|
By Mrs. Thurm
This year is off to another great start for the secondary reading program. While many kids come in hanging their heads about having to start reading books again, they wouldn’t show it by what they have accomplished already. As a whole group, all 91 students, we have already finished 57 books and read 11,480 pages! Some students were even eager to share with me what they read over the summer and bring in some titles that “they” purchased over the break – thanks mom and dad.
We have spent the first three weeks reviewing and introducing the comprehension, fluency, and vocabulary strategies we will be using this year. I know I look forward to starting our weekly routine next week. We have also had guest appearances from Mr. Teckenburg, Mrs. Andreassen, and our literacy consultant from Grant Wood AEA, Heather Feuerhelm. We look forward to seeing Mrs. Andreassen and Heather Feuerhelm back in our classroom soon to team teach with me
PLEASE be watching for the weekly reading slip that should be signed when students read. One hour of reading time is the only homework students have for this class, but yet it has been the biggest struggle I have each and every year. I would REALLY appreciate your support with this.
If you have had a student in the reading class before, you’ll remember that it used to be 3 times, 20 minutes; 4 times, 15 minutes; or 3 times 15 minutes with a book discussion. This year I am simply assigning an hour, but they need to be averaging 100 pages a week.
Most students have already surpassed the 300 pages they have to have read by midterm, September 19th. You could even sit down and read with him/her if you have the time. Sometimes students even ask if they can borrow the book for a couple more days because their parent(s) want to read the book, too, because they were so intrigued. At the very least, please ask your child how the book is going or what is happening in the story. I have asked a couple of my classes to vote on their favorite questions we use in class for a strategy called Pair Share (you can find the results here).
The week of September 4th we completed the Stanford Diagnostic Reading Testing. This test gives me an idea of what grade level each student in the reading class comprehends at and his/her grade level for vocabulary also. These test scores will be shared with the students in the near future. You may ask them to share with you when they find out, or e-mail me to let me know you would like the results. nthurm@english-valleys.k12.ia.us
We are definitely off and running!
If you would like to use the strategy at home, here is the procedure for a Pair Share:
Each of these steps is timed; start out with one minute for each step and work your way up if you aren’t able to share your answer in the time allotted.
Step 1. Share your answer to the question
Step 2. Have the listener summarize what you said and then you can ask them questions
Step 3. Switch roles and have the listener now become the sharer
Step 4. Again, the listener summarizes what has been shared with them and then asks questions.
Helpful Hints:
• Take about 30 seconds to think about what you will share before beginning.
• Only the person sharing can talk when answering the question. A two-way discussion can occur ONLY after the listener is done summarizing and begins asking questions.
Top 10 Pair Share Questions:
1. Why do you think the author wrote this book?
2. What did/do you enjoy about this book?
3. Did you find this book a quick read? Why or why not?
4. If you were in charge of making this book into a movie, whom would you cast in the main roles? Why?
5. What is the most exciting or interesting part of the book?
6. Do you think a movie could be made from this book? Why or why not?
7. What did the author do to capture your attention early in the book?
8. If you could change the ending of this book, how would you change it and why?
9. Can you think of a person who you know who reminds you of the main characters? How are they similar? Explain.
10. Put yourself in the place of the main character. How would you have handled the conflict (situation)? |
