Small-Group Shared Reading is a teaching approach in which students do the same kinds of activities as in whole-class Shared Reading sessions but with additional support from the teacher in small groups. This approach is geared towards students who need more early literacy experiences before progressing from whole-class Shared Reading to Small-Group Guided Reading. Before participating in Guided Reading groups, in which knowledge of detailed print concepts is essential, these students may need to develop confidence with book handling, print tracking, and the concept that print holds a message. Literacy Place for the Early Years recognizes their needs and offers opportunities for Small-Group Shared Reading experiences.
In grade one, Small-Group Shared Reading offers more support than Guided Reading as students develop the skills to take on the reading task themselves. The time spent in Small-Group Shared Reading will vary as students become more proficient with print concepts.
As with whole-class Shared Reading, you begin with a group reading, using a Big Book or a digital text displayed on an interactive whiteboard so that students can see the text clearly and join in when they are ready. The first few readings should focus on comprehension. You can facilitate understanding by focusing on both text and illustrations and, if necessary, explaining vocabulary or unusual text features, such as boldface type and tables of contents.
As students participate in each additional reading, they become more familiar with the text and can begin to use small books with the same text for a group reading. You can also use the small books to engage the group in strategy lessons on aspects of comprehension, word recognition, word patterns, and text features.
Note: The transition stage of Small-Group Shared Reading should last no longer than three to four weeks, depending on how often you meet with the group. Students with special needs may require more sessions.
Purposes
As with Shared Reading for the whole class, Small-Group Shared Reading provides opportunities for students to
- follow your model of fluent reading
- enjoy success in reading by joining in as the text becomes familiar
- become aware that reading requires comprehension of content
- extend their understanding of print and word-solving strategies
In addition, Small-Group Shared Reading offers unique opportunities for you to
- gear instruction to the particular learning requirements of a group of students with similar needs
- provide a bridge from Shared Reading to Guided Reading for those students who need more early literacy experiences (e.g., print concepts, quick recognition of a few high-frequency words embedded in text)
Focusing Instruction
In whole-class Shared Reading, you must address the wide range of learning needs in your classroom; Small-Group Shared Reading sessions allow you to narrow your focus. Your lessons can be more effective because they address the particular learning requirements of a group of students with similar learning needs.
In addition, small-group experiences stimulate language development, since students have more opportunities to interact orally with you and the other group members. This is an ideal time for modelling language structures (e.g., appropriate syntax) and building vocabulary. You can link new vocabulary to students’ personal experiences and encourage them to express their new knowledge during group discussions. Responding to questions presents difficulties for some students; during small-group instruction, these students not only hear you model appropriate responses, but also have your support as they practise their growing skills.
Bridging from Shared to Guided Reading
When students display most of the following characteristics, consider conducting Small-Group Shared Reading sessions as a bridge from Shared Reading to Guided Reading:
- understands that print holds a message
- uses language cues to make predictions
- retells ideas from the text but may be inconsistent in retelling stories in sequence or in recalling details
- displays book-handling concepts (e.g., orients the book the right way up, progresses through pages from the front to the back)
- needs some support with print tracking (e.g., tracks print on familiar books but is hesitant when texts are unfamiliar, and sometimes needs support to move to new lines of print)
- recognizes name and friends’ names but is hesitant in locating key words in Shared Reading books
- joins in when reading familiar books but is far less confident when new texts are introduced
- needs some support to notice rhyming patterns and letter-sound associations
Literacy Place for the Early Years recommends three developmental phases as a bridge between whole-group Shared Reading and Guided Reading. These phases follow the flow of instruction (and release of support) from phase one through phase three. You should try to see each group at least twice each week.
Phase one: Your initial small-group sharing of a Big Book, including instruction, follows the same steps as a whole-class session but provides more opportunities to focus your instruction on the specific needs of group members.
Different approaches are possible during phase one. For example, you might:- use the Big Book that is being read in whole-class sessions. This approach gives students additional experiences with a familiar text.
- use a Big Book that you do not plan to read to the class. This approach teaches students to transfer learned skills to new contexts.
Phase two: At the next phase of development, group members move from the Shared Reading of a Big Book to group reading of the same text using individual, small copies of the book. Reading together remains the focus, but as the group develops familiarity with the text, the control of book handling and print tracking begins to move to the individual group members. This is the transitional stage: as you gently remove your support for a familiar text, students take control.
During phase two, you can- use one of the program Big Books and the accompanying small books
- use a level A to D small book (with print large enough for a group of three to five students to see clearly) of which you have multiple copies
Small-Group Shared Reading Sessions
Small-Group Shared Reading sessions require the same type of planning and before-, during-, and after-reading activities suggested for Shared Reading. The only difference is that your teaching focuses on the specific range of reading needs demonstrated by a particular small group of students rather than those demonstrated by the whole class.
Demonstrations, comments, or questions that focus students’ attention on problem solving as they read are still important. However, you may wish to use a simplified set of prompts for Small-Group Shared Reading. The following chart provides a few sample prompts; build on these for your own purposes.
Reading Concepts & Strategies |
Sample Prompts |
|---|---|
| Book handling, print tracking, and word solving |
|
| Comprehension |
|