The Daily 5

I am switching to the Daily 5 this year! I am very excited! With  school only a few days away I am spending some time rereading the Daily 5 book by Gail Boushey and Joan Moser. I have read Part 1 and I thought I would share my thoughts! I am also hoping to make a Daily 5 tab on my classroom website to share with my parents about why I am using this, this year.

Why did I switch?
I love the fact that the Daily 5 is about spending time reading and writing. In order to be a better reader and writer you need to spend time reading and writing. The Daily 5 eliminates the busy work and worksheets and drills down to the importance of reading. I discovered the Daily 5 through pintrest and reading some blogs about it. I really liked these two quotes:

" We teach and practice skills until they become habits and default behaviors" (this is to remind ourselves to slow down and do it right, practice, practice, practice....Also, for parents to understand our pace for the beginning of the year)

"We know each class is different, and we spend at least 20 days building community, defining and practicing behaviors, building stamina, and assessing the needs of this particular group of children" ( I think a great reminder for the beginning of the year)

What is the Daily 5?
For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Daily it is a reading and writing system. Students rotate through 5 components while you work with guided reading groups. Here are the 5 components:

Read to Self
-the best way to become a better reader is to practice each day with books you choose on your just right reading level.

Read to Someone
-reading to someone allows for more time to practice strategies, helping with fluency and expression, checking for understand, hearing your own voice and sharing in a learning community. 

Work on Writing
-just like reading, the best way to become a better writer is to practice every day.

Listen to Reading
-we hear examples of good literature and fluent reading. We learn more words and thus expand our vocabulary to become better readers. 

Word Work
-correct spelling allows for more fluent writing. This speeds up getting our thinking down on paper.

Why is the Daily 5 so great?
-student driven
high student engagement
meaningful reading and writing
authentic reading and writing
majority of the time is spent reading and writing 

I leave you with this last thought on the Daily 5:

PURPOSE + CHOICE = MOTIVATION

This is something that is stuck in the back of my brain. If we want students to actually be working during the time we are doing guided reading they have to want to. If we can explain the urgency and why we need to write and pair that with choice the students will be motivated. I want to know that my students are getting something out of what they are doing. I want class time to be effective. Daily 5 lets them choose what they are going to work on, what books they are going to read, and that makes all the difference! I am way pumped for Daily 5!