Classroom Management - Daily 5 - My Version

 

I'm sure many of you have read or have at least heard of the "sisters" books on Daily 5 and CAFE.  I like their ideas and have been using this in my classroom for the last five years.  I have tweaked it to fit my students' and my needs and I really enjoy how it works.  Below is the front of my desk showing my Daily 5 schedule.  I didn't really like the time it took to have students making individual choices - even 2 minutes is too much out of our schedule. Plus, many hem and haw about what they want to do, so I set up a rotation schedule and it changes everyday, so the kids get to do everything within a 2 day period.   My kids already have many other times during the day that they get to make choices, so they still get to practice this skill.

 

Another thing I do not include in my Daily 5 schedule is "Read to Self" and "Read With a Partner" because we do these at a separate time.  In place of those two activities are our Guided Reading Groups.

 

 

 



I have three rotations.  This takes one hour, so I can spend 15-20 minutes with three of my Guided Reading Groups for the day.  The Computer Center actually allows students to work on three of the Daily 5 activities.  Students use the desktops and the tablet to "Listen to Reading," "Work on Writing," and "Work on Word Work."  The students use the SmartBoard to "Listen to Reading," and "Work on Word Work."  The students love it and are always asking when it will be time for Daily 5.  Actually, they seem to like the Guided Reading Group part the best, which isn't really a part of the "sisters" Daily 5. 

At the beginning of the year, we spent time practicing how to read the schedule, what to do for each rotation "center," and how to move around the room quickly and quietly.  The students do a fabulous job and it's one of their favorite times of the day.