Why I’m not setting up literacy centers daily (and what I do instead)

Setting up Literacy Centers

I do not believe it is necessary to do literacy centers every day.  I know that sounds like crazy talk!

But before you totally lose your mind, hear me out.

Setting up literacy centers every day is not all it is cracked up to be.  

Actually, it could be causing you to lose valuable instructional time without you even knowing it.

In this post, I will cover:

• why you should structure your time differently
• how this will benefit your students
• how this will benefit you

Let’s take a look at how to set up your literacy centers and see how doing centers less often could benefit your students.

Planning time for review

When I get organized for my week, I plan to do centers four times during that week. You can read about how I do that for virtual learning in this post.  Typically I structure Friday a bit differently. Friday is the day that I choose to set up differently, but you can choose whatever day works best for you and your students.

On Fridays, I like to schedule time for reviewing for the weekly assessment.  We usually play a game like Kahoot.

Many teachers might say, “I just don’t have time for reviewing on Fridays.”

I would argue that this is time well-spent.  Review games allow me a way to address any last-minute errors or misconceptions before testing.  They solidify the concepts that I taught throughout the week.

Megan Vestal has a great video on how to play in-person and virtual review games. Be sure to check it out!

It also is a way to let loose and have a little fun.  Some students get test anxiety, and I find that being distracted by a fun game beforehand can eliminate some of those jitters.

Isn’t it a time-saver to prevent test anxiety from cropping up, rather than calming a student having a meltdown?  No teacher wants to deal with that on a Friday morning!  Am I right?!?

One-on-one instruction

Another important thing I schedule on Fridays is time for one-on-one instruction.  Each week when I grade assessments, I like to do an item analysis to see what questions were missed the most.  Then, I reteach those skills to the whole group or a small group. 

Many teachers think that small group instruction needs to happen every single day. 

However, sometimes I see a skill that only one student did not grasp.  I need to work one-on-one with that student. It might be that this student is really struggling.  It also could be that just a few minutes of working alone with me can clarify something or help something click very quickly.   If I’m not setting up literacy centers on Friday, I am able to schedule that time.  That opportunity would be lost if I had small groups every single day.

Do you have students that need that individual attention?  I bet if you look carefully at your data, you will realize that you need to schedule some time for this as well.  

I like to schedule individual reteaching times weekly, but you could even schedule it once every two weeks.  It depends on the needs of your students.

You might be thinking about your principal right now.  Maybe at your school, it is required to have daily small groups.  How should you handle that situation?

I find that when I am putting student needs first, my administrators are usually very supportive, ESPECIALLY if you are using data to inform your decision-making.  (This all depends on your relationship with the administration of course.)

Independent work time

Additionally, during the week, my students complete independent work.  They don’t always have time to finish it.  While I am meeting with students for one-on-one instruction, this is a great time for them to complete any unfinished work for the week that might otherwise be left undone.

I have them take out their classwork folders, and they must complete any unfinished work before moving on to any other available choices.

This is also a great time to provide enrichment activities for high-ability or high-achieving students.  If all of their work is complete, they can work on brainteasers, puzzles, or independent study projects.  

I also like to have partner buckets available to use.  If students are all caught up on their work, they can grab a partner and a bucket.  In the partner buckets, I have sight word cards, math flashcards, and mini partner books to read.  This keeps them occupied while I do my one-on-one instruction.

Often playing a review game and doing a few individual sessions, doesn’t take my entire block time.  This allows me time for an extra whole direct instruction lesson.  Sometimes I like to preview vocabulary or a new skill for the upcoming week.

Literacy assessments

Lastly, if I’m setting up literacy centers on Friday, that gives me very little time to administer my reading and spelling/phonics assessments.  I do not like students to be rushed during testing for a few reasons:

1. Having to rush will automatically trigger stress and anxiety in some students.  I am trying to be very mindful of my students’ mental health.

2. I want them to give their very best, which includes written answers with evidence.  This is hard to do normally, much less if they are pressed for time.

3. It gives the early finishers a chance for silent reading.  We never do tech after a test because it makes it wayyy too tempting for them to rush through the assessment.  My students are allowed to relax quietly with a book of their choosing.  

Okay, so maybe now you are realizing that doing literacy centers every single day isn’t as great as you thought it would be.  

To recap:

• Not doing centers every day gives you time to review and reinforce on Fridays
• You have extra time for one-on-one instruction with struggling students
• Students have time to complete unfinished work
• You may be able to add in another whole group lesson
• Students will not be rushed during the literacy assessments

Now that you know what to do instead, you are golden!  Follow the tips above, and you will be set. If you are teaching virtually, you may want to check out this post as well.

Looking for more teaching support?  Click here to grab my totally free guide 7 Mistakes to Avoid When Teaching First Grade.