While students generally don’t have copies of read-alouds during the Being a Reader whole-class reading lessons, they do still have the opportunity to read independently on a daily basis during Individualized Daily Reading (IDR). This is a critical time where students get to practice and apply their word recognition and language comprehension skills and strategies, as well as respond to texts either with partners or in writing.
Accessing whole-class read-alouds through listening provides accessibility to the content for all students despite reading ability, and it provides them the opportunity to experience models of fluency, expression, and intonation in a way they may not if they were following along. Teachers are also better able to guide students through discussions, asking questions about the text, characters, plot, themes, etc. during read-alouds in the Being a Reader whole-class reading lessons.
In their Student Response Books, students have opportunities to read and reread excerpts of the text after some read-alouds in order to revisit specific passages, analyze details, practice oral reading fluency, read closely, and apply the strategies they are learning. These opportunities support further comprehension and vocabulary development, and serve as a reference for class discussions and assignments/activities.
The Small-Group Reading component requires students to read the included texts as well.