Austin was challenged to use his higher-order thinking skills to work on different exercises this afternoon. He first worked on correcting errors with different pronouns. He was tasked with identifying the incorrect pronoun in 10 sentences. In the case of an unclear antecedent, Austin replaced the unclear pronoun with a noun or noun phrase. Austin understood the directives and did well on the exercise clarifying the examples given. He is responsive to explanations and efforts to direct, support, clarify, or manage expectations. Next, we read an article entitled, "On this day: Rui Costa’s stunner for AC Milan proves final Series A strike in 2005." Austin selected this article due to his interest in soccer. After reading the article aloud, Austin was tasked with summarizing it on paper, organizing his thoughts effectively to communicate the main points in a clear and coherent fashion. Austin took his time to underline the main points of the article and prioritize facts. He writes clearly and legibly and works independently, but does not hesitate to request assistance if needed. We finished up our session reading a chapter in the novel. I queried Austin to assess his comprehension, synthesis, and integration of material and his ability to share personal connections if applicable. Austin offered excellent insights into the character's dynamics, identified similes and other examples of figurative speech, and he enjoyed the two chapters, 10 and 11, we read together.

Austin asked about the author of the book, 'There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom, and he was amazed to learn that the author, Louis Sachar, was a Newbery medal winner for one of his other books that he is currently reading in his class at school ("Holes'). We read chapter ten and I pointed out the use of the device known as 'leit motif,' which is used in literature and art which are recurrent themes throughout a musical or literary composition, associated with a particular person, idea, or situation. Austin was able to cite two examples of a leit motif the author used in the chapter, and demonstrated an excellent ability to integrate and correctly apply recent learning to new examples. When queried on the characters, meaning, and innuendos suggested by Sachar, Austin answered with insight and accuracy. We examined the use of 'antithesis figures of speech,' the use of language which creates a clear contrast between two opposite ideas using words that are opposite or contrasting in meaning, we examined an example from the book. Austin was able to understand how its use can facilitate contextual understanding and balanced writing. I also gave Austin an exercise in which he was to select the correct word choice in sentences containing two words that have similar sounds or spelling (e.g. accept/except; affect/effect). He did well , getting 7 out of the 9 examples correct. We reviewed the correct choices and Austin was receptive to understanding the corrections. Austin requested a copy of an article on Cristiano Ronaldo, as he is a huge fan of soccer and is looking forward to reading it.

This afternoon, Austin selected a different room to work in and enthusiastically chose to continue reading the book when given an option of two exercises. We read chapters 4 - 8, and Austin exclaimed" this is really getting good!" As we collaboratively read, Austin was questioned on vocabulary, encouraged to offer synonyms to words, and queried on the use of literary devices used by the author and the function of quotation marks. He remained engaged, and he demonstrated good integration and synthesis of the material. Austin was able to infer and make predictions that were logical and accurate. We then moved on to a reading passage I had chosen about soccer as i know it is one of his interests. Austin answered all the multiple choice questions correctly. He also answered the open-ended questions effectively, although succinctly, and he will be encouraged to elaborate on his responses when working on the next passage at our next session. Austin will be given additional higher-order exercises to challenge his critical thinking skills and further stimulate and extend strategic thinking, as well as analytical and evaluative processes, including fluency, retrieval and the application of knowledge.

