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Choice Literacy Articles & Videos
The Choice Literacy library contains over 3,000 articles and 900 videos from 150+ contributors. Classic Classroom and Literacy Leadership subscribers have access to the entire library. Content is updated continuously, with five to six new features published each week.
Latest Content
Limiting and Extending Choice in Student Research Projects
When students are able to pick any research topic, they often will choose something they have already studied extensively. How can teachers allow students to pick topics for research they care passionately about and at the same time ensure there is the potential for rich inquiry? Maria Caplin describes the process she uses in her fifth-grade classroom to help students find and refine research topics for deeper learning.
Chris Lehman on Student Research (PODCAST)
Franki Sibberson chats with Chris Lehman (author of Energize Research Reading and Writing) about how the Common Core is changing the ways teachers approach student research in their classrooms.
The Big Fresh September 14, 2013 The Spotlight
Mentors near and far are the focus of this week's Big Fresh.
Writing Leads Minilesson
A writing lead is a door — readers will either want to walk through it or shut it and move on to something else. That's the analogy Karen Terlecky uses in this video of a fifth-grade writing workshop minilesson.
Keeping Kids Safe on the Internet
Julie Johnson provides helpful tips and a letter for parents to help keep students safe on the Internet.
Finding the “Ex” Factor in Explanatory Writing
Jeff Anderson launches a new series on explanatory writing, a topic of high interest to teachers now because of the Common Core.
Kidwatching and Connections in the Early Days
Cathy Mere finds the early days of school are all about kidwatching and connecting with her first-grade students during reading and writing workshops. She shares some terrific guiding questions that might also help new teachers hone their observation skills.
The Big Fresh September 7, 2013 Perfect Pie Crusts
We consider close reading in this week’s Big Fresh.
Emphasizing Empathy: September Literacy Contracts
Megan Ginther and Holly Mueller are Emphasizing Empathy in their September literacy contracts for middle school students.
How to Eat an Elephant One Bit(e) at a Time: Reading Complex Texts
Maggie Beattie Roberts and Kate Roberts present a step-by-step process for close reading in the middle and high school grades involving multiple passes through the same text.
Lessons from Listening to Toddlers Read (Home Is Where the Books Are Series)
What can you learn from having toddlers "read" to you? Plenty, as Meghan Rose soon discovers.
Chris Lehman and Kate Roberts on Close Reading (PODCAST)
Franki Sibberson chats with Chris Lehman and Kate Roberts about close reading in this 30-minute podcast. Chris and Kate are the authors of Falling in Love with Close Reading: Lessons for Analyzing Texts — and Life from Heinemann.
Owl Research: Whole Class Explanation of Marking Up Text
Students are given a nonfiction text to mark up during a close reading with a partner in this video from Andrea Smith’s fourth-grade classroom.
The Big Fresh August 31, 2013 Chasing Joy
Setting goals for students and adults is the topic of this week's Big Fresh.
Conferring in 4th Grade: The Dilemma of Multiple Novels
Melissa Styger confers with a fourth-grade student who is reading two novels simultaneously, and shares her criteria for determining when it’s appropriate for students to read multiple texts.
Mentor Texts for Writing Endings
One goal of many primary teachers is to help students finish their drafts with an ending other than “The End” (or “they lived happily ever after”). Katie DiCesare shows her first graders many alternative examples, and she begins early in the year.
Literacy Contracts: Introduction
Megan Ginther and Holly Mueller present Reading Contracts, a system for middle and high school teachers that involves students contracting to complete specific texts and tasks each month.
The Cure for Value-Added Grief? Teacher Research
Gretchen Taylor goes through the stages of "value-added grief" when her sixth-grade team receives disappointing test scores from the state. Teacher research helps her find joy again in her classroom, as well as some useful strategies for helping a group of struggling readers.
Using Pinterest for Professional Development
Franki Sibberson finds Pinterest is a useful tool for professional development.
Helping Students Evaluate Online Video for Research
Even if your district is blocking web video now, it's not going anywhere. As time goes on, schools will rely more and more on video available from the Internet for research and learning. Bill Bass has practical advice for helping middle and high school students assess everything from suspect sources to appalling comments on the Wild Wild Web.
The Big Fresh August 24, 2013 Texting About Reading
Using tech resources to build a classroom reading and writing community is the topic of this week’s Big Fresh.
The Big Fresh August 17, 2013 Pausing Time
We consider book and wall displays in this week’s Big Fresh.
Using Technology to Connect Young Readers and Writers
Julie Johnson reflects on how technology is changing her own reading community, and builds on this knowledge to connect readers and writers in her classroom with others through the Internet.
Fourth Grade Writing Workshop Minilesson on Focusing
Franki Sibberson shares some tips and strategies with her fourth graders from the web for focusing and organizing their writing.
The Minimalist: Essential Texts for Kindergarten Teaching
Max Brand develops a "Swiss army knife" booklist of texts that he can't live without when teaching young learners.
Global Read Aloud with Pernille Ripp (PODCAST)
Franki Sibberson chats with Pernille Ripp about the Global Read Aloud initiative.
Laundry Line Luxuries
Suzy Kaback writes about the pleasures of slowing down and being inefficient sometimes in teaching and relationships.
Reimagining Reading Notebooks
When premade reading notebooks no longer fit into her reading budget, Katherine Sokolowski comes up with a unique design starting with generic notebooks, and in the process figures out what’s most important to include.
Building from Strengths: Conferring with Mia
Sean Moore confers with second grader Mia, gently encouraging her to work from her strengths by writing about what she knows well.
The Big Fresh August 10, 2013 Awkward Is Good
Planning and prioritizing assessments early in the year is the topic of this week’s Big Fresh.
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