Planning for Small Group Instruction: Problem and Solution

Moving from 4th grade to 3rd grade has been fascinating as there is a big difference between the two ages.  And I'm realizing again that 3rd grade readers are at a critical stage in reading development.  As they are becoming more sophisticated readers, the books become more complex. Not only are they building stamina to read longer books over several days but they are also learning to infer so much about a story.  Over the last few weeks I've been working with a small group on inferring problem and solution and I've learned so much from them. My thinking is that this cycle of lessons I've used with them might be the perfect cycle to use in whole class teaching early in the year next year.

I began working with several groups of students on inferring because although my students can infer isolated pieces in a text (what a word means in the context of a sentence, what a character meant by a phrase in a book, what might happen next, etc.), I am noticing a pattern that many of my students do not infer across the text and as texts become longer and more complex, this becomes more of a barrier to true comprehension. I'm finding students who can retell a story with every story part, but they miss some subtle thing that makes the story.  Their inferring is at the basic level and they rush through-making up their mind fast without pausing to think about the whole. So, I planned a few lesson and have continued from there.

I always thought that problem and solution was a rather basic thing to teach but there are so many conversations that have come from it that I am realizing how important it is for 8 and 9 year olds.

DAY 1

We began with Chalk by Bill Thompson. This is a wonderful wordless picture book that I thought would make sense for inferring. I started out with inferring predictions with this group. We did a shared reading of the book as a group, talking and predicting using evidence from the pictures. Kids could predict basic things but it became evident that they were reading for isolated events rather than the whole bigger story.  They seemed to pay close attention to minor details and went quickly over events that worked together to create a story. They didn't seem to have any focus in mind as they read that could help them put the pieces together.

DAY 2

I asked students to go off and read a wordless book on their own. I used A Ball for Daisy
Hippo! No, Rhino!, and Where's Walrus? and each student left with one of these books  I asked them to jot notes on stickies as they read.

We came back together to talk and their stickies confirmed my thinking from our reading of Chalk. I realized  that these students were reading events but not reading for the whole story to come together in some way.  I needed to help them read across a story. There were lots of stickies about little details not connected to the big story. I know that these are important for readers , but only if they can see how they fit into the bigger picture.  So I changed my focus to problem and solution to give these students a way to focus--how to read across a story for the bigger picture in a story--more than isolated events in a sequence.

DAY 3

One thing that struck me in all of our conversations in the first two days was the fact that my students equated "ending" with "last page". Whatever the characters were doing on the last page was described as the ending by these students. I knew if I wanted to change the way they approached story, they needed to understand that the "ending" was not necessarily a final event but the solution or the outcome of the story.  It wasn't always the very last thing that happened.

For the next lesson, I used the wordless book Fossil by Bill Thompson. This one is patterned similarly to Chalk so I figured the kids would be able to dig deeper and see the problem and solution more clearly after having read and discussed Chalk.  For Fossil, I asked students to focus on the big problem and the big solution and we talked through it. They were much better able to do this when they weren't jumping around to lots of unrelated details. Instead, they read with a focus in mind that they wanted to get a sense of the whole story.

In the meantime, during individual conferences, we also talked a bit about the book that each child was reading during independent reading. They were delighted to discover that the books they were reading had problems and that the longer the book, the longer it took to solve the problem!

DAY 4

I decided that once the kids knew that stories had problems and solutions, I wanted to give them ways to look at these more deeply.  I wanted them to learn two strategies for thinking of problem and solution. One was that the title of a book is often a clue about the problem or solution. The other was that the main character often DOES something to solve the problem.

One thing I am noticing is that my students are often missing the subtle things that a character does to solve a problem.  Often a character does something (like in Miss Nelson is Missing) that seems obvious to adult readers even though it is not stated in the story.  I wanted my kids to read knowing that often characters did something deliberate to solve the problem and that readers sometimes read for that.

