K-5Imagine It!Hand Book

Winston-Salem / Forsyth County Schools

Pacing/Lesson Planner 3

Room Arrangement 4

Concept/Question Board 5

Phonemic Awareness 7

Phonics 8

Sound/Spelling Cards 9

Blending 10

Dictation 12

Word Structure 14

Fluency 15

Vocabulary Strategies 16

Clues/Problems/Wonderings or K/W/L 17

Reading Recommendations 18

Reading Comprehension Strategies 19

Reading Comprehension Skills 20

Classroom Discussion 21

Writing Process Strategies 22

Grammar, Usage, and Mechanics 23

Spelling 24

Workshop 24

Table of Contents

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Intervention Materials 26

Pacing and Lesson Planner

Each grade level will follow its respective Imagine It! Pacing Guide. Pacing Guides are updated yearly and available on Learning Village under Elementary Language Arts and in the Imagine It! Resource folder and on the ELA Wiki. In order to have consistency throughout each grade level, teachers are expected to be within a few days of their Pacing Guide. Also, by following the Pacing Guide, support personnel will be better able to integrate concepts and skills wherever possible.

Within your Teacher’s Edition you will find suggestions for the unit theme including sample pacing. The Lesson Planner pages also found in each Teacher‘s Edition will assist you in pacing. This page provides a brief synopsis of what is covered in each band. Kindergarten and First grade follow a “lesson-a-day” format while Second through Fifth Grades have a five day lesson format.

While the program is very detailed in teacher support given with each lesson and band, it is imperative that you plan ahead of time for instruction. Also by reviewing your Teacher‘s Edition with your grade level team, you will also become more familiar with the lessons and necessary routines prior to teaching them.

TIME:Winston-Salem / Forsyth County Schools Balanced Literacy Model require that all classrooms have 150 minutes of Reading/Language Arts instruction each day. It is important to remember that Reading/Language Arts instruction must take place daily. On days that are impacted by programs or field trips, the expectation is that reading will occur on a modified schedule. Grade levels will want to consider this modified schedule as they plan for instruction.

To help pace instruction, the Teacher’s Edition includes timed pacing for most components of the daily instruction. Found next to each sub-heading, these “clock faces” refer to the average amount of time that should be spent on this portion of the lesson.

GETTING STARTED: The ‘Getting Started’ lessons introduce and/or review key routines of the program. Establishing routines is a vital component to effective classroom management. Firmly established routines will insure that you have an accurate picture of how groups and individual students are progressing. This is an effective way to evaluate what your students know and help prepare them to be successful in your class. The Getting Started Lessons are incorporated in the District‘s pacing guide and is part of each Teacher Edition in Unit 1. These lessons must be taught at the beginning of each year. The amount of time spent in this important component is:

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Kindergarten – Second Grade-10 days Third – Fifth Grade- 5 days

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Room Arrangement

The arrangement of the classroom is an important component for effective instruction. As you initially set up your classroom keep the following in mind:

Sound / Letter Cards or Sound / Spelling Cards should be posted at the front of the classroom or where reading instruction will occur. They also should be easily visible from each student’s desk area. These cards are an important tool that students will be using throughout the day (grades K-3).

Concept / Question board should be at a location where students have easy access. Instruction in Green Band requires that students be able to see the lines clearly. If technology is available for whole group use, students need to be able to clearly see the

text. While room arrangement is often a personal preference, many teachers using Imagine It! have found the ‘U-shape’ or a modification of this to be conducive to instruction. The “U-shape” allows all students to focus their attention on the area of the classroom where the majority of direct instruction is occurring. It gives the teacher access to each student for direct instruction and personal attention; it gives the student direct visible access to the sound/spelling cards and it allows the teacher to monitor while teaching and facilitating student interaction.

Kindergarten and First Grade teachers should also have an area where students are able to gather close to the teacher for Green Band instruction. This will prevent the teacher from distorting sounds during instruction. When students are seated away from the teacher, sounds are often distorted by the teacher due to needing to project his/her voice. Kindergarten and First Grade students also will be pulled up for Red Band instruction through the use of Big Books.

Second Grade teachers will also want a place where students are able to pull in closely during the Green Band particularly during the first semester of instruction. Once the shift is made to more Word Structure (after Unit Three) teachers will need to vary the location of the students depending upon the focus of instruction.

First-Fifth Grade teachers will need students to be able to face each other to facilitate discussion during the Handing Off procedure. One idea that many teachers have used is to simply have students form a circle with their chairs during this time.

IDEAS FOR ROOM ARRANGEMENT

Front of Class

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Traditional U Shape Modified Traditional E-Shape F- Shape Double UOpen

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Concept/Question Board

The Concept/Question Board’s purpose is to help students share their growing knowledge about a unit theme or concept. By serving as a place to post questions and find answers about concepts they are exploring throughout the unit, students become a community of learners. As the class progresses through a unit, the Concept/Question Board serves as a place where common interests become obvious. As these interests emerge, students can use them as the foundation for forming collaborative groups to investigate ideas in greater depth (e.g. Inquiry and Investigation ).

“The Concept / Question Board shows what we know, new things we are learning, and things we want to find out about”

PARAMETERS: The Concept/Question Board is a public display of the growing knowledge of the theme, and a catalyst for inquiry and writing. This board will be used throughout the year to develop the theme of each unit.

REQUIREMENTS:

Must have a permanent place within the classroom. It can be displayed on a permanent bulletin board or something more portable such as a triptych board.

Be large enough to accommodate contributions for a unit Easily accessible to students Be labeled with the words “concepts and questions” and the Unit Title Concept Vocabulary from the vocabulary lessons (Grade1, Unit 7 through Grade 5) can

be posted in the vocabulary section and should be added at the point of introduction. All work should be student generated, except for the contributions modeled by the

teacher. Contributions can include a mixture of pictures, graphs, newspaper articles, student-written work, etc.

Contributions are related to the unit theme (or big idea), not selection facts. All contributions should be labeled to identify the connection to the theme and

contributor’s name Title and contents of board will be changed with each unit theme Supplies such as notepads, index cards, thumbtacks, tape, paper and writing instruments

should be on-hand for students to use to attach their concepts and questions to the board.

