Which instructional strategy is best for a first-grade teacher to use with emergent readers?

Which instructional strategy is best for a first-grade teacher to use with emergent readers?

• A. Design a series of lessons with one reading objective and provide modeling, explicit instruction, and guided practice of the objective
• B. Use a single, lengthy lesson without modeling
• C. Have emergent readers only imitate print
• D. Focus on silent independent reading with no guidance

Answer: (A)

Emergent readers learn best through instruction that is clearly targeted, demonstrated, and supported, delivered in a sequence rather than a single, one-off lesson. Designing a set of lessons around one reading objective and building in modeling, explicit instruction, and guided practice gives students a concrete goal, shows them exactly how to approach the task, and provides the teacher’s support as they attempt the strategy. Modeling lets students see how skilled readers use strategies—how to decode unfamiliar words, how to track text with a finger, or how to make predictions—so they can observe the actions they should imitate. Explicit instruction makes the objective and the steps unmistakable: the teacher states what the student will do, demonstrates the steps, and outlines the specific behaviors or actions to focus on. Guided practice then offers practice with feedback, where the teacher gives prompts and supports and gradually releases responsibility as students gain independence. Repeating this cycle across a series of lessons helps emergent readers internalize the strategies and apply them across texts. This approach contrasts with relying on a single lengthy lesson without modeling, which misses opportunities to show strategies in action and to practice with feedback; or with students only imitating print, which doesn’t build the essential skills of decoding and comprehension; or with silent independent reading with no guidance, which leaves beginners without the scaffolding they need to develop strategies successfully.

Emergent readers learn best through instruction that is clearly targeted, demonstrated, and supported, delivered in a sequence rather than a single, one-off lesson. Designing a set of lessons around one reading objective and building in modeling, explicit instruction, and guided practice gives students a concrete goal, shows them exactly how to approach the task, and provides the teacher’s support as they attempt the strategy.

Modeling lets students see how skilled readers use strategies—how to decode unfamiliar words, how to track text with a finger, or how to make predictions—so they can observe the actions they should imitate. Explicit instruction makes the objective and the steps unmistakable: the teacher states what the student will do, demonstrates the steps, and outlines the specific behaviors or actions to focus on. Guided practice then offers practice with feedback, where the teacher gives prompts and supports and gradually releases responsibility as students gain independence. Repeating this cycle across a series of lessons helps emergent readers internalize the strategies and apply them across texts.

This approach contrasts with relying on a single lengthy lesson without modeling, which misses opportunities to show strategies in action and to practice with feedback; or with students only imitating print, which doesn’t build the essential skills of decoding and comprehension; or with silent independent reading with no guidance, which leaves beginners without the scaffolding they need to develop strategies successfully.