A teacher using CARS and STARS Online for their class – or group of classes – can stay on top of individual student progress while providing instruction that caters to the individual needs of every student with a program that sees differentiation as a core feature, rather than as an extra element to strive for.
CARS & STARS Online is primarily about individual readers getting better. But the way in which you can teach it in the classroom can harness the power of reading aloud – for individual students, groups or whole classes – to not just enhance comprehension, but improve reading abilities across the board.
Along with the CARS & STARS program, FOCUS Reading is a module perfect for students struggling with or needing more practice in one of the 6 core reading comprehension strategies. This module is designed for flexibility and can be used at any time to provide concentrated practice in the targeted strategies either to an entire class or individual students.
CARS & STARS Online allows administering teachers to have an unprecedented, data-driven ability to plan instruction and keep tabs on learning for large groups, classes and even whole-school cohorts. But its unique features are just as applicable to individual students, who also benefit directly from new features such as the Question Timer feature, more detailed reports and individual planning sheets for teachers.
Students using CARS & STARS Online will be exposed to different text types as standard throughout the program, beginning at the lowest levels, meaning that their imagination is engaged from different angles from the very start. Becoming a better reader helps one become a better imaginer – and CARS & STARS Online can help your students be both.
The benefits of guided reading have long been apparent. Primarily, it allows for differentiated instruction. The teacher groups children by reading level and then meets that level with appropriately levelled texts. The smaller groups allow the teacher to identify weaknesses in readers and to better target them. Guided reading also helps build reading comprehension and fluency, with teachers listening closely when students read and responding accordingly. This process could not be more aligned with CARS & STARS Online.
The structured approach of CARS & STARS Online actually allows for an unprecedentedly flexible approach to teaching reading comprehension for teachers and students. In these uncertain times, with school closures and lockdowns a reality, the flexibility – and portability – of CARS & STARS Online as a reading comprehension program is second to none.
According to the World Literacy Foundation, around 1 in 5 people in the world are completely illiterate and an estimated 3 billion people today struggle with basic reading and writing. This can have flow-on effects to their economic security, health and social well-being. Fortunately, research shows that early reading intervention through quality programs can help arrest this negative spiral for future generations.
The benefits of CARS & STARS Online for teachers go beyond simply not requiring any manual marking. The Teaching Guides, Lesson Plans, Answer Keys, Suggested Pacing Charts and incredible access to instant student results and progress monitoring offered through the reports mean teachers have an unprecedented ability to plan and tailor their instruction.
Scaffolding enables a student to solve a problem, carry out a task or achieve a goal through a gradual shedding of outside assistance from the teacher. The STARS module of CARS & STARS Online provides scaffolded instruction – signposted in the program as modelled instruction, guided practice and independent practice – that supports student success with the strategies introduced in the CARS module.
With CARS & STARS Online, teachers can view and monitor the activities of each student logged into the program from their own device. This is done by offering teachers a live view of student screens that’s accessible at any time, and works just as well when remote learning as it does when everybody is seated together in the one classroom. We call this Active Classroom, and it’s a standard part of the CARS & STARS Online program that’s available with all subscriptions.
Reading Comprehension has been defined as one of the five central components of reading, along with Phonics, Phonemic Awareness, Vocabulary and Fluency. CARS & STARS Online is a digital reading program designed to turn every student into a proficient and capable reader, with advanced levels of reading comprehension.
CARS & STARS Online is designed to make using the program with your students as simple and seamless as possible. The Teaching Guides are the only resource teachers will need to engage with both the program, and their students, to ensure they are working toward the very highest levels of reading comprehension.
