+OK 10937 octets Received: from smtp06.nwnexus.com (smtp06.nwnexus.com [206.63.63.45]) by mail1.halcyon.com (8.8.8/8.8.8) with ESMTP id FAA25777 for ; Tue, 6 Apr 1999 05:41:17 -0700 (PDT) Received: from alaska.ktn.net (root@alaska.ktn.net [206.159.13.2]) by smtp06.nwnexus.com (8.8.8/8.8.8) with ESMTP id FAA25124 for ; Tue, 6 Apr 1999 05:41:06 -0700 (PDT) Received: from ktn.net (ktn-ts1-p01.ktn.net [206.159.13.55]) by alaska.ktn.net (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id EAA27203; Tue, 6 Apr 1999 04:40:10 -0800 Message-ID: <3709FE78.83985DAB@ktn.net> Date: Tue, 06 Apr 1999 04:30:48 -0800 From: al johnson X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.06 [en] (Win95; U) MIME-Version: 1.0 To: "Johnson's Educational Loop" , John Coghill CC: "Rep. Bill Williams" , "Sen. John Torgerson" , "Sen. Loren Leman" , "Sen. Lyda Green" , "Sen. Robin Taylor" , Allen Kemplen , Beverly Masek , Bob Hewitt , Brian Porter , Bud Martin , Con Bunde , dick Clement , Fred Dyson , Gail Phillips , "hardinl@kgbsd.org" , HR , Joe Green , John Harrington , John Scoblic , larry eklund , Mike Lord , Pattiy Barnes , "rcross@educ.state.ak.us" , Rep Vic Kohring <"Representative Vic_Kohring"@legis.state.ak.us>, Richard Smiley , Rick Halford , Robert Gottstein , "Sen.Tim kelly" Subject: [Fwd: [Fwd: reading for at-risk students]] Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="------------6C91AD0F85636E607763BC93" Status: This is a multi-part message in MIME format. --------------6C91AD0F85636E607763BC93 Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="------------2B2F101DF13418912056DABE" --------------2B2F101DF13418912056DABE Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit If we really want our children to read, it can be done. This from a school that is rated socially in the lowest of low. 95% free or reduced lunch, Beyond 50% (I would have to go back to the post with the staticstics) from single family, and many of the social problems claimed to be the barrier to educational success claimed by education providers. Enjoy success, could or would it happen in your respective community- AMJ --------------2B2F101DF13418912056DABE Content-Type: text/html; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit If we really want our children to read, it can be done. This from a school that is rated socially in the lowest of low. 95% free or reduced lunch, Beyond 50% (I would have to go back to the post with the staticstics) from single family, and many of the social problems claimed to be the barrier to educational success claimed by education providers.

Enjoy success, could or would it happen in your respective community- AMJ --------------2B2F101DF13418912056DABE-- --------------6C91AD0F85636E607763BC93 Content-Type: message/rfc822 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline X-POP3-Rcpt: ajohnson@alaska Received: from websgi.icomnet.com (websgi.icomnet.com [206.156.67.2]) by alaska.ktn.net (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA00681 for ; Mon, 5 Apr 1999 16:20:02 -0800 Received: from icomnet.com (pmdialC-84.icomnet.com [206.156.67.84]) by websgi.icomnet.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id UAA06630 for ; Mon, 5 Apr 1999 20:17:53 -0400 (EDT) Message-ID: <3709524D.27859E76@icomnet.com> Date: Mon, 05 Apr 1999 20:16:14 -0400 From: John Boldt Reply-To: jboldt@icomnet.com Organization: Teachers Memorial School X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.5 [en] (Win95; I) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: al johnson Subject: Re: [Fwd: reading for at-risk students] References: <3706B0CF.A51D2EAB@ktn.net> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Mr. Johnson, Thank you for your e-mail and your interest in Teachers Memorial School. I am very proud of my staff and their accomplishments in the teaching our our students. You asked for clarification about our students' achievement. In kindergarten, 92% of our children can read the following story and answer basic questions about it. The red hat The fish had a car and no hat. She said, "I do not need a car. I need a red hat." She met a cow. The cow had a red hat. The fish said, "Can I have that red hat?" The cow said, "no." The fish said, "I will give that cow a car if she will let me have the hat." The cow said, "take that hat and give me a car." So the fish got a red hat and the cow got a car." 50% of our kindergartners can read the next story Bill went fishing Bill liked to go fishing but he did not get fish. The other boys went fishing and got lots of fish. A big boy got five fish. A