Main Body

9 Running Records

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

  • Why do teachers use running records?
  • How do teachers administer running records?
  • How do teachers analyze running records?

Purpose of Running Records

In the above video, a teacher discusses how important running records are in her classroom.

A running record is an assessment tool that provides information to a teacher about a child’s fluency and use of cues to figure out a word.  It was developed by Marie M. Clay (1993).  Variations of it are used in many instructional program frameworks including Boushey and Moser’s (2014) The Daily Five and Fountas and Pinnell’s Guided Reading (2016), and can help teachers make decisions about grouping students for skill and strategy instruction.

Running records can be used for screening, diagnostic, and progress monitoring as they can be administered across the school year.

The possible purposes of using running records include:

  • Finding an appropriate level of text for a child
  • Developing flexible groups for instruction
  • Documenting progress in reading fluency
  • Proving insight into a child’s use of cueing systems
  • Planning “next steps” for a child or group of children
  • Summarizing the impact of instructional programs on reading
  • Learning about the reading progress of children

In the early elementary grades, running records will typically be used with all children to assess reading levels, monitor fluency development, and provide ongoing movement between flexible groups. A teacher may complete a running record with a child every few weeks as reading development changes fast in K-2. In upper elementary grades, running records may be used less frequently as most children are fluent readers, but it may be used for diagnostic reasons with students who are struggling.

In the above video, a teacher discusses how she makes time for completing running records with her students.

To complete a running record, a child will read aloud a text that the teacher estimates is at their independent level.  While the child reads, the teacher takes notes on the accuracy of the reading and marks down any deviations from the original text using a standard coding system. Sometimes teachers may also time the oral read to know how many words per minute a child is reading.  Typical teachers will ask some comprehension questions to see if the child understood the text.

In the above video, you can see how teachers sit beside students with a running record form to take notes while the student is reading.

The procedure for analyzing the record will be discussed in Section 3 but there are multiple parts of the analysis – accuracy, speed, and miscues. 

After the child oral reads the text, the teacher will analyze the miscues.   When children do not read the actual word in the original text, it is called a “miscue” rather than a “mistake.”  During the analysis, teachers look at which cueing system children used to arrive at the word they actually read.  This helps teachers design instruction as they can build on the child’s existing strategies. In the upper elementary level, children can be involved in this miscue analysis to identify the cueing systems they are using and which ones they tend to not use.

Teachers may use a pre-printed set of leveled reading passages and recording forms that include the text on a student page and the words of the text on the teacher recording page.  These forms typically also provide guidance on the analysis of the running records.  Often this is used for screening and more formal progress monitoring 3-4 times a year.

However, with practice, teachers can also complete a running record with a blank sheet of paper or a blank form and use whatever text the child is currently reading.  Sitting side-by-side, the teacher can see the child’s text and take note on the paper without pre-printed words.  These informal running records may be done more frequently and typically during independent reading time while the teacher confers with students.  It is a quick way to monitor if children are selecting books at their independent reading level.

Administering a Running Record

Determine Your Purpose

At the beginning of the year, you may complete a running record as a screening for determining levels of reading in your class.  Mostly likely you will have a packet of leveled passages with scoring sheets for your grade level based on the reading program your school uses.  This standardized form of the assessment requires that you adhere to the directions of the packet and provide very little intervention when children don’t know a word.  There will be a student text and a separate teacher scoring sheet.

If you are using the running record as a quick check-in to ensure the child is reading an appropriate level book, you would ask the child to select a current book.  Ask if the child has read it before, or it was a new-to-them book.  Write this down, as a familiar text should be more fluent than a new text.

Materials Needed

  • Student text of at least 100 words
  • Teacher record form (or a piece of paper)
  • Pencil
  • Timer
  • Recording device (Many new teachers like to have a backup recording to practice on after the session.  However, with practice, the recording will become more automatic.)
  • There are electronic apps available for taking running records.  Check with your school if they use one.

Full List of Running Record Codes with Examples

Scholastic provides a great “cheat sheet” for codes for running records. Click here for the sheet.

Setting the Stage

If you are not using a leveled set of reading passages, and are just having the child read from a book, count out the 100 words so if you wish to time the oral reading, you know when to stop.

Arrange yourself next to the child so you can see the text, yet take notes on your own page without distracting the child. You may want to use a clipboard. 

Typically teachers will know their students, however, you may need to spend a little time getting to know the child and tell them about what you are trying to learn.  It is important that the child feels comfortable with you and the assessment so they are not nervous.  Reassure them that this isn’t for a grade etc.

Directions

Ask the child to read aloud the text.  Let them know if you are going to time them and if you are going to ask some questions after the reading.

Recording Accuracy

As the child is orally reading the story, you will be marking down each time the child read a word correctly and any miscues the child makes.  There are conventional symbols or codes for these markings, such as the one by Julia Nabizadah at http://scholastic.ca/education/movingupwithliteracyplace/pdfs/grade4/runningrecords.pdf  

If you do not have the text on your form, you will need to write the original word and any miscues above it.

After the student is done reading, you may ask some comprehension questions. Pre-packaged, leveled forms will have the questions printed for you. If you are using a blank form, ask the child to retell the story and take notes on their retelling.

 

 

In the above video, a teacher is using an informational text for a running record.  Observe how she records the student’s reading, but also uses the assessment to talk with the student about his areas of strength and way to improve.

Scoring a Running Record

The first pieces of information that you can get from a running record are accuracy, error rate, and self-correction scores.

To be able to get these scores, you first need to know what the errors are in a running record.

