Domain II: Phonological and Other Linguistic Processes Related to Reading

Domain II: Phonological and Other Linguistic Processes Related to Reading There are approximately 65-70 multiple choice questions on the RICA exam. These include both content questions, in which knowledge about reading and reading instruction is directly assessed, and contextualized question that assess the candidate s ability to apply specific knowledge, to analyze specific problems, or to conduct specific tasks related to reading instruction. Approximately 30% of the question assess competencies in Domain II. The following multiple choice questions reflect all of the competencies in Domain II. The answer to each is in bold print. In the blackline masters section, the same questions are available without the bold print. Domain II --page 1

MULTIPLE CHOICE PRACTICE Domain II--Phoneme Awareness and Systematic Phonics Instruction 1. One of the more difficult phonemic awareness activities is: a. blending b. rhyming c. segmentation d. sound addition and substitution. 2. One of the easiest phonemic awareness activities is: a. blending b. rhyming c. segmentation d. sound addition and substitution. 3. An example of an effective phonemic awareness activity is: a. presenting an oral activity b. doing a mini lesson c. reading a wordplay book d. all of the above. 4. The alphabetic principle is important for : a. learning to write b. learning to read c. learning the alphabet d. all of the above e. none of the above 5. The most powerful predictor of later reading achievement is: a. a knowledge of phonics b. a knowledge of the alphabet c. phonemic awareness d. a concept of print. 6. In the word church, ch is an example of: a. a consonant digraph b. a consonant blend c. an onset d. a and c e. b and c 7. Lisa has no concept of rhyme. A good teaching strategy for Lisa would be: a. phonemic awareness activities b. a phonics mini lesson c. reading a story d. a and b Domain II --page 2

8. Reading materials used for phonics programs have a. high frequency words b. decodable words c. predictable words d. all of the above. 9. According to Marilyn Adams, an essential component of a primary balanced reading program is: a. literature b. language experience c. phonics d. none of the above. 10. Recognizing that the k sound in black is a consonant digraph is an example of: a. structural analysis b. morphology c. etymology d. phonetic analysis. 11. An example of a vowel generalization is: a. a dipthong b. a digraph c. CVC d. a schwa. 12. The a in far is an example of a. a short vowel b. an r-controlled vowel c. a long vowel d. a schwa. 13. Sight words are high frequency words that should be a. recognized in one second b. recognized in 20 seconds c. sounded out d. defined in a sentence. 14. Ellen is a word by word reader. To develop her fluency, you try the following: a. rereading b. choral reading c. LEA d. a and b. 15. The c is cat is an example of: a phoneme b. a grapheme c. an onset d. b and c 16. In the word transportation, recognizing the root, prefix, and suffix is an example of: 1. orthography Domain II --page 3

b. phonetic analysis c. structural analysis d. none of the above. 17. The str at the beginning of street is an example of: a. a consonant digraph b. a consonant blend c. an onset d. a rime. 18. To improve reading fluency, students should read books at their: a. instructional reading level b. independent reading level c. frustration reading level d. none of the above. 19. Phonemic awareness should be taught in: a. kindergarten b. K-2 c. k-6 d. all of the above. 20. First graders should be able to: a. rhyme sounds b. segment sounds c. isolate sounds d. blend sounds. 21. Students should recognize vowel patterns such as dipthongs by: a. Kindergarten b. first grade c. second grade d. third grade e. none of the above. 22. The following syllabication rule (VC/CV) should be used to divide: a. teacher b. supper c. candle d. apron 23. Boat is an example of a. a vowel digraph b. a schwa c. a dipthong d. a short vowel. 24. Boy is an example of: a. a vowel digraph b. a schwa c. a dipthong d. a short vowel. Domain II --page 4

25. Affixes are: a. prefixes b. suffixes c. roots d. prefixes and suffixes. 26. To teach the letters of the alphabet, which of the following is not recommended? a. environmental print b. labels c. letter of the week d. children s names. 27. Why is teaching a letter of the week not recommended? a. It is isolated language. b. It takes too long. c. It lacks authenticity. d. None of the above. e. All of the above. 28. The view that phonics is best taught as the complete reading program: a. is embraced by most reading experts. b. ignores the interrelated nature of the four cueing systems. c. acknowledges the complexity of the reading process. d. acknowledges that most children learn to read in different ways. 29. Instruction that focuses children s attention on the vowel component of a syllable, including any consonants following it, is important because: a. onsets form rhyming patterns in over 500 early primary words; b. children make more errors decoding initial consonants than decoding vowels; c. onsets distract children from decoding initial consonants; d. children make more errors decoding rimes than decoding onsets. 30. When children isolate sounds in a spoken word, they are practicing: a. segmentation b. sound blending c. substitution d. rhyming. 31. The alphabetic principle is the idea that: a. spelling is learned through alphabetical lists of important words. b. children are intuitively aware of letter-sound correspondence; c. children must recognize letters of the alphabet before entering school; d. letters represent sounds in words. 32. Systematic explicit phonics is: a. a series of mini lessons on selected skills, when appropriate; b. based on teachable moments; c. daily instruction, based on students needs; d. none of the above;. 33. Implicit phonics instruction is not: a. a series of mini lessons on selected skills, when appropriate; b. based on teachable moments; Domain II --page 5

c. daily instruction, based on students needs; d. a program such as Zoophonics; e. a and d. 34. Phonics should be taught: a. for at least one hour per day; b. using a whole-part-whole approach; c. in isolation d. after phonemic awareness skills are mastered. 35. The best way to teach phonemic awareness is through: a. decodable text b. information books c. ABC books d. literature. 36. Phonics should be taught through: a. workbooks; b. in context through mini lessons; c. games; d. flash cards. 37. An activity not recommended for teaching phonics is: a. rhyming families b. word sorts c. retelling d. magnetic letters. 38. Which one of the following is not a vowel generalization? a. VCV b. CV c. CVCE d. CVC Roberto, a first grader, is learning sight words, and his phonics skills are improving every day. His ability to rhyme words indicates that he has some level of phonemic awareness. Roberto knows most of his letters and sounds. Yet, when reading orally, he uses little expression, pauses frequently, and reads word by word. 39. Roberto has a problem with: a. concept of print b. decoding c. fluency d. sight words. 40. An effective teaching strategy for Roberto is: a. reading easy text b. reading on his frustration reading level c. phonics mini lessons d. an interactive writing lesson. 41. To develop Roberto s level of phonemic awareness, use: a. word banks b. Elkonin boxes Domain II --page 6

c. dictated stories d. journal writing. Maria, a quiet shy seven-year-old, has just moved to the United States from Mexico. Her primary language is Spanish, and you are a monolingual English teacher. The first day in your second grade class, you notice that she is reading a Little Red Riding Hood book during DEAR time. She is looking at the pictures but seems to be unfamiliar with the story. When you ask her to read a page of the text in English, she stumbles over simple words such as the and my. You point to red and ask her to tell you the word, but she is unable to sound it out. 42. What do you know about Maria? a. She is a second language learner who needs oral language strategies in English. b. She may or may not know how to read or write in Spanish. c. Maria has limited phonics skills and a limited sight vocabulary. d. All of the above. 43. What would you do to help Maria learn to read? To improve her phonics skills, you could use all of the following except: a. an interactive writing lesson; b. reading to her; c. language experience; d. mini lessons. 44. To improve Maria s sight vocabulary, do not use: a. word banks b. daily writing c. tape recorded books d. multisensory techniques e. workbooks 45. When you gave Maria the Yopp-Singer Test of Phoneme Segmentation, she scored 2 out of 22. To improve Maria s phonemic awareness, you should: a. ask her to identify rhymes in poems and songs b. use magnetic letters to identify CVC words c. use Elkonin boxes to segment sounds; d. none of the above. Domain II --page 7

