Classroom Strategies
Our classroom strategy section is designed to share with teachers what research suggests are the most effective ways to build fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and writing skills.
When using any teaching strategy, teachers should (1) help students to understand why a strategy is useful, and (2) describe explicitly how the strategy should be used. Teacher demonstration, modeling, and follow-up independent practice are critical factors for success. Student discussion following strategy instruction is also helpful.
Each strategy in the library includes:
- Instructions on how to use the strategy
- Downloadable templates
- Examples
- Recommended children's books to use with the strategy
- Differentiation for second language learners, students of varying reading skill, students with learning disabilities, and younger learners
- Supporting research
Which strategy?
The chart below lists all of the strategies currently in our library, with guidance on when to use each strategy. It allows you to see right away if a particular strategy should be used before, during, and/or after reading.
| Strategy | Before reading | During reading | After reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phonological Awareness | |||
| Blending/Segmenting Games | |||
| Elkonin Boxes | |||
| Onset/Rime Games | |||
| Rhyming Games | |||
| Syllable Games | |||
| Phonics | |||
| Alphabet Matching | |||
| Fluency | |||
| Choral Reading | |||
| Reader's Theater | |||
| Shared Reading | |||
| Tape Assisted Reading | |||
| Timed Repeated Readings | |||
| Vocabulary | |||
| List-Group-Label | |||
| Possible Sentences | |||
| Semantic Feature Analysis | |||
| Word Maps | |||
| Word Hunts | |||
| Comprehension | |||
| Anticipation Guide | |||
| Concept Sort | |||
| Concept Maps | |||
| Directed Reading Thinking Activity (DRTA) | |||
| Exit Slips | |||
| First Lines | |||
| Inquiry Chart | |||
| Jigsaw | |||
| Listen-Read-Discuss | |||
| Paired Reading | |||
| Paragraph Shrinking | |||
| Partner Reading | |||
| Question-Answer Relationship | |||
| Question the Author | |||
| Reading Guides | |||
| Reciprocal Teaching | |||
| Semantic Feature Analysis | |||
| Story Maps | |||
| Summarizing | |||
| Think Alouds | |||
| Think-Pair-Share | |||
| Writing | |||
| Framed Paragraphs | |||
| Paragraph Hamburger | |||
| RAFT | |||









