Creating a Community of Readers Through

Creating a Community of Readers Through Reader s Workshop When our vision of community expands to create a culture and climate for thinking (Perkins 1993) when rigor, inquiry, and intimacy become key components of our definition it s essential that we work first to build genuine relationships, establish mutual trust, and create working literate environments. If we look to the months ahead and envision children constructing meaning by spontaneously engaging in thoughtful conversation about books and ideas, asking questions that matter to them and exploring their solutions, and responding independently to a variety of text in meaningful ways, we must be deliberate in September. Debbie Miller

Prior Knowledge: What prior knowledge about comprehension do students need to have before entering this Unit of Study? Definition What is Reader s Workshop? Concepts to Teach What are the important concepts that you will teach within this Unit of Study? Reader s Workshop is a time when students read and practice the reading they are learning. It is a time to enjoy books and learn new information. The teacher confers with students one-on-one and in small group to teach strategies, discuss various aspects of the text, and learn about each student as a reader. 1. What is Reader s Workshop? 2. Assign spots 3. Selling Books 4. Turn and Talk 5. Expectations of behavior 6. Three ways to read 7. Introduce conferring 8. Partner reading 9. Helping your partner 10. Stop and Jot 11. Notebooks 12. Keeping a log of titles and genres 13. Setting Goals 14. Introduce strategy groups 15. Introduce library how is it organized? 16. Choosing just right books 17. How do you take care of books 18. How do you change books 20. Balancing your reading diet 21. Building stamina grades K-2 22. Building stamina grades 3-6 23. Engaging in reading 24. Recommending books 25. Types of books (author, genre, theme) 26. Abandoning books 27. Readers think while they read 28. Readers talk about their thinking with other readers 29. Monitoring for meaning 2

Anchor Charts Classroom Rules and Routines Choosing Just Right Book Genre Characteristics Fix-up strategies for Meaning Ways to Increase the Amount we Read Book Log Chart Classroom Book Recommendations Abandoning Books Ways to Record Thinking Graphic Organizers, Post-its, Journals Post-its Reading Log Reader s Notebook 3

Reader s Workshop Conference Points Why/how did you select that book? How do you know it is a just right book? May I hear you read a section? (Checking fluency) Tell me what is happening in the story right now. How did that happen? What do you think will happen next? Retell what you have read so far. Let s look at what books you have read so far? What types of books (genre) do you tend to read? Have you read any other books by this author? In this series? What is a goal you would like to set for yourself as a reader? How do you get back into the story from yesterday? What do you do when you come to a word you do not know? Do not understand? Why are you not reading? Why are you talking? Are you enjoying this book? Are there any books you would recommend? Why or why not? Let s take a look at your post-it notes. What have you noticed about the amount of reading you are doing? What seems to be in your way when you are reading? (At home or school) Does this book seem to help you to sustain your reading or does it make it more difficult Are there authors, genres or topics you might want to read next? Show me a book you love. Since you love this book, how does that help you choose your next book? What are you reading? How did you choose this book? Are you enjoying this book? Are there any books you would recommend? Let s look at what books you have read so far? What types of books do you tend to read? Have you read any other books by this author? In this series? Why/how did you select that book? How do you know it is a just right book? Retell what you have read so far. Tell me what is happening in the story right now. Can you take me to a tricky word? What do you do when you come to a word you do not know? Do not understand? Were there any places where you needed to STOP and do some reading work? 4

Evidence of Understanding and Independence (Oral and written) Reading Logs Turn and Talk Conversations Students are well matched to books Students are recommending books Library is organized Students know the structure of RW Management issues have decreased Students are working independently Students are enjoying reading Celebrations of Learning Read-a-thon Book Club Tea: All the kids who love Eric Carle sit together and discuss his books Hundreds Day Book Celebration 5

Recommended Model Text for Launching Reader s Workshop Title Author Notes Old Favorites Independent Level Texts for the Class Teacher Favorites Community Building Books for Beginning of Year Poetry Books about topics the class is interested Aunt Chip and the Great Patricia Polacco Love of Books Triple Creek Dam Affair Frederick Leo Lionni Books, thoughts, poetry Giraffes Can t Dance Giles Andrede Learning Goin Someplace Special Patricia McKissack Love of Books My Great Aunt Arizona Gloria Houston Love of Books Harriet, You ll Drive Me Wild Mem Fox Lower Grade - Rules Leo the Late Bloomer Robert Kraus Lower Grade - learning Lilly s Purple Plastic Purse Kevin Henkes Listening -rules Mirette on the High Wire Emily Arnold McCully Importance of PiggyBook Anthony Browne Cleaning up Cynthia Rylant Slower than the Rest (Every Living Thing) Sophie and Sammy s Library Sleepover Judith Caseley Differences in Learning Abilities Love of Books Taking care of books The Story of Ruby Bridges Robert Coles Upper Grade- importance of school Thank You, Mr. Falkner Patricia Polacco Upper grade love of reading 6

