Reading Groups and Maths Groups set-up

I'm always excited to share things that are happening in my classroom. That's one reason I love Instagram. I recently shared the PowerPoint slide that I use for showing students their Reading and Maths groups, so I thought I'd share a bit more about how I've set them up.

Right at the beginning of this year I wrote a blog post over on the Australian Teachers Collaborative Blog about how I planned to run my Reading Groups. I was inspired by lots of blogs, and other teachers, and I had ideas that I was excited about. Unfortunately, it just didn't work out the way I'd planned. And that's ok! So much about teaching is trying new things, reflecting on them, and making changes. That is exactly what I did.
 

 

I started the year trying to give my students more choice, found that it didn't suit my students in the way I had envisioned it, so I dropped Reading Groups altogether. During term 2 I did whole group reading activities, not a lot of differentiating, and mainly comprehension work based on texts about our Inquiry topic. This didn't work either, and I found that my student achievement data didn't change the way it could/should. So...

I went 'back to basics'. In Australia, about 10 years ago, there was a huge push towards the 'Early Years Literacy Block'. It was highly structured, based on a group system for reading, and writing would always follow straight after, for a total literacy block of 120min. I had run my literacy block this way in the past, but didn't do it this year. During the winter holidays I re-read the training material for this framework, and decided I'd try it again. And so far, I love it!!!
 

 

A week in reading for me now includes:

• 15-20min every day of Independent Reading. Students self-select books from a huge range that I've collected over the years and store in The Book Corner. They have to have 4 'levelled texts', and 3 of something else (magazines, non-fiction books, early readers, picture books, chapter books, etc) which they store in the rainbow drawers next to the bookshelf.
• 2 lessons a week of comprehension-based, whole group tasks, focused on big ideas like inferring, visualisation and understanding character/setting. 
• 1 lesson that starts with Independent Reading but is then taken up with spelling pre- and post-testing and setting weekly homework.
• 2 Reading Groups lessons. 

The Book Corner

I have four reading groups, based on ability, and each day they complete 2 activities, so that after the two lessons they've completed all four activities. The activities are: oral language, word work, handwriting, and reciprocal reading. My students have started remembering what their pair of activities will be for each day, it's making transitions easier, it's making my individual assessment easier, and having familiar activities means students know the expectations.

Handwriting, Pop for Blends, Oral Language Storycards, Reciprocal reading

While students are working on their activities I pull students from any group who have the same learning goal for reading (eg. reading with expression, sounding out words, using punctuation correctly, etc.).
 

This is how I display my students' individual learning goals.

For Maths Groups I have an almost identical set-up.

I have four maths groups, based on ability, and these are groups that were organised based on an addition pre-test. The four activities they do are: iPods (maths app), a maths game, task cards and teacher group. The only difference between the Reading Groups and Maths Groups is that I have a 'built in' teacher group in maths, whereas I don't have one in Reading. This is because my maths groups are based on the skill they're up to which is the focus for the teacher groups, whereas in reading they are grouped by reading level not skill.

Preparing some of the Maths Groups activities

My school requires teachers to teach 2 days of Number/Place Value content every week (this is my Maths Group time), and 2-3 days of a maths topic from another area of the curriculum. For example, last week we learned about symmetry on the other days, next week we're learning about transformations.

The set-up for my resources and materials is simple, too. I bought tubs from Kmart (the coloured ones are from the kitchen section, and the grey ones are from the storage section). Maths tasks are in blue tubs, and reading are in red(ish) tubs. I haven't made the labels for the maths tubs yet, but the reading tubs have a label bulldog-clipped to them that matches the name of the activity on the planning table above. My students know where to find the tubs, where and how to put them back, and to keep our materials neat and tidy.

 

I like the regularity and familiarity my students now have with these group set-ups. I like that it is easy to plan for. I like that they are practising core skills quickly and regularly, which is supporting their skills in other areas. For my class this really works!

I'd love to know how you run groups in your room. It constantly amazes me how many incredible ideas teachers come up with for running groups. We are a creative bunch!!

Classroom reveal 2016

I'm so excited to share my new classroom! It has been a journey to set it up.

 

 

 

This year I moved from teaching Prep (aka Foundation, kindergarten, the first year at school) to teaching a grade 2/3 composite class. I'm so ready for this new challenge! As well as the grade change I moved buildings at my school. I'm now in a 60 year old building, with lots of quirks and issues and my new room is smaller than my old room.

The most exciting thing about the building I'm in is that it will be demolished at the end of the school year because we are getting a new school building!! So, I was given free reign over what I wanted to do to my room - and my first decision was to paint it!

It was a pale blue to begin with, and I had it painted white. I love how bright and light it looks!

