Reading Workshop

Last week, my first graders read for over 15 minutes, so this week it was time to shop for books and read in the reading tent! Thanks to my wonderful friend Jaime from What's the Buzz in First, I was able to put the tent together. I can look at diagrams all day long and just not get it!
Here is a picture of the bags (I found a spot for them. We'll see if it works!). They go get them before their snack so that they are ready to go:

And here is the tent. My tent from last year did not hold up well. I'm hoping this one is better! I like that I can see in so that I can make sure they are reading. It can fit 2, but it's pretty snug.

I made up a song for Reading Workshop because they love to sing, (We are in LOVE with Pete the Cat right now!), and they know when I start singing the song that they need to come to the carpet and sing along. A few of them would sing the song, "Keep Your Head Up" while they were playing, so I decided to make that the tune. During Reading Workshop, we start with our poetry notebook. (We call it the warm-up. I got this idea from another teacher in my district.) I start with nursery rhymes or poems that they know and go from there. Then, they read their just-right books and finally, we "cool down" with a look book, which is usually a magazine.

Have a great weekend!
:) Andrea