HOW TO BEGIN:The Concept/Question Board is formally addressed under Launching The Theme and introduced in Lesson 1 of each unit. It is imperative that each unit start by introducing the Concept/Question Board. Teachers should encourage students to bring in items to be added under “Concepts”. Examples of possible artifacts may include photographs, magazine or newspaper articles, objects, written information, etc.

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NOTE: You will need to model by bringing in examples to spark the interest of your students. As students become familiar with your expectations, your support will be reduced but still vital for maintaining yourself as part of the learning community within your classroom. Students should be informed that the Concept/Question Board is a public display of their growing knowledge of a given theme.

DAILY REFERENCE: In order to ensure that students have a deep understanding of each unit theme, it is extremely important to reference the Concept/Question Board on a daily basis. Teachers should ask students if they have anything to add to the Concept/Question Board. Also, it is very important to reference the Concept/Question Board after each reading. To do this, teachers must remember to bring the focus back to the unit theme. One way to do this is to question students about the connection to the unit. Examples of questions include:

Why do you think this selection is included in this unit? How does the behavior of a given character represent this unit theme? What examples from the selection did you find that relate to our unit? What did you learn from this selection that helps you better understand our unit?

Finally, teachers should encourage and provide opportunities for students to post questions on the Concept/Question Board. These questions become a springboard to further investigation. Collaborative groups can be formed around common questions. Opportunities during Workshop provide the necessary time for these groups to investigate and answer these student generated questions.

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Phonemic Awareness

Phonemic Awareness instruction occurs within the Green Band for Kindergarten and early First Grade. The purpose of providing structured practice in phonemic awareness is to help the students hear and understand the sounds from which words are made. Before students can be expected to understand the sound/symbol correspondence that forms the base of written English, they need to have a strong working knowledge of the sound relationships that make up the spoken language. This understanding of spoken language lays the foundation for the transition to written language (Imagine It! T.E., PA 2). Too often teachers skip over phonemic awareness instruction and move straight to phonics instruction. The ability to discriminate sounds, isolate, manipulate, and substitute sounds are a vital prerequisite for phonics instruction.

Phonemic Awareness is defined as “the ability to recognize that spoken words are made up of discrete sounds, and that those sounds can be manipulated.” (Imagine It! T.E. PA 82-84). Phonemic awareness is not phonics. Phonics is the understanding that there is a predictable relationship between the sound (phoneme) and the written letter or letters (graphemes). For children to benefit from phonics instruction, they need phonemic awareness. The reason is obvious: children who cannot hear and work with the phonemes of spoken words will have a difficult time learning how to relate these phonemes to the graphemes when they see them in written words (National Reading Panel, Teaching Children to Read)

Below are some other very important terms related to the Phonemic Awareness component in Imagine It!, along with their definitions (taken from Imagine It! T.E., PA 82-84):

Phoneme – the smallest sound unit of speech; for example, the /k/ in book or in stick Oral Blending – the ability to fuse discrete phonemes into recognizable words; oral

blending puts sounds together to make a word Segmentation – the ability to break words into individual sounds

Oral Blending and Segmentation begin in kindergarten and continue into grade 1. The focus of these lessons in the Green Band section is to help students hear and understand the sound/symbol correspondence that forms the base of written English. Students need to have a strong working knowledge of the sound relationships that make up the spoken language. This understanding of spoken language lays the foundation for the transition to written language.

Phonemic Awareness activities provide the students with easy practice in discriminating the sounds that make up words. Phonemic Awareness consists of quick, game-like activities designed to help students understand that speech is made up of distinct, identifiable sounds. The playful nature of the activities makes them appealing and engaging, while giving the students practice and support for learning about language (Imagine It! T.E., PA 2).

When presenting these lessons remember that this is an oral activity. Students will not see these words. One component tool used during instruction is the lion puppet. The lion puppet is a visual

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representation of an auditory sound. Teachers must pay close attention to the lesson described in the teacher manual to effectively segment or blend.

Phonics

Phonics instruction occurs within the Green Band for students in Kindergarten (starting Unit Three) through Third Grade. Understanding the difference between Phonics instruction and Phonemic Awareness instruction is vital to building Phonological Awareness. Phonics instruction is the association between the sounds of the language and the written symbols that have been chosen to represent those sounds. Therefore, when instructing, teachers will attach the written symbol(s) to the sound. Those written symbols are referred to as “spellings”. Written English language is represented by twenty-six letters. Those letters however can be combined and recombined into numerous spellings to represent the speech sound. “This is simply a code. The faster students learn the code and how it works, the faster the whole world of reading opens up to them.” (PA page 13)

Students develop phonics skills through a very systematic continuum. In kindergarten, students are introduced to the sounds and letters. They learn that sounds can be attached to letters. Those sounds and letters are then blended into words they can read. Starting in first grade, students move to attaching the sounds to spellings. Students learn that a sound can be represented by multiple spellings. For example, /s/ has four spelling associated to this sound- s, ci_, ce and cy.

The spellings chosen for each sound are the most frequent occurring spelling. Occasionally students will encounter other spellings that represent the target sound. Examples of these “special spellings” include:

Hen card: _ea_ as in headFan card: _ff as in puffLion card: al as in metal or altitude

_ll as in fell_le as in handle

Monkey card: _mb as in climbSausage card: _ss as in classZipper card: _zz as in buzzBird card: ear as in heard

Because too many spellings on one card can make it confusing for the students, these special spelling were not included on the Sound Spelling cards. As these special spellings are encountered in reading or writing, teachers will want to add these as a word bank titled “Special Spellings”.

“It can be very difficult for students to hear the individual sounds, or phonemes, which make up words. When phonics instruction is explicit-students are told the sounds associated with the different written symbols-there is no guesswork involved. They know that the sound /b/ is spelled b. Therefore in Imagine It! students learn to discriminate individual speech sounds, and

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then they learn the spellings of those sounds. This systematic, explicit approach affords students the very best chance for early and continuing success.”

