Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A post in another thread here got me thinking, what is your AAP rising 3rd graders DRA? A poster in another thread said her son's was DRA 30 and implied it was weak for AAP. I did not realize that. My DD's teacher said hers was 30. She goes to a center next year for 3rd. Should I be worried? How can I help bring her DRA up by September?

I don't think you need to be a bit worried, not a BIT, please, but I think your last question is one that is easily and happily answered:

Read ALOUD to her beyond her reading level books that YOU really enjoy and relish. When you come to words you think she's not familiar with, quickly define them or use a few synonyms. Talk to her frequently about the books you're reading together not in a quizzing-ya way, but in a We Enjoy Talking About Books way.

Make a conscious effort to improve your vocabulary and also expose her to new information and experiences. I've added in some fun science podcasts for my kids (I like Tumble and Brains On!) because I don't use a lot of scientific vocabulary, and this is one way for my children to hear it more frequently.

I'm not even going to mention encouraging her to read. Obviously this is important for creating fluent readers, but this is already quite hyped up and I think the other half of the equation gets short shrift-- the more a kid knows and has been exposed to, the easier it is for her to make those mental connections when reading.

Again, I am not writing this because I think a third-grader's DRA is of great significance in or outside of AAP (on its own), but because it does add joy (in my opinion) to parents' and kids' lives when we start labeling things, and talking about things more, and it's a cool way to help our kids with their reading without even cracking open a book!

Anonymous wrote:A post in another thread here got me thinking, what is your AAP rising 3rd graders DRA? A poster in another thread said her son's was DRA 30 and implied it was weak for AAP. I did not realize that. My DD's teacher said hers was 30. She goes to a center next year for 3rd. Should I be worried? How can I help bring her DRA up by September?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Former teacher here: they stop testing at the end of the next grade level, as an above poster said. The end of the next grade level for a second grader is a 38. The 3 stands for 3rd grade and the 8 stands for the 8th month into third grade.

Depends on the school. DD's teacher told me they only test to grade level.

It is not supposed to work like this. The FCPS rule is that you test a child until he/she fails either the fiction or nonfiction OR at the end of the next school year. That said, I know some schools allow testing until a child fails (even if beyond the next school year) and some stop testing even before FCPS' stated testing end point. That doesn't make it right because it is not permitted by FCPS.

You need to chill because this kind of anxiety will be passed to your kid.

Anonymous wrote:38 but it seems arbitrary. He has classmates who seem more skilled but scored lower. Weary of the test obsession.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Former teacher here: they stop testing at the end of the next grade level, as an above poster said. The end of the next grade level for a second grader is a 38. The 3 stands for 3rd grade and the 8 stands for the 8th month into third grade.

Depends on the school. DD's teacher told me they only test to grade level.

It is not supposed to work like this. The FCPS rule is that you test a child until he/she fails either the fiction or nonfiction OR at the end of the next school year. That said, I know some schools allow testing until a child fails (even if beyond the next school year) and some stop testing even before FCPS' stated testing end point. That doesn't make it right because it is not permitted by FCPS.

Anonymous wrote:The test takes a long time and with so many kids, some schools stop sooner than others (30 vs 38). Overcrowding affects many facets of education.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Former teacher here: they stop testing at the end of the next grade level, as an above poster said. The end of the next grade level for a second grader is a 38. The 3 stands for 3rd grade and the 8 stands for the 8th month into third grade.

Depends on the school. DD's teacher told me they only test to grade level.

Anonymous wrote:Former teacher here: they stop testing at the end of the next grade level, as an above poster said. The end of the next grade level for a second grader is a 38. The 3 stands for 3rd grade and the 8 stands for the 8th month into third grade.

Anonymous wrote:OP - She was accepted for a reason. The DRA is listed in the packet that goes to central selection committee and they accepted her. So take comfort in that. DRA level is not a measure of intelligent. I have no idea what my daughter's DRA level is.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Since 30 says its on level for start of grade 3 and AAP is supposed to be "advanced"...yes, I would think that 30 would be low for an incoming AAP 3rd grader but just fine/normal for a non-AAP incoming 3rd grader.

Reading is a skill to access academics is it not necessarily indicative of ones intelligence level. A child could have below grade level reading scores and still qualify to be in AAP, they would just need to access the curriculum in a different way.