Renaissance Place

The STAR Reading Assessment

• About once a month, students take a STAR reading assessment through the Renaissance Place website at school.
• The STAR Test produces a score knon as the students' ZPD (Zone of Proximal Development; a.k.a. “Reading Range”).
  • An example of your child’s score might be 1.5 – 2.5 (interpreted as 1^st grade reading level at month 5 through 2^nd grade reading level at month 5).

Choosing Books

• With their ZPD ("Reading Range") in mind, students are taught to choose books to read at their reading level.
  • Classrooms visit the school library once a week.  Students may check-out 2 books from the school library each week and are encouraged to not take these books home so they can return to the library later that same week and check out other books.
  • Students may check out 1 book at a time to take home from our classroom library as desired.
  • Students should alternate between fiction and non-fiction literature.
  • Most of the books at school are marked for easy reference, but they may also choose books from home, Scholastic book orders, the public library, etc..  Books that do not have a marked reading level may be looked up at www.arbookfind.com.

Accelerated Reading (AR) Quizzes

• The teacher assigns AR point goals each trimester based on students' reading levels.
  • This goal is modified for certain students based on individual needs/abilities.
• Students take AR quizzes to earn points.
  • In second grade, 2-3 AR quizzes each week are usually sufficient for students to earn enough AR points to reach their goal on time.
• AR Quizzes must be taken at school.
  • If they do not pass the quiz they may re-read the book and re-take the quiz.
• Students are encouraged to read at home 20 minutes/day and may bring those books to school to take quizzes if they are within the child's ZPD.

AR Home Connect

• Parents can view their child's AR progress through AR Home Connect.  (An "Invitation for Renaissance Home Connect" is required to login.)