Anchor Lesson: 1 What is Reader s Workshop? Pre-assessment Select the Materials Name the Strategy Explain I have noticed that A strategy readers use is Introduce the Text What does it mean to read independently/partner? Ask a few students to share. No text. RW bags with 3-5 books that were selected earlier in the week with teacher guidance. Today we are going to have a very special time in our classroom, Reader s Workshop. Reader s workshop is a time when students read and practice the reading strategies they are learning. It is a time to enjoy books and learn new information. I will confer with you oneon-one to teach strategies, discuss various aspects of the text, and learn about each of you as a reader. Notes to Build Next Lesson There are 3 parts to reader s workshop. The first part is called a focus lesson, which we are having now. During the focus lesson, we will gather together in the meeting area and learn about the ways good readers think and the strategies they use. During the second part of reader s Workshop, we practice our reading by reading. This time is called independent reading. I will also come around and confer with you about your reading. This is a time for me to teach each one of you. At the end of reader s workshop, we will come back together and share something about our reading. Demonstrate the Strategy Say: Think aloud. Show: Model. Explain: How this will Role-play by taking a bag to a spot and by reading through a book or two. Model how you might use the pictures to read the story, or to recall a familiar line. Show students that when you finish reading books, you will read them again 7

help them as a reader. Provide Guided if RW time is not over. Model how to practice so you can read it fluently. When we read every day we learn to love books more and more. Practicing each day also helps us to become strong readers. Give one student an IR bag and have him/her find a spot and show how to sit down and begin reading. Invite the students to practice the strategy with teacher guidance. Provide Independent Remind students before they go off to read, When you go to RW try Today at RW I want you to think about taking your books out of your bag and beginning to read them. This is a quiet time in our classroom to enjoy books and practice reading strategies. When we come back together I will want to hear about a book you enjoyed today, so think about that while you are reading. Conference Points May I hear you read a section? Are you enjoying this book? Why/how did you select that book? Share/Reinforce Who has a book they would like to share with the class? Why did you choose to share that book? 8

Anchor Lesson: 2 Pre-assessment Select the Materials Assign Spots Think about where you like to read when you are at home? Where are you able to concentrate and read? What would work in our room for you? Student book bag or box Notes to Build Next Lesson Name the Strategy Explain I have noticed that A strategy readers use is Introduce the Text Today we are going to have a very special time in our classroom, Reader s workshop. Reader s workshop is a time when students read and practice the reading strategies they are learning. It is a time to enjoy books and learn new information. I will confer with you one-on-one to teach strategies, discuss various aspects of the text, and learn about each of you as a reader. There are 3 parts to Reader s workshop. The first part is called a focus lesson, which we are having now. During the focus lesson, we will gather together in the meeting area and learn about the ways good readers think and the strategies they use. During the second part of reader s workshop, we practice our reading by reading. This is our independent reading time. I will also come around and confer with you about your reading. This is a time for me to teach each one of you. Demonstrate the Strategy Say: Think aloud. Show: Model. Explain: How this will help them as a reader. At the end of reader s workshop, we will come back together and share something about our reading. Role-play by taking a bag to a spot and by reading through a book or two. Model how you might use the pictures to read the story, or to recall a familiar line. Show students that when you finish reading books, you will read them again if RW time is not over. Model how to 9

practice so you can read it fluently. Provide Guided Invite the students to practice the strategy with teacher guidance. When we read every day we learn to love books more and more. Practicing each day also helps us to become strong readers and having a specific reading spot in our classroom will help all of us concentrate Give one student an IR bag and a spot and show how to sit down and begin reading. Provide Independent Remind students before they go off to read, When you go to RW try Today at RW I want you to think about taking your books out of your bag and beginning to read them. This is a quiet time in our classroom to enjoy books and practice reading strategies. When we come back together I will want to hear about a book you enjoyed today, so think about that while you are reading. Assign independent reading spots to all the students and give them time to read. Tell students they will be reading for minutes. Feel the students energy and stop before the students get restless. End within a successful time limit. Consistency is important for learning. Develop management procedures so they become automatic. Each day you want to build the students stamina by gradually increasing the amount of time they spend reading Conference Points May I hear you read a section? Are you enjoying this book? Why/how did you select that book? Why are you not reading? Share/Reinforce Who has a book they would like to share with the class? Why did you choose to share that book? 10

