Six Alt er n a t ives t o R ou n d R ob in

R ea d in g in t h e M id d le G r a d es (R R R )
Round Robin Reading (RRR) continues to be a common
practice in middle grades ELA classrooms and has
been proven to be an ineffective way to spend
instructional time.

By NCDPI ELA Section

In RRR, students read orally from a common text, one

student after another, while the rest of the class follows
along in their copies of the text. Below is a list of
proven effective research-supported strategies.
Eve r yyon e
R ea d s Till. ..
(ER T)

In d u ced
Im a ger y

The teacher asks the class a text-dependent question and students read
silently until they find the answer. Once most hands are raised with the
answer on paper, white board, or digital device, students share out. Students
must provide supporting evidence from the text to support their answer.

The teacher models via think aloud how to form mental images with a text
rich with descriptive detail. Students then read the same excerpt silently
forming their own images. Students pair up noting the similarities and
differences in images after reading the text.

Dir ec te d L ist en in g
T h in k in g Act iviy
(DL T A )

The teacher reads aloud and stops at designated points to confirm or

change predictions and makes new questions for the next section of text.
When completed, students summarize the text and create new questions
for the next section of text.

R a p id R et r ieva l
of I nfor m a t ion
(R R I)

Allow time for students to read silently based on a task assigned by the
teacher. Tasks may include explaining how a character develops over the
course of a text, identifies information to prove a point in an
informational text, or to find a phrase that defines a specific word.

C lo s e
R e a d in g

R ec ip r oc a l
T ea ch in g

Choose a selection of a brief, high-quality complex text with limited front

loading. Allow time for individual reading of the text with teacher read
aloud or silent reading first depending on the needs of the students. Then,
allow time for group / paired reading aloud using text-dependent
questions, academic vocabulary, and discussion that focuses on discrete
elements of the text.
Assign students in roles in groups of four - predicting, questioning,
clarifying, and summarizing. Each student is responsible to lead
discussion on the chosen role based on the excerpt of text assigned.

ERT increases student

engagement in the text by
allowing time for students to
read silently for a specific
purpose.

Readers who are able to form images

while reading are proven to increase
comprehension of complex texts rich
with descriptive details.

DLTA is an effective way to prepare

students to read independently while
listening to the teacher read aloud;
modeling what language sounds
like.

(RRI) Skimming to locate

information for research requires
students to distinguish relevant from
irrelevant information.

Close reading provides students with

the opportunity to assimilate new
textual information with their existing
background knowledge and prior
experiences to expand their schema.
Reciprocal Teaching is a way to teach
students how to determine important
ideas from a reading while discussing
vocabulary, developing ideas and
questions, and summarizing
information.

Adapted from:
Alternatives to Round Robin Popcorn Reading in ELA Middle School Classrooms
Edutopia, 2014 by Todd Blake Finley
Good-bye Round Robin, Updated Edition: 25 Effective Oral Reading Strategies, 2008 by
Timothy Rasinski and Michael Opitz