Guided Reading Area Take 2

I am slowly (ok, really slowly) making progress in my classroom!  I seem to tackle a little bit of each area, without fully "swallowing" one are and getting it done, completed, and ready to go!  Perhaps it is because I feel I have accomplished more if I work in more than just one area?  How do you get ready?  Piece by piece until that are is finished or a tad here and a tad there?

Shhh...I did go in to school on Saturday (please don't shake your head too much).  It was raining outside, so I figured my room could use some company.   My Guided Reading area was calling for help, so I did tend to it for about an hour.  I did label more of my book bins and baskets (pictures to come) and leveled more books.  I also got a good start on my Guided Reading folders and binder (data forms, logs, notes, etc....pictures to come).  Before it was time to call it a day, (the storm was brewing like a mean bowl of soup), I put up two pocket charts and organized my Sight Words.

The two pocket charts that I have in my Guided Reading area hold digraphs and beginning/ending consonant blends.  Before beginning with a Guided Reading group I will point to a card and I will have one or a pair of students say the sound and/or key word (a word that starts with that sound).  They can identify more than one; it just depends on the amount of time I have.  They also like speed drills, where they say the sound as fast as they can against another pair of students or me (they love beating me).  I also encourage them to read them as part of reading around the room or during DIRT time (Daily Independent Reading Time).  Many times, a student will ask another peer to read the cards with him/her (they quickly grab my pointer and dramatize playing the role of teacher/student).

I printed the Sight Words-Preprimer to 3rd Grade list on different colors.  I have read that reading black on white can be difficult for certain students.  (those who have Dyslexia and/or sensitivity issues).  I decided to  print them on bold colors.  It also adds a little spice to the typical way of reading the words-by column or list on each leveled black and white page.  My 2nd Graders do seem to like the color bonus!

Tomorrow, I plan to finish labeling my bins and totes and hopefully I will be able to share my completed Guided Reading area with you before I decide to drastically change something...ahhh the joys of preparing for another year!

SMILES,

WISH LIST! Do you have one?

Do you have a Classroom or Teacher Wish List?  (can we ask for a limitless budget or for a pick what you want day at the School Speciality warehouse?)  Joking and dreaming aside, do you let your parents know what your classroom needs are or share your wishes with them at Open House or Back to School Night? 

On my website , I have a link with my Classroom Wish List.  This year I will be updating it to add the following items:  Post-It Flags, Composition Books, Scented Markers, Ink Pads, Copy Paper,  Colored Gel Pens, Medium 1 5/8 inch Binder Clips,  X-ACTO School Pro Electric Sharpener.

Our school has very generous and giving parents.  Each year I am blessed to have a couple parents who grant my wish. They randomly suprise me by leaving a package of Expos on my desk or a suprise in my mailbox!  I hope the same for all of you!

SMILES and feel free to comment with your wishes!

Additional Guided Reading Tools to Share With You!

Maniac Monday or Marvelous Monday-which one is it for you?  For me, a tad of both!  Just a reminder, today is the 2nd to the last day of June-I know, like you needed to be reminded, right?
Today I would like to share with you to more Guided Reading tools that I use with my 2nd Graders.  The first is my 5 Day Guided Reading Plan (I cannot take credit for creating the plan).  I have used this since I implemented Guided Reading (over 10 years ago).  It has been a mainstay in my Guided Reading binder!  The boxes are big enough to write and note comments, suggestions, strategies, interventions, group names, and texts to use!  In the side margins, I also write additional ideas (for instance if I need to additionally monitor one specific students volume or a student's reading rate, etc).  This, by far, is the most effective plan I have found for my needs and my wonderful and growing readers!  Here it is:  5 Day Guided Reading Plan

Do your students know what kind of readers they are?  Do you know your reading style?  Are you a Racing Rabbit, Slightly Confused Turtle, Smart Fox, or a Reflective Owl? Does it matter what you are reading? Do your students reflect on what type of readers they are either before, during, or after they read?  After your have a shared reading or a read-aloud, do you reflect on how you read?  When I have a Guided Reading group or even when  work with one student, I discuss reading styles with them.  I have them tell me what type they feel they are; I feel when my students are able to self-critique their reading styles, I am equipping them to become more reflective, strategic, active, and independent readers. Here it is:  What Kind of Reader are You?   

Have a MARVELOUS Monday! 
Smiles!

Two More Guided Reading Tools!

Happy Thursday...yikes, a few more days and it is August!  Have you been working around the clock in your classroom or are you avoiding your classroom because you fear it will become your second home?

