This whole-class share session in Lesley Fowler’s fifth-grade classroom is the culmination of a nonfiction writing unit. Over the course of the year, students have moved from complimenting their classmates during these share sessions to writing down specific aspects of the piece they enjoyed or had questions about during the reading.
Those “outdoorsy” boys who love to fish and four-wheel all summer long can be a challenge to hook with books when they return to classrooms in the fall. This Book Matchmaker feature presents a video preview of new titles to entice these intermediate readers, as well as a print supplement of additional suggestions.
Max Brand explains how daily student grouping can be both planned and spontaneous.
In leadership positions, the first conversations with students about who you are and what you believe can set the tone for the year. Franki Sibberson has helpful advice for talking with readers — big and small.
Finding the right series for a transitional reader is a gift. Franki Sibberson shares her favorite finds.
Suzy Kaback has terrific tips for an ever-evolving “All About Us” bulletin board to use from the first day of school to the last.
Mary Lee Hahn provides a quick primer for teachers new to graphic novels, as well as suggestions for using these novels to teach comprehension.
Max Brand considers how rereading helps students understand and enjoy texts.
Teachers continue to puzzle over and sort through the terminology in the Common Core related to opinion and persuasive writing. Amanda Adrian and Heather Rader consider terms and teaching strategies.
Interviews early in the year are a potent tool for building a class community.
Franki Sibberson works to expand her views of spelling and word work, redefining routines in her grades 3 and 4 classroom.
Who is a “drive-thru” reader? One who zips through the start of a book and discards it before finishing, moving ever more quickly through random books. Aimee Buckner has some minilesson suggestions for dealing with those students who can’t or won’t finish any books they start.
Gigi McAllister shares the tradition of Gratitude Week. It gives students an authentic writing experience that has a ripple effect of spreading joy and gratitude throughout the school. It also shows them the significant impact that their words can have on others.
Mallory Messenger guides us in taking what our district-adopted math curriculum resources provide and planning small changes by using problem stems and student problem posing to increase the rigor and make mathematical experiences accessible for all students.
Tara Barnett and Kate Mills share ways to set up middle school readers for a successful independent reading life. Download two reading reflections to help students pause and consider where they are and where they want to go as readers.
Katherine Sokolowski encourages teachers to take time for students to individualize the writing process and enjoy fiction writing by engaging in National Novel Writing Month. Download the story bible as a place for students to plan their stories.
Tara Barnett and Kate Mills continue their series on independent projects with nuts and bolts advice on management.
In this beautiful personal essay, Stella Villalba reminds us that writing is a source of strength, and developing a community of writers is essential in post-pandemic classrooms.
Melissa Styger slows down the launch of the classroom library to ensure it is a valuable resource all year.
Helping students learn to choose books and develop stamina are important to developing independent readers. Ruth Ayres designed a field experience with opportunities to see minilessons, small group instruction, team meetings and a share session that support independence in readers.
Katherine Sokolowski gives space for students to research and share their learning about 9/11 in order to build a community of writers, as well as nourish the research and writing process.
Mandy Robek set out on a quest to discover new nonfiction books with characters who offer inspiration, compassion, and heart. Here are eight new titles you won’t want to miss.
We need more bilingual books! Stella Villalba explains why these books are essential and provides a booklist to help sustain the linguistic lives of multilingual learners.
Melanie Meehan shares activities that help students talk about their characters before writing about them in a realistic fiction unit.
Melissa Quimby is disappointed with the way her students expressed depth of character traits and feelings. By building on their strengths, Melissa creates a tool for students to use and adapt as they learn to be more specific and intentional about describing characters.
Choice Numeracy | Problem posing is a strategy that involves students creating mathematical problems to solve or reworking given problems to change them in some way. Mallory Messenger shows how this strategy allows students to explore and test their current thinking. Download the Problem Posing with Problem Stems Recording Sheet to get started in your classroom.
Fifth-grade writers in Franki Sibberson’s classroom encourage each other and suggest revisions to their opinion-writing drafts in partner teams.
Julie Johnson learns some important lessons about connecting with students remotely, and few of them are about technology.
Katherine Sokolowski helps fifth grader Spencer brainstorm topics for his writing notebook.
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