Anchor Lesson: 3 Pre-assessment Select the Materials Selling Books What kinds of books do you like to read and why? Ask a few students to share their thoughts. Texts from the library that represent a range of levels, topic, genres, and authors. Notes to Build Next Lesson Name the Strategy Explain I have noticed that A strategy readers use is Introduce the Text Demonstrate the Strategy Say: Think aloud. Show: Model. Explain: How this will help them as a reader. Provide Guided Invite the students to practice the strategy with teacher guidance. Reader s workshop is a special time because you get to read books that you love. Readers can find books that they enjoy or topics they want to learn about. During RW you will have quiet time to read these books and practice your reading strategies. Today, I have brought some books that I love and want to share with you. Role-play by having a basket of titles to share with the class. Advertise a variety of books and model how good readers talk about text. Be sure to share titles from a variety of reading levels. When we read every day we learn to love books more and more. We will also practice each day and this will help us to become strong readers. Allow students to share a title they love and why they love it Provide Independent Remind students before they go off to read, When you go to RW try Today at RW, I want you to think about taking your books out of your bag and beginning to read them. This is a quiet time in our classroom to enjoy books and practice reading strategies. When we come back together I will want to hear about a book you enjoyed today, so think about that while you are reading. 11

Conference Points May I hear you read a section? Are you enjoying this book? Why/how did you select that book? Why are you not reading? Share/Reinforce Who has a book they would like to share with the class? Why did you choose to share that book? 12

Anchor Lesson: 4 Pre-assessment Select the Materials Name the Strategy Explain. I have noticed that A strategy readers use is Introduce the Text Turn and Talk What do readers talk to other readers about? What do you like to talk to other readers about? Ask a few students to share. No text. Today during reader s workshop we are going to learn how to turn and talk to a partner. When you turn and talk, you will work with an assigned partner and talk about something I ask you to discuss. You will sit knee to-knee and eye-to eye, and really listen when your partner is talking by looking at your partner s face and making eye contact. You and your partner will get a chance to be the listener and the speaker. When we share our thoughts with another person, we can clarify our thinking, expand our thoughts, and help our partner do the same. We will use turn and talk at different times and for different purposes during reader s workshop. Notes to Build Next Lesson Demonstrate the Strategy. Say: Think Aloud. Show: Model. Explain: How this will help them as a reader. I will walk around our circle and assign partnerships by pointing to two people at once. This partner will be the person you will turn and talk to when I say, turn and talk You will keep this partner for this unit of study and then we will change. Role-play with another adult in the room, or with a student, by showing how to sit knee-to-knee and eye-to-eye. Talk about how you are making eye contact and are ready to listen to your partner when they speak. Talk about a specific topic, such as your favorite book, modeling how to ask clarifying questions such as, what is your favorite book? You will have to continually re-teach this to lift the quality of the talk how you talk more, how you expand on another person s thoughts, and how you can agree or disagree with another person and share why (citing evidence from the text). 13

Show how to have a conversation that goes back and forth between partners, with probing questions such as, why is that your favorite book? "What do you think? agreeing or disagreeing with the partner, etc. Model how to turn back to the attention of the teacher by saying, readers by physically turning your body back to the center of the circle. Provide Guided Invite the students to practice the strategy with teacher guidance. Provide Independent Remind students before they go off to read When you go to RW try Have students practice the physical movement of turn and talk and turning back a few times when signaled. Then give students a topic to discuss for a few minutes, reminding both partners to take a turn talking and another turn listening. Have students turn back to the center by signaling them with readers signal. Ask students to think about something they may like to turn and talk to their partner about today after RW. Send students off to read independently, reminding them to practice what they have done for the last few lessons of reader s workshop. Conference Points What are you doing well as a reader today? How is your assigned spot working for you? May I hear you read a section? Why are you talking/ not reading? Share/Reinforce turn and talk again, asking students to share with their partner one thing they did well as a reader during RW today. Review how this helps them as a reader- expand/clarify their thinking, etc. 14

Anchor Lesson: 5 Expectations of Behavior Pre-assessment Select the Materials Name the Strategy. Explain. I have noticed that A strategy readers use is Introduce the Text Turn and talk with a partner about what has been working for you during RW. What hasn t been working so well? No Text. RW Reading Bag Chart Paper Readers practice reading every day- Athletes practice, musicians practice, and readers practice. We practice reading to become the best readers we can be. We need a quiet time in our classroom for all of us to do our reading work. RW is a time to sit quietly and read our books. We all know our spots so we can get to them quickly and quietly. Once reading time begins we should just be reading and thinking about our reading. Let me show you how. Notes to Build Next Lesson Demonstrate the Strategy Say: Think aloud. Show: Model. Explain: How this will help them as a reader. I am going to pretend it is RW time and I am going to show you how I practice reading and think about my reading. I want you to watch me and think about what I am doing and how I am working. After, I am going to ask you to describe what I did. Model: Model moving quickly to an independent reading spot. Sit down, organize your books and begin reading. Demonstrate slowly turning the pages, looking at the picture and reading the words. Once you read the books in the bag, model how you would read them again. Let s make up some rules for RW time to help remind us what we should do during this time in our classroom. Who can tell me what we should see and hear during this time? Make a class chart emphasizing what students should do. Post chart in 15

