How to Teach Guided Reading

Up to 6 students in a group, 3-5x/wk for 30 minutes. The teacher teaches books at the group’s INSTRUCTIONAL LEVEL (90-94% decoding accuracy).

I no longer teach using guided reading. If you listen to the podcast, Sold a Story, you will learn that the Marie Clay/Fountas & Pinnell cueing system of reading (look at the picture, look at the beginning letter sound, skip it/read on/go back, does it look right/sound right/make sense) is a method poor readers use. It makes reading a guessing game. Children need phonics and decodable texts. The only method to use when stuck on a word is to sound it out.

Here are better ways to use your guided reading books – What Do I Do with All These Predictable Books? (righttoreadproject.com)

BASIC OUTLINE OF A GUIDED READING GROUP

Optional Quick Write ~ Students write 5-6 Fluency Words on whiteboards (not necessary for grades 3 and up).

Old Story ~ Students reread for 4 minutes a portion of yesterday’s book or chapter for fluency and accuracy so the teacher can take a running record on 1 student.

Mini-Lesson ~ The mini-lesson is based on teacher observations of students’ needs from YESTERDAY’S book. Introduce the skill in context and model the application of the skill. Guide the students in using the skill. Teach a new reading strategy: 12 Comprehension Strategies or Reading Strategy Objectives

New Story ~ Give a summary statement of the new book or chapter. Discuss illustrations, captions, headings. . . Students make predictions. The teacher introduces the new vocabulary. All students then read at their own pace to a designated page. Whisper phones are helpful for younger students. The teacher listens to each child and asks prompting questions. If students finish at different times, they should reread it but monitor who is lagging significantly behind daily. Perhaps the group they are in is too difficult.

Follow-up ~ Casually discuss the book or chapter. SEE “AFTER READING STRATEGIES” below.

You will want this AMAZING question list for EACH strategy for EACH guided reading level!

NEW BOOK INTRODUCTION

1. Summary Statement

The teacher gives a brief statement of the story in 2-3 sentences, including the title, author, illustrator, genre, copyright date, and other books by the author. The purpose is to relate students’ prior knowledge to the story.

2. “Picture Walk.”

The teacher and students “walk” through the book, looking at and discussing each illustration. By asking questions, the students will realize the storyline, main idea, book structure, predictable patterns, etc. If it is a nonfiction book, discuss the nonfiction text features.

3. Vocabulary Introduction

During the “picture walk,” the teacher should use the vocabulary unique to the story. Then, ask students to find these words on the various pages using graphophonic clues.

BEFORE READING STRATEGIES are ways to increase engagement, motivate the students to read, and boost comprehension. Choose one of the following:

5-10 keywords from the story are written on the board. Predict what the book/chapter will be about using all the words, then read for a purpose ~ to confirm or revise predictions.
If studying verbs, select verbs to teach from the book. If studying adjectives, just select adjectives.
Select 3-4 pictures from the story and make copies of them. Next, the students predict what the book is about by arranging pictures and telling a story.
Bring in objects that are in the book to teach the new vocabulary.
Anticipation Guides ~ Write 5-10 statements based on the story’s or nonfiction piece’s content. Students attempt to answer yes/no or true/false for each statement. They then read to correct their guides.
Fill in the Blank ~ The teacher selects 2 sentences from the story with keywords missing. Then, students brainstorm possible words that could fill in the blank. This is a good strategy for students who do not use context clues when reading.

DURING READING STRATEGIES are essential to assess what the students know and think will happen. This is particularly important for longer stories. Students whisper read. Listen in to each child.

Concept Mapping ~ Students record the story’s main idea and then map all facts they have learned up to the stopping point. This works well for students who forget the details. Then, the teacher can provide the main idea and some details.
Inspiration can help you create a map on the computer.
See my page for prompts to ask during guided reading groups. (Prompts for the Reading Strategies and question list)
Teachers should write observations of students’ reading behaviors at this time.

AFTER READING STRATEGIES

Students come up with questions to ask each other.
Students retell** the selection or summarize using “Somebody Wanted But So Then.” (Jack and Jill wanted to fetch a pail of water, but Jack fell and broke his crown, so he did not get the water. Then Jill came tumbling after.)
Prepare sentence strips of the plot, and the students sequence the story.
Put specific questions in plastic Easter eggs. Students each pick one and call on a group member to answer.
See my Open-Ended Questions page or use this question list.
Read my Expectations By Grade Level pages:

As you can see, 1st graders are expected to retell, make a connection, and tell a favorite part and why. 2nd graders are expected to retell, state the most important event and why it is important, and state the author’s message or overall lesson in the story. 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders have other expectations.

Students discuss strategies that they used.
Revisit the mini-lesson and how that strategy was used today.

**RETELLING** after reading, WITH THE BOOK CLOSED, is wonderful, especially for beginning readers. They should:

Tell most events in sequence, or tell key facts for nonfiction.
Include important details.
Refer to characters or topics by specific names.
Include key vocabulary from the text.
Respond to questions with an interpretation that shows higher-level thinking or connections.

The teacher should ask the children in the guided reading group who are NOT retelling if the RETELLER is giving enough information. I have students use their fingers:

THE POSSIBILITIES ARE ENDLESS. THE ABOVE IS JUST A GENERIC OUTLINE FOR NEW TEACHERS.

Lesson Plan Templates

Teachers should follow the GRADUAL RELEASE OF RESPONSIBILITY MODEL Literacy Leader and DIFFERENTIATE instruction Reading Rockets.