Balanced Literacy What is the key to success?

Where did we start?

Armstrongs Goal NOT to pile more on our teachers, yet improve our Reading scores. Prepared our teachers for several months ahead of time.

What can teachers do?

Level your classrooms libraries Work with your IC to come up with a schedule that allows for two 20-30 minutes GR rotations 2 or 3 times each week. First and foremost establish a good system of classroom management using the suggested first 20 days from the Fountas and Pinnell Guided Reading texts.

What does Balanced Literacy look like in Second Grade?

The ultimate goal of course is to increase student-guided SSR in your classrooms. Avenue to get there use Balanced Literacy stations in the beginning to assist with your classroom management. Practice, Practice, Practice!

Balanced Literacy Stations

These should focus on the PREVIOUSLY taught skills only never new materials. Again, students need to practice those first 20 days of school. Parents need to be informed that there wont be as many worksheets coming home. Teacher needs to establish a rotation that is customized for the students. Not ALL students will do the same stations each week necessarily.

Balanced Literacy Stations and Pullouts

Schedule needs to be set up so that no pull-outs are during main content instruction. The Guided Reading time is when the teacher is working with a group, the SOAR, Resource, and ESOL pulls are made and those students being pulled receive their GR from that itinerant person. Communication on the skills needing to be addressed is a vital part of the GR pulls. In other words teachers need to conference with the people pulling their children

Leveling using the Fountas and Pinnell Kits

It is recommended that leveling take place 3 times each year. This leveling is extensive compared to the Rigby Benchmarking it gives a much more detailed report. Itinerant personnel will be responsible for leveling their pull-out and inclusion students for the home room teacher again collaboration.

Keys to our successes?

Use of composition books to serve as Reading and Writing handbooks for students. Use of glue and tape-ins to reinforce the content skills for units. Place to keep track of everything such as Spelling and Vocabulary lists in one place. Taking the new Reading series correlation to the Common Core and creating a generic book.

Results of Balanced Literacy Groups

Teachers plan better! Teachers know their students on a more individual basis! Increase in MAP scores!

Fountas and Pinnell in the Classroom: What Does it Look Like?

Reading By Yourself

Getting it all SET UP

BEGIN AFTER FIRST 20 DAYS Practice your rotations and what to do instead of interrupting the teacher/groups 2-3 groups pulled by teacher per day
Other students in literacy center rotations (one Read By Yourself rotation per day)

Resource/ESOL students receive Guided Reading with itinerant teachers

Guided Reading Groups Are Organized & Flexible

Groups are based on BENCHMARKING & are subjective Groups/group members can change in between benchmarking as needed (move up or down)

Literacy Stations/Centers
Use first 20 days to train students on how to rotate Several different books, websites, etc. for how to organize Literacy Stations

What About Shared Reading & Writing

60 minutes allotted for both Shared Reading & Writing-Whole Group Lessons (FLEXIBLE) Purpose of each to model core standards/concepts, model reading/writing strategies, set up for independent work (LITERACY STATIONS reinforce these concepts)

Organizing Shared Reading & Writing

Curriculum Mapping
First Quarter Second Quarter Third Quarter Fourth Quarter

Journeys Correlation
Website Second Grade Correlation

The Focus Wall

Resources Are Your Friend

http://www.scholastic.com/bookwizard/ www.pinterest.com www.jmeacham.com http://www.lauracandler.com/strategies/bala ncedlit.php http://it.pinellas.k12.fl.us/teachers3/gurianb/r eading.html

The Notebook
Covers (make sure you flip one side) Find the Half Way Mark in your book and place a marker/sticky Table of Contents & Portable Word Walls Remainder of packet goes in order

Contact Information
Allison Barton Armstrong Elementary Second Grade www.bartonsbees.blogspot.com www.bartonsbees.weebly.com 864.355.1125