Daily 5

I love Daily 5! I love how students get a chance to become independent and motivated to read because they are choosing the books that they want to read. It also allows me to work one on one with my students and really give them individualize instruction.

I start with daily 5 first thing in the morning. We start by reminding each other of the expectations in our class and do a quick good morning to each other. Then we jump into our first mini lesson. I have learned that it is very important to have "mini" lessons in first grade. My lessons never go longer then 10 minutes as I know by that time, I have lost the attention of some of my students. My first lesson tends to be a comprehension strategy. Then my second mini lesson is focusing on accuracy strategies and final mini lesson is either fluency or expanding vocabulary. My school does have a literacy curriculum that I am expected to teach. So I use that curriculum as a resource in conjunction with the CAFE menu. 

After 9 minutes of teaching, it is time to let the students check in with their choices. I keep track of their choices on a clipboard for the week. My students not only check in with their choice, but also with their reading goal. This is to focus them on the purpose of that choice and what they are working on. The five choices in my class our Read to Self, Work on Writing, Read to Someone, Word Work, and Listen to Reading. Each student must do read to self at least once a day otherwise it is completely their choice. They also can choose library once a week to shop for new just right books. 

During rotations, I am conferring one on one with students about their reading goals. I do not pull groups based on reading levels and tend to not pull lots of groups. If I pull a group, it is three or less students and is based on a strategy that they need to work on. Once my students have full stamina, each rotation is 20 minutes.  

Daily 5 is amazing because it teaches students to be independent as well as taking responsibility for their own learning. It lets them make choices that motivates them to do their best. The best way for students to become better readers is to read and that is what the daily 5 structure allows students to do. 

I cannot recommend daily 5 more in any classroom. I used it in 5th and 6th grade as well.