Molly Flynn

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/This website offers fun educational games that encourage creative learning and investigation

• Whole group instruction
• Small group instruction
• Classroom library
• Word wall
• Literacy stations
• Writers workshop

Whole Group
A balanced literacy approach for whole group instruction should include:
• Defined area for whole group meeting
• Post-it notes
• Teacher chair
• Big books
• Easel
• Read aloud books
• Chart paper
• Sentence strips
• Teacher white board
• Correction tape
• Markers
• Reading pointer
• Places to display anchor charts from
• Lessons
• Pocket charts
• Carpet
• Magnetic letters organized on a cookie
12 sheet or in a tackle box

Small Group
A balanced literacy approach for small group instruction should include:
• Defined area for small groups
• Familiar texts
• Leveled books
• Organized magnetic letters on a cookie sheet or in a tackle box
• magnetic letters
• Conversation tips chart
• White boards
• White board markers
• Teacher conference folder (or other documentation system) example: tabbed notebook, index cards, individual notepads
• Group management chart of students and the schedule of when each group is seen
• Guided reading lesson plans
• Post its
• Chart paper /markers

"I have always imagined that paradise will be a kind of library."
— Jorge Luis Borges
A classroom library should include:
• Sorted and labeled baskets of books example: reading level, content area, genre, and author
• Library checkout system for bringing books home (defined and posted)
• Designated place to showcase new books, familiar read alouds, or class favorites
• Library shopping times (defined and posted)
• Library shopping procedures (defined and posted) “Choosing just right books”
• Book bags or book boxes for each student
• All library books and baskets organized in one general area

Word walls are words posted on a classroom wall that students can refer to while they are writing and during word study.
A well developed word wall includes:
• Uninterrupted space to fit A-Z or two stacked horizontal rows of A-N and M-Z
• Environmental print
• Words are large enough for every student to see from their desk
• Displayed at student eye-level
• All words are written in black

Literacy stations have meaningful activities that students can use in small groups.
Literacy stations should include the following:
• all materials organized and clearly labeled
• book baskets at each station for early finishers
• work board with student names and pictures
(icons) for management and rotation
• labeled stations with expectations and rules

Writers workshop is a writing strategy that can build students' fluency in writing through exposure to the process of writing.
Writing Workshops should include the following:
• All materials organized and clearly labeled
• Clipboards
• 6 Trait / Writing Process Anchor Charts
• Spider legs (notebook paper cut into strips)
• Writer’s notebook (for collecting ideas)
• Tape
• Writing portfolio (for storing published work)
• Stapler
• Writing folders (for work in progress)
• Scissors
• Teacher conference folder (or other documentation system) example: tabbed notebook, index cards, individual notepads
• Thesauruses
• Places to display anchor charts from lessons
• Spelling dictionaries
• Genre Characteristics Chart (evidence of current study)
• Map pencils or colored pens (for editing)

• Mini-lessons focus on a specific point and are 5-20 minutes long
• They can be conducted as a whole-group, small-group, or individual
• Mini-lesson Steps
1. Model- display what you want the children to do
2. Active engagement- can range from hands-on experience to discussing with a partner
3. Sharing- have the students share what they learned

• During the first two weeks teachers:
– demonstrate literacy procedures
– explicitly explain classroom routines
– explain how to provide feedback to a classmates writing
– explain how to participate in a grand conversation
– model ways to interact with classmates
– discuss classroom rules and expectations
• The classroom environment is predictable

• Phonics
• Spelling
• Vocabulary
http://www.teach-nology.com/teachers/lesson_plans/language_arts/phonics/-
This website includes many phonics lesson plans for teachers

A child’s understanding that speech is composed of individual sounds
Cueing Systems
Phonological System- The sound system in English
-44 sounds and over 500 spellings Cueing
Systems
Syntactic System- The structural system in English that governs how words are combined into sentences.
Semantic System- The meaning system of
English
- Focuses on vocabulary
Pragmatic System- The system of English that varies language according to social and cultural uses.
"To learn to read is to light a fire; every syllable that is spelled out is a spark."
— Victor Hugo, Les Miserables

• Sound Matching - the teacher brings in objects that contain a certain sound and the children identify the common sound
• Sound Isolation - the teacher says a word and the children identify the beginning, middle, or ending sound
• Sound Blending - the teacher exaggerates each sound in a word and the children guess the word
• Sound Addition/Substitution - apples and bananas song
• Sound Segmentation - children exaggerate the each sound in a word

• Decoding Strategies - using phonic and morphemic analysis to identify challenging words
• Word-Learning Strategies - analyzing word parts to identify the meaning of words

• Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early
Literacy Skills
• Phonological Awareness Literacy
Screening System: Rhyme Awareness and Beginning Sound Subtests
• Test of Phonological Awareness
• Yopp-Singer Test of Phonemic
Segmentation

“Student spelling errors are an invaluable source of information for teachers” Piaget
• Student’s early spellings are based on what they know about phoneme-grapheme relationships, phonics rules, and spelling patterns
• Guidelines for teaching spelling-
– Analyze students errors
– Connect phonemic awareness, phonics, and spelling during minilessons
– Encourage students to use spelling strategies
– Teach students high-frequency words before less common words
– Post words on a word wall
– Include students in hands on spelling activities
– Involve students in authentic reading and writing activities
• Alternative Spelling Program - rather than the teacher telling it is pupil discovery

http://www.kidsspell.com/-
This website has spelling games for children
• Word Ladders - a game where students change one word to another word by changing a letter in each step
• Word Sorts - Teachers choose categories for a list of words, and students examine and categorize each word
• Making Words -teachers select words from a book that contain certain spelling or phonics patterns for the students to study
• Spelling Strategies -
– Limit the number of words to be learned at one time
– Teach word families
– Point out syllables
– Analyze phonemes
– Provide review
– See the word, say the word, write the word in the air, see the word in your mind, write the word on paper, and compare the word

Word Ladder Word Sort
Teacher Says:
Begin with the word cat
Change the vowel to form another word for bed, sometimes the kind of bed you sleep in when you’re camping
Students write: cat cot
Change one letter to form a word that means “a tiny round mark.”
Change the final consonant to make a word that goes with the first word, cat dot dog

• Informal Assessment -
– Examine misspelled words in writing compositions
– Classify students spelling errors according to the stages of spelling development
– Examine misspellings on weekly spelling tests
• Formal Assessment -
– Developmental Spelling Analysis
– Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening
System: Spelling Subtest
– Qualitative Spelling Inventory

• Vocabulary- the stock of words used by or known to a particular people or group of persons
• Guidelines for teaching vocabulary -
– Choose key words from books and thematic units
– Assign word study activities
– Teach mini-lessons about the meanings of words, vocabulary concepts, and word-learning strategies
– Provide independent reading time
– Teach word learning strategies http://www.inklesstales.com/games/makeaword/index.shtmlThis website gives students a word and they to make as many words out of the original word as possible

• Word Posters - students choose a word, they use the word in a sentence
• Word Maps - students make a diagram and put a vocabulary word in the middle of the diagram, they draw spokes from the the word
• Possible Sentences - students examine the cover, picture, and title of an unfamiliar book and they create sentences that may appear in the book using vocabulary words
• Dramatizing Words - a student chooses a vocabulary word and tries to get the class to guess the word by acting the word out
• Word Sorts - students sort words under a certain category
• Word Chains - students choose a word and think up of 3-4 other related words and
Semantic Feature Analysis teacher makes a grid with vocabulary words on the vertical side and categories on the horizontal top side. Students complete the grid by determining if there is a relationship between each item on the horizontal and vertical sides.
Example

• Informal Assessment -
– Observations
– Conferences
– Rubrics
– Cloze Procedure- teachers choose a passage from a book that the student is familiar with and deletes every fifth word in the passage
– Quickwrite- students write on a given topic or question for 5-10 minutes without stopping or correcting errors
• Formal Assessment -
– Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-4
– Expressive Vocabulary Test-2
– Informal Reading Inventories

• Prereading -activate prior knowledge
• Reading - read the text while applying reading strategies
• Responding - write in reading logs and participate in grand conversations
• Exploring - reread parts of the text, learn vocabulary words, and participate in a mini lesson
• Applying - read related books, construct projects, and evaluate the reading experience

• KWL Charts- children list what they know under the K column, they list what they want to know or need to know under the W column, and they list what they learned under the L column.
• Preview Texts- look at pictures, headings, and titles.
• Think-Pair-Share- students write down their predictions or what they already know about the topic and share it with a partner. Each pair then shares with the whole class.
Example

• Independent Reading Level - the student can recognize the words in a text with
95% or more accuracy
• Instructional Level - the student can recognize the words in a text with about
90% accuracy
• Frustration Level - the student recognizes fewer than 90% of the words in a text
Five finger rule- students read the first few pages of a book and put a finger up each time they do not know a word, if 2-3 fingers go up they found the “just right” book, if 5 fingers go up the book is too difficult

