Tryin' Lion Reading Strategy

Using Beanie Babies to teach reading strategies will help with decoding and comprehension skills. These are an excellent way to help new or struggling readers in kindergarten and first grade. Tryin’ Lion focuses on trying a word that makes sense, in place of a tricky word. Children will learn to use context clues in order to help them make a smart guess.

This detailed unit includes everything you need to successfully teach students how to use this strategy.

Here is a detailed look at the download:

• Teacher Resources: Materials that will help the teacher implement and carry out this unit. This includes a Tips for Teaching the Strategy sheet and a How to Use Beanie Babies sheet.
• Parent Resources: Materials to help families understand the strategy and support their child at home with it. This includes a Reading Strategies Outline sheet and a Tryin’ Lion outline sheet.
• Buddy Badges: A year-long incentive program that works with ALL Reading Strategy units by Mrs V’s Chickadees. As students are “caught” using a reading strategy independently, they receive a Buddy Badge for their chain. Children can collect Buddy Badges for all strategies all year long. This is a great way to encourage independence with decoding.
• Self-Checking Charts: After reading, children will color in all of the strategies they used on their chart. This is a great tool for reflecting on our reading and for teachers to use as data. Check for patterns and help students challenge themselves.
• Reading Conference Binder Cover: Stay organized by creating a binder for your reading conferences
• Anecdotal Note Taking Sheets: Taking notes during reading conferences is imperative for collecting useful data. Track decoding habits, comprehension habits, the use of reading strategies, and set goals. These notes will also make writing report cards and IEP reports a breeze.
• A Guide for Writing Reports: Use the data from your notes to write clear and knowledgable reports. Great for report cards, conferences, and IEP’s. This guide gives you the exact language to use based on the data you have collected.
• Desk Plates: Adhere the desk plates to your reading table to act as a visual reminder for students.
• Book Marks: Bookmarks come in color or black and white and can be used in class or at home.
• Student Watches: A great reminder for children the day you introduce this new strategy. Students will love wearing their watches all day long.
• Classroom Posters: Classroom posters come in color or black and white and can be hung up in your room.
• Brainstorm the Missing Word Activity: A teacher-led activity where a sentence is read and students must think of a word or words that would make sense in that blank.
• Picture Card Activity: Children receive a storyboard with four sentences. Each sentence is missing one word. They also receive a strip with removable pictures. They must fill in the blanks of each sentence with a picture card.
• Fill in the Blank Activity: Laminated strips with sentences allow students to write the missing word in the blank.