Workstations

In my classroom, I teach using the workstations approach based on 4 Blocks of Reading theory. I have several times during the day that workstations are used to teach and reinforce the Standards. Below are a few of the ways that workstations are used in my class.

Literacy Workstations: The class has 3 stations to visit for literacy workstations. They will move at their own pace and will carry their Student Portfolio with them to the different stations. My assistant works at one station, I work at another station, and the final station is working in our mini computer lab. Sometimes, there is a fourth station that is independent work. The students choose what projects they would like to place in their Student Portfolio, which projects they hang up on the "Wall of fame" area of the room, and which projects they want to take home. Below are a few pictures of literacy stations that are used.

*Please check back often for updated pictures.

Acting out modeled reading: The students are reading books from the reading station of the classroom. I have two book shelves in my room. One of the book shelves have books that I have checked out of the school library that are based on the Science/Social Studies theme that we are learning that week. The other book shelf has books from our Houghton Mifflin Reading series. These books match the big book that is read in large group. I model reading strategies in large group and they act them out during their free time (at the beginning of the year). About mid-year, the students begin to make a connection to popcorn words and the print in the book and reading begins (My favorite thing to see!)

Practicing sight words: Mrs. Wood's group using a "popcorn word" bingo game to practice our sight words.

Blending to read words: Mrs. Dominy's group is using word cards and picture cards and playing memory match up. They choose a word and blend the sounds to read the word. Then, they find the matching picture.

Computer Work: The group is using our class website-"Kid Corner-Reading" to practice various Reading Standards. I have placed pictured icons on this page so that students can easily navigate to the educational game of choice.

Rhyming words: In this independent station the students were asked to match rhyming picture cards together. They completed their task by putting a rhyming word floor puzzle together.

Large Class Projects

We do many projects during the school year (See Parent Corner for a list). However, there are a few large class projects that we are proud of. Below you will see a list of some.

Author's Tea Party: Our class spends all year working on the Writing Standards. From the very first week of school, our class creates books that are displayed in our Reading area. This is building up to the large project near the end of the school year-Author's Tea Party. For two months we discuss the writing strategies and the steps to publishing a book. Once, our books are publised we invite our parents to an Author's Tea Party to show off our published books. Below is a slideshow that shows the Author's Tea Party from 2007-2008.

Author's Tea Party-March 28, 2008

Documents that I have parents sign for Open House:

(Click the picture)

Under Construction!