Mar 21 / Sarah Hassebroek

Why your Small Reading Groups aren't Working (And What to do instead!)

Effective small groups begin with data.

Planning Small Groups with Confidence

You have planned your small groups.
You pulled the students, and organized your materials.
You feel like you are doing everything right.

And yet...somehow it feels like something isn't working. 
Students aren't progressing in the way you expect. 
The group work feels scattered and sporadic. 
You leave each lesson wondering, "Did that work?"

If that resonates with you, you aren't alone!
And more importantly, it's not your fault. Likely, you weren't trained or given the resources to approach this work from a different lens. Read on for more tips to streamline and strengthen your small group time. 

Mindset Shift

Intentional small groups change everything. When instruction is explicit, purposeful, and aligned to what students actually need, small groups don't just support learning - they accelerate it. They transform it. they change the trajectory."

Dr. Louisa Moats
Science of Reading Expert

The Real Problem

Many groups are based on Reading Levels.
Groups are created as * Low * Medium * High *
We might use the standardized data to group children by scores. 

And on the surface, that makes sense. But here is the issue: 
Reading Development doesn't happen in clean levels.

Why this Doesn't Work

Two students in the same group may have vastly different needs. One student in the 'low' group might be struggling to hear and segment sounds. 
Another student might understand sounds, but struggle to connect those sounds to their letters. 
A third child might be able to decode appropriately, but hasn't reached automatic word recognition. 

These are different problems that result in similar outcome scores. We can't resolve this issues with the same instruction.


When we group by level alone, instruction becomes too broad and not effective for anyone.

The Shift (What to do instead)

Instead of Grouping by level, group by specific skill
  • Small Group: Phoneme Segmentation (3-5 min)
  • Small Group: Letter-Sound Correspondence (5 min)
  • Small Group: Orthographic Mapping/Word Recognition

Successful Small Groups

Instead of meeting for 15-20 minutes, you now have 3 groups that will receive focused and consistent access the the skills they need the most support practicing with an expert teacher's feedback. And instructional time is still 15 minutes or less!
  • Targeted Instruction
  • Efficient use of Teacher and student time
  • Focused Planning
  • Focused Assessment to Progress Monitor
  • Become a Super Learner
  • Effective Instruction!

    When instruction is aligned to the specific skills identified in your Diagnostic Assessments, students receive repeated, meaningful practice, progress becomes visible, more quickly, and teaching decisions are laser-focused.
    You are no longer guessing! You are responding to the child and assessment outcomes. 

    If your small groups having been working the way you hoped, it may be time to try a shift in teaching. 

    You have the structure. You have the time. Now focusing your instruction will help you and your learners feel more successful!

    Remember: Small groups aren't about finding groups of 3-7 students. Small group time is about targeting instruction. 
    Shift from 'levels' to 'skills' to teach with intention. 

    If you are rethinking your literacy instruction and want clearer, more effective systems, Lumina Literacy is here to support that shift!
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