Reader's Workshop
"The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go." - Dr. Seuss
In third grade, we use the Reader's Workshop model to teach reading. Our reading block consists of 60 minutes that includes the following components:
- Mini-lesson that focuses on a specific skill or strategy for the day explicitly modeled by the teacher
- Small Group Work/ Strategy Lesson
- Conferencing
- Independent & Partner Reading
- Share
The focus is for students to become self-directed learners. While independently reading, students are asked to read a "Just Right Book." This type of book is one that the student can read with few confusions. On a single page, the student can read all words, with the exception of 2 or 3 words.
Each day students are given the opportunity to discuss the stories they are reading either with a partner, in a small group, or in writing. In third grade, students are learning to turn their oral discussion of a text into a written format. Emphasis is put on using text evidence to support and justify their thinking within the books that they read.
Some of the units that will be covered this year in reading include:
- Building a Reading Life
- Mystery Book Clubs
- Reading to Learn: Grasping Main Idea and Text Structure
- Character Studies
- Research Clubs (Elephants, Penguins, and Frogs, Oh My!)
- Biography Book Clubs
Our classroom library is categorized in bins based on genre and level. Each book is color-coded based on its level in order to assist students in selecting "Just Right" books.
In Room W-1:
We use post-its frequently to quickly "stop and jot" down our ideas and reflect on our strategic thinking as we apply our comprehension strategies (connection, visualizing, questioning, inferring, determining importance, and synthesizing).
Students also keep a nightly reading log at home, documenting the "Just Right" books and minutes read each night.
In third grade, we use the Reader's Workshop model to teach reading. Our reading block consists of 60 minutes that includes the following components:
- Mini-lesson that focuses on a specific skill or strategy for the day explicitly modeled by the teacher
- Small Group Work/ Strategy Lesson
- Conferencing
- Independent & Partner Reading
- Share
The focus is for students to become self-directed learners. While independently reading, students are asked to read a "Just Right Book." This type of book is one that the student can read with few confusions. On a single page, the student can read all words, with the exception of 2 or 3 words.
Each day students are given the opportunity to discuss the stories they are reading either with a partner, in a small group, or in writing. In third grade, students are learning to turn their oral discussion of a text into a written format. Emphasis is put on using text evidence to support and justify their thinking within the books that they read.
Some of the units that will be covered this year in reading include:
- Building a Reading Life
- Mystery Book Clubs
- Reading to Learn: Grasping Main Idea and Text Structure
- Character Studies
- Research Clubs (Elephants, Penguins, and Frogs, Oh My!)
- Biography Book Clubs
Our classroom library is categorized in bins based on genre and level. Each book is color-coded based on its level in order to assist students in selecting "Just Right" books.
In Room W-1:
We use post-its frequently to quickly "stop and jot" down our ideas and reflect on our strategic thinking as we apply our comprehension strategies (connection, visualizing, questioning, inferring, determining importance, and synthesizing).
Students also keep a nightly reading log at home, documenting the "Just Right" books and minutes read each night.