I'm a new first grade teacher, and my school uses the OpenCourt Reading Program. I haven't been trained in it yet, but was wondering if there was anything I should know about it before I start setting up my room/planning. Seasoned teachers, please advise! :thanks:
I haven't used it many year but I remember that it has alphabet sound cards that you flip on the wall as you introduce the sound. ( We used hooks to hang them so they would be easy to flip over. I think it also has a shared reading component which I did on the carpet. It has been several year and I know they have made changes and updates, but I think this is still the same.
Hi- I love Open Court. It has been very successful with our first graders. It is very phonics based, and kids get multiple opportunities to practice reading. Here are some tips: Sound/Spelling Cards- have them facing the wall near your white board or other teaching area.( low enough for children to really see) Decodable books- start ripping them out now! You will get a few boxes, and need to go through and rip each one out! It is a pain but if you sit in front of the T.V. and devote a whole day, you will be glad you got it done! Rubber band them and you're ready to go. I would advise that you do not let the kids rip them out. ( there are 118 books for the whole year) The decodable books for first grade get really. Don't give up-they are the best part of the program and your kids will catch on. Word Wall- High frequency words are introduced in blending and decodable books. Plan to have an area that is devoted to the sight/high-frequency words. Concept/Question Board- for each unit, you will develop a concept/question display for the topic of the unit. ( like a K-W-L chart.) This can be on a bullitin board and is kept up for the entire unit. Dictation- Almost every day you will have a dictation (spelling) lesson that is based on a phonetic pattern. I really like using whiteboards for this section ( the kids love them) If you have them write the words on paper, at least you have a record of their progress, but I personally like the whiteboards best. Workbook pages- photocopy them on transparencies. Here are your units: Let's Read Animals Things that Go Our Neighborhood at Work Weather Journeys Keep Trying Games Being Afraid Homes A good website is opencourtresources.com. Let me know if there's antything else you have questions on.
Kat53, you are a life saver! Thank you so much for giving me some background info on Open Court! Now I know what to expect and keep in mind as I set up my room. I really appreciate it!
I use Open Court too, Kat53 really said it all. I use that opencourtresources.com a lot, and they have a forum that I use a lot too.
I've been teaching it for 6 years now. The "green section", the sound spelling cards, phonics skills book, and decodable books are the nuts and bolts of the program. The better the kids know the nuances of the sound spelling cards, the better they will do. When in doubt, follow the script.
