Reading

Throughout the day your child will be exposed to various forms of reading instruction.

 
Direct Reading Instruction:  This will be done as a whole group where your child is exposed to the conventions of print, word study, comprehension strategies to use when reading and listening to a story, phonics and continuous practice of their high frequency words.  I will read stories aloud to the students and model comprehension strategies such as predicting, inferring, and summarizing.  I will also show the students what to do when they come to words they do not know.  Through this continuous modeling as a whole group and individual instruction your child will develop into an independent reader. 

 As part of this core reading program, there will also be ongoing formal and informal assessments throughout the year to help guide our instruction to best meet your child’s needs.

 Guided Reading:

Guided reading is an extremely important part of First grade.  This is the time of day when your child will receive intense small group instruction in reading. Your child will be placed in small group of students who are reading on or about the same level.  This is where they learn to apply comprehension strategies, build their sight vocabulary, and advance through higher levels* of materials as the year goes on.   As your child’s ability changes so will their grouping.  This is an excellent opportunity to work individually with your child to build upon their strengths and weaknesses.  With your continuous reading support at home as well as in school, your child will acquire a love for reading, will become more comfortable taking risks and motivated to read on their own. 

INDEPENDENT READING:  At different down times throughout the day your child will have the opportunity to read a book from the table book box or library.  This time will usually occur when they have completed their task and are awaiting for their classmates to finish, when buses are being called, and or during indoor recess. 

     *About the Leveled Readers:

A student entering First grade should come in with a sight word vocabulary of approximately 50 words.  They should be reading a Level C book.  This level-type of book includes repetitive language, high frequency of common sight words, and pictures that are very supportive of the text.  Text may be: I can clean my room,  I can wash the dishes, I can make my bed ect.

 By December of First Grade, a child should be reading on or about an E level.  Characteristics of this book include: more words on a page, use of quotation marks, more difficult vocabulary, some pictures and limited patterning of text.  A child who is able to read at this level, has developed a strong sight word vocabulary which enables them to attempt more difficult words and they do not have to rely as much on the pictures.

 At the end of First Grade, a child should be reading at around an I/J level.  A book at this level requires the students to flexibly and independently use their comprehension reading strategies to decode unfamiliar text and to make sense of what they are reading.   Books at this level include titles such as “Amelia Bedila, Young Cam Jansen, and “The Frog and Toad”.

 Throughout the year you will be given notification of the approximate level your child is reading on.  This level will be their instructional level.  Which means it is the level of book that your child is being instructed upon: can read but needs some guidance.  This is not to say you are not read stories that are above or below this level with your child.  Typically, your child will be able to comprehend stories at much higher levels than they are capable of reading. 

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