Not Nearly Enough Minutes in the Day: Maximizing Literacy Instruction Time

Now that desks are in place, bulletin boards are on the walls, and students’ names are on files and folders, we turn our attention to planning. I usually leave that first staff meeting of the year overwhelmed and slightly confused. Is it just me or are we really being asked to teach three days’ worth of content in 320 minutes? I look back over the lists of requirements, schedules, mandated minutes, pull-outs, and push-ins. Sure enough, just as I suspected, there are not nearly enough minutes in the day.

The time I do have I need to use well. Lessons need to be streamlined without being compromised. I begin with my language arts block. On reflection it becomes clear to me that if I can teach reading comprehension well, all other content areas will benefit from this instruction. If I am successful in creating a classroom community where my students feel safe to take academic risks, and if I can help them acquire the skills they need to work collaboratively, then learning will be heightened and conflict will be minimized. Since the goals of the Making Meaning program target both of these areas, planning for this work comes to the forefront.

The lessons (for primary grades) are crafted to be 20–30 minutes in length. To maximize this time, I do the following to prepare:

• I write the majority of each lesson into each trade book, as teaching from a manual is cumbersome for me. By doing this, the teaching of these lessons feels more natural, less awkward than trying to manage a manual and book at the same time.
• In pencil, I write the opening of the lesson on the inside front cover along with which cooperative structure I will have the students use when they share their thinking in pairs or with the whole group.
• I read each trade book carefully. After reading it through once, I then go back and mark each vocabulary word that is going to be used for the lesson. Lightly in pencil I write the definition either under the word, on a small self-stick note, or at the bottom of the page so I can address vocabulary quickly and effectively.
• I mark breaks in the story where we will pause to discuss the facilitation questions that are suggested in the Teacher’s Manual. I write the questions on self-stick notes so that I can remove them to show illustrations but have them handy as I facilitate. I also mark the approximate halfway point in the lesson to help me manage time well.
• Finally, I write the closing of the lesson on the inside back cover.
• Because a trade book is often used more than one day, I use different colors of self-stick notes for different days of instruction.
• As I finish a week’s worth of lessons, I place the trade book back on the shelf. My Making Meaning books are kept in a separate place in the classroom. There are hundreds of other books for the second graders in Room 3 to enjoy. The Making Meaning books are set aside for the work I will continue to do with next year’s beginning readers.

Although this work is time-consuming initially, the hard work pays off. I am able to use these books for years to come.

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 Stacey Abeyta is a primary teacher and has used DSC's programs and pedagogy for seven years. She also works as a staff developer and has taught teachers all over the United States.