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Quick Take: Advice from Katie Doherty on Starting a Middle School Reading Workshop

In this one-minute quick take video, Katie Doherty has advice for middle school teachers who are thinking of launching a reading workshop in their classrooms.

Finding Words: Linking Community and Classrooms

Principal Karen Szymusiak and 3rd Grade Teacher/Literacy Coach Pam Hahlen do a quick word search activity using dictionaries donated to the classroom by a local service club.

Poets on Notebooks Quote Collection

Whether you love to read, write or teach poetry, these quotes will give you something to think about and inspire you.

On Board with Literacy Leadership

Wisconsin literacy coaches Jennifer Jones and Charity Meyer were inspired by Jennifer Allen’s “Literacy Room” to try out “Literacy News” resource boards in their schools. They provide helpful tips for starting these boards in your school, as a way to give continuous and timely support to teachers at any level.

Establishing a Routine for Notetaking

We close out the notetaking series with advice on setting notetaking goals.

Learning Curves and Dips: Planning and Goal-Setting for Writing Workshop

Aimee Buckner describes a simple summer planning and goal-setting process she uses to get ready for launching writer's workshop in the fall.

Rethinking Writing Centers

Shari Frost finds writing centers are beloved by many teachers and students. There’s only one problem – very little writing appears to be going on in the centers.

Bookroom Tours Part III

In this six-minute video, The Sisters (Gail Boushey and Joan Moser) give a tour of a “choice” bookroom. Unlike many bookrooms organized by level and maintained by teachers, this room of chapter books is organized by author.

Weekend Headlines: Introduction

In this first of a three-part video series, Katie Doherty and her sixth grade students begin the Weekend Headlines activity. Each Monday, students listen to Katie share some of the headlines from the local newspaper and then share their "headlines" from the weekend.

Two or Three Things I Know for Sure: A Teacher Workshop Activity

"Two or Three Things I Know for Sure" is a terrific short workshop activity for study groups or faculty meetings, and it also can be used in partnership discussions with mentors, literacy coaches, and colleagues. The activity gets everyone to explore their bedrock beliefs about teaching – as well as what it takes to change them.

What Are Reading Centers?

Kathy Collins gives a detailed definition of how reading centers are connected to the goals of different reading units of study.

Worth a Thousand Words: Teaching with Wordless Picture Books

Shari Frost and her literacy coaching colleagues explore together how wordless picture books can change the landscape of literacy teaching in K-6 classrooms throughout a school.

The Books We Can’t Live Without in Our Teaching: Resource Round-Up

Literacy experts share their well-loved and well-worn children's and professional books.

Old Elm Speaks Conclusion: Connecting Poetry, Observation, and Reading

In this second installment of a three-part video series, Aimee Buckner shows how observation skills, poetry, and reading instruction come together with the mentor text Old Elm Speaks by Kristin O'Connell George. In this final excerpt, students share what they wrote after browsing the book and completing some observations.

Weekend Headlines: Peer Response

In this second part of a three-part video series, Katie Doherty and her sixth grade students continue the Weekend Headlines activity. In this installment, Katie sets up a peer response procedure.

The Conversations Inspired by the Questions We Ask

Principal Karen Szymusiak shares her reflections and questions that cause her teachers to question their current practice and lead them to consider authenticity in the reading workshop.

 

Notetaking Series Part III: “Raw” and “Cooked” Notes

In "Raw and Cooked Notes," the value of uncensored notes is presented, as well as a simple strategy for beginning to code and analyze the observations you are jotting down.

Where Have All the Picture Books Gone?

Franki Sibberson shares ways to foster continued enjoyment of picture books with intermediate readers, and highlights some texts with special appeal for older readers in this article which includes a booklist.

Staying Focused in Literacy Workshops

Clare Landrigan meets with a group of fifth graders to talk about what’s going well in literacy workshops, and to set individual goals.

Solving Problems Quote Collection

If you need reminders that every problem is an opportunity, check out this stellar quote collection.

The Power of Layered Coaching

Jennifer Allen presents her coaching model for varied and rich support of teachers.

Evaluation Quotes

From Winston Churchill to Shelley Harwayne, there's a range of opinions on evaluation and goal setting in this quote collection.

Rethinking Centers

Are centers essential in classrooms? Katie DiCesare rethinks the centers program in her primary classroom.

Chatting About Coaching Collaboration

Gail Boushey and Janet Scott discuss how they collaborate as coaches, sharing strategies and common goals across the classrooms they work in.

Differentiating Book Boxes

In this second video in our "Organizing Book Boxes" series, Joan Moser (of "The Sisters") explains how she differentiates the content of book boxes for students with different skills and needs.

Learning from Graphica: Class Discussion

This is the third installment of a video series on using graphica in a 4th grade classroom. In this episode, Sarah Thibault debriefs with her class after writing workshop. Students are creating their own comic books, after extensive preparation and multiple reading and writing activities.

Teaching Inferring with Picture Books Part II: Partner Shares

Katie Doherty’s 6th grade students discuss the read-aloud through partner shares.

4th Grade Small Group: Writing Paragraphs

In this video, Aimee Buckner uses a mentor text to demonstrate how writers construct lively nonfiction paragraphs.

Book Boxes Nuts and Bolts

In this third video in our "Organizing Book Boxes" series, Joan Moser (of "The Sisters") tackles the issue of what types of books and what levels are appropriate for student book boxes.

1st Grade Room Tour with Kelly Yahr

In this four-minute video, Kelly Yahr introduces viewers to her 1st grade classroom. Kelly emphasizes how much ownership students have of wall displays and the library, especially through their writing and lettering of materials.

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