footer-rotate
Blog

New Instructional Support for Kindergarten! Small-group Reading Set 1: Extended Instruction and Practice

By Gina Fugnitto | Categories: Reading

Kindergarten teachers of Being a Reader, have you had students who have placed into Set 1 but struggled to make progress? If the answer is yes, then Set 1: Extended Instruction and Practice is just for you!

The Why

Educators were reporting that Kindergarten students who knew 21 letter names and placed into Set 1 were “getting stuck” at Weeks 3 and 4, when students are asked to blend decodable words when reading connected text.

Collaborative Classroom gathered information. We learned of several possible challenges that were impacting students’ success in Set 1, including insufficient blending practice, a lack experience with fluent reading, and an inability to distinguish decodable words from high-frequency words.

Interestingly, we found that one simple question provided powerful information: Are the students able to sing a song? The students who got stuck in Set 1 were unable to sing a song or hold a song in memory.

The What

 In response to these findings, Collaborative Classroom now offers Small-group Reading Set 1: Extended Instruction and Practice, located in the Being a Reader Set 1 General Resources on the Learning Hub. This new resource provides guidance for teachers to differentiate Tier 1 instruction with two additional Small-group Reading lessons per week in Weeks 3–8.

The How

During these weeks, teach Days 1 and 2 from the Small-group Teacher’s Manual for Set 1 as written, and observe the students reading the week’s new book on Day 2. If the students struggle, teach the two supplemental lessons for the corresponding week in the Set 1: Extended Instruction and Practice guide. Then continue on to Day 3 from the Small-group Teacher’s Manual.

The lessons in Set 1: Extended Instruction and Practice are attuned to the challenges identified above. They feature two aspects of instruction:

  • Blending Practice. Additional blending practice in these lessons starts with compound words and progresses through syllables to onsets and rimes.
  • Fluency Practice. Students engage in additional fluency practice in these lessons by chorally reading a text-only chart of the week’s story.