Guided Reading

Hello All!

Welcome to October!  I'm so excited for the fall weather and all the fun fall activities I have planned for the students.

I just wanted to shed some light on a few questions some of you have had regarding guided reading.  We have just started guided reading, and not all the groups have been seen yet.  As I said on Curriculum Night, Guided Reading is small group reading instruction done at your child's reading and comprehension level.  During this 20 minute time I have with each group, we work really hard to decode new words and work on our reading and comprehension skills.  We do this so that when they read the book to you, they can read every word with confidence and are able to tell you what happened in the story.  The log sheet is for you to document that your child read the story to you and if the book was a good fit for them.  By the time they read the story to you, the book should be "easy" for them to read!  I understand that it may concern you that they might need to be at a higher level because they are able to read the book so well.  Just know that they have read the book SEVERAL times with me in the group, so they will be reading the book very fluently.

Here are some things you should look for during this guided reading time to make sure they are actually reading the text and not memorizing.  These can also be used to challenge your child to become a better reader :).

1. Pointing to the words as they read them.
2. Looking at the words, not just the pictures.
3. Using strategies to sound out and blend sounds for unfamiliar words.
4. Reading at a nice pace, not going too fast and rushing through the words.
5. Reading with appropriate and nice expression, especially paying attention to different punctuation.
6. Answering questions about the story with reasonable answers.

If you focus on these strategies and suggestions while they read the story, you will be helping your child become a more confident and independent reader.  If you focus on the fact that the book is "too easy", it may impact your child's confidence when they come to harder texts.  So please try and encourage your child and let them know that they did an EXCELLENT job reading (even if it may seem too easy).  Just know that it took us lots of hard work to make the reading sound great for you!

Thanks for all your hard work and support in this new endeavor!  We are so lucky to have parents like you supporting your children in becoming READERS!!!!

Ms. Petrucci