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Better Mondays Through Quick-Writes
It was one of those Mondays. My students came to me with that glazed-over, deer-in-the-headlights look, and it didn’t seem like they were going to engage with me. I asked...
Opening the Year with Optimism
It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see. Henry David Thoreau In early August I invited my students from last year to meet up with...
Pulling Weeds
When weeding, the best way to make sure you are removing a weed and not a valuable plant is to pull on it. If it comes out of the ground...
Critical Thinking and Captain Underpants
Unfortunately, middle school students who are considered struggling readers are often treated as if they are also struggling thinkers. However, in my experience the two rarely go hand in hand....
Embracing the Books My Students Love
A few years ago, I decided to read The One and Only Ivan to my third graders early in the year. It is one of my favorite books, and I...
Getting PD Feedback
Theoretically, I knew feedback was important. But in reality, I struggled with feedback. How does a coach even begin planning professional development sessions based on feedback? How could I synthesize...
Using Wait Time in Professional Development
We have gathered for our weekly staff meeting in the media center. The topic is student engagement, and I have just asked a rather thought-provoking question: How can you tell...
Books That Mirror the Children in Our Classrooms
A book can show you the world but it can also show you a reflection of yourself. Grace Lin We sat in silence. “Comments? Thoughts?” I asked this group...
Using Mentor Texts to Craft Leads
“Hook the reader” is a phrase that we hear often during writing instruction when students are crafting their leads or introductions for their writing pieces, and it is, essentially, one...
From Mentor Texts to Mentors in First Grade
This summer I’ve become hooked on podcasts, from writers such as Elizabeth Gilbert, who hosts the podcast Magic Lessons, and Tricia Bobeda and Greta Johnson, who host the Nerdette podcast...
Mentors for Process and Habits
If you are familiar with David Shannon’s book David Goes to School, it is clear that...
Every Classroom, Every Day
In an article for Educational Leadership titled “Every Child, Every Day,” Richard Allington and Rachael Gabriel offer six essentials every student should experience in his or her classroom on a...
Dear Coach
Dear Coach, Two years ago I found out that elementary teachers across our school district would have the opportunity to work with literacy coaches. Knowing that our district valued literacy...
Superpowers and a Middle School Classroom Library
Reading choice matters because it shapes who you are. Choices are as much a part of reading as breathing is a part of life. I think Mrs. Rush has the...
Introducing the Classroom Library
I introduce my students to classroom design and the layout of the library on the very first day of school. This room will be their home away from home for...
Prepping the Meeting Area for Success
Our meeting area is where all of our minilessons happen, and it happens to be surrounded by our classroom library. We have some of the typical things in our meeting...
Who Owns the Room?
A professor in my graduate work in elementary education taught me many years ago to look at the classroom and ask, “Who owns the room?” She cautioned that it was...
Being Present
“Look at me. Hey. Hey! Mom! Look. At. Me!” I glanced up from my phone and met my daughter’s narrowed, brown-eyed stare. Her face barely peeked over the counter, but...
“Got a Minute?”: Rethinking My Schedule and Priorities
I was in a second-grade classroom, observing students and the teacher working on personal narratives, when