Domain II: Concepts About Print Kenny us a five-year-old kindergartner who shows little interest in books. His teacher has observed him in the library center during free choice time. He usually uses books as playthings, stacking them and frequently opening them to use them to build roofs over his stacks of books. Whenever he does open a book he usually looks at the picture on one page briefly and then closes the book again. During times when the teacher reads aloud Kenny listens for a few minutes but then is distracted by the children around him. 1. Kenny is showing signs of a. learning disabilities b. attention deficit disorder c. little experience with reading books d. phonemic unawareness 2. An appropriate assessment for Kenny s teacher to use with him would be a. concepts about print b. running records c. informal reading inventory d. sight word assessment 3. An appropriate instructional strategy (or strategies) for Kenny would be a. guided reading b. shared reading c. 1 X 1 read aloud d. b & c e. a & b 4. When reading aloud with Kenny, the teacher should a. discuss the illustrations b. track words with her finger c. relate the book to his experiences d. all of the above 5. Having an emergent reader track the words as he reads along with the teacher is important to a. demonstrate 1 X 1 word correspondence b. demonstrate left to right progression c. be sure he is paying attention d. a & b e. b & c 6. Concepts about print include all of the following except a. recognizing word boundaries b. being able to track words in a sentence from left to right c. knowing how to spell simple words d. knowing the purpose of punctuation e. recognizing upper- and lower- case letters Domain II --page 8

7. Recognizing word boundaries is supported by a. pointing to individual words as they are read b. calling attention to spacing during interactive writing c. calling attention to spacing during modeled writing d. a & b Carlos is a first grader and an English language learner who is often observed holding his book upside down during guided reading. Once the teacher helps him to turn the book right side up he seems to be able to follow along, tracking from left to right but doesn t know many sight words. He is still working in a level one book and not making much progress. 8. Which of the following instructional strategies is (are) appropriate for Carlos? a. oral language activities to build English speaking vocabulary. b. use of realia and hands-on experiences related to the texts prior to reading them c. 1 X 1 read aloud d. shared reading 9. Because Carlos often holds the book upside down, we should assess his a. visual acuity b. concepts about print c. attention span d. IQ 10. To be successful in learning to read in first grade, Carlos is probably going to need a. short, frequent guided reading lessons b. a peer tutor c. psychological testing d. all of the above 11. In addition to reading instruction, Carlos teacher should be providing daily a. word play b. modeled writing c. English language development activities d. oral language experiences 12. Shared reading is used to a. model reading from left to right b. master new sight vocabulary c. give individual reading practice d. a & b 13. Knowledge of concepts about print in a beginning kindergartner is a strong indicator that a. the child has been read to b. the child is gifted c. the child can read d. a & b e. b & c Domain II --page 9

Miss Garcia is teaching a shared reading lesson using the big book Caps for Sale. She is using a pointer to point to each word as she and the children read in unison. 14. When she points to each word with the pointer she is modeling a. 1 X 1 word correspondence b. left to right progression c. word boundaries d. reading of sight words 15. When she discusses illustrations and points to objects in pictures as she names them she is modeling a. word meaning b. a cueing system c. art appreciation d. a & b e. a & c 16. When she points to an exclamation point, talks about its use and models reading the sentences with excitement, she is modeling a. conventions of print b. proofreading c. a & c d. all of the above 17. When she asks a child to come up and frame a word, she is focusing on a. concept of word b. phonics c. word boundaries d. a & c 18. When she points out the quotation marks in the refrain, Caps! Caps for sale! and asks the children who is talking, she is focusing on a. conventions of print b. punctuation usage c. reading fluency d. a & b e. b & c 19. A child who writes MIDGZBG. (My dog is big.) in his journal is demonstrating all of the following concepts about print except a. left to right progression b. punctuation usage c. word order d. word boundaries e. sound/symbol relationships 20. When a child writes I lik dogs. in his journal he is demonstrating which of the following concepts about print? a. left to right progressions b. punctuation usage Domain II --page 10

c. word order d. word boundaries 21. When a child writes I2TEPQB (I saw a funny clown at the circus last Saturday) in his journal, he is demonstrating which of the following concepts about print? a. left to right progression b. punctuation usage c. word order d. word boundaries 22. A child who reads, Humpty Dumpty sat on a big tall wall. when looking at the text, Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. is demonstrating lack of which of the following? a. left to right progression b. 1 X 1 correspondence c. punctuation usage d. comprehension 23. Interactive writing provides opportunities for the modeling and practice of which of the following concepts about print? a. left to right progression b. punctuation usage c. capitalization usage d. word boundaries 24. Using a chart with the words to a song, pointing to the words as they are sung, provides modeling of which of the following? a. capitalization usage b. punctuation usage c. 1 X 1 word correspondence d. reading with expression 25. Having a child point out the title and author before reading a book is reinforcing a. conventions of print b. mechanics of print c. concepts about print d. school to work connections 26. Discussing the name and uses of the punctuation mark called a period with kindergarten students is a. focusing on conventions of print b. premature c. teaching vocabulary d. a & b e. a & d 27. A child who is reading at level seven at the end of first grade is considered to be reading a. below grade level b. at grade level Domain II --page 11

c. above grade level d. gifted 28. Word boundaries are defined as a. the length of words b. the beginning and endings of words c. the spaces before and after words d. all of the above e. none of the above 29. The terms letter, word, and sentence are best taught in the context of a. journals b. shared reading c. a sorting game d. a phonics lesson 30. The terms comma, period, and exclamation point are best taught in the context of a. interactive writing b. read aloud c. sorting game d. a & b e. b & c Domain II: Spelling Multiple Choice 1. First grade Jessica wrote this sentence: I liek too ride mie bike wid mie freind on Sundae. (I like to ride my bike with my friend on Sunday.) At what stage of invented spelling are most of her incorrect spellings? a. prephonetic b. semi-phonetic c. phonetic d. transitional e. conventional 2. First grade Juan wrote this sentence: The beg bk dog r re djrs. (The big black dogs are very dangerous.) At what stage of invented spelling are most of his incorrect spellings? a. prephonetic b. semi-phonetic c. phonetic d. transitional e. conventional 3. Which of the following is not a characteristic of phonetic spellers? a. Children represent all essential sound features of a word in spelling. b. Children misapply spelling rules. c. Children choose letters on the basis of sound without regard for English letter sequences. d. Children ignore inflectional endings the they don t pronounce. e. none of the above. 4. Which of the following is not a characteristic of transitional spellers? a. Children adhere to basic conventions of English orthography. b. Children reverse the order of letters in words. Domain II --page 12

c. Children use a high percentage of correctly spelled words. d. Children use morphological and visual information in addition to phonetic information. e. none of the above. 5. At which stage of invented spelling do students become aware of the alphabetic principle and use abbreviated spellings to represent words? a. prephonetic b. semi-phonetic c. phonetic d. transitional e. conventional 6. At which stage of invented spelling do students use scribbles and write randomly on a page? a. prephonetic b. semi-phonetic c. phonetic d. transitional e. conventional 7. At which stage of invented spelling do students apply the basic rules of the English orthographic system and spell more than 90% of words correctly? a. prephonetic b. semi-phonetic c. phonetic d. transitional e. conventional 8. Which statement is true of invented spelling? a. Children use invented spellings because they haven t been taught phonics. b. Children continue to use some invented spellings throughout the elementary grades. c. Children should not be allowed to use invented spellings after first grade. d. none of the above.. 9. Which of the following statements is not true of spelling? a. Students apply phonics knowledge when they spell. b. Weekly spelling tests are the best way to teach spelling. c. Students need to learn visual and morphological information about spelling. d. none of the above.. 10. Which of the following statements is not true of poor spellers? a. Poor spellers tend to be poor readers. b. Poor spellers are likely to use a sounding-out strategy. c. The errors that poor spellers make are characteristic of the phonetic stage. d. none of the above.. 11. Which of the following statements is true of good spellers? a. Good spellers tend to be good readers. b. Good spellers use a variety of spelling strategies. c. The errors that good spellers make are characteristic of the transitional sage. Domain II --page 13

