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A Teaching Blog by Jodi Southard

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Comprehension

Self-Checking Reading Comprehension Cards

April 15, 2020 by Jodi Leave a Comment

Over the past couple of weeks, I have been working on making Digital Task Cards through the Boom Learning™ platform, and I am now obsessed with them!  I love them all, but I am particularly fond of my reading comprehension based cards.

These Text Evidence cards are perfect for beginning readers working on going back into their text to find answers.

The students have to read each sentence.  Then, they type in the answers to the comprehension questions and drag the picture into the box to show where they found their answers.  The best part about these cards, is that if you sign up for a Boom Learning™ account, you can see how each child did and track their data.

These Boom Digital Task Cards are the perfect way to practice reading comprehension and using text evidence. Students will read each of the sentences. Then, they will answer the two comprehension questions by typing into the boxes. Next, they will drag the pictures into the box to show where they found their answers. These task cards are self-checking through the Boom Learning™️ platform.

I have also created two different Reading Comprehension sets that are perfect for more fluent readers.  The students have to read a short reading passage and click on the correct answers.  Each card also has a vocabulary question.

These Boom Digital Task Cards are the perfect way to practice reading comprehension. Students will read each of the short passages. Then, they will answer the two comprehension questions and the vocabulary question on each task card. These task cards are self-checking through the Boom Learning™️ platform.

I have both sets bundled together to give you 30 self-checking digital task cards in all or each set can be purchased separately.

These Boom Digital Task Cards are the perfect way to practice reading comprehension. Students will read each of the short passages. Then, they will answer the two comprehension questions and the vocabulary question on each task card. These task cards are self-checking through the Boom Learning™️ platform.

Did you know that Boom cards can also be used in Google Classroom and Seesaw, which makes them perfect for Distance Learning?  I have included the directions in all of my previews and products to help you out.

Click here to check out ALL of my Boom Task Cards.

Are there other sets that you would like to see me create?  Any other questions that you have about Boom cards?  Let me know.

Filed Under: Reading Tagged With: Boom cards, Comprehension, Digital Task Cards

All in One Differentiated Reading Passages

November 4, 2019 by Jodi Leave a Comment

Reading instruction in a classroom with students at various reading levels can definitely be challenging.  If you follow a basal program, the text levels for each week may be too hard for your low readers and much too easy for your higher readers.  This is why I love doing small groups during my reading block.  I want to make sure that my students are reading text at their instructional reading levels.

These Monthly Differentiated Reading passages are my go-to during small group instruction or during our intervention/enrichment time.  I love that almost all of my students can read about the same topic and work on the same comprehension skill, but at their own reading level.

Want to save time planning for your small group reading lessons each week? These monthly guided reading packets are your answer! Each Guided Reading packet includes 4 differentiated nonfiction passages, and 4 differentiated fiction passages. (24 passages in all) The passages include a lesson plan example, vocabulary cards, pre-reading activity, 3 levels of reading passages with vocabulary words and comprehension questions, a comprehension graphic organizer, and a writing response page.

Each month includes 4 nonfiction and 4 fiction stories at three different reading levels.  Each passage includes “Power Words” to increase their vocabulary skills.  The higher level passages include more Power Words than the lower reading level passages.  Every story also includes a corresponding comprehension skill, comprehension graphic organizer, and a writing component.

Want to save time planning for your small group reading lessons each week? These monthly guided reading packets are your answer! Each Guided Reading packet includes 4 differentiated nonfiction passages, and 4 differentiated fiction passages. (24 passages in all) The passages include a lesson plan example, vocabulary cards, pre-reading activity, 3 levels of reading passages with vocabulary words and comprehension questions, a comprehension graphic organizer, and a writing response page.

How do I use these Differentiated Reading Passages in my classroom?

I typically use these during small group instruction for one of our weekly lessons during that time.  This allows me to differentiate easily for each reading group.  I also love that I can be consistent with keeping the same comprehension skill and vocabulary words for the entire class.  This year, I have actually been using these with my enrichment group during our I/E (Intervention/Enrichment) time.  I am able to really dig deep into each of these stories as we practice our reading fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension practice.