After being challenged and completing math examples involving division and percentages on which he is working at school, Austin was given 5th grade reading comprehension passages this afternoon. He readily followed directives and worked efficiently and independently. He applied general reading comprehension strategies to optimize his performance and ability to answer questions at the end of the passages. These included: use of prior knowledge, previewing, predicting, identifying the main idea, use of supporting details and summarization. I watched as Austin underlined the main ideas and used inferential reasoning as he answered the questions - and he was able to retell the main points and details of the readings succinctly. We reviewed his incorrect answer and Austin understood why and how the correct answer was derived. We reviewed some vocabulary terms with which he was unfamiliar (e.g., impediment; diligence, intricate, surpassed), and figured out their meanings contextually. I also used them in examples to help him synthesize and integrate the information. When reading a passage entitled 'Beethoven,' Austin was familiar with the composer and hummed one of his most popular and well recognized pieces. Additionally he knew other contemporary composers of the period, as well as artists, indicative of a good wealth of general information. Austin completed a graphic organizer and answered an open-ended question using excellent format, organization, and effectively observing and applying the rules of grammar and syntax. Austin also used details from the passage to support his answer. We used the last 15 minutes to read another chapter from the book by Louis Sachar - one that used a great deal of symbolization and abstraction. Austin responses indicated that he understood the nuanced references, and the author's use of imagery and figurative language to express intent. Austin also enjoyed acting out some of the dialogue of the main protagonist, further demonstrating his comprehension of the character's traits. Austin is not easily frustrated and strives to do well when challenged.

Austin was interactive and engaged well with me this afternoon after making his room selection quickly. I showed Austin the 2 copies of the book I had selected which is appropriate for children of various grades from 3 - 7 due to the different layers of plot and character dynamics a reader can examine and analyze. Austin asked appropriate questions about the author and we did a bit of research about Louis Sachar before we began reading. I periodically queried Austin to assess his comprehension and he was able to recall details well and made appropriate inferences. I also had Austin act out some of the parts and dialogue, which he did enthusiastically and without reservation. He anticipated my expectations accurately and delivered many of the lines with correct emphasis and inflection. I encourage critical thinking and personal connection to the literature and Austin was able to explain his rationale logically. After reading the first two chapters, Austin was asked to compose a summary of the story. He organized his thoughts coherently and wrote down a succinct summary in legible handwriting. We reviewed his paragraph, which was well formatted, and I pointed out minor corrections regarding capitalization of proper nouns, title, and use of commas. Austin follows the rules of syntax and communicates his thoughts effectively. Word order, tense, subject-verb agreement, and sentence length were well demonstrated and positively affected the tone and purpose of his writing selection. Austin has a very good vocabulary and he articulates his thoughts well. I asked about his knowledge of figurative language and explained one or two examples with which he was as yet unfamiliar. Austin understood my explanation and the examples I offered in efforts to facilitate comprehension, and he was able to correctly identify the correct example of figurative language used in 11 out of 12 sentences. This encompassed a review of similes, metaphors, onomatopoeia and personification. Austin stated he is prepared to finish the remaining questions on the exercise next time we meet.

After touring the facility and deciding on a room, Austin and I got right down to work. Austin was outgoing, inquisitive, and responsive to directives. He was amenable to all activities, exercises and challenges, and appeared eager and gratified to demonstrate his skill sets. When I wrote an answer on his exercise sheet, Austin erased and rewrote the word in cursive. I offered 4th and 5th grade level work and he was able to comfortable tackle the higher grade. Working on context clues, Austin demonstrated very good inferential abilities; he obtained a 95 on the exercise. If he didn't know a word, Austin was not hesitant to request clarification. He also worked on a paragraph correction exercise and answered 6 out of 8 questions correct in which he was tasked with correcting the underlined errors in the passage; his two errors involved pluralization of a noun (woman/women) and the insertion of the word 'an' before the word, 'image.' However, it should be noted that he answered this question a bit impulsively and when we reviewed it, he understood why his answer would be incorrect; it involved agreement of tenses. Austin also worked on the WISC-V book to practice problem-solving for the test. His responses indicated very good visual-spatial, perceptual, and critical thinking skills necessary to solve the visual puzzles and non-verbal problems selected. Austin very much enjoys math and was eager to tackle the logic and figure weight problems. He was offered test-taking strategies, such as reviewing answers before moving on. Austin was amenable to suggestions and did not grow frustrated if a question proved challenging or if marked incorrect. I enjoyed working with Austin and I am gauging his abilities in order to determine additional exercises that will prove cognitively challenging and stimulating.