reading
In kindergarten, students begin the school year by developing and improving their phonological awareness, which is the ability to identify individual sounds in spoken words. Read alouds that feature rhyme are one of the ways we practice this! Identifying beginning sounds in simple words like "cat" and "pet" also helps students improve phonological awareness.
Next, we begin working on pairing the sounds we hear to specific letters in the alphabet. I typically introduce 1-2 new letters each week, following the Fundations phonics curriculum. Students work with letters in a variety of ways, including letter sorts, magnetic letters, handwriting practice, letter tracing, and even making letters with Play-dough. Students also begin sorting pictures based on their beginning sounds, and brainstorming words that start with specific beginning sounds.
In early January, students are ready to start meeting in reading groups! We determine students' instructional reading levels and group students accordingly. This ensures that all students read texts and receive instruction on reading skills and strategies that are appropriate for their reading level.
For the remainder of the school year, I utilize components of both the Daily Five and guided reading models to structure our literacy block. If you walk into our classroom during our literacy block, you may see students reading independently, reading with a buddy, listening to books on their iPads, completing phonics work (i.e. word sorts, games, iPad apps), writing in their journals, working with poetry, or meeting with a teacher in a guided reading group.
Next, we begin working on pairing the sounds we hear to specific letters in the alphabet. I typically introduce 1-2 new letters each week, following the Fundations phonics curriculum. Students work with letters in a variety of ways, including letter sorts, magnetic letters, handwriting practice, letter tracing, and even making letters with Play-dough. Students also begin sorting pictures based on their beginning sounds, and brainstorming words that start with specific beginning sounds.
In early January, students are ready to start meeting in reading groups! We determine students' instructional reading levels and group students accordingly. This ensures that all students read texts and receive instruction on reading skills and strategies that are appropriate for their reading level.
For the remainder of the school year, I utilize components of both the Daily Five and guided reading models to structure our literacy block. If you walk into our classroom during our literacy block, you may see students reading independently, reading with a buddy, listening to books on their iPads, completing phonics work (i.e. word sorts, games, iPad apps), writing in their journals, working with poetry, or meeting with a teacher in a guided reading group.