Just in time for Halloween, Aimee Buckner leads a lesson on brainstorming topics in writer's notebooks using the mentor text Some Things Are Scary. In this second installment of a three-part series, Aimee continues to confer with students and helps everyone refine potential writing topics in their notebooks.
In this sequence of videos, Heather teaches a fourth-grade class, using the analogy of a sponge to explain how summaries work. In this second video, Heather presents the powerful analogy of a sponge for summarizing.
Aimee Buckner leads a lesson on brainstorming topics in writer's notebooks using the mentor text Some Things Are Scary. In this final installment of a three-part series, Aimee continues to confer with students and shares a great tip for nonfiction research.
In this sequence of videos, Heather teaches a 4th grade class, using the analogy of a sponge to explain how summaries work. In this third video, Heather and students cull down a text into the important points needed for a summary.
In this conference with a fourth grader, Aimee Buckner tackles text choice, notes, and main ideas all in less than five minutes. You’ll notice teachers observing in the background; the conference is part of a demonstration lesson sequence.
In this sequence of videos, Heather Rader teaches a 4th grade class, using the analogy of a sponge to explain how summaries work. In this fourth video, Heather and students discuss their summaries in progress
In this conference with a fourth grader, Aimee Buckner guides a child to think more deeply and critically about a book being read to the whole class, Goblins in the Castle.
In this video from Andrea Smith’s 4th grade classroom, students get organized for a small group author study of Andrew Clements.
Franki Sibberson shares some of her favorite read-alouds for the intermediate grades.
Heather Rader considers the cultural divide between teachers and students who are “screenagers” when it comes to texting. If u r getting LOLed out in ur classroom u might want 2 read this.
Robin Heist is an elementary teacher looking for books for her older English language learners who are reading below grade-level expectations.
If you're overwhelmed with the slew of new technology tools coming out all the time (and who isn't?), you might appreciate Scott Sibberson's Top 10 Tech Tools for Teachers. You are probably using some of the tools daily, and may discover a few new ones too.
Wild Facts is a terrific example of how Andrea Smith's intermediate students naturally connect web resources with content learning.
Heather Rader introduces a new spelling series and maps out the topics she’ll be tackling.
It seems like every spelling rule has an exception — so which ones must be taught? Heather Rader shares the three spelling rules worth any teacher’s time.
Andrea Smith evaluates the success of her new student blogging program.
What does true independence look like among young readers and writers? A chance comment from a visitor to Aimee Buckner's classroom gets her pondering the amount of choice children have during units of study.
Wonderopolis hits the sweet spot so many of us are looking for in web resources for students, delivering free, engaging, high-quality nonfiction text and video in small chunks that can easily be integrated into literacy and science workshops. Andrea Smith explains how she uses Wonderopolis daily with her students.
Beth Lawson talks with her 4th graders about the elements of a good mystery, and shares a graphic organizer to help them develop realistic characters and themes.
The good news? There are lots of free and low-cost digital books for young readers on the web. The bad news? The quality of many of them is mediocre at best. Andrea Smith highlights three web-based resources for digital books that are affordable and also high quality.
In this second installment of a two-part series, Aimee Buckner writes about the value of open choice writing units.
Tuesday Trades are a terrific way to increase peer book recommendations. Andrea Smith created this new weekly activity with her intermediate students, building on existing workshop routines.
Cute Alert – what’s more adorable than babies or animals? Perhaps baby animals! Andrea Smith shares an addictive web resource that will instantly hook students of any age. It’s zoo postings of newborn animals from around the world, with many literacy connections.
Andrea Smith writes about how our instincts as parents and teachers merge to make it so hard to say goodbye at the end of the school year.
If you are a yoga devotee, you will enjoy this feature. Ann Williams discovers yoga and literature mix beautifully as she helps her 4th grade students explore character traits.
What does research tell us about tween readers and capturing their interest in books? Teri Lesesne’s tween booklist integrates the research with recent publications sure to interest young readers.
Julie Johnson rekindles her love affair with math when she incorporates journals and sees her students become more adept at organizing and explaining their thinking.
Franki Sibberson works with her 3rd and 4th graders to use comics in the literacy workshop.
Andrea Smith is surprised and delighted at what technology adds to her classroom in the early days of school.
In this quick take video, Franki Sibberson gives advice for dealing with "book hogs" — those students who try to grab any new book when it appears in the classroom library.
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