Be a Guided Reading Fashionista
From the desk of Melissa…
Somehow I don’t think this is what Glamour magazine had in mind when they were writing their fashion notes for 2012: cheerful color-blocking (√), colorful camo (√), and metallic basics (√). All the pieces are there, but something still isn’t right.
Have you ever found this to be true in your instruction? You went down your guided reading checklist
- Appropriate Text, Check
- Before the Read, Check
- Set a Purpose, Check
- Conference with students during the read, Check
- After the read discussion, Check
It was all there and yet the lesson fell flat. The magic of guided reading happens when you honor the before, during and after parts of a guided reading lesson but do so with intention! By this point in the year you know so much about your students: reading levels, strategy use or lack thereof, interests and abilities!
Now put that formative assessment information to good use!
Appropriate Text: Yes, I know these students are at a level J but which level J text shall I use. How are they doing with non-fiction text skills? What excites this group? How can I motivate them through text selection?
Before the Read: Students have been listening to me set the book up for them all year. Could I assign each student a page and have them skim for a word they don’t know for us to cover as introductory vocabulary for this text?
Set A Purpose: Today let’s read to … Again you have modeled this all year. Ask students to brainstorm a purpose for reading today’s text after you have given them your introduction. This a great time to see if they really understand a purpose for reading and see if they can apply it across texts!
Conference with Students: By this point in the year you could probably look at most pages of text and point out what word level errors your students will make. Focus your praise on the strategies you see them using well so that keep them in their effective reading toolkit! Start thinking about next year and how you can build these skills throughout the year. Are there modifications you can make to your literacy centers or stations to address these needs?
After the Read Discussion: Common Core is coming!!! Let your students practice leading discussions on their own. Posing questions, sharing interpretations and looking at the text closely. Again, you have modeled this all year, step back and watch them take off!
We know what’s in fashion this time of year—test results, so use what we know works and let all the pieces of guided reading work their magic for you and your students!