Guided Reading: Matching Effective Strategies to the Literacy Standards (4-8) Kenneth Kunz, Ed.D. Supervisor of Curriculum & Instruction Wall Township Public Schools @DrKennethKunz Maureen Hall, Ed.S. Rutgers Center for Literacy Development

What You Can Expect Today… A Review of the Basic Structure of Guided Reading Ideas for Guided Reading: Some Old, Some New Unpacking standards that are challenging to address within the language arts curriculum Strategies that are interactive and engaging for early readers

Why Focus on Guided Reading? Provides structured, high-impact strategic practices for students who continue to need support past grade 3 Consists of small groups of children with similar skill needs to meet for direct instruction in those skills. Teaches students at their instructional level (Using leveled books) The skills and strategies taught in Guided Reading in the upper grades can be for: comprehension, vocabulary, and writing

The Changing Tides Intentional Planning Responsive Teaching (i.e. honing in on our language) Limited Before Reading Emphasis “I’m not a level __________.” The “Novel Dilemma”-You teach the reader, NOT the novel! The Growth Mindset

Grouping Keep groups small: three to five children. More than five children will not provide the child with enough individual instruction. Most classrooms will have three to five guided reading groups. More than five groups will be challenging to manage. Groups meet for 15 to 20 minutes. Meeting frequency varies: Children below grade level should meet daily, but also need additional intervention Students on or above grade level are fluent…so introduce book clubs and literature circles Intervention does NOT take the place of G.R. in your own classroom. Struggling readers might be met eight or ten times each week. This number includes intervention periods. Advanced children may only meet for a whole lesson once a week, but we can have daily check-ins for their group.

A Quick Way to Determine a Starting Point Using the QRI Examiner Word Lists to Determine Vocabulary/Comprehension Starting Points https://mediazilla.com/gofen5zd5

Known Components: Our Most Important Slide Before Reading (3-5 minutes) Selecting appropriate texts, lesson planning, introducing the text (Optional Warm-Up Activity) Name the strategy being taught During Reading (10 minutes) Students in the upper grades transition to more sustained, silent reading Taking anecdotal notes for one reader Lots of interaction with the readers After Reading (5 minutes) Teaching opportunities (Revisiting the text) Assessing comprehension Review the strategy taught

Planning Template

Anecdotal Note-Taking Form Phonics Fluency Comprehension Teaching Point date If you keep a binder, with one page per student, it will be easy to see each child’s progress at a glance. This form is in your handouts, also.

Take a look at “Teach at the Beach!” A Lesson Example Guided Reading With Fourth Grade: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lvVXt0i-as Take a look at “Teach at the Beach!”

R.L.- A Before Reading Example This book is called… Ants in My Bed. It is about…a young boy from the city who gets to spend time on the beach. You will read today to find out…about his experience building sandcastles. Our strategy will involve…tracking the main character’s problem.

Intermediate Word Nerds! Gram lived in a large, gray ______________ house at the seashore. Jim found most of his seashells after low _______________ after a storm turned up the ocean. He said most of what washed in with the tide was from the early 1900s when people threw glass overboard from ____________. From Ants in My Bed (A Reading A-Z Leveled Text)

Words to Discover! cedar shakes tide steamboats

Let’s Address RL.4.3 …or else! Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., a character’s thoughts, words, or actions). Comprehension Sort : Focusing on Character Cut out and read the six possible character traits related to the main character in the text. Choose two that are a good match. Then, cut out and read the text evidence. Choose two details to match each character trait that you have chosen.

Possible Character Traits It’s not about PARCC… but it’s kind of like PARCC…but it’s not about PARCC! Possible Character Traits immature inquisitive unfocused ridiculous thoughtful challenging

Choose two pieces of text evidence to match your character traits. I had ants in my bed. I went to the town’s library and asked the librarian where I could check out books… I decided I needed to confess to Gram. Jim especially liked to find sea glass, which he collected. I wanted to find the best time for findings sea glass… When I was nine years old I spent the summer with my great-grandmother.

What about informational texts? RI.4.3. Explain events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text, including what happened and why, based on specific information in the text. What does this look like before reading? Fact gathering!

Fact Finding Mission!

After Reading: Conversation Cards Use your facts to discuss the following: These facts are connected because… These are the facts I collected… This fact was introduced first… Then… Next… I have a lingering question about this part of the text…

Resources

Wrap-Up Keep in touch: kunz.kenneth@gmail.com maureenmchall@gmail.com njliteracy@gmail.com