Literacy Centers-Level All
Materials required-Varied
Center Time-20 minutes

I initiated and implemented literacy centers to keep my class on task while I am busy teaching my small guided reading groups. I want my students to be engaged in real learning activities at their desks. The focus of my centers is on literacy skills, something that all of my students can benefit from. All of the skills at the centers are modeled and practiced by the whole class before they become a center activity. These tasks are appropriate for high, medium, and low students.

Over the past year, more centers have been added to the classroom. The final number of centers that may be operating at one time in the classroom is eight. However, there are twelve centers that the students may choose from. Students may be at the centers during various times in the morning, with no centers operating in the afternoon. Students may attend literacy centers during Reading/Language Arts time when they are not engaged in small reading groups or writing activities with me.

After each center activity is modeled and practiced by the whole class they are added to the center rotation. Students are rotated with their reading group to center time and a schedule of each groups time is posted in the room. According to their time schedule, students move to a center that they have not yet attended. Students keep track of their center rotation by using a puzzle rubric. They color and fill in their rubric after they have completed each center activity. Students, not me, keep track of what center activity they need to attend. Most centers are portable and students are responsible for the set-up as well as the clean-up when they are finished. Management has not been a problem. The main rule at center is to quietly complete your center activity or you will be dismissed from that activity.

I have found that literacy centers are an excellent way to reinforce literacy skills that are taught to the whole group in the classroom. Students love to go to centers and I have not found any centers that the students do not enjoy.

Download the Center Rubric (pdf file)

Description of Centers

1. Computers- Computers was the easiest center to set up. Almost all students are familiar with the computer and how it works. I use phonics, reading, and math games at this center.

2. Read the Room- Read the Room was another early center. Since the beginning of September words have been added to the Word Wall. Rhymes and chart stories are also on the walls of the classroom. Students use a pointer to read anything that is on the walls of the room.

3. Pick a Poem- Pick a Poem was a center that was added in late fall. I display easy poems on our calendar bulletin board. These poems are read by the class each day at calendar time. After we have practiced each poem for a week, the poem is then added to the Pick a Poem center. At the center, the poems are written on sentence strips and put in envelopes with a copy of the whole poem attached to the front of the envelope. Students put the sentence strips back together in order on a pocket chart. Finally, they find a buddy and point and read the poem to the buddy.

4. Pool Reading- Pool reading is a small plastic pool that the children read a book in. Students choose a book from the book baskets that surround the pool. The pool contains a beach ball with different comprehension captions written on it. After students have read their book they toss the beach ball and read the caption that they catch. If they read “in the beginning” then the students take a piece of paper and write and illustrate what happened in the beginning of their book.

5. Math Stories- At this center students read the story question that is modeled on the math center folder. Then they write, solve, and illustrate their own story question.

6. Rhyme Match- This center is a version of the memory match game. Students get to pick a buddy from their group to play this memory match game with. They place the rhyming cards face down and turn over cards trying to make a match to their card.

7. Book on Tape- Each week a new book on tape is reviewed by the class and used as a center selection.

8. ABC Game- This center is a variety of games that give students practice with letters and sounds skills or word skills.

9. Doll House- Doll house is a classroom favorite. Students use this center to refine those work-together and talk-together skills as they place the different doll house furniture in many different rooms.

10. Magnet Stories- Magnet stories is a new center. In this center, students use short words and phrases to create and read stories.

11. Animal Chart- In Animal Chart, students pick an animal, write a short description, and draw a picture of that animal on a large chart tablet.

12. Scrabble- Scrabble is also a new center. Students use the game board and letters to create words from the Word Wall or from memory.

Literacy centers are low maintenance and take little time to set up. Thus, they are very successful in my classroom. I do not have an aide that assist the students with their center time. Centers are totally student operated. Students pick up and set up for the next group.

Literacy centers provide students a way to practice their literacy skills while allowing me uninterrupted time with my small reading groups.