Have you been asked to teach virtual reading groups? Does the thought of guided reading digitally completely overwhelm you? Are you feeling like all of your attempts, no matter how much you plan, feel NOTHING like they did in the classroom?

 

Well, I’m with you sister. Day in and day out I am tasked with teaching at least 4 different guided reading groups through this new digital platform. I KNOW what guided reading should look like in a classroom. But virtually? It’s a whole different ball game. But don’t fear. I’m here to give you my best tips and tricks for making your distance learning reading groups feel a little more normal. 

 

Tip 1: Keep the structure of your virtual reading lesson structured and consistent. 

 

Students do better when they know what to expect. When the structure of your group is consistent, students can focus on the content, rather than what’s coming next. I follow a pretty traditional guided reading format and recommend following these rough time allotments for each part of your distance learning small group for grade 3 readers:

 

Phonological Awareness: 2 minutes

Phonemic Awareness: 5 minutes

Vocabulary Instruction: 2-3 minutes

Transition to reading: Book Introduction or Review of previously taught skill 2-3 minutes

Independent Reading: 10-12 minutes 

Wrap up: 2-3 minutes

 

 

Grab my free guided reading template here!

Tip 2: Keep the structure of each part of the lesson similar

 

In order to fit it all in, keep the routines in each part of the guided reading lesson similar. This familiarity with the routine will help you make the most of the minutes spent on the skill. 

 

For example when doing my phonological awareness routines, I always start at the top or bottom and move to the next screen. This gives students the opportunity to be ready for their upcoming turn which allows us to waste less time struggling with the mute button. I also use colorful star pointers I picked up at the Target Dollar spot. I hold up the yellow star pointer first, then when I change kids, I change colors. This provides another layer of visual reminders. Using these same 2 repeated and expected routines, allows the students to focus on speed and content, giving us more time on task. 

The independent work my students engage with after small groups directly reflects these routines we work on during class. You can check out the digital word work products I have available and search for the phonics pattern you are teaching.

 

Tip 3: Introduce one online platform at a time

With so many amazing resources being released at such a rapid rate for teachers during virtual learning, it is easy to become overwhelmed. I personally suffer from the “shiny object” effect where I see one cool idea and want to jump on it right away! Don’t do that! By jumping around and trying too much at once, it forces students to struggle through the learning curve of the technology platform, rather than focus on the reading instruction. Give students 5-10 attempts using the same platform before adding on something new.

My students started with jamboards for our phonemic awareness routine. We used jamboards everyday during small groups until we were fast, efficient, and flying through our routine.  Once we mastered Jamboards, we moved onto Flipgrid and began mastering it for fluency routines. 

 

Tip 4: Listen to your students read to you as much as possible 

The largest portion of your digital small group should be students practicing the reading skill you are teaching. This does become more challenging in the virtual setting, but not impossible. I’ve tried a variety of ways to listen to kids read during distance learning small groups and will share my favorite two.

 

The first is having students read the same book, but independently at their own pace, mimicking the structure of in-person instruction. To do this and monitor on my end, I put their reading material into a peardeck and share the link with them. I then put places for students to stop and jot their thoughts while they are reading. By using the teacher dashboard, I can follow along with which page each student is on and monitor their comprehension at the same time. I have students turn their volume down, but not off.  I then ask each student individually to take turns unmuting and reading to me where they are. 

 

The second way is putting students in partners to pair read using breakout rooms. I then can jump in and out of the breakout rooms and listen to students reading aloud to their partners. This provides me with a lot of good anecdotal notes about rate, fluency, and decoding skills. 

 

Tip 5: Give yourself, and your students, grace.

 

I feel like that sentence has become every teacher’s matra here in 2020, but for good reason. No one was prepared for what education looks like this year. While we’re all in our own unique situations and places in terms of what is being required of us, we’re all in the same position of doing things in ways we’ve never done. The first time you approach distance learning small group instruction, it might not go flawlessly. And that’s ok. Give yourself permission to try, to reflect on how it went, and then try again. Ask for help when you need it. 

 

And remember, I’m here for you too. Reach out on social media, let me know how it’s going, what’s working for you, and what’s not. Let’s problem solve together because I sure don’t have all the answers. But I do know I want to give my kids the highest quality instruction I possibly can. Virtual reading groups are difficult, but not impossible, and we will tackle this one step and one reader at a time.

 

Looking for more information on virtual guided reading groups in younger grades? Check out some advice from SimplyBTeaching on keeping her little engaged during virtual reading groups.