Want to save time planning for your small group reading lessons each week? These monthly guided reading packets are your answer! Each Guided Reading packet includes 4 differentiated nonfiction passages, and 4 differentiated fiction passages. (24 passages in all) The passages include a lesson plan example, vocabulary cards, pre-reading activity, 3 levels of reading passages with vocabulary words and comprehension questions, a comprehension graphic organizer, and a writing response page.

I love that these Differentiated Reading Passages allow me to integrate reading with science and social studies.

One of my favorite things about these passages is that I can integrate reading with other subject areas by using the nonfiction passages.  It is often difficult to get everything in during the school day, so integrating subjects with each other is so important.

Want to save time planning for your small group reading lessons each week? These monthly guided reading packets are your answer! Each Guided Reading packet includes 4 differentiated nonfiction passages, and 4 differentiated fiction passages. (24 passages in all) The passages include a lesson plan example, vocabulary cards, pre-reading activity, 3 levels of reading passages with vocabulary words and comprehension questions, a comprehension graphic organizer, and a writing response page.

What are teachers saying about these Differentiated Reading Passages?

“This is one of the best purchases I’ve made on TPT! It allows you to use the same “Power Words” or vocabulary with your class, but the passages using the vocabulary are written at 3 different reading levels allowing all students to access the content! It also contains a written option and reading response for each reading. Wow! This has saved me so much time! Thank you!” -Sharon

“This is an AMAZING resource for guided reading. I love the prediction pages with a picture that really help the students stay focused on the topic. Also, I love telling them their writing goal for the week which is included.” -Nicole

“These passages are wonderful for comprehension in terms of teaching to look back in the text. I also love the vocabulary piece. The graphic organizers are great too. The passages are just the right length and the topics keep my guided reading group engaged! Thanks!” -June

“One of the BEST resources I have ever bought from TPT (and trust me I have bought A LOT)!! This has everything you can hope for! Absolutely no prep needed for your daily guided reading FOR THE ENTIRE YEAR! Having three different passages for each story at three different levels is amazing! This allows all the students in the class to practice the same reading skill, and learn about the same topic, but at a level that is good for them. LOVE LOVE LOVE this and use this almost everyday throughout the year!”

Check out each month or save on the ENTIRE YEAR Bundle.

Want to save time planning for your small group reading lessons each week? These monthly guided reading packets are your answer! Each Guided Reading packet includes 4 differentiated nonfiction passages, and 4 differentiated fiction passages. (24 passages in all) The passages include a lesson plan example, vocabulary cards, pre-reading activity, 3 levels of reading passages with vocabulary words and comprehension questions, a comprehension graphic organizer, and a writing response page.

Filed Under: Reading Tagged With: Comprehension, differentiation, Guided Reading

Comprehension Notebooks

December 23, 2017 by Jodi Leave a Comment

Comprehension Notebooks provide your students with rigorous and focused daily comprehension practice. Each week includes an original text for students to read or have read to them. Each day, the students will practice a comprehension skill related to the text for the week.

Comprehension can be such a difficult task to teach, but these Comprehension Notebooks have been a life-saver over the past couple of years.  They allow me to give a quick daily dose of comprehension, and we can really dig deep into each story.  I personally use these in small groups, but they can also be used in a whole group setting.  I prefer to use them in small groups because I can use a variety of grade levels in order to differentiate for my students.

Comprehension Notebooks provide your students with rigorous and focused daily comprehension practice. Each week includes an original text for students to read or have read to them. Each day, the students will practice a comprehension skill related to the text for the week.

Daily Comprehension Practice

These Comprehension Notebooks are set up on a 5-day schedule using the same story each day.  In all honesty, I usually do these over a 2-3 day time frame.  My schedule does not allow me to meet with each small reading group every day, so I usually do Day 1 and Day 2 together.  Then, the next time, we reread and do Days 3-5.  You can use these however you feel works best in your own classroom.

