Have you been thrown into teaching on-line? I haven’t this year- YET! It could easily come and I want to be prepared! I think teaching online guided reading will be one of the most difficult areas to teach. I mean- I’ve got to teach these first graders HOW to read! It’s such a huge responsibility! Hopefully, if you are teaching online (or could be soon), I can help you with some solutions!
Schools everywhere are having to switch to online learning because of the Coronavirus. It’s nearly impossible for teachers to plan and teach to the best of their abilities. But, we are TEACHERS! So, of course, we always rise through all of the tough times!
Using Apps and Technology for Guided Reading
While in class, I am trying to use more technology than I ever have with my first graders. If I can get them familiar with all the things that I plan to use during guided reading, it will make the process SO much easier!
Online Books
We use Raz-Kids at school and this is definitely going to be one of my go-to’s if we go virtual! I could share my screen with students as we read the book together.
I’ve also heard that Pioneer Valley has some great online options. I haven’t check them out yet but I do love their books in general.
Word Work
For the word work portion, I’ve been busy creating Word Work BOOM decks that mirror the skills in The Ultimate Guided Reading Toolkit. Each deck has 30 cards, so my plan is to do about 10 cards together in our groups and then they finish the deck on their own. To learn more about BOOM decks, check out this blogpost!
Sight Word Books
I plan to start using my Seesaw Sight Word Books with my students at the beginning of the year (whether in class or online). These will help students with sight words as well as basic strategies (one to one matching, self-monitoring). I love that the students can record themselves reading these books! Try my Sight Word A Book for FREE!
Making a Plan
The best thing we can all do is to make a plan (just in case)! Good luck with your teaching whether you are doing in class guided reading or online guided reading!
