What are the CAFE' Reading Strategies?

Comprehension Strategies

“I understand what I read”

Check for Understanding

Back Up and Reread

Monitor and Fix Up

Retell the Story

Use Prior Knowledge to Connect with Text

Make a Picture or Mental Image

Ask questions throughout the reading process

Predict What will Happen; Use Text to Confirm

Infer and support with evidence

Use text features (titles, headings, captions, graphic features)

Summarize text, include sequence of main events

Use Main Idea and Supporting Details to Determine Importance

Determine and analyze author's purpose and support with text

Recognize literary elements (genre, plot, character, setting, problem/resolution)

Recognize and explain cause and effect relationships

Compare and Contrast Within and Between Text

Accuracy Strategies

“I can read the words”

Cross checking… do the pictures and/or words look right? Does it sound right? Does it make sense?

Use the pictures… do the words and pictures match?

Use the beginning sounds and ending sounds

Blend sounds; stretch and re-read

Flip the sound

Chunk letters and sounds together

Skip the word and come back

Trade a word / Guess a word that makes sense

Fluency Strategies

“I can read smoothly and understand what I read”

Voracious Reading

Read appropriate level texts that are a good fit

Re-read Text

Practice common sight words and high frequency words

Adjust and apply different reading rates to match text

Use punctuation to enhance phrasing and prosody

Expanded Vocabulary Strategies

“I know, find and use interesting words”

Voracious Reading

Tune into interesting words and use new vocabulary in my speaking and writing

Use pictures, illustrations and diagrams

Use word parts to determine meaning of words (prefixes, suffixes, origins, abbreviations)

Use prior knowledge and context to predict and confirm meaning

Ask someone to define the word for you

Use dictionaries, thesauruses, and glossaries as tools

What do we do for Expanding Vocabulary in CAFE?

Expanding Vocabulary with "Wise Owl Words"

Our “Wise Word Owl” wall showcases our big vocabulary words. Each week a new “wise word” shows up in Wally the owl’s mailbox. Our calendar captain checks the mail on Monday and the vocabulary word is shared with the class. We take time to define our word of the week as well as use it in a variety of sentences. The children are challenged each week to use the word as much as they can in their everyday speaking at home and at school. The purpose of our “wise words” is to expand each child’s vocabulary. Expanding children’s vocabulary plays a major role in reading and writing development. One of the goals from our CAFE menu is to expand vocabulary. The strategy to help children accomplish this goal is to tune into interesting words, which is exactly what our “wise word” of the week does.  Our “wise words” up to date are posted below. The book Bringing Words to Life Robust Vocabulary Instruction has lots of ideas on how to introduce and choose appropriate vocabulary words for K, 1st, and 2nd grade.

The children love putting their wise owl words in their word collection jars each week. During Reader’s Workshop, the children can add words they find in books to theirs jars also. Our jars are getting full!

What is CAFE and how do I use it?

Background on CAFE

In my classroom I use a resource called The CAFE Book by Gail Boushey and Joan Mosher. In The CAFE Book, Gail Boushey and Joan Moser present a practical, simple way to integrate assessment into daily reading and classroom discussion. The CAFE system, based on research into the habits of proficient readers, is an acronym for Comprehension, Accuracy, Fluency, and Expanding vocabulary. The system includes goal-setting with students in individual conferences, posting of goals on a whole-class board, developing small-group instruction based on clusters of students with similar goals, and targeting whole-class instruction based on emerging student needs. Reader’s Workshop in my classroom consists of the following components: mini-lesson, independent and partner reading, and share time. Many of my mini-lessons come from The CAFE Book. After I teach one of the reading strategies from The CAFE Book, I post the strategy on our CAFE menu under the correct heading. I refer to the posted strategies often during mini-lessons and strategy groups. Once several strategies are posted on the menu, I begin working with students on individual goal setting. Students’ names get posted on the menu as individual goals are determined. For example, if Megan is having a hard time comprehending what she reads, I will work with her to determine which comprehension strategy on our menu will help her with comprehension. After a reading strategy is chosen, Megan’s name goes on our menu under C for comprehension.

Students Learn How to do Reading Workshop

Teaching Students How to do Reading Workshop by

•      Establishing routines for the different parts of workshop

•      Talking about expectations for working independently

•      Constructing charts together as classroom reference instructions and post them on walls

•      Discussing ideas on what they might do if they get stuck since the teacher will be conferring with other students during work time

•      Model, practice and build stamina 

          

Sharing and Reflection Time

Sharing and Reflection Time is...

•      Students meeting on the carpet to share the experiences they had during work time

•      Students talk about successes or any problems they had during work time

•      An opportunity to determine further Mini-Lesson based on any difficulties that students shared

•      An additional opportunity to teach and learn.  

     

What is Conferring?

Conferring with Students...

•      is the heart of the workshop – where differentiated instruction takes place.

•     takes place one-on-one or in small group instruction

•     occurs every day throughout the reading and writing workshop.

 

What Does the Student Work Time Look Like?

Student work time is a major component of my Reader’s Workshop. It is a time where students are actively engaged in their own learning and the teacher is engaged in differentiating instruction for each student via guided reading groups and assessments.

My “Daily 6” reading activities are designed to improve student reading and writing. These activities are largely based on reading research and practice done by two nationally known reading instruction experts, Gail Boushey and Jane Moser (The Sisters). They use a reading management system called The Daily 5. You can find more information on Daily 5 and the extensive work of “The Sisters” at http://www.thedailycafe.com/. I also add a sixth activity called CAFÉ Strategies. This activity is also based on the work by Boushey and Moser. The combination of these two is what I call My Daily 6. It is organized with both teacher choice and student choice learning activities. Students practice and improve their reading by completing these six daily activities on a daily basis:

1.       Read to Self

2.       Work on Writing

3.       Read to Someone

4.       Listen to Reading

5.       Word Work

6.       CAFÉ Strategies Work

I differentiate instruction (intervention and enrichment) mainly through guided reading groups but I also make use of mini-lessons if the particular reading skill for intervention or enrichment applies to a majority of the class. The guided reading groups are flexible groups based on both assessments and data I collect from conferencing with students.