The video clips on this page show young English language learners responding to questions about texts they have just read that are appropriate for their grade level. These are not instructional sequences, but rather demonstrations of reading comprehension.

The students are responding to questions about a passage in Ramona Quimby, Age 8 ¹, by Beverly Cleary. It is the first day of school, and on the bus, Danny takes Ramona's new eraser. He and another boy toss it back and forth, out of her reach. Furious with them, Ramona yells "Yucky yard apes!"—her name for the boys who dominate on the playground.

In her new third-grade classroom, the teacher asks Ramona to pass out name tags. As she hands Danny his name tag, she whispers. "You give me back my eraser, you yard ape!" "Try and get it, Bigfoot," Danny whispers back, grinning.

Ramona knows that her feet are getting bigger, but she doesn't think that they are comparable to those of the ten-feet tall mythical creature. "Superfoot to you, Yard Ape," she retorts. To her surprise, Danny hands her back her eraser. Off she walks with her nose in the air. She had done the right thing! She had not let Yard Ape upset her by calling her Bigfoot, and now she had her eraser in her hand. He would probably call her Superfoot forever, but she did not care. Superfoot was a name she had given herself. That made all the difference. She had won." (p. 34)     next

¹ Cleary, Beverly. (1981) Ramona Quimby, Age 8. New York: Morrow Junior Books.

These video clips feature fourth-graders Georgina, a Khmer/English bilingual; Norida, a Khmer/English bilingual; and Lesley, a Spanish/English bilingual.

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Georgina Norida Lesley		Georgina Norida Lesley		Georgina Norida		Georgina Norida Lesley