Mrs. McGowan: Readers Workshop

Reading and Writing

Our classroom literacy instruction consists of speaking, listening, viewing activities, word study, Readers' Workshop, and Writers' Workshop .

1Word Study

We have oral and written practice with letter sounds/letters, instruction and practice of phonics, spelling, grammar, and handwriting during this time. We are using the McGraw-Hill Reading series for phonics/spelling and some of our shared reading stories. Visit our reading webpages for spelling lists, word wall words, links to student activities, teacher resources, and classroom websites.

Readers' Workshop

During Readers' Workshop, reading instruction takes place with the whole class, small groups, partners, and individual students. Development of reading strategies is the focus of this time. Guided reading in small groups or with individual students utilizes leveled books. During the independent reading portion of the workshop, students read Just Right Books - books they select that can be read without help. Our classroom has a wide variety of books and poems for shared reading, posters, magazines, computer activities, and a teacher who loves reading to children and teaching them about reading!

Structure of our Readers' Workshop

Minilesson

The teacher instructs the whole class on a skill, strategy, or habit that students need to learn and use during independent reading.
A mini-lesson connects to a previous lesson, ongoing unit of study, student work or student experience.
The teaching point is stated clearly and demonstrated or modeled. Students are actively engaged in trying out the skill or strategy, watching a demonstration, or planning work out loud.

Independent Reading

Students independently read Just-Right Books they have previously chosen from the classroom library.

A portion of the time also may be for partners to read together and/or discuss their reading.

The teacher has brief instructional conferences with a few individual students and guided reading with small group(s). The instructional conference between the teacher and student is the cornerstone of the workshop model.

Wrap up/share

This important time is used as a mini-lesson reinforcement, add-on, or to preview a coming lesson. A few students may share a strategy they used in their reading. Some teachers have volunteers sign up for sharing, others select students to share that day.

Shared Reading

Shared reading allows students to participate in reading material that may be beyond their reading levels. The teacher models a reading strategy to the whole class using enlarged text (ex. big books, basal anthology story, morning message on chart paper, Smartboard message). Students all have access to and can interact with the text.

Read Alouds

The teacher reads a selection to the class from a book, magazine, poem or other print material for a specific purpose. It's an opportunity for teachers to model reading fluency and reading/writing strategies. This can be done at any part of the school day:

To begin/end your day - intended for enjoyment
During a reading mini lesson - to model thinking aloud
During a writing mini lesson - to study an author's craft
During other content area subjects to support the content area, teach unique features of expository texts, teach children how to apply comprehension strategies when reading in the content areas.
During a genre study - read many examples of the genre being studied
To introduce an author study - read variety of books by same author
To encourage rich conversations about books - whole group share, Turn and Tell or Think/Pair/Share

4Small Group Reading

GUIDED READING is designed to help students learn how to problem solve increasingly challenging texts with understanding and fluency.

The teacher works with small groups of students reading at similar levels, selects and introduces texts to readers, supports individual students as they read instructional level texts and engages the readers in a discussion after reading.
Students are grouped and regrouped according to ongoing observation and assessment by the teacher.

The amount of support given by the teacher varies with the reading skill of students in a group.

Each child is responsible for problem solving the entire text (or portion of it if reading a longer book) with support from the teacher as needed.

STRATEGY/SKILL GROUP: A group of students who are reading at the same or different levels may work with the teacher on a particular reading strategy or skill.

Reading Conferences:

While the children are reading independently, the teacher provides direct instruction to a group of students (guided reading) or to individual students (conferences). These conferences have a certain structure to be effective. The teacher:

Sits by the child, reviews notes of previous conference, and observes the child as he/she reads.
Begins conference with a comment about an observed strength the child shows - a compliment.
Teaches a skill or strategy that's needed to help improve the child's reading. Just as in a mini-lesson, it's best to decide on one teaching point for a reading conference.
Demonstrates and then has child try to do it.
Compliments the effort and restates the teaching point as a goal for student to work on.
Jots notes for each conference including strength mentioned and new goal.

(adapted from Growing Readers by Kathy Collins)

Writers Workshop

Writers' Workshop has a similar format to Readers' Workshop. It begins with a brief instructional lesson with the whole class, time for students to write, and then ends up with a sharing time. Students are thinking about writing, talking about writing, reading about writing, but mostly... doing the writing during this time! Writing Workshop includes instruction through shared, interactive, or independent writing, writing process, and grammar.

Units of Study for 2008 - 2009

September:	Building Community - Launching Writers' Workshop
October	Writing with Patterns
November	Writing Personal Narratives
December	Writing Personal Narratives and Writing for Readers/Friendly Letter
January	Writing Personal Narratives/Authors as Mentors
February	Writing Personal Narratives/Revision
March	Writing for Readers/Informational Writing: All About & How-To
April	Writing with Patterns/Poetry
May	Writing Personal Narratives/Revision
June	Writing for Readers/Fiction

Structure of our Writers' Workshop

Minilesson

Teacher instructs the whole class on a skill, strategy, or habit that students need to learn and use during independent writing.

Mini-lesson connects to a previous lesson, ongoing unit of study, student work or student experience.

Teaching point is stated clearly and demonstrated or modeled. Students are actively engaged in trying out the skill or strategy, watching a demonstration, or planning work out loud.
* Here's a sample mini-lesson planning page
(from busyteacherscafe.com)

Independent Writing

Students independently write on topic of their own choice. A portion of the time also may be for partners to discuss their writing.
Teacher has brief instructional conferences with a few individual students or group of students.

Wrap up/share

A few students may share a strategy they used in their writing. Some teachers have volunteers sign up for sharing, others select students to share that day.

________________________________________

* Reading Resources * Writing Resources

* Back to Lots About Reading and Writing

* Teachers' Reading and Writing Bookshelf

* Mrs. McGowan's Class