Probably the single most important factor
in a child’s initial reading instruction is his
or his teacher. No books, no curriculum, no
computer can replace the enormous value
of good human-to-human teaching.
Think-Along / Think Aloud
 Thinking is the essence of reading!
 Reading is more than just saying words!
 Reading is thinking!
Guided Reading:
Four Blocks Style
 Always focused on comprehension
 Teachers choose the material and purpose
 Students are guided to use reading strategies
 All types of reading materials are used
Guided Reading:
Four Blocks Style
 Teacher driven (Bossy Block)
 Lots of rereading – reading a different way
for a different purpose!
 Arranged this way only because of the other
three blocks as support.
National Reading Panel Research
(December 2000):
 Fluency is one of several critical factors needed
for reading comprehension.
 Fluency is gained by way of two instructional
approaches: guided repeated oral reading and
independent silent reading.
 Both approaches had significant positive impact
on word recognition, fluency, and comprehension
across a range of grade levels.
 Results apply to good readers as well as those
experiencing reading difficulties.
National Reading Panel Research
(December 2000):
 Less than 1/3 of fourth graders are reading
adequately (April 1995)
 Now we know that reading must be taught
systematically and explicitly.
 Research has been systematically analyzed and the
most effective methods for teaching reading skills
have been identified.
 We must have balanced literacy in our classrooms!
 Reading is an enormously complex activity!
 TEACHING READING IS ROCKET SCIENCE!
Four Blocks Research:
 Comprehension is what it’s all about!
 Reading comprehension – and how to teach
it – is probably the area of literacy about
which we have the most knowledge and the
most consensus.
 It is also probably the area that gets the least
attention in the classroom.
Effective Guided Reading:
Three Segments
 Before Reading
 During Reading
 After Reading
Students need to begin
thinking about the text before
they begin reading the text.
This time is brief, leaving the
majority of the time for actual
reading.
(Allington, 2000)
Before Reading:
 Building/Accessing Prior Knowledge
 Connecting to personal experiences
 Developing vocabulary
 Taking a “picture walk”
 Making predictions
 Setting purposes for reading
 Graphic organizer:
– Story map, story frame, story web,
– Lotus, Fishbone, KWL chart
During-Reading Phase
While reading, students must:
 question and monitor what they are
reading and thinking about
 make inferences
 visualize
 continue to make connections
 continue to set predictions
Students need uninterrupted
periods of time to read and think,
so this phase should be the longest
of any Guided Reading lesson.
For every minute spent talking
about reading (including before
and after), students should spend
at least one minute actually
reading.
(Pearson and Fielding, 1991)
During Reading:
 Variations:
– Choral, Echo, Shared Reading
– Partner Reading
– Small, flexible groups
– Three-ring circus
– Book club groups
– ERT
– Sticky note reading
Formats for Grouping Students
during Reading
 Plan for students to participate in various
grouping formats.
 Exemplary teachers were found to teach
lessons to the whole class, to small groups,
and to individual students.
(Pressley, Allington, Wharton-McDonald,
Block, and Morrow, 2001)
 Guided reading formats should vary based
on the purpose of the lesson.
Partner Reading





Carefully assign partners.
Decide how often you need to change partners.
Decide where partners will meet.
Decide how to handle absent partners.
Decide how partners will read each selection.
(Variations in partner reading)
 Make sure partners have a purpose for
reading.
 Set a time limit.
 Provide a “filler” for partners who finish
before the rest of the class.
 Model the expected behavior.
 Be visible.
During Reading:
- Partner Reading
During Reading:
- Partner Reading
 Variations:
– “Take turn days”
– “Ask question days”
– “Sticky note days”
– “You decide days”
Variations
Poster
Formats:
Three- Ring Circus
(Big Blocks p. 108)
 This is a wonderful way to allow students to
read a common selection in the most
efficient way for them. In three- ring circus,
some students read by themselves, some
students read with partners, and some
students read with you. These groups are
not static and change with the reading
selection.
During Reading:
- Three-Ring Circus
During Reading:
Small Flexible Group
Graphic Organizer - first, next, finally
Reading Teams
Think of reading teams of two carefully
selected partnerships making a foursome.
The same concerns apply as with partners.
Each team has an assigned team leader
who ensures that all members
participate.
Teams may also need a recorder or a
speaker.
Formats:
Book Club Groups
(Big Blocks p. 109)
Three to five titles chosen
Titles area connected in some way
Managed choice (book passes)
Groups meet daily to read and
discuss their books
After Reading:
 Teacher helps the children with:
– Discussing the text
– Connecting new knowledge to what they knew
– Following up predictions
– Acting out the story
– Discussing what they have learned and how
they are becoming better readers using
strategies
– Completing the graphic organizer (KWL Chart)
Literate Conversations:
 Increase the number of people with whom
your students can have conversations
through use of “Questioning the Author”
and “Oprah Winfrey” strategies.
“Oprah Winfrey” Strategy
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Several students read the same book.
Teacher plays the role of Oprah (initially) and
interviews them about their lives and roles.
Invite the students to appear on your “show.”
Arrange chairs and welcome them.
Begin with broad questions (tell me a bit about
yourself).
What seemed to be the problem?
Ask others if they agree with her.
You may even ask the audience questions.
Questioning the Author
 We do not just understand what the author is
saying, rather we figure out what the author
means.
 If you have you ever found your students
cannot answer the questions because the
passage “didn’t say!” then you know why
students need their reading guided by a
strategy called “Questioning the Author.”
Planning a QTA Lesson:
 The teacher carefully reads the text and decides:
 what the important ideas are – what problems
students might have with the ideas
 how much of the text to read before stopping for
discussion
 what queries to pose to help students construct
meaning
 The teacher’s job is to pose queries that can help
students use what they know to figure out what the
author means.
 QTA continues with the teacher telling the students
how much to read and posing both initiating and
follow-up queries.
 Figure out what the author means….not just what
he says!
Big Blocks - Variations:
 Bookmarks
 Sticky Notes
 Highlighters
 Read-Cover-Remember-Retell
 Reciprocal Teaching
 Two Word Strategy
 Word Theater
 Good Reader Strategies
Question: What do I do about
worksheets and workbook pages?
 …as little as possible
 Three criteria for a good worksheet…
– Must involve some reading and/or writing
– Majority of my class (75-80%) must be able to
do it
– Students must need work on that skill
Errors and Misunderstandings:
 Teachers express anxiety about their redefined
role.
 Primary purpose is to improve comprehension.
Other Blocks provide an appropriate context for
skills instructions such as phonics, grammar, and
mechanics.
 Round-robin reading is not a part of this model.
 Non-prescriptive – every classroom looks
different.
What we know…
 We know a great deal about how good readers
comprehend, what the comprehension strategies
are and how to teach them. Our job now is to
implement reading comprehension instruction in
every classroom.
 Dr. Lola May…
– “Know your stuff”
– “Know whom you stuff”
– “Stuff them elegantly”