word work

read to self

Daily 5 is a way to systematically train your students to

engage in an authentic literacy learning experience. It is a
management or framework not a curriculum. You will have
more time and energy to focus on small groups and individual
students because there are no more centers and busywork
and you will be working smarter, not harder. Use your
book as your guide, and dive in! The best part is you can
adjust anything and everything to make it work for your
teaching style and for your students.
listening to reading
work on writing
read to someone
 WHAT YOU NEED &
GATHERING RESOURCES
*You need the book.
Trust the book it will walk you through the entire
launch day by day.

Books and Book Boxes

Good fit books
You will teach your students exactly how to find a good fit book for them
(shoe lesson in the book). Here are some ideas for how you can set up your
book boxes.
zip lock bags (gallon size)
ice cube containers (target, 2.99)
magazine holders (plastic or cardboard)
plastic bins
chair bags
cereal boxes (Just have every kid bring one and have a volunteer inside them out
and tape them up! Kids could decorate them to feel ownership too!)
book containers (from Really Good Stuff)
check the dollar store!
How to organize your classroom books
This is your personal preference and there is no right or wrong way
category
level (letters, numbers, colors...)
combination of both

Where can you get MORE books so kids can fill

those book boxes AND you can still have a huge
variety for kids to select from.
ask for donations from families
print books from the Reading A to Z website (this is great for K and 1st if
you need really easy stuff)
garage sales (if it is marked 50 cents, ask if they will take a quarter (play the
teacher card here!), if it is marked 10 cents, offer 5. People ALWAYS say yes! I
have even gotten free books when they find out it is for kids at a school)
thrift stores (some thrift stores have sales on certain days)
once upon a child (3 for a dollar)
bonus points from Scholastic (They are no good in an account, spend them up
and enjoy the books!)
Hennepin county library book sales (50 cents each, there is a sale almost every
weekend at different libraries in the Twin Cities)
Listen to Reading
CD players
o ask parents to donate Discmans. Most people have
upgraded to iPods and no longer use their discman. Email
your staff for donations too.
o thrift stores they are a couple of dollars at the most.
Books on CD
o Scholastic Book Clubs (about $5 each, but just use your bonus points!)
o Check them out at the library you will have to remember
to return them but then your choices can keep changing
o iTunes has a TON of childrens books that you probably
already have. They range from 99 cents to 2.99.
Listen on the computer if you have one in your room
o Tumble Books (your school should have a user name and
password for this) http://www.tumblebooks.com/
o Speakaboos - http://www.speakaboos.com/
o Storyline http://www.storylineonline.net/
Electronic Library (scholastic sells these ($20) and they have 4
books on them. They are in the shape of things like a school
bus or a snowman)

If you send a note home to ask for Discmans, it could sound

something like this...

Do you have old discman that you dont use anymore? If you have upgraded to an ipod/MP3
player and your old cd player is not in use anymore, we would LOVE to use it in our
classroom! One element of our reading program includes listening to books on CD.
THANKS in advance for your help!
Love, Your Teacher
 Word Work Ideas
The possibilities are truly endless. Think of things that
you used to have kids do during centers if you had
activities.
Letter Cubes
Unifix cubes that I wrote letters on. I keep them in baggies. Kids snap them together to
create words.

Magnadoodles
I found small magnadoodles at walmart a few years ago for a dollar each (they arent the
best but they work) and I just found a REALLY good small one at the thrift store.

Stampers
I just bought a set of letter stamps at Lakeshore. Kids use paper to stamp their letters.

White Boards
Individual white boards and markers with a sock for an eraser.

Clothes Pins
26 clothes pins clipped to the edge of a small basket kids clip the words onto a ruler or
the front edge of the basket.

Wikki Sticks
Kids form wiki sticks into letters to create words.

Beans
I wrote letters on large white beans (lima beans?) Kids can spell out words by finding the
right letters OR they can flip the bean over to the blank side and make letters by lining
the beans up in the shape of the letters.

Scrabble
Kids use scrabble tiles to make their words. Math bonus: they add up the total.

Write on Desks
This is the FAVORITE!!!!! Kids get a expo white board marker, and a baby wipe and write
their words on their desks. Green erases the easiest. Never use red or pink They are
so hard to erase! If you do get a bad marker, the expo spray takes care of it but I do it
when the kids are gone bc it smells.
Letter Tiles
 These are just tiles from an old game of some sort. Kids line them up to make words.

Letter Magnets
Just regular letter magnets on the side of a metal cart. I think I got them in the dollar
section at Target in August or I have also seen them at the dollar store.

