SPED 2 Portfolio: Book Recommendation for Reading Strategies

Image retrieved from Heinemann Publishing

Last year, I participated in a collaborative inquiry on guided reading using the Fountas and Pinnell guided reading kits and was given $200 to purchase professional development books on reading. One of the recommended books was "The Reading Strategies Book" by Jennifer Serravallo. This book has been one of my most utilized resources for teaching strategies for reading and is one of my prized possessions. 

"The Reading Strategies Book: Your Everything Guide to Developing Skilled Readers" boosts 300 reading strategies! This is a book that is great for teachers using a balanced literacy program in their classroom but also has a wealth of strategies and ideas for those phonics-focused or whole language-focused teachers. It is separated into 13 practical chapters alternatively titled "goals" that provide numerous strategies for each "goal" along with lesson language, prompts, tips, and anchor chart or graphic ideas! The goals are as follows:

• Goal 1: Supporting Pre-Emergent and Emergent Readers
• Goal 2: Teaching Reading Engagement: Focus, Stamina, and Building a Reading Life
• Goal 3: Supporting Print Work: Increasing Accuracy and Integrating Sources of Information
• Goal 4: Teaching Fluency: Reading with Phrasing, Intonation, and Automaticity
• Goal 5: Supporting Comprehension in Fiction: Understanding Plot and Setting
• Goal 6: Supporting Comprehension in Fiction: Thinking About Characters
• Goal 7: Supporting Comprehension in Fiction: Understanding Themes and Ideas
• Goal 8: Supporting Comprehension in Non-fiction: Determining Main Topic(s) and Idea(s)
• Goal 9: Supporting Comprehension in Nonfiction: Determining Key Details
• Goal 10: Supporting Comprehension in Nonfiction: Getting the Most from Text Features
• Goal 11: Improving Comprehension in Fiction and Nonfiction: Understanding Vocabulary and Figurative Language
• Goal 12: Supporting Students' Conversations: Speaking, Listening, and Deepening Comprehension
• Goal 13: Improving Writing About Reading

At the beginning of each "goal", the strategies are listed along with reading levels that they are appropriate for as well as the genre/text type and the skill that the reading strategy is working towards. The layout of this book is perfect when teachers are trying to teach a specific skill but can't think of an effective strategy to teach it. 

This book is also a great planning resource for small guided reading groups. A teacher can locate a skill that aligns with the chosen guided reader and use the book to teach the strategy to students during the guided reading session. 

"The Reading Strategies Book" by Jennifer Serravallo is a perfect resource for new teachers or longtime teachers looking for new strategies to engage their students. I highly recommend this book! It can be purchased directly from the Heinemann Publishing for $36.50 for teachers or on Amazon.ca for $58.24.