Fix-Up Monitoring can be tricky for kindergartners and you may be thinking why should I do it at all. BUT, if we introduce the ideas of fix-up monitoring to students early, they will be able to apply the skills independently. Here are 4 ideas for introducing this reading strategy to our earliest students. We chant, “We can FIX UP the MIX UP.”
Oral Fix-ups
Make sure you start the fix-ups at the oral level. AND the easiest way to do that is with familiar texts. Humpty Dumpty sat in a chair…
Jack fell down and spilled the milk…
…like a flashlight in the sky…
…eating her cereal and milk…
Students love these oral fix-ups and they are sure to giggle their way through it. Using know read alouds is also great. If Pete the Cat stepped in a pile of broccoli, he probably wouldn’t have blue shoes.
If we were reading We Went Walking, we probably wouldn’t see a giraffe because the story takes place on a farm. The key to the oral practice is making they they FIX UP the MIX UP. They have to be able to fix the mistake. Nursery Rhymes are also the perfect way to teach summary, too.
Anchor Chart
You know I love a good anchor chart.
Once they understand they are trying to make sure the story makes sense, they will look for clarity when reading.
They can be detectives.
An anchor chart helps them identify how to fix-up. The anchor chart included in my set illustrates an incorrect sentence (the boy would not kick a book on the field) and shows a little girl realizing it doesn’t make sense and knowing she needs to fix it.
The other important part of the anchor chart is matching the letters in book and ball. Although they start the same, they are not the same. Reading all the way through the word gives us a clear picture and confirms comprehension. The anchor chart can be in the room, in an interactive notebook, or on a bookmark.
Whole Group Work
Using stories and cards on an easel or interactive board, students listen to a story for something that
“isn’t quite right.”
If we were in the forest for a trip, we probably wouldn’t have access to a refrigerator in the tent.
If we put on our hat, coat, and scarf to play in the snow, we probably wouldn’t get in the pool.
Yes, there will be the student that has a tent with a refrigerator and has gone swimming in a heated pool in the winter, so we make sure to use words like “probably.” Again, these activities can involve reading, but the expectation is that the teacher is reading the sentences, not the students.
Small Group and Centers
Again, in small group with an adult, students can listen to stories and identify the mix up.
If they are at centers, identifying the picture that doesn’t belong can help with fix-up monitoring.
Once students are reading, they will be taught to use the letters in the word to correct the mistake.
All these activities and more can be found in the Fix-Up Monitoring Set I created for my teachers.
I added Nursery Rhymes cards and poems to this set, so if you already own it…make sure you redownload it from your My Purchases tab.
Don’t forget this set in included in the Comprehension Strategy MEGA Bundle.
