Interactive Read Aloud

Today's class focused on Interactive Read Aloud. You'll find detailed information by grade level in the Continuum and chapters 15-17 in Teaching for Comprehension and Fluency. The charts on pages 289-292 of Comp. and Flu. are helpful tools for planning. The term interactive read aloud involves the teacher and students thinking about, talking about and responding to the text. As the teacher reads, students are able to focus their full attention on thinking about the book. This allows students of all reading levels to develop deeper understanding of grade/age appropriate literature. First, teachers carefully select texts, deciding on teaching points and areas in the text to stop for discussion. Before reading, a short introduction is given to engage readers and activate thinking. As the teacher reads, embedded instruction takes place. Readers may be asked questions or to share thoughts with a neighbor or the whole group. More discussion would follow the reading as a way to tie everything together. Keeping a record of books the class has read aloud is suggested. Occasionally, teachers may extend the learning through writing or some other form of extension. Comp. and Flu. includes an example of a text set for second grade on pages 266 and 267. Samples for other grade levels can be found on the DVD along with blank forms for creating your own text sets.