Spelling Headlines
Kids hunt thru magazines to find the letters that make their spelling words. They glue
them onto a piece of paper.

Rainbow Words
Kids use crayon to write a spelling word. Then they get another color and trace over it.
Then they get another color and trace over it again.

Balloons
Just a paper with balloons on it. Kids write their words in the balloons.

ABC Order
Kids write their words on a paper numbered 1-10 in alphabetical order.
Word Search
A blank 15*15 grid. Kids write their words anywhere they want. Then they fill in the rest
of the blanks to hide their words. Then they can have a friend solve it later.

Boo Bags
Kids have a brown paper lunch bag with flash cards in it (I limit the number of cards to 20)
(flash cards are from the reading series). On 2, 3, or 4 blank flash cards, write boo!
Without peeking, reach in the bag and grab a flash card. If you can read the word, you get
to keep the card. If you cant read it, put it back. If you draw a boo! you put all of your
cards back. These bags can also be used for alphabetical order draw 5 and put them in
abc order. Put them back and repeat.

Spin a Spelling Word

Laminate spinning board (or put in a sheet
protector). With a dry erase marker,
write 8 of your words on the board. Use
a pencil/paper clip spinner (like in math)
to spin a word. Whatever word your
spinner lands on, write 5 times on a white
board.
 Checking In
When children verbalize their choices, there is a sense of
increased accountability. They take their choice very seriously, get
started right away, and stick with it. (page 73)

This is so true.

This is one thing that you will have to find what works best for you.
But here are some ideas to get your mind rolling.
Check list that kids manage
Chart that teacher records (see page 94 in the D5 book)
Pocket chart for kids to put a label with their choice in the
pocket
 Here are a few more resources you should take
the time to check out.
The sisters website
http://www.the2sisters.com/

The U Drive many teachers in our district have shared D5 stuff that
you can use. Take a minute to check out what is there. Remember,
work smarter, not harder. Someone else did the work and you get to
use it!

Follow this path to get there...

MyComputer/UDrive/Shared/Curriculum/00ElementaryReadingLanguageArts
/CurriculumResources/Daily5

The Peony Room on Pro Teacher Community

http://www.proteacher.net/discussions/forumdisplay.php?f=64
or just google peony room daily 5

Google - Whatever you are stumped on or want ideas for, just google it.
Daily 5 has swept the nation and fantastic teachers have put a lot of
great things out there. Give yourself a little time, google, and be
inspired!
 How many minutes
can we work?
20
19
18
17
16
15
14
13
12
11

10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
 DAILY FIVE
Dear Parents and Guardians,

Welcome to a new school year! We hope you had a wonderful summer and enjoyed spending quality time with
your children. This summer we have been deeply engrossed in discovering what research says most benefits
students as they become readers, writers and lifelong learners. As a result, the structure of our literacy
block may look and sound a little different and we are EXCITED!

It wont be long until you hear your child talking about The Daily Five. The purpose of this letter is to fill
you in on what The Daily Five is all about, so you dont have to nod your head while wondering what in the
world your child is referring to.

The Daily Five is a way of structuring the reading block so every student is independently engaged in
meaningful literacy tasks. These research based tasks are ones that will have the biggest impact on student
reading and writing achievement, as well as help foster children who love to read and write. Students receive
explicit whole group instruction and then are given independent practice time to read and write
independently while we provide focused, intense instruction to individuals and small groups of students.

When it is up and running smoothly, students will be engaged in the Daily Five, which are comprised of:
Read to Self
Work on Writing
Read to Someone
Listen to Reading
Word Work

There are very specific behavior expectations that go with each Daily 5 component. We will spend our first
weeks working intensely on building our reading and writing stamina, learning the behaviors of the Daily 5 and
fostering our classroom community. We will also spend time learning about your childs strengths and
greatest needs as a reader in order to best plan for each students instruction.

One thing youll notice that may be a change for you is a direct decrease in the number of worksheets your
child brings home. While worksheets keep students busy, they dont really result in the high level of learning
we want for your child. Instead, your child will be taught to select Good Fit Books or books they can read,
understand and are interested in, which they will read during Daily 5. They will be spending most of their
time actually reading, which research supports as the number one way to improve reading. We anticipate the
motivation and enjoyment of reading will skyrocket when this gift of choosing their own books is accompanied
by extended practice and specific reading instruction for each individual child.

As you can see, we are excited about giving your child the opportunity to be involved in a structure that will
have a positive effect on their education.

Please think of our classroom as you visit garage sales or clean your own childs bookcase. It is our goal to
make our classroom library as appealing as your favorite bookstore for browsing.
 Looks Like

Feels Like Sounds Like