Differentiating with Comprehension Notebooks

I have 4 different grade levels of Comprehension Notebooks available (Kindergarten-3rd grade).  I personally like to use each of the grade levels in my classroom depending on each student’s reading level.  While the majority of my students do well with the Kindergarten, 1st or 2nd grade notebooks, I definitely have students that are capable of using the 3rd grade notebooks as well.

Comprehension Notebooks provide your students with rigorous and focused daily comprehension practice. Each week includes an original text for students to read or have read to them. Each day, the students will practice a comprehension skill related to the text for the week.

Comprehension Notebooks provide your students with rigorous and focused daily comprehension practice. Each week includes an original text for students to read or have read to them. Each day, the students will practice a comprehension skill related to the text for the week.

Comprehension Notebooks provide your students with rigorous and focused daily comprehension practice. Each week includes an original text for students to read or have read to them. Each day, the students will practice a comprehension skill related to the text for the week.

Comprehension Notebooks provide your students with rigorous and focused daily comprehension practice. Each week includes an original text for students to read or have read to them. Each day, the students will practice a comprehension skill related to the text for the week.

What does each Comprehension Notebook include?

Each notebook includes 30 weeks worth of comprehension practice using both fiction and nonfiction text.  The comprehension skills are appropriate for each grade level and include a variety of skills.  (cause and effect, main idea and details, compare and contrast, visualizing, theme, inferences, etc.)  Every week includes a Write About It section that allows students to respond to the text and make text-to-self connections.  In order to help you with differentiation, I also have two different bundles available for you.  My K-2nd grade bundle is a great way to differentiate for a 1st grade classroom.  I also have a K-3rd grade bundle that includes ALL of my Comprehension Notebooks.

What are teacher’s saying about Comprehension Notebooks?

“True brilliance…that is all I can say about this resource. I am going into my first year of teaching and have viewed thousands of resources and this is by far my favorite. The excitement I have for this is a little silly, I must say! (I even called my mom). I always struggled with comprehension as a child so seeing a clever way to implement reading comprehension activities aside from curriculum is brilliant!” -In the Shade

“This book is probably one of the best purchases I have made on TPT. I have used it daily. It is used as a must do for my students during centers. It took about six weeks of working with the students , but now they are working in a group of about 5 students and getting a lot out of the daily practice pieces. It goes along well with Journeys. I just have to tell the students what page to work on to match up with the comprehension skill of the week. Often they will ask if they can finish the page which is exciting to hearing. I sent it away to be bound into a book as shown and the students know to pull out their books when we have centers. If you are wondering if it is worth it… It is!” -Primary at Heart

“Absolutely a GAME CHANGER in teaching comprehension! Thank you for making a product full of practicality for my kiddos! Your hard work is beyond appreciated! Thank you for making my job easier!” -Krystina

Check out all of my Comprehension Notebooks.

Kindergarten Comprehension Notebook

1st Grade Comprehension Notebook

2nd Grade Comprehension Notebook

3rd Grade Comprehension Notebook

Kindergarten-3rd Grade Bundle

Filed Under: Back to School, Curriculum, Reading Tagged With: Comprehension, Comprehension Notebooks

Comprehension Bookmarks – Free Download

December 3, 2017 by Jodi Leave a Comment

Working on comprehension can be challenging, especially when you are trying to differentiate for a variety of learners in your classroom.  I like to use Comprehension Bookmarks to give my students some things to think about before, during, and after they read, but I knew that I needed a way to adjust the activity for the different reading levels in my room.

These FREE Comprehension Bookmarks are a great way to differentiate comprehension practice in your classroom.

This is a sponsored post. Fun in First has received payment, trade and/or products from Astrobrights in exchange for promoting, however all opinions stated are my own. This post also contains affiliate links. I earn a small commission each time someone makes a purchase through one of my links, which helps to support the blog.

I created three different Comprehension Bookmarks that can be used depending on the type of book my students are reading and/or their level of comprehension.  I printed them on three different colors of Astrobrights paper for a number of reasons.  Studies have shown that color improves retention as much as 18%!  The more chances I can give my students to retain the information that I am giving them, the better.  Studies have also shown that color can increase memory and help students remain engaged.  This is definitely an area where I want my students to remain engaged for an extended period of time.  Another reason I used different colors for each bookmark to help me stay organized.  If my students lose their bookmark, they can tell me which color they had.  I can also find the bookmark to replace it much faster if they are printed on color paper.