classroom. During reader s workshop we will Anchor Chart: Classroom Rules and Routines Provide Guided Invite the students to practice the strategy with teacher guidance. Provide Independent Remind students before they go off to read, When you go to RW try Have students generate ideas for class chart on rules. Send one student at a time to model and talk aloud about what he/she is doing. After 3-4 students, try sending 3 kids at once while the rest watch and note what they are doing. You may say what you notice students are doing for clarification for students still on the rug. When you go to RW today, think about how readers practice their reading. Look around and notice what you see and hear. I will ask you periodically to stop and notice and after RW today we will look at our chart and see if our classroom was a good environment for learning. Conference Points May I hear you read a section? Are you enjoying this book? Why/how did you select that book? Why are you not reading? Share/reinforce Let s share some things you noticed today during RW. What did you see? What did you hear? 16

Anchor Lesson: 6 Pre-assessment Three Ways to Read (primary) What are some different ways that you can read a book? Turn and talk to your partner about this question. Notes to Build Next Lesson Select the Materials Name the Strategy Explain I have noticed that A strategy readers use is Introduce the Text Any familiar text or Goldilocks and the Three Bears Readers, today we are going to think about ways that we can read a book. There are three ways to read a book. Authors and illustrators give us lots of clues in a book to help us read. If we can t read most of the words in a book, we can read the pictures. When we read the pictures, we are looking at the details an illustrator chose to put in them to help tell the story. We can also read the words in a book. The author chooses specific words to tell their story, and if we are able to read them, this is another way to read a book. A third way we can read a book is to retell a story that we already know, like Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Let me show you how I can read Goldilocks three different ways. Demonstrate the Strategy Say: Think Aloud. Show: Model. Explain: How this will help them as a reader. First, tell the story, using picture cues from each page, focusing on the sequence of events and important details. When you get to a familiar page, read the words that are known, such as too hot, too cold, and just right. Point out that you are using the words you know to read the story. A third way, retelling the familiar story can be modeled at this time, as well. When we read the story in these ways, it helps us remember the story so that we can share what we know with others. 17

Provide Guided Invite the students to practice the strategy with teacher guidance. Provide Independent Remind students before they go off to read When you go to RW try Give partners familiar books from their book bags or from the classroom library. Ask them to read the pictures, read the words or retell a familiar story. Ask students to think about a way they can read a book or books in their book bags during RW today. Reiterate the 3 ways to read a book, and ask them to choose one way while reading. Conference Points What are you using to read this book today? Are you reading the pictures or the words in this book? Can you retell part of this story to me today? What are you doing well as a reader today? Share/Reinforce Have students share with a turn and talk partner how they read their books today. Have two or three partnerships share what they did well as a reader today during RW. 18

Anchor Lesson: 7 Pre-Assessment Select the Materials Name the Strategy Explain I have noticed that A strategy readers use is Introduce the Text Introduce Conferring What do you know about conferences? Where have you heard that word before? What happens during a conference? Turn and Talk to your partner about these questions. No Text. Independent Reading Bags with 3-5 books Student Volunteer I have noticed that you are all doing a great job practicing your reading and creating an environment where everyone can learn. Today, I want to talk with you about a part of RW -- the conference. A conference is when a teacher works with a student individually or with a partnership. You are all different and sometimes you need me to teach you specific things. This will be my chance to help each of you with the reading work you are doing. Notes to Build Next Lesson We typically think about 1:1 lessons as expensive. If we can meet with more than one student with the same need, we can cut down the expense of the lesson but still meet the needs of students. We want to use our time during RW effectively and efficiently. Demonstrate the Strategy. Say: Think aloud. Show: Model. Explain: How this will help them as a reader. I am going to pretend that it is RW time and I am going to show you what a conference will look like. Jennifer has offered to have a conference with me while you watch. Please watch carefully and notice what Jennifer and I are doing. Model: Demonstrate the structure of a conference (Research, Decide, Teach), your note taking system, and the student s role. What did you notice? So, when I come to you during RW please continue reading until I begin the conference. I will typically begin the conference by asking, What are you working on as a reader? I will not confer with every student every day, but each of you will read with me at least once a week. As the teacher, I have a job to do, and as the student, you have a job to do, too. My job is to listen to you read, take 19

Provide Guided Invite the students to practice the strategy with teacher guidance. notes, and teach you something new about you as a reader. Your job is to share what you have been doing as a reader and to learn something new about yourself. We will also make a goal for you to work on while you continue to read after we are finished conferring. Allow student to ask questions about conferring. Turn and talk about how you can prepare yourself to make the best use of conference time. Provide Independent When you go to RW today, think about your reading and be ready to share with me how your reading is going. Remind students before they go off to read When you go to RW try Conference Points May I hear you read a section? Are you enjoying this book? Why/how did you select that book? Tell me what is happening in the story right now. Retell what you have read so far. What are you working on as a reader? Share/Reinforce Let s share some of the things that happened during the conferences I had today. 20

