Setting the Stage for Guided Reading-Part 3 of 4: Making Time

Image by PIRO4D from Pixabay 

Hello again!  It’s time to look at part 3 of this 4-part series on guided reading.  For this part, we are going to tackle TIME.  No matter what the initiative or practice is, time is always the most cited obstacle to implementation.  Here’s the thing….there is as much time as you make.  I never get lots of “Amen!” and cheers when I say that, but it’s true. In fact, the notion that we don’t have time is one
that we have to train our brains to challenge. 

Instead of “There’s no time for ______.”, I can choose to think “There’s time for _____ if I _______.”  Now, the way I finish that sentence may be uncomfortable-- (There’s time for exercise if I wake up 30 minutes earlier.  There’s time for reading a book if I put my Ipad down. There’s time to write a blog post if I write it before I begin another project.)--but it’s the truth. We all have the same amount of time.  What makes our time productive or unproductive is how we prioritize the activities we do during that time. 

In regard to guided reading, teachers and administrators will often look at their schedules and try to figure out where they can fit in time for guided reading; however, the better approach is to decide when you will do guided reading, then structure your schedule around that.  If guided reading is the heart of your literacy instruction, then make it so.  Instead of  “We didn’t get around to guided reading today because we had to ______.” ask yourself “How can I incorporate ____ into guided reading groups instead of a whole class lesson?” or “While I am working with guided reading groups, how could the other students practice _____?”

For example, in a 90-minute block for language arts, I recommend prioritizing at least 45-60 minutes for guided reading.  If I typically take 30 minutes to work on phonics as a whole group (please don’t) and another 30 for shared reading as a whole group, and 20 minutes to do a error-riddled DOL sentence for grammar practice (again...please don’t), then that only leaves me 10 minutes for writing (not grammar), independent reading, and guided reading. So let’s use our new phrasing and see how we could change this. 

There’s time for guided reading if you do the phonics and word study in small groups instead of as a whole group lesson.  Add about 5-7 minutes on to each guided reading group and make the teacher table a rotation so that every student gets introduced to the concepts.

There’s time for guided reading if you use a more effective grammar approach like Jeff Anderson’s Invitation to Notice protocol outlined in his books Patterns of Power, Everyday Editing, Mechanically Inclined to name a few. This approach not only requires less time but makes a bigger impact. Use the saved time for guided reading.

There’s time for guided reading if you do the “I do” and “We do” portions of a shared reading lesson together and let students to the “You do” portion during literacy stations while you work with guided reading groups.

The point is….there is always a way to do the things you see as valuable.  If you complete the “There’s time for ____ if I ___” statement in a way that makes you think “but I don’t know how to do that…” then guess what? That’s okay!  Now you have something to learn.

If you don’t see how you can teach a lesson in 10 minutes, start searching for videos and information about mini-lessons. If you don’t know what the Jeff Anderson grammar routine is, look it up, watch YouTube videos, go to trainings. If you’re not sure how to do literacy stations, start talking to teachers who seem to have some systems that are working.  Join some Twitter chats, go to the Teaching Channel (www.teachingchannel.org) and scour their videos for glimpses inside real classrooms to see how it can be done. Read some books like Who’s Doing the Work, The Daily Five, and anything Fountas & Pinnell write. 

If time has been your primary obstacle for implementing guided reading in the past, then you may simply need to acquire some new knowledge and skills that will allow you to see and feel comfortable with different options for using your time more efficiently. I’d love to hear how you make time for guided reading and what new knowledge or skills you have had to learn to make it happen.

Setting the Stage for Guided Reading-Part 2 of 4: Essential Supplies

Welcome Back! This is part 2 of a 4-part series on how to get prepared for a successful implementation of guided reading this year.  Last week, we looked at how the design of your classroom can impact your ability to pull groups when the time comes.  This week, we are going to think about materials that need to be readily available in the small group area and some systems to

consider.  After all, it is school supply time, and all of the stores have major sales on these materials right now.  Between Dollar Tree, the Wal-Mart school supply aisles, and the Target Dollar Spot, you can stock your guided reading area with everything you need for under $30. So here’s my essential guided reading supply list:

Baskets/Tubs
I like Dollar Tree for baskets because you can get 2-3 medium plastic tubs for $1, but Target has sturdier tubs in bright colors for about $3 in their dollar spot occasionally.  I suggest getting about 5-6 baskets-or one for each group.  These baskets can hold bulky items (like dry erase boards) and also become browsing boxes. When students have read a book in guided reading groups, put a copy of it in a “browsing box”.  This box can be pulled out when students are waiting for everyone to finish reading or as a way to transition while they wait for all the group members to get to the table.  Personally, I like
labeling baskets with numbers and putting the materials for each group’s lessons for that week in them. That way, when a group comes to the table, I just grab their basket and everything is there.

Binder
When you conduct guided reading groups, you want to take anecdotal notes and be able to reference them easily so that you can make flexible group changes when needed.  Binders are great for keeping everything in one place. I suggest a 1-inch or 1.5 inch binder with the following tabs:

• Class tab-Have the first tab in your binder be a class tab.  This is where you can put class summary data. You might put a class running record chart that shows everyone’s levels at a glance. This is where you might also put a list of your guided reading groups for quick reference. 
• Monthly tabs or Alphabet tabs-After the class tab, create monthly tabs where you can put guided reading plans after you have used them. You could use alphabet tabs instead and put the plans behind the tab related to the level of book that plan was created for.  Then you can easily access them again if you use that book with another group later. 
• Student tabs-Use alphabet tabs or write-on tabs to create a section for each student.  Keep informal anecdotal notes pages and running records that have been done behind the tabs along with samples of student work that reflect growth or need in particular areas. 

