Formulating my Hypothesis (Hunches) Part 1

As a Kahui Ako, we're constantly making observations and forming "hunches" about what truly helps our students achieve in the classroom. Here are my hunches I've gathered from readings and PD based around reading improvement for students at a Year 7 and 8 level.

My first hunch is this: if I model my thinking process (out loud) when reading aloud, then my students will know how they could be thinking when reading a story. It's about making the invisible work of a proficient reader visible, giving them a roadmap for their own cognitive journey through a text.

Another strong hunch I've developed is that if I provide diverse text sets, then students will be more inclined to engage with the variety of reading opportunities presented. Offering a rich buffet of genres, topics, and formats ensures there's something to pique every student's interest, making reading less of a chore and more of an exploration. This came about from the Reading Intensive Practice PD I'm currently undertaking every 3 weeks.

And finally, my third hunch: if I consistently provide opportunities for students to talk about their reading with their peers, then they'll deepen their comprehension and develop a stronger sense of reading community. When students articulate their interpretations, challenge each other's ideas, and build on one another's understanding, the text truly comes alive, and their confidence as readers soars. We've been building towards this slowly over time as we try and get some 'ground rules for talk' set for our reading discussions.

In our small groups we've been sharing our hunches with each other and also giving feedback or ideas on how we can make this practical and more succinct for our learners. I appreciated my groups practical feedback and ideas as this has helped me formulate a plan of attack going forward.