Anchor Lesson: 8 Partner Reading Pre-assessment Select the Materials Name the Strategy Explain I have noticed that A strategy readers use is Introduce the Text Turn and talk about what partner reading may look like. One picture book per partner Readers, today we are going to talk about another way you may be able to read during reader s workshop. It is called partner reading. You have a turn and talk partner, and at times, you may be asked to read with this partner. When you turn and talk, each of you gets a chance to talk and listen. The same will happen with partner reading. Partner reading can be helpful to readers in many ways. When you read with a partner, you can hear how they may say the words the author wrote, you can help each other with words you may not know, and you can stop and think together about what you have just read. We will use partner reading sometimes during independent reading time in RW. Notes to Build Next Lesson We typically partner for different reasons, so this lesson may be taught multiple times with different purposes in mind. Demonstrate the Strategy Say: Think Aloud. Show: Model. Explain: How this will help them as a reader. Partner with another adult, or with a student in the class. Model how you will sit side by side so that both partners can see the text, and have both partners hold part of the book. Talk about how both of you can see the book completely, and make a plan about who will read and when. In your plan, you will decide who will begin to read, how many pages each partner will read, and when you will stop to talk to each other. Discuss how to stop and chat about what they have read so far, after just a few pages. For example, Let s stop after reading this page, and think about what our purpose for reading is. I think the character is changing (how) and this is my evidence. Think aloud about how the partnership is helping each other. Each of these different ways can be taught in subsequent lessons 21

Provide Guided Invite the students to practice the strategy with teacher guidance. Provide Independent Give each partnership a text that they can read together, making sure it is accessible to both students. Invite one partnership to model how they will sit side by side, make a plan and begin to read. Ask other students to watch how that partnership is working together. Then send the rest of the partnerships off to read together, reminding them to work together, and make a plan about how they will share the reading. Students continue partner reading during RW time. Remind students before they go off to read When you go to RW try Conference Points How is your partner reading going? Did you make a plan together? How are you helping each other? Are you stopping to talk about what you have read? Share/Reinforce Have a couple of partnerships share how partner reading went today. 22

Anchor Lesson: 9 Helping your partner Pre-assessment Select the Materials Name the Strategy Explain I have noticed that A strategy readers use is Introduce the Text Demonstrate the Strategy. Say: Think Aloud. Show: Model. Explain: How this will help them as a reader. Turn and talk to your partner about what you can do when you read together? Pairs of books for each partnership Sometimes when reading with your partner, you or your partner can get to a tricky word that you don t know how to fix, (or someone may read too quickly, or one of you may not understand what you are reading.) Partners can help each other with all of these problems, and become a partner problem solver. Let me show you how my partner and I can be a partner problem solver using the book, The Whales Song by Dyan Sheldon. With another adult or a student, model how a partner can help if the other partner comes to an unknown word. (Ask the partner to sit side by side, listening and watching the words as you read). Let s make a plan. Do you think we should each read a page? Ok. Do you want to read first? Yes. As I start to read, think about what I am doing as a partner problem solver. If I am listening to my partner, and they come to a tricky word they don t know, I can help them by giving them clues that I know. (Ask partner to read the first page correctly but get stuck on the word, peaceful. They can say, I don t know this word. ) I can ask, what would make sense? Or, did you use the picture to help you? Or, is there a part of the word that you know that can help you solve this word? Notes to Build Next Lesson This lesson can be repeated as needed for partners to help with fluency or comprehension. 23

Provide Guided Invite the students to practice the strategy with teacher guidance. Provide Independent Remind students before they go off to read When you go to RW try Write these clues on an anchor chart for student use. Partner says the word peaceful. Ask the partner how they knew that word. Did you see how I was a helpful partner problem solver? Turn and talk to your partner about what you saw me do to help. Display the next page on a document camera or other overhead device. Ask students to read to the word grandmother and pretend they don t know the word. Ask them what they could prompt their partner to try. (What would make sense? Use the picture; try a part of the word.) Encourage them to use the anchor chart to prompt their partner. Have partners switch and read the next page. Highlight the word, perfect as the tricky word. Ask this partner to become the helper and give the same clues as before. Ask students to find a book from one student s book bag to partner read today. Remind students as they go off to partner read during RW today, to be a partner problem solver if their partner needs help. Also remind them that they need to be very good listeners to see if their partner needs help. They should always be thinking about what makes sense in their story. Conference Points Share/Reinforce * Did you need to help your partner today? * What clues are you giving your partner today? Ask a few partnerships to share how they helped each other today during RW. 24

