2nd
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Bilingual (English/Spanish) Books that Celebrate Language, Family and Culture
Stella Villalba shares her favorite bilingual (English/Spanish) books for helping young English language learners feel at home in new classrooms early in the year.
Accurate But Not Quite Fluent: Books for Second-Grade Readers in Transition
Many second-grade readers are in transition – they can decode almost any text and are eager to read chapter books. Yet many don't have the stamina for reading even very short chapter books on their own. Katie DiCesare presents a booklist of her top picks of new fiction and nonfiction books that might engage and challenge her second-grade students.
Understanding Students in Intervention Programs
Using data to make wise decisions about students who are struggling is one of the most important tasks in schools. In this series, Clare Landrigan and Tammy Mulligan take you through the process of linking data to instruction plans in intervention programs.
Getting the Most Out of Picture Books
If you are a fan of Mo Willems’ picture books (and who isn’t?), you’ll enjoy Katie DiCesare’s ideas for integrating his popular stories throughout the literacy curriculum. From read-alouds to mentor texts, these books are wonderful tools for engaging students.
Just Because It’s Skinny, Doesn’t Mean It’s Easy: Matching Books to Transitional Readers in Grades 2-4
Franki Sibberson writes about her evolution in choosing books for transitional readers in grades 2-4. Franki includes a handy list of criteria for evaluating whether new short chapter books are appropriate for young readers.
Books We Love: Building a Reading Community
Katie DiCesare talks about how her first graders closed out the year with a sequence of activities analyzing their favorite books individually and as a community.
If You Like Captain Underpants: Related Books for Students (BOOKLIST)
Franki Sibberson has suggestions for sustaining the interest of kids who love silly and gross fun in this booklist.
Books for Phonics Instruction – Accomplishing More Than Just Sounding Out Words
Shari Frost finds herself appalled at some of the "books" children are reading in the name of phonics instruction, so she sets out to create a booklist of high quality children's literature that does more than just help children sound out words.
Overcoming Tears and Fears: Developing Criteria for Flexible Groups
Katie DiCesare comforts a student in tears at the end of the day, and realizes part of the problem may be that she moved the child into a guided writing group too quickly.
New Versions of Old Favorites (BOOKLIST)
Recently there has been less interest in retelling of classic tales by children’s book authors. Franki Sibberson’s booklist highlights some of the best new twists on favorite children’s stories.
Build Fluency with Books That Are Fun for Kids to Read Aloud Over and Over and Over Again
Here’s a booklist of delightful titles that will build fluency skills for students — both as read alouds, and during independent reading.
Wide Open Spaces: Learning from “Not-Just-Right” Books
When is it okay for a child to read a "not-just-right" book, especially one with themes that might be a bit sophisticated or of questionable taste? Andrea Smith confronts this issue as a parent, and thinks through what it might mean for her teaching.
Step by Step: Integrating Nonfiction into Primary Classroom Instruction
Nonfiction texts require different reading skills than fiction, and you can’t introduce nonfiction genres to children too early. Katie DiCesare shares how she moves between whole-class, small-group, and individual instruction to help all her first graders master the text features in nonfiction.
Characters We Love (BOOKLIST)
Nothing hooks kids on books more than a favorite character. Franki Sibberson presents some series books with intriguing characters that will delight your students.
Picture Books About Books: Young Learners and Reading Identity
Katie DiCesare gathers picture books to talk with her first graders about everything from reading identity to the proper care of books in the classroom library.
Assessing Spelling in Writing Workshop Part 2: Noticing Patterns in Individuals, Small Groups and the Whole Group
Katie DiCesare took on the challenge of developing a one-page assessment tool to analyze the spelling needs and abilities of each of her 1st graders. In the second of her three-part series, Katie shows how she translates the findings from individual students into instructional plans.
Assessing Spelling in Writing Workshop Part 3: Embedding Instruction
In the last installment of this three-part series, Katie DiCesare shows how she translates the findings from individual students into instructional plans when she uses a spelling assessment in her 1st grade classroom.
Picking a Partner: Demonstration Lesson and Debrief
In this demonstration lesson from a K-2 classroom, Joan Moser leads students through guided practice in picking a partner.
Conferring with Colin
In this reading conference with Colin, Joan Moser (of “The Sisters”) helps him set a goal of working on accuracy.
Student Reading Interview: Assessing Ana Part 2
This is the second video in a two-part series. Principal Karen Szymusiak interviewed Ana, a second grader, to learn more about her strengths and needs as a reader. In this week’s installment, Karen will share her findings with Ana’s teacher.
Organizing for Independence: From Cubbies to Social Groups
In this brief video, Joan Moser talks about how she organizes student materials in "social groups" to avoid the use of desks or cubbies in her classroom.
Big Books and Charts Organizer
In this two-minute video, Joan Moser shares a simple tool teachers can create for their classrooms to keep Big Books, charts, and laminated large materials organized.
Talking About Synthesis: Metaphors from 2nd Graders
In this remarkable discussion, Lauren Scott's second-grade students chat with their teacher and Principal Karen Szymusiak about metaphors for synthesis.
Managing Book Boxes
In this first video in our “Organizing Book Boxes” series, Joan Moser (of “The Sisters”) explains three strategies she uses to help students pick books for their book boxes.
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.
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.
Tiger Teams: Mixed Age Student Groups
In this video, Karen Szymusiak (the principal at Glacier Ridge Elementary School in Dublin, Ohio) explains how “Tiger Teams” work. Tiger Teams are mixed age groups of K-5 students who meet regularly to talk about their learning and the school community.
Student Reading Interview: Assessing Ana
Principal Karen Szymusiak interviews Ana, a second grader, to learn more about her strengths and needs as a reader.
Desk Area Reorganization
In this brief time-lapse video, The Sisters (Gail Boushey and Joan Moser) help Carrie reorganize her desk and rug area for better access to literacy materials and teaching supplies.
Student Storage Areas: Tips for Reorganizing
“The Sisters” (Gail Boushey and Joan Moser) talk with Kelly about strategies for reorganizing student storage areas, considering access, group supplies, and how the materials are used.
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