I have been making steady progress in my library and Guided Reading/reading support area.  I'd like to share two tools with you that my students love to use when they are reading (in small group, independently, partner reading or whole group reading).  The first is a reading guide.  This is made from a plastic page protector.  I just took several assorted colored plastic page protectors and cut them in 1 inch strips.  I made sure that the page protector was shut so I had a Reading Guide that would be able to slide down the page and also fold under the following page.  My 2nd Graders love these!  Some had a favorite color, others had me choose a color for them-the element of surprise!  As they read the slide the guide down the page.  Students can use them as a "highlighter" by having the guide go across/over the words or use the guide under the line of words to help their eyes track the words across the line and sentences.

The other tool is a heart pointer!  All students should "heart" reading, right????  My 2nd graders use these as a pointer to help them track their words and stay on the line. I also use these to have them answer my questions.  For instance, point to a word that is a key vocabulary term; point to a word that has a digraph in it; point to a word that has two syllables! 

Hopefully, in the next two weeks my Guided Reading supplies, tools, and materials will be all organized!  More to come, Blog friends!
SMILES

Heart pointer and reading guide (sorry the
pictue is not the best quality)

Lining Up Tips and Strategies to Incoporate CCSS

I am in the thick of the summer school, the home stretch is about to begin-next week to be exact!  In my district summer school is 6 weeks long; today is day 23rd day!  I must say, the students are doing extremely well and enjoying all of their classes.
For my 2nd and 3rd sessions of class we need to use the technology lab; this means, we need to practice lining up quietly and safely; yes safely, many of us seem to have on hyper throttle shoes!  This means I get the wonderful opportunity to reach into my lining up strategies bag and pull out some wonderful ways to line up!
Here are some I use:

• Lining up by the amount of syllables in their first or last names
• Lining up by even and odd amount of letters in first or last names
• Lining up by their favorite ice cream topping
• Lining up by the amount of vowels in their first or last names
• Lining up by their birthday month
• Lining up by the amount of people in their family
• Lining up by their shoe size
• Lining up by their eye color
• Lining up after they have told me the answer to a math fact
• Lining up after they have told me a synonym or antonym to a word I give them
• Lining up after they tell me 3 verbs, nouns, adjectives, etc.
• Lining up after they spell a spelling word
• Lining up after they tell me 5, 10, 100 more than the number I give them
• Lining up after they tell me a city in WI
• Lining up after they tell me a set of homophones
• Lining up after they tell me two rhyming words with the word I give them.
• Lining up after they tell me an asking, telling, command, or an expression sentence
• Lining up after they tell me a fact family statement or a turn around fact and its answer
• Lining up after they tell me a double fact and its answer

What tips/techniques/methods do you use?  Please share!

I Am "Rollin with Happiness"...I Got My Trucker Buddy Information!

Happy Tuesday!  Today is supposed to be cooler- 89 degrees for a high!  I LOVE SUMMER so my lips are sealed-no complaining here!  How is the weather by you?  Two thumbs up or will you be singing like a song bird when fall arrives?
On another train of thought, I received my Trucker Buddy contact information; I am ECSTATIC!  I have already emailed him and await his response.  We have to decide if we want to correspond via Blogging, Emailing, Snail Mail, post cards, or all of these! I also have to decide how I want to display or correspondences in my classroom.  (on a map, using a timeline, etc.)
I can't wait to share our correspondences with you.  I am hoping we get to meet him and see his truck!
Smiles!

Our Trucker Buddy is from Iowa!

Organizing Guided Reading Materials

This morning- yes on a Saturday- I went to school to tackle my Guided Reading Table.  The table was there, but another person walking into the room would have sworn I did not have one; it was that overwhelmed with materials that I needed to reorganize, sift through, and revamp!  This year I am going to have a much smaller class for Literacy (I am teaching 1st and 2nd Grade Science, Math, Social Studies, Technology, and Health).  I will only have 7 2nd graders for Guided Reading so I need to really examine how I am going to do Guided Reading groups and what my Literacy block is going to look like (I know,  I have less than a summer to have this ironed out). I did come across two items that I thought I would share with you that were really helpful last year and will be heavily used this year again.  The first is a Reading Strategies Bookmark  Each student had one that he/she could use and we would talk about the strategies they were using to make them successful 2nd Grade readers!  The second one, Reading and Thinking Strategies Bookmark, assists the reader with word attack skills!  It helps answer the question, What do I do if I can't read a word?  (on the prior link scroll down 3/4 of the page to find the bookmarks).  At the end of the year, I allowed my 2nd Graders to keep them; hopefully they would be friendly reminders to read over the summer!  Once I have my Guided Reading area and Classroom Library done, I will share some pictures with you!  SMILES!!!