I decided to stick with a pretty simple colour palette of blues, greens and beige/whites. 

 

 

 

I'm so glad I did, because I got the brightest primary coloured tables!! Super fun!

After I got my tables it was time for the fun bit of rearranging the furniture, setting up my book corner and organising my 'teacher desk' (or lack of teacher desk). Two years ago I got rid of my teacher desk, instead I use an IKEA trolley to store all of my stationery, I have a bench that I put my planner and computer on when they're not being used, and I use my small group table as my desk when my students aren't around.

Here's my teacher desk area:

Here's my book corner:

Here are my awesome storage tubs with labels on them:

This is the front of my room, where my students sit for whole group instruction (I love love love my IKEA teacher chair!!):

I've got my tables set up in groups of six students:

These are some of my display, ready to go! This is our Wondering Wall (during our Inquiries students pose 'I wonder...' questions which we endeavour to answer over the course of the Inquiry):

I hot glued thumb tacks to the back of glitter pegs to make displaying student work easy:

And, this is where I display our subject buddies (the person they pair up with for different activities in reading, writing and maths, and they are of mixed-ability) and where we'll display our goals for the week (that will be another blog post):

All of these photos were shared on Instagram over the last few weeks, so if you'd like to stay up to date with my classroom I'd love it if you'd follow me on Instagram @jemluck

Rearranged my classroom!

I popped in to school today to quickly print off a couple of things I needed for my trip to Sydney tomorrow. Well, two hours later I left with the things printed and my classroom rearranged!! I had sketched a few ideas last night but hadn't really planned to do anything about the ideas, but then I was motivated!

I drew a before (not to scale) sketch and an after (not to scale) sketch using Doodle Buddy.

Before

Top left is my teaching space (chair, literacy whiteboard, IWB, the dots are to mark where the SitSpots are). Top right is the external door, plus a trolley with communal materials on it. Bottom middle was my book corner and the circle rugs I have. Bottom right is my desk and conference area.

 

After

Top left is now my book corner. Bottom middle is now my teaching space. Other things are pretty much the same.

 

 There were a few changes that happened after I drew the 'After' sketch. The tables didn't quite work as I'd drawn them, and I changed the way the book corner is arranged. Here are some photos, sorry about the chairs being up - so much easier to move tables when the chairs are up!

My new teaching space. I haven't plugged the board in yet, or put my SitSpots back on the ground.

My new book corner. I love how cosy it looks!

This is the view from my desk and conference table.

This is the view from my big internal door.

This is the view from the book corner.

And this is the view from the external door.

I have 23 students and last term I had the tables set up in four groups of 6 students. I've changed that and now have three tables of 4 students and two tables of 6 students. It worked well in the space and I think some of my students will like having fewer people on their table.

This is my literacy whiteboard. I've moved my daily schedule from the big cupboard which is now at the back of the room and put it on to this at the front of the room. My kids love checking what is coming up during the day.

This is something new too. The black thing is for my Portable Science Word Wall. It is just an accessories organiser because I couldn't find any pocket charts in my town. The four boards will be for Learning Intentions. Green for Writing, Red for Reading, Blue for Maths and Yellow for Science - my lesson plans are colour coded too!

This is my third year teaching and every other year I've rearranged my classroom at least three times. This is the first time I've rearranged it this year. The arrangement was working really well, which is why I hadn't changed it, but I was ready for something different!!

I love the book corner!

I asked yesterday with Wordless Wednesday if you have a book corner/reading corner and how you used it. So I thought I would answer my own question, too.

This is my book corner:

I must have a book corner in my classroom. It is an absolutely non-negotiable inclusion when I'm setting up my room. I use it for lots of different things. Early on in the year I use it as the go-to spot for early finishers. They can browse books, play with construction blocks or play with puppets. Later in the year I use it as a reading group station, with the rule that students in the book corner must be quiet! No construction blocks during reading groups, and students must stay in the book corner during that time. I also use the book corner as a option during free play and inside recess time.

I think the book corner is really important because it shows the teacher's commitment to reading and browsing books. Books are always on display in my room. During term 1 the books in the book corner are my own books, but from term 2 onwards I take my class to the school library and each student gets to pick a book to add to our classroom library for that term. They love selecting the books that will be added to our room!! I don't sort out the books in the book corner, I don't really have enough of them to bother. The books are all just on a book stand.

Last year I also had kids magazines in the book corner, and this year they are still there but my class this year couldn't care less about them! They are totally uninterested in the magazines. This might change when I begin using the book corner for reading groups, so I'll wait and see.

One of my favourite things about the book corner, though, is watching our big buddies (grade 3/4s) sit with the little buddy and read a book to them. It is lovely watching cross-age interaction focused on the enjoyment of books!