“Make sure students are spending time engaged in small group learning.”  “Differentiate instruction so all students are supported to meet grade level standards.” When I started teaching, these were the loudest messages I heard in my training program and professional development sessions. These two practices, I learned, would be the key to ensuring that my first graders made significant progress, and ended the year meeting reading benchmarks. I was coached to use the guided reading model to ensure my students were reading leveled texts at their instructional level. So, I would plan guided reading lessons that included a thorough book introduction, … Continue reading Reimagining Small Group Instruction