d. none of the above.. 12. Which of the following activities is not appropriate for transitional stage spellers? a. Encouraging students to sound-out word. b. Teaching root words and affixes. c. Encouraging students to visualize words. d. Teaching syllabication rules. e. Explaining etymologies of words. 13. Which of the following activities is not appropriate for semi-phonetic stage spellers? a. Teaching consonant sounds. b. Encouraging students to sound-out words. c. Teaching high frequency words. d. Using interactive writing. e. Copying sentences from the chalkboard. 14. Which of the following activities is not appropriate for prephonetic stage spellers? a. Teaching consonant sounds. b. Encouraging students to scribble-write. c. Teaching vowel sounds. d. Teaching letters of the alphabet. e. Encouraging students to use a crayon when they draw and a pencil when they write. 15. Which of the following is not a high frequency word? a. what b. little c. the d. animal e. said 16. Why is it important to teach students high frequency words? a. These words are used so commonly. b. these words are phonetically regular. c. These words are the only words that first graders should learn. d. none of the above.. 17. Which of the following activities are recommended as an important component of spelling instruction? a. daily reading and writing opportunities b. word walls c. minilessons on spelling patterns d. none of the above 18. Why are daily reading opportunities an important component of spelling instruction? a. Reading helps students learn the visual shapes of words. b. Reading enriches students vocabularies. c. Reading develops students phonics skills. d. none of the above.. Domain II --page 14

19. Why is teaching students how to proofread an important component of spelling instruction? a. So students can write more legibly. b. So students can write more fluently. c. So students can correct misspelled words. d. a and b.. 20. Which of the following is not a recommended component of weekly spelling tests? a. pretests b. a multi-sensory study strategy c. writing words in sentences d. final spelling tests 21. Why are pretests an important component of spelling instruction? a. A pretest is an advanced organizer. b. Students learn best by taking a test. c. Students identify the words they already know how to spell. d. none of the above.. 22. What is the best way for students to practice their spelling words? a. Using a multi-sensory study strategy. b. Writing words 50 times each; c. Using the words in a story. d. Reading the words 5 times each. e. Learning the meaning of the words. 23. Which of the following is morphological information that spellers use? a. -ing, -ed, and other inflectional endings b. root words c. prefixes and suffixes d. none of the above.. 24. Why is it useful for spellers to know the etymology of a word? a. Because spelling patterns vary from language to language. b. Because knowing the number of syllables aids in spelling the word. c. Because knowing the phonological respelling of a word aids in spelling the word. d. none of the above.. 25. Third grade Moua is an English language learner who rarely uses inflectional endings in her speech or in writing. Which of the following instructional practices should her teacher not use? a. Teach minilessons on inflectional endings. b. Help Moua correct errors in her writing during editing. c. Model how to pronounce endings. d. Understand that her problem is typical and ignore it. e. Do word sorts. Domain II --page 15

26. Sixth grade Luis loves to write long, detailed informational books about race cars, but he misspells 20-25% of words that he writes, both high frequency words and content words like engine. His spelling is characteristic of the transitional stage. Which of the following instructional practices is most appropriate for Luis? a. teach proofreading b. provide daily writing opportunities c. teach phonics d. teach affixes and root words e. none of the above 27. Ms. Rodriguez has five first graders who spell at the prephonetic stage. Which of the following assessments would be appropriate? a. phonemic awareness tests b. writing samples c. concepts about print tests d. sentence dictation e. reading sight words 28. Referring to question 27, Ms. Rodriguez wants to design a series of minilessons for these students. Which activity would not be appropriate? a. interactive writing b. sorting objects by initial sounds c. teaching one letter each week d. using magnetic letters e. making alphabet books 29. To-two-too is an example of a. a. homophones b. homographs c. homophobes. d. synonyms. e. antonyms. 30. Mrs. Jones is a fifth grade teacher who is concerned that many of her students make homophone spelling errors by choosing the wrong homophone. Which of the following is not an appropriate instructional practice? a. teach minilessons on homophones. b. brainstorm with students lists of homophones. c. put homophones on weekly spelling tests. d. create a class homophone book. e. none of the above. 31. Mr. Johnson wants to teach dictionary skills to his third graders. His students already know how to alphabetize to the third letter and can use word walls that are alphabetized. They don t use the dictionaries in their classroom. Which of the following is not an appropriate instructional practice? a. Teach a minilesson on the importance of using the dictionary. b. Teach a strategy for locating unfamiliar words in the dictionary. c. Give students a list of 20 words to look up in the dictionary and write the page number on which the word is located. d. Use dictionaries during editing. e. Play a game in which students look up unfamiliar words from a book they are reading in a dictionary and report back to the class. Domain II --page 16

Domain II: Focused Educational Problems and Instructional Tasks In this section of the RICA exam, problems and tasks in educational contexts are presented and require candidates to (a) consider information about a class, a groups of students, an individual student or an instructional situation and (b) devise or proved explanations related to appropriate instructional strategies or assessment approaches. Four of these focused tasks are included on the exam. Each assesses one or more competencies in one domain of the RICA Content Specifications, and there is one problem or task for each of the four domains. Problems or tasks for Domains I and IV each require a written response of approximately 50 words. Those for domains II and III each require a written response of approximately 150 words. The following suggestions present a wide range of situations that require analysis and instructional recommendations. The numbers correspond to the specific competencies describe in Domain I of the RICA content specifications. Knowing that there are a wide range of possible responses, we suggest several key considerations that might be included in any response but we do not provide an answer that might limit a student s thinking, analysis, and instructional recommendations. Domain II --page 17

Domain II Focused Educational Problems and Instructional Tasks 1. What is the difference between phonics and phonemic awareness? Phonics: an awareness of sounds in written words; phonemic awareness: an awareness of sounds in spoken words OR Phonics: set of relationships between speech and sound patterns; phonemic awareness: the ability to segment and blend spoken words. 2. Define systematic, explicit phonics: Direct teaching on a daily basis, from simple to complex skills; may be in the form of a mini lesson. Skills are taught when appropriate. 3. How should spelling be taught? Include at least five components of an effective spelling program. Choose from the following seven components: A. Daily writing opportunities E. Daily reading opportunities B. Word walls F. Proofreading C. Dictionary use G. Spelling options D. Strategies for spelling unfamiliar words 4. Explain the language cueing systems: A. Semantic: using meaning or context clues B. Syntactic: word order or sentence structure C. Graphophonic or Phonological: the sound system of English; 44 sounds. Graphics: how the word looks; phonics: how the word sounds. D. Pragmatic: system of English that varies language according to social and cultural issues. 5. Define onset and rime: Onset: Beginning sound of a word (letter or letters before the vowel) Rime: Ending sound of a word (from the vowel onward) 6. What is the difference between phonetic and structural analysis? Phonetic Analysis: An analysis of letter/sound patterns; Structural Analysis: An analysis of the parts of words (i.e. prefixes, suffixes, roots, syllables, etc.). 7. Define the alphabetic principle and why it is important: Alphabetic Principle: The knowledge that letters represent sounds. When a child understands this, he or she can learn to read. 8. List the stages of phonemic awareness from easiest to most difficult: rhyming blending segmentation sound addition & substitution sound manipulation (hardest) Domain II --page 18

