Reading Instruction: What is Currently Happening in Schools

If you were to walk into 6 different schools in 6 different grade levels what is currently happening in reading instruction in literacy and content areas?

• Reading from textbooks

• Reading for subject content

• Teacher chosen books/ textbook series

• Lit workbooks

• Answer publisher questions

• Nonfiction reading

• Content text being read with teacher doing think alouds followed by students doing the same

• Simple nonfiction selections in content areas

• Teacher students reading book aloud taking turns

• popcorn reading from textbook

• Content text student in pairs, reading and sharing understanding

• Student reading silently on their own and taking notes

• Read textbooks and take notes

• Their is an expectation that all kids can read and understand the textbook because they are in that gra

• Comprehension skills literal and interpretative

• Reading and comprehensive

• Reading journals for summary or other activity

• Reading response writing or projects

• Answer comprehension questions

• Note taking while reading

• Author's purpose or perspective

• Analysis of ideas - poetry, speeches, etc

• Analyzing short stories

• Fictional story structure

• Reading skills in isolation

• Teacher in small groups with students sounding out letters, etc.

• Reading groups 5-7 students teacher led discussion

• Reading that is not meaningful or connected

• Discriminating between genres and text types

• Reading Literature (disconnected from context)

• Core literature novels

• All students reading the same thing

• Word skills whole class in isolation

• Reading because we have to

• No reading for fun

• Very little reading for pleasure i.e. pursuing an area of interest

• SSR

• Read aloud

• Read to write mentor texts

• Teacher led discussion of text

• No reading in math and science

• Student led discussions

• Timed fluency practice