Endangered Species Preview: Informational Text Groups

As part of our RTI implementation, I work with a small group several times a week. My group has a lot of energy and an equal amount of curiosity.  I've been using many different genres and activities with the group as we develop reading fluency, interest and comprehension.

This week we've been using Delta Education's Seeds of Science/Roots of Reading short texts to build understanding of vocabulary and concepts that underly our upcoming endangered species unit.

This work has been successful for many reasons.

First, the text is short, but rich.  The illustrations are wonderful, and the questions elicit thoughtful, enthusiastic discussion.

The vocabulary is clearly marked and easy to build upon as we discuss prefixes, suffixes, similar words and phrases.

Students are clearly developing a rich knowledge base for their upcoming independent research projects.

Our group meets for an hour three times a week.  The number of students in the group varies dependent on the interest and needs at hand.  We spend as much time discussing concepts as we do reading about them.  Students find themselves teaching each other as we learn.  It's an invigorating, engaging endeavor that I'll continue in the weeks to come.

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