For this lesson, we read the book, I Want a Dog!. I picked this book for a few reasons. First of all, the problem was hinted to in the title. Second of all, the character does something very obvious to solve the problem and I knew my kids would see that.  Finally, I knew that there were lots of books about kids who want pets and I wanted to be able to build on this lesson later in the study. So,  "What did the character do to solve the problem?" was the focus of this lesson and kids caught right on, excited to know this little trick for finding solution. (They acted like they were in on a big secret!)  The focus was helpful as they weren't jumping all over the place, hoping the random details they noticed would somehow make sense to them.

DAY 5

Following I Want a Dog, I gave each student a copy of the picture book A Small Brown Dog with a Wet Pink Nose. This book is about a little girl who wants a dog but her solution is quite clever and the reader has to infer quite a bit to see how deliberate the little girl is throughout the story in order to solve her problem. I knew that understanding this might be a stretch but I knew that it was a good next step to really dig in and figure out what the character did.

MOVING FORWARD

Before I finish up with this group, I want to give them tools to go a little deeper into their understanding. I want them to see that problem and solution matters and that often a character changes over time because of the problem. I know that they are at the point that they are reading across a whole story now and they are ready to see the impact of the problem/solution on the characters.  So my next few lessons with this group will be around the idea that the main character often changes because of the problem they encountered and that readers often ask themselves, "How does the character change in the journey to solve the problem?"  I have a few books in mind for this conversation and they are all three books that make sense as next steps and for this new focus: Those Shoes, The Summer My Father Was Ten, and A Bad Case of Stripes (Scholastic Bookshelf) are the three books I'll use next. I may only use one or two depending on how much support students need with this new idea.

REFLECTIONS

Planning for this group helped me to think about my planning for all small groups.  I have been involved in lots of thinking around small group instruction at school. A group of teachers is meeting to discuss Jennifer Serravallo's book Teaching Reading in Small Groups: Differentiated Instruction for Building Strategic, Independent Readers and  we have been involved in LLI training. I'm realizing that my small group instruction at 3rd grade needs to be as planned and focused as my whole group lessons.  And they need to happen over more than a few days.  Even though my groups are not really guided reading groups, they are strategy groups that need to move students to new behaviors quickly. When I started thinking about this group, the change they needed seemed too big to happen in a short time, but when I really looked at the students' behaviors and what they had in place, I was able to break the idea down into smaller chunks and change behaviors quickly. My students quickly learned to read across a story, to find the problem and solution and to focus on character actions.  Next I am confident that they will be able to see the changes a character has on their journey in the story.  These little behaviors have changed in a two week period and has transferred to their independent reading so that they are more engaged and thoughtful readers.

These kids are not necessarily struggling readers but they are struggling with this idea and it is keeping them from truly understanding what they read .  I am all about discovery, but sometimes kids need some ways into discovery. They need to know what to read for and some things to remember as readers. Then when they move into complex texts they know these things will hold true and that's where the real thinking and discovery comes in.  I've been careful to choose books that really make visible the things I want them to see that are true of many stories so that they differently on their own.  In less than 2 weeks, they've changed their expectations of story.

I am rethinking small groups to be a bit longer than usual (over 2-ish weeks) to really change several behaviors that add up over time. This cycle has taught me a lot about what transitional readers need and about how to better plan small group instruction so that in a short period of time, students can become more independent readers.

Presidents' Day

JFK
by Jonah Winter
illustrated by AG Ford
Katherine Tegen Books, 2013
review copy provided by the publisher

I know it's supposed to be President's (singular possessive -- honoring George Washington) Day, but why can't we celebrate ALL the presidents on this day? We've had some great ones, and we've had some lousy ones, but either way, it's certainly not a job I would want to do!

When I received JFK, there was no doubt in my mind who should review it. Judy Hedge, a reading teacher in my building, is a passionate JFK fan. JFK came to visit her county in 1960. Judy's father, Robert Fulton, was a Wickliffe Councilman and running for County Commissioner and attended a fundraiser for Kennedy. Judy had to go to school and miss JFK riding in an open convertible through her community so she gave her father her autograph book. Her father got to shake JFK's hand and had him sign her autograph book. He had his picture taken with Kennedy, too. Judy has an extensive collection of Kennedy memorabilia: newspaper articles, magazines, political buttons and a signed photo from a letter she wrote to him after the election. He is her hero.