Sound Spelling CardsAn essential component of Imagine It! are the Sound/Spelling Cards (in grades 1-3) and the Alphabet Sound Cards (in kindergarten). These cards serve as a tool that students will use to learn the association between the sounds of the language and the written symbols or spellings that represent those sounds. The cards include three pieces of information (two in Kindergarten) that students will use in decoding and recoding words. Each card contains the capital and lowercase letter as well as a picture associated to the sound. These pictures can be represented with an action. This association is introduced through an interactive story in which the pictured object or character “makes” the sound. These stories are listed in the Level Appendix at the back of all K-3 teacher manuals and also on CD in the technology bundle. In addition, First-Third Grade cards include the spellings that are used to represent the sound.

NOTE: The Sound/Spelling Cards are a vital component to the program and should not be confused with other alphabet displays. Please remove other alphabet displays that contain a different letter/picture association to eliminate any possible confusion by the students. KINDERGARTEN: The Alphabet Sound Cards are numbered and should be displayed in order with only the letter side showing. In later lessons, as the sounds are introduced, you will turn the cards over to show the picture side (beginning in Unit 3, Lesson 1). At this level, students are not exposed to the spellings (as in grades 1-3). It is important to follow the directions in the Teacher‘s Edition. Do not turn cards over until they are formally introduced in the lessons in Imagine It! because the units are intentionally sequenced in the kindergarten program to support students’ developing phonological and phonemic knowledge.

GRADES 1-3: The Sound/Spelling Cards are used to introduce or review sounds and spellings. Each card contains the common spelling or spellings of a sound. With the exception of the long vowel Sound/Spelling Cards, each card depicts both an action-sound association and a picture of something whose name includes the sound.

GRADE 1: The Sound/Spelling Cards are formally introduced in first grade. Teachers must hang the cards with the picture side to the wall at the beginning of each school year. As you introduce each card, you will turn it over to show the picture and the spellings on the front of the card. Teachers should also use a post-it note to cover spellings that have not been introduced. As these spellings are taught within the Green band, the teacher will uncover the spelling on the card.

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GRADES 2-3: The Sound/Spelling Cards should be referenced on a daily basis. This can be accomplished throughout the day by blending, Word Structure, dictation and running the cards.

GRADES 4-5The Sound/Spelling Cards are not a component at this level however; teachers will find they have students who need this support. Teachers also need to be familiar with the spellings provided on the First-Third Grade cards in order to continue consistent instruction.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

The Sound/Spelling Cards are approximately 88% in alignment with the rules of the English language. Not all sounds and spellings that occur in the English language will appear on the cards. The pictures that appear on the short vowel cards were carefully chosen, as the name of the picture contains the letter within it. This is a key concept to remember as most often in the English language we see and hear short vowel sounds within words, not at the beginning of words. Features of the Sound/Spelling Cards:

Consonant cards are printed in black with a white background Vowel card are printed in red Short Vowel cards have a green background. A green box included in some spellings

signals that a short vowel will appear there in a word. Long vowel cards have a yellow background Variant Vowel cards are printed in red and have a blue background A green box before or after a spelling signals the placement of a short vowel A “blank space” signals that a letter will take the place of the blank in a word. The blank

space may also indicate the position of a spelling in a word or a syllable. Teachers should include the blank space when writing a spelling. While a blank space is sometimes filled with a consonant it is not always the case. Therefore, teachers are to refer to this line as a “blank space”.

For further reference regarding the Sound/Spelling Cards and the Alphabet Sound Cards, please consult Program Appendix, pages 11-14.

Blending

The purpose of blending is to teach the students a strategy for figuring out unfamiliar words. Initially, students will blend sound by sound. After they understand the process, they move to

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whole-word blending and develop the strategy they will use to read unfamiliar words. Ultimately, the students will sound and blend only those words that they cannot read. Eventually, the blending process will become quick and comfortable for them (Imagine It! T.E., PA 15). Learning the sounds and their spellings is only the first step in learning to read and write. The second step is learning to blend the sounds into

words.

In Imagine It! Reading, blending is defined as “combining the sounds represented by letters or spellings to sound out or pronounce a word” (in contrast to oral blending). Formal blending instruction occurs in grade 1 and continues through grades 2 and 3.

In grade 1, the teacher formally introduces the blending procedure. There are 4 different blending techniques:

1) Sound-by-Sound Blending 2) Whole-Word Blending 3) Blending Syllables 4) Blending Sentences

In addition, Vowel-First blending is an alternative to sound-by-sound and whole-word blending for students who need special help. Please refer to the Program Appendix pages 15-16 for specific procedural information regarding these techniques.

Blending occurs on a DAILY BASIS in grade 1 beginning with Unit1, Lesson 3. Grade 1 teachers need to begin with Sound-by-Sound Blending and move into Whole-Word Blending and Sentence Blending when students are capable of making this transition. The goal of blending is to move from maximum instructional support-with teacher and students blending together- to students’ whole word or sentence blending independently with little teacher input.

A primary cause of a student‘s blending failure is their failure to understand how to use the Sound/Spelling Cards. Students need to practice sounds and spellings when the Sound/Spelling Cards are introduced and during initial blending. They also need to understand that if they are not sure of how to pronounce a spelling, they can check the cards. This is why it is very important for teachers to reference and review the Sound/Spelling Cards on a DAILY BASIS.

EXTREMELY IMPORTANT:

Teachers should follow the Imagine It! program step-by-step by properly modeling blending procedures, as this may determine whether a student is able to read and write (Refer to Imagine It! T.E., PA 15-16).

Teachers should keep the pace moving through this section. This portion of the green band is quickly paced.

Teachers should remember not to get bogged down in vocabulary development. The focus of blending is to teach students to decode, not to develop vocabulary. However,

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when choosing words to use in the Developing Oral Language, teachers should look for opportunities to expand vocabulary by selecting the more rigorous words.

In Sound-by-Sound Blending it is important to remember to blend each sound with the students, stopping after a vowel to blend the word through the vowel (refer to routine card).