9. What type of text is used in phonics program and why? Decodable, because the books contain words made up of only the phonetic sounds that have been explicitly taught. 10. Name five skills that could be included in a first grade phonics checklist: (Any of the following are acceptable.) A. phonemic awareness (segmenting, blending, rhyming) B. consonants C. blends and digraphs D. rimes E. short vowels F. long vowels G. rules (CVC, CVCe, r-controlled, syllables) 11. What knowledge about phonology do children need before they break the code? phonemic awareness phonics spelling 12. Which phonics concepts are most important for children to learn? (Should include all of the following:) A. alphabetic principle E. rime/rhyme B. letters of the alphabet F. blending C. consonants G. phonics generalizations D. vowels H. syllabication 13. Describe components of an effective phonics program. Include at least five of the following: A. high utility phonics E. application of phonics skills B. developmental continuum F. teachable moments C. whole-part-whole instructional G. phonemic awareness sequence H. phonics review D. mini lessons 14. Describe the various levels of a concept of print or print awareness. A. book handling E. specific concepts about printed B. directional behavior language C. tracking of print F. hierarchical concepts including letters, D. understanding that print carries letters within words, or words meaning within sentences *terminology and hierarchy may vary Domain II --page 19

15. Describe the stages of invented spelling (with at least two characteristics per stage). Stage 1: Precommunicative Spelling Child uses scribbles, letterlike forms, letters, and sometimes numbers to represent a message. Child may write from left to right, right to left, top to bottom or randomly on the page. Child shows no understanding of phoneme-grapheme correspondences. Child may repeat a few letters again and again or use most of the letters of the alphabet. Child frequently mixes upper- and lowercase letters but shows a preference for uppercase letters. Stage 2: Semiphonetic Spelling Child becomes aware of the alphabetic principle that letters are used to represent sounds. Child uses abbreviated one-, two-, and three-letter spelling to represent an entire word. Child uses letter-name strategy to spell words. Stage 3: Phonetic Spelling Child represents all essential sound features of a word in spelling. Child develops particular spellings for long and short vowels, plural and past-tense markers, and other aspects of spelling. Child chooses letters on the basis of sound without regard for English letter sequences or conventions. Stage 4: Transitional Spelling Child adheres to basic conventions of English orthography. Child begins to use morphological and visual information in addition to phonetic information. Child may include all appropriate letters in a word but reverse some of them. Child uses alternate spellings for the same sound in different words, but only partially understands the conditions governing their use. Child uses a high percentage of correctly spelled words. Stage 5: Conventional Spelling Child applies the basic rules of the English orthographic system. Child extends knowledge of word structure including the spelling of affixes, contractions, compound words, and homonyms. Child demonstrates growing accuracy in using silent consonants and doubling consonants before adding suffixes. Child recognizes when a word doesn't "look right" and can consider alternate spellings for the same sound. Child learns irregular spelling patterns. Child learns consonant and vowel alternations and other morphological structures. Child knows how to spell a large number of words conventionally. -from Gail Tompkins' Literacy for the 21st Century (1997); terms may vary slightly depending on the text used. 16. Why is invented spelling useful? Encourages children to write without worrying about spelling every word correctly. There is less risk of failure. Can be used to assess a child's knowledge of phonics and spelling patterns. Domain II --page 20

17. How does invented spelling help children to learn phonics? As young children begin writing, they use invented spelling to apply what they know about English spelling patterns. Their spelling changes to reflect phonics skills and spelling patterns they are learning. 18. Why are phonics generalizations useful? They help to clarify English spelling patterns; however, only a few have a high degree of utility for readers. 19. What are five of the most useful phonics generalizations? Choose from the following: A. Two sounds of c E. CV pattern B. Two sounds of g F. R-controlled vowels C. CVC pattern G. -igh D. Final e or CVCe pattern H. Kn- and wr- (silent letters) 20. Why should students learn the 100 most frequently used words in the English language? Children need to develop a sight vocabulary - words that should be recognized instantly, in less than one second. Many of these words must be memorized. They cannot be sounded out, found frequently in beginning readers, represent over 50% of all words children and adults write. 21. What are three strategies for spelling unfamiliar words? Choose from the following: A. "Have-a-go" - Spell the word three different ways; choose the one that looks right; (from Reggie Routman) B. Invented spellings based on students' phonological, semantic, and historical knowledge of words; C. Proofreading to locate and correct spelling errors; D. Locating words on word walls and other charts; E. Applying affixes to root words; F. Spelling by analogy; G. Locating the spelling of unfamiliar words in a dictionary or other resource books; H. Writing a letter or two as placeholders during quickwrites or rough days; I. Asking the teacher or a peer how to spell a word. 22. Identify and describe two ways a teacher can help children develop phonemic awareness. Choose from: A. Songs D. Elkonin boxes B. Poetry E. Books (wordplay) C. Reading aloud F. Minilessons G. Oral activities Domain II --page 21

23. What is the difference between the alphabetic principle and phonemic awareness? Explain how each is important in learning to read. Alphabetic principle : A knowledge that letters represent sounds. Phonemic awareness : An awareness of sounds in spoken words. Phonemic awareness is the most powerful predictor of reading achievement. The alphabetic principle must be understood before a child can learn to read. 24. Define "concepts about print." An understanding of how letters, words and sentences are represented in written language; sometimes called print awareness. 25. Why are Elkonin boxes used in beginning reading instruction? To teach the segmentation of words. 26. How can students develop fluency? Choose from (include at least 3): A. Choral reading B. Echo reading C. Rereading D. Tape-recorded books E. Shared reading F. Guided reading G. Reading decodable and other texts at the student's independent reading level. 27. What is the most useful syllabication rule? When two consonants follow a vowel, the syllable is usually divided between the two consonants. 28. What are some examples of phonics mini-lessons? Choose from: A. Word sorts D. Onset/rime B. Making Words E. Magnetic letters to form words C. Elkonin boxes F. Dr. Seuss books (locate pattern words) 29. What is the difference between "rime" and "rhyme?" Rime : a specific pattern (beginning with a vowel); for example, ay. Rhyme : a word that uses the pattern; alternate beginning sounds (onsets); for example, day, say, ray, may, lay, etc. 30. What is the purpose of a word wall? To teach high frequency words the children are responsible for spelling correctly in their writing. 31. What is the controversy about spelling instruction? The use of invented spelling and weekly spelling tests: The controversy is over when and where to allow invented spelling and the fact that children do not tend to remember the spelling of words on Domain II --page 22

weekly tests. The words are often in isolation. Instead, the focus should be on strategies and on spelling words in context such as in daily reading and writing. 32. What is the goal of phonemic awareness activities? To break down and manipulate spoken words. 33. Why are vowel sounds more difficult to learn than consonant sounds? There are so many combinations and irregular spellings for the same vowel sound. For example, date, angel, aid and day represent the long sound of a. 34. What are other names for invented spelling? Kid spelling, temporary spelling, or phonetic spelling 35. Why is syllabication useful? For decoding when reading and spelling words when writing. Domain II --page 23

Domain II: Case Study Based on Student Profile In this section of the RICA exam, candidates receive substantial background information about a student and samples of materials illustrating the student s reading performance. Candidates are asked to assess the student s reading performance, describe appropriate instructional strategies for the student, and explain why these strategies would be effective or task for each of the four domains. The exam contains one case study, which includes content related to all four domains of the RICA Content Specifications and requires a written response of approximately 300 words. The following suggestions present a range of situations that require analysis and instructional recommendations. Knowing that there are a wide range of possible responses, we suggest several key considerations that might be included in any response but we do not provide an answer that might limit a student s thinking, analysis, and instructional recommendations. Domain II --page 24

