Guided Reading Organization Tip

Happy weekend, Owl buddies!  It's Dana from Prepping for the Primary Gridiron.  I wanted to share an organizational tip that can hopefully help you!

My guided reading books were taking over my space.  I kept them organized in a basket behind my reading table, but it was starting to get out of hand.  My kiddos were started to take off and their reading levels were changing left and right.  I had SO many different books from our school book room....something had to give.

So I thought about this idea:

I needed labels and quick access to students books.  Fiddling around in that overflowing basket was wasting my time.



I inherited this wooden mailbox/shelving unit this year.  I kept it behind my reading table and used it as a catch all.  I couldn't figure out how to utilize it.

So I rounded up my binder clips and stickers and started organizing.

I made this graph to keep up with my kids' reading levels.  We use Fountas and Pinnell.  Our EOY goal is a level J.  It's a great visual for both myself and the kids.

The blue dot is the reading level.  The red dot shows which students are on that level.  It's easy for me to grab and go!

I have to update the dots as the kids move levels, but it's SO much easier to do that than stumble through that messy basket of books!

How do you organize your guided reading books?

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Favorite Fall Books and Lesson Ideas

Good morning!

It's Halle from Across the Hall in 2nd Grade and I'm here today to share a few of my favorite fall books. I've even shared a few lesson ideas on a little cheat sheet to go along with them (in case you need a little extra inspiration).

It's a cool fall day here where I am and it's raining. A perfect day to curl up with a good book now that I'm spending some time at home with my new addition.

I read to Ella every day. You can't start too early, right?

Without further ado, here are a few of my favorite books for the fall season:

How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin? by Margaret McNamara
Bring in a few pumpkins and read this book before carving in! I love this book for math workshop because it encourages a great discussion on counting strategies.

Frog and Toad All Year by Arnold Lobel
All of the stories in this collection are sweet, but I especially love the fall one. It teaches a great lesson of the power of performing kind acts for others (even when they go unnoticed). Read the story then have your students perform a *secret* random act of kindness. Have them write about how it made them feel.

Pumpkin Town by Katie McKy
A cute story with whimsical pictures about a family who grows too many pumpkins! Have your students come up with a list of ways to use up all the extra pumpkins...encourage them to be creative. Maybe replace all of their chairs with pumpkin stools?! I would also bring in a sweet pumpkin treat to share!

In November by Cynthia Rylant
Rylant is one of my very favorite authors, so she makes just about every book list I make! I love this book as a mentor text for repeated phrasing. Have your students write a paragraph, story, or book using repeated phrasing (In October, In Fall, In Autumn, During Halloween, etc).

Scarecrow by Cynthia Rylant
Another Rylant book! I told you I loved her! This is a sweet story told from there perspective of a scarecrow. Have your students write about a day in the life of an autumn object or animal, told from that object or animal's perspective.

There you have it! A few of my favorite fall books!

I created a cheat sheet of the books and my lesson suggestions to go with each. You can grab yourself a copy to take to the library (or Amazon) by clicking the picture below!

I hope you get to enjoy these books with your students (or your own kiddos) soon!

~Halle

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Exciting Books for Opinion Writing!

Looking for exciting ideas for opinion writing?!  

Try this set from Scholastic:

I ordered the set after seeing it in the September book club catalog.  The books are written by the fabulous Jerry Pallotta.  When I saw them, I knew I had to have them!

If you haven't seen of the books, they feature two living things and ask, "Who would win?"  Different facts and details are mentioned throughout the book.  As you read, the kids will start to make a decision as to which thing would win.  The last 2-3 pages discuss what would happen when the two things meet and who would actually win.  

I would stop short of the last 2-3 pages and have the students write an opinion piece about who they think would win.  It's the perfect opportunity for the kids to express their opinion and give reasons to back it up.  After the kids are done with their writing, I would share the conclusion to the book.

Try it out and let us know how it goes!

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