Student-Centered Reading Lessons With a Focus on Independence
In the text Read the World by Ziemke & Muhtaris, the authors emphasize the importance of evaluating classroom libraries, read alouds, content-area texts and primary sources if we are going to truly teach empathy and action in a digital age. One suggestion from the authors on how to do this is to have students create a Padlet on stories they might be missing in their classroom and school. As a Reading Coach, I find tools like this one useful to share with classroom teachers to help support them in creating a student-centered learning environment that promotes independence.
Two of the seven most important structures the authors point out are having a clear focus on students and student independence. As a Reading Specialist, whether coaching teachers or students, these structures hold true. There are a plethora of reading assessments at our finger tips, and just like technology, we use these tools to help provide our students with the skills they need to "thrive - academically, socially, and emotionally."
New, or soon to be new, Reading Specialists often ask me what a 30-minute lesson in the reading room looks like in a student-centered learning environment that promotes social and emotional learning?
Here is an example on how we use our Social Emotional Learning (SEL) approach using a tool called RULER. We use a Mood Meter for kids to point out how they are feeling or how their characters are feeling in the stories we read. We use the Meta Moment when our students need a break or teach a new concept. We teach them how to be in the moment by asking themselves questions: What is happening in the moment? How does it feel in my body? What thoughts are going through my mind right now?
Mood Meter and Meta Moment
Here is an example of teaching multi-syllable words and new vocabulary words and bringing it to another level by incorporating Meta-Moment questions.
To help students thrive academically, we use more of a multi-sensory and systematic approach (Orton-Gillingham) to teach foundational reading skills based on our students needs and goals. Here is a sample of an Orton Gillingham lessor for our most struggling readers.
1. Phonemic awareness practice by manipulating sounds in words automatically by playing a quick game.
2. Sound card practice.
3. Dictation: sounds, words, phrases and sentences (student encode with immediate, corrective feedback.)
4. Read words, phrases, sentences and/or text to practice decoding skills taught.
5. Introduce a new concept: Explicitly teach a new skill with strategies (steps) - depending on student goals.
6. Independent reading to practice skills and enjoy reading!
7. Students evaluate their progress and set their own goals.
Depending on student needs, Structured Literacy lessons are combined with a Balanced Literacy approach. For examples, small group shared reading or writing and small group interactive reading or writing are also practiced when it meets student needs. Independent reading and conferring are always a part of every lesson. Some additional multi-sensory activities include body spelling "red" (sight) words, finger writing letters or words with different materials, making words with tiles, writing and marking up words on whiteboards, sound boxes with chips and a lot of games!
Here is an example of an Orton Gillingham lesson given by Susan Nolan for a student with Dyslexia.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiZvSvALo-4
Hi Marlene! I love that you were able to bring us into your world as a specialist with specific examples to connect to our class discussion topics around literacy. I've heard of the mood meter being incorporated with SEL activities, but not within an intervention period - which is another great tool to bring deeper connections between their sense of self and meanings of characters/feelings. The resources you provided of additional specific models of how student centered learning can be implemented further is also helpful in thinking about the various ways literacy is broken down and differentiated for specific needs - thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHello Marlene, thank you for sharing your expertise! I worked as a long-term substitute reading specialist and title 1 tutor at an elementary school from January until last week. I used a Mood Meter daily with my classes, but it was not really a part of my instruction. I love the way you combined social emotional learning with reading. This is really excellent. I wish I knew to do this in my specialist position, but I will definitely try to implement it in my classrooms going forward! I am still learning about the RULER program and I really enjoy it. I hope I can receive more training on it in the future. As for teaching foundational reading skills, it was a very new experience for me! I had never been trained in it and was very unaware of the top strategies and best practices. I wish I had someone like you to train me. I look forward to learning more about the best ways to teach these skills when I earn my sixth year degree. Most of my learning has been on the job, and I know I have so much more to learn! This blog post is very helpful!
ReplyDeleteHi Marlene- great job on your blog post! I really enjoyed reading how you are able to incorporate SEL in your lessons as a Reading Specialist! I work in a RULER school, and we always start with some type of SEL book to introduce the year to help us establish our classroom charter. I think that providing SEL opportunities in literacy is so important, and easier that many teachers anticipate! From comprehension questions, like, ¨How do you think the character was feeling? What would you do in that situation?¨, to ¨Can you infer how the character might have been feeling? Although the author didn´t tell you, what can you use from the text to help support your answer.¨ I absolutely loved the resources you provided and how you were able to incorporate OG in your instruction!