Maria Maria, a quiet shy seven-year-old, has just moved to the United States from Mexico. Her primary language is Spanish, and you are a monolingual English teacher. The first day in your second grade class, you notice that she is "reading" a Little Red Riding Hood book during DEAR time. She is looking at the pictures, but seems to be unfamiliar with the story. When you ask her to read a page of the text, she stumbles over simple words such as "the" and "my." You point to "red" and ask her to tell you the word, but she is unable to sound it out. What do you know about Maria and what instructional strategies do you recommend and why? A. Problem: Limited sight vocabulary, phonics, and probably phonemic awareness. Limited knowledge of English. B. Recommendations: English Language Development strategies (ELD), Sheltered English techniques, and activities for developing sight words improving phonemic awareness and phonics skills. Start with phonemic awareness (rhyming words). Determine if she can read, and write in Spanish. Assess her knowledge of letters and sounds in English. Start with onsets and rimes (the 37 most frequent). See attached list of recommendations under ELD and SDAIE for second language learners, strategies or activities for improving sight words and word attack/decoding strategies. Kham Kham's primary language is Lao. You are a monolingual first grade English teacher. She can decode well, knows many sight words, and is able to segment most of the sounds on the Yopp-Singer. Her concept of print is average for a first grader. She understands the alphabetic principle. However, when asked to do a retelling of a story she has just read, Kham is able to recall very little. What do you know about Kham and what instructional strategies do you recommend and why? A. Problem: Comprehension of text B. Recommendations: see attached list of recommended strategies or activities for improving comprehension. See also ELD and SDAIE recommendations that emphasize a meaning of text. Meaning vocabulary strategies and activities should also be beneficial for Kham. Roberto Roberto, a first grader, is learning sight words, and his phonics skills are improving every day. His ability to rhyme words indicates that he has some level of phonemic awareness. Roberto knows most of his letters and sounds. He is able to read in a Level 5 reader; however, his reading is very choppy. Roberto uses little expression, pauses frequently, and tends to read word by word. What do you know about Roberto and what instructional strategies do you recommend and why? A. Problem: Reading fluency B. Recommendations: See attached list of suggested strategies and activities for improving fluency. Domain II --page 25

Mark Mark, an active fourth grader, is able to read and comprehend at the fourth grade instructional level. Although he would rather be riding his bike or playing Nintendo, he enjoys reading in his free time, especially Goose Bump books. However, Mark struggles during Writer's Workshop. When asked to write in his journal, he only produces a few sentences. You notice that there are many misspelled words. What do you know about Mark and what instructional strategies do you recommend and why? A. Problem: Spelling, phonics, vocabulary, and possibly attitude toward writing B. Recommendations: See attached lists under these topic headings: To improve writing skills, attitude toward writing, word attack and decoding skills and meaning vocabulary. Begin with how to improve writing skills (intermediate level). Lori When Lori arrives at school the first day of kindergarten, she goes over to the reading corner and picks up the wordless picture book, Good Dog, Carl. Sitting down on the rug, she begins to look at the book. You notice that she holds it upside down at first, and skips around, looking at the pictures from back to front. When you ask her to tell you about the story, she says very little except that the book is about a dog and a baby. When you ask Lori to write her name, she writes a letter that resembles "L" and then draws circles on the rest of the page. What do you know about Lori and what would you do? A. Problem: Concept of print; letter recognition, and possible oral language skills. B. Recommendations: Use shared reading to help Lori with her oral language skills and concept of print. Do a picture walk with Good Dog, Carl, discussing what is happening on each page, beginning with the cover. Use multisensory techniques for letter recognition and sounds. See attached lists of strategies and activities under sight vocabulary and word attack/decoding skills. Read to her frequently and ask her parents to read to her at home. Domain II --page 26

Additional Resources for Teaching the Content of Domain II Domain II Specific Content Terminology (See Glossary for Definitions) affixes alphabetic principle blending concepts about print consonant blend consonant digraph conventional spelling decoding deletion diphthong directionality etymology explicit instruction final position fluency graphophonic cues high frequency words inflectional endings initial position implicit instruction irregular sight words letter-sound correspondence lower-case letters medial position morpheme morphology onset orthography phoneme phonics prephonetic proofreading r-controlled rhyming words rimes root words segmentation self-correction strategies semantic cues semi-phonetic sight words substitution syllables syllabication syllables syllabication syntactic cues systematic instruction tracking of print transitional spelling vowel digraphs word families word identification Domain II --page 27

Recommendations Provided by Dr. Janet H. Towell, Associate Professor of Reading Instruction CSU Stanislaus RECOMMENDED STRATEGIES OR ACTIVITIES: To Improve Vocabulary Sight Word wall Pictures Flash cards Visual configuration VAKT Color shock Picture dictionary Daily exposure Repetition LEA Labels High frequency Making words Word sorts Anagrams Literature Non-fiction Props/Realia Word banks Finger spelling Reading/writing Meaning VSS (Vocabulary Self- Word wall; Dictionary; Collection Strategy) sign language Reference skills Context Clues Retelling Drama Reading Key words Modeling List-group-label (ABC) Sniglets Roots/affixes Prior knowledge Pictionary Balderdash Password Concentration Pictures Synonyms Homophones Antonyms Imagery (similes & Semantic feature Word posters metaphors) analysis or web Domain II --page 28

To Improve Comprehension Scaffolding Cueing systems Metacognition Storymapping KWL DLTA Grand conversations Retelling Cloze Oral reading Rereading Summarizing Readers' Theatre/drama Buddy reading Exaggeration Sequencing Story extensions Questioning L-I-C questions Reference knowledge Quick writes Sketch to Stretch; Sentence strips; Squid (graphic organizers) vocabulary predicting Text structure (narrative, Double entry journals Frozen moments expository, & poetry) Hot seat Prior knowledge Films/videos Realia Murals/visuals Echo reading To Improve Reading Fluency Vocabulary development Previews Choral reading Patterned, predictable books Poetry LEA Modeling Repeated Reading Echo reading Books on tape Sight word testing Word banks (one second limit) Word walls Readers' Theatre Accelerated reader (computers) SSR/DIRT/DEAR daily Reading aloud daily Easy reading levels Listening centers Buddy reading Read own stories Popcorn reading Books of interest Picture walks Domain II --page 29

To Improve Writing Skills (Primary or Intermediate) Word wall Journal topics (relevant) Vocabulary development Grammar skills Quick writes Writers' Workshop Teaching high Lots of reading! Tracking while frequency words reading Dialogue journals Brainstorming Story maps/webs Manipulatives LEA lessons Making words Portrait writing Writing daily (nongraded) Big Cheese/VIP/ Top Banana Carousel writing Writing process Writing stories Story transformations Student generated Quick writes dictionaries Creative writing Class or individual books Quality literature for models Daily oral language Spelling strategies KWL Pen pal activities Grammar games Writing w/humor Daily diary/journal Nature journals Labeling Pattern writing Double entry journals Author's Chair Teach imagery: Similes & metaphors Mini lessons Domain II --page 30

To Improve Attitude Toward Reading & Writing Interest or Attitude Surveys Classroom big books LEA, DLTA, and KWL lessons Match students with books on their instructional reading level. Co-authorship of books at home with parents or siblings. Author visits/signings Author's Chair Visit public library; get cards. Guided reading/shared reading Write to favorite authors. Reading parties as incentives Praise small steps. Teacher modeling during SSR Invented spelling Variety of reading materials (genres and reading levels) Readers' Theatre Reading to class with enthusiasm! Find books/ magazines based on students' interests. Classroom library and reading corner Rewards for reading (Book It!) Buddy reading SSR/SQUIRT/DIRT/DEAR daily; share Book clubs or literature circles Author study or thematic units Encourage parents to model reading; have books around the house. Preview books to increase student interest (book talks). "Turn off the TV!" Story maps for writing stories Domain II --page 31