Caddy with a handle or Organizer with Plastic Drawers
Having materials within an arm’s reach is crucial if you want the 10-15 minutes you have with students at your table to be used efficiently.  Every time you have to get up and walk to your desk or to another area of the room to get something, time is wasted.  So, make sure to have either a plastic caddy with a handle or an organizer with drawers where you can keep the following:

• Individual Whiteboards
• Dry erase markers & erasers (or tissues/rags)
• Sentence strips or notecards
• Scissors (teacher size)
• Paper
• Pencils
• Sticky notes

Folders
I think the best folders for guided reading are the ones with the brads and pockets.  I like having a different colored folder for each group.  Inside the folder prongs, put individual notes sheets or just plain paper. Put the name of each student in the group on a different piece of paper and use that to take informal running records or anecdotal notes when working with that group. Just make sure to put the date and title of the book they are reading (with the level) so you have some context when you reference the notes later. When you have filled up a page, put it behind the student’s tab in your guided reading binder. In the left-hand folder, put your guided reading lesson plan(s) for that week. Put reading behavior checklists related to that particular reading level in the other pocket for easy access.

Gallon Size Ziploc Bags
I suggest getting at least 2-3 packages of gallon size Ziploc Bags.  Put student names on a bag and use them to send books home. You can put activities or reading goal cards in the bags to help parents know what students are working on or how they can help at home. You can also use them to keep books organized. Put sets of books in a bag and label the bag with the level.  Use a file crate with hanging folders to keep your books in order.

So there you go....my guided reading school supply list.  I'd love to hear what you would add to the list or see pics of how you have organized your guided reading area.

Come back next week to talk about TIME and how to organize your schedule to make sure you have enough of it for guided reading!

Setting the Stage for Guided Reading-Part 1 of 4

Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay 

As the school year begins to peek its head around the corner, I thought I would do a series of blogs for teachers who want to implement guided reading in the coming year. Over the next four weeks, I will be giving tips on ways to prepare before the school year even begins. Guided reading is a tried and true practice, but it takes planning to implement effectively.  So much of that planning has to do with factors other than curriculum and content, so I want to start with how to set the stage for guided reading by designing a classroom environment that will make implementation easier. I will address (1) layout and organization of the classroom, (2)materials to stock up while school supplies are on sale, (3)how to schedule time, (4)and how to slowly introduce routines to students over the first few weeks of school.

So, let’s get started...
The classroom environment is critical for guided reading to be successful.  While a teacher may not begin guided reading groups until a few weeks into the semester (or longer with younger students), her environment sets the stage for what will happen throughout the year.  Before any bulletin board paper goes on the walls, teachers need to think about room design and function.

When someone comes into a well-organized and designed room, he knows exactly the type of activities that go on there.  I’ve walked into classrooms where I didn’t even know it was an English Language Arts class because there weren’t any books! Everything about the environment should reflect its purpose.  A house has rooms with specific functions, and because we know these functions, we can typically navigate a house without much help.  A classroom needs to function in the same way.  It should be logical in its design and function so that students can navigate and monitor themselves within it.  This sets the stage for whether a teacher can even conduct guided reading groups later on.  If the environment is set up to where the students can’t reach any materials, then they will be interrupting groups to ask for help.  So, even though every area of the room may not be used for conducting guided reading groups, it is necessary to think through their use.

There are 4 key areas that teachers need to consider prior to starting the year:

• Whole group area-This area is where the teacher conducts whole group lessons. It may be a carpet area, or it may be where the student desks are.
• Student work area-This is typically the area of the classroom where students sit to engage in whole group lessons or work on assigned activities.
• Small group area-This is the area of the room where the teachers will meet with small groups.
• Independent work areas-These areas may include workstations, classroom libraries, or student desks.  Any area of the room where students may work by themselves or with a partner is included here. 

For each of these areas, it benefits teachers to carefully think about and list what materials will be used in the space(s) and how resources will be stored. In addition, teachers need to plan what systems or procedures will be needed for students to use that area in productive ways. Write these ideas in a notebook and get as detailed as possible.  If you are a chart/table person like me, I’ve created a planning sheet you can download to help with this.

It may help to draw the areas and label where specific materials will go. Think about and outline the procedure or systems students will use for (1)getting materials, (2)going to and from the areas, (3)knowing when an area is on or off limits, (4)cleaning up, (5)what to do if a material is missing, and any other possible thing a student might need to know to function independently. Create visuals that show students what the areas are for and when they are in use. Print or make labels for all materials. The more detailed you can get in your planning, the better.  You may change the procedures as the year progresses, but at least you will have one to start.

As you plan procedures for students, also plan systems for yourself that will help you develop the habits you will need in order to successfully work with groups later. For example, if you have a table in the back of the room covered in papers, that’s not going to be very useful when it’s time to pull a group.  From the beginning, get in the habit of keeping the table cleared off.  Don’t leave at the end of the day unless the table is clutter free. If you have 5 groups, how will you keep their materials separate? Where will you store them? How will you keep notes on the groups?  Think through all of this ahead of time.

When you have your classroom set up, ask a colleague to come in and look around. Ask them to tell you what activities seem like priorities in your room. See if they can locate where things would be. Give them a treasure hunt list and see if they can find all of the items.  If they can, then you have probably labeled everything well and put it in logical places.  If you’ve done this, you've accomplished the first step of setting the stage for guided reading!

Come back next week to find out what materials to stock your guided reading area with and ideas for organizing all the clutter!