About Winter's JFK, she writes:

It’s hard for me to believe that fifty years have passed since the presidency of John F. Kennedy. To me, and many of my generation, the young president inspired us to serve the greater good; that hope and determination will always succeed over fear and uncertainty.

A lot has been said about the Kennedy legacy and “Camelot” in the years since. Some good, some bad and for a while it seemed like that legacy disappeared from an active role in our cultural life. Jonah Winter’s JFK gives me hope that children who will one day face the same issues that President Kennedy faced will know their historical legacy to guide their choices. While not a definitive volume, Winter touches on many of the defining moments of JFK’s administration.

AG Ford utilizes the technique of overemphasizing the light on the main subject’s face to make the illustrations look more dramatic. The illustrations are cartoonish so children can relate better to the events that they depict. My hope of this very well illustrated book is that it will inspire curiosity and allow the young minds to learn about the man and how his legacy still impacts them 50 years later.


EDITED TO ADD: Kindle Daily Deal for Kids has 5 books about presidents for $1.99 each...including George Washington, Abe Lincoln, and JFK!

Celebrate this week!

1.  #nerdlution -- What started last December as a "jump on the bandwagon" has gone past habit to become a cherished ritual: get up, walk for 20-30 minutes, sit down with my tea and yogurt and write for 20-30 minutes. If I start my day by doing these two things for ME, then a day never passes when I do everything for others and neglect myself.

2. Boundaries -- I stop working at 8:00 PM. That doesn't mean I always work until 8:00, that just means that if I am still working, I stop at 8:00. This boundary means I don't do any of those 8:00 PM Twitter chats, but it also means I don't spend my last waking hour doing Twitter chats.

3. Valentine boxes -- I wish I would have taken pictures! My students were SO creative this year! There was a minion, a MineCraft creeper, a black night-sky box with a styrofoam earth (on a tilted axis) with a smaller styrofoam moon (with spray painted craters) suspended (well, stuck on a stick) in the "night sky" above the box (yes, we are studying earth and moon in science), a race car, and one that had a string of lights that lit up with a battery inside it...among the other tissue paper/hearts/red+pink creations.

4. Life outside of school -- I organized a combination online (FB) / live auction that culminated this week. We raised over $700 for Casting for Recovery!

5. My weekend tea mug -- another ritual I cherish is switching on Saturday from my weekday regular-sized tea mug and teabag tea to my extra-large Writer's Almanac mug and super strong loose tea made in my infuser from NorthStar Cafe (from back in the day when they sold them). More tea = more time to sip. Ahhh...

EDITED TO ADD: Cybils Awards were announced yesterday! Congrats to the winners!

Those are five of the things I celebrate this week. How about you? What are you celebrating? Join Ruth and other bloggers at www.ruthayreswrites.com for the 18th edition of Celebrate This Week.

Poetry Friday -- Brrr...

Flickr Creative Commons Photo by Lars Kristian Flem

LOVE IN A GLOVE

It's frigid.
Each hand's fingers huddle
in the main house of the mitten,
fraternal quadruplets, each smitten
with the opposable digit.

It's touching
the way the four welcome thumb
in from his cold outpost,
fold over him,
hold him close.

Then later,
when the backs of the fingers succumb,
begin to numb,
thumb becomes reciprocator,
gathers the four beneath his meager reach.

For once,
thumb is unconcerned
about any job to be done.
Fingers appreciate thumb's cuddle,
though he covers only two knuckles.

©Mary Lee Hahn, 2014


Happy Valentine's Day! Linda has the Poetry Friday roundup at TeacherDance today.

