Readers Workshop

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Home : 2004 : September : 21

Readers Workshop
By Jaime

I teach second grade but also check out the third grade board. Since the first day of school my children have been having Independent Reading time for 20-30 minutes. We set up a rubric that has helped a lot. At the end
of each day they record on a calander how they think their day was and I record how I thought their day was.
A huge smiley face is an amazing day. The child read the entire time and stayed in one good spot.
A small smiley face is a wow day. The child read most of the time and stayed in one good spot.
A squiggly face is a so-so day. The child wasted a little precious time and/or

moved out of their spot.

A stragiht line face is an oops day. The child wasted precious reading time and/or moved around a lot.

Their is no reward or "punishment" just a plan for what type of day they want to have tomorrow. I find that my kids are pretty honest about what type of day they had. Also things to consider: are you chidren talking or whisper reading? If they are whisper reading are they at the stage that they should be reading in their heads? Can this be a mini lesson? Also do your children have enough just right books so they are able to stay in one spot and sustain during their reading time? Are you children sitting places where they are able to focus and get their reading done? I let my children choose spots in the room to read. There is no warning when they do not choose a good spot, I get to choose a spot for them. Hope this helps! I just finished day 14 of reader's workshop and just finsihed my management lessons of choosing a good spot, choosing just right books, reading in your head, using our rubric, etc..

Hope this helps!