I have always believed the time my students and I spend at the small group table is THE most important time of our day. If you have followed my blog for
How I implement and run guided reading and small group in my middle school and upper elementary ELA classrooms
Are you looking for tips and strategies to organize guided reading materials?
Resources, tips, and materials to help you, help children with autism
A three-step process for teaching your students how to identify,
Find out how to create a reading graphic organizers file box to save you time when planning for your reading small groups.
Not sure how to fit in small reading groups? This post shares scheduling strategies and tips for small group reading instruction.
Make guided reading time effective and stress-free. Read about my solution to making guided reading groups and independent reading time rigorous.
HIGH INTEREST TEXT I try my best to choose books that my kiddos will LOVE to read. Scholastic has been my best friend. BONUS POINTS!? DOLLAR BOOKS!? SIX PLEASE! With that said, I’m not a magician or a millionaire. I do my best and use the resources that are available to me. I have found that if I show my kids that I’m excited, they quickly join the club! It is also important to note that it is also equally important that your students have experiences reading boring stuff. Lets face it, that’s life! Choosing a high interest text is especially important for the learner who hasn’t found their love of reading yet. MODELING The most effective way I have found to teach comprehension strategies is to model. I read aloud to students then stop and show my thinking aloud when appropriate. After I am done, we discuss what I did and my thinking as a group. This strategy is especially effective for learners who have a difficult grasping abstract thinking. INTENTIONAL DISCUSSION In a perfect world our students would be leading and actively Click the picture about to get these discussion cards for FREE! engaging in a discussion about their book. Everyone would be excited and critically thinking about the text! That’s the goal…but it is also just that, a GOAL. We have to teach our students HOW to have an intentional discussion about their reading. How can we expect our students to actively engage in intentional discussions if we, the teacher, aren’t contributing?? It is important that you understand what is going on in the text and are able to model during the discussion when appropriate. I have found that most of the modeling I do takes place at the beginning and end of the discussion. INDEPENDENT PRACTICE Click the picture to learn more about my book club packets! At the end of every small group meeting I give an assignment. My students use the writing prompt in their book club packets as their assignment. Each small group meeting is packed full of instruction. This is their opportunity to show me what they have learned. Independent practice is a great way to see who still needs more instruction and practice! This is how I structure my small group reading time! disclaimer: This is how small group instruction looks for me in my classroom. What works for my kiddos may not work for yours. You know your students the best, you are the only one who can decide what is best for them!
I’m SO happy to announce that the Reading Warm-Ups are HERE! Woohoo!! This resource has been on my mind for over a year and I finally get to share it
Need help getting organized for small groups? Learn how easy it is to set up and use a small group reading binder.
The ability to recognize high-frequency sight words is one of the most important indicators of reading success for young learners. Help your students develop
Creating plans for reading small groups can be a daunting task. Read how I plan and prep for the year and week by week for my small group reading lessons.
Guided reading groups are so important. I have always cherished this time to reach a small group of students that are grouped at the same reading level. Not to mention this gives me time to sit down and not be on my feet! I make sure to do small groups EVERY day no matter what. In …
It is that time of year again when teachers are getting their classrooms and students set up and ready for a year of learning. Which means starting Reading
Ten Things for Students to do While You're Teaching Reading Groups: It can be tricky to find activities that will keep them engaged and learning, but not distracting to others. Here are some ideas!
Hi everyone, I'm finally ready to reveal my new guided reading pack and I'm so excited about it! Last year, I made it my mission to improve my guided reading
This whole guided reading beast can feel overwhelming at first. Rest assured friends, it can be conquered! We'll walk through step-by-step so you can easily
I often get questions about how to set up small group lessons in upper elementary. Strategy groups are one framework that can work for a variety of reading skills. Check out this post to learn more.
Activities that boost fluency all year long…and that you only have to prep once!
Learn how to effective track guided reading data to help meet readers where they are and move them forward with powerful reading instruction.
Are you wondering if guided reading can align with the science of reading? Let me show you 4 quick changes you can make to make it work!
