Snapshots by Linda Hoyt Chapter 1 and 2 Notes Minilessons & Strategic Reading

What are Minilessons? an effective use of short periods of time for kids with short attention spans focused, strategic instruction followed by immediate practice of a skill or understanding a form of “scaffolding,” leading to independence

How Do I Conduct a Minilesson? Introduce the topic & show them what you want them to do. Demonstrate & think aloud your strategy use. Provide guided practice & feedback. Use partners or teams freeing yourself for those in need of coaching. Encourage independent practice of the target skill in context of a literacy task. Allow time for reflection; teach skills of reflective thinking through discussion.

How Do I Manage These? Document your minilessons within your lesson plans or keep a separate log describing the minilesson and text used. (“Touchstone texts” or books students associate with a particular skill can be useful references throughout the year.) Minilessons may be procedural, strategies/skills, expository or literary.

Teaching Kids to Be Strategic… “Proficient readers are strategic. They monitor their comprehension during reading. They notice when they do or do not understand. They can identify confusing ideas and words, then implement strategies to help themselves deal with the problem. Proficient readers also shift their learning style and speed to meet their purposes (Keene and Zimmerman, 1997; Pearson et al. 1992). Most of all, proficient readers have a rich collection of strategies to draw from as they interact with the varying texts of our world.”

“Developing a Strategic Stance” “Readers need tool belts that are laden with a variety of strategies and a strong inner sense of empowerment with those tools.” pg. 10, Support proficiency in reading (selecting strategies for specific texts) by providing time for observation of “proficient readers applying, using, and sometimes discarding strategies as they are tested.”

Good Reader Strategies to Share with Kids Before Reading: preview the book & activate prior knowledge; understand the task & set a purpose for reading During Reading: adjust predictions, monitor comprehension, apply “fix-up” strategies, use context, visualize, make inferences, etc. After Reading: reflect on learning & strategies, summarize and synthesize