Meet the Guided Reading Crew and their Strategies, Too!

Don’t get me wrong… I LOVE routines. But sometimes, it’s important to switch things up… be a little more creative! In guided reading, there are so many different strategies that I want to cover and I was having a hard time getting the kids to tell the difference between certain strategies like retelling vs. summarizing or background knowledge vs. schema! I decided to come up with a group of characters that I could use while I modeled the strategies in our mini lesson that would transfer over to our guided reading groups!

Meet the Guided Reading Crew and their Strategies, too! Let me introduce you to my friends…

Questioning Quinton: His job is to teach kids to ask questions while they read. Did you know that the best readers are ALWAYS asking questions? Some great words to get you started are WHO, WHAT, WHERE, WHEN, WHY and HOW? It is so much fun to wonder while you read!

In this guided reading group, my students were reading at a Level G so we read Lola at the Library. Students took a picture walk through the story and asked questions before they read (and continued to ask more questions as they read). Their questions were recorded on their graphic organizers and then checked to see if their questions had been answered within the story!

Cause & Effect Chloe: Her job is to help kids figure out the cause & effect while they read! If Chloe kicks a soccer ball in the net and scores a goal… why did she score a goal?

Cause: I kicked the soccer ball

Effect: I scored a goal

Cause and effect is fun because you get to figure out the reasons why different things happen!

Schema Sophie: Her job is to teach kids to build off their schema while they read. You may be wondering what schema is? Your schema is similar to your background knowledge, things that you already know! When you are reading and using your schema you may say things like…

*That reminds me of…

* I’m remembering…

* I can relate to…

In this guided reading group, my students were reading at a Level M so we read Strega Nona. Students activated their schema with the thinking stems listed above…

I’m remembering….

I can relate to…

That reminds me of…

Visualizing Violet: Her job is to teach kids to visualize while they read. Visualizing is like making a picture in your mind while you read! Do you like watching movies? Violet does too! Today while you read your book, try to make a movie in your head of what you’re reading! Sometimes it helps to close you eyes while you make a picture of what is happening in the story!

Connections Carter:  His job is to teach kids to make connections while they read. Do you know what traits, feelings or actions are? Traits are ways to describe people, like Carter is kind. Feelings are how a person is feeling, like Carter is happy! Actions are things people do, like Carter play basketball. When you make connections to characters in a book, you can connect to traits, feelings or actions!

In this guided reading group, my students were reading at a Level K so we read If You Give a Pig a Pancake. Students drew a picture of themselves and the main character (a pig) and made a connection to a feeling, trait or an action from the book!

Inferring Izzie: Her job is to teach kids to make inferences while they read. Did you notice she is am dressed as a detective? That’s because to make inferences, you must look for clues! Inferring is when you find clues or evidence in the story to figure something out! For example, if she is carrying a magnifying glass around (clue or evidence), you would think she's  probably a detective (inference)!

Retelling Reagan:  His job is to teach kids to do a retelling after they read! Retelling a story is lots of fun! You have to remember different elements of the book such as the characters, setting, problem and solution to RE-TELL what happened! Sometimes it helps to write some of the main ideas and story elements down while you read to help you remember!

In this guided reading group, my students were reading at a Level N so we read My Great Aunt Arizona. Students did a sketch of the main events after they finished reading while we verbally reviewed what happened. Next they wrote out their retelling using the transition words: first, next, after that and finally.  

Author’s Purpose Ada:  Her job is to help kids figure out the Author’s Purpose while they read! I have to tell you something else, Ada loves pie! That’s how you can remember what an author’s purpose may be:

P: Persuade

I: Inform

E: Entertain

In this guided reading group, my students were reading at a Level L so we read Sharks! Before we read, we discussed the three purposes an author would have to write a book: persuade, inform and entertain (PIE). Then students read the book and drew the conclusion that the author’s purpose for this book was the inform!  

Summarizing Sebastian: His job is to help kids make a summary after they read! I have to tell you, his job is one of the hardest! When you write a summary, it can only be a few sentences… and a lot of stuff can happen in a book! It’s important to only find the main ideas and important details when you write a summary!

Predicting Paige: Her job is to help kids make predictions while they read! Do you like science experiments? Paige loves science experiments AND reading because you can make predictions during BOTH! A prediction is a guess (using clues or evidence) about what is going to happen next!

In this guided reading group, my students were reading at a Level H so we read Elephants on Board. Students took a picture walk through the story and made predictions before they read (and continued to make more predictions as they read). Their predictions were recorded on their graphic organizers and then we reviewed if the predictions were correct or incorrect at the end!

Background Knowledge Brayden: His job is to teach kids to use their background knowledge when they read! Does anyone have any idea what background knowledge might be? It’s things that you already know! For example, if you are reading a Henry & Mudge book and you have a dog at home, you have some background knowledge about what it’s like to have a dog for a pet!

If you are interested in adding these kids to your classroom roster, click on the image below! Hope these ideas can be helpful to you and your reading instruction!