Teaching Word Practice and Individual Turns

Here are some teaching suggestions for presenting word practice exercises and individual turns.  

• Use clear signals for group responses: Have students touch the word. Say, “Everybody, what word?” Pause. Signal. 
  
• Monitor students: Walk among the students as they are responding to ensure they are tracking along, moving their mouths and reading the words. 
  
• Focus on lower performers: Stand near the lower performers more frequently to listen and observe. 
  
• Affirm each word: Say yes and repeat the word immediately after the students read the word in unison. Example: If students read the word “speaking”, the teacher would immediately follow by saying, “Yes, speaking”. This lets the students know they were correct and prevents them from misunderstanding the word. The teacher does not need to affirm each word when doing individual turns.