Elementary Education

Task 1: Planning Commentary

TASK 1: PLANNING COMMENTARY

Respond to the prompts below (no more than 9 single-spaced pages, including prompts) by typing your responses within the
brackets. Do not delete or alter the prompts. Pages exceeding the maximum will not be scored.

1. Central Focus
a. Describe the central focus and purpose for the content you will teach in the learning
segment.
[Essential Question: Can you identify and read words by sight?
Learning Target: I can identify and read words by sight.
The central focus in this instruction is to build on students vocabulary and phonemic awareness
through practice with high frequency words discovered in a given text.]
b. Given the central focus, describe how the standards and learning objectives within your
learning segment address

an essential literacy strategy

requisite skills that support use of the strategy
reading/writing connections
[ Standards Addressed: ELACCKRF3a, ELACCKRF3c
In this leson students will learn to identify high frequency words both within and outside of a
given text. The students will learn meaning and concepts of the given words, in order to apply
these terms to make further connections, such as text to text, text to self, text to world, and text
to media connections. Furthermore, the students will have to write the high frequency words of
focus, generate sentences using the terms, find the terms in a given text, as well as read and
decode words by sight. ]
c. Explain how your plans build on each other to help students make connections
between skills and the essential strategy to comprehend OR compose text in meaningful
contexts.
[Through students abilities to write, read/decode, and recognize the meanings of high
frequency words, they better understand a given text.]
2. Knowledge of Students to Inform Teaching
For each of the prompts below (2ab), describe what you know about your students with
respect to the central focus of the learning segment.
Consider the variety of learners in your class who may require different strategies/support (e.g.,
students with IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners, struggling readers, underperforming
students or those with gaps in academic knowledge, and/or gifted students).

a. Prior academic learning and prerequisite skills related to the central focusCite
evidence of what students know, what they can do, and what they are still learning
to do.
[Prior to this instruction some of the students are familiar with letters and letter sounds in
addition to some phonemes and blends. Students that are able to recognize specific letters and
their sounds, both consonant and vowel sounds, put forth a great deal of effort to sound out
words in parts. However there are quite a few students that does not share these same abilities.
In fact, there are currently three students with IEPs and one in the process of receiving the
appropriate evaluations and assistance needed to be given an IEP. There is one student with a
Copyright 2014 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.
1 of 4 | 9 pages maximum
All rights reserved.
V3_0914
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.

Elementary Education
Task 1: Planning Commentary

504 plan, and five students with RTIs. These students in particular are still not familiar with
letter recognition. In such case they are not able to make letter sounds and blend them together
in order to accurately pronounce or decode words.]
b. Personal/cultural/community assets related to the central focusWhat do you know
about your students everyday experiences, cultural backgrounds and practices,
and interests?
[The students in this class have a common practice for learning letters, letter sounds, and
words. These students are particularly engaged by music, cut and paste material, coloring,
stamping letters to form words, and instructional games. On Mondays all instruction is whole
group learning experiences and Tuesday through Friday is small group learning instruction. The
students learn best with the interactions amongst their peers. Each small group is made up of
five students one student that is above or average leveled learners and one lower leveled
learner. For sight word instruction the students particularly prefer activities that include coloring,
tracing, writing, and stamping letters.]
3. Supporting Students Literacy Learning
Respond to prompts 3ac below. To support your justifications, refer to the instructional materials
and lesson plans you have included as part of Task 1. In addition, use principles from research
and/or theory to support your explanations.

a. Justify how your understanding of your students prior academic learning and
personal/cultural/community assets (from prompts 2ab above) guided your choice or
adaptation of learning tasks and materials. Be explicit about the connections between
the learning tasks and students prior academic learning, assets, and research/theory.
[Upon observation I noticed that students were able to work independently with the least need of
scaffolding when given sight word sheets and booklets because they have become familiar with
this material in particular. Although some of them are not able to decode letters and words by
sight yet, they enjoy the feeling of self efficacy when they complete these required assignments.
In fact, I also observed that through repetition of such activities the students practice
handwriting and are aware of their improvements if any. Self efficacy, which is the I can belief
that a students holds has a great impact on their performance and determination to try even
harder.]
b. Describe and justify why your instructional strategies and planned supports are
appropriate for the whole class, individuals, and/or groups of students with specific
learning needs.
Consider students with IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners, struggling readers,
underperforming students or those with gaps in academic knowledge, and/or gifted students.

