As part of our ongoing focus on community helpers and goods and services that we will be working on this year, we took a trip to the newly renovated Shrewsbury Public Library. We had the opportunity to take a tour of the library and not only see the places that are open to the public, but also got a behind the scenes look at what happens in the library. We were able to see how the new electronic book return system works as well as how books are labeled and ready to be placed on the shelf. We then ended our tour in the children's room. We were able to learn about all of the services that are available to us at the library and what is free to check out. Miss Sharon read us a couple of stories and we were able to explore the beautiful courtyard. Kids searched for the hidden owls that are part of the outdoor decor. If you haven't yet had the opportunity to check out the new library, I invite you to have your child take you on a tour of your own!
Our whole group reading instruction has been focusing on breaking bad habits that readers have. When we are starting out in reading (and even when we are experienced readers!), we can often fall into some bad habits when we come to a tricky word. Some of us freeze (stop at the tricky word and just freeze), ask for the word (What's this word? Tell me, tell me!), mumble (Hmm, maybe if I say this word quiet and quick no one will know I don't know it), or say a random word (maybe the word begins with the same letter, maybe it's a guess, but the word doesn't match what is on the page). Now that we know these bad habits, we can stop and try using a good habit to help us successfully figure out the tricky word. We can check the picture. Often in picture books and/or guided reading books, the picture may provide clues as to what the unknown word could be. We can look at all the parts of the word. What do we know about this word when we break it into parts. These parts may be small familiar words, word families, and/or blends of letters that make a sound of their own. Finally, we can check that the word we said matches the word on the text. We can slow down and say the word slowly while sliding our finger under the new word to see if what we're saying matches the word in from of us. When reading at home, help your child catch their bad habit and fix it with a good habit!
We are three weeks into our guided reading groups and full Daily 5 activities! Children were grouped based on either reading fluency or comprehension instruction needs. Each group consists of word work activities that tie into the Dolch sight words that were shared with you on curriculum night as well as word families and spelling patterns. We then move into vocabulary instruction that is specific to the text being read with the group. After we have gone over key vocabulary, we read through the text. During the week in which we work with the text, we work on fluency by smoothing out our reading when it sounds "bumpy" and work on scooping up words so that we are reading in longer phrases rather than word by word. More advanced readers are also working on adding more voice and expression to their oral reading. Finally, we work on retelling the text using the sentence starters: In the beginning..., Next..., Then..., After that..., In the end... When reading nonfiction texts, we identify important facts within the text that help tell about the topic. When reading at home, encourage your child to retell the text or key facts as well as identify their favorite part of the text and provide reasons as to why that is their favorite part!
