Planning and Designing Literacy Centers for Grades K-1

Planning and Designing Literacy

Centers forGrades K-1

Objectives• Evaluations• Quiz• Review principles of effective

literacy centers in Grades K-1• Apply these principles to design a

set of literacy centers

Important Considerations

• Teach children to use the center independently (set up for success: rules, directions, folders to organize, use, and hand in their work)– Focused purpose– Explanation related to the purpose– Role playing– Direct application

Center Management(Work Boards)

http://www.busyteacherscafe.com/literacy_centers/management.html


• Centers should advance children’s knowledge of literacy and require to interact with print (not just be cutesy busywork)– Repeated practice - Word Work– Comprehension/Retelling– Personal response - Fluency - Small group, partners, independent?

http://www.fcrr.org/curriculum/SCAindex.shtm


• Centers should link to curriculum/district expectations (standards, etc.)–Collaborate with other teachers–Over time, create coded lists that

maps folders and activities onto these expectations


• Centers should build on what we know about personal engagement– Possibility of success– Perception that the outcome will be

valued • How can you incorporate these

principles into your center? – What about differentiating levels of

support?


• Differentiating levels of support (How modify the same task for different readers?) – Word Family Activities (bug)

• Level 1: Word families with initial consonant substitution (rug, mug, tug, hug)

• Level 2: Word families with adding endings to root word (bugs, bugged, bugging, buggy)

– Level 3: Semantic map with bug in the middle to create meaning-based connections (bother, spy, insect)


• Strive for independence and built-in accountability – Manage work flow and student products

(worksheets, audio, journals, checklist, performance, stickies/highlights)

– Self-checking systems (on back, on outside of pocket folder, partners check with teacher’s book or answer key)

–Center Cards

Ford & Optiz Center Ideas • Listening Post (intensify time over year)• Reader’s Theatre (sequence routines) • Reading/writing the room (clipboards and

scrap paper) • Pocket Charts (sentences > phrases >

words)• Poems/Story packs (sequence > color code) • Big Books (highlight, discuss, re-read)• Creative art response (no need for cut outs)• Free writing (with prompts and visual

supports)• Reading Corner (clear expectations)

Today’s Activity

Keyboarding Skills!

Portable Word Walls

Planning and Designing Literacy Centers for Grades K-1

Documents

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