Daily 5 Book Study- Chapter 1

My first year in my own classroom, I spent so much time looking for free center activities and then printing, laminating, and cutting.

In the first chapter of the Daily 5 book, the “two sisters” talk about all the “things” done during literacy time. They say,

“We had spent the majority of our time preparing for
and reviewing the children’s busywork.”

And, um… guilty.

When I read the Daily 5 book for the first time, I remember feeling a little underwhelmed because it was all so simple. It’s just a framework- a way to set up your literacy block- and it involves so many less reading “things,” and so much more actual READING.

(Did I also mention that this means you don’t have to spend every waking moment cutting out laminated centers?)

I picked up a copy of the 2nd edition of Daily 5 to join in a book study with Brenda from Primary Inspired and some of my friends. We’d love to have you join us, even if you’ve read the first edition of the book!

The second edition of the book goes into so much more detail about each individual lesson you teach to set up your students for success, and it talks about how to do a similar framework in math. The back of the book has about 30 pages of helpful templates and lesson plans, too!

Compared to the first edition, this one gives you a little less of the “why,”
and a little more of the “how.”

The first chapter does delve into background of the Daily 5, though… and I love the way the authors, Gail Boushey and Joan Moser, use research to justify so much of what they do!

Probably my favorite thing about Daily 5 and the two sisters is that it is FLEXIBLE. I’ve never been one to read someone else’s theory and copy it exactly in my classroom- because every class is different, and every teacher is different… and because these two authors are actual teachers, they get that.

“The Daily 5 is not a prescriptive program to be followed blindly, the same way each day, month, and year. Instead, we as educators need to respond and react to the diverse needs of our own students.”

Wait—is that ACTUAL RESPECT FOR EDUCATORS AS PROFESSIONALS? Is that TRUSTING us to make decisions that benefit our kids? Awwww yeah!

As I read the Daily 5 this time, I’m sort of looking at it through a different lens. I’m not a self-contained teacher anymore, and I primarily teach science now.

We do teach a reading RTI block, though! This year, my group was around 20-25 students, so I’m hoping that next year I can use an adaptation of Daily 5 to give my kids a lot of reading time and small group instruction… so this whole flexible, go-with-your-kids’-needs philosophy is perfect!

If you’ve never used the Daily 5 framework before, it’s made up of two main parts:

• Mini-Lessons
  • less than 10 minutes (based on brain research)
  • based on strategies from CAFÉ (the 2 Sisters’ companion book)
• “Rounds”
  • teacher meets with small groups or confers with individuals
  • students choose between five options:
    • Read to Self
    • Read to Someone
    • Listen to Reading
    • Word Work
    • Work on Writing

In my classroom, it worked so well- because my kids were engaged in real, meaningful reading tasks… and probably most importantly, they were systematically taught how to do these tasks independently.

And because they were independently engaged in activities they chose, my kids didn’t interrupt my reading groups or conferences.

The first time my principal observed during Daily 5, she was blown away. She said she kept trying to find kids off-task… and couldn’t.

That’s the power in the Daily 5. It’s huge. And best of all, it’s flexible to you, your students, and the things your admins require of you (usually!).

We are so excited to read this book together and share our thoughts! If you’d like to get a copy of the book, you can get one here.  {affiliate link}

We would love to hear your comments and questions along the way! You can also go to Primary Inspired to read more about chapter one from the other teachers in the book study.

Do you use the Daily 5 in your classroom? If you do, what do YOU love about it?  :  )