"Reading aloud with children is known to be the single most important activity for building the knowledge and skills they will eventually require for learning to read."
— Marilyn Jager Adams
• Modeled Reading -
– The teacher reads aloud with fluency and expression
• Shared Reading -
– The teacher reads and rereads a book aloud to the students that they could not read independently. The first time reading is for the students enjoyment, the next few readings the teacher brings the children's attention towards comprehension, interesting sentences, and concepts about print, and during the last reading students decode certain words.
• Interactive Read-aloud
– the teacher chooses a book at the students instructional level, they are usually award winning books.
– Teachers read the book to themselves and decide where it would be appropriate to ask the students questions.
– The teacher activates students prior knowledge.
– The teacher then reads the book out loud and engages the students in the book.
– Students then participate in after-reading activities, such as a discussion on the book or a writing prompt.
• Independent Reading -
– students read books that they self-selected. Students and teachers have conferences to monitor the students progress and comprehension

• Guided Reading
• Basal Program
• Literature Circles
• Literature Focus Units
• Reading Workshop
"Teaching reading
IS rocket science."
— Louisa Moats

• Guided reading is instruction given to a small group of students who read on about the same level. Older students read the book silently at their own pace, and emergent readers may mumble the words at their own pace.
• Based on observation and assessment.
• 15-25 minutes a day.
• Each child has the same book that is at their instructional level

• A commercial reading program
• Depict different cultures
• Components of a Basal Reading Program include selections in grade level text books, workbook assignments, independent reading opportunities, and instruction about decoding and comprehension strategies and skills

• Literature Circles are a small studentled book discussion groups that meet regularly in the classroom
• Students choose the books and form a temporary group
• They read and discuss the book
• Sometimes the teacher meets with the group

Literature Circle Discussion Groups
• Have students stick post-it notes to mark what they want to remember, while they are reading
• Assign each student a different story element to discuss
• Round Robin- students respond to a question, situation, or problem. One person responds with one answer, then each student has the opportunity to add to the others answer
• Sentence starters- design sentence starters such as I doubt, I feel, I predict, I like, ect.
• Tracking how many times each person spoke
– use a ball of yarn
– have the first speaker tape the end of the yarn onto the table
– once that person is finished speaking they will roll it to the next speaker
– they will then tape apart of the yarn onto the table
– after the session is over, you will know how many times each person spoke

• Teacher and students read and respond to a book together.
• The books are chosen for the appropriate grade level and interests of the students
• If the book is above a students instructional level then the teacher will read it aloud or use shared reading
• Students create projects afterwards

• Students choose books to read independently and respond to them independently
• Teachers conduct conferences with students about their work
• Teachers teach mini-lessons on strategies and skills
• Students can share there readings with the classmates

• Explain behavior expectations and be clear on directions
• Create a whole-class self-monitoring system
– Set a timer and have students count how many pages they have read or questions they have answered during that time frame
– Give students a paper with pictures of children on task, every five minutes (or whatever time interval is appropriate for their grade level) have students check yes if they are displaying this behavior and no if they are not
• Seat students who may be tempted to goof off together in separate areas of the classroom
• Use effective praise and implement consequences
• Teach time management
• Use engaging materials that have real-world connections

Echo reading - a leader reads each line and the groups repeats it
Story Boards - teachers make story boards by gluing a picture from the book on one side with the corresponding text on the other side, children then arrange the story in the correct order
Sketch to Stretch -students draw pictures about what a book meant to them, focusing on the theme of the story
Readers Theatre - students are assigned a character and each character reads and rereads their lines until they are memorized, and they perform the play to their class
Hot Seat - students “act” the part of a character in a story or biography and they sit in the “hot seat” while the rest of the class interviews them
Open-Mind Portraits - students draw a picture of a character on the first page and write several pages on what the character was thinking during the main parts of the book

• Should be identified in kindergarten or first grade
• Teach the meanings of 8-10 words a week
• Teach struggling readers to use comprehension strategies
• Teach students to become strategic readers by thinking aloud during teaching instruction http://pbskids.org/itsmylife/games/mortifying/index.htmlThis website is an interactive game where you read a short passage and choose on of two things to happen next. This gives striving children choices and will help motivate them.

