The Daily 5 is a teaching framework that helps students improve their reading and writing skills and learn to work with others. It encourages cooperative learning and fosters literacy independence. In this article, you will find practical ideas for integrating the Daily 5 into your classroom.
The Daily 5 is a collection of reading and writing activities designed to help students learn independently, every day. Activity length can vary depending on the students’ grade level, and it can be progressively adjusted based on their attention span. The Daily 5 framework allows teachers to offer students individual help or work with small groups as needed. It has five components:
Read to Self. The best way for students to improve their reading skills is to read every day. They should read books suited to their reading level and be allowed to choose their reading material.
Read to Someone. Reading to a classmate helps students develop skills such as fluency and expressiveness. This activity allows them to check their understanding and hear their own voice; at the same time, it promotes teamwork.
Listen to Reading. Listening to texts they find interesting helps students enrich their vocabulary and improve their literacy skills.
Work on Writing. By writing a little every day, students become familiar with the writing process and different writing strategies. Writing on a daily basis is the key to becoming a good writer!
Word Work. Knowledge of lexical spelling is helpful for writing and vocabulary. It improves students’ writing skills and makes it easier for them to put their thoughts on paper.
Click on the button below to download our Daily 5 posters.
The Daily 5 encourages differentiated instruction by meeting every student’s specific needs. It is also highly compatible with activities involving learning stations. To better adapt this approach to the pace at which your students learn, you can adjust the number of activities conducted per day as the students build stamina (i.e., the ability to stay focused and motivated for a sustained period). The goal is to create a diversified learning environment where every child can develop independently and at their own speed.
An important part of the Daily 5 is that your students get to choose the order in which to complete the activities. Activity sessions can last up to 30 minutes each. During these periods of independent work, take the opportunity to talk to students one-to-one, do guided reading or writing, assess smaller groups of students, etc.
The main principles of this framework are as follows:
Give students choices. The Daily 5 gives students the opportunity to set their own reading and writing goals, choose their activities, work with their classmates, vary the order of the five components, and more.
Show trust. Trust is essential for the development of self-esteem and autonomy. Showing your students that you trust them will increase their motivation.
Promote teamwork. When students are part of a group, they feel a sense of community. This feeling encourages them to be more involved and to treat one another with kindness and patience.
Foster the desire to learn. Part of your role as a teacher is to explain the purpose of the activities you propose to your students and to motivate them to achieve their goals.
Develop stamina. It is important for students to have the stamina required for the tasks you propose. You can help them build stamina by starting with short tasks, then gradually increasing the length of activities as the class improves.
Once routines have been established, intervene as little as possible. As students develop strategies and build stamina, the need for you to intervene will decrease. Less intervention allows students to gain confidence, become more responsible, figure out their own strategies, be creative, exercise resourcefulness, and so on.
We have put together a range of activity ideas to help you integrate the Daily 5 into your lessons:
Read to Self. The most enjoyable form of reading is reading for pleasure. There are many ways to encourage your students to expand their reading horizons:
Take inspiration from our themed lists of book recommendations.
Introduce your class to the Alloprof reading passport, a booklet students can personalize with drawings and stickers while keeping track of the books they read and what they think of them.
Encourage them to play Book of Spells, which helps students develop a taste for reading as they answer interactive questions.
Have students read sentences or short texts that they draw from a hat, or suggest different picture books.
Etc.
Read to Someone. In this activity, students sit side by side so that the person reading does not have to raise their voice to be heard. Here are a few ideas on how to structure it:
One student reads the story, while their partner asks reading comprehension questions. Feel free to use Alloprof’s reading comprehension posters.
One student reads the story, then their partner summarizes it in their own words.
Ping-Pong reading: The students alternate reading every page or paragraph.
Simultaneous reading: The students read the same section of the book at the same time. It can be helpful to conduct this activity by pairing students who have reading difficulties with students who are slightly more advanced.
Dramatic reading: The partners take turns reading aloud in dramatic voices that are either appropriate for the text or deliberately incongruous.
Etc.
For paired reading activities, you can ask your students to use the “Help or time?” method, which teaches cooperation and respect. Here is how it works: If a student stumbles over an unfamiliar word, their partner silently counts to 3. Then, they ask “Do you want help or time?” If the student wants help, their partner gives them clues. If they want time, their partner waits patiently as they sound out the word.
Listen to Reading. Listening to someone read a book aloud lets students hear what fluent, expressive reading sounds like while strengthening their vocabulary. In other words, it helps them become better readers! Here are a few Listen to Reading activities for you to try:
If you have the necessary materials, have your students read a text while listening to it, following along with their index fingers on the page. Take the time to explain the meaning of unfamiliar words. A great strategy is to keep a list of new words on a wall in the classroom so students can always refer to it.
Listen, draw, write: After they have listened to the text, have students draw the characters or a scene from the story and then summarize the plot in their own words.
As an alternative to audiobooks, you can read to a small group of students to model things like tone, rhythm, and intonation.
Work on Writing. Whether done individually or in pairs, writing activities are always an effective way to help students become better wordsmiths. Remember to give your students a choice about what to write; this important step can significantly boost their motivation. Here are some recommended writing activities:
Write a text about why your friends should see your favourite movie or read your favourite book.
Write a friendly letter to a classmate, family member, or fictional character.
Write anecdotal stories and narrative texts inspired by your life (e.g., a memorable trip, the adoption of a pet) or a writing prompt.
Write a song or poem by playing exquisite corpse.
Create a writing journal.
Make up wacky recipes.
Write stories using images or pictograms.
Etc.
Word Work. Word Work sessions centre on spelling and vocabulary. They allow students to practise and improve their writing skills. Here are our suggestions for this Daily 5 component:
Make a list of unfamiliar words on a sheet of paper or up on the classroom whiteboard.
Spell out words using magnetic letters on a metal surface.
Sculpt letters out of modelling clay or carve words into it using a toothpick.
Play board games (link in French) related to words or letters.
Write letters on building blocks and use them to spell out words.
Practise French vocabulary with our interactive vocabulary exercise.
Write words in a small sandbox or Zen garden.
Take turns drawing words from a hat: one partner says the word, the other partner has to write it.
Create crosswords and word search puzzles.
Etc.