Blending lines from the Teacher‘s Edition should not be written out beforehand when using Sound-by-Sound blending. It is through the Sound-by-Sound blending of the words and sentences that students learn the blending process. Blending should be written out letter by letter (during Sound-by-Sound Blending) and in the chunks’ indicated for the other blending procedures. Chart paper and overhead projector transparencies are recommended for blending. If chart paper is used during blending, display the completed chart in an area for students to practice reading during workshop (after teaching the lesson).

Students are not to be writing during blending. They should only be reading while the teacher writes.

GRADES 4-5:

Blending is not formally taught in the Imagine It! program in these grade levels. However, teachers in grades 1-3 can be a great resource if you have students struggling with decoding. Students should be encouraged and supported in blending unfamiliar words.

Dictation

The dictation procedure occurs within the Green Band. The purpose of dictation is to teach students to spell words based on sounds and spellings connected to those sounds. In addition, dictation teaches students a strategy for reflecting on the sounds they hear in words to help them with their own writing. As students learn to encode correctly, they develop their visual memory for words (spelling ability) and hence increase their writing fluency. Reinforcing the association between sounds and spellings and words through dictation gives students a spelling strategy that provides support and reassurance for writing independently. A dictation activity is a learning experience; it is never a test. Students should be encouraged to ask for as much help as they need.

There are two kinds of dictation:

Sounds-in-Sequence Dictation- students spell words sound by sound, left to right, checking the spelling of each sound as they write.

Whole-Word Dictation- students practice the spelling strategy with less help from the teacher.

Students will then apply this spelling strategy to writing sentences which further supports the development of fluent and independent writing. Dictation begins at the end of kindergarten (in

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the form of the Word Building Game) and continues through third grade. Dictation formally ends after Unit 3 in grade 3.

MUST DO: The dictation component of Imagine It! follows blending (Phonics and Fluency). The words chosen for dictation relate to the same pattern that was introduced/reviewed in the blending section. Therefore, it is extremely important for teachers to review the identified Sound/Spelling Card prior to blending.

Dictation must be introduced to the whole class using direct teaching. It is critical that the teacher reference the Sound/Spelling Cards as the class encodes each word (physically touching the Card with a pointer). As teachers notice students becoming more confident with their ability to encode, the class may move to Whole-Word Dictation. Just as in blending, teachers must pay close attention to those students who continue to struggle with dictation. Teachers must work with these students during workshop. When instructing Sentence Dictation, remind students of capital letters and punctuation.

Teachers may want to make their students a Dictation Book where students can keep all of the dictation lessons in one convenient place. This can be helpful during conferences.

NOTE: If a Sound/Spelling Card has more than one spelling revealed students should be trained to ask the teacher, “Which spelling is it?” (Students will automatically ask the teacher this question if we train them to do so). After students are more comfortable with the spellings on the Sound/Spelling Cards, the teacher can then begin asking the students, “What spelling do you think it is?” Please keep in mind that the teacher must be addressing sounds and then spellings. This will help students to distinguish between the two.

Please refer to the Program Appendix, page 17, at all grade levels for further instruction in the dictation procedure. You can also reference the routine cards.

PROOFREADING:

The Proofreading technique is a vital part of dictation. It allows students to learn by self-correction, and it gives them an immediate second opportunity of success. The dictation activities must not become a frustrating ordeal. Since dictation is not a test, proofreading is not viewed as “grading”.

Students are proofreading their own word during this procedure. Students are not to exchange papers nor is the teacher taking up work and scoring.

Students should proofread by circling—not erasing—each error. After they circle an error, they should write the correction beside (or above) the circle. This type of correction allows you and

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the students to see the error as well as the correct form. Students also can see what needs to be changed and how they have made their own work better. (Imagine It! T.E., PA 17)

Students must use a pen or pencil that is a different color than the original pencil used to write the dictated word. Proofreading should be:

done after each word during Sounds-in-Sequence Dictation. done after each line in Whole-Word Dictation. done after the completion of a sentence in Sentence Dictation.

The teacher should be using an overhead transparency or the white board for this procedure. After completing a word or line, the class as a whole should proofread the word or line together. The teacher should write the word and walk around the room to check for understanding.

WORD BUILDING GAME:

“The Word Building Game gives students a chance to exercise their segmentation abilities and to practice using the sounds and spellings they have learned. This game is a fast-paced activity in which students spell related sets of words with the teacher’s guidance. Each successive word in the list differs from the previous one by one sound” (PA. page 17-18).

The Word Building Game occurs only in kindergarten and first grade. Each teacher at these grade levels should have received one box of the Alphabet Letter Cards. There should be 20-30 of each letter of the alphabet in this box. It is extremely important that teachers follow the T.E. when instructing using the Word Building Game. Please refer to the Program Appendix, page 17-18, for further information. For organizational purposes, teachers may want to use plastic baggies or plastic baseball card sleeves to store these Letter Cards.

Word Structure

Word Structure lessons occur in the Green Band in Second (beginning Unit Four) through Fifth grades. The Word Structure activities consolidate what students have learned about reading words. In the early grades, students concentrate more on mapping out sounds with spellings to read words. As the reader starts to encounter more complex words, students move to using the meaning of word units to assist in defining a word. Morphology is the study of word units or morphemes. Morphemes are the smallest unit of word meaning. The purpose of Word Structure activities is to teach students how to deconstruct words or break them into morphological units, which is important for fluency, vocabulary development, and comprehension. Planning for Word Structure is vital to a successful lesson. Teachers must be aware of the purpose of each lesson and correct terminology that will be used. Furthermore, teachers will

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need to add to on-going word banks as new units are taught. Additionally, teachers will need to frequently but quickly review previously taught units. One successful strategy for this is to keep an on-going list of Word Structure type as they are introduced in addition to a Word Bank that students should reference. By quickly reviewing the list and asking for explanation or examples, teachers can frequently assess necessary areas of review for Workshop. Word Structure usually occurs on days 1-4 and is reviewed on day 5. It is important to adhere to the Lesson Planner, as students are to be exposed to this section prior to the first read of any selection. In Third Grade (beginning in unit 4) students will have one list on days 1 and 2 and a different list on days 3 and 4 with a review of both lists on day 5.

