Diagnostic Reading Record: Profile

This profile, used in conjunction with the teacher's handbook (0-340-56696-5), presents a simple, effective way of assessing reading fluency and understanding in a range of meaningful contexts, using miscue analysis to reveal the child's reading strategies and response to texts. Progression from oral to silent reading is accommodated in the assessment making it suitable for use throughout the primary school. The procedure can be utilized once each year, or more frequently, depending on the progress being achieved and the extent to which children's reading gives cause for concern. The profile is a diagnostic guide to individual strengths and weaknesses in reading. It meets National Curriculum assessment requirements at levels 2-6 (the critical stages of learning to read), including the use of prediction, hypothesis and inference in reading and appreciative response to reading. The assessment is based on a range of 24 reading passages, graded for difficulty and in different genres, which are presented as photocopy masters in the teacher's handbook. Helen Arnold is also the author of "Listening to Children Reading", "Making Sense of It" and "Diagnostic Reading Record".