Our Literacy program is structured around the Balanced Literacy model. Balanced Literacy is a framework designed to help all students learn to read and write effectively. Through this framework, the balance between reading and writing allows students to receive the teaching needed in order to reach grade level status, while allowing students to work at a level that is not frustrating for them.
We use the Fountas & Pinnell Benchmark Assessment Kit to help find student's appropriate reading levels.
Structure:
1. Reading Workshop Block- Minilesson, Independent Reading/Responding, Guided Reading Groups, Individual Student Conferences
2. Writing Workshop Block- Minilesson, Independent Writing, Individual Student Conferences
3. Word Work (language block)- Spelling
Feel free to download and use any of the files below:
Guided Reading Sample Schedule
Reading Response Journal Forms 1
Reading Response Journal Forms 2
Narrative Writing Prompt Worksheet
Writing Workshop Reflection Form
Writing Workshop Conference Notes
Prefix Suffix Homophone Lesson Handouts
At the end of the year, we spent a lot of time in Reading and Writing workshop on a really fun comic book unit. The students learned about comic books through reading and writing based lessons. The unit was a great way to encourage unmotivated readers, while providing students an opportunity to explore other genres of literature. Many of the comic books we read in class conveyed educational messages, which is why the student created comic books all involved some central moral or lesson as well. I purchased blank comic books from Bare Books online.
Here are some of the documents we used during this unit:
Comic Book Thematic Unit Overview
Sample Lesson Ideas & Lesson Plans
What is Coach Write?
Coach Write is a volunteer-based writing program operating through the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools. The main goal is designed to improve student performance on the N.C. General Writing Assessment, given to fourth graders in March. Coach Write volunteers are trained in the Six Traits of strong writing and work with distrit schools and teachers to best meet the needs to their students.
Although the writing test has recently been eliminated as of the 2008-09 school year, CoachWrite still has volunteers who are ready and willing to help students become future authors!
Mystery Readers
Every Friday, a suprise guest joins our class with a fabulous read aloud book. We have had parents, friends, grandparents, even siblings!
Our Writing Notebooks
We decoupaged our writing notebooks at the beginning of the year to make them more personal!
Writing About Nature
This was a really fun project. The students wrote and illustrated about things in nature in their writing notebooks.
Click on the image to see all of our photos!!
Reader's Theater
We love acting out our scripts at the school's outdoor theatre!
Important Books
This project was a great way introduction to the Writing process. I read the Important Book by Margaret Wise Brown as an introduction. The class then brainstormed things that are important to them and created pop-up books about 3 important things, emphasizing the basic writing process.
Buddy Reading
We teamed up with a first grade class and read books together, a fun way for everyone to improve their reading skills!
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