Hi! Naomi here, from Read Like A Rock Star! This is my first post on the "chalkboard", and I'm so excited!
I love reading centers! Ever since I was interning and watched the amazingly talented Danielle Peeples run reading centers seamlessly, I was in love. They were so organized, so effective, and so engaging. She is an incredible teacher! I started reading centers my first day of teaching, and I've never looked back. Hopefully you can get some ideas for centers in your class!
I have 18 students in my class. I have two groups of 4, and two groups of 5. Each group rotates through 4 centers EVERY day; SmartBoard, Computer, Teacher, and Reading Center. Each center lasts for 15-20 minutes.
At the board I might give them a response worksheet, a story map to fill out, a writing prompt, or a dry erase board to record their answers.
My table, the computer center, and the SmartBoard center are easy to take care of each day. The hardest center for me to come up with is the reading center. But I learned to work smarter and not harder. Something as simple as independent reading can happen here if you don't have a lot of time to plan. Grabbing a quick item off of TpT is always an option too! Here are some more ideas!
I put out books, a microphone for discussion, and some discussion cards and I instantly have a book club. This meeting can last up to 3 or 4 days with all of the book club activities involved.
My last reading center tip, is to invest in a portable doorbell. I got one at Wal-Mart for about 10 bucks. I ring my bell at the end of each rotation. My students are trained to freeze, clean up their area, then switch to the next area. That's another amazing idea from my dear mentor and friend, Danielle.
You can use the reading center passport to check if your students are reaching their learning goals during centers! It's FREE so check it out! It's a great and fun way to keep the accountable and assess what they've learned.
Hope you found this post helpful!
xo
Naomi
So much great stuff here!
ReplyDeleteNaomi, this is such a great post full of information. I have never regularly used centers (I've always been so wary of all the prep involved), but you are inspiring me to see if I can maybe work in 1 or 2, a couple days a week. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteNicole
Naomi!!! I loooovvveee these ideas! So clever. I really like the table talk with the microphone and the doorbell to signal the end of centers! Thank you so much!
ReplyDeleteLeslie
Glad you guys liked the ideas!
ReplyDeleteA door bell!!! LOVE it!
ReplyDeleteFAB post!!! :)
Great ideas. I like the book club set up you have going on.
ReplyDelete