To Improve ELD and SDAIE for Second Language Learners Scaffolding TPR (Total Physical Jigsaws Response) Activate prior knowledge Repeat words/concepts Preview- Review Speak slowly & clearly. Use gestures and facial Context expressions. embedded Key concept focus Grouped according to Realia/visuals language Multiple contexts Comprehensible input Drama Into, through, beyond KWL, LEA, DLTA Music Vocabulary cards/labels Primary language materials Murals Writing/publishing Focus on key points. Colored personal books chalk Dance Art; puppets VIM Manipulatives/ hands-on Word banks Teach cultures. Multicultural literature Limit new vocabulary. Avoid idioms. Multiple meaning words Peer tutoring Active participation Cooperative learning Model, model, model! Praise Read, read, read! Write, write, write! Storytelling Oral language development Sharing family traditions Wordless books Domain II --page 32

To Improve Decoding and Word Attack Skills Syllabication rules; Letter names/sounds High frequency words clapping/chin drops Prefixes/suffixes/roots Context clues Compound words Making words Word sorts Yopp-Singer test Phonics patterns Onset-rime Phonemic awareness Rhyming Blending Segmentation Manipulation of Consonant blends & Vowel digraphs phonemes digraphs & dipthongs Schwa Alliteration Poetry Invented spelling Word families Music/songs Picture clues S-V-M cueing systems Smack Attack (syntax, visual, meaning) SLURP Cloze Sniglets Elkonin boxes Vowel generalizations: Tracking CVC, CVVC, CVCE, & CV Shared & guided Interactive writing Journal writing reading Domain II --page 33

MULTIPLE CHOICE PRACTICE Domain II Black Line Masters Domain II --page 34

Domain II: Phoneme Awareness and Systematic Phonics Instruction 1. One of the more difficult phonemic awareness activities is: a. blending b. rhyming c. segmentation d. sound addition and substitution. 2. One of the easiest phonemic awareness activities is: a. blending b. rhyming c. segmentation d. sound addition and substitution. 3. An example of an effective phonemic awareness activity is: a. presenting an oral activity b. doing a mini lesson c. reading a wordplay book d. all of the above. 4. The alphabetic principle is important for : a. learning to write b. learning to read c. learning the alphabet d. all of the above e. none of the above 5. The most powerful predictor of later reading achievement is: a. a knowledge of phonics b. a knowledge of the alphabet c. phonemic awareness d. a concept of print. 6. In the word church, ch is an example of: a. a consonant digraph b. a consonant blend c. an onset d. a and c e. b and c 7. Lisa has no concept of rhyme. A good teaching strategy for Lisa would be: a. phonemic awareness activities b. a phonics mini lesson c. reading a story d. a and b Domain II --page 35

8. Reading materials used for phonics programs have a. high frequency words b. decodable words c. predictable words d. all of the above. 9. According to Marilyn Adams, an essential component of a primary balanced reading program is: a. literature b. language experience c. phonics d. none of the above. 10. Recognizing that the k sound in black is a consonant digraph is an example of: a. structural analysis b. morphology c. etymology d. phonetic analysis. 11. An example of a vowel generalization is: a. a dipthong b. a digraph c. CVC d. a schwa. 12. The a in far is an example of a. a short vowel b. an r-controlled vowel c. a long vowel d. a schwa. 13. Sight words are high frequency words that should be b. recognized in one second b. recognized in 20 seconds c. sounded out d. defined in a sentence. 14. Ellen is a word by word reader. To develop her fluency, you try the following: a. rereading b. choral reading c. LEA d. a and b. 15. The c is cat is an example of: a phoneme b. a grapheme c. an onset d. b and c Domain II --page 36

16. In the word transportation, recognizing the root, prefix, and suffix is an example of: 2. orthography b. phonetic analysis c. structural analysis d. none of the above. 17. The str at the beginning of street is an example of: a. a consonant digraph b. a consonant blend c. an onset d. a rime. 18. To improve reading fluency, students should read books at their: a. instructional reading level b. independent reading level c. frustration reading level d. none of the above. 19. Phonemic awareness should be taught in: a. kindergarten b. K-2 c. k-6 d. all of the above. 20. First graders should be able to: a. rhyme sounds b. segment sounds c. isolate sounds d. blend sounds. 21. Students should recognize vowel patterns such as diphthongs by: a. Kindergarten b. first grade c. second grade d. third grade e. none of the above. 22. The following syllabication rule (VC/CV) should be used to divide: a. teacher b. supper c. candle d. apron 23. Boat is an example of a. a vowel digraph b. a schwa c. a dipthong d. a short vowel. Domain II --page 37

24. Boy is an example of: a. a vowel digraph b. a schwa c. a dipthong d. a short vowel. 25. Affixes are: a. prefixes b. suffixes c. roots d. prefixes and suffixes. 26. To teach the letters of the alphabet, which of the following is not recommended? a. environmental print b. labels c. letter of the week d. children s names. 27. Why is teaching a letter of the week not recommended? a. It is isolated language. b. It takes too long. c. It lacks authenticity. d. None of the above. e. All of the above. 28. The view that phonics is best taught as the complete reading program: a. is embraced by most reading experts. b. ignores the interrelated nature of the four cueing systems. c. acknowledges the complexity of the reading process. d. acknowledges that most children learn to read in different ways. 29. Instruction that focuses children s attention on the vowel component of a syllable, including any consonants following it, is important because: a. onsets form rhyming patterns in over 500 early primary words; b. children make more errors decoding initial consonants than decoding vowels; c. onsets distract children from decoding initial consonants; d. children make more errors decoding rimes than decoding onsets. 30. When children isolate sounds in a spoken word, they are practicing: a. segmentation b. sound blending c. substitution d. rhyming. 31. The alphabetic principle is the idea that: a. spelling is learned through alphabetical lists of important words. b. children are intuitively aware of letter-sound correspondence; c. children must recognize letters of the alphabet before entering school; d. letters represent sounds in words. Domain II --page 38

32. Systematic explicit phonics is: a. a series of mini lessons on selected skills, when appropriate; b. based on teachable moments; c. daily instruction, based on students needs; d. none of the above;. 33. Implicit phonics instruction is not: a. a series of mini lessons on selected skills, when appropriate; b. based on teachable moments; c. daily instruction, based on students needs; d. a program such as Zoophonics; e. a and d. 34. Phonics should be taught: a. for at least one hour per day; b. using a whole-part-whole approach; c. in isolation d. after phonemic awareness skills are mastered. 35. The best way to teach phonemic awareness is through: a. decodable text b. information books c. ABC books d. literature. 36. Phonics should be taught through: a. workbooks; b. in context through mini lessons; c. games; d. flash cards. 37. An activity not recommended for teaching phonics is: a. rhyming families b. word sorts c. retelling d. magnetic letters. 38. Which one of the following is not a vowel generalization? a. VCV b. CV c. CVCE d. CVC Roberto, a first grader, is learning sight words, and his phonics skills are improving every day. His ability to rhyme words indicates that he has some level of phonemic awareness. Roberto knows most of his letters and sounds. Yet, when reading orally, he uses little expression, pauses frequently, and reads word by word. 39. Roberto has a problem with: a. concept of print b. decoding c. fluency d. sight words. Domain II --page 39

