The purposes of Listening to Readers are to:
Support each student’s reading fluency with oral reading practice to help them meet the Second Grade CA STANDARD: Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
Build on the Readers Are Leaders program, in which volunteers read aloud various genres, modeling reading with expression and instilling in students a love of reading.
An ALSJ volunteer spends one hour each week in first and second-grade classrooms, listening to the same six students read aloud in three groups of two for approximately 20 minutes per group.
Each listening session begins with the two students reading aloud to the volunteer books provided by the classroom teacher. Students take turns reading, with the volunteer providing scaffolding when needed.
The volunteer then introduces a take-home booklet provided by ALSJ, reviewing key vocabulary, high frequency words and phonics sounds. Turn-taking and scaffolding continue as students read the story aloud. Students then read the book aloud a second time, which increases fluency.
If time allows, the volunteer practices High Frequency Word flashcards with the students.
The volunteer ends the session by reminding students of the importance of practicing reading aloud and encouraging them to read their take-home booklet daily to family members, friends, pets, stuffed animals, etc.
