Shelby Romines

Dr. Cozens & Dr. Edwards

December 1, 2014
Goodbye Round Robin
In Michael F. Opitz and Timothy V. Rasinskis textbook, Good-bye Round
Robin, they discuss the importance of understanding reading. Reading is a complex
process where readers bring in their own background and prior knowledge to discover the
meaning of the text. Reading is a language, cognitive process, and a social activity.
Readers are able to construct meaning by looking at their words and asking what they
read made any sense. Readers develop a higher level of thinking, can make educated
guesses throughout their book, and are able to check to see if their predictions were
correct or accurate based on the information given. Readers know that reading serves
multiple purposes in our daily lives. Reading is not only in books, but is used to share
information, to learn from another, and to complete specific tasks to enrich our lives. It is
important to realize that reading is not only in books, but affects us everyday so that we
can ensure understanding and take action whenever our readers in the classroom are
struggling.
Round robin reading is calling on students to read orally one after the other. Some
teachers use Round robin reading in the classroom to determine whether a child is using
language cues effectively, some might use it to help develop listening comprehension and
vocabulary. Round robin reading can also provide children with additional reading time
necessary for ongoing reading growth. Round robin reading is also used so that every
student is paying attention and contributing to the lesson.

Oral reading is extremely important for readers at all levels of development.

When done correctly, oral reading can be beneficial to all readers and can provide
positive feedback. Oral reading is used to appeal to readers so that students can hear and
picture how the rhythm of the language of the text flows. Oral reading is also great for
introducing students to a variety of reading materials. Again, with learning rhythm of a
text, oral reading helps with fluency, expression, and correct phrasing which leads to
effective, meaningful reading. Oral reading also assists in developing listening
comprehension and vocabulary. Readers can also identify a familiar word easier and this
will help students with what they see when they are reading along with develop
confidence in reading more difficult texts in the future.
Some of the problems associated with round robin reading are providing students
with an inaccurate view of reading because rarely are we expected to read aloud before a
group before we have so it gives our students unrealistic situations. Round robin reading
can cause inattentive behaviors, leading to discipline problems; even though students are
expected to follow along, students very rarely do participate. Some read ahead, or they
are not paying attention because they are too worried about what they will have to read
out loud, or they are not paying attention at all and are messing with other students
around their desk. For some readers, it can be a source of anxiety and embarrassment.
Some students are so focused they forget the real meaning of reading which is to
comprehend the text.
Oral reading can be used when working with struggling readers by using a ReadAloud and Paired Reading. A Read-Aloud helps students to see and hear proficient
reading. A Read-Aloud offers students the opportunity to see what it is like to look on the

inside of the reading of an expert. Teachers should model the kind of proficient reading
that they would like their students to emulate. With struggling readers, it is important that
when teachers or others read to struggling readers, they practice the reading beforehand
and feel confident. Paired reading provides them with a model of how reading should
sound from their peers. It is a one-to-one tutorial where a struggling reader is paired with
a proficient reader. The two sit side-by-side and read one self-selected text together. I will
definitely be using Read-alouds in my classroom of first graders this spring for student
teaching so my students can get a sense of fluency and be properly modeled before they
read on their own. Paired reading is also great for struggling readers who might be
embarrassed to be reading with the teacher or an older volunteer in the classroom. Pairing
them with their peer can be a great thing because they will listen, feel more comfortable,
and will accept the constructive criticism of their peer. However, as a teacher we have to
make sure that they can handle being partnered with their friends.
Oral reading is important for comprehension because it allows the reader to stop
and think if what they are reading is important, it helps with summarizing, inferring,
predicting, interpreting, self-questioning, and imaging. Two oral reading strategies we
can use to assist in comprehension are Think-alouds and induced imagery. During a
Think-Aloud, the teacher verbalizes her thoughts while reading aloud, which shows
students what experienced readers actually do to ensure comprehension. Helping students
remember, creating mental images enhances readers ability to construct inferences and
make predictions. The teacher will first model how to construct an image, then guides the
students as they construct their own images, and finally provides student with
independent practice.

Preparation and audience are two key words to keep in mind when using oral
reading for sharing and performance. Two strategies that can be used in shared and
performing are Shared Book Experience and Mentor Reading. Shared Reading is
something I can see myself using this next semester in my classroom with my first
graders. The teacher reads a text to students, students read when they can, the teacher
uses a big book for all of the class to see, and shows students left to right progression
throughout the book. This is great modeling for students before they are asked to read on
their own and hopefully they will learn to read with expression and will learn how to read
the words off of the page. Mentor Reading is a great way to enrich students and to push
them to the next level they are capable of reading at without the embarrassment of their
peers listening. Students will have their teacher, adult, parent, or volunteer by their side
while they are reading a challenging text. The mentor provides support, or scaffolding for
the reader and creates a positive and comfortable learning environment.