problem?) Perhaps he is better at recognition (multiple choice) than recall (essay)

But he has trouble with all levels of comprehension and all modes of testing! So then let’s look at fluency and vocabulary next Is his speaking vocabulary similar to that of other students in his grade? Does he have trouble with synonyms and antonyms (and thus doesn’t recognize them when reading) How does he do on vocabulary tests? If he reads fluently but isn’t sure of word meanings that may be impacting his comprehension, especially on higher order questions

Vocabulary seems OK? Then let’s look at fluency Words Per Minute (WPM) WPM gives you a fluency score but the important part is determining why a child is not fluent! Few but accurate WPM suggests slow decoding, thus loss of sentence meaning. Try to build fluency. Many and accurate WPM but poor expression suggests focus on words and a loss of meaning. Work on expression.

Fluency Low WPM with numerous errors suggests a basic reading (decoding) problem. Assess word reading. High WPM with errors, substitutions, omissions, losing place, etc. suggests a reading disability of various kinds. Analyze word reading errors to figure out what kind.

Some examples Tiffany Colin Robbie Susie 4 th grader in ATeam

OK, we’ve got lots of errors on the fluency passage, now what? Hmmm, starting to look more like a decoding problem, reading disability, visual or auditory processing?? Let’s try word lists rather than passages and analyze the errors.

Error Analysis of Misread Words Was/saw, bib/dig, ton/not, black/block, etc. may suggest visual processing and are “LDish” Pencil/pesnil, aluminum/aminilum, simpson/smispin etc. may suggest auditory sequential processing and are “LDish” Missing phonics rules are usually apparent and could be just missed instruction (e.g. never did get those long vowel rules)

And if the problem is more than that? Does the child show an understanding of letter/sound relationships? What is his level of phonetic understanding? CVC but not CVCe? Does he show phonemic awareness? Is he hearing and identifying sounds? Does he recognize all of his letters?

Why isn’t she learning her letters and sounds? Ability? Memory? Processing? Attention? Readiness? Ability? Does she seem to have the same level of understanding on general topics as other students her age? She knows it today but not tomorrow! Memory?

Letters and Numbers Processing. Doesn’t seem to get symbols of language Attention Can she attend to high interest activities? Is she responding to expectations to attend? Readiness What is her prior experience? Maturity level compared to peers?

Symbols of language b d p q h j c o e s z l t i f k m n v w x y Oh, and each one represents a sound? And if you put some together they might make a different sound? How does anyone learn to read?!

It’s math but is it calculation, problem solving, or reading, no, maybe memory?? Math difficulties come in many forms! Solving a math problem involves: Reading it correctly Knowing how to solve it Keeping all the information in mind Applying the right calculation process Calculating it correctly

How much of this is a reading or memory problem? Doing better with read aloud is one clue but… Students with working memory difficulties can’t remember what you just read to them Some students also have trouble retaining both numbers and language (Did Susie have more or was it Sarah? Susie had 12 but I forget how many that other girl had!) If the child can do the calculation after you step him through the process, it’s more of a process problem Having the student read aloud a problem to you and discuss it may help answer these questions

Math Disabilities are often Working Memory Disabilities Can the student hold 2- 3-step directions in mind long enough to follow them? When questioned can he recall both names and numbers in a problem? Has the student committed math facts and formulas to memory? If not, the student is using up working memory on facts and there’s not much left for problem solving!

What do you think the problem is here? Mary’s car get 23 mpg. How far can she drive on five gallons? OK, that’s 23 x 5, hmmm, that’s 105, I got it! Yep, regrouping. She knew what to do, and probably knew that 3 x 5 is 15, but didn’t correctly regroup the 1 to the tens place.

But what about this student? Bob’s car gets 30 mpg. How far can he drive on 5 gallons? Hmmm, oh, yeah, 35! Oops, he doesn’t understand the problem although he can add pretty well!

What is this 4 th grade child’s problem? Four people each have 30 dollars. How much do they have together? OK, 30 + 30 + 30 + 30. That’s …0, 123, 456, 789, 10,11,12. OK, 120. Yep, two things: he doesn’t get the relationship between adding and multiplying; and he does not have a fluent use of math facts.

And here? If you buy a ball for 45 cents and a pencil for 28 cents how much change would you get back from $1? Susie: 73 cents! Joe: 26 cents! Rebecca: 17 cents! Sam: How much was the pencil? Stan: Where can you get a ball for 45 cents?

What do you mean, “LDish”? Impulsive mispronounces words in reading either from visual or auditory processing problems Can’t keep things in memory or remembers them out of order Particular types of spelling/writing errors (not just wen for when but presnet for present)

LDishness Mispronounces, substitutes, omits, loses place in reading Does not notice that her written work does not match a model Doesn’t notice spacing, frequent erasures For example, an upbeat, talkative, 4 th grader who thought she had done this assignment well

Finding the problem… can be a problem. But it drives interventions and Allows rebuilding skills from where they were missed It’s all a process and we’re all here to help!

So what’s the problem

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So what’s the problem