The PALS PRE-K ASSESSMENT:

Make it work harder for you

Adapted from: Texas Family Literacy Resource Center

Objectives• Understand why to assess at the early

preschool level• Identify and understand the benefits

of implementing the entire assessment

• Review the procedures for administering the assessment

• Understand how to administer each part of the assessment

• Discuss and identify supporting activities

Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening

• A tool that measures young children’s understanding of emergent literacy fundamentals

• A direct method of matching early literacy instruction to specific literacy needs

• A way to recognize those children who are relatively behind in their emergent literacy development

So why administer the whole assessment?

• To identify general degree of literacy development for the children in your class

• Guide classroom instruction – identify specific areas that may need

increased attention• For the class• For individual students

• Identify children at risk for future reading difficulties

• Integrate info. obtained into parenting ed and ILA

Parts of Assessment• Section I: Name Writing• Section II: Alphabet Knowledge– Part A: Upper-Case Alphabet Recognition– Part B: Lower-Case Alphabet Recognition– Part C: Letter Sounds

• Section III: Beginning Sound Awareness• Section IV: Print and Word Awareness• Section V: Rhyme Awareness• Section VI: Nursery Rhyme Awareness

Name Writing – why is it important?

• Highly correlated with letter recognition, print knowledge, and concept of word

• Practice with name writing allows child to see that a group of letters can refer to people

and objects• Reading and writing are

interrelated & develop concurrently

Why is alphabet recognition important?

• Early literacy research suggests that accurate, rapid naming of the letters of the alphabet is the single best predictor of early reading achievement.

• An essential tool in connecting print and speech

• Alphabet knowledge is currently viewed as one of the most accurate identifiers of a young child’s later risk for reading difficulties

Elements of Phonological Awareness – why are they important?

• These three areas of the PALS Pre-K are basic parts of phonological awareness:– Beginning Sound Awareness– Rhyme Awareness– Nursery Rhyme Awareness

• Awareness of speech at the individual sound level is essential to learn sounds and match speech to print.

Print and Word Awareness – why is it important?

• Familiarity with books is an important precursor to learning to read

• Children need to know that:– stories and other texts are written left

to right– spaces between words matter– and there is a one-to-one

correspondence between the words on a page and the words the reader says

The Building Blocks of Literacy

OralLanguageTalking &listening

PhonologicalAwarenessThe sounds of spoken language

AlphabetKnowledgeThe shapes &

sounds of letters

ConceptsOf Print

How to “use books &

print

Sequence of PALS Pre-K Tasks

• Can be administered in suggested order or in order most convenient for teacher

• Suggested order for entire assessment:

• I. Name Writing• II. Alphabet Knowledge• III. Beginning Sound Awareness *• IV. Print and Word Awareness• V. Rhyme Awareness *• VI. Nursery Rhyme Awareness* Do not administer III. And V. consecutively (in order

to avoid confusion)

Administration & Scoring• Time Required– No time limit – Usually 20-25 minutes

• Administration Management– Recommend administered by

classroom teacher– If each section done

separately, entire assessment should be completed in two weeks

MODIFICATIONS• PreK Bilingual Program – be

aware if child is in PreK Bilingual– Assessment administered in English– Response in English expected – if

child responds in another language they are still displaying letter recognition

– Differentiate correct responses in English and those in another language on Summary Sheet for scoring later

Assessment Procedures Before the Assessment

• Familiarize yourself with contents of the instrument and manual & watch the video

• Complete name/date on form• Set up the testing area– Quiet location– All materials needed are available

and ready to use–Minimize interruptions

Assessment Procedures During the Assessment

• Introduce the task right before you ask the child to complete it

• Administer practice items (more than once if needed)

• Monitor child carefully – offer encouragement

• If task too difficult and child frustrated – stop administration & indicate “task discontinued” on form

• Score each item – See next slide!

Section I: Name Writing• Administration notes – Ask child to write their name – Ask child to draw a picture of themselves

• Instructions –What to say–Where - Child Summary Sheet (back

page)

• Scoring –Minimum score: 0, Maximum Score 7– Don’t score the drawing

Section II: Alphabet Knowledge• Part A: Upper-Case Alphabet Recognition– Administration Notes

• Show one row or one letter at a time• Ask child to touch the letters or you can point to letters

– Instructions• Tell child to put his/her finger on the first letter at the

top of the page• Say…(see script in teacher’s manual – pg. 15)

– Scoring• Score responses on Child Summary Sheet & enter total

number of correct responses in score box.• Self-corrections are counted as correct answers.• Must score 16 or more to continue to Part B.

Part B: Lower-Case Alphabet Recognition

• Administered only if scored 16 or more in upper-case– Instructions• Tell child to put his/her finger on the first

letter at the top of the page• Say…(see script – pg. 16)

– Scoring• Score responses on Child Summary

Sheet & enter total number of correct responses in score box.• Self-corrections are counted as correct

answers.