Small Changes

by Hugh MacLeod at gapingvoid.com

She's spunky and funny and VERY creative, but her lack of attention during our 80 minute math period was making me crazy. I was constantly redirecting her: sit up, look at the board, pay attention, come sit right here by me, sit up, keep your head up, be a good group member...

I'm not the only one who sometimes has to spin down into the depths of negativity before I remember how powerful POSITIVE can be, am I?

Yesterday, I took her aside at the end of recess and reminded her how smart she is in math -- how well she had done on her algebra test even though she wasn't always paying her best attention in class. Told her how much better I hoped she would do with our new unit on fractions, decimals and percents, and how I wanted to help her pay attention more.

I broke the 80 minutes into four 20 minute sections. I told her that if I only had to remind her to pay attention once every twenty minutes, just four times in the whole math period, I would give her a piece of candy. She agreed enthusiastically. On a whim, as we walked into the classroom, I offered her a double reward if she could make it through math with NO redirection.

Best. Math period. Ever.

Yes, I know I will have to keep this reward a moving target so that it doesn't lose its effectiveness. And there will be times when she will have to work for a hug, or praise, or a positive email home. But for right now, I am thankful for a small change that can make a big difference.

What's a small change that has made a big difference for you recently? (Yes, Franki, wearing lipstick counts!)

Rethinking Intervention by Shari Frost

I was thrilled to receive a copy of Shari Frost's new professional book, Rethinking Intervention: Supporting Struggling Readers and Writers in Grades 3-6 Classrooms. This is the newest book published by Choice Literacy. I know Shari from our work on a few NCTE committees from our work with Choice Literacy. She is one of those amazing people who  I've always learned so much from. You don't have a conversation with Shari without rethinking something important!

Rethinking Intervention is so timely.  I can see that it is going to start amazing conversations in schools around the country.  Shari starts the book by helping readers rethink interventions for students in Grades 3-6. She  identifies real issues that keep students from moving forward as readers.  She knows that quality teachers are the key and believes in teachers as decision-makers.  Early in the book, Shari says, "Packaged intervention programs give schools false hope. With their explicit, scripted lessons, they propagate the big myth that anyone at all can successfully teach struggling students to read. Their cookbook, step-by-step approach seems so simple; if you follow the prescribed lessons as written, the students will improve."

She goes on to say, "However, the most important component of a successful intervention program is a knowledgeable and responsive teacher who can make informed decisions based on students' reading and writing behaviors.  A responsive teacher knows how to use the materials to best meet the needs of the students."

Shari understands and reminds readers that the classroom teacher is key to a child's success--especially the child getting intervention on top of classroom instruction.  I love this book because it doesn't only talk about the individual things a teacher or intervention specialist can do to support our struggling readers. Instead Shari supports a comprehensive approach that has a child in a solid literacy classroom. She shares ideas for the workshop that support struggling students in whole class, small group and individual groupings. She understands that every part of a child's day is key to their growth as readers and that is it possible to differentiate for these children within whole class and small group settings. If aligned, the combination of these practices in a solid literacy workshop are key to moving students forward.

The last section of the book focuses on the collaboration between the classroom teacher and the intervention specialists.  Shari is honest about the challenges for both parties in finding time to meet and collaborate about progress and teaching in both settings.  She shares ideas that have worked such as a folder that travels with the student. She also highlights the importance of student knowledge and ownership of goals.

Shari's book brings to the forefront some important things that are sometimes embedded in school cultures--not because teachers don't know better, but because schedules and other things stand in the way. She offers honest thoughts and realistic possibilities for change.  This is an exciting book in which  Shari offers solutions based on her work in schools and with teachers.

This book is short (119 pages) but it is packed with information and powerful thinking.  I can see this book as one that will start important conversations in schools.  Shari understands the challenges to quality intervention and also understands that no one is to blame--she understands and respects the challenges and frustrations of every individual involved in a child's education. And with that, she offers some good ideas for rethinking.

Rethinking Intervention is the perfect title for this book as that's what it will allow teachers to do. And she invites us to rethink it in a way that is both hopeful and energizing.