The Routine Cards for Word Structure direct the teacher to have students read one line at a time. Teachers should be aware of the instructional level of each student. If students are capable of reading using whole word blending in the Word Structure section, teachers may instruct them to do so. If the majority is struggling, the teacher should instruct this section using the blending procedures. Teachers should take note of students who continue to struggle and review these Word Structure lines during workshop in a small group.

MAY DO: Teachers may write the lines of the Word Structure section beforehand or use the transparencies provided by the program. However, teachers should only expose one line at a time with the whole class. Teachers may also have students copy each line as it is exposed into a Word Structure notebook or in a Word Structure section of a Writer’s Notebook. Students then can circle and code words for further reinforcement as the teacher progresses through the lesson. After completing this component, teachers may post the Word Structure section in an area of the classroom for students to practice reading during workshop.

Fluency

Fluency is important in reading because it affects how well readers understand what they read. “Reading fluency is a bridge between the two major components of reading- word decoding and comprehension. Fluency is defined as “the ability to read accurately, quickly, effortlessly, and with appropriate expression and meaning (Rasinski, 2003). Therefore, fluency involves not only rate, but also accuracy and comprehension. To become proficient readers who fully understand what they read, students must become automatic with decoding. Readers also need to be so familiar with the sound/spellings, common prefixes and suffixes, and with most common sight words, that they automatically process taught word parts and words. With increased fluency, readers are able to focus more attention on comprehension by using an assortment of strategies for monitoring and furthering their understanding. Therefore fluency is much more than reading fast: it is reading at an appropriately fast rate with good expression and phrasing that reflects solid understanding of the passage.” (Rasinski)

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Fluency is introduced in the early grades through modeling fluent reading by the teacher. In Kindergarten, fluency instruction begins as the reader learns about concepts of print. By attending to spaces between words, ending punctuation, left to right progression and high-frequency sight words, students are learning the beginning skills that will support fluent reading. Formal fluency instruction begins in first grade. Students learn to code and blend words and recognize critical sight words as they begin to develop some level of fluency. “The most urgent task of early reading instruction is to make written thoughts intelligible to students.” (PA, p.23). Many students will continue to need practice in building fluency in second and third grade. While students continue to use Decodable Stories, fluency practice should include using materials from a variety of different sources at the children’s independent reading levels.

Vocabulary Strategies

Strong vocabulary skills are closely connected to comprehension and achievement throughout school. Considerable vocabulary growth occurs incidentally during reading. A clear connection exists between vocabulary development and the amount of reading a person does. The purpose of vocabulary instruction is to teach students new words and to provide students with strategies for learning unknown words.

In Second Grade through Fifth Grade, the Word Structure lessons within the Green Band helps students understand that words can be deconstructed and related through known elements to determine meaning. Students are also learning about Greek and Latin roots, antonyms, synonyms, and multiple-meaning words. There is also an emphasis on root words and affixes that serves to expand students’ knowledge of words and their speaking, reading and writing vocabularies.

During the Red Band of the Imagine It! program, vocabulary is addressed before, during, and after the first read of any story. In Kindergarten through the first half of First Grade, teachers present the vocabulary words prior to reading the Big Book. Suggestions are made throughout the reading to continue discussing these words and other interesting words they encounter.

From the middle of First Grade through Fifth Grade guided vocabulary instruction occurs at the beginning of a first read. Before reading, the teacher presents vocabulary words from the selection by reading the list on the left hand side of the Vocabulary Selection. The teacher assists the students using Context Clues, Apposition, or Word Structure to figure out the meaning of each of the vocabulary words. These selection vocabulary words are not only important to understanding the text but are also high-utility words that can be used in discussing and writing about the unit theme. The vocabulary selection will define the word as it will be used in the reading selection. Teachers may also incorporate pictures and other context building cues if additional support is needed. After the reading of the Vocabulary Selection, teachers may use the vocabulary transparency or the Glossary to confirm the meaning of each word. Research has

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shown that very little vocabulary development occurs through the copying of definitions. Therefore, students should not spend instructional time looking up definitions in the glossary or dictionary. Each selection includes a workbook page with vocabulary words and definitions that students could add to their reading/writing notebooks if necessary.

During reading, students monitor their understanding of words and text. When they do not understand something, it is important to encourage them to stop and clarify what they have read. Students should use these same skills—Context Clues, Apposition, and Word Structure—to clarify the meanings of unfamiliar words encountered while reading. Figuring out the meaning of words while reading, prepares students for the demands of independent reading both in and out of school. Therefore it is very important for teachers to model this behavior for students. After reading, students should review the vocabulary words that they learned before reading the selection.

It is extremely important that teachers follow the Vocabulary Routine. Teachers must also have all vocabulary strategies posted in the classroom where direct instruction takes place and refer to these strategies as they are applied in the Vocabulary Selection or Text.

As teachers are introducing the Selection Vocabulary words throughout a given unit, these words should be posted under the heading ―Selection Vocabulary Words on or near the Concept/Question Board. With the Selection Vocabulary words on or near the Concept/Question Board, students can practice reading and writing these words during a given unit. The vocabulary words posted on the Selection Vocabulary Bank should be written in a font large enough for students to read at their desks. Teachers may also print these words on index cards or sentence strips (cut to the size of the word). After a unit has been completed, teachers should take down the Selection Vocabulary words associated with the unit. Teachers may keep these word cards in a folder labeled with the unit theme so that students can manipulate them in a Vocabulary Area during workshop time.

Clues-Problems-Wonderings Chart or KWL Beginning with First Grade (Unit Seven) and through Fifth Grade, teachers will make use of a Clues, Problems, and Wonderings chart or K/W/L prior to the first read of each anthology selection. The Clues, Problems, and Wonderings chart is usually used when reading a narrative selection while KWL chart is normally used for expository selections. The Teacher’s Edition will direct the teacher as to which chart is to be used and is pictured in the margin on Day One of a Selection. Each grade level also has a routine card that describes the steps to this process. The purpose of each of these organizers is to guide students as they prepare for reading. It is very important for teachers to use either the Clues, Problems, and Wonderings or KWL Overhead Transparency found in the Overhead Transparency Binder or a piece of chart paper labeled with the headings ―Clues, ―Problems, and ―Wonderings or ―K, ―W, ―L. Students do not need to copy CPW or KWL charts.

