Where do you keep all the information you need to run a reading group? My reading instruction needs to be organized and timely. I use reading binders for small-group instruction. I am a reading interventionist, and I have between 11 and 14 small groups a day. My favorite system to keep up with all the details have been reading binders.
What Have I Tried in the Past
In my first year as an interventionist, I tried to use a tub to gather my materials. I was doing my running records and anecdotal notes on a program on an iPad. I put the other materials in a file folder that lay in the tub. My lesson plan I put on top of the materials. The system was not very organized. I was always digging in the tub to find what I needed. I made charts for my groups by stapling sheets of paper together. When I needed a chart, I had to hunt through a stack of charts to find the correct one. I knew I needed a change.
I still use a tub to gather materials, but I made two big shifts when I switched to using binders. One was that I began to use notes. While I loved the idea of paperless, I had trouble recording well on the iPad, so I could see all the information to glean my next teaching point. I also quit using paper charts.
Reading Binders for Small Groups
What I needed was one place to store all my materials. I decided that putting everything together in a binder would help. This is the set of binders I use because they were affordable and of good quality. Each group has a different binder. Here are the different elements of my reading binders for small group instruction.
- Cover – I put a cover on the binder with the student's names on it and grade levels. I change covers often as groups are adjusted, but that works for me. It also helps me know at a glance who is in the next group.
- Anchor Charts – I began to make my anchor charts on an 8.5 by 11 sheet of cardstock. They are not as large as the charts I previously used, but I realized that everyone at the table could see them in my small reading group. This allows the charts to live in the front pocket of my binder.
- Lesson Plan – The first tab is the lesson plan for the week. Since I sometimes do not get all the way done with my lesson in the allotted time, this allows me to make notes for the following day.
- Assessments and Notes – I normally put assessments and running records in this section. This allows me to have them ready to assess my students. I normally do not have time to thoroughly review the assessment right after I administer it, so I write the student's name on a sticky note. This allows me to go back and review during my planning time.
- Phonics Games and Review Sheets – My intervention program is a pull-out program, so I am on a tight schedule. Occasionally I have a few extra minutes, and there isn't enough time to begin a full activity. I keep appropriate activities to fill a few minutes.
- Sight Word Cards – I always keep extra sight word cards and blank cards. There are sets of sight words that are taught with certain lessons. Sometimes we run out of prepackaged sight words, so I keep extra copies. I also like to have extra blank cards for when a student is having trouble with a word that the series has not pointed out.
- Classroom Library Checkouts or Practice Books – My last tab in my reading binder is a notes sheet. I record when a student checks out a book from my classroom library.
I hope this walkthrough of my reading binders was helpful. This system is successful after two years of tweaking it. I just kept adding more tabs. I am finally comfortable with this very functional reading binder.
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