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Eight Phonemic Awareness Activities for Morning Meeting
“Hello, Zo-e,” I said to a kindergarten student as the other four students followed along. They had their hands under their chins, counting how many times their chins dropped. “That’s...
Energizing Early Readers: The Classroom Library as a Co-Teacher (Booklist)
One of the best parts of teaching first grade is being there for The Moment—having a front-row seat as one by one, kids realize that the skills they have developed...
Five Ways to Teach Fluency
“The…” I tap my pen on my lap underneath the table. “...man…” I wiggle my feet in my boots. “...walked…” I doodle in the margin. Christopher’s slow, labored reading fills...
Combat Self-Doubt: Make a Ta-Da List
My first word was hardball, which is shooter slang for a type of ammunition. I was Dad’s best assistant at reloading ammo. I could take apart, clean, and name each...
Rethinking Parent-Teacher Conferences: Centering the Humanity of Students in All Discourses
As an educator who teaches and learns alongside multilingual learners, I have always shared spaces with classroom teachers during parent-teacher conferences. I’d sit alongside the teacher, and together, we would...
Six Tips to Plan a Family Literacy Night
“I would love to plan a family literacy night,” my school’s librarian, Annmarie, exclaimed, after I casually mentioned the idea one afternoon last spring. “I’ve wanted to for years but...
Getting to Know You . . . More: A Midyear Idea for Helping Kids Tune (Back) In to Each Other
Our social life is a living system, and it needs exercise . . . It’s a choice you make to invest in, week by week, year by year—one that has...
Questioning My Belief in the Need for Silence
Here’s a belief I used to practice… “Writers need quiet spaces to write, so we need to be quiet during writing workshop.” Yes, this is a statement that I have...
Slow Down to Meet the Needs of All Learners
I've been reading Street Data by Shane Safir and Jamila Dugan, as well as listening to the accompanying podcast. This book and podcast are about gathering and using the kind...
Coaching to Empower
I always have a soft spot for new teachers. I remember my own first few weeks of teaching and the dizzying reorientation of my brain with new details and nuances...
Writing from the Heart
On Thursday, we said goodbye to our sweet, adventurous golden retriever, Friday. She grew up with my kids, and it was a tough farewell. They say 13 is a good...
Validating Students
“Mrs. Burk, Mrs. Burk, come quick!” I swiftly turn around and look across the room, then walk toward the voice calling me. I expect to see something dramatic happening ....
Centering Students’ Brilliance (Booklist)
On July 5, 2022, Dr. Gholdy Muhammad tweeted this: Schools and texts should help students to know themselves, their beauty, brilliance, and genius. What text is in your curriculum to...
Let Poetry Be the Leader
Communication and motivation are the keys to strong leadership. I learned this quickly as a young teacher. One of my directors would leave little notes periodically in faculty mailboxes. I...
Three Ways to Engage Your Students in Reading and Writing Poetry This Spring
I don’t think it’s an accident that National Poetry Month falls in the spring. After spending so much time inside during the winter, being able to spend more time outdoors...
Poetry Surprises
Fridays in our classroom start with poetry. The first few students in the room grab a tub or make a stack of poetry books from the classroom library and place...
Maintaining an Inquiry Stance: Seeking to Enhance the Practice of Questioning in Leadership
A person who asks questions is more helpful than the person who offers advice. —James Clear "What should I do?" The classroom teacher turned her face toward me with a...
Student-Generated Questions to Promote Problem Solving and Modeling with Mathematics
How many gumballs could fill our classroom? When will you be 1 billion seconds old? How many books will you read in your lifetime? Enrico Fermi was an Italian physicist...
Turn and Talk, Then What?
"Who has an idea they'd like to share?" I ask my students, wanting to hear whether they're on the right track. Crickets. "Anyone? Anyone?" Oh no, I sound like the...
Learning to Listen During Turn-and-Talk
If I were to model a demonstration lesson in your classroom, the first thing I would do is ask your students to tell me their names. As they sat in...
Picture It: Planning Ahead
Christy Rush-Levine is prepared for a day of back-to-back middle school classes. The opening slide is displayed on the large smartboard, and her slide deck is prepped for her lessons,...
