How to Use This Reading Wonders (2017) 4th Grade Activities Bundle

Back-to-school time can be so overwhelming for teachers and students. There are so many things to prep, plan, and organize, and not enough hours to get them done. If one of those tasks on your list is planning reading instruction with McGraw-Hill Reading Wonders 4th Grade – it may feel overwhelming – but I can help! This year-long reading response activities bundle will save you prep time all year and give your students valuable practice responding to text-dependent questions, completing graphic organizers, and writing about their reading.

How I Use This Reading Wonders 4th Grade Resource – Day One

In this post, I will show you how I use it on DAY ONE of instruction using the Reader-Writer Workshop book.

This lesson plan is just a suggestion, but it has worked so well for me! I use the I DO, WE DO, YOU DO lesson sequence with this resource.

The first day of instruction for a new standard is more of the I DO than any other day of the instruction. I want to model for my students what the standard is asking of the reader, build background for the text we will be reading, and set them up for success!

Day One Instruction – I DO, WE DO, YOU DO

1. Reader-Writer Workshop – I DO

• Break down the reading and vocabulary standard for the week
• Model close reading strategies before, during, and after reading the text
• Think aloud about vocabulary and what the author wants me to understand

2. Reader-Writer Workshop – WE DO

• Complete a graphic organizer with my students: I will use large chart paper to complete the organizer while my students fill in the one provided on the first page of the reading response page for that week and text. This is a group effort. I want my students to begin to take responsibility for the content with my support.

3. Reader-Writer Workshop – YOU DO

Students are given two questions to answer independently after the group lesson. One is for reading comprehension based on the standard we are working on. The second question is based on the vocabulary standard.

I require my students to respond in complete sentences and use text evidence to support their answers.

Day One Formative Assessment

One of my favorite aspects of this reading response bundle for Reading Wonders is the ability to see daily exactly how my 4th-grade readers are doing with the standards and it should take less than 5 minutes to quickly scan student responses and find out the answers to these questions:

Did my students understand the standard?

Did they find the correct answer to the question?

Were they able to cite text evidence to support their answer?

As you can see from the photo, you can quickly read student responses, making them perfect for formative assessments!

What do I do with that data?

Formative assessment data is used to inform your instruction going forward. When I get the answers to these questions, I need to decide what I will change or modify on Day Two. Do my students need more support? Is it a whole class need or just a few students?

Based on these answers, I can modify instruction for Day Two or bring students who need more support to my small group table.

Small Group Instruction

This is an opportunity to either do a mini-lesson on the standard or model finding the correct answers in the text.

Sometimes students need to see you model a skill multiple times in order to truly understand it and many students struggle with whole group instruction but are afraid to ask questions.

A small group is perfect for them!

Why You Will Love This Reading Wonders (2017) 4th Grade Resource

Once your students begin using these reading response worksheets, it will be easy to use them weekly! The structure and layout stay the same throughout the year. This means:

• Giving instructions is quick and easy!
• Students don’t have to spend time searching for important information
• You can quickly find the story titles, questions, and graphic organizers you need

Short on paper or ink? No worries! This entire resource is digital too! Assign it to your students in Google Classroom and you are set!

If you want to check off at least one thing on your long to-do list – grab this bundle! You are going to save hours of planning this school year!

Plus – you will have a daily reading response activity and formative assessment ready to go for the entire year!

This Reading Wonders supplemental resource is also listed by unit:

• Wonders 4th Grade Unit 1
• Wonders 4th Grade Unit 2
• Wonders 4th Grade Unit 3
• Wonders 4th Grade Unit 4
• Wonders 4th Grade Unit 5
• Wonders 4th Grade Unit 6

Still not sure if this resource is for you? Take a closer look at Unit 1 in this post.

>>> Grab this FREE Unit 1 Week 4 pack of Reading Wonders 4th Grade Activities!