How to Teach Guided Reading

Do you need some guided reading inspiration? Do your guided reading group lessons need a little pizzazz?

I don’t know about you..but my groups needed to have a little “something” to make it through the year. The kids are started to get annoyed with each other. Teachers are feeling the pressure of end of the year testing, report cards, conferences/open house. Mind you- we have yet to begin our spring break yet and it is still about 40 degrees.

Enter idea for guided reading inspiration….mustache style!
I began by reading the adorable book Moosetache and we worked together to make a “mustache” themed bulletin board! However, this was no ordinary bulletin board! We made it an interactive bulletin board that got all staff members involved and was reading related.
I began by taking each reader’s picture and enlarged and photocopied it. I then had each student randomly draw a staff member’s name (my students told me this reminded me of our secret Santa project!) They wrote a reading related question and stuck their ‘stache on their portrait.

We then put our reading fluency skills to the test! Talk about real life application! No robot reading here! The kids worked together to practice reading the invitation in their best, most fan-tasche-tic voice.

Reading partners took turns reading their invitation and the other student provided one “star” and one “wish.”

I “mustache” you a question…can you please speak louder?


After practicing for about twenty minutes during our reading partnership time, the students were ready to go! One at a time, each student had the opportunity to approach a staff member and read the invitation, which invited them to go visit our bulletin board.

I can’t believe how nervous they were! Here is my students asking the next store neighbor third grade teacher, Kelly, “I MUSTACHE you a very important question…”

My student is asking Abby, an awesome second grade teacher that I had the pleasure to mentor last year.

I love when other teachers get as excited as I do about these fun little projects! I had one student act as the “paparazzi” and take a picture of each staff member as their invitation was read to them.

Staff members then started to come up to our bulletin board and respond to the students questions! Here is my principal reaching way up there to respond to his oh so important question.

However, I am still waiting to hear a response from him about my important question…
Completed bulletin board:



Now onto the guided reading part….
I gave my guided reading bulletin board a “MUSTACHE MAKEOVER!”
My students created their ‘stache style portrait and I posted the picture of those students who I am meeting with on our guided reading bulletin board. What kid doesn’t like seeing their face with a fuzzy ‘stache glued on???

Is your district crazy ‘bout common core? I jazzed up my learning targets- ‘stache style!

I then reorganized my book nooks for each guided reading group. All the materials that I need for each group are neatly organized into the different bin.


After reading our selected book for our guided reading group, my students “turned and talked” with their partner.
Each student has their turn to ask a comprehension based question with their partner, which correlated with the common core standard and learning target.
“Excuse me, I ‘mustache’ you  a question. Can you identify two character traits for the main character in this story? Can you use the text to prove your ideas?”

These girls had a “fan-tasche-tic” conversation.

Now onto my little “STACH” (Sorry, I just can’t resist!) of goodies. I don’t know who enjoyed these more- the teacher or the students
Remember those Kohl’s for kids stuffed animals? YEP! I used that little moose and stuck a mustache right on him.

He now serves as a nice, well mannered ready buddy for when my students practice their reading fluency and their partner is absent. (This is also why several of my students have stuffed animals with them in the photos!)
Of course, I have a handy display of ready to go ‘staches for questioning strategies.

When my students do an exceptional job with their reader’s notebook, our reading conference, or sharing their thinking….I praise them for “blowing” me away.

All readers eventually enjoy their lollipop, but I first have them take it home to “brag” to their mom and dad.

I took out my “worth every penny” cans of foam shaving cream and we sprayed a generous amount on everyone’s desk.

This student spelled the word surrendered, which was a vocabulary word from the Moosetache story.

We actually had a “girds vs. boys” spelling contents.


So…we “mustache” you one final question…

Are you a little bit more inspired for guided reading?
If you want the goodies and resources from this blog post, I “mustache” you to click on the picture below, which will take you to my Teachers Pay Teachers store. I “mustache” you a question…do you need some guided reading inspiration?

Have a “Fan TASCHE tic” night!