The Quirks--A Must Have Series

I finally had a chance to read The Quirks: Welcome to Normal over winter break.  Since I am new to 3rd grade, I am just getting to know books that are good for this age. I have always believed that series books are so important for this age so I am always on the lookout for new series books.

I LOVED LOVED LOVED this book and couldn't wait to share it with my kids. This is what I wrote in my "It's Monday! What Are You Reading?" post the week that I'd finished it:

I met author Erin Soderberg at #ncte13. Because I've been so far behind on my reading, her new book The Quirks: Welcome to Normal has been on my stack.  I ended up reading it as one of my #bookaday books and loved it. It is a fun new series about a family with unique "quirks".  They move to a very normal town and try to fit in. This book had everything in it that I loved about stories when I was younger.  That whole idea that something magical could be happening. The Littles, The Borrowers, Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle, I Dream of Jeanie, Escape to Witch Mountain and Bewitched were some of my favorite. I got that same feeling when I read this--loving the idea that someone I know may have magical powers! This is a new series and the 2nd is due out in February.  I think it is perfect for grades 3 and 4. I can't wait to share this one with my students!

Well, I brought the book to my classroom.   And I shared it with a student, who shared it with another student, who shared it with another student. The kids' eyes light up when they talk about it.  

Last week, I picked up a copy of the 2nd book in the Quirks series--The Quirks in Circus Quirkus . I took it to school and it too, is making its rounds.  (I can't seem to get my hands back on it to read it myself but I am hearing all about it as kids are abuzz about it!)  Last week, two students approached me asking when the 3rd Quirks was coming out.  We emailed the author and found out that the third book is due out in January. That is a LONG wait but everyone is still excited.

I have 12 kids in my class waiting to read this series.  I am trying to reserve a few at the library and add a few more to our classroom.  This is a book that is changing our classroom community. It is connecting kids who don't normally connect and it is stretching kids as readers.  It is a little longer and more complex than the things many kids have been reading so it is a perfect next step. And it is so fun!

There are not lots of 3rd grade-ish series books that I read and love as much as the kids. I sometimes like them because I see how they will appeal to 8 year olds. I sometimes like them but am reading them more as a teacher than a reader. But I love this series as both a teacher and a reader.  This is the PERFECT middle grade series. I am thinking it will make a good read aloud early in  3rd grade next year.  

If you teach 3rd or 4th grade, I would definitely recommend this fun new series!

Celebrate This Week!

It was a crazy week but I found myself noticing little things throughout the week that I wanted to make sure to remember to celebrate in this post.  Thanks, Ruth for a reason to live in a way that helps us pay attention to the little celebrations!

Visit Ruth Ayres Writes for a round-up of everyone's weekly celebration!

--Our 100th Day of school is next week.  We stayed after school to set up a morning of math fun for Monday morning when the kids arrive. I have 14 math activities set up around the room and kids can have fun thinking and collaborating around math wearing 100 Day glasses.  One extra celebration during our set up was this:

We revised some of the activities and the older version included weighing 100 Tootsie Rolls. My colleague Kami picked up this giant bag of 760 Tootsie Rolls for the fun. As we were setting up today, we realized we revised that activity and Tootsie Rolls were no longer needed.  I have to admit, we weren't disappointed that now we just have to eat them:-)

--I might be getting a little bit better at yoga.  We are so lucky to have so many great studios and so many great teachers in Central Ohio. I have found a few classes that I look forward to each week. And I am finishing up Week 3 of my 16 week Couch to 5K run program. At the 3rd week, it isn't so hard to get started each day and I actually feel good afterwards. I am so glad I am taking the running slow and adding more yoga to my life. I have been doing a bit of yoga for 2 years and finally feel like I have the basics down. I am ready to get a little better and am trying to get 3 days of yoga in a week (although 2 is more doable.).

--My #nerdlution of wearing lipstick daily has been more of a challenge than one would think but I am getting lots of gifts from friends to help make it easier.  Several friends have shared their fave lipstick/lip gloss with me. Even though there are many days where I have put lipstick on at 8 pm because it was the first time I remembered, I am making progress.  I am not ready to try Mood Lipstick yet, but how fun to know it is out there!

