We have Open Court and and a few of our teachers are experimenting with a literature circle approach. We are in the same boat you are - a mandated series that the district spent a lot of money on, but that doesn't meet the differentiated needs of all students. However, these are 4th and 5th grade teachers, so the phonics skills have pretty much already been taught.
Here is how I have approached it in the past. For each unit, I would have students read one story together, teach some strategies with it, and in the case of second grade, phonics skills as well. Then students read one or two more stories in the unit in partners or literature circles and apply the strategies. These stories could also be chosen individually, more like workshop. Cathy K-5 DE -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Email Group <[email protected]> Sent: Sat, 23 Feb 2008 9:05 am Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] Basal in Readers Workshop? I teach 2nd grade. How are you incorporating it? > We use Open Court and I've been trying to incorporate it with strategy > instruction but what grade do you teach?? > > Tracy > > On Fri, 22 Feb 2008 16:58:13 -0800, <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > >> Hi everyone, >> >> My administrator decided in the beginning of the year that it was okay >> for >> us to forgo our purchased basal series (Open Court) and only use >> literature in our readers workshop (woo hoo!!). Flash forward to now and >> we are told that we must use them, whether it be for phonics, >> literature, >> etc. . . basically just use them, all this money was spent on them >> ("what >> we're supposed to do" is changed at least twice a year, so you can >> imagine >> our frustration!). >> >> Can anyone give me any advice or pointers or how they use their basal in >> their classroom in conjunction with quality literature? We structure our >> readers workshop based on comprehension strategies (i.e September we >> work >> on making connections etc.)If anyone out there, uses Open Court and a >> readers workshop setting, that would even be more helpful. >> >> Thank you! >> >> >> >> >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Mosaic mailing list >> [email protected] >> To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to >> http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. >> >> Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive. >> >> > > > > _______________________________________________ > Mosaic mailing list > [email protected] > To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to > http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. > > Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive. > > _______________________________________________ Mosaic mailing list [email protected] To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive. ________________________________________________________________________ More new features than ever. Check out the new AOL Mail ! - http://webmail.aol.com _______________________________________________ Mosaic mailing list [email protected] To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive.
