Reading Groups....a way that works in my room

As I've said before, my class is a behavioral challenge. Fully half of the children have some significant issues that seem to be manifested in a negative way within the classroom atmosphere. So..how can I do small group work with a few students and let the others be?? So far it's been tough. I've given them work to do, and for a few minutes at least, they've been able to do it. But after that it seems to disintegrate rapidly and my small group work is more often interupted by me having to get up and exert some discipline with a child or two or three at a time. So...what to do?

Well, on Thursday, I tried a slightly different tactic and it seemed to work. I basically had an individual plan for each student and was very clear on the work each person was expected to do with the time when I wasn't working with them. It took a long time before I was able to start my small group times. I wanted to make sure each child was focused on a specific task. And then, I was able to work with each group for about 10 minutes each. It wasn't long, and I did have to occasionally remind the others of what they were supposed to do, but for the most part, I felt like it was the most productive time of small guided readed groups.

Oh...and the reading groups themselves were fun. Each group is manifesting more confidence and enjoyment of the time in their groups than they did at the beginning.

So...we'll see whether it works again tomorrow. Here's hoping!