ReadWriteServe Tutor Training
ReadWriteServe Programs of the
Center for Adolescent Literacies at UNC Charlotte
RWS Tutors Provide
Homework Help
Reading Support
Mentoring
A note about our terminology:
Tutors-----UNC Charlotte student /staff volunteers
Learners----the grades K-12 students receiving tutoring
The RWS Commitment
 Set a time commitment that is reasonable
and stick with it. We ask that you commit
to meeting with a learner once a week if
possible. Whatever your schedule, please
keep your commitment to our student
partners.
 Be ethical and responsible in all that you
do in your work with student partners. You
are mentors and role models.
Have questions? Need help?
 Check out the
ReadWriteServe Tutor Blog
at
rwstutoring.wordpress.com
 Get tutoring tips
 Learn about upcoming events
and trainings
 Ask questions & join a
conversation
Before we get started…
3
2
1
Three things you want to learn today
Two things you want us to know about you
One thing you believe about reading
Jumping Right In
Do’s & Don’ts of Tutoring
Scenario #1: What’s a Tutor to Do?
You begin
tutoring with
a book. What
do you do?
Scenario #1: What’s a Tutor to Do?
Scenario #1: What’s a Tutor to Do?
Scenario #1: What’s a Tutor to Do?
 You’ve just begin working with Alex, a 2nd grade student who
struggles a bit with reading.You sit down with Alex and open
up Flat Stanley at Bat, an I Can Read Level 2 book.
 What do you say? What do you NOT say?
 What do you do? What do you NOT do?
 How do get started in tutoring Alex?
DO’S: Tutoring Tips
 Let the child hold the book and turn the pages
 Let the child set the pace
 Take time to look and talk—look at the pictures and talk




about the book
Listen, listen, listen
Talk about their ideas and check your predictions from the
picture walk
“What did you like?”
Talk about other good books and reading
• Assessment
• Overview of Tutoring
• Meeting the Learner
• Setting Expectations
• Evaluating the Learner
• Planning Tutoring Sessions
Informal Assessment
Assessment gives us information about what
learners strengths and areas of need—what
they can do and what they need help with.
Here are some informal methods of
assessment:
 Interview
 Learner Surveys
 5-finger assessment
 Read Alouds
 Retellings
Guided Reading & Learning
Guided Reading & Learning is a type of instruction in
which a tutor guides at student (learner) through the process of
reading. Tutors are mentors to students. They help students
(learners) move from reading with help to reading
independently.
Instructional Sequence
Rationale
To establish purpose, activate background knowledge,
motivate & engage learner.
Before Reading & Learning
Pre-reading &
Learning
Pre-reading activities
 Previewing a book: Book Walk or Picture Talk
 KWL
 Talk about the subject or text
Scaffold reading and learning. Make learning active.
During Reading & Learning
Reader-Text
Interactions
During-reading activities
 Shared reading: Choral or Part Reading
 Reread for fluency
 Say Something
 Think Pair Share
 Double Entry Journal
To extend and elaborate ideas from the text
After Reading & Learning
Post reading &
Learning
Post-reading activities
 Retellings and discussion
 Journaling
 Concept Maps
 Mini-lessons (teaching concepts & strategies)
Example 1: Sam in 7th Grade
Instructional Sequence
Before Reading & Learning
Activities
Preview book—book
walk
To establish purpose, activate
KWL
background knowledge, motivate
Talk about text or
& engage learner.
subject
During Reading & Learning
Shared reading:
Choral or parts
Guided reading and learning.
Make learning active.
Reread for fluency
After Reading & Learning
Retellings &
discussion
To extend and elaborate ideas
from the text
Journaling, concept
maps
Use Strategies
--ThinkPairShare
--DE Journal, etc
Mini Lessons
Comments/Notes
Pre-view Social Studies homework
(worksheet) and pre-read textbook with
Sam. Point out headings, subheads, and
key words.
Use Say Something strategy while
reading text to help Sam verbalize what he
is reading. Post ideas on sticky notes to
help answer questions.
Guide Sam in answering questions on
worksheet. Check to see if he is using
headings/subheads and notes to help
answer questions.
