Daily Read Alouds--

I have found one thing that I will do when I have my own classroom in the future:

Do a read aloud EVERY day.

There are many reasons behind this idea. For starters, a read aloud gives my students the time to chill out and take a breather. This time gives them the opportunity to sit on the carpet and just listen for a while. I have seen the students really enjoy this time because they are smiling and interacting with a story that is not during an "academic" time, or so they think :)

Another reason, is by making my plans for next week, I have seen that I can bring the read aloud book into my reading class to develop a discussion. For example, we are working on setting and how setting affects the character. I wanted to diversify the lesson with various stories and examples, so I am able to bring the read aloud story into the group conversation during literature time. They are able to see that books that we read for fun still encompass the ideas that they are being taught during their English Language Arts period.

My mentor teacher does a wonderful job in modeling what a successful read aloud period looks like. She reads for about 10 minutes a day, when they have a break between lunch and specials. She makes sure to leave off at a good part in order to keep the students on their toes and making predictions about the next part. My mentor teacher also gives the characters voices and reads with inflection, which entertains me, so I know it is entertaining the students!!

I am fully enjoying my student teaching time--there is not a day that I wake up and do not look forward to the day to come. Walking in and seeing the students' smiling faces is such a great feeling. The past few days, a couple of students have even come in with marvelous treats for the teachers, which I am not going to complain about :)