Anchor Lesson: 10 Pre-assessment Select the Materials Name the Strategy Explain I have noticed that A strategy readers use is Introduce the Text Stop and Jot Turn and talk to your partner about how writing important information/your thoughts during RW could help you as a reader. Familiar text (Roger the Jolly Pirate by Brett Helquist), post-it notes pencil Readers who think while they are reading are more likely to remember and enjoy more of what they read. As we read longer or more complicated texts, we may need a way to keep track of our thinking or mark a line in the text instead of waiting until we are finished with a book or a chapter. We will want to write a few important words that will help us to talk to someone else about our thinking. We may even use these notes when we are in a conference with our teacher. Many times readers will make notes in the margins of their books, but if this book isn t yours, you will need a different way to keep track of your thinking. One strategy reader s use is post-it notes. Post it notes can act like the margins on a book. When I write on post-it notes, I want to stop and jot down just a few important words that will remind me about what I want to discuss with someone else. Notes to Build Next Lesson Demonstrate the Strategy. Say: Think Aloud. Show: Model. Explain: How this will help them as a reader. Let me show you a book I have read before that I kept notes in as I read. Use a familiar book you have read with the class before. (Roger the Jolly Pirate) Model how you stop and jot emphasizing how you only wrote a few key words that would remind you about what you read. A variety of ideas can be captured, but if you are working on retelling for example, you can show how you are identifying story elements as you read. 25

For example, the text says, Roger was a lousy pirate. I am writing his name on the sticky note because he is a new character I just met. I am also going to write the word lousy, because it said that he was a lousy pirate. As I keep reading, I am finding other characters such as the Admiral. I am going to write his name down with the word enemy, because on this page it said, there was only one enemy worthy of their scowls. He was known as the Admiral. This is going to help me as a reader because I am keeping track of the characters names, and a word that reminds me of them, but I don t have to write everything I read. Later, if I want to talk about the characters I learned about with another reader or the teacher, I can quickly use my notes to help me. I may also jot notes about what the text makes me think. When I read about how lousy Roger is, I think about the book How I Became a Pirate. I am going to write the connection I made on a post-it note; connection to How Pirate-. For intermediate readers, model how you are keeping track of character change over a text, or evidence from the text for a theme. Using the same text, I can still write the character name, but now I can find some evidence about the character traits the character exhibits. On the second page, the text says, He smiled instead of scowling, grinned instead of growling He always had a yarn to tell or a sea shanty to sing I am going to write just a few words that remind me of the way Jolly Roger was described. I wrote smiled, grinned, told stories, sang songs. These notes are helpful because they give me reminders of what I may want to show another reader about how I keep track of my thinking. Next, model how you would use these notes to talk to a partner. Say, I think at the beginning of the story, Jolly Roger is a lousy pirate because he smiled and grinned, told stories and sang songs, and that isn t what the rest of the pirates on his ship did. This will give my partner (teacher) and I something to discuss when we meet together. 26

Provide Guided Invite the students to practice the strategy with teacher guidance. Provide Independent Remind students before they go off to read When you go to RW try Conference Points Have students work with you as you continue to read the text, stopping now and then to turn and talk to a partner about where they would stop and what they would jot down. As students go off to RW, ask them to use a book they are currently reading to practice stopping and jotting- thinking about what they would focus on and would like to remember to discuss with you or a partner. Are you remembering to stop and jot? What are you keeping track of with your notes? Why did you mark this or write this? Are you writing key words, or are you writing too much? How are these notes helping you as a reader? Share/Reinforce Ask a few students to share some of their notes. Or have students share their notes with a partner, thinking about how they helped them as a reader. 27

Anchor Lesson: 11 Notebooks (grade 3+) Pre-assessment How has the strategy of stopping and jotting helped you as a reader? Turn and talk to a partner about this question. Notes to Build Next Lesson Select the Materials Name the Strategy Explain. I have noticed that A strategy readers use is Introduce the Text Demonstrate the Strategy Say: Think Aloud. Show: Model. Explain: How this will help them as a reader. Student notebooks I have noticed that you have been using sticky notes for a while now, and it seems as if you are ready to use a reader s notebook. A reader s notebook is a place to keep all of your learning and thinking in one place. You will notice that your notebook is organized into sections. These sections have been chosen because they will help you to keep your thoughts and what I teach you during RW and small group instruction separate. We will try out some of these sections over the next few weeks, and then decide which ones work for us and which ones may not be necessary. Let s look at the sections in your notebook to think about where you will keep track of your thinking and learning. Using a document camera or other overhead technology, discuss each section you choose to include in your student s notebooks. Briefly discuss how each will be used. Model how they will continue to stop and jot in some sections- not writing complete sentences. Talk about how you may sometimes give them graphic organizers to copy into their notebooks or may use some sections to teach them a strategy they will be able to refer back to in their notebooks during RW. This lesson may be taught multiple times with different sections of the notebook, depending on how many sections you will introduce to your students. Possible Notebook Sections My thinking Reading Log Small group work Focus Lessons Read Aloud Books I want to read next My goals Vocabulary You will want to choose the sections that make the most sense for your class. You can use as many or as few sections as necessary. 28