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Clues, Problems, and Wonderings As students are browsing the anthology selection (it is very important to use this terminology), teachers must remember that students should only browse the first few pages of a narrative text. If more than a few pages of a narrative text are browsed, the Predicting comprehension strategy will not be effective. Teachers then record (in note form) any clues, problems, or wonderings that students may encounter with the text. It is important that students understand that they are to attend to the text as well as the illustrations.

Clues and Problems are not plot specific. Possible sources for clues include: content, author or illustrator, genre, illustrations, text features…. Possible sources for problems include: words with unfamiliar meanings, long or difficult sentences, confusing illustrations, unusual format, unfamiliar style of writing etc. Wonderings help to determine the purpose for reading. Possible wonderings may include the content of pictures, connections to other books, and wonderings about events.

After the first read, the chart will be reviewed and discussed. The CPW chart also can be used as a quick review to begin the second day of instruction.

Know, Want to Know, Learned- KWL

The Imagine It! program uses a KWL chart for expository text .When browsing the anthology selection; teachers must remember that students should browse the entire selection of an expository text. Before reading the selection, the ‘Know’ and ‘Want to Know’ columns of the chart will be completed. Under the ‘Know’ column, record any information that the students might already know about the topic. Occasionally a student may offer incorrect information. This information is recorded but the teacher will correct in the revisit after the read. Under the ‘Want to Know’ column, teachers will record possible things the students want to know after reading the selection. These may include questions about the topic or content itself, unknown meaning of words or terms, or questions about an illustration, etc. After the reading, the students will review the ‘Know’ and ‘Want to Know’ columns. Under the ‘Learned’ column teachers will list things that the students learned from reading the selection. Any incorrect information listed under the Know column can be corrected and moved to the ‘Learned’ column. KWL charts are an effective way to move into the discussion section of the instruction. KWL charts also may be added to the Concept Question board to reflect the students’ growing knowledge of the Unit Concepts

Reading Recommendations

At the beginning of the school year, students should be encouraged to read selections aloud. Reading aloud builds fluency and increases comprehension. Teachers should make sure that they set aside time to hear each student read during the first few days of class so that they can

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determine students‘abilities and needs. As the year progresses, students should continue reading aloud often, especially with particularly challenging texts.

It is recommended that initially teachers model the reading on the FIRST READ of a selection as this will aid students in becoming more familiar with the text prior to reading it silently. This also allows the teacher to stop and model the Reading Strategies appropriately. Occasionally teachers may allow a fluent student to read aloud a portion of the text. Any child who is asked to read aloud should be a fluent reader.

During the SECOND READ of a selection students will read in several different ways depending upon the text and level of support needed. How a student reads during the second read of a selection will vary from selection to selection. For example, students may need minimal support with a narrative selection but require more support with an expository selection.The SECOND READ of a selection will have students reading in one of the following three ways:

Independent Reading- for students who are capable of reading and comprehending with little or no support. These readers may require an additional purpose for the reading since they will typically complete the second read more quickly. Students may relate the selection to the Unit Theme or focus on an inquiry question.Partner Reading- for students who are capable of reading and comprehending with minimal support. Partner pairs should be at approximately the same reading level. By working together partner pairs should be able to support one another when problems occur.With the Teacher- for students who require a high degree of support during the reading. These students will work with the teacher. Within the teacher will scaffold the reading so that the students are able to read and comprehend grade level text.

Once students have read the text for the SECOND READ, the teacher will pull the class back together for Reading Skill Instruction. It is not necessary for the class to read the entire selection for a third time before skill instruction. A brief mini-lesson or review of the skill is followed by text examples from the reading. The Teacher’s Edition directs teachers to the specific pages of the selection to highlight during skill instruction. If two or more skills are addressed in one selection, the teacher should concentrate on one skill at a time. The Lesson Planner located in the Teacher’s Edition (marked by the tabs), provides the text pages for each skill. Further directions and teaching points are also provided within the teacher’s edition.

Reading Comprehension Strategies

The primary purpose of teaching students to read is comprehension. Good readers are problem solvers. Experienced readers generally understand most of what they read. They also recognize when they do not understand, and they have at their command an assortment of strategies for monitoring and furthering their understanding.

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The goal of comprehension strategy instruction is to turn the responsibility for using strategies over to the students as soon as possible. Good readers use a variety of strategies to help them make sense of the text and get the most out of what they read. Trained to use a variety of comprehension strategies, students dramatically improve their learning performance. In order to do this, the teacher models strategy use and gradually incorporates different kinds of prompts and possible student think-alouds as examples of the types of thinking students might do as they read to comprehend what they are reading. (Imagine It! T.E., PA 31)

The following are the Comprehension Strategies that are addressed throughout Imagine It!

Summarizing Clarifying Asking Questions Predicting Confirming Predictions Making Connections Visualizing Adjusting Reading Speed

Teachers must have all of these comprehension strategies posted in the classroom where direct instruction takes place and must indicate (using an arrow or clothespin, pulling down, or highlighting for example) which strategy is being addressed during reading instruction. (Comprehension Strategy Cards are available on Learning Village).

Comprehension strategies are addressed during the FIRST READ in all reading selections. Teachers are encouraged to use their own authentic think-alouds as often as possible when modeling the comprehension strategy. Suggestions are provided in the Teacher’s Edition to help guide the development of the modeling.

Explicit modeling of thinking aloud is extremely important. Students must witness the teacher making thinking public in order to fully understand using comprehension strategies. After explicitly modeling thinking aloud to students, teachers must encourage students to use these same strategies when they are reading on their own.

Teachers should refer to pages 31-34 of the Program Appendix in the back of each Teacher‘s Edition for further information regarding comprehension strategies.