40. An effective teaching strategy for Roberto is: a. reading easy text b. reading on his frustration reading level c. phonics mini lessons d. an interactive writing lesson. 41. To develop Roberto s level of phonemic awareness, use: a. word banks b. Elkonin boxes c. dictated stories d. journal writing. Maria, a quiet shy seven-year-old, has just moved to the United States from Mexico. Her primary language is Spanish, and you are a monolingual English teacher. The first day in your second grade class, you notice that she is reading a Little Red Riding Hood book during DEAR time. She is looking at the pictures but seems to be unfamiliar with the story. When you ask her to read a page of the text in English, she stumbles over simple words such as the and my. You point to red and ask her to tell you the word, but she is unable to sound it out. 42. What do you know about Maria? a. She is a second language learner who needs oral language strategies in English. b. She may or may not know how to read or write in Spanish. c. Maria has limited phonics skills and a limited sight vocabulary. d. All of the above. 43. What would you do to help Maria learn to read? To improve her phonics skills, you could use all of the following except: a. an interactive writing lesson; b. reading to her; c. language experience; d. mini lessons. 44. To improve Maria s sight vocabulary, do not use: a. word banks b. daily writing c. tape recorded books d. multisensory techniques e. workbooks. 45. When you gave Maria the Yopp-Singer Test of Phoneme Segmentation, she scored 2 out of 22. To improve Maria s phonemic awareness, you should: a. ask her to identify rhymes in poems and songs b. use magnetic letters to identify CVC words c. use Elkonin boxes to segment sounds; d. none of the above. Domain II --page 40

Domain II: Concepts About Print Kenny us a five-year-old kindergartner who shows little interest in books. His teacher has observed him in the library center during free choice time. He usually uses books as playthings, stacking them and frequently opening them to use them to build roofs over his stacks of books. Whenever he does open a book he usually looks at the picture on one page briefly and then closes the book again. During times when the teacher reads aloud Kenny listens for a few minutes but then is distracted by the children around him. 1. Kenny is showing signs of a. learning disabilities b. attention deficit disorder c. little experience with reading books d. phonemic unawareness 2. An appropriate assessment for Kenny s teacher to use with him would be a. concepts about print b. running records c. informal reading inventory d. sight word assessment 3. An appropriate instructional strategy (or strategies) for Kenny would be a. guided reading b. shared reading c. 1 X 1 read aloud d. b & c e. a & b 4. When reading aloud with Kenny, the teacher should a. discuss the illustrations b. track words with her finger c. relate the book to his experiences d. all of the above 5. Having an emergent reader track the words as he reads along with the teacher is important to a. demonstrate 1 X 1 word correspondence b. demonstrate left to right progression c. be sure he is paying attention d. a & b e. b & c 6. Concepts about print include all of the following except a. recognizing word boundaries b. being able to track words in a sentence from left to right c. knowing how to spell simple words d. knowing the purpose of punctuation e. recognizing upper- and lower- case letters Domain II --page 41

7. Recognizing word boundaries is supported by a. pointing to individual words as they are read b. calling attention to spacing during interactive writing c. calling attention to spacing during modeled writing d. a & b Carlos is a first grader and an English language learner who is often observed holding his book upside down during guided reading. Once the teacher helps him to turn the book right side up he seems to be able to follow along, tracking from left to right but doesn t know many sight words. He is still working in a level one book and not making much progress. 8. Which of the following instructional strategies is (are) appropriate for Carlos? a. oral language activities to build English speaking vocabulary. b. use of realia and hands-on experiences related to the texts prior to reading them c. 1 X 1 read aloud d. shared reading 9. Because Carlos often holds the book upside down, we should assess his a. visual acuity b. concepts about print c. attention span d. IQ 10. To be successful in learning to read in first grade, Carlos is probably going to need a. short, frequent guided reading lessons b. a peer tutor c. psychological testing d. all of the above 11. In addition to reading instruction, Carlos teacher should be providing daily a. word play b. modeled writing c. English language development activities d. oral language experiences 12. Shared reading is used to a. model reading from left to right b. master new sight vocabulary c. give individual reading practice d. a & b 13. Knowledge of concepts about print in a beginning kindergartner is a strong indicator that a. the child has been read to b. the child is gifted c. the child can read d. a & b e. b & c Domain II --page 42

Miss Garcia is teaching a shared reading lesson using the big book Caps for Sale. She is using a pointer to point to each word as she and the children read in unison. 14. When she points to each word with the pointer she is modeling a. 1 X 1 word correspondence b. left to right progression c. word boundaries d. reading of sight words 15. When she discusses illustrations and points to objects in pictures as she names them she is modeling a. word meaning b. a cueing system c. art appreciation d. a & b e. a & c 16. When she points to an exclamation point, talks about its use and models reading the sentences with excitement, she is modeling a. conventions of print b. proofreading c. a & c d. all of the above 17. When she asks a child to come up and frame a word, she is focusing on a. concept of word b. phonics c. word boundaries d. a & c 18. When she points out the quotation marks in the refrain, Caps! Caps for sale! and asks the children who is talking, she is focusing on a. conventions of print b. punctuation usage c. reading fluency d. a & b e. b & c 19. A child who writes MIDGZBG. (My dog is big.) in his journal is demonstrating all of the following concepts about print except a. left to right progression b. punctuation usage c. word order d. word boundaries e. sound/symbol relationships 20. When a child writes I lik dogs. in his journal he is demonstrating which of the following concepts about print? a. left to right progressions b. punctuation usage c. word order d. word boundaries Domain II --page 43

21. When a child writes I2TEPQB (I saw a funny clown at the circus last Saturday) in his journal, he is demonstrating which of the following concepts about print? a. left to right progression b. punctuation usage c. word order d. word boundaries 22. A child who reads, Humpty Dumpty sat on a big tall wall. when looking at the text, Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. is demonstrating lack of which of the following? a. left to right progression b. 1 X 1 correspondence c. punctuation usage d. comprehension 23. Interactive writing provides opportunities for the modeling and practice of which of the following concepts about print? a. left to right progression b. punctuation usage c. capitalization usage d. word boundaries 24. Using a chart with the words to a song, pointing to the words as they are sung, provides modeling of which of the following? a. capitalization usage b. punctuation usage c. 1 X 1 word correspondence d. reading with expression 25. Having a child point out the title and author before reading a book is reinforcing a. conventions of print b. mechanics of print c. concepts about print d. school to work connections 26. Discussing the name and uses of the punctuation mark called a period with kindergarten students is a. focusing on conventions of print b. premature c. teaching vocabulary d. a & b e. a & d 27. A child who is reading at level seven at the end of first grade is considered to be reading a. below grade level b. at grade level c. above grade level d. gifted Domain II --page 44

28. Word boundaries are defined as a. the length of words b. the beginning and endings of words c. the spaces before and after words d. all of the above e. none of the above 29. The terms letter, word, and sentence are best taught in the context of a. journals b. shared reading c. a sorting game d. a phonics lesson 30. The terms comma, period, and exclamation point are best taught in the context of a. interactive writing b. read aloud c. sorting game d. a & b e. b & c Domain II --page 45

Domain II: Spelling Multiple Choice Items 1. First grade Jessica wrote this sentence: I liek too ride mie bike wid mie freind on Sundae. (I like to ride my bike with my friend on Sunday.) At what stage of invented spelling are most of her incorrect spellings? a. prephonetic b. semi-phonetic c. phonetic d. transitional e. conventional 2. First grade Juan wrote this sentence: The beg bk dog r re djrs. (The big black dogs are very dangerous.) At what stage of invented spelling are most of his incorrect spellings? a. prephonetic b. semi-phonetic c. phonetic d. transitional e. conventional 3. Which of the following is not a characteristic of phonetic spellers? a. Children represent all essential sound features of a word in spelling. b. Children misapply spelling rules. c. Children choose letters on the basis of sound without regard for English letter sequences. d. Children ignore inflectional endings the they don t pronounce. e. none of the above. 4. Which of the following is not a characteristic of transitional spellers? a. Children adhere to basic conventions of English orthography. b. Children reverse the order of letters in words. c. Children use a high percentage of correctly spelled words. d. Children use morphological and visual information in addition to phonetic information. e. none of the above. 5. At which stage of invented spelling do students become aware of the alphabetic principle and use abbreviated spellings to represent words? a. prephonetic b. semi-phonetic c. phonetic d. transitional e. conventional 6. At which stage of invented spelling do students use scribbles and write randomly on a page? a. prephonetic b. semi-phonetic c. phonetic d. transitional e. conventional Domain II --page 46