Provide Guided Invite the students to practice the strategy with teacher guidance. Provide Independent Remind students before they go off to read When you go to RW try Teach children how to find the section for new learning, and have them draw a T- chart labeling it with answer at the top, evidence in the left column and explanation in the right column. Tell them that this T-chart is something they will continue to refer back to and use while stopping and jotting notes. Discuss the way you would like students to label pages within the my thinking section so that they are able to locate what they record quickly (i.e. Title of book, date, topic, etc.) Have students use the my thinking section while reading today, just like they used sticky notes to stop and jot. Remind them that they will still write important words and not complete sentences to keep track of their thinking. Students will use different sections on different days, depending on your goals for them as readers. This lesson may be repeated as you introduce different sections, and new units of study. This notebook is intended to grow with the students as they develop throughout the year. Conference Points What did you write in your my thinking section today? Are you writing important words or sentences? Show me how you are using your notebook. Share/Reinforce Let s share how you used your notebook today. 29

Anchor Lesson: 12 Pre-assessment Select the Materials Name the Strategy Explain I have noticed that A strategy readers use is Introduce the Text Keeping a log of titles and genres Turn and talk to your partner about the kinds of books you like to read, and why. Independent Reading Bags with 3-5 books Chart of a Book Log I have noticed that some of you are reading lots of books. We want to keep track of the titles of the books you are reading. This way we can see all the practice you have been doing. You choose books to write on your log a week. You may also keep track of how long you read or if you stick with a book which is called stamina, or you may see some patterns or trends in your choice of books. You may read a lot of books by the same author, or books with the same genre. Your log is a great place for you to keep track of yourself as a reader. Notes to Build Next Lesson Demonstrate the Strategy Say: Think aloud. Show: Model. Explain: How this will help them as a reader. I am going to pretend that I need to fill out my book log. Model: Model how you would write the title, author, genre etc. for the books in your IR bag. The log will stay in the IR bag (or in a student s reading notebook) Make a class chart of the log as a model for students to follow. Post chart in classroom. This lesson may also be taught many times depending on the purpose of the log entry. Provide Guided Invite the students to practice the strategy with teacher guidance. Have students look through their IR bag and discuss with a partner a book they will add to their IR log. Have them discuss how recording this data may help them as a reader. Discuss how this may help them to set goals for themselves for their future reading. 30

Provide Independent Remind students before they go off to read, When you go to RW today, write the book(s) you have chosen on your log and include the information that we discussed. Remember to use this chart as a model if you forget what to do. When you go to RW try Conference Points Let s look at what books you have read so far? What types of books do you tend to read? Have you read any other books by this author? In this series? Why/how did you select that book? How do you know it is a just right book? Retell what you have read so far. Tell me what is happening in the story right now. Share/Reinforce Let s share some of the things you noticed about the books you are reading. 31

Independent Reading Log Name: Date Title Pages Read 32

Independent Reading Log Name: Start Date End Date Title/Author Genre Thoughts, comments, connections Anything else? A question? A quote? A Word? 33

Anchor Lesson: 13 Pre-assessment Setting Goals What kinds of goals do you set for yourself when you play a sport? Play a musical instrument? Turn and talk to your partner. Notes to Build Next Lesson Select the Materials Name the Strategy Explain. I have noticed that A strategy readers use is Introduce the Text Demonstrate the Strategy. Say: Think aloud. Show: Model. Explain: How this will help them as a reader. Reader s notebook/ goal sheet When you play a sport, a musical instrument, or a video game, you usually have a goal in mind; something you would like to accomplish or to improve how you play. When you read, you will want to do the same - set a goal for yourself to improve your reading. Today, we are going to think about a place in your reader s notebook to keep track of your goals for reading. We want to set goals based on your needs as a reader. Some readers have trouble sticking with a book, some read just one type of genre and want to try some others, or you may want to use your log to look for patterns in your reading, like reading longer in school than at home. We are going to think about how you can use your book log / goal sheet to set goals based on what you notice about yourself as a reader. Sometimes your teacher may help you set a goal for your reading too, based on what he or she has noticed about your reading and what a good next step would be. After setting these goals, we hope that you will find that you improve your reading. We can also use this section to learn from mistakes that we have made. It is a great place for us to do some reflecting on our learning. Show book log and where you will ask them to keep track of their data. This could be in a standard log section, or in a different goal setting section. Choose the place that makes the most sense for each student. Model how you will look for the book log section to notice something about yourself as a reader. Have data in your log that shows that you have read much of the same This lesson can be taught numerous times with different goals in mind. This may also be taught in small group or through individual conferring. 34

