Guided Reading and Literacy Centers Sept. 3, 2008 Complied and facilitated by K. Machuca Did you get your ticket?

Has This Happened To You? How many times have you been reading along in a novel or informational article and realized that you didn’t have any idea of what the author was trying to say? How many times have you tried to figure out the meaning of a new word in an article and realized that you didn’t know what it meant in a particular situation? -Mary Rogers Rose, 2001

Reading At one time or another, all readers have experiences in which they do not understand a text. Effective readers attempt to understand by using a variety of strategies such as rereading, reading on, asking questions, forming images, or seeking help from another source. Reading comprehension involves both the process and product of reading (Fountas and Pinnell, 1996). Comprehension is intense, active work between the reader and the text, and it requires the full concentration of the reader. (Mary Rogers Rose, 2001)

School Year Per Ms. Alcantara’s letter, we will be focusing on reading comprehension. DRA (Diagnostic Reading Assessment) will be for grades 1-6. Grades 4-6 began last year. Guided Reading and Centers have been scheduled into the reading programs this year at all grade levels to assist with reading comprehension. Reading comprehension and fluency walk hand in hand together so we will collaborate on increasing those two skills together.

So What Are We Going To Do Today? Our discussions today will include Guided Reading, Literacy Centers, and Grouping. Please share your experience throughout the session. Your experience is extremely valuable!

Reading Comprehension Via Guided Reading When you hear the words “Guided Reading” or “Literacy Centers”, what comes to your mind?

Guided Reading Courtesy of Newton School District K-12

I have to do WHAT?! One hour, 20+ students, different reading groups, several centers, and one teacher! Yikes! Where do you start? What thoughts come to mind? What are your concerns? What has worked for you in the past? If you have implemented this in the past, what improvements do you want to make this year? Don’t Stress! With teamwork, this will be as easy as apple pie…

Slow and Steady Day 1: Introduce a center to the whole class and have students create or make what the center is expected to do. Model what you want them to do. Day 2: Introduce another center just like Day 1. Day 3: ½ the class does center 1 and the other ½ of the class does center 2 for about 10 minutes then they rotate with a signal that you determine to the other center. Day 4: Introduce a new center. Model… Day 5: Divide centers to a 1/3 of the class and rotate like Day 3.

Slow and Steady Continues Day 6: Introduce center 4. Model… Day 7: Put students into groups of 4 and distribute the 4 centers. As the students engage in the centers, this gives you a chance to monitor how it’s going (behavior, access to supplies, following directions, etc.) Here is your opportunity to tweak what needs to be addressed before moving forward with Guided Reading. Have a wrap up session at the end to provide positive feedback to students and demonstrate improvements that need to be made if necessary. Day 8: Distribute centers again with any changes that needed to be made. Again, provide positive feedback to students.

When to Begin Guided Reading If you think your students are ready, begin Guided Reading the next day. If not, continue with the practice sessions for another few days. You’ll be happy you gave them more practice to avoid problems later…

Problems As you conduct your Guided Reading/Centers, situations will arise like: behavior issues, distracting students, off-task students, etc. How do we address those issues? As they arise, we will be able to collaborate with each other at grade level meetings, staff meetings, and follow up gatherings to this one.

Grouping Let’s share how we could group your students…

Simple and Meaningful Centers To Get Started… Read the Room: Students use pointers to read words around the room and they write the words on paper. (visual, tactile, and written) Poetry center: Poem of the Day can be reread, put back in order, writing extension. Great to encourage Fluency! File folders: Word work Picture This: Picture Prompt writing/ drawing for the emergent writers. Listening Center/Technology: Listen to a story with headsets; interact with meaningful websites.

Management of Time Although you have an hour, plan for 40 minutes of instruction/centers in the beginning. This allows you time to walk around the room in between changes of groups and monitor progress, address any concerns, and provide positive feedback to groups.

Sample of Schedule in the Beginning 5 min: Review Guided Reading rules; review location of centers; give the student who requires extra incentive to stay on task a boost of reinforcement. 10 min: 1 st Guided Reading group 3 min: Rotation to next center. 10 min: 2 nd Guided Reading group 3 min: Rotation to next center. 10 min: 3 rd Guided Reading group 3 min: Rotation to next center. 10 min: 4 th Guided Reading group 5 min: Clean up and provide positive feedback to students who were on task during center time. Total Time with Guided Reading groups: 40 min. Total Time with review, transitions, and clean up: 19 min. Total Time: 59 minutes! You have an extra minute to take a deep breath and know that you DID IT!!!!

Management of Groups Group AGroup BGroup CGroup D Read the Room Guided Reading Poetry Center File Folders Guided Reading Poetry Center File Folders Read the Room File Folders Read the Room Guided Reading Poetry Center File Folders Read the Room Guided Reading

Add to Centers as the Year Progresses Group AGroup BGroup CGroup D Read the Room Guided Reading Poetry Center File Folders Guided Reading Listening Center File Folders Read the Room Listening Center Read the Room Listening Center Poetry Center File Folders Read the Room Guided Reading File Folders Poetry Center Guided Reading Listening Center

Centers are Moving…Now About that Comprehension… What Students Need to Learn How to read both and expository texts How to understand and remember what they read How to relate their own knowledge or experiences to. How to use comprehension strategies to improve their comprehension How to communicate with others about what they read How We Teach It Explicitly comprehension strategies, such as previewing and summarizing text Provide comprehension instruction before, during, and after reading narrative and expository texts Promote thinking and extended discourse by asking questions and encouraging student questions and discussions Provide extended opportunities for English language learners to participate Use classroom-based instructional assessment to inform instruction (Sandy Garrett, Ok State Dept. of Ed.)

Your Time With Your Reading Groups What does a reading session look like? What has been your experience? Use of the Chapter books is a good starting point.

Make and Take Time! To start us off, we will have the opportunity to make a few centers for students that will increase their word recognition which will increase their fluency and avoid interrupting their comprehension skills.

Ready…Set…Grow! We will have more opportunities to grow with this program throughout the school year and expand our expertise to increase reading comprehension with our students. What items shared today will you incorporate? What works for you?

Thank You! I appreciate your attention and input today! Looking forward to collaborating with you to make this a very special school year!

Questions or Concerns Come Up After This Session? If you have any questions or concerns, please let me know and I will assist you anyway that I can. If I don’t know the answer, I will find someone who can! Room 27