--Love the learning happening in our classroom this week. I always love January and February because the learning becomes so evident and kids are just buzzing along being amazing.

--I read and loved a new middle grade novel, Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy . It is a Snow Queen story and it is fabulous!  A great winter read that I highly recommend!

--I've discovered a new blog that is helping me think about digital tools. Katharine who writes at Teachitivity teaches 5th grade and integrates technology into her Reading and Writing Workshop. Thanks to Troy Hicks for introducing me to Katharine and her work:-) Katharine and I decided we needed to harness all of the great work going on in elementary schools around Digital Literacy so we created a hashtag and a Facebook page for anyone interested in talking about the ways in which digital tools can impact elementary Reading and Writing Workshops.  If you are interested, you can join our open Facebook Group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/430858380380820) and use the Twitter hashtag #k6diglit if you have posts, etc. to share on the topic.


And the biggest celebration has to be this sign I saw shopping last weekend. If winter wear is on sale, that must be a sign that there is an end in sight to this snow and -20 degree weather!

Poetry Friday -- Ode to a Classroom Goldfish

Flickr Creative Commons photo by James Demetrie

Ode to a Classroom Goldfish

The smaller of the two
in the bowl by the sink,
white and thin, you
made the marbles clink

when you nosed for food.
It's not likely,
but I wonder if it was music
for you and your lively,

larger, solid orange friend.
I think he misses you.
What would it be like to spend
your life swimming to

and fro, alone, in a small
glass prison? Perhaps it's
a home, not a prison at all.
Whatever the case, you'll be missed.

©Mary Lee Hahn, 2014

Renee has the Poetry Friday roundup this week at No Water River.

Catching up on TED Talks

My goal of a TED talk a week with illustrated notes got sideswiped. I decided to give an hour or so of my snow day yesterday to get caught up.

One thing I'm playing around with in my notes is what kind of pencils/pens I use. I love my Crayola Twistable colored pencils, but they slow me down. I can't press very hard with them.

So I took some notes with just pencil, but they weren't pretty and fun.

I switched over to Flair pens, but the only colors I have at home are pink, purple, fuschia and black. I think I'm going to have to spring for a complete set of Flair pens. The bold colors really brought my thinking to life.

It's all about the writing tool sometimes, isn't it?

My first few videos were from TED-Ed. I'm still waiting to hear if my application to start a TED-Ed club has been accepted.

I began with my brain:
What Percentage of Your Brain Do You Use?





We are studying the rotation and revolution of the earth, so I thought this one was fascinating...and a little bit mind-blowing: How Fast Are You Moving Right Now?




Our fifth graders are just finishing up writing persuasive essays. I need to show my class Want to be an Activist?




Mandy asked me in a tweet how I choose which TED talks to watch. I told her that I don't really choose them, they come to me. The TED-Ed videos above came in an email newsletter. Here are a few more I watched today and where they came from:

Doodlers, Unite came to me from Lisa at steps & staircases. I have a student who will be very happy that I will no longer nag her to stop doodling all over her papers!

Joe Smith: How to Use a Paper Towel came to me from Charla Rae at school. Sadly, we can't encourage children to shake their hands 12 times in order to only take one paper towel, but if all the adults in the world would do this, we could save 571,230,000 POUNDS of paper every year. What do you think...can you try to reduce your paper towel usage by even one per wash? Let's be part of the solution...starting with paper towels.

And then I came full circle back to the mind with Andy Puddicombe: All it Takes is 10 Mindful Moments, which came to me from Franki. Yes, Franki, it does go with my OLW: BREATHE. What I'm wondering is -- does it have to be 10 continuous minutes? Can I get the same effect if I spread my meditation out over the course of a day, spending one minute at a time BREATHING and truly focusing on the moment at hand without rushing on to the next thing or the next thought? I'm going to try it!