Hello Friends~ It's Dianna here with you today to tell you my absolute favorite things about teaching... Small Group Reading Time!!! Yup, all of my years in the classroom this was my favorite time of day & where I felt most effective. Now as a Literacy Coach, I feel most comfortable in other teacher's classrooms when I am with a small group. I just LOVE being able to connect with the students in a small setting. I have some "MUST-DO'S" in my small group meetings: [click on the photo above for your own copy] Here are a few snapshots of some work I did in a 1st Grade Classroom, I have so much fun! I LOVE it! [Sorry in advance for my camera phone pics!] Guided Reading & Writing: At this point in the lesson, we were on our second meeting of the text. After reviewing our high frequency words & content vocabulary during our warm up, the students had a chance to re-read the text before we got into the comprehension piece. They LOVE using the laser fingers! I have a number of "pointers" or "trackers" whatever you prefer to call them, but the kids always go for the laser fingers! You can find them at any store with a party section usually. I've seen them at party stores, Hobby Lobby & more! This photo is of another group, it was also their second meeting with me over the same text. So we started some written comprehension after our warm up activities & re-reading of the text. My Traveling Reading Cart @ School: I love when I get a chance to work with students in the classroom setting! It is therapeutic to me to put my other hats on the shelf & just be a teacher again!
Not sure what the difference is between guided reading group and reading strategy groups? Let's take a quick dive into both and find out!
Small group organization that actually works and keeps your materials at your fingertips. Perfect for guided reading & intervention teachers!
I’m SO happy to announce that the Reading Warm-Ups are HERE! Woohoo!! This resource has been on my mind for over a year and I finally get to share it
Planning your guided literacy time is bout to get so much easier. I get asked a lot about how to tie reading and writing together, while focusing on fluency, comprehension, phonics, vocabulary, writing, etc. I create this resource to get kids excited about reading and writing, and to make planning
Four effective approaches for teaching reading comprehension strategies to 1st, 2nd and 3rd grade students.
Small group lesson plans do not have to take all weekend anymore! Find out how you can take your weekends back!
How do you plan for your small group instruction? Do you follow a program where all students receive the same strategies, or do you customize the interventions you teach to meet the needs of your students? As a Literacy Specialist, my students are placed into flexible, target-specific reading groups based on multiple assessments at the beginning of the year. Our pull-out program is very flexible, so targets and groups often change as students make progress and meet their goals. We do not have a formal reading program for every group, so it's up to each interventionist to determine targets, goals,
Planning small groups at the beginning of the year can be a little overwhelming. There is a lot of data to collect, and then a lot of data to analyze after you’ve gathered it all. How do you approach this time in a thoughtful, organized way, so you can ensure that each child is getting the instructi
Reading Strategy Groups are quick and easy and do not require a lot of work on the teacher's part. Pick your strategy, run copies, gather your students, model, guide and watch your readers blossom! The real reward is seeing your students smile when you say, "Get out your books! It's time for reading!"
I love getting to spend time with a small group of my students,cultivating individualized reading instruction, and supporting their learning.
We also use this fun matching game to review comprehension skills. After reading the short stories a few times, we match them with the picture cards.
This guided reading toolkit is the perfect resource for reviewing skills and strategies during your small group reading lessons.
Subject Science, Winter, Engineering Grade Levels Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th Resource Type Activities, Fun Stuff, GATE File Type PDF (Acrobat) Document File Be sure that you have an application to open this file type before downloading and/or purchasing. 8 MB | 46 pages
Planning for your guided reading groups can be overwhelming. I want to help you streamline your planning and target your instruction. Click here to read more about the 6 essential components to any reading group from kindergarten all the way to fifth grade!
I once had a student cut off HER PONY TAIL while I was leading a small group. If you are a teacher, you might know how this happened. I was leading a reading group and she was “independently” completing a {boring} worksheet at her desk. I learned a serious lesson that day – MAKE A PLAN FOR HOW TO HANDLE THE WHOLE CLASS WHILE LEADING A READING GROUP. Lesson learned. Here are four tips that can
It’s only taken me 3 years since I began creating my leveled Guided Reading passages to do this, but… I finally have binder covers and spines to help keep your guided reading materials organized! These align with all my Guided Reading Passages packs, Level Pre A-Z. I created covers and spines for all Levels A-Z […]
These are 2 FREE Reading Response choice boards that can be used with just about any book! Great for individual use, partners, whole group, homework, reading groups, you name it. Plus you can meet many of your standards with quick activities. One focuses on written responses One focuses on grammar ...
Strategy groups are a highly effective way of grouping your students during Guided Reading. Get tips and resources for simplifying your reading strategy groups.
We also use this fun matching game to review comprehension skills. After reading the short stories a few times, we match them with the picture cards.
I’m SO happy to announce that the Reading Warm-Ups are HERE! Woohoo!! This resource has been on my mind for over a year and I finally get to share it
We also use this fun matching game to review comprehension skills. After reading the short stories a few times, we match them with the picture cards.
Procedures, routines, printables, anchor chart examples, and mentor texts to support reading independence while launching reading workshop.
I use book clubs (also known as literature circles) in all of my guided reading groups. Students love reading chapter books with their peers and they are very low prep for the teacher. The success of your book clubs is tied very closely to the books you choose to read. When the right sets of