Using ReadTheory to Boost Reading Comprehension in an Engaging Way

Welcome to the newest student-written app review! R.A. and Z.J. from my Year 5 (Grade 4) class in the UAE are excited to share their views of ReadTheory with you. It is first worth noting that ReadTheory is not an app, but a free website you and your students can log into. www.readtheory.org. In this post you will find:
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- Student Review
- Teacher Tips
- Student Examples
- My Reflection

Student Review

First the teacher told us our username and the password then we logged in and they gave us 10 questions. To they know our level . They gave us passage and questions. The passage is to read and the questions is to answer. If you read lots of passage and answered them correct you will get points.in different passages there is different amount of questions. I recommend students to use it so they get better and better at reading comprehension.

R.J. and Z.J.
Year 5 Emirati students in the UAE

Teacher Tips

1. Compare each student's individual progress. The 10 question placement test will assess their ability and then the app raises or lowers the level according to the user.

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2. Compare the class average - Display and praise when it goes up!! (As you can see we are a bit slow-going, but all students are EFL.

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3. Turn on the written question option. It makes more work to mark as a teacher, but is good preparation for tests they may need to take in the future.

Student Examples

My Reflection

My students love using ReadTheory. As a teacher, it was easy to set up and all students have the same password to login. I use it as one of my Guided Reading groups, which gives me weekly data about their reading even if I am not right beside them. During the last few minutes of class, or if we have some free time somewhere, I also usually have at least one student asking if they can "do a ReadTheory"... of course! It keeps passages at their level while pushing them a bit further. Some have a hard time understanding why it is making them repeat the same passages... but it is because their comprehension is not high enough. A struggle we all know too well as classroom teachers!