little boy got nine fish. But Bill did not get fish. Bill was mad. He said, "I wish I had fish like the other boys." But no fish came to his line. Then he had a tug on his line. "I have a fish," he said. But it was not a fish. It was an old box. Bill went fishing with the other boys. But he did not get five fish. He did not get nine fish. He got an old box. The other boys made fun of Bill. "We have fish and you do not. You have an old box." Bill was sad. He hit the box. The top fell down and Bill said. "that box is filled with gold." These two stories are lesson 125 and lesson 151 in the DI program Reading Mastery I. We use this program in kindergarten. Our first graders are all reading in Reading Mastery II. When compared to the North Carolina Standard Course of Study, which is the state curriculum, Reading Mastery II is second grade reading. At the end of this year we are going to give the Metropolitan Readiness Test to our kindergarten students. Hopefully, this will provide another piece in the puzzle for use concerning how well our children are doing. North Carolina forbids standardized testing of students in grades K, 1, and 2 which is the reason we do not have test data in these grades. I am like you in that I will bend laws and regulations if it will benefit my children. In our eyes, the MRT is a diagnostic test, not a standardized test. Most of the results we have are anecdotal. This year we have third grade at our school for the first time. In North Carolina, there is a state wide pre test and a state wide end of grade test in the third grade in reading and math. It is the results from these tests with which the state uses to judge how well a school is doing educating the children at the school. On our pretest we had 69% of our students on or above grade level as measured by the state in reading and in math. The students currently in third grade began DI in the first grade. We are able to project were in the DI reading program our current second graders will be when they take the third grade pretest next year. They will be about a half a grade level ahead of our current third graders because they began DI when in kindergarten. Hopefully, our test scores will reflect this. Our first graders are even further along than our current second graders when they were in first grade. The school is working to develop a collection of evidences of how well our children are doing. When it is complete, I will be happy to share it with you and who ever else is interested. DI is the best method of teaching period. I have seen it work with all children who have the capacity to learn. As a principal, it is my job to find what best works to educate the children placed in my care, and then to implement it. To do anything different is unethical and should result in my firing. I think the same should apply to all principals. We hold the lives of 100's of children in our hands. We can make or break their future. To do less than the best for these children is illegal. If I can get all of my students to read, think, write and do math at or above grade level by the end of the third grade, then I have given them the tools to be successful. If on the other hand, I do not provide the best possible instruction and they leave my school not achieving on grade level, then I have doomed them to educational failure. In North Carolina, the Standard Course of Study requires little of kindergarten students. Reading is not a skill to be taught until the first grade. With the children I serve, if I followed the Standard Course of Study as written, my students, who are already behind other students academically, will be even further behind. Their only hope is for the school to accelerate instruction and to teach in the most effective and efficient way possible. In essence, we have to treat our disadvantaged students as if they are academically gifted, and teach them kindergarten and first grade skills in kindergarten. DI makes this possible because of how it is structured and presented. What is a shame, is that if we are successful with the type of students we serve, then failing to have more advantaged children do as well or better in kindergarten is educational child abuse. In the state of North Carolina, there is a lot of educational child abuse. If you have more questions or comments please share them. I am interested in having a dialogue with you about reading instruction. Thank you, John Boldt Principal Teachers Memorial School 500 Marcella Drive Kinston, NC 28501 Ph: (252) 527-0225 Fax: (252) 527-6588 --------------6C91AD0F85636E607763BC93-- .