ERROR NOT AN ERROR
A substitution Self-corrections
An omission Repetitions
An unsuccessful appeal (teacher says the word) A successful appeal ("You try it.")
A told word Words pronounced differently in a child’s dialect or accent
An insertion Hesitations
A mispronounced name is counted only once, not each successive time Ignored punctuation

To Score the Record:

  1. Count only the running words in the text.  You do not include the title, subtitles, captions etc.
  2. Count the errors.
  3. Count each word in a skipped line as an error.
  4. Count a skipped page as one error and subtract the word count for the page from the total word count.
  5. Count proper nouns (names) read inaccurately only once. Count other words read inaccurately each time.
  6. Calculate: (Example – Total Words = 120    Errors= 12     Self-Corrections=6)

Accuracy Interpretation

Easy Text (95-100%)

Easy texts are wonderful for enjoyment reading and to work on meaning making. There aren’t decoding challenges – good for independent reading

Appropriate Instructional Text (93-94%)

These are in the higher end of Instructional Texts (from Chapter 1) which are read with 90-94% accuracy. This would be a good choice for guided reading instruction as you would provide support for decoding and meaning-making.

Challenging Instructional Text (90-92%)

The child (or group of children) would need significant scaffolding to decode and understand this text. But, with interest, motivation, and support, children would be able to make-meaning from it.  Good choice for read alouds.

Hard Texts (Below 90%)

A text that would most likely be too difficult for the child to decode and understand.

Error Ratio Interpretation

To be able to understand the cueing systems children are using, you would like to use a text that has an error rate of between 1:10-1:20. This means that for every 10 words read, there is one error.  If there are no or very few errors, you have nothing to analyze and the child should be encouraged to try  more challenging text.  However, errors rates higher than 1:9 would be frustrating to the child because for every nine words read, there is an error.

Self-Correction Interpretation

In the example, the child has a self-correction rate of 1:3 which means that for every three errors made, the child self-corrects one. Excellent self-correction rates would be 1:1-1:3. Good self-correction rates are 1:4 or 1:5.  Above 1:5, most likely the child is not reading for meaning and is not recognizing errors made. If you had asked comprehension questions, the child probably would not have been able to tell you much about the story.

Miscue Analysis

The Cueing Systems when reading.

When reading, fluent readers use three cueing systems together to read words – semantic, syntactic, and graphophonic. Each cueing systems considers an important question in trying to make meaning of text:

  1. Does is look right?
  2. Does it sound right?
  3. Does it make sense?

When you analyze the miscues within the running record, you are looking for which cues the child is using and which ones are not being used.  Most running record forms will have  columns to analyze the errors made and the self-corrections separately.  You will either write the letters M, S, or V; put a check mark or circle the letter, depending on the form.

Meaning Cues  – Does is make sense?

If a child read the word “woods” rather than “forest” most likely the child is using meaning cues.  Although it would be counted as an error, when looking at it through the lens of a miscue, the word “woods” means the same as “forest” so the child is still making meaning from the text.

Structural Cues – Does it sound right?

Not only does the word “woods” have the same meaning as “forest” but it also fits structurally.  Both words are plural nouns.

Visual Cues – Does is look right?

Reader use their knowledge of the visual features of words and letter to recognize words.  When the child used the word “woods” rather than “forest” the child was not attending to the printed letters.

However, if the child has read “words” rather than “woods” then most likely the child was ONLY attending to the visual aspects of the word and not checking to see if it made sense.

Forms for the running records vary, but there is some additional information you may want to record:

  • Reading rate (words/per minute)
  • Comment on expressiveness and phrasing
  • Comment on hesitancies
  • Comment on confidence (think about how many appeals were made)
Taken from https://learningattheprimarypond.com/blog/how-to-analyze-running-records/

The teacher in this video talks through a hypothetical recording of a running record. From  https://learningattheprimarypond.com/blog/how-to-analyze-running-records/

WHY DOES THIS MATTER?

Strategic readers use strategies to recognize words and self-monitor their understanding of a text.  When you are analyzing miscues, you are identifying which strategies the reader was using or not using, which can then guide your instruction.  Some typical strategies readers using include:

  • Repeating (rereading) when something doesn’t make sense.
  • Employing all three cueing systems, not just one.
  • Checking cueing systems against each other. (Does it sound right, look right, AND make sense?)
  • Noticing when cues don’t match.
  • Employing all three cueing systems, not just one.
  • Reading with phrasing and fluency.

The first part of the video shows a running record.  Jump to minute 8 to hear how a teacher thinks through a RR and uses it to inform instruction.

Review and Questions to Ponder

Questions to Ponder

Some assessments, like running records, require the teacher to work one-on-one with a student but there is still a whole class of children who need to be productively working on something. Pay attention in your practicum to how your CT creates time and space for small group and individual instruction time.  What are the other children doing? How does your CT minimize interruptions during this instructional time? What happens with the other children need help?

There are many apps on the iPad to help teachers  – just search for “Running Records.” Look at some of the previews and reviews of the products.  What are some of the advantages and disadvantages to using technology (like the iPad) to conduct running records? Talk with your CT (or other teachers) about this.

References

Boushey, G., & Moser, J. (2014). The Daily 5: Fostering Literacy Independence in the Elementary Grades. Stenhouse Publishers.

Clay, M.M. (1993). An observation survey of early literacy achievement. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Fountas, I. C., & Pinnell, G. S. (2016). Guided reading: Responsive teaching across the grades. Portsmouth, NH: Heinmemann.

Additional Resources:

Learning at the Primary Pond – Great description with videos of how the teacher uses running records:

http://learningattheprimarypond.com/blog/how-to-analyze-running-records/

In the above video, a 6-year old boy read for a running record as the teacher marks her record form.

In the above video, the teacher explains how to analyze the running record of the 6-year old boy.

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Teaching Literacy in Grades Pre-K to 2 Copyright © by Lori Levin and Suzanne Porath is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

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