32. Small Group Instruction: Streamlined with Sara Marye

As you all know, one of my favorite things is supporting teachers and finding ways to help them with their current needs and struggles. With a lot of teachers getting into the full swing of school, routine, and procedures, I’ve gotten a lot of questions regarding small group instruction, how it’s structured, and what they need to do to keep their students engaged. To help answer these questions and so many more, I’ve brought in an expert, Sara Marye. In today’s episode, Sara is sharing all her tips on how to streamline small group instruction. 

Sara Marye has over a decade of experience working as a classroom teacher and school administrator, but is now CEO of The Stellar Teacher Company and a literacy specialist passionate about helping elementary teachers grow their students into lifelong readers. Sara's mission is to make teachers' lives a little easier by providing them with endless encouragement, effective strategies, and engaging no-fluff resources. 

Being a literacy specialist, Sara has a lot of experience with small group instruction and how to be successful when setting up small group time. However, before even thinking about what activities to do with your small group, Sara wants you to think about three things: the time and frequency of your small group and how to keep the rest of your class engaged. Once those are established, then the types of activities your students do within your small group instruction will be more effective. 

However, the bulk of our conversation revolves around how to keep the rest of your students engaged while you’re conducting small groups. Sara points out, there’s more than one way to be an effective reading teacher and how to keep your students engaged in meaningful work. Nevertheless, the idea of students being independent is essential before you even start your small group instruction. 

Throughout the episode, Sara shares invaluable and effective tips that range from how to set up your small groups to keeping your students independently engaged during small group instruction. Whether you implement these strategies right away or farther along in the school year, you are certain to have successful small group instruction! 

Resources Mentioned:

• Small Group Teacher Guide Freebie
• Life Coaching inside Wife Teacher Mommy
• Join the Wife Teacher Mommy Club!
• Wife Teacher Mommy: Mentioned on Podcast Amazon List 

Head to the show notes: https://www.wifeteachermommy.com/podcast/small-group-instruction

Attend the Wife Teacher Mommy Mindset Masterclass

Join Wife Teacher Mommy Club.

Follow her on Instagram @wifeteachermommy.

Join our Facebook group: Wife Teacher Mommies Unite.

Follow on Pinterest for more helpful resources.