I am in the process of making Literacy Work Stations for my students to work on during guided reading. I don't use the Daily 5 (gasp) because I prefer work stations. I usually start the second week of school and I don't have to wait for my kids to build stamina in order to work independently for 15-20 min. I am not saying that my way is better, but it works for me.
I meet with every reading group, every day. I know I have said this before, but it is still true today: Guided Reading is the BEST part of my day.
I usually have one group (4-5 students) working with me, one group (4-5 students) at their desks working on an assignment, one group (4-5 students) at Literacy work stations, and one group (4-5 students) on computers and chrome books (I have 4 computers and 3 chrome books in my room right now.) Depending on the number of students in my class, those groups could increase to 6.
My rotation poster looks like this:
Students working independently at their desks may be working on:
1. a spelling or phonics assignment (early in the year) Here's an example of us working on ai/ay ~ we did ai one day and ay the next day
2. a writing assignment (later in the year)
3. science or social studies activities
4. math facts or more math practice
5. or anything else that I need to do during that time
My early finishers usually read AR books and take tests or write in their journals.
My school still uses the Journeys reading series, but we are up for a new adoption this year and I have no idea what we will pick.
So, I am creating work station packs that are generic and can be used with any reading series. I have Week 1 in my TpT store now. I started with short a CVC words. (while I am putting them in the order I prefer, they can always be rearranged according to your needs.)
I do not like to grade a ton of papers, so I have been putting the recording sheets inside reusable Write & Wipe pockets like the ones found
HERE. Slide the recording sheet in the pocket, students write answers with a dry erase marker and erase when finished. It saves me time (no grading) and it saves paper for those of you with paper limits. I also use them at the reading table. Here is a picture of my kiddos using them during guided reading:
I have also attached the TEKS and Common Core standards to each work station. This will be helpful for anyone who has to attach standards to lesson plans, like me~😢.
Note: I do not claim to be a Common Core standards expert, so if you see a mistake, feel free to give me constructive feedback.
If you are interested in checking out this pack, click on the picture below. And if you would like more info on how I do my Guided Reading block, comment below and I will try to answer your questions in a future post.
Happy Teaching!