Part C: Letter SoundsAdministered only if scored

9 or more in lower-case letters

• Instructions• Say…(see script on pg. 17)• Note: Pronunciation Guide (not looking

for long vowel sound)

• Scoring• Mark slash through incorrect answers• Count correct answers• Enter score in score box

Reminder: Pals PreK Process

Alphabet Knowledge

Part A Uppercase Letters

Scored 16 or more correct answers?

YesContinue to Part B

Part CLetter Sounds

YesContinue to Part C

Part BLowercase LettersScored 9 or more correct answers?

NoDiscontinue Testing

NoDiscontinue Testing

Section III: Beginning Sound Awareness

• Administration Notes– Goal: for child to produce a beginning sound– Task can be used as a teaching exercise –

whether responds correctly or not – tell child what correct answer was as you sort the picture cards

• Instructions– Show picture of target word child repeats word

ask child to produce first sound (teacher sorts cards)

– Practice items can be repeated– Administer assessment – script (pg. 19)– If letter given – refocus to sound

Section IV: Print and Word Awareness

• Administration Notes–While reading book – ask questions

in script– Familiarize yourself with the ten

items in the task– Script – pg. 24

• Scoring– Enter + or – on scoring sheet– Enter number of correct answers in

score box

Section V: Rhyme Awareness• Administration Notes– Do practice items – use as teaching exercise

(give correct answer only here)– Child can say the word or point to picture– If child says another word that rhymes –

redirect to choose from pictures on page

• Instructions– Guide through practice items– Administer test (repeat directions at any

time)

Section VI: Nursery Rhyme Awareness

• Administration Notes– Nursery rhymes read aloud and child

gives missing word– Practice items only time practice

together

• Instructions– Do practice items– Administer assessment– If child doesn’t say missing word after

5 seconds – provide the correct word and go to the next item.

FAQ’S• Can I administer the assessment or

instructions in Spanish?– No, the test is to be administered in

English. • What if the child responds to letter

names with letter sounds? Is it correct?– No, if the child gives the sound only,

redirect them to provide the letter NAME. If they give both the sound and the correct letter name – it is correct.

FAQs, cont.• What if the child responds to letter

names and/or sounds in Spanish or other language?– Yes, if they respond correctly in Spanish or

other language for letter name or sound – it is correct. It is still letter recognition.

• If a child is frustrated by PALS, may I stop administration?– If a child is clearly frustrated by a task, you

may open up the task. • For example, a child who struggles with alphabet

recognition may be shown the entire alphabet recognition sheet and asked to identify any known letters.

Teacher’s ManualChapter 3, Page 34

Now What?!

Now…

•Use the PALS Pre-K results and data to guide and plan your literacy curriculum!

Linking assessment with the curriculum

• When developing a curriculum, it is important to identify the goals one has for children’s learning

• Assessment information is a starting point for curriculum development

• The use of assessments (especially ongoing) provides the tools to re-align the curriculum

ACTIVITY• Teacher Checklist of Literacy Practices

– “This checklist presents different activities that help to foster literacy development in pre-school children.”

1. Use the checklist to evaluate your own literacy practices by checking what you already do. – List a couple of supporting activities you use in

the classroom on the activity sheet.

2. Look at unchecked boxes for additional ideas. – List a couple of ideas for supporting activities you

can use in the classroom on the activity sheet.• To look at checklist online:

– http://pals.virginia.edu/PALS-Instruments/PreK_NYCU_CheckList.pdf

Supporting Activities• PALS PreK website

– http://pals.virginia.edu/PALSInstruments/PALS-PreK.asp• Activities, lesson plans, parent’s corner

• Colorín Coloradό– http://www.colorincolorado.org/educators/questions/ear

lylit• A bilingual site for families and educators of English

Language Learners

• Get Ready to Read!– http://www.getreadytoread.org/content/view/69/321/

• Free, downloadable resources for the Get Ready to Read! Skill-building activity cards (English/Spanish)

References & Resources• http://pals.virginia.edu/PALSInstruments/PALS-PreK.asp• http://reading.org/downloads/52nd_conv_handouts/m_invernizzi

.doc• Ivernizzi, M. Using PALS Data to Plan Multi-tiered Intervention

in Virginia. Retrieved July 10, 2007 from http://pals.virginia.edu.

• Justice, L.M., Pence, K., Bowles, R., & Wiggins, A. (2006). An investigation of four hypotheses concerning the order by which 4-year-old children learn the alphabet letters. Retrieved July 6, 2007 from http:www.sciencedirect.com.

• PALS and Reading First. Retrieved July 10, 2007 from http://pals.virginia.edu/Reading-First/PALS_

and_Reading_First.pdf .