Here at P.S. 161, Project Read, a city funded program, has filled a pertinent position.  I service the children in grades one, two, and three who are struggling a little with reading.  With an intensive program, such as mine, we at P.S. 161, believe they will succeed and thrive.

Like the other reading programs in P.S.161, I work with the children using a mixture of phonics and good children's literature.  I work with small groups of six children at a time as opposed to a whole class.  I have set up a very small class space that is print rich and inviting.  It is a second home at P.S.161 that the children get to visit three or four times a week.

While I have read that at some schools people think that pull out programs have a negative label for the children, my children feel like they are part of an elite and special reading club.  After all, even national celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey meet with friends to discuss books!

With the first and second graders I am using a program called Early Success- An Early Intervention Program.  It has a series of 30 small books.  We read one book for approximately three lessons.  Each book is previewed. We do a picture walk, I read the story to them, and we read it together.  Then the children read to each other.  They have learned how to support each other with clues when they are stuck on a word instead of blurting out the words for each other.  Children make words with letter cards and post high frequency words  Difficulties are identified and worked on in mini lessons.  A running record of each child's reading is taken so that I can determine which children are making good progress and using strategies that I have taught.  When we have completed the work with each book, the children write a book report that can be added to the classroom teacber's list of books that each child in their class has read.

The third grade students are working more on  their higher level thinking skills than decoding skills.  Using chapter books, the children and I read, discuss, and analyze the book.  Some of the activities we do are comparing and contrasting different books, or chapters from one book.  We also predict outcomes, graph story patterns, examine character traits or emotions, and plot the sequence of events.  As the children read, my eyes and ears are always open for problems or sticking points to focus in mini lessons.

Every other week a group goes to the school library.  Each child can borrow a book for two weeks.  The librarian or I read a story to the group that has either a similar theme to what we have been working on, contrasts in moral or emotional dilemma , or deals with a seasonal topic. l,also read to the small groups as often as possible.

The small group setting is an advantage to every student.  Each child's voice can be heard and appreciated.  I have the luxury of waiting for children who are usually shy, or who might stutter and need a few extra seconds to get out their thoughts.  The children who are always quick with answers can pause and think more before they answer and they can learn to respect and learn from classmates who otherwise, might not be heard.

The Project Read initiative in New York, is to have all of our children reading on grade level by the end of third grade.  Each district is at liberty to develop their own program within certain guidelines.  Thanks to that policy, I can create my own program suited to the students I service. I do not have the same constrictions that a classroom teacher might have in keeping up with a grade schedule set by someone who does not know my students' needs.

We all look forward to our next book, our next literary adventure and our ultimate success.