Example 2: Rachel in 3rd Grade
Instructional Sequence
Before Reading & Learning
Activities
Preview book—book
walk
To establish purpose, activate
KWL
background knowledge, motivate
Talk about text or
& engage learner.
subject
During Reading & Learning
Shared reading:
Choral or parts
Guided reading and learning.
Make learning active.
Reread for fluency
After Reading & Learning
Retellings &
discussion
To extend and elaborate ideas
from the text
Journaling, concept
maps
Use Strategies
--ThinkPairShare
--DE Journal, etc
Mini Lessons
Comments/Notes
Introduce new books and Do a picture walk
of the book that Rachel chooses to read. Have
her make predictions. Point out a few words.
New books:
Three Questions, Lion and the Mouse,
Strega Nona
Guide reading. Ask recall questions and
check for comprehension (“Does that make
sense?”). Reread sections as needed to build
fluency. Find 4 to 5 words to teach
Ask: “Tell me about what you just read?”
Teach the new words and review sight
words.
Scenario #2: Planning for Sam
Instructional Sequence
Before Reading & Learning
Activities
Preview book—book
walk
To establish purpose, activate
KWL
background knowledge, motivate
Talk about text or
& engage learner.
subject
During Reading & Learning
Shared reading:
Choral or parts
Guided reading and learning.
Make learning active.
Reread for fluency
After Reading & Learning
Retellings &
discussion
To extend and elaborate ideas
from the text
Journaling, concept
maps
Use Strategies
--ThinkPairShare
--DE Journal, etc
Mini Lessons
Comments/Notes
Scenario #2: Planning for Sam
 You’ve been working with
Sam, a 5th grade student
who loves science but
struggles a bit with reading.
Sam has difficulty
remembering what he
reads and finds new words
challenging.
 Plan a lesson for Sam using
Fossils as your book. It’s one
he’s picked out and seems
like it’s not too difficult.
Scenario #2: Planning for Sam
Scenario #2: Planning for Sam
Scenario #2: Planning for Sam
Instructional Sequence
Before Reading & Learning
Activities
Preview book—book
walk
To establish purpose, activate
KWL
background knowledge, motivate
Talk about text or
& engage learner.
subject
During Reading & Learning
Shared reading:
Choral or parts
Guided reading and learning.
Make learning active.
Reread for fluency
After Reading & Learning
Retellings &
discussion
To extend and elaborate ideas
from the text
Journaling, concept
maps
Use Strategies
--ThinkPairShare
--DE Journal, etc
Mini Lessons
Comments/Notes
Lesson Activities & Mini-lessons
Here are some useful lesson activities and mini-lesson ideas:
 Book Walk or Picture Talks
 Guided Reading & Learning
 Dictating Stories or LEA
 Word Families & Word Sorts
 Sight Word practice
 Teaching Strategies
Book Walks & Picture Talks
 Tutors guide students through a book by looking at the cover,
title page, and pictures in the book. Point out a few key
words and ask the learner questions like, “What do you think
is going on in the book?” and “What do you think will
happen?” During the guided reading and learning session (the
heart of the tutoring process), the tutor can check with the
learner to confirm predictions.
Basics of the Book Walk, Picture Talk
 Start with the cover.
 Look at the picture
 Read the title and author
 Ask, “what do you think this book is about?”
 Take a picture walk.
 Without reading the words ask the child to turn the pages one
at a time.
 Point to the pictures and ask, “What do you think is happening?”
 Use the 5 “W” and “H” questions
If time allows…try a book walk
 If you have a book available,
do a quick book walk or
picture talk with a partner.
 Talk about pictures
 Make predictions
 Point out the title and a
few words you think are
important to the story
•
•
•
•
•
Picking Texts to Read
Comprehension
Word Work: Vocabulary & Sight Words
Fluency
Decoding
Picking Texts to Read
You can use any type of text to tutor from; however, if you get a
chance to read for enjoyment, pick a good book (one that your
student picks) that is not too difficult and enjoy reading for pleasure.
Together with the student, you can choose reading material that
interests the student and is at an appropriate reading level. One
method for choosing a book is the five finger method.