ReplyDeleteI love the content you talked about in your blog post. I specifically loved what you talked about regarding Mood Meters. I find it really helpful to be conscious of all the feeling and how students are feeling. I love how the mood meter is more specific to breakdown the real feelings behind being just happy or sad or mad for example. SEL is super helpful, especially in the younger grades. I also really like the resources that you have shared here. I love the approach to being more sensory in lessons. Great job!!
ReplyDeleteMarlene, this was a great window into your world but so relatable for the classroom teacher as well. I use the mood meter in my classroom for so many reasons and I loved seeing how you incorporate it into your role. In chapter 3 of Read the World, it mentions that some teachers may feel "...there isn't enough time for social-emotional learning in the already-packed school day." However, you have shown through this post that there is time for both social-emotional learning and a structured lesson based on the students needs. I can imagine how important your students must feel when you check in with their emotional needs before addressing their academic needs. Research has proven over and over again there is a profound connection between social growth and academic growth. Thank you for sharing how this student centered approach works for you and giving us ideas on how to make it work in any room!
ReplyDeleteHi Marlene- it's so interesting to hear about different approaches to learning across schools. Of course the SEL approach is so important and I believe it is becoming more popular in the world of education. We need to consider the way students are feeling/ what they are thinking before we can approach and teach. The mood meter is cool and I would like to try something that is interactive like that with my students to use in the morning. There are many unique approaches and the sensory one is definitely one I believe it. Having kids get their hands on objects, tools, and resources is so memorable for them. It is concrete and easier for them to understand. The OG instruction is new to me, the whole idea of teaching phonics is too. We use a Teacher's College program that has been great for my students so far. There are many beliefs towards what works and what doesn't but I believe half it is who is teaching and how they do it :) Thanks for sharing!!
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ReplyDeleteThis was so interesting to be able to get a glimpse of the work you do with students in your small groups. I love that you stress the importance of working with the WHOLE child to meet not just the academic needs, but the social and emotional needs of the child too. The video on the Orton Gillingham method was very interesting! I have worked with children with dyslexia in my classroom, but never saw the work that was being done by the special education teachers on the other end! I think that general education teachers should all be trained to work with students with dyslexia because I think it's more common than we know. The video also made me appreciate all of the work that the teachers did before my students with dyslexia came to me in 4th grade. Also, this woman is amazingly patient! Thank you for this insight into your workd Marlene!
Laura A
Hi Marlene!
ReplyDeleteThis post was so interesting! I enjoyed learning about your topic through your personal connection. A lot of what you wrote about are strategies that I had never seen implemented in the classrooms before. My school uses the Fundations Wilson Reading Program so I am familiar with the multi sensory approach to reading although it is slightly different. I was most impressed by the way that you incorporate SEL into your reading lessons. I was amazed at how perfectly the two could go hand in hand and it just makes sense! I'm going to try this with students as I think it could be so helpful and used in many different ways. This was so insightful, thanks for sharing!
-Grace
Hi Marlene,
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for this wonderful blog post. It is clear that you are passionate about incorporating SEL into your position as a reading specialist, and meeting the needs of all students through a multi-sensory and balanced approach. I appreciate how you broke down the steps behind the OG Lesson structure, since I was unfamiliar with it. I can see how the multiple opportunities for practice, reflection, and goal setting can help students thrive. I enjoyed exploring these resources and hope I will be able to incorporate them into my own classroom when I am teaching. Great job!
-Shawna Zeisner
Hi Marlene,
ReplyDeleteI love how you integrated social emotional learning into a reading lesson by using the mood meter! This is such a unique idea that I never would have thought of. Not only does it teach students new vocabulary words, but it also helps them with identifying their emotions.
My school just started RULER training this year, and we use the mood meter often for teachers. We have been talking about ways to incorporate the mood meter and other RULER activities into daily routines for students. I will definitely be recommending this idea to the teachers at my school! Thanks for the great post!
Colleen Konkol
Thank you all for your inspiring blogs and comments. Although we didn't get a chance to meet in person, I am grateful to be among such smart women.
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