Mini Lesson #2

Mini Lesson #2

Your Name: Alyssa Kay

Grade Level: First Grade

Date Lesson was taught: April 12^th

1) Rationale (What evidence do you have that your focus students need to learn this skill/strategy?):

 Fluency is the ability of a student to read with speed, accuracy, and proper intonation. When students begin to become fluent readers they begin to recognize words automatically, read aloud effortlessly with expression, do not have to focus on decoding, and can focus overall on comprehension. This is a huge stepping stone for students to accomplish. The constant practice of reading words and implementing strategies for fluency make a student become a competent reader. Therefore, fluency makes the connection between word recognition and comprehension. When a student can read with ease they understand the materials because they are not stumbling over words or getting lost in the text. This is the road to a student building successful comprehension!

2) List which reading skill/strategy is the main focus of your lesson (select ONE area):

• The focus of this lesson is fluency.  

3) Objective for this lesson (performance, condition, criteria):

• After listening and reading through the rhyme, Sunny Sunflower, the student will arrange the disconnect rhyme strips back in order by reading through the word strips over and over until they match the first rhyme they heard.

4) Materials & supplies needed:

• Rhyme: Sunny Sunflower

“Sunflowers all different sizes
Line the garden wall.
Some are short and cheery
Others strong and tall.
Starting as a tiny seed
Growing quickly like a weed.
Whatever size they are, you see,
Each is special
Just like me!”

• Rhyming Paper Strips

5) OUTLINE OF LESSON PLAN (Provide a bulleted list of ideas):

Introduction to the lesson (List what you will say to help children understand the purpose of the lesson? How will you help them make connections to prior lessons or experiences? How will you motivate them to become engaged in the lesson?) (5 minutes)

 “Today Student B we are going to read a fun rhyme and then piece it back together the broken rhyme using these rhyming strips!

 “This activity will allow you to practice your reading skills, mainly fluency. There is a big bulletin board in your room that has this word on it; do you know what it means? (Wait) Fluency one of your main focuses for your Daily Five Reading activities! Fluency is how your read through a text with speed, accuracy (reading the words correctly), and intonation which is your pitch or how you say the word. We get to practice all those reading skills together!”

 “First I will read the rhyme ______ to you, and then we will read it together.”

 I will make connections from this lesson to others by telling Student B that this activity is similar to readings they do for their daily five activities. This lesson requires you to read rhyming strips over and over to piece them back together, just like you read text over and over to your teacher at the reading desk. I have also heard some of your rhyming songs, this passage is a rhyme!”

 I will motivate Student B with a warm but exciting voice that sparks an interest with what I say about the rhyme. I will ask them to tell me two words that rhyme!---Great, now lets see what this poem is about and what words rhyme!”

 OUTLINE of key events during the lesson (Include specific details about how you will begin and end activities; list how you will teach students what the strategy is, how to use the strategy, and when to use it; what questions you will use; how you will help children understand behavior expectations during the lesson; when/how you will distribute supplies and materials) (12 minutes)

 I will begin the lesson by showing Student B the rhyming passage. Then I will read over the rhyme.

 I will ask Student B to tell me words they heard in the rhyme. We will discuss what they think the rhyme was about, before it is there turn to read with me.”

 I will then make sure Student B correctly understands what a rhyme is camouflage is by asking them to repeat the first two lines of the rhyme. Then I will ask them which two words rhymed.”  

 I will then tell Student B we are going to read through the rhyme together one time.

·       I will give a brief overview of the activity we are going to complete after. I will show Student B the rhyming strips and explain that each paper strip is a line from the rhyme. It will be their job to read through the strips and put the paper strips back in their correct order. I will explain that it is important to read the words accurately so they know which words rhyme. I will make sure they feel confident even going at a slower pace.

 As I read the poem the first time I will make sure to read at a moderate pace and use proper intonation. I will also highlight the words that rhyme by defining them (if needed) or asking, “Did you heard which word rhymed with ____?”

 Next, I will have Student B read through the rhyme with me. This will allow them the opportunity to see the rhyme as a whole piece before it is broken into pieces.

 When we are finished talking about the book, I will give them directions for the arranging the rhyming strips. Again, I will explain that this practice reading. By repeated the lines over and over to find their correct fit, they will practice many of their reading skills they do every day in the Daily Five.

 This activity will first allow me to see Student B’s fluency (speed, accuracy, and prosody) and then see whether or not the repeated reading of the rhyme helps them remember the words and decode words that may have took them longer the first time. This activity will help the build fluency by “repeated reading” or by repeating a rhyme due to the fact that they need to piece it back together.

