Guided Reading Binder

Now that I'm in my 5th year teaching, I have realized that I will continue to learn and improve on my reading instruction. It's like I feel like I've finally got the hang of something, then I watch another teacher and I'm like oh, I like that! I love learning from others and I love teaching reading.

My simple binder. Maybe I should decorate it?

One thing that has really helped me is keeping a binder on my reading groups. Nothing spectacular. Just a binder.

I created a spreadsheet based on "The Art of Teaching Writing" and a list from Becky Koesel. This is where I record the books that my students are reading, dates that we discussed different skills, and any other notes on student's reading. I keep a spreadsheet on each student. This is mainly for parent conferences and intervention meetings with our administrative team.

My binder is organized by DRA level. I put students names on post it notes on the outside of the folder tab that indicates their instructional DRA level. The spreadsheet goes behind the tab. I used to create group names or numbers, but the groups are meant to be fluid. So rather than a student having to remember what group they are in, I just call the students each time.

I recently revamped my schedule and started using Becky Koesel's Guided Reading lesson plan. I am hoping that this will maximize my reading instruction time.

Love And Logic

"Teaching with Love and Logic" has become a staple in my classroom. I really don't think I would have managed and been successful over the past year without it. I've heard some people say that teaching gets easier as you go along. While some aspects have become easier, I feel that each year I have been challenged in new ways to improve my interactions with students and therefore improving learning.

I've also heard some teachers say that L&L was natural to them and was apart of their classroom before they could label it as such. Not for me. It wasn't until last year that I was sent to a L&L workshop that I really began to look at how I interacted with my students. I was never mean or anything, I just felt like sometimes I was carrying all their issues and they never had any responsibility for their actions. The whole warning and conduct mark system just didn't work.

I continue to use a conduct mark system in my room as that is part of our communication with parents on the daily interactions within our classroom. However now I try to focus more on the behaviors and the problem that is causing the behavior.

If you're a teacher and you've never heard of Love and Logic I cannot recommend their materials enough. They have books, audio CDs and even clips on you tube about working with children. This includes information for parents!

In the future I plan to blog more about how L&L has helped me become a better teacher. Im still learning and changing the way I think about discipline and classroom management. I feel as if all universities should add a L&L management course (or at the very least a book) to their curriculum.

So go check it out!