andrea - I think everyone is working hard to get ready for school! Any questions or ideas for SSR?
Cece/1st/GA - I am wondering about how long to begin SSR in 1st. Can they attend for 20 minutes?
aggie/1/ca - CeCe--- I'm only having SSR for about 10 minutes at the beginning of the year.
Reba - Concerning SSR, what do you do with those students who are not yet reading---do you have them be read to by someone or just look at books?
andrea - For your non-readers, try wordless books or level 1 and 2 books. You can also make your own super repetitive stories.
Marva/Tx - Reba, they say there are 3 types of reading, reading the pictures, um...and actually reading...and I forgot the other. but its in the Guide.
Alex-1st/FL - Reba i think the third is pretend reading a familiar book, i made the three ways into a poster
andrea - SSR time is such a great time to utilize parent volunteers or cross grade reading buddies. It helps keep some of the kids on track with their reading.
Beth - SSR - I am having trouble figuring out Book Baskets. How many do we put in for how many students? Mixtures of levels and topics? Ideas?
Cece/1st/GA - Beth, I put about 20 books in at all levels. Something for everyone
Beth - Cece- How many children for the 20 books? 4 or so? How often do you change the books?
Cece/1st/GA - Beth, I am new to this, but my idea was to use 20 books for 4 students, and rotate them every week.
peggyo - How often do you rotate the book baskets from one group to another?
Merlin - Does anyone know of an updated leveled book list using the system from Fountas and Pinnell's Guided Reading book? I have the 1996 edition. How about an updated Reading Recovery leveled book list? I have the January 1997 one. Our staff is trying to level our books, but none of our new titles are on these lists. Thanks!
Cece/1st/GA - When do you begin conferencing with students?
aggie/1/ca - Cece--- I'm not going to do that for a long while-- maybe not til Thanksgiving.
Jennifer - Does anyone NOT use baskets?
Marva/Tx - I don't Jennifer. My kids pick books from our library.
aggie/1/ca - Jennifer--- I don't think you have to use baskets.
andrea - The benefit of baskets is that it is efficient. Kids don't spend as much time ambling around the book center. The familiar books in a tub are helpful and important.
Suzanne - i don't plan to use baskets - my kids are mostly reading chapter books
Beth - SSR- What do you do with the baskets when it is not SSR time? Do the kids have access to them? Are they kept at the tables?
Cece/1st/GA - aggie, what will you be doing while the kids read?
Lori - Does anyone have a list of criteria for levelling? I find lots of leveled lists, but no descriptions of what the books look like at each level. We've developed our own rubric from Levels 1-10 and are working on 11-20, but it's a lot of work and I have no idea how consistent it is with other systems.
peggyo - I read somewhere that some kids use big books during SSR. Has anyone here tried that? I really like that idea and I have a LOT of big books.
Lori - Peggyo, you're lucky to have lots of big books. I've just read some research that beginning readers were more likely to try to actually read big books than regular sized books during independent reading time - especially those that have been read in class. Probably partly because most are predictable, rhyming, etc.
NancyD - How to begin the SSR part in first grade in the fall?
Celeste/1/NC - This will be my first year of implementing 4 blocks, and I'm concerned because I have at least three first graders that will be pulled out for LD services daily. I'm wondering if they will be reached by the 4 blocks approach.
NancyD - Would it be worthwhile to rotate the schedule so that the pull out kids don't all miss the same block each time?
Suzanne/TX/3 - I'm wondering if I can ask for those kids to be put in another teacher's room - I'm the only one who is using 4 blocks
Suzanne/TX/3 - I think those pull out kids would best benefit from experiencing SSR and Words block with my class - what do you think?
Laurie - I thought that the word block would be the easiest to make up. We have 20 minutes that I was going to use for handwriting for the other students and make up whatever the others miss. Any opinions?
Marva/Tx - Suzanne but you won't be able to control new kids who show up. We registered 14 new third graders today. So moving them won't help in the end
Marva/Tx - SSR definitely, Suzanne.
Suzanne/TX/3 - my pull outs are not required to make up what is missed
NancyD - The other piece to look at is: what are the pull out kids getting when they're pulled out?
Laurie - My students are being pulled out for "guided reading"
Laurie - They said they wanted those students to have double reading.
pjhenry/2nd/FL - Would it be possible to have the "pull out" teacher schedule time to come into your room and participate in your activities? We use the inclusion model, and it has really helped to prevent children from "missing good stuff" :-)
Suzanne/TX/3 - my ld kids who are really low get pulled for 90 minutes during Lang Arts time
amy/oh - suz - what if you rotate so that each mon is the same, each tues, etc?
Suzanne/TX/3 - and dyslexia kids get pulled for 60 min
Suzanne/TX/3 - ESL for 90 minutes
deb - last year I had 8 sped kids. They benefited from 4blocks.
Laurie - I hope our pull out teacher will involve us in her planning.
NancyD - deb, my biggest questions revolve around the beginning part of first grade. The model is great (and easy for me to understand) later in the year. But how do you start SSR and GR with nonreaders---and keep it going for 30-40 minutes? I have some ideas, but I need more!
Laurie - What do you tell parents who believe their children should be reading harder stories or spelling big, long words?
amy/oh - laurie - during ssr they will be reading harder stories probably
Jennifer - Laurie, they can read "harder" stories during SSR
NancyD - I think songs, poems, chants, etc. are also great for the start of first grade. I especially like to use ones where we can "plug in" our classmates' names...
Marva/Tx - Laurie, they will read big long books in SSR if they chose. As for hard words...I had g/t kids last year and I told t hem we were learning words that make up bigger words.
Cindy/1st/IA - I agree nancy---- I use a lot of poems, chants, and songs the first month of school!!
Laurie - How do you keep the lower kids from getting into the books that are too hard for them?
amy/oh - nancy - i love chants too
amy/oh - laurie - it's ok if they look at harder books during ssr sometimes - gently guide them to appropriate books
aggie/1/ca - Laurie-- you can teach them the 5 finger rule-- do you know that one?
Cece/1st/GA - Laurie-redirect them in a conference. Suggest some books on the same topic but easier
amy/oh - cindy - especially for 1st grade
NancyD - amy...I love your "gently guide them"...good advice re lots of situations!
Laurie - Yes, I use that. I just remember a student I had last year that cried and cried every time I tried to redirect him. He was trying to get books that were too hard for him to read and understand. I don't want to have anyone else cry. Broke my heart.
amy/oh - laurie - i might remove those books for a while
Marva/Tx - Grin Selby. SSR is pretty easy to handle. Model, kids reads, you conference, students share.
aggie/1/ca - My kids loooooovvvved SSR last year!
Selby - Oh yeah, I can do SSR. Do you have the same schedule every day?
Mel - For SSr we have the whole school divided into their families we read every Monday for 40 minutes It is excellent the whole school also has an expectation ..like remember periods and capitals etc
deb - remember guys, look at what you already know how to do... ssr (start with reading and add in conferencing after they know what to do)
NancyD - Thanks, everyone. Goodnight!
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