These FREE Comprehension Bookmarks are a great way to differentiate comprehension practice in your classroom.

 

The first level of comprehension, printed on Lunar Blue™, has picture clues to help students with the questions.  They are pretty basic story structure questions.  The second level, printed on Martian Green™, does not have the picture clues.  It includes the basic story structure and sequencing questions.  The third level, printed on Solar Yellow™, includes higher order thinking questions for your more advanced readers.

These FREE Comprehension Bookmarks are a great way to differentiate comprehension practice in your classroom.

My students can keep their bookmarks in chapter books that they are reading, or they can grab their bookmark to use while reading a picture book.  These are perfect for placing at a Read to Self station or in an independent reading book tub.  How would you use these in your classroom?

These FREE Comprehension Bookmarks are a great way to differentiate comprehension practice in your classroom.

You can download these Comprehension Bookmarks for FREE in my Teachers Pay Teachers store.

 

Filed Under: Reading Tagged With: Comprehension

Strategies for Teaching Comprehension Skills – Listening Comprehension

March 5, 2017 by Jodi 1 Comment

Comprehension skills are such an important part of reading instruction. These strategies are easy to implement into any classroom.

We all know the importance of making sure our students are comprehending what they are reading, but why does it seem so difficult sometimes?  With first graders, so much focus is put on “learning to read” at the beginning of the year.  As the year progresses and students become more fluent readers, the shift needs to move from “learning to read” to “reading to learn.”  Many components need to go into creating this shift in reading.  So, how can we make sure that our students are comprehending what they are reading?

Comprehension skills are such an important part of reading instruction. These strategies are easy to implement into any classroom.

I’m starting a new series on the blog over the next couple of weeks focusing on reading comprehension.  I am hoping to share some strategies that can be implemented right away into your classrooms to help your students increase their comprehension skills.  Today, we are discussing the importance of listening comprehension.

Listening Comprehension

Sometimes, we forget the power of the read aloud when talking about comprehension practice.  This is especially important for students that are not yet readers.  If you have your own children, think about all of times that you have read stories to them.  Even the simple color and number books you read to toddlers.  You look closely at the pictures.  You talk about the colors.  You count the objects.  Most likely, you make the noises that the trucks or the animals are making.  That is all comprehension practice.  School aged children still need this practice.  When you read books aloud to your class, really engage them in the story and make sure they are comprehending what you are reading to them.  It is so important that your students are active listeners during read alouds.

Comprehension skills are such an important part of reading instruction. Encouraging active listening is so important.

  1. Preview the book prior to reading.  Make predictions based on the title and cover.
  2. Take talk breaks during a book to explain your thinking or review what might be happening in the story.
  3. Revisit parts that may be confusing or pages that you feel might need more explanation.
  4. Discuss unknown vocabulary in the book.
  5. Ask comprehension questions after reading the book.  Talk about the characters, the problem and solution, and their thoughts about the book.

