RESEARCH-BASEDAPPROACH

RIGBY PM

Implementing Guided Reading Instruction in the Classroom

WHAT IS GUIDED READING?

Guided reading is a research-informed approach to reading instruction. Used by literacy educators in

classrooms, it is a key component of a balanced and comprehensive literacy strategy. Guided reading is

designed to support the reading development of students in all years of elementary school.

GUIDED READING EQUIPS STUDENTS TO:

n Engage meaningfully with complex texts

n Apply a range of reading strategies to read fluently

and comprehend text by enabling them to respond

to literal, inferential, and response-based questions.

n Make personal connections with text

A TYPICAL GUIDED READING SESSION

Teacher Students

RESEARCH-BASED APPROACH | 1

Guided reading is a highly successful and

pedagogically sound teaching approach used to

support or scaffold student reading development

from the time they begin to read until they

become independent and balanced readers.

Typically, guided reading involves a teacher

working with a small group of students—between

four and six—with the same reading needs and

who are able to independently read texts at the

same or similar level.

THE PURPOSE OF GUIDED READING IS TO:

n Support students as they actively reconstruct

meaning by sampling, predicting, checking,

confirming, and self-correcting

n Help students learn and practice explicitly

taught reading and comprehension strategies

n Guide students in using initial sound and

picture clues to help decode content words

n Support students as they experience a wide

range of text types

n Select texts that target specific skills and

reading strategies students need to focus on

n Generate teacher–student conversation

regarding the text through discussion,

questioning, and evaluating the text

The teaching focus of a guided reading session

reflects the students’ learning needs and is

informed by reliable assessment data. It is crucial

to gather assessment data regularly in order

to effectively cater to the ever-changing needs

of students.

The ultimate goal of guided reading is to support

students to “think actively and problem-solve their

way through texts” (Wall, 2014, pp. 136–137),

drawing on a tool-belt of strategies. This will

enable them to become effective and efficient

independent readers when interacting with a

variety of sophisticated books.

Story by Annette SmithIllustrations by Ivan Alfaro

Little Bulldozer Helps Again

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Fiction

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By Jenny GilesPhotographs by Lindsay Edwards

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1752661

Non-fiction

The TeacherThe Teacher

teacher_20384_us_cvr.indd 1-2 11/16/18 1:36 PM

Story by Sally CowanIllustrations by

Christina Miesen

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PM Level 18

17 The Class Slide Show

Asha’s class is having a photo slide show.

Everybody needs to take some photos of their

family and friends. But Asha’s camera is nowhere

to be found. Will she be able to join in the

slide show, too?

the_class_slide_91838_us_cvr.indd 2-3 21/03/16 5:28 PM

2 | RIGBY PM

THE ROLE OF THE TEACHER

The teacher plays a critical role at all stages of a guided reading session. In a guided reading session,

a teacher may:

n Use questioning, prompting or modelling to

demonstrate the reading practices of effective

and efficient readers

n Invite responses and insights about the text

from students

n Facilitate quality discussions that involve

students expressing personal opinions

n Support students in examining challenges

presented in the text and characteristics of

a particular text type

n Invite students to share strategies for

establishing the meaning of unfamiliar

vocabulary

n Build students’ comprehension skills

n Provide considered and constructive feedback

that builds on students’ understandings.

THE BENEFITS OF GUIDED READING FOR

THE STUDENT INCLUDE:

n Building and applying new knowledge and

understanding through a wide range of

effective comprehension strategies

n Feeling motivated to read more widely and

more frequently

n Gaining the right balance of challenge and

support through using appropriately leveled

texts at his or her instructional level.

THE TEACHER INCLUDE:

n Small-group instruction that creates

opportunities to address common needs

of students

n The ability to explicitly target reading

strategies, supporting students to engage

meaningfully with increasingly complex texts

over time

n The ability to regularly monitor and assess

student reading progress

n The ability to acknowledge students’

established reading skills, so time is not

invested in teaching skills readers have

already attained

RESEARCH-BASED APPROACH | 3

A typical guided reading session should incorporate these seven elements:

1. Establish a teaching objective or focus.

The teacher identifies a teaching focus based

on the common needs of individual learners.

A teaching objective may include the

introduction of an unfamiliar text type.

2. Select a suitable guided reading text.

The teacher selects an appropriate text that is

accurately leveled. Early and emergent readers

commonly read a short text, while fluent and

advanced readers read more complex texts.

The Righy® PM series follows this model, and

our books are written to our strict and finely

graded leveling criteria.

3. Introduce the text prior to reading.

It is important to introduce the text to students

and determine whether it is fiction or non-

fiction. It is useful to discuss distinguishing

features of the text type and to explore the

text to identify any key words and to familiarize

students with the topic.

4. Read the text.

Invite students to read the text quietly or in

silence, allowing them to practice strategies

covered.

5. Discuss the text.

Explore specific aspects of the text in detail,

such as plot, character motivations, and the

resolution in a narrative. Teachers may discuss

common or atypical language features and

patterns, or investigate the use of illustrations

to convey meaning.

6. Respond to the text.

This step involves students working

independently on a personal response learning

task with links to the guided reading text.

7. Reflect on student learning.

The final stage of a guided reading session

involves the teacher and students revisiting the

original purpose of the session to share new

learnings and discuss how they can be applied

in future reading.

SEVEN ELEMENTS OF GUIDED READING

Story by Beverley Randell

Illustrations by Isabel Lowe

Father Bear’s SurpriseStory by Beverley Randell

Illustrations by Isabel Lowe

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Fiction

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Ten Little Garden Snails

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Story by Beverley Randell

Illustrations by Rae Dale

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Fiction

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Non-fiction

Walking in the SpringBy Beverley Randell

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4 | RIGBY PM

THE LINK BETWEEN GUIDED READING AND LEVELED TEXTS

Careful selection of texts by teachers for guided reading is vital. The selected book needs to match

students’ reading needs, interests, and abilities, and be appropriate in terms of reading age. Leveled

texts are specifically designed to support reading instruction at all stages of reading development and

become progressively more challenging the higher the level.

The Rigby PM series is meticulously leveled and ensures students are gradually introduced to books of

increasing difficulty. The PM series has taken the complex Balanced Reader Model and broken it down

into 30 incremental levels, spanning all years of elementary school.

THE BALANCED READER MODEL

Fluency & Phrasing

Decoding

ComprehensionLiteral – Inferential – Response

TheBalancedReader

Wide range of text types and genres

RESEARCH-BASED APPROACH | 5

REFERENCES

Wall, H. (2014). When guided reading isn’t working: Strategies for effective instruction. Journal of Language

& Literacy Education, 10(2), 134–141.

This abbreviated white paper is derived from A Guided Reading Research Review, written by Patricia Ciuffetelli

Vocabulary and High-Frequency Words

Sentence Structure

Print Concepts

Word Count

Punctuation

Illustration/Text Match

Print and Layout

Text Type

Recurring Characters

?! Tt

WHAT MAKES RIGBY PM LEVELING SO PRECISE?

Every title is intentionally written to ensure sentence structure, word choice, and illustrations

align with leveling guidelines.

Rigby®, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt®, HMH®, and The Learning Company™ are trademarks or registered trademarks of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. © Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved. 01/20 WF1084480

hmhco.com

RESEARCH-BASEDAPPROACH

RIGBY PM

Implementing Guided Reading Instruction in the Classroom

Learn more at hmhco.com/rigbypm