A fourth-grade teacher observes an English learner attempting to read a picture book written in English; the print is being tracked right to left. Which step should the teacher take first to help the student read the book?

Prepare for the MTTC Literacy (122) exam for Upper Elementary grades. Use flashcards and multiple choice questions to study, each with hints and explanations. Ace your exam with confidence!

Modeling how to read in English is the first step here. When a student is tracking print right to left, they’re not yet showing the expected left-to-right direction of English text. By reading aloud while the teacher points to words from the left edge across each line, the student can see and imitate the correct flow, pace, and tracking. This concrete demonstration helps establish the print concepts of directionality and line-by-line progression, making the alignment between spoken language and written text clear.

After this explicit modeling, guided practice with the teacher supporting the student as they follow along can build confidence and fluency. Other options aren’t as effective as a first move because they rely on the student remembering rules, address differences between languages without hands-on demonstration, or involve decisions about interventions that aren’t yet necessary.