Accelerating learning has become a hot topic in education. The focus has shifted towards finding effective ways to help students learn more efficiently, effectively, and at a faster pace. The goal of accelerating learning is to enhance students’ ability to acquire knowledge, skills, and attitudes that will enable them to succeed in their academic and personal lives.
Reading comprehension is a critical skill for students of all ages to master as it enables them to succeed in all other subject areas. Coming off of the pandemic, accelerating reading achievement is more top of mind than ever, and the best way to do this is through personalized learning experiences. This article will explore three ways that you can use ReadTheory in your classroom to accelerate student learning through personalized learning.
1.) Save Time with ReadTheory’s Differentiated Reading Passages
One of the key features of ReadTheory is that it offers a wide range of reading passages at different levels of difficulty. Unlike other programs, ReadTheory adapts in real-time, so every student is continuously challenged without the educator having to intervene. This makes it easy for teachers to assign passages that are just right for each student’s reading ability. By working at their own pace and reading passages that are at their level, students are more likely to understand the material and retain the information. Differentiated passages can be printed for more hands-on learning, such as annotations, and may also be accessed online.
I have used ReadTheory in high school and elementary classrooms. Here are two ways that you could use ReadTheory’s differentiated reading passages in your class:
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During Small Groups: By grouping students that need the same interventions, ReadTheory makes assigning students reading that is perfectly targeted for them a breeze. Every student can read the same material, yet at the level that they will be the most successful. This allows students to work at their own pace and helps to accelerate learning by challenging them at their individual level. This is not only an equitable approach to learning but it will also instill great confidence in your students. You can also use the comprehension questions that come with each passage to check a student’s understanding of the material and provide additional support where needed once you meet with that small group face-to-face. Lastly, by using comprehension questions, you are able to collect valuable student data. Using this method improved my classroom management greatly. By providing students with reading passages and assessments that were tailored to their individual level, I was able to ensure that all students were engaged and challenged. Students were motivated to learn and celebrate their progress.
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During Whole Group Lessons: Another way that you can accelerate learning with ReadTheory is by using differentiated passages for whole group readings and discussion. By assigning students a reading that is perfectly targeted for them, they are able to participate in whole group discussions. This grows their confidence, allows educators to assess what they have learned, and makes it so that all students feel like they can share their ideas.
2.) Use Formative Assessments To Know Where Each Student Stands
Another key feature of ReadTheory is the formative assessments that are included after each reading passage. These assessments are designed to quickly and easily assess students’ understanding of the material, and provide valuable feedback that can be used to inform instruction and gather data. By regularly checking students’ understanding, teachers can identify areas where students are struggling and provide additional support to help them improve their reading comprehension skills. This can help to accelerate learning by providing students with the support they need to understand the material and make progress.
The ability to customize reading passages and comprehension questions is also useful when covering specific topics or themes in class. This allows teachers to integrate ReadTheory into their curriculum and make it more relevant to students. By using ReadTheory in conjunction with other classroom activities, students can develop a deeper understanding of the material and retain the information better.
Using ReadTheory’s formative assessments is also a huge time saver for educators. Passages are standards-aligned and provide teachers with vetted and rigorous comprehension questions. The time that educators can save through using ReadTheory’s formative assessments allows time to create interventions and support for students that also accelerate their learning.
3.) Incorporate Technology and Real-Time Feedback
ReadTheory is an online program, which makes it easy for teachers to assign reading passages and track student progress. This allows for convenient and efficient tracking of student progress and makes it easy for teachers to differentiate instruction and support students in their learning. Additionally, teachers can use the data provided by ReadTheory to identify areas where students are struggling and provide additional support. For example, if a student is consistently struggling with vocabulary, the teacher can provide additional vocabulary instruction to help the student improve. By incorporating technology, teachers can use the data provided by ReadTheory to inform instruction and provide targeted support to help students accelerate their learning.
Students also get feedback and reasoning when they answer a question wrong, and encouragement when they answer correctly! This can help to accelerate learning because students stay motivated to continue improving and aren’t discouraged by work that is too challenging, or on the other hand bored with work that is too easy.
In conclusion, ReadTheory is a powerful tool that can help schools accelerate learning by providing students with differentiated reading passages, formative assessments, and technology-based support. By using ReadTheory, teachers can help students improve their reading comprehension skills and become more confident, independent readers. This, in turn, can help students to achieve success in all areas of their learning, and help them to reach their full potential.