7. At which stage of invented spelling do students apply the basic rules of the English orthographic system and spell more than 90% of words correctly? a. prephonetic b. semi-phonetic c. phonetic d. transitional e. conventional 8. Which statement is true of invented spelling? a. Children use invented spellings because they haven t been taught phonics. b. Children continue to use some invented spellings throughout the elementary grades. c. Children should not be allowed to use invented spellings after first grade. d. none of the above.. 9. Which of the following statements is not true of spelling? a. Students apply phonics knowledge when they spell. b. Weekly spelling tests are the best way to teach spelling. c. Students need to learn visual and morphological information about spelling. d. none of the above.. 10. Which of the following statements is not true of poor spellers? a. Poor spellers tend to be poor readers. b. Poor spellers are likely to use a sounding-out strategy. c. The errors that poor spellers make are characteristic of the phonetic stage. d. none of the above.. 11. Which of the following statements is true of good spellers? a. Good spellers tend to be good readers. b. Good spellers use a variety of spelling strategies. c. The errors that good spellers make are characteristic of the transitional sage. d. none of the above.. 12. Which of the following activities is not appropriate for transitional stage spellers? a. Encouraging students to sound-out word. b. Teaching root words and affixes. c. Encouraging students to visualize words. d. Teaching syllabication rules. e. Explaining etymologies of words. 13. Which of the following activities is not appropriate for semi-phonetic stage spellers? a. Teaching consonant sounds. b. Encouraging students to sound-out words. c. Teaching high frequency words. d. Using interactive writing. e. Copying sentences from the chalkboard. Domain II --page 47

14. Which of the following activities is not appropriate for prephonetic stage spellers? a. Teaching consonant sounds. b. Encouraging students to scribble-write. c. Teaching vowel sounds. d. Teaching letters of the alphabet. e. Encouraging students to use a crayon when they draw and a pencil when they write. 15. Which of the following is not a high frequency word? a. what b. little c. the d. animal e. said 16. Why is it important to teach students high frequency words? a. These words are used so commonly. b. these words are phonetically regular. c. These words are the only words that first graders should learn. d. none of the above.. 17. Which of the following activities are recommended as an important component of spelling instruction? a. daily reading and writing opportunities b. word walls c. minilessons on spelling patterns d. none of the above 18. Why are daily reading opportunities an important component of spelling instruction? a. Reading helps students learn the visual shapes of words. b. Reading enriches students vocabularies. c. Reading develops students phonics skills. d. none of the above.. 19. Why is teaching students how to proofread an important component of spelling instruction? a. So students can write more legibly. b. So students can write more fluently. c. So students can correct misspelled words. d. a and b.. 20. Which of the following is not a recommended component of weekly spelling tests? a. pretests b. a multi-sensory study strategy c. writing words in sentences d. final spelling tests Domain II --page 48

21. Why are pretests an important component of spelling instruction? a. A pretest is an advanced organizer. b. Students learn best by taking a test. c. Students identify the words they already know how to spell. d. none of the above.. 22. What is the best way for students to practice their spelling words? a. Using a multi-sensory study strategy. b. Writing words 50 times each; c. Using the words in a story. d. Reading the words 5 times each. e. Learning the meaning of the words. 23. Which of the following is morphological information that spellers use? a. -ing, -ed, and other inflectional endings b. root words c. prefixes and suffixes d. none of the above.. 24. Why is it useful for spellers to know the etymology of a word? a. Because spelling patterns vary from language to language. b. Because knowing the number of syllables aids in spelling the word. c. Because knowing the phonological respelling of a word aids in spelling the word. d. none of the above.. 25. Third grade Moua is an English language learner who rarely uses inflectional endings in her speech or in writing. Which of the following instructional practices should her teacher not use? a. Teach minilessons on inflectional endings. b. Help Moua correct errors in her writing during editing. c. Model how to pronounce endings. d. Understand that her problem is typical and ignore it. e. Do word sorts. 26. Sixth grade Luis loves to write long, detailed informational books about race cars, but he misspells 20-25% of words that he writes, both high frequency words and content words like engine. His spelling is characteristic of the transitional stage. Which of the following instructional practices is most appropriate for Luis? a. teach proofreading b. provide daily writing opportunities c. teach phonics d. teach affixes and root words e. none of the above 27. Ms. Rodriguez has five first graders who spell at the prephonetic stage. Which of the following assessments would be appropriate? a. phonemic awareness tests b. writing samples c. concepts about print tests d. sentence dictation e. reading sight words Domain II --page 49

28. Referring to question 27, Ms. Rodriguez wants to design a series of minilessons for these students. Which activity would not be appropriate? a. interactive writing b. sorting objects by initial sounds c. teaching one letter each week d. using magnetic letters e. making alphabet books 29. To-two-too is an example of a. a. homophones b. homographs c. homophobes. d. synonyms. e. antonyms. 30. Mrs. Jones is a fifth grade teacher who is concerned that many of her students make homophone spelling errors by choosing the wrong homophone. Which of the following is not an appropriate instructional practice? a. teach minilessons on homophones. b. brainstorm with students lists of homophones. c. put homophones on weekly spelling tests. d. create a class homophone book. e. none of the above. 31. Mr. Johnson wants to teach dictionary skills to his third graders. His students already know how to alphabetize to the third letter and can use word walls that are alphabetized. They don t use the dictionaries in their classroom. Which of the following is not an appropriate instructional practice? a. Teach a minilesson on the importance of using the dictionary. b. Teach a strategy for locating unfamiliar words in the dictionary. c. Give students a list of 20 words to look up in the dictionary and write the page number on which the word is located. d. Use dictionaries during editing. e. Play a game in which students look up unfamiliar words from a book they are reading in a dictionary and report back to the class. Domain II --page 50

Focused Educational Tasks and Instructional Problems Domain II Blackline Masters Domain II --page 51

Domain II Focused Educational Problems and Instructional Tasks 1. What is the difference between phonics and phonemic awareness? 2. Define systematic, explicit phonics: 3. How should spelling be taught? Include at least five components of an effective spelling program. 4. Explain the language cueing systems: 5. Define onset and rime: 6. What is the difference between phonetic and structural analysis? 7. Define the alphabetic principle and why it is important: 8. List the stages of phonemic awareness from easiest to most difficult: 9. What type of text is used in phonics program and why? 10. Name five skills that could be included in a first grade phonics checklist: 11. What knowledge about phonology do children need before they break the code? 12. Which phonics concepts are most important for children to learn? 13. Describe components of an effective phonics program. 14. Describe the various levels of a concept of print or print awareness. 15. Describe the stages of invented spelling (with at least two characteristics per stage). 16. Why is invented spelling useful? 17. How does invented spelling help children to learn phonics? 18. Why are phonics generalizations useful? 19. What are five of the most useful phonics generalizations? 20. Why should students learn the 100 most frequently used words in the English language? 21. What are three strategies for spelling unfamiliar words? 22. Identify and describe two ways a teacher can help children develop phonemic awareness. Domain II --page 52

23. What is the difference between the alphabetic principle and phonemic awareness? Explain how each is important in learning to read. 24. Define "concepts about print." 25. Why are Elkonin boxes used in beginning reading instruction? 26. How can students develop fluency? 27. What is the most useful syllabication rule? 28. What are some examples of phonics mini-lessons? 29. What is the difference between "rime" and "rhyme?" 30. What is the purpose of a word wall? 31. What is the controversy about spelling instruction? 32. What is the goal of phonemic awareness activities? 33. Why are vowel sounds more difficult to learn than consonant sounds? 34. What are other names for invented spelling? 35. Why is syllabication useful? Domain II --page 53

Domain II --page 54