Strategies for Listening Comprehension

  1. Use Listening Centers.  I always purchase the book and CD Listening Centers from the Scholastic Book Orders each month.  Then, I use my bonus points to get a couple of additional books to go along with each CD.  Have students complete an activity after the story to work on their comprehension skills.  You can download a FREE Listening Center Response Sheet HERE.
  2. Prepare comprehension questions or talking points prior to reading.  I like to write discussion questions on Post-It notes and put them inside the front cover of my books that I’m reading aloud to students.  The majority of the time, I can remember what discussion points I want to hit, but let’s be honest, we have a million things going on in our heads at any given moment.  The Post-It notes allow me to pick up a book and be able to very quickly know what I want to discuss, so I don’t overlook a particular skill. Placing Post-it notes into the inside of books is an easy way to remember which comprehension skills you are wanting to review during that read aloud.
  3. Have comprehension practice ready for any book.  Preparing discussion questions and comprehension skills for every single read aloud you do in your classroom would be very time consuming and overwhelming.  It is perfectly fine to have general comprehension discussion points ready for any book.  I know that plenty of times, I have received a new book from a Scholastic Book order or from Amazon, and I just have to read it aloud right away.  For these times, I like to have ways to get the students involved in the story.  I bought these pinwheels from Dollar Tree a couple of years ago.  They make wonderful Comprehension Wheels.  I just wrote with a Sharpie on each petal.  After we read a book together, I spin the pinwheel and grab a petal to see which question we will answer.  It’s an easy way to add some novelty to a lesson. I purchased these pinwheels from Dollar Tree. Then, I wrote comprehension questions on each petal with a Sharpie. These make great Comprehension Wheels. These Comprehension Question Cards are also a great way to have a quick discussion about a book.  After printing them, I laminate the cards and place them on a metal ring.  These are easy to pull out during read alouds to make sure that I am asking a variety of comprehension questions.  I also like to keep a set at my reading table to use with my small groups. You can click on the picture below to check these out.These Comprehension Question Cards are great to have on hand to ensure that you are asking a variety of comprehension questions while reading.

Remember that Listening Comprehension strategies need to be used before reading, during reading, and after reading.  We need to look at the entire picture.

Comprehension strategies for before reading.Comprehension Strategies during reading.Comprehension Strategies for after reading.The ability to comprehend a text can make or break a student’s reading success.  These are strategies that we need to work on over and over again throughout the school day.  We really need to make sure that we are not overlooking the power of building listening comprehension with our students.  I hope you continue to join me as I discuss more comprehension strategies and skills in the next couple of weeks.  Feel free to pin the image below or any of the images above to remember this blog post for future reference.

We cannot overlook the power of teaching listening comprehension skills. Listening comprehension sets the foundation for future comprehension success.

Filed Under: Reading Tagged With: Comprehension

Flipping for Reading

January 7, 2015 by Jodi 5 Comments

I cannot even tell you how excited I am about this new product!
I’d like to introduce you to what I’m calling Flip & Reads.
 
I liked my New Year’s Flip Book so much that I wanted to use the same idea for something else.  As I was feeding the baby the other day, I came up with this idea.
Each flip book includes a cover page, a story, a graphic organizer, and a comprehension question page.

 
This unique format makes reading comprehension a little more exciting.  My daughter couldn’t wait to try it out!

It made my teacher heart happy to see how easy it was for her to flip back to the story to check her answers.

 
When she was finished, she actually wanted to do the rest of the stories that I had already printed out.
This first set that I have completed is my Level 1 set.
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Flip-Reads-Level-1-1635949
This set would work well for Kindergarten readers, 1st graders, or even 2nd graders.  The Level 1 Flip & Reads includes 12 different stories.
 
So, here’s the deal…since I knew I would be making more levels of these, I went ahead and created a growing bundle.
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Flip-Reads-The-Bundle-1635983
 
Right now, this bundle only contains the Level 1 set, but will include all of my future levels.  The price is higher than just the Level 1, but in the long run, the bundle is a much better deal because I will be increasing the price of the bundle each time I add a new level. However, you will be able to download the packet at no additional cost once you purchase it at the lowest price.  
I have already been working on writing the stories for the Level 2 packet and I hope to have it posted before the weekend.
So, what do you think about Flip & Reads?


Filed Under: Reading Tagged With: Comprehension, Flip & Reads, Reading

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Definitely not my favorite of his costumes, but he Definitely not my favorite of his costumes, but he loves it, so that’s all that matters 🦴🎃
We will be completing our Halloween Challenge on F We will be completing our Halloween Challenge on Friday. It’s such a great way to make learning fun while working cooperatively.🎃
Check it out by following the link in my profile.
Thank you, Halloween!!🎃👻 Thank you, Halloween!!🎃👻
🌟Easy small group activity🌟 Give each studen 🌟Easy small group activity🌟
Give each student the vowels using foam or magnetic letters. Say a CVC word.  The students hold up the vowel to show the middle sound that they hear.
Super easy and effective💙
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Check it out by following the link in my profile.🎃
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How are you holding up? Do you need some coffee soup along with me?
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