TIP Session: StIR
A Culture of Structured Independent Reading: First 20 Days
Objectives for this Session
- review the focus of Year Two of the Literacy Plan: Active Reading and Connected Writing
- show teachers where to find lessons, materials, and support
- introduce teachers to the lesson plans for the First 20 Days of reading in the secondary grades
- learn procedures and routines to effectively implement STIR (Structured Independent Reading)
- review types and expectations of conferences during STIR
How to Find Lessons, Materials, and Support
- Language Arts Website and Year 2 Overview
- This video will provide a basic description of the district curriculum documents. (Keep in mind that some are in draft form. When they are "final," the word DRAFT will be removed from the header. You can still plan on using them, but don't make a copy or print until the final draft is ready.)
- Getting STIR Started Strong in a Secondary Classroom
- Starting Writing Workshop in a Secondary Classroom
- This website also has lots of materials and support for STIR, Writing, and Centers
What does StIR look like on the lesson plans?
High School Sample Lesson Plan for StIR
Secondary Alignment Resources
Region 13/TEA: Link to PDF of Vertically Aligned TEKS, ELPS, and CCRs.
Middle School Sample Lesson Plan for StIR
myON
myON is an award-winning personalized literacy environment that incorporates:
- A state-of-the art learning platform
- Enhanced digital reading content
- Daily news articles written for students
- The Lexile® Framework for Reading
- Cutting-edge literacy tools
- Embedded metrics to monitor activity and growth
Library Resources
Welcome to AISD's Library Media Services Department.
Austin school libraries contain almost 2 million books! Search for books at your child's' library, or any library in the district using our online catalog.
We also acquire licensing for the use of many databases that provide the faculty and students of AISD access to authoritative and fun articles for every reading level.
Discovery Streaming and Brainpop provide videos that directly support your child's' curriculum and Ebsco provides peer reviewed articles on almost any subject you can imagine! See all of the district's online resources sorted by grade level and subject matter.
MackinViA
MackinVIA is a complete digital content management system providing easy access to eBooks, audiobooks, databases and videos. With just one login, users can view, utilize, and manage all of their digital resources. Further, MackinVIA allows simultaneous, unlimited access to multiple users and is mobile friendly.
Choose your school name.
Username is: Enumber (Ex:E123456)
Password is: Enumber (Ex:E123456)
Book End Your Reading Block!
BEFORE STIR: Start with a Book Talk
- Read the back of the book and/or a short paragraph from within it.
- Talk it up, like a movie trailer!
- Display the book on your board or desk and have students sign up to read it and check it out.
- As students finish reading their own books or realize they are loving what they're reading so far, encourage them to do book talks!
*Have students keep a running record of "What to Read Next" so they have a list of books they are interested in.
Tech tip: You can also have students record themselves doing book talks in BLEND and/or make a book trailer!
DURING STIR: Conferences
During STIR, you should be:
Click here for access to LA Website Conferring Resources (Scroll to the bottom of the page.)
(A) Checking each student’s page number by writing it on the attendance roster. This will help you monitor progress and reading at home. (2-3 minutes)
(B) Reading Conferences, which serve to gauge the overall general comprehension, interest, and opinion about what students are reading. These are great for just figuring out where kids are, including whether their lack of reading is due to interest or motivation rather than comprehension.
(C) Giving focused, individualized mini-lessons while others read - Once you've ruled out motivation and interest, move on to trying to address students who struggle with comprehension. Use the rubric to decide which students need help in a specific reading skill. (Click each link following for a definition of reading with focus, depth, stamina, fluency, and decoding.) Based on these needs, give mini-lessons on focus, depth, stamina, fluency, and decoding either in one-on-one conferences or group workshops of 3-4 students.
Don't worry! As you continue throughout the school year, AISD will provide follow-up PDs that are either face to face or in BLEND to help you feel more comfortable and confident about conferring with striving students.
AFTER STIR: Golden Lines
Let's practice! Write for a few minutes about what you are feeling around the idea of STIR for your classroom and your students. What is exciting, worrying, scary? After you write, you will be asked to share one line that we will "analyze."
The best part of this book end strategy is that you can repeat it for writing:
- Start with reading a short text or excerpt to students from the genre they will be writing in.
- Have students write and confer with them
- End with choosing a golden line from students writing!
AISD ELA
elizabeth.canales@austinisd.org & cecilia.hasdorff@austinisd.org
High School - Erika San Miguel and Kimberly Valenzuela
erika.sanmiguel@austinisd.org & kimberly.valenzuela@austinisd.org
#AISDReads
#AISDproud
Website: https://sites.google.com/a/austinisd.org/aisdlitplan/literacy-plan-overview
Location: 1111 W 6th St, Austin, TX, United States
Twitter: @AISD_LangArts