Structured Shared Reading Instruction: Example Lesson Plan

Student: Erika Grade: 4

(Note: This Structured Shared Reading lesson is only one of Erika's daily reading routines. For example, she also receives daily individualized instruction and practice in phonemic awareness and phonics: segmenting and blending words orally, rhyming, letter identification, letter sounds for consonants and some short vowels, and reading c-v-c words in isolation, using her growing knowledge of letters and sounds) 

Abilities:  Erika is an emergent reader. She is currently reading texts at Fountas and Pinnell Levels A & B. Erika brings good background knowledge on many topics (such as animals) and relies heavily on illustrations. She refers to pictures during reading (after a picture walk) to find more detail based on the text. She is able to orally retell the story when looking at the pictures. She is able to make a prediction about a book after previewing the title and illustrations.

Priorities:  Match spoken words to printed words while reading one or two lines of print, know the names of all alphabet letters (especially recognizing the differences between q / g, b / d / p, v / u, and t / f / J), use multiple strategies to decode unfamiliar words while reading whole text, focus on the text, fluency (phrasing and expression), and construct meaning (such as through prediction and checking) to aid comprehension.

Objectives:

• While using a pointer or her finger, Erika will be able to match one spoken word to one printed word while reading one line of print during echo reading.
• Erika will demonstrate increasing focus on the book she is reading instead of external distractions (such as other staff and students, other toys, books she is interested in, etc.).
• Erika will recognize and point to the repeated language used in a new pattern book. (I will draw her attention to the repetition on the first couple pages, then prompt her to notice it subsequently).
• Erika will echo read a new pattern book with fluency, emphasizing the appropriate expression for question sentences.

Familiar Reading:

Erika will read the familiar book from yesterday's lesson We Like Dogs (F&P Level: B) as independently as she is able to do while retaining accuracy. I will remind Erika to look at the book and point to the words as she reads them. If necessary, I will echo read the book and encourage her to try it a second time more independently.

Today's New Book: Kittens Level: B

Book Intro:

• I will ask Erika what a kitten grows up to be (a cat). Erika has cats as pets so she brings prior knowledge of cats to the reading. I want to emphasize the direct connection between cats and kittens.
  Let's look at the cover of the book. What's on the cover? (tree, boy/child, cats/kittens, picnic basket, fence, etc)
  Take a look through the book. What do you see? (same as cover illustration)
  What do you think the book will be about? (cats/kittens, possible personal cat story)
  What letter do you think "kitten" starts with? What's the first sound that you hear?
  Where is the word "kitten" on the cover?
• I will have Erika choose any page in the book and ask her what "?" means. If she does not identify the symbol as a question mark or that it means the sentence is a question I will read the sentence and tell her it is asking something. I will demonstrate the appropriate expression when reading question and ask Erika to repeat. I will tell Erika that she should speak like that whenever she reads a sentence with a question mark.

Reading:

• We will echo read. I will demonstrate matching the word I say to the printed word. Erika will use a pointer or her finger to point to the word she reads. I will remind Erika to read sentences that have a question mark at the end like questions.
• After we read pages 2 and 3, I will go back and draw Erika's attention to the repetitive language (Can you see ___ kittens?I see a _____.). I will ask Erika what the sentences have in common (what is the same). I will tell Erika that almost all the sentences in the story have those words, so she will be more familiar with each new page.
• If Erika skips a word I will ask her to repeat the line and emphasize that she needs to point to each word she reads.
• If Erika gets stuck on a word I will ask her what letter it starts with and what sound that letter makes. Then she will check the illustration for something that starts like the word she could not decode. If the illustration does not help then I will ask her what letter the word ends with and what sound it makes. Depending on the number of letters in the word, the initial and final sounds may be enough for her to pronounce the word. If not, she will guess a word that makes sense. I will then re-read the sentence, substituting the word Erika said and ask her if it makes sense.

After Reading: We will discuss the story. We will read the story again, encouraging Erika to focus on word by word matching and greater independence.

Writing Connection:  Erika will brainstorm a list of three-five different animals. I will scribe each animal name on the white board. I will present an open word document file on the laptop with these two sentence starters:

I see a ___.

I see a ____.

Erika will echo read these. She will choose two animals from her brainstorm list to complete the sentences. She will print the document and re-read her sentences.