Reading Comprehension Skills

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An important purpose of writing is to communicate thoughts from one person to another. The goal of reading comprehension skills instruction is to make students aware of the logic behind the structure of a written piece. By keeping the organization of a piece in mind and considering the author‘s purpose for writing, the reader can go beyond the actual words on the page and make inferences or draw conclusions based on what was read. Strong, mature readers utilize these ‘between the lines skills’ to get a complete picture beyond the words on the page to what the author is trying to communicate to the reader.

The following are the Comprehension Skills that are addressed throughout Imagine It! in Kindergarten through Fifth Grade:

Author’s Point of View Sequence Fact and Opinion Main Idea and Details Compare and Contrast Cause and Effect Classify and Categorize Author’s Purpose Drawing Conclusions Making Inferences Reality and Fantasy

Teachers must have all these comprehension skills posted in the classroom where direct instruction takes place and must indicate (using an arrow or clothespin, for example) which skill is being addressed during reading instruction. (Comprehension Strategy Cards are available on Learning Village).

Comprehension skills are addressed during the SECOND READ of all reader selections. Teachers are encouraged to use the overhead transparencies found in the Overhead Transparency Binder or other graphic organizers that correlate to the comprehension skills being addressed. Teachers should consistently use that same organizer throughout the school year when teaching that skill.

Teachers must explicitly teach the skill of reading between the lines. Teachers should remind students that when reading we need to read from the writer‘s eye to try to figure out what the writer wants us to understand and how the author created the text (writer‘s craft). This is the reading and writing connection.

Teachers should refer to page 35 - 36 of the Program Appendix in the back of each Teacher‘s Edition for further information regarding comprehension skills.

Classroom Discussion

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Discussion is an integral part of learning. It is through discussions that students are exposed to different points of view and learn how to express their thoughts and opinions coherently. Through discussion, students add to their own knowledge, learn to explain their thoughts and voice any confusion. The purpose of classroom discussion is for students to clarify their thinking and to deepen their comprehension of text.

Handing-Off is a method of turning over to students the primary responsibility for controlling discussions. Having the students hand-off the discussion to other students instead of the teacher, encourages them to maintain the flow of the discussion and to become more actively involved in the learning process. When a student finishes his or her comments, that student chooses the next speaker. In this way, students maintain a discussion without relying on the teacher to decide who speaks.

When handing-off is in place, the teacher‘s role is to occasionally remind students to hand off and to monitor the discussion to ensure that everyone gets a chance to contribute. Since all students may not be able to contribute in each discussion, it is important to have frequent classroom discussions. In order for handing-off to work efficiently, a seating arrangement that allows students to see one another is essential. A circle or semi-circle is effective.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

Teachers should use the Handing-Off procedure for classroom discussions. Classroom discussions usually occur after reading a selection in the Imagine It! program. In order to facilitate Handing-Off, the teacher should direct the students to use some signal to indicate that they have something to contribute Students should be allowed to use their textbooks to reference as they make their comments.

This activity, although it can be difficult to get started in the early primary levels, should not be skipped. Teachers should use the Handing-Off routine for classroom discussions to expose students early in their educational careers. This will prepare them for discussions in later years. It is very important that the teacher becomes part of the discussion rather than leads the discussion.

Teachers could use the discussion starter questions located in the Program Appendix on page 43. A Discussion Starter bookmark is also available on Learning Village. Teachers should follow-up classroom discussions by inviting students to complete a written respond in their Writer‘s Notebook or personal journal.

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Writing Process Strategies

“Writing is a complex process. It involves deftly juggling a variety of skills, strategies, and knowledge.” (PA page 44) Just as the goal in phonics instruction is to teach students to decode, the Writing Process Strategies instruction in Imagine It! focus on skills, structures, and strategies for writing. The goal of this instruction is to learn how to write, rather than to develop a particular idea.

In Imagine It! the first unit of every grade level teaches the writing process and traits of writing. Each subsequent unit focuses on a particular genre appropriate for the unit content. Expository and persuasive writing are typically taught in the units with research themes. Personal narrative, descriptive writing, and poetry are taught in units with universal themes. The goal of writing in Imagine It! “is for children to become lifelong writers- people who enjoy writing and use writing effectively at work as well as in their personal lives.” (PA p. 44)

Throughout the Writing Process Strategies lessons, students should be reminded of the stages of the Writing Process:

1.) Prewriting-the writer spends time thinking about and planning their topic.2.) Drafting-the writer uses the prewriting planning as a guide for putting their ideas into words. 3.) Revising- the writer changes/adds to the content in order to convey their message4.) Editing/Proofreading-the writer checks their work for spelling, grammar, and usage errors in order to make their writing more understandable.5.) Publishing-the writer shares their work.

One of the most important things for teachers to remember while teaching the Writing Process Strategies lessons is to model thinking aloud. The teacher must use authentic modeling of his/her thoughts when sharing his/her writing example with students. Teaching the Writing Process Strategies involves direct instruction. After the careful modeling and thinking aloud of his/her thoughts and writing, a teacher may turn the task of composing over to students. This may begin during the remaining time for Writing and continue into workshop time.

It is important that teachers refer to the Sound/Spelling Cards while modeling the Writing Process Strategies lessons. They should remind students to check the Sound/Spelling Cards when they are writing. Students should also be encouraged to use other resources throughout the classroom including Word Banks to improve their writing.

Teachers must provide frequent feedback to students on their writing. One way to provide feedback is to allow students to participate in Writing Conferences. This provides opportunities for students to share their work in progress.

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Grammar, Usage, and Mechanics

Knowledge of grammar gives teachers and students a common vocabulary for talking about language. It also makes discussions of writing tasks more efficient and clearer.

Grammar is the sound, structure, and meaning system of language. People who speak the same language are able to effectively communicate because they know the rules of that language in order to make meaning. Grammar involves two areas; parts of speech and sentence structure.

Mechanics involves the conventions of punctuation and capitalization. Punctuation helps the reader understand the writer’s message. Therefore, it is important that students understand the mechanics of English as both a reader and a writer.

