Beginning Decoding Skills Survey

BEGINNING DECODING SKILLS SURVEY
General Instructions
The Beginning Decoding Skills Survey is designed to pinpoint specific difficulties the struggling
readers have decoding words with short vowels and reading simple sentences. The Survey is NOT
exhaustive. Rather, it is carefully designed to identify specific skills the student may not have
mastered. A general rule of thumb is that students who make more than three errors on the
Beginning Decoding Skills Survey need instruction in how to read simple, one syllable words with
short vowels accurately. A student who has one or more errors checked in any column indicates a
weakness in that skill.
The Beginning Decoding Skills Survey is for struggling readers of any age – from the middle of first
grade through adulthood. We recommend administering the Beginning Decoding Skills Survey to
any struggling reader older than 6 ½ years old. If a student who is in second grade or older makes
three or fewer than errors on the Beginning Decoding Skills Survey, administer the Advanced
Decoding Skills Survey.
Directions:
Record scores and errors on the Scoring Form. If the student makes an error, be sure to record what
the student reads. If the student doesn’t get the correct answer, record the number of times it takes to
get the answer correct.
1. Give the student the Words and Sentences to Read page.
2. Ask the student to read the words at the top of the page. Ask the student to read the words in
each column. Stop when the student misses three in a row and ask the student if s/he can read
any other words in that part of the page.
3. Ask the student to read the sentences in the middle of the page.
4. Ask the student to read the nonsense words at the bottom of the page. You may have to explain
that nonsense words can be read, but they don’t mean anything. (I call them “Martian words”.)
5. When a student misreads a word, write what he reads next to the word on the Error Pattern Chart.
6. Record error patterns on the Error Pattern Chart by putting a check in the box that describes the
specific student error.
USING THE ERROR PATTERN CHART TO GUIDE INSTRUCTION

Teach the skills the student is missing, which will be indicated by more than one checkmark
in a column with the missing skill, or area of weakness, as the header. In general, begin
teaching the skill furthest to the left on the chart that is checked.
© 2004 by Linda Farrell. Permission granted to reproduce for educational purposes.

PDF file available at Center for Development and Learning’s website at www.cdl.org.
Words and Sentences to Read
see rag rich dust

one lid shop step
play dot tack trip
you hum whip pond
are bet thin brag
1. The cat hid in a box.

2. The fish is still in the deep lake.
3. Seven pink shellfish were in my bathtub.
vop shap
yuz thit
zin chut
keb wheck
Linda Farrell is a nationally certified DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) and LETRS
(Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling) trainer. Linda also conducts workshops on
delivering intervention lessons. She obtained her practical classroom experience as an English teacher and
a middle school reading teacher. She tutored scores of adults during her 12 years as a volunteer with the
Washington Literacy Council. Serving as an early literacy consultant, she now endeavors to eliminate the
need for adult literacy organizations by ensuring all children learn to read in early elementary school. She
may be contacted at Linda@readingstreet.com.

Name ______________________________________ Grade _______ Date ________________
ERROR PATTERN CHART - Beginning Decoding Skills Survey

1. Attach the Beginning Decoding Skills Survey Scoring Form.
Comments (continue on back):
2. Cross off all words not attempted and put a check in the No Try box.
3. Write all words read incorrectly on the line next to the word attempted.
4. Put a check in the box in the chart that describes the error(s) for each word.
Observations: (check all that apply)
Slow Quick to guess
Guesses after trying to decode using letter-sound analysis Possible b/d reversal
Reads sound-by-sound, but cannot blend
Error Patterns
Consonants Extra
No Sight Short Long Two
Sound(s) Digraphs Blends
Try Word Vowels Vowels Syllables
Real Words Initial Final Added
High Frequency Words
1 see
2 one
3 play
4 you
5 are
CVC Words
6 rag
7 lid
8 dot
9 hum
10 bet
Digraphs & Short Vowels
11 rich
12 shop
13 tack
14 whip
15 thin
Blends & Short Vowels
16 dust
17 step
18 trip
19 pond
20 brag
Sentences
1 The cat hid in a box.
2 The fish is still in the deep lake.
3 Seven pink shellfish were in my bathtub.
Nonsense Words
CVC
21 vop
22 yuz
23 zin
24 keb
Digraphs
25 shap
26 thit
27 chut
28 wheck

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BEGINNING DECODING SKILLS SURVEY

1. Give the student the Words and Sentences to Read page.

USING THE ERROR PATTERN CHART TO GUIDE INSTRUCTION

© 2004 by Linda Farrell. Permission granted to reproduce for educational purposes.

see rag rich dust

1. The cat hid in a box.

© 2004 by Linda Farrell. Permission granted to reproduce for educational purposes.

ERROR PATTERN CHART - Beginning Decoding Skills Survey

2 The fish is still in the deep lake.

3 Seven pink shellfish were in my bathtub.

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