Provide Guided Invite the students to practice the strategy with teacher guidance. type of genre for the last few weeks. Explain that you are thinking that you would like to try reading a different genre because of what you are noticing. Set a goal for yourself to read two books in a different genre before going back to the genre you have been currently reading. Write that goal in the goal section of your notebook. Date the entry and give yourself a time frame to complete this goal. Think aloud about who you could ask to help you achieve this goal. Perhaps there is a student in class who seems to enjoy the new genre you are thinking of, and you make a plan to ask them for recommendations of books to try. Before you begin to read in RW today, think about yourself as a reader. What do you think you may want to try as a reader? Think about what your goal may be, and how you may keep track of it. Tell your partner what you are thinking might be a good goal for you. Provide Independent Remind students before they go off to read Before you begin reading today, please jot a possible goal down in the goal section of your reader s notebook. Remember to date the entry. When you go to RW try Conference Points What are you working on as a reader? Do you have a goal for your reading? What is your goal? How will you keep track of it? How will you know when you have met your goal? Share/Reinforce Have a few students share the goals they created for themselves as readers and where they are going to keep track of the goal. 35

Anchor Lesson: 14 Introduce Strategy Groups Pre-assessment Select the Materials Name the Strategy Explain I have noticed that A strategy readers use is Introduce the Text What is a strategy? How can a strategy help you as a reader? Turn and talk to a partner. Messy sheet/ small group instruction sheet Today we are going to talk about a different way I may confer with students. When I confer with you by yourself, you may have noticed that I teach you something and talk about your goal before I move on to work with another student. Working like this, with just one student at a time can be expensive - just like a one on one ski lesson can be. I can only see a few students during each RW time, and don t get to see all of you as much as I would like to. Sometimes it will make sense to meet with groups of students who have some of the same needs or goals. These are called strategy groups. A strategy group is a group of students who may be working on the same strategy or goal to help them improve their reading. It makes sense to work with those students in a group, so that I can meet more of you in one RW period, and it is less expensive! Notes to Build Next Lesson Let me show you how I have grouped some of you by strategy. Show students your messy sheet, or the organizational plan you use to group your students by need. Discuss how you feel some of them have the same needs, and it would make sense to meet them together in a strategy group. Demonstrate the Strategy. Say: Think Aloud. Show: Model. Explain: How this will help them as a reader. Let me show you how a strategy group may work. Model how you would ask them to come to a certain part of the room together with their IR books and notebooks (grades 3 +). Fishbowl a small group mini-lesson in the middle of your circle, pointing out the similarity in their goal, and how they can get the same information from the lesson to 36

improve their reading. Talk about how knowing others have similar goals may help them to work with other students if they have difficulty when you are not available. Also be sure to let them know that just like when you are conferring individually, your small group is not to be interrupted unless there is an emergency. Provide Guided Invite the students to practice the strategy with teacher guidance. Model one more small group based on need. Be sure to reiterate how this small strategy group will work together until their goal is reached, or because their needs have changed and they will work with a different small strategy group for another goal. Provide Independent Remind students before they go off to read When you go to RW try When you go off to RW, if I call your name to meet in a small strategy group, be sure to come prepared with your IR bag and your notebook. If you are not called to a group, please continue to read independently, and focus on your reading goal. Conference Points What is our goal for this group? What are we working on? How will we know when we reached our goal? Share/Reinforce Have a group of students you work with share how the strategy group worked. Ask students who were not in a strategy group if anything changed for them as a reader today. 37

Anchor Lesson: 15 Pre-assessment Select the Materials Name the Strategy Explain I have noticed that A strategy readers use is Introduce Library- how is it organized? What have you noticed about our classroom library? Turn and talk to a partner. Have students move to library area. I have noticed that some of the books in our library are on the floor or are being put back into the wrong spot. I want to explain to you how our library is organized so that you can find the books you want and put them back in the correct area. This will help keep our books in good shape and help you find the books you want. Notes to Build Next Lesson Introduce the Text Demonstrate the Strategy Say: Think aloud. Show: Model. Explain: How this will help them as a reader. Provide Guided Invite the students to practice the strategy with teacher guidance. Provide Independent Remind students before they go off to read, When you go to RW try Show the students how the library is organized (author, genre, topic, level etc.) Model how you would choose a book and use the organization system to help you. Model how you would put a book back. Have students generate a type of book they would like to find and help them find that book. Give the students a book and have them try to put it back. Have them think aloud the strategies they used to figure out where to put the book. Today at RW take a minute to look at the books in your bag and think about where they would go in our library. Think about what information you used to help you figure out where the book should go. Conference Points May I hear you read a section? Are you enjoying this book? Why/how did you select that book? Where in the library would this book go? How do you know? What type of book is it Share/Reinforce Let s share some of your books and how you determined where they would go in the library 38