Remember
 Whenever possible, pick books that are interesting to the learner
 For tutoring, pick books are that at their Instructional Level (not
too easy, not too hard)
 For independent (personal) reading, pick books at the
Independent Level.
Picking books at the right level
“Just right” book but when time is short use these strategies for
finding a book that isn’t too challenging:
 Ballpark it! Working with a struggling 3rd grader? Pick a
book that looks like a 1st or 2nd grader could read it.
 Don’t worry. Just read it! Don’t worry if it is a “just right”
book. Read aloud and talk with the child.
 Five Finger Rule. A quick and simple way to match a book
to a kid.
Five Finger Rule
 As you or the child reads a page from a book, have them put
a finger on any words they don't understand. The number of
fingers used helps indicate the reading level.
 0-1 fingers - too easy (Independent level)
 2-3 fingers - just right (Instructional level)
 4-5 fingers - too hard (Frustration level)
 Too easy is okay. Too hard isn’t. Remember that this is just a
“quick & dirty” test.
What to focus on in tutoring
There are four key areas that we most often focus on in
literacy tutoring.
 Comprehension
 Word Work: Vocabulary & Sight Words
 Fluency
 Decoding
Comprehension
 Comprehension is the “so what” of reading. Readers who
comprehend understand and can answer questions about
what they’ve read. Here are some strategies that help with
comprehension:
 Say Something
 Double-entry Journal
 ThinkPairShare
 KWL
 3-2-1
 Talking Drawings
Comprehension Strategies
Say Something
Take turns reading and…
 Make a prediction
 Ask a question
 Clarify something you read
 Make a comment
 Make a connection
KWL Chart
What I
KNOW
WANT to
know
What I
LEARNED
If time allows…
 Take a couple minutes and review pages 23 through 27 in
your RWS Tutor Handbook.
 Think about the comprehension strategies and how you
might use them.
 Look back at the lesson plan you created (if we had time) and
think about strategies you might add.
 What strategies could you have used in tutoring in the past?
Which strategies do you think you’d use in the future.
Word Work
 Sight words are the most common words that make up our
spoken and written language. Fifty percent of all text is made
up of the most common 100 sight words. Some examples of
these important words are a, is, the, of, and, that, in, you, I, and
to.
 Vocabulary refers to the meanings of words, not their
spelling or pronunciation. Vocabulary is important to a
reader’s success because comprehension breaks down when
readers encounter too many words they do not
know. Vocabulary words are new words that students must
learn.
Vocabulary
Vocabulary strategies help readers with words they don’t know
and need to learn. We don’t expect them to have to
memorize these words like we hope readers will do with
sight words. Readers need strategies to include but go
beyond teaching definitions and include pictures and
connections to the real world.
Do’s
Don’ts
Teach words that matter
Teach words just because a learner
doesn’t know it
Teach a few words at a time
Teach 10, 15, 20 words (lists) at a
time
Teach words that the student will
see and use again
Teach words that you are unsure
of
Sight Words & Vocabulary
Repetition is the key to teaching sight words. Try this:
 Play Sight Word bingo
 Make sight word flash cards and review them each
Here are some strategies that help teach vocabulary. Note that
they move beyond simply teaching definitions.
 Vocabulary Cards
 Vocabulary Self-Awareness Chart
 How Well Do I Know These Words
 Teach common pre-fixes and root words
Vocab Cards & How Well Do I Know
Fluency
 Fluency is the ability to read accurately, effortlessly, at the
appropriate pace, and with expression. Because fluent
readers do not have to concentrate on figuring out the words,
they can focus their attention on what the text means. In
other words, fluent readers recognize words and
comprehend at the same time.
 Less fluent readers, however, must focus their attention on
figuring out the words, leaving them little attention for
understanding the text.
Fluency Strategies
Here are some strategies to help with fluency:
 Rereading. This is one of the best ways to help improve
fluency.
 Echo Reading. Echo reading is a rereading strategy designed
to help students develop expressive, fluent reading. In echo
reading, the tutor reads a short segment of text (sentence or
phrase), and the student echoes back the same sentence or
phrase while following along in the text.