[ Although there are quite a few students with IEPs, language barriers, and struggling readers
all of the students are able to identify words by memory, sight, and recall. While average
students are focusing on blending letters to make sounds, because they have already mastered
letter recognition. Those struggling students are getting further practice with skills such as letter
identification that makes up words. Furthermore, gifted students are encouraged to apply their
skills by reading text aside from the class sets to identify and review high frequency words while
applying skills needed to read and decode words.]
c. Describe common developmental approximations or common misconceptions within
your literacy central focus and how you will address them.
[ ]
Copyright 2014 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.
2 of 4 | 9 pages maximum
All rights reserved.
V3_0914
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.

Elementary Education
Task 1: Planning Commentary

4. Supporting Literacy Development Through Language

a. Language Function. Identify one language function essential for students to develop
and practice the literacy strategy within your central focus. Listed below are some
sample language functions. You may choose one of these or another more appropriate
for your learning segment.
Analyze

Argue

Categorize

Compare/contrast

Describe

Interpret

Predict

Question

Retell

Summarize

Explain

[ Students will have to analyze high frequency words in various forms, distinguishing the
specified terms in any given text. ]
b. Identify a key learning task from your plans that provides students with opportunities to
practice using the language function in ways that support the essential strategy. Identify
the lesson in which the learning task occurs. (Give lesson day/number.)
[ Reading Sight Words is a lesson specific to this key learning task, in this lesson the students
are given a big book that is or has been used for shared reading experiences and frames to
interactively discover the high frequency words currently focused, while also reviewing high
frequency words that has been taught in previous lessons. ]
c. Additional Language Demands. Given the language function and learning task
identified above, describe the following associated language demands (written or oral)
students need to understand and/or use:

Vocabulary or key phrases

Plus at least one of the following:

Syntax

Discourse
Consider the range of students understandings of the language function and other language
demandswhat do students already know, what are they struggling with, and/or what is new
to them?

[ There is a high demand for the students to be able to accurately pronounce the high frequency
terms, however while they are encouraged to write and spell the terms, spelling phonetically is
appropriate. At this level the students are not required to spell terms correctly independently. ]
d. Language Supports. Refer to your lesson plans and instructional materials as needed
in your response to the prompt.

Describe the instructional supports (during and/or prior to the learning task) that help students
understand and successfully use the language function and additional language demands
identified in prompts 4ac.
[ ]
5. Monitoring Student Learning
In response to the prompts below, refer to the assessments you will submit as part of the
materials for Task 1.

a. Describe how your planned formal and informal assessments will provide direct
evidence that students can use the essential literacy strategy and requisite skills to
comprehend or compose text throughout the learning segment.
Copyright 2014 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.
3 of 4 | 9 pages maximum
All rights reserved.
V3_0914
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.

Elementary Education
Task 1: Planning Commentary

[I will perform a sight word flash card assessment with students individually. During this
assessment I will hold a flash card up for the student to see and allow the student to
independently read the sight word. I will generate a checklist with the five sight words of focus
and lines beside them for me to mark a X by the sight words that were not read correctly or
omitted, and left blank for the words that were read correctly without assistance. In addition, I
will have the students to read and identify a short passage, on level, that consists of the focused
sight words and check if they are able to accurately read and identify these words in a given
text. ]
b. Explain how the design or adaptation of your planned assessments allows students with
specific needs to demonstrate their learning.
Consider all students, including students with IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners,
struggling readers, underperforming students or those with gaps in academic knowledge,
and/or gifted students.

[Students with specific needs will be read the words located on the flash cards prior to the
assessment beginning. Once the assessment begins, these students will perform the same
process. In addition the teacher will check for letter recognition and observe if there is any
improvement in the students abilities. The students with a 504 in particular will use a magnifying
glass for visual purposes, this will enlarge print so that the students is able to see the letters and
words without difficulty. ]

Copyright 2014 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.

4 of 4 | 9 pages maximum
All rights reserved.
V3_0914
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.