Kindergarten Reading Instruction
I have learned so much about reading instruction as both a classroom teacher and homeschool mom.
Reading and writing go hand-in-hand, so I created an easy to use program that teaches children to be confident readers and writers.
Plus, they love using this program!
TRY A FREE WEEK
Using themed, high-interest materials is incredibly important. We want children to be excited to learn!
Reading can be overwhelming and scary for some children, and I have discovered that building confidence and excitement for beginning readers is half the battle.
My routine stays the exact same each week for my guided literacy instruction.
Every week, I use the same three resources shown below.
Every weekly theme includes a fluency/comprehension activity page, a mini reader, and a sentence building worksheet.
Each week the theme changes, but the format stays the same.
You will save so much time not having the explain directions and expectations. Children love knowing what to expect and they look forward to a new theme each week. All their energy can go into learning the new vocabulary, sight words and reading materials.
I use this setup for the entire school year. The materials progressively get more challenging throughout the school year to target the exact skills and standards we are working on each month.
HERE IS HOW THE PROGRAM WORKS:
These example activities are from my November Reading Rockstar Pack.
All of the resources for the week have the same pictures, vocabulary, sight words and structure.
Repetition is key.
As children work throughout the week, their confidence, fluency and comprehension grows. All of their energy goes into becoming a better reader since they aren’t frustrated.
Read the reviews from other teachers and homeschool families!
Gathering materials for small group reading time and centers used to be incredibly time consuming and stressful for me.
I also used to feel like I was spending so much class time explaining directions and expectations for each activity.
Monday: introduce theme, vocabulary/sight words, I read the passage, we read it together
Tuesday: review words, we read together, they read on their own (whisper/buddy), answer comprehension questions
Wednesday: sentence builder
Thursday: mini book, Review CAP skills - front cover, turning pages, holding a book properly, I read the book to them
Friday: we read the book together, buddy read, answer comprehension questions
This setup works perfectly for the classroom, homeschooling and even distance learning.
What about differentiating for your students? If you’re in the classroom, you can differentiate in so many ways!
Build student confidence with repeated, meaningful practice that they love!
For struggling readers: do not make them read out loud in front of people on their own. Our goal is to build their confidence, so we do more choral and buddy reading in the lower reading level groups.
When we are in our small groups, I will walk behind them and actually pick up their finger and move it from word to word as I read the passage out loud.
I do this for the first month or so until they understand that they are reading the specific word that they are touching.
Many children do not understand the idea of 1:1 correspondence - I cannot say a word until my finger points to it. Words have meaning, and I am looking at (reading) the word to see what to say. This is such an aha moment for beginning readers.
Reread as many times as you can. Every single day during reading groups, warm up with the fluency/comprehension page. It takes 1-2 minutes, but this teaches them more than you know! By the end of the week, many of them recognize the words! Their confidence goes through the roof. They see the same pictures and words all week, and they realize they can read.
For higher readers: we do a lot of extension activities! For example, after reading the passage, I will write a similar sentence on the board for them to figure out and read. I use the same vocabulary, but often in a different format than the passage.
We do a lot less choral reading in the higher groups. I have them whisper read and buddy read more. The higher readers should also be doing a lot more writing. We often spend two days on writing instead of just Wednesday. I encourage them to expand the sentences and write more.
Higher readers should be doing more writing and extension activities.
Ready to watch your kindergarteners transform into confident, capable readers?
Ready to ditch all the prep work?
Let’s get started!
4 WEEKLY THEMES FOR EACH MONTH
Watch as students progress through the weekly themes and become confident readers.
Click each month to learn more and try freebies, or save with the bundle below.
SAVE BIG WITH THE YEAR LONG BUNDLE!
READ THE REVIEWS
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“So much fun...so developmentally appropriate... love these!!! Thanks.”
“I love how the whole weeks worth of activities go together, thank you for this great resource!”