I remember the first time I was told I was going to have an LLI group. I was an ELA Specials teacher, part of the rotation with Art, Music, PE, Media, and Science. My literacy coach called me into her office and told me that instead of meeting with pre-k at 8:30am, I would now be taking an LLI group.

I started crying.

Real tears. Not the crocodile kind.

LLI, Leveled Literacy Intervention is a purchased program that “provides daily, intensive, small-group instruction, which supplements classroom literacy teaching.”

I was raised to be a teacher in the late 1980s when Whole Language was all the rage. When authors were my rock stars and picture books and chapter books guided lesson plans.

“In whole language classrooms students’ time is occupied by writing, reading, listening and talking about the world around them and their relationship to it. They are literally placed in the middle of language. These experiences are essential for making meaning out of language and developing within our students the motivation to read and write and learn.”

By doing LLI, I felt like I was betraying all that I had learned about being a great teacher.

I took a deep breath.

I brought an LLI folder home. I read through the lesson plans.

Repeat after me. Lesson plans are guides not scripts. Lesson plans are guides not scripts. Lesson plans are guides not scripts.

I came to see that these leveled readers were no different than the leveled readers I would check out from the book bins in the back of the media center. And…It was nice that these folders came with take home books. And….

Ready for my morning. Group One and Group Three use the same folder.

The following year and many years after that, I was not asked to take an LLI Group so when I was offered this new position at the end of the last school year, I reassured my administrators that I understood that I would most likely need to take LLI Groups and I was good with that.

Repeat after me. A program is just a resource. A program is just a resource. A program is just a resource.

This year, I have five LLI Groups and I absolutely love them.

When they walk in, they book shop and sit down at a round table and read until everyone arrives.

Once everyone arrives, we gather in front of our Accountability Board to see what I am going to read aloud today and what I will read aloud tomorrow. This photo was submitted to Donor’s Choose to thank the wonderful people who funded this project.

Because my time is limited, we quickly race over to the carpet and scoot in really close together — I read aloud. No time for me to ask questions, and actually, they seem really okay with that.

“Constant interruptions for instruction are not only unnecessary for students’ literacy development, they may be detrimental by disrupting students’ enjoyment of the stories.”

Then, it is off to the Guided Reading Table. Picture walks, soft reads (I was taught to call them whisper reads but then I couldn’t hear them read so we now call them soft reads). I walk behind them and listen. I support them as they become more accurate readers.

Sentence strips, scissors, permanent markers, and these really great square snack bags. They love taking these home to play with — with family members, real and make-believe.

“The ability to recognize and produce rhyming words is an important phonological awareness skill. Research indicates there is a correlation between phonological awareness and reading ability.”

LLI doesn’t stop me from listening to my students. This group was having trouble with the word warm. So with scissors, and notebook paper (love that notebook paper), they each made their own retellings of that day’s book. They were so excited to bring their retellings home.

They went through the book and listed the things that the rain fell on.

Every other day, I listen to a student read, marking their accuracy and assessing their comprehension. The other students get to read that day’s book or choose a picture book. Our school has a token economy. So…I am not a fan of rewarding kids for learning…And, one year, I refused to use them. I constantly struggle with this but for now, I just started giving one to a student after they read with me. Everyone gets one, and I look at it as a thank you note.

Every day, before they leave, I remind them that they can write to me about anything and place it in my mailbox and I will write them back. If they write a story, I will type it up and give it back to them “published.” My father-in-law made this for me.

I have struggled over the years working for the public school system when I don’t always believe in how things are done. I have thought of leaving over the years but never really knew where I was going. I love what I do and I love the children I work with. So I stand tall and I do what I know is right and I change my mindset.

Oh. And one more thing. I just started counseling. And yes. That is helping a lot.

Smile.