Community Building
It's one of the big paradoxes of literacy instruction - students best learn how to read and write independently when they have a strong community of support in classrooms. How teachers build those thoughtful, kind, and challenging classroom communities is explained in these resources.
Latest Content
Habits That Maximize Time
Stella Villalba writes about the importance early in the year of building habits with students that maximize time for English language learners.
Capturing the Elementary Years with Photo Essays
Justin Stygles helps his sixth graders prepare to move to middle school with a photo essay assignment in the last weeks of school.
A Case of the Perennial Annuals
Suzy Kaback remembers saying goodbye to her first group of students as a young teacher.
Love the One(s) You’re With
Gretchen Taylor explains why it’s important to get less “judgy” of the colleagues around us.
Student Work Ethic: Overcoming Spring Fever
Katherine Sokolowski finds the work ethic of her fifth-grade students is flagging by spring, so she helps them reflect upon and improve their performance.
Nonfiction Graffiti Walls
Katie Doherty uses nonfiction graffiti walls as a tool for building response skills and community with her sixth-grade students.
Getting Ready for Summer Reading: A Lesson Cycle
Franki Sibberson designs a lesson cycle to prepare students for summer reading.
The Gifts of Literacy
Kelly Petrin reflects on what she values most in the final days with children in her preschool program, and what she shares with parents.
Reading Through Spring
Gigi McAllister has many suggestions for a strong reading finish to the school year.
End-of-Year Literacy Interviews
Ruth Shagoury explains why year-end interviews are so valuable, and includes questions to use in your interviews.
Remembering to Slow Down at the End of the School Year
Maria Caplin shares her strategies for slowing down at the end of the year with her fifth graders and reflecting on the growth and learning that can't easily be measured with tests.
Connecting Class Social Media in Eight Simple Steps
Colby Sharp shares step-by-step guidance for linking class blogs, Twitter and private Facebook pages when sharing with families. Best of all, you can turn over the task to students.
Character Study Share Session in First Grade
First graders in Katie DiCesare’s class discuss character traits in books from independent reading during a whole-class share session.
A Booklist for Earth Day
Earth Day is celebrated on April 22. Sarah Klim presents some favorite titles to share with students and build awareness in this booklist.
Finding Meaning and Joy in Teaching: A Podcast with Meenoo Rami
In a new podcast, Meenoo Rami talks about ways teachers can bring energy and joy back into their teaching.
Bracketology
Mary Lee Hahn uses bracketology to help her fifth-grade students explore determining importance in short texts and close reading.
The Pause That Refreshes: Write When the Conversation Gets Hot
When’s the best time for some spontaneous opinion writing? Suzy Kaback argues it’s when class conversations get hot.
“Article of the Week” Activity in Fourth Grade
Tony Keefer finds that the article-of-the-week activity (adapted from Kelly Gallagher's work) is a good way to integrate short shared texts into his fourth-grade literacy workshop.
Whole Class Research Planning in 4th Grade
Andrea Smith’s fourth graders brainstorm next steps for their research project on owl habitats, which includes writing a research proposal.
Mock Newbery Club
Katherine Sokolowski has suggestions for organizing and hosting a Mock Newbery Club in the weeks before the award is given in late January.
Dandelions, Chinese, and Patience with Our Youngest Learners
Kelly Petrin meditates on the importance of trust and patience when looking for ways to connect with preschoolers.
Finding a Writing Buddy
Beth Lawson helps her fourth graders sort through what makes peer collaboration work during writing buddy time.
Pumpkin Time: Provocations and Stories with Preschoolers
Kelly Petrin reinvents a pumpkin decorating project with her preschoolers to help them build storytelling skills.
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.
Global Read Aloud with Pernille Ripp (PODCAST)
Franki Sibberson chats with Pernille Ripp about the Global Read Aloud initiative.
Transition Tool: “Come On Over”
This video is a quick take from Katie DiCesare’s first-grade classroom, showing how she uses the tune “Come On Over” as a transition tool.
“My Ideal Bookshelf”: Books that Educate Us
Ellie Gilbert shares an activity that is a terrific way to get to know your new students. Although Ellie works with high school students, this activity can be adapted for the younger grades.
Routines to Build Independence Early in the School Year
Katie DiCesare explores how to develop routines early in the year, and includes advice to give to parents to build the home/school connection around expectations for independence.
First Read Alouds (ROUND-UP)
Choice Literacy contributors share their picks for the first read aloud of the year.
New Teachers: The Power of Inexperience
Sometimes a lack of experience is a gift worth embracing. Michelle Kelly considers all the strengths new teachers bring to schools, from their comfort with technology to genuine enthusiasm.
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