Daily 5 - Putting It All Together

I'm back!

We had a great time visiting friends in Springfield, MO. I am such a home-body though! I really missed being at home - I was home Friday, but otherwise I have been gone 8 days.

Lots of laundry  - ugh!

We went to Silver Dollar City one day and I braved some coasters and the barn swing for the kids. The barn swing was definitely NOT my favorite. My husband didn't ride it. Harley chickened out, and I tried really hard to talk Chaz out of it.

Unfortunately, he was all for it...

so...

as I'm suspended 7 stories high, staring straight down at the ground, all I can think is what the lady who strapped me in said,

"It's my first day."

Thanks so much, ma'am. That really made me feel confident that I was not going to plunge to my death. LOL!

Click here if you would like to experience this thrill ride without risking your life. :-)

Okay, on to what you're all here for:

Can you believe this is the last chapter of our book study?

I've had a great time with this and learned a lot from visiting everyone else's posts. Thanks to everyone who helped put this all together and make it great!

Okay, let's get to it! 

Choice and Time

The best I can do with my schedule is probably four 20 minute rotations - and that may be pushing it. There is no way I can do 5 rotations in a day. Boo!!!

:-(

Here's what I plan to do...to max out my D5 time, once the kiddos are trained and I'm ready to go for it, I plan to have one rotation start as soon as they come in the door.

I always greet my students at the door and they come in, put away their things, make their lunch choice, and then start what I have for them on the board. Instead of that normal morning work, I'm going to have them begin D5. I plan for this rotation to be assigned - I know that takes away their choice - but in the mornings I will need them to get busy right away while I do attendance and lunch count. I will rotate it daily and post it on the D5 board so they know what to do.

The rest of the rotations, I will let students choose. I like the idea of limiting the Read to Someone for volume control, so I will probably only allow 2 pairs of students to do it at a time. I also plan to require Read-to-Self and Work on Writing daily as some others have suggested.

Troubleshooting

I was a little disappointed with this section of the book. I don't think it really covered enough! I have seen some more specific troubleshooting on their website - some of it being free (not crazy about the paid subscription thing).

That is okay, though. I know when it comes down to it, troubleshooting is going to vary depending on the student and my management philosophy.

The Wrap-Up

I'm really excited to try the D5 in my class this year. I think my students are really going to benefit from the reading practice as well as the basal stories and lessons being done in small groups. As with anything new, I'm also a bit nervous about how it will work.

If you haven't read my other posts, I had a few challenges to work out.

#1 - Books! I've talked to the school librarian and she is willing to help me figure out how we can get those book boxes filled.

#2 - Book Boxes - I listed a project on Donor's Choose! Eeeck! A little nervous how it will go, but figured it was worth a try to get some nice ones. If it doesn't work out, I'm going with the cardboard magazine files.

#3 - Computers - For Listen to Reading, I needed more than 2 computers. I'm planning to have kiddos listen to the basal story and then do the Treasures activities for the week if they have extra time. I talked to our tech guy and he said I could check out 2-3 laptops each day.

I'm sure I'll think of more as I get going, but at least I know where to find some answers - all of your great  posts about Daily 5.

Stop by and visit our hostesses for the week:

Have a blessed day - it's my birthday! Woohoo! Normally, we celebrate the entire week - or so my hubby says - but since I've been gone I haven't even really had the chance to think about it!

Crystal