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Assessment Overview

mCLASS®:CIRCLE™ Assessment provides Pre-Kindergarten teachers with fun, easy and fast insights into young children's early literacy skills and overall development. Research has shown there are three key predictors of later reading success: oral language development, phonological awareness and print knowledge. These are the three assessment components of mCLASS®:CIRCLE™.

Here's how it works:

• Step 1: Teacher assesses children using a handheld loaded with mCLASS® assessment software.
• Step 2: When an assessment is complete, teacher connects the handheld to the computer, or puts the handheld in its cradle and with one touch,"syncs" data to the Web.
• Step 3: All children’s results now reside on a secure, password protected website, where teachers and administrators can view, analyze and manage assessment data.

mCLASS®:CIRCLE™ Assessments are divided into two parts, or phases. Phase I includes assessments for:

• Rapid Letter Naming
  The Rapid Letter Naming task measures a child's alphabet knowledge. This task is timed as the ability to name letters efficiently has been shown to be crucial to early reading.
• Rapid Vocabulary Naming
  The Rapid Vocabulary Naming task evaluates a child's ability to name common objects. Like the Rapid Letter Naming task, the Rapid Vocabulary Naming task is timed and should be considered a combination of verbal fluency and expressive vocabulary.
• Phonological Awareness Screener
  The Phonological Awareness Screener evaluates a child's skills in the areas of listening, rhyming,

These measures are designed to help teachers determine a child's strengths and weaknesses so instructional activities can be planned, made purposeful, and delivered in playful ways to children. The measures are designed to be given at three points in time across the Pre-Kindergarten year.

The recommended timeline for Phase I assessments is:

• Beginning of the Year: October 15 - November 15
• Middle of the Year: January 15 - February 15
• End of the Year April 15 - May 15

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