Plan For Reading Groups in 4 Easy Steps

I think we all can agree that planning for reading groups takes a lot of time and prep. This year, working with some amazing teammates, we have come up with a plan that you can easily plug in the resources that you have.

I had always leveled my groups and came up with a plan for each group. This year we have an approaching grade level, on grade level, and a beyond grade level group.  I know that you probably have more than 3 groups right? So do I. I have 1 approaching group, 2 on-level groups, and 1 beyond group. This way I can use the same plans instead of planning another book. I plan for all 3 groups in about 30 minutes or less! Here’s how you can work smarter, not harder to plan for your reading groups.

Materials

• Free small group reading plans
• Books (leveled, decodable, fluency passages, guided readers)
• Games, flashcards, spelling words, phonics focus
• Writing paper
• Whiteboards
• Encoding mat with clear sleeves

Game Or Warm Up

I have so much fun with this one!!! Let’s face it not all kids love to read, I sure didn’t! Especially if it is hard for them. I would say most kids love to play games. This is why I love to start my reading groups with a game. I have compiled a HUGE basket full of games that practice sight words, phonics, and reading skills. You can use whatever you already have or you can go to TPT and type in free sight word games or free blending games. This is EVERY kid’s, no matter the level, favorite game.

A coworker shared this free reading map with me and this is how I have started to plan my lessons. During the Warm-up and wrap up I focus on a skill they need and find games or practice pages that go with that skill.

For example, with my approaching group, we are working on rhyming.  I will be doing different rhyming activities during our small group time for the warm-up and wrap-up  for 3 weeks. Your on-level and beyond groups these packs have it all. Honestly, I bought them all and probably could have just bought one and used it for both levels.

Lesson

During the lesson, it depends on the group and the day of the week. free reading group template I use to plan for reading groups. Basically, this is the shell for on-level and beyond-level groups. I use the same for approaching, but the activities and lesson are completely different. With this plan I can quickly change out the books and wrap up task. Most of it stays the same, which makes it easy and quick to plan!

With the approaching level, I spend more time on phonics than on reading a whole book. I bought this pack and have loved it. Another colleague uses these, and they are similar but spend more time on 1 phonics skill.

I like that they practice sounds, encoding and decoding, and sentence fluency, then they use the sentences and have them in a paragraph. It is a great way to practice foundational skills that are meaningful and helpful for young readers.

Day 1 and 2 would be 2 pages of the same skill from this pack. I have found other free ones on TPT, but this goes with all of the skills for 1^st grade, so for me, it is worth the price. Then Day 3 and 4 would be another page from the same pack.

For my on level groups, I prefer to use decodables. I use Benchmark Curriculum and they come with decodables and guided readers. The aren’t the best, but it is something I have.

Currently I am OBSESSED with Jen Jones decodables. She makes it SOOOOO easy to quickly level your kids, I am talking like 15 minutes to have your whole class done!!! You can find her FREE leveling assessment here. It also lets you know what decodable to start with. The books are not super easy to assemble, but having a decodable text that is fun, appropriate, and they can annotate is KEY for me.

Preview and Predictions-

1. encode words that are in the text
2. preview the book and make predictions
3. find the skill or words that were encoded in the text
4. have them read what they can on their own

Reading and Connections-

1. Practice weekly sight word/high frequency words
2. Whisper read the book and pick 1 or 2 students to focus on and help with strategies
3. Identify the main idea of the story and make connections

Partner Read and Comprehension-

1. Practice weekly phonic skill with encoding or mapping
2. Partner read the story
3. Answer comprehension questions

Write About It-

1. Practice weekly sight words/high frequency words
2. Whisper read the story
3. Quick write about the story and share
4. Take book home, if paper copy

Wrap Up Task

Each day this is a QUICK check at the end of the lesson, this typically goes with whatever skill I am working on for the unit. I focus on phonics, but it can easily be used with comprehension strategies. It could be something like:

• Do these words rhyme?
• Which one doesn’t rhyme?
• How many syllables does this word have?
• Find words that have a _____ in your book and highlight them.
• Highlight all the punctuation in the story, what do you notice?
• Tap out the word____
• Can you think of another word that _____________

Small groups are something that most teachers push aside because of the amount of time and effort it takes to plan it. IT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT TIME OF THE DAY!  I do not care if you teach PRE-K or High School, small groups are where you can differentiate and support ALL learners at their level.

It still takes work but keep it simple and it will be something that you can easily plan and implement in your classroom. With this plan you can easily keep up with planning for your reading groups. At first it will take some time, but if you save your plans, you can use them year after year! What is your favorite small group game? How do you plan for reading groups?