I have been working with schools lately regarding Guided Reading, and one principal asked me to put together a list of tips (basically reminders) for teachers who are implementing Guided Reading. Teachers were so grateful; I thought I might share it with others. Below is my list!
- Guided Reading is the heart of Reading Instruction. It is the time where students apply all the reading strategies taught throughout the literacy block.
- Students should be reading independently most of the time during Guided Reading, while teachers monitor and make notations of reading behaviors.
- An instructional leveled text is a text that students can read with 90% to 94% accuracy. Any percentage below that is frustrational level. Students reading 95% accuracy or higher are reading on an independent level.
- Running Records and observations of reading behaviors help teachers determine when students are ready to move to the next level.
- Running Records should be taken on leveled texts recently read in Guided Reading. Conducting Running Records on each student weekly allows the teacher to make necessary instructional decisions regularly.
- Students access fiction and nonfiction texts differently. Nonfiction is more difficult due to the text features such as captions, tables, graphs, maps, etc. Students need many opportunities for application of strategies with nonfiction.
- Selecting an appropriate leveled text plays a vital role in reading instruction. Teachers must determine the purpose or focus of the lesson based on the needs of students. Students’ needs are always first priority.
- For longer texts, teachers should give an introduction to the section of text being read that day. A discussion should always follow the reading in order to assess comprehension.
- Meeting with all reading groups daily is definitely ideal. However, that may not be possible. Schedule your groups throughout the week, making sure that struggling readers meet daily. Students on grade level could meet three times a week, while students above grade level could meet twice a week.
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