T E S S O ’ R O U R K ES E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 4

ACTION RESEARCH: GUIDED READING

RESEARCH QUESTION

Will daily, 20 minute guided reading lessons increase student’s

performance, confidence and interest in reading?

BACKGROUND

• What I have noticed in my 5th grade classroom:• Many students are two or more grade levels behind

in reading fluency, accuracy and/or comprehension. • Many students do not enjoy reading when they enter my

classroom because they find it difficult or boring.

• What I know about Guided Reading• Daily, 20 minute guided reading lessons have been

proven to improve student performance on reading fluency, accuracy and comprehension.

• When students enjoy what they read, they enjoy reading.

MY GOALS

• Through this action research, I hope to learn about the effectiveness of guided reading on my student’s performance and reading levels. • Performance will be assessed through F&P reading assessments.

• This action research will also help me determine if guided reading improves student’s oral reading fluency and accuracy. • Confidence will be measured through a survey given at the

beginning and the end of the research period. • It will also be measured through student engagement during

lessons.

• I also hope to see if reading engaging and exciting reading books at their level will change student’s attitudes towards reading• Interest will be assessed through a survey given at the beginning

and the end of the research period.

LIT REVIEW

• Several great resources to check out if you are interested in guided reading: • What is Guided Reading- Fountas & Pinnell• What is Guided Reading- Scholastic Article• Using Guided Reading to Develop Student

Independence- ReadWriteThink

GUIDED READING OVERVIEW

• Guided reading is “planned, intentional, focused instruction where the teacher helps the students, usually in small group settings, learn more about the reading process” (Ford, M.P., Optiz, M.F., pp. 229)• Guided reading is considered a “best practice”

because of all of the gains it can offer to student’s independent reading skills and performance. • Guided reading should only be one part of a

comprehensive literacy program in order to yield successful results (Fountas & Pinnell, 2012).

GUIDED READING GROUPS

• Groups are 6-8 students• Groups last for 20 minutes• Groups are homogeneous (include students who

are all at the same independent reading level)• Groups are flexible and temporary • Students can move in and out of a group at any time

based on their rising or falling reading level.

• Students should be grouped within their Zone of Proximal Development (Burkins, J., Croft, M., 2013).• Assessments should be ongoing so that students

can move in and out of groups as necessary.

GUIDED READING TEXTS

• Texts must be high quality and engaging. • Teachers need a wide variety of different texts to

choose from for each group throughout the year (all at the right level for the group).• Texts should be within the groups Zone of

Proximal Development.• Text difficulty should be assessed by the Fountas

and Pinnell assessment. • Texts should include extensions that students can

read after the lesson.

GUIDED READING LESSON PLANS

• Part One: Before Reading• Introduction to the text• Make predictions• Teach reading strategies

• Part Two: During Reading• Use strategies taught before reading• Whisper read• Teacher conferences/running records with some students

• Part Three: After Reading• Answering questions: within the text, about the text,

beyond the text.

METHODOLOGY

• Research was conducted during the first few months of the 2014-2015 school year

• Veritas Prep Charter School in Springfield, MA• A group of thirty 5th grade students• Guided reading exposure during 2 classes per day–

reading workshop (2 groups) and morning tutoring (1 group)

• Each guided reading group met for 20 minutes and focused on reading habits such as: predicting, monitoring comprehension and inferencing.

• Students were assessed through F&P tests and surveys.

THE READING SURVEY

RESULTS AND ANALYSIS

• Inconclusive results:

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4

8

12

16

Reading Interest

Reading Interest

RESULTS AND ANALYSIS

• Before: After:

0

4

8

12

16

Reading Confidence

Reading Confidence02468

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Reading Confidence

Reading Confidence

ANALYSIS

• While the full results of this project are not yet finalized, I believe that this initial spike in the positive direction for both reading interest and reading performance will continue throughout the 2014-2015 school year. • I plan to keep these guided reading groups going

for the entire year to see if student’s interest, confidence and performance in reading increases over time.

REFLECTIONS

• Things I missed: • A survey about student’s specific preferences when it

comes to genres and reading habits. • Need more research about how to boost student

confidence in reading besides just having students read out loud.

• Things to add: • Pair guided reading lessons with phonics and decoding

lessons next time