Teaching Strategies
I am an English teacher, and I follow the Children’s Literacy Initiative Framework that was adopted by the School District of Philadelphia for teaching reading and writing in a middle school classroom. This Literacy Framework is part of my formal observation by my principal that she completes twice a year.
Shared Reading: Whole Group Instruction
The teacher reads out loud and models close reading based on the objective and standard. Sometimes, the students have the text in front of them and sometimes they do not, it depends on the length of the text. Teachers model for students repeatedly through this shared reading approach. I will model repeatedly a shared reading of the films with film vocabulary, the authenticity of the immigrant’s story, and analysis of conflict for the character.
Collaborative Reading: Whole Group Instruction
The teacher and students read out loud excerpts of the text and share their close reading interpretation and analysis about the text to the whole class. Students are highlighting, making notes on the side, and can foster a debate. The teacher is a facilitator and calls on students to read and share their interpretation. Teacher might also ask clarifying questions and reiterates the objective and purpose of the lesson.
Cooperative Pairs and Guided Reading: Small Group Instruction
Teachers assign students a cooperative pair based on reading level and skill ability. For example, a teacher will pair a student with similar reading levels and comprehension abilities to work with each other on a text. While students are working with their partners, a teacher can have a guided reading section with four to five students. Again, this guided reading group is a combination of two cooperative pairs that need additional support with the main idea, vocabulary, or summarization. A teacher presents a different mini lesson for each guided reading group based on the need.
Independent Assessment and Independent Reading: Individual Instruction
Once a week, students are assessed based on the objective and standard. During this time, students are reading independently a text at their reading level. Students respond to the content of the text and answer assessment questions that are developed based on the objective and standard. Teachers should select texts that reflect the same theme or central idea being studied in the unit, but that is at the discretion of the teacher.
The Children’s Literacy Framework for writing follows the exact same format for writing. A teacher will use a mentor text for a particular writing style and demonstrate the skill to the whole class first. There is an emphasis on revising and editing with your cooperative pair and through a writing conference with your teacher. Students are independently assessed with a final draft.
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