• Comprehension Strategies - using predicting, drawing inferences, and visualizing, to understand what they are reading
• Study Strategies - taking notes and asking questions when they are reading text books
• Word-Learning Strategies - students analyze parts of words to figure out unfamiliar words
• Decoding Strategies - students using phonics and morphemic analysis to identify unfamiliar words

• DRA- Developmental Reading Assessment
– an assessment kit for K-3
– has 44 small paperback books arranged from K-5 th grade reading level
• IRI- Informal Reading Inventory
- the examiner chooses about 100 words from a series of graded reading levels
- the student reads the words aloud while the teacher records their errors
• Running Records
– teachers observe a student while they read aloud
– they calculate the percentage of errors and analyze the errors

Guidelines for Using Content-Area Textbooks
• Teach students about the conventions of text books
• Have students make up questions before reading each section of a chapter and then read to find the answers
• Introduce key terms before reading
• Remind students to focus and take notes on the main idea
• Have students complete graphic organizers and other visuals
• Include small-group activities
• Encourage students to monitor their reading
• Create text sets
• Use listen-read-discuss format when textbooks are to challenging

“Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing.”
- Benjamin Franklin http://www.teachers.ash.org.au/jeather/writingfun/writingfun.htmlThis website is an interactive tool that develops childrens writing skills by identifying the parts and processes of different types of writing

• Choose a topic
• Find a purpose for writing
• Identify the genre that the writing will take place
• Gather ideas through brain storming, internet research, drawing pictures, ect.
• Prewriting Strategies -Thinking up ideas and organize thoughts in a graphic organizer

• Students write down their ideas and write a rough draft during this stage.
• Students skip every other line to allow space for revisions.
• Drafting Strategies - Narrowing down the topic and explaining examples.

“The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug.”
-Mark Twain
• Rereading the rough draft, sharing their writing in groups, and revising based on the feedback they received from others. They may have a conference with the teacher.
• Students meet in writing groups when they share their writing. Students in writing groups offer the writer compliments and suggestions on word choice, sentence structure, sequence, organization, ideas, ect..
• Revising Strategies - rereading, looking for problems, combining sentences, choosing more accurate words, and expanding on ideas.

• Students proofread and correct grammar and spelling.
• The editing process turns out better if a student waits several days after they have made their revisions. Students may have a conference with the teacher.
• Editing Strategies -proofreading

• Students write final copies.
• Students share their writing with others.
• Publishing motivates students to continue writing and improves their writing skills.
• Publishing Strategies - designing the layout and reading with expression

Types of Writing Literacy
Instruction
• Modeled Writing
• Shared Writing
• Interactive Writing
• Guided Writing
• Independent Writing

• Modeled Writing -Teacher writes in front of the students
• Shared Writing -Teacher and students create the text together; the teacher does the actual writing, but the students may assist the teacher
• Interactive Writing -Teacher and students create the text and write the text together
• Guided Writing-The teacher creates a lesson on a writing technique and students do activities; teachers monitor the students during the activities
• Independent Writing -Students use the writing process to create their own stories or other types of writing; teachers monitor students progress.

Writing Groups -students meet in groups during the revising stage of the writing process to share their rough drafts and get feedback from their peers
Quickwriting - students explore a topic or respond to a question by writing non-stop for 5-10 minutes and do not worry about errors
Language Experience Approach - the teacher models how written language works by the student telling the teacher about an experience and the teacher writes what the student is saying http://www.randomhouse.com/kids/magictreehouse/club.htmlThis website gives mini-lessons with characters from the Magic Tree House books. It teaches children about writing skills through reading, writing, and organizing fiction.

• Use interactive writing to review the writing process
• Help struggling writers design a sense of audience to encourage revision and editing
• Allow 45 minutes of authentic writing each day

• Rubricsscoring guides that have levels ranging from high to low with assessment criteria described at each level.
Example

• Research has found that better reading leads to better writing and better writing leads to better reading
• Students may use the same thinking processes for both reading and writing
• Involve students in daily reading and writing experiences
• Introduce the reading and writing processes in kindergarten
• Plan instruction that reflects the developmental nature of reading and writing
• Make the reading-writing connection explicit to students
• Emphasize the processes and the products of reading and writing
• Set purposes for reading and writing
• Teach reading and writing through authentic literacy experiences

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Strategies to improve fluency-
• Repeated reading- the student reads the same writings three or four times
• Predictable books- books that repeat phrases
• Neurological Impress Method- a rapid reading system: the teacher and the student read together out of one book

Emergent
Readers
Beginning
Readers
Fluent
Readers http://www.jps.net/hatzi/awesomeauthors.htm#DThis website describes books written by famous authors

