Readers’ Workshop is a research-based approach that addresses the needs of all students in the class. RW begins with a focus lesson where I explicitly model a strategy or skill. After the focus lesson, students read independently to practice the strategy or skill. During independent reading, students are reading “just-right” books that are matched to their individual abilities and interests. I confer with students during independent reading to be sure they are successful in their practice or to provide 1:1 instruction around any particular needs. Sometimes, I might work with a small group of students who have similar needs during independent reading. Finally, RW ends with a group share to summarize the important understandings of the lesson.

Strategy instruction helps students develop, access, and apply these strategies independently. Some examples of strategies your child will learn about include the following:

Retelling

Creating sensory images

Making connections

Asking questions

Inferring

Determining importance

Summarizing

Synthesizing

Why Readers’ Workshop?

The district has adopted the RW model for a number of reasons, including the following:

Assessment drives instruction

Every student reads a “just-right” book

Key strategies are explicitly modeled

Students have choice and ownership in their reading

Experiences foster a love of reading