 Paying Attention to Punctuation. Some students read through
periods. Point out end punctuation, model reading it, and
have the learner reread.
Phonics & Decoding
 Phonics has to do with looking at the letters of a word,
figuring out what sounds those letters make, and putting the
sounds together to read the word. During phonics
instruction we teach children the letter or letters that make
each sound. Phonics instruction can also focus on patterns,
such as the –ight pattern and all of the words that you can
make from that pattern (flight, knight, light, might, night,
plight, right, sight, and tight). Spelling is similar to phonics
except that instead of reading, you are writing.
Decoding
English has many irregular words. Consider these two:
Ate and Eight
However there are many word patterns you can teach. Here are
a few:
 Spelling Rules. Late: the /e/ makes the /a/ say it’s name
 Word Families. –ight words, -ate words (late, fate, crate), -ad
words (mad, bad, had)
Note: Don’t spend too much time on decoding. Be sure to help
with comprehension, vocabulary and fluency.
Decoding/Phonics Strategies
Word Family Sorts
Sticky-note Word Family
Books
Go-to Strategies: use these often
 Comprehension: use Say Something plus KWL or




Stickies
Vocabulary: Vocab Cards
Sight Words: Flash cards (practice each time you meet)
Fluency: Repeated readings and timed readings (same
thing)
Decoding: Word families, a few spelling rules (magic
E, vowel blends)
Tutoring Scenario
You’ve just begun tutoring a new learner, Jose, a fifth-grader.
You observe the following:
◦ Jose reads the words on the page well but as he says, “I just
don’t get it.” You ask Jose to read aloud and his reading sounds
fine but when you ask him to do a retelling he has little to say.
◦ He also says that some of the words in his science book are
difficult.
What can you do?
• Getting to Know the Learner
• Setting Expectations
• Evaluating the Learner
• Our Approach (Planning)
Getting to Know the Learner
At the first meeting or two, the tutor and learner need to
get to know one another. This initial session is an
important step towards building a positive rapport that
will underlie the tutoring and learning experience. Use
this first meeting to:
 Establish rapport
 Setting expectations
 Get to know your learner
Ice Breakers
Ice Breakers are games or activities we use to
get to know a learner or “break the ice.”
Here are a few of these activities:
 Acrostic Name Poem
 The Memory Game
 Two facts and a lie
Acrostic Name Poem
NAME
C
H
R
I
S
About me…
Curious and loves to learn
Happy and has lots of friends
Really loves science
Interested in music and wants to play
guitar
Sports fanatic
More than the sum of its parts
The Kingdom Of Kay Oss
Once in the land of Serenity there ruled a king called Kay Oss.
He wanted to be liked by all his people.
So onx day thx bxnxvolxnt dxspot dxcidxd that no onx in thex
country would bx rxsponsiblx for anything. Zll of thx
workerxrs rxstxd from thxir dzily lxbors. "Blxss Kzy Oss,"
thxy xxclzimxd. Now, thx lzw mzkxrs wxrx vxry wvsx. But zs
wvsx zs wthxy wxrx, thxy dxcvdxd thzt thx bxst form of
govxernmxnt wzs nonx zt zll. Zs tvmx wxnt qo, thx kvngdqm
og Kzy qss bxgzn tq splvt zt thx sxzms znd vt lqqkxd lvkx thvs:
Bex dqufghj klzm nqxp qqt rqst vqxwxxz bqxc dqf
ghzj kqlxmnxp.
• Web based resources like our websites and blogs
• Who to contact for help
Resources for Tutors
The Center for Adolescent Literacies offers the following
resources:
RWS Tutoring website
https://tutoring.uncc.edu/
RWS Tutoring blog
http://rwstutoring.wordpress.com/
Center for Adolescent Literacies website
http://literacy.uncc.edu/
Need help? Have questions?
ReadWriteServe Programs are a part of the Center for
Adolescent Literacies at UNC Charlotte. If you have
questions or need our help, call or email us:
Dr. Bruce Taylor
704-701-5235
bruce.taylor@uncc.edu
Jean Vintinner
704-687-7991
jvintin@uncc.edu