Reading in Room 14!
Silent Reading
Reading is a crucial life-long skill needed for all subjects. A child’s ability to read affects them in all subject areas. In our class, we start our day with Sustained Silent Reading. During this time, children read a book of their choice. My only requirement is that it is a “just right” book which means it must be at their appropriate reading level. I ask that after the twenty minutes of reading is over, the students fill out a “Book Note” in their Readers Notebook. A Book Note is a very small blurb telling the main idea of what they just read and one connection or question they had about that section. I love reading the Book Notes because it gives me insight on their thoughts! I believe that silent reading is essential because it is an opportunity to practice the skills that we have learned in class! This time is also when I conference with individual children.
Conferences
Each child is working on their own individual goal that will help them with either comprehension,accuracy, fluency or extending their vocabulary.I conduct individual conferences that allows for a more personal experience.I am able to check on individual growth and coach the children on one target skill. The children and I discuss what their goal will be until our next meeting. We also discuss their strengths! I use The Daily Cafe program by Gail Boushey and Joan Moser to organize my conferences!
Conferences
Each child is working on their own individual goal that will help them with either comprehension,accuracy, fluency or extending their vocabulary.I conduct individual conferences that allows for a more personal experience.I am able to check on individual growth and coach the children on one target skill. The children and I discuss what their goal will be until our next meeting. We also discuss their strengths! I use The Daily Cafe program by Gail Boushey and Joan Moser to organize my conferences!
Readers Notebooks
We use Readers Notebooks to record our thinking, track what we have read and organize reading materials.This idea was adopted by Beth Newingham.
The following link will give you more detailed information about our Readers Notebooks!
Reading Groups
I use Pat Pavelka’s method to manage my Guided Reading groups and Literacy Stations. I have five homogeneous reading groups. Each group is organized by reading level or reading skill. For example, if I have a group struggling with inferring, I may have those students become a group. The groups are flexible and change as individuals move on to higher levels and other skills. Each group is assigned a chapter book and we work on different reading skills as we go through the book. Some groups may be reading the same book but are working of different skills!
While I work with a particular reading group, the rest of the class is working in heterogeneous Literacy Station groups. This means that children of varying ability are grouped together to work collectively at each station. Please see the Literacy Work Station page for more information on our stations!
Pat Pavelka Books - http://huskytrailpress.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=HP&Category_Code=A1
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| Reading Group Selections |
Sticky Notes and Comp Cards
As we read, we use sticky notes and "Comp Cards" (Comprehension cards) to track and record our thinking. Sticky Notes are used to write down connections, predictions, inferences or questions as we read. Children write down what they notice and stick the note directly on the page of the book. Then, we go through the chapter and discuss their sticky notes during Guided Reading time. The Sticky Notes Guide below was created by Wendy Steinman. The children use this guide as a reminder of the types of things they should be thinking about while reading.
Comp cards are something that the kids create with my guidance. Comp Cards serve the same purpose as sticky notes but the children do not have to stop the flow of reading to write down their thoughts. They simply take a premade sticky note, stick it on the page where they had that thought. No stopping to write...just peel, stick and keep reading! Then, we discuss the reasons they put a note on that page during Guided Reading time. Each Comp Card has a section for vocabulary, questions, connections and a characters. We have also added a prediction section to the back.
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| Comp Card: Highlighter tape is used for the vocab. Connection Codes: TT=Text to Text, TW=Text to World, TS= Text to Self |
Book Club
On Fridays, each Guided Reading group in the class is mixed up with children from other Guided Reading groups. They have a relaxed conversation with a warm cup of hot chocolate about the similarities and differences of their books. They discuss the genre, the themes, the main characters and much more! This time is a class favorite…I think it has something to do with the HOT CHOCOLATE and mini marshmallows! I have to thank Kim Powell for this wonderful idea!
Read Aloud
I read aloud to the class every day. The book is always related to the genre that we are studying. We often stop for discussion and do small projects to go along with our read aloud.See the bottom of the home page to see the Read Alouds we have read.
Recommended Books
We have an interactive bulletin board in our room. Whenever a child has read a great book, they recommend it to the class! They write down the title, author, why they liked it, where others can find it and their name. If a student can't find out a book to read, they can refer to the Recommended Book Board!
KEEP READING!!