• Grouping for Instruction - teachers vary from whole group, small group, to individuals according to the purpose of the activity, the difficulty, and students’ specific learning needs
• Text Sets of Reading Materials - teachers design text sets of books and other reading materials at different reading levels for students to read during a thematic unit or literature focus unit
• Tiered Activities - teachers create several related activities that vary in difficulty
• Literacy Centers - contain meaningful literacy activities that relate to concepts, strategies, and skills that the teacher taught, or it relates to a specific book
• Differentiated Projects - students can choose one of several projects such as readers theatre, murals, or charts, they may work independently or with partners

To Help their Children Become Better Readers and Writers
• Read aloud to your child for at least 30 minutes every day
• Choose books that interest your child
• Keep reading a happy time
-do not force your child to sit and read
• Have conversations with your child
-Children’s experience with oral language prepares them for the same words in print
• Visit the library
• Model that reading is important
-Keep newspapers, magazines, and books in your house and let your children see you read and write
• Set up a reading area in your house
• Nurture your child’s interest in writing
• Set up a writing area for your child that includes pens, pencils, chalk, markers, crayons, notepads. Only help your child if they ask, and do not spend too much time correcting your child’s spelling http://www.pbs.org/parents/This website offers tips for parents and educational games for parents and their children

• Comprehension- reader’s process of using prior knowledge and the author’s text to construct meaning that’s useful to that reader for a specific purpose
• Guidelines for teaching comprehension
– Teach students about reader and text factors
– Teach comprehension strategies using explanations, activities, and think-alouds
– Demonstrate how to use comprehension strategies during read-alouds
– Have students reflect on their use of strategies
– Hang charts on the walls about the usage of strategies

Activating prior knowledge Predicting
Connecting Questioning
Determining importance
Drawing inferences
Repairing
Setting a purpose
Evaluating
Monitoring
Summarizing
Visualizing

Cloze Procedure - teachers choose a passage from a book that the student is familiar with and deletes every fifth word in the passage
Story retelling - a student retells a story to a teacher while the teacher uses a scoring sheet to tally the type of information that the student includes in their synopsis
Running Record - teachers observe a student while they read aloud and calculate the percentage of errors and analyze the errors
Think-Alouds – students learn to think about their thinking by asking questions, making connections, identifying ideas, responding to the text, solving problems, and thinking about the strategies that they are using

• ESL- English Second Language
• ELL- English Language Learners
– Encourage home-school communication
– Encourage collaboration between the regular education teacher and the special education teacher
– Be educated on cultural diversity http://abcteach.com/directory/languages/This website has worksheets designed for the needs of ESL/ELL children

• Reading -
– Creating fluency- have students reread familiar books that are written in English
– Keep a running record- the student reads out of a book and the teacher marks the students errors
• Writing -
– Chop the written story into sentences and have the student reassemble the sentences in the correct order
– Have students write a summary about what they have read

Vocabulary
Help
Ages 5-7
Ages 7-9
Ages 9-12

• Include authentic multicultural themed books, music, and games
• Use gender-free terminology
-
Instead of saying fireman, say firefighter
• Hang posters with diverse people on them
• Discuss famous people from diverse backgrounds
• Recognize diverse holidays in your classroom

Motivation- the curiosity that makes children want to learn
• Ways to increase intrinsic motivation
– Allow enough time to complete tasks, to encourage persistence
– Respond to children's needs, but still let them be independent
– Role model motivation by interacting with children
– Give appropriate challenges
– Let children evaluate their own accomplishments
– Don’t give out to many rewards

• Teacher observation
• Elementary Reading Attitude Survey
• Motivation to Read Profile
• Reader Self-Perception Scale
• Writing Attitude Survey
• Writer Self-Perception Scale

• http://www.cornerstoneliteracy.org/PDF/First_Lessons/1_10_Balanced_Literacy_Checklist_doc.pdf
• http://www.aaps.k12.mi.us/ins.secondary/files/bal_lit_chart.png
• http://www.brightminds.com.au/images/house.gif
• http://www.pflugervilleisd.net/curriculum/ela/documents/ReadingProcess.pdf
• http://www.edina.k12.mn.us/teach/curriconline/guide/la/secondary/STRP/priorknow/index.htm
• http://slis.fsu.edu/Goldstein/Documents/ESLResources.pdf
• www.dictionary.com
• http://www.ket.org/education/guides/pd/balancedreadwrite_program1.pdf
Other References
Crago, Nancy. "Helping Children Become Readers and Writers." Toddler Topics Plus... 1 (12 Jan.
2006): 1-2. Print.
Rock, Marica L. "Promote Student Success During Independent Seatwork." Intervention 44.3
(2009): 179-83. Print.
Tompkins, Gail E. Literacy For The 21st Century. 5th ed. Fresno: Allyn & Bacon, 2010. Print.