Daily 5

Daily 5


Dear Parents and Gaurdians, 
  
    Welcome to a new school year! I hope you enjoyed your summer and had quality time with your children. In my teaching, I am constantly looking at what research says most benefits students as they become readers, writers, and lifelong learners. That is why I am excited to begin what we call the Daily Five in our literacy block this year. The purpose of this letter is to explain to you what The Daily Five is all about.
     
    The Daily Five is a literacy structure that teaches independence and gives children the skills needed to create a lifetime love of reading and writing.  It consists of five tasks that are introduced individually.  When introduced to each task, the children discuss what it looks like, sounds like, and feels like to engage in the task independently.  Then the children work on building their stamina until they are successful at being independent while doing that task.   

 The Daily Five consists of:
  • Read to Self
  • Work on Writing
  • Read to Someone
  • Listen to Reading
  • Word Work

    When all five tasks have been introduced and the children are fully engaged in reading and writing activities, I am able to work with small groups 
and confer with children one on one.  This structure is effective, the results are amazing, and the children really look forward to Daily Five time.  Ask your child about Daily Five and see what he/she has to say.  I anticipate your child will tell you about the class stamina, how we are working towards independence, and maybe you will even hear about some of the fantastic things your child has written, read, or listened to during our structured reading time. 

    One thing you’ll notice that may be a change for you is a direct decrease in the number of worksheets your child brings home.  While worksheets keep students busy, they don’t really result in the high level of learning I want for your child.  Instead, your child will be taught to select “Good Fit Books” or books they can read, understand and are interested in, which they will read during Daily 5.  They will be spending most of their time actually reading, which research supports as the number one way to improve reading.  I anticipate the motivation and enjoyment of reading will skyrocket when this gift of choosing their own books is accompanied by extended practice and specific reading instruction for each individual child.

    Please think of our classroom as you visit garage sales or clean your own child’s bookcase.  It is my goal to make our classroom library as appealing as your favorite bookstore for browsing.

    I am looking forward to a very successful year with your child.  Please let me know if you have questions about the Daily 5, and keep looking back to the blog for pictures and learning we are doing in our Daily 5.
      

                  Thank you,

                  Mrs. Lee