Usage involves the word choices we use when we speak. Language usage does vary. These variations are called dialects. Every language has a prestige dialect associated with educational success. In the United States this dialect is known as Standard English. Word choices that are acceptable in conversation may be unacceptable in writing. Usage is often the most obvious indicator of the difference between conversation and composition.

“Experience and research have shown that learning grammatical terms and completing grammar exercises have little effect on the student’s practical application of these skills in the context of speaking or writing” (PA p. 53). The key to Grammar, Usage, and Mechanics lessons are direct instruction. A skill is introduced with appropriate models and then practiced in reading and writing on subsequent days. This ensures that skills are not taught in isolation as students are given guided practice with various intervention materials. It is important to remember that students should not work independently until they are able to complete a given task with 85-90% accuracy. The Skills Practice pages should not be assigned as independent work until this level of mastery has been attained. Students should also be accountable for applying these skills throughout their own writings.

Spelling

Spelling research has found that students learn to spell in a predictable developmental sequence. As with reading, teachers need to be aware of these stages and strategies to instruct students as they move through the stages. The Spelling component is found in the Language Arts Strand (Blue Band) of Imagine It! The key to spelling words correctly is not just memorization. It is important for students to internalize English spellings patterns. Some learners do this naturally, while others need explicit and direct teaching.

Spelling is a fundamental skill in written communication. Although a writer may have wonderful ideas, he or she may find it difficult to communicate those ideas without adequate spelling skills.

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Learning to spell requires much exposure to text and writing. For many it requires a methodical presentation of English spelling patterns. (Imagine It! T.E., PA 50-51)

Teachers also need to remember that the spelling lessons begin with direct instruction. Spelling is not just a homework assignment. The spelling lessons are organized around spelling patterns, followed by structural patterns, meaning patterns, and finally foreign-language patterns in the upper grades. Strategies for each type of pattern can be found in the Program Appendix pages 51-52.

Workshop

Whole-group instruction when balanced with thoughtful, well-planned, small-group instruction is powerful. The goal of Workshop is to schedule time everyday to differentiate instruction for students. Differentiated instruction is the process through which teachers support and enhance instruction for all students. Student needs are determined using observational data collected during the whole-group lesson. During Workshop time teachers use this data to target the specific needs of students to reinforce learning, provide extra help for those having difficulties, extend learning, assess progress, or pre-teach / preview material.

Workshop is introduced at each grade level during the Getting Started lessons. These lessons help to firmly establish the rules and procedures for students during Workshop. This preparation is critical in order for the teacher to be able to maximize time spent with students and differentiated instruction throughout the year. Another goal of Workshop is to have students working productively and independently. The time it takes to achieve this goal varies by grade level, students’ prior experience with Workshop, and their maturity level. Suggestions of Management Tips are provided in the Program Appendix pages 68-69.

With lots of guidance and encouragement, students gradually learn to make good decisions about their use of time and materials and to collaborate with their peers. Refer to (PA pg. 66) for additional information on Setting up Workshop. RECOMMENDATIONS:

1. Workshop can occur at any time during the school day. Teachers should use workshop time when it is most effective for his/her classroom. Workshop needs to occur daily.

2. Workshop should initially be highly structured. Teachers should demonstrate whole-group with all students completing the same activity. After modeling the activity, the teacher has students working independently for a short amount of time, not asking questions and doing their best. Teachers and students then debrief about the period clarifying any questions or concerns. After it is apparent students understand the rules and procedures, another activity is introduced. Through this gradual model, practice, debrief cycle, students firmly understand the expectations during Workshop.

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3. For workshop to be effective in the classroom, teachers must be very explicit about teaching and reinforcing the rules. An example of Workshop rules is available on Learning Village.

4. Workshop areas are not like traditional reading centers where students circulate through all the theme-related centers nor are Workshop areas centers filled with worksheets to keep students busy. Workshop areas incorporate activities that reflect the reading and writing skills and strategies that have been taught. Activities engage students in hands-on, focused exercises to reinforce and extend learning.

5. A Menu for the-Must Do and May Do activities should be utilized. Typical Must Do listings might be to reread a Pre-Decodable/Decodable Book or an anthology selection, and complete any writing task introduces during the Language Art (Blue Band) strand of Imagine It!

6. Workshop is an appropriate time to administer assessments.

For further information regarding Workshop and Workshop Management Tips, please refer to pages 66 - 69 in the Program Appendix. In addition, specific suggestions for differentiating instruction for Workshop appear in the Teacher’s Edition following the Lesson Planner.

Intervention Materials

Imagine It! has several resources for teachers to use as they plan for differentiation of instruction during Workshop or other small group intervention time. These include:

Challenge Activity BLM (Black Line Masters) bookReteach BLM (Black Line Masters) bookIntervention GuideEnglish Learner Support Guide

The Challenge Activities BLM book includes extension activities to accompany many areas of the daily lesson. The goal of the Challenge Activities is to provide students an opportunity to apply the learned skill at a higher level of application. These activities are not intended to be used as “more” but instead may be used “in place of”.

The Reteach BLM book provides additional practice. This resource can also be used to pre-teach a skill or strategy prior to the whole group instruction thus giving students a “jump start” to the lesson.

The Intervention Guide is designed to provide direct, extra support for critical skills and strategies in decoding, comprehension, and language arts. These are the same skills and strategies covered in the Teacher’s Edition. This resource can be used to preteach important content, reteach previously introduced content, provide supplemental practice, monitor student progress and provide corrective feedback to students. In addition at First Grade (Unit 7) through

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Fifth Grade two additional reading selections are provided. Option Two, Selection One is slightly below grade level. Option Two, Selection Two is approximately one grade level below current grade level. Both selections provide students opportunities to practice strategies and skills taught during whole group instruction.

The English Learner Support Guide provides an instructional scaffold of phonemic awareness, phonics, word structure, language structures, comprehension strategies and skills, and grammar, usage, and mechanics so that students can successfully learn to read while advancing along the continuum of English acquisition. While the English Learner Support Guide was designed for students who are acquiring English, any student who struggles with Language could be supported with these materials.

Additional support activities are also available on eSuite. Teachers should preview any activity prior to assigning to students.

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