Teaching approaches: reproducible 6.4
Shared reading observation guide
Date Teacher
Duration of lesson
Before reading
• The pur pose of the lesson is clear in the teacher’s mind.
• The teacher has read the text prior to the lesson and has identified key teaching points.
• The student achievement data (from previous lessons and from assessment) has been used to inform the selection of text, the key teaching points and the learning goals.
Comments
Yes/No
Yes/No
Yes/No
Lesson introduction
• The lear ning goals are shared in writing with the students.
• The teacher has explained the learning goals, discussing them with the students so that the students understand what they mean.
• Success criteria are shared with students. (Teachers may now be involving students in establishing the success criteria.)
• The theme/main idea/purpose/topic of the text is made explicit to the students.
• The teacher deliberately links to the students’ prior knowledge and experience of the theme/key idea/topic/purpose to prepare them for the context of the reading.
Yes/No
Yes/No
Yes/No
Yes/No
Yes/No
Students may have been engaged in an activity to link to prior knowledge prior to the lesson. This may have been a KWL activity, a graphic organiser, a brainstorm, an oral group discussion with key questions or a prediction based on some of the illustrations in the text. Where this has occurred, the teacher will ask students to share their expectations of the text at the introduction of the lesson – gaining information on what the students know on the theme/topic/main idea/purpose of what is to be read and what possible challenge students may have with the text as a result of this.
Comments
Teaching approaches: reproducible 6.4
Lesson body
• The text is divided into sections. Yes/No
• The teacher sets the first section and a purpose for the reading. Yes/No
• The teacher reads the first section aloud. Yes/No
• The students follow with their eyes as the teacher reads aloud. Yes/No
• After the teacher reads aloud, there is questioning and discussion whereby: Teachers ask clear questions and allow time for student responses. (They do not answer their own questions, move on too quickly or ask another question before the first is completed.)
• Students are encouraged to respond to the answers of their peers – often prompted by the teacher. This is important in leading towards a discussion on the text, rather than a question and answer session.
• Key vocabulary is discussed with students.
Yes/No
Yes/No
Yes/No
As necessary, teachers may take a short mini-lesson before moving on to the next section (for example, about a key idea, phrase, unknown word). Teachers may also make use of the think, pair, share strategy to engage students in discussion about the text.
• Sectioning, setting a purpose for the section, and follow-up discussion of the text continues through the reading. Yes/No
• The students are encouraged to ask their own questions of the text. Yes/No
• The learning is revisited as the lesson progresses. (It is referred Yes/No to throughout the lesson, not just at the beginning and end of the lesson.)
Comments
Teaching approaches: reproducible 6.4
Lesson conclusion
• Key ideas from the text and discussion are summarised with/by the students. Yes/No
• The lear ning goals are revisited with the students. Yes/No
• The success criteria are revisited with the students. Yes/No
• Students are involved in self-assessing how well they progressed towards meeting these outcomes and criteria. Yes/No
• A follow-up task is set that relates to either further or repeated reading of the text, or the learning goal and success criteria set for this lesson. Yes/No
Note: It is very important that the follow-up task relates to, and builds on, student learning. The teacher and the students should be able to tell you how this is so.
Comments