 I will explain to Student B that thinking about this word passage as a “rhyme” will help them put the pieces back together. (This will show them a reading strategy and add to their comprehension of the rhyme). Then Student B will work through the activity. I will encourage them to put two lines together read then and see if they fit---How will you know if the paper strips go together? (Wait for Student B to say that they rhyme). I will support them through reading and decoding words.

• Closing summary for the lesson (List how you will bring closure to the lesson and involve children in reflecting on their experiences. How will you involve them making connections to prior lessons or prepare for future experiences? What kind of feedback do you want from them at this time?) (7 minutes)

 I will bring closure to the lesson when Student B has finished putting rhyming strips in the correct order. I will have them read their completed set and then listen to me read the original rhyme. Do they match?

 I will have Student B tell me about how they figured out certain strips went together? I will ask other questions such as: “Was it easier to read the rhyme the last time compared to the first time you read it?”

 Once Student B has reading through the rhymes to make sure they match, I will create a meaningful discussion about how this will help them with their fluency and overall reading skills. I will example again what fluency is and relate it to their bulletin board. I will make a connection from when I was younger saying I would practice the same story or lines over and over until I could read them independently and understood them. This relates to fluency J  Message: “It takes a lot of practice and can be very frustrating when we can’t figure out a word. This may make you want to stop and not come back to the text. But just remember that it takes practice and repeated experiences just like you did today! You repeated several lines of rhyme and pushed through until you were able to read through the lines and piece them together!”

 I will also tell Student B that when his teacher makes him reread the same story or line passages it is helping him build fluency and his overall reading skills.

 6) Ongoing-Assessment: (How will you know the students are progressing toward your identified objective? What will you observe for and/or take notes on to help you plan follow-up instruction?)

• I will know my student is progressing towards the desired objective if he is beginning to reread lines using a quicker speed, accuracy, and prosody. This will allow me to see that the activity is helping him build fluency and find a balance or flow with the words.  
• I will observe how the student decides to put the rhyming strips together. I will also observe how their speed, accuracy, and prosody either changing or staying the same through the activity.
• 7) Based on what you know about your focus students, what Academic, Social and/or Linguistic Support will be needed during the lesson?

• This student shows a lack of confidence when it comes to reading. When words look unfamiliar he says, “I don’t know” and tries to slowly sound out the letters in the word. I will be a support system by helping him sound out the words in the sentence if he can not decode the word.
• This student is seen on the mid-average level reading scale with his classmates, therefore I will give him a basic rhyme to promote a repeated reading activity to increase his fluency. He has a slower speed, average accuracy, and moderate prosody based on his confidence level.

Reflection:

• What did you notice about your students’ participation and learning in relation to your objectives?

I noticed that in the beginning Student B seemed very interested in the activity because it was a rhyme. He seemed familiar with rhyming words and how to think of other words that create rhyming words. This therefore allowed him to start off the mini lesson with a sense of confidence. After I first read the rhyme it was Student B’s turn. He read through the rhyme at a slow/moderate pace. When he came to words he did not know he tried sounding them out and if he needed assistance I was there for support. In the beginning the speed, accuracy, and prosody stayed similar. Once he continued to explore the words and re-read the strips, I did see an increase in his fluency. He started to appear more confident and his voice was louder and higher in pitch. He put the pieces together and was extremely proud of his accomplish. Student B also seemed to understand the goal he completed and how it helped him get through the rhyming passage.

• What were the strengths and limitations of your lesson for supporting your students’ learning?

I think the strengths were picking a rhyme that was simple but yet challenging. I knew that some words would be easier than others but this would allow the student to focus on specific words or aspects of the rhyme. Based on his reading and slow pace, I think by re-reading the rhyme over and over he built a stronger voice and showed more confidence in the material. This is an important strategy he can use through all texts, stories, and passages he reads. In terms, of limitations I wonder if there were any other ways I could have promoted prosody more that would have allowed him to take on different ways to read the rhyme. This may all relate to his confidence however and once this is built then he maybe prosody will take more of a role in his fluency skills.

• What did you notice about yourself as a teacher?

As a teacher I noticed that I truly have an interest in the way student read. I found it enjoyable when Student B decoded a word and began reading it with more ease each time. These are the times when I know I was meant to be a teacher, these proud moments. I realized that helping students read is a huge interest of mine and I think using fun strategies like this one is very helpful. I was able to think about a way for a student to “re-read” and practice their fluency skills in an interesting way rather than just looking at the text on a sheet of paper or in a story over and over. I found this to offer lots of opportunities for other areas of reading skills and overall it did build a great comprehension of the text as a whole!

• What questions do you have?

The one question I have is on teaching prosody. I understand what it is and how to use the words. But, how do you get a student to use it independently even when they just want to use their moderate voice-is this all about redirecting them and getting them to repeat sentences using the same intonation I use?