Tutoring Student Description

            The student I was paired with for tutoring is a 5^th grade girl that I will call Margaret for the purpose of this blog. Margaret’s Lexile reading level is 467. This is equivalent to a second grader and a K reading level on the Fountas & Pinnell reading chart. Based on the interest inventory she filled out on the first day, Margaret is interested in softball, she loves to play outside, she really likes animals, and she wishes school got out earlier. I’m planning to use the interest inventory when planning my lessons. I can relate my topic or content to some things that she likes, like animals or softball. This might help engage her and make her more excited about what we do.

            Margaret also filled out the Garfield motivation survey so I could see how she feels about reading. She chose the happiest Garfield or one less happy for all of the recreational reading questions. She even chose the happiest one for quite a few of the academic reading questions. She only chose the grumpy Garfield when it talked about being asked questions after reading, or reading out loud. This leads me to believe that Margaret really does like reading but there are maybe some self-confidence and comprehension problems with her reading.

            I plan to use the information I have gotten in the first few tutoring sessions to help create lessons that will both engage Margaret and help her get better in her areas of struggle.