Tried it Tuesday: Winter Olympics Close Reading

It's been too long blogging world! This is what happens when you miss over a week of school with snow days and then have holidays... I think we've went one full week the past two months! So, I'm finally getting my blog back on track and organizing my thoughts!

Today, I decided to come back and link up with Holly at Fourth Grade Flipper for Tried it Tuesday! I know, I've mentioned Close Reading before but I'm really starting to fall in love with the concept of a close read! My students are doing such a great job at looking for textual evidence and really thinking about their reading this year. I'm one proud teacher!

Since, I loved Ashleigh's (from Ashleigh's Educational Journey) Holidays Around the World Close Reading bundle, I thought I'd check out some of her other products. Her Winter Olympics Close Readings do no disappoint.

There are three levels of each passage that rank from about Q/R to W for guided reading levels. The topics range from general Olympics history, to Sochi Russia, to many sporting events at the Olympic Games. Although some of my fifth graders are reading at a high level than W, these passages are still wonderful for practicing different close reading skills. Plus, the content is "not too boring" according to the fifth grader consensus. We've already read about the four different types of Skiing last and we will continue on with Bobsledding this week. Even if it's not a winter Olympic year, these passages do a great job getting students to thoughtful go back and reread.

 

Highlights from the lessons:
- Clear and concise directions for each read
- Students learn how to annotate a text by taking notes in the margin
- Students engage in metacognition and as they record prior and new knowledge
- Students practice answering text dependent questions
- Students  learn technical vocabulary for each sporting event

These lessons are great preparation for another close reading my class will do for a Social Studies text about the civil rights movement this Friday! Click the handout for a close reading excerpt & questions .

 

What new reading strategies have you tried with your students? 
Do you use close reading in your classroom?