What is an interactive read aloud?
Interactive read alouds are fundamental to the modelling and sharing stages to the Workshop Model. A read aloud is an instructional practice where we read texts aloud to the whole class and selectively pause for conversation. Students think and talk as they respond to the text actively, and interact with language, ideas and meaning. While reading we try to incorporate variations in pitch, tone, pace, volume and pauses and stop do discuss our thinking processes to model what readers do as they engage with text. Why an interactive read aloud? Interactive read alouds offer opportunities for students to play with language, make sense of ideas, and generate background knowledge and understandings. They can make connections to real life situations and different culture and support learning about text conventions. As our students interact with the read aloud structure, they develop their communication, critical thinking and personal and social responsibility. |
Big Books are great for Interactive Read Alouds. Look into the DRC for these resources |
Use levelled books for Interactive read alouds. Check out the DRC for more information.
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How do I start?
The goal of the learning experience is to model the reading process. The read alouds guide our learners in what active thinking and conversing looks and sounds like. As our students engage, they are talking and listening to the teacher and each other as they construct meaning, develop their own reading processes and make strides toward independent reading proficiency. The first recommendation is to find a text you like that you think may be interesting for your learners. Try to choose something that is more challenging than what the students can independently read and perhaps think about how you can augment what curricular competencies and content you are exploring in your classroom already. As the process develops, try to find different modes of text, including digital, so the students are able to practice and hone their reading skills in different contexts. |
Useful Videos
Please watch the videos below. They will provide some examples on how you could approach an interactive read aloud in your classroom.
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Learning together on the ancestral, unceded territory of the syilx Nation.
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