Guided Reading, Geodes Instruction, and Strategy Groups by Rachel Wilson

Braggs' Geodes Ed Camp Padlet and Online Resources

rdwilson3 — 2024-08-28 15:07:26 UTC

This was an excellent resource from her Ed Camp session in August!

Podcast- Maximizing Your Small Group Instructional Time

rdwilson3 — 2024-08-28 15:47:37 UTC

This is a long watch, but a very interesting one. It talks about the "constrained skills theory" and the dominance these skills have in K-2, while "unconstrained skills" in the upper grades (3-5) have more of a lifelong impact without a ceiling.

Upper Grades- Guided Reading and Guided Writing Connection

rdwilson3 — 2024-08-28 15:55:14 UTC

The Jan Richardson structure is very user friendly- I have some of her books if you ever want to read/learn more!

"How To" Starter Guide- Reading Conferences at the Elementary Level

rdwilson3 — 2024-09-03 13:31:29 UTC

A GREAT book for everything conferring! This is an awesome first step for teachers who are wanting to implement this practice in their Reading Workshop.

ELA Strategy Group Planner

rdwilson3 — 2024-09-03 15:30:11 UTC

Another great resource for planning!

Guided Reading Groups- Lesson Plan Templates

rdwilson3 — 2024-09-03 15:36:14 UTC

This has plans available per Guided Reading level.

Lower Grades- Guided Reading Group Example

rdwilson3 — 2024-09-03 15:44:08 UTC

Obviously, with our LETRs and Science of Reading training, there are many decoding strategies shown in this video that we know are NOT best practices. Students should not try to sound out a word based on what the picture is. This is a better guide for fluency work in the early grades. It is imperative that we incorporate and base our teaching practices on explicit phonics instruction, but this is a great example of the structure that a Guided Reading group follows- especially when on the first day of a new book.

Lower Grades- Another Guided Reading Group Example

rdwilson3 — 2024-09-03 15:55:51 UTC

She does a great job highlighting a grammar/mechanics focus at the beginning of her small group. I WISH she would've more explicitly taught suffixes (or at least -er) to the students ahead of time. This lesson is entirely too long for one small group sitting, it even says that it should be broken up over two days to best impact student learning. You will also notice how she is taking notes while conferring with readers around the table.

Upper Grades- ELA Strategy Group Example

rdwilson3 — 2024-09-03 16:18:37 UTC

This is a strategy group that highlights the importance of jotting while reading independently. Not all of your strategy groups will seem this "abstract". She discusses a previously learned idea of "big ideas" vs. "small ideas" and encourages students to think deeply about their characters' interactions. I really want to encourage you to notice her "coaching" phase of the lesson.

Lower Grades- ELA Strategy Group Example

rdwilson3 — 2024-09-03 16:26:17 UTC

Jennifer Serravallo is teaching this one, and it is awesome! I LOVE how readers are choosing books from their own stack to practice the strategy with.

Another ELA Strategy Group Example

rdwilson3 — 2024-09-03 16:29:54 UTC

I really like the anchor chart that the teacher is using to give students a visual on the envisioning strategy.

Further Clarification between Small Group Types

rdwilson3 — 2024-09-03 17:16:48 UTC

I don't agree with all of her teachings in this video, especially how she describes the RTI Tiers, but there are some good takeaways and a reminder of the distinction between Guided Reading and Strategy (Skill) Groupings. She talks a lot about leveling and the appropriation of reading/DRA level vs. grade level, I would skip over this part mostly.

Guided Reading Explained

rdwilson3 — 2024-09-04 14:27:16 UTC

What is Guided Reading? These clips show some fantastic examples!

Instructional Reading Level

rdwilson3 — 2024-09-04 14:30:06 UTC

Need help finding students' Instructional Reading Levels for Guided Reading?

All Things Conferring

rdwilson3 — 2024-09-04 14:50:51 UTC

This is a great video if you want to try conferring with your readers and writers, but are unsure of where to start! Personally, this practice helped me when my students would go to library. It would start a quality conversation about the reading material they were choosing/needing to choose.