Roots Teacher Discusses STEP Testing and Informal Data Use at Roots

Roots teacher, Samantha Gambino, discusses how the team uses STEP testing to inform literacy instruction.

Transcript: Samantha Gambino: So, a lot of our data is done through – we do what's called step testing, which is a literacy test that does comprehension and phonics. But also, a lot of informal data is done through our small groups. So when I'm speaking, conferencing with kids, I'll be making notes on like, do you need help with one-to-one pointing, or do you need help with like, a phonics skill like beginning sounds? And so I make notes of that. I also conference with my other partner, Ms. Wagner, who's the writing teacher to see like, where are their gaps in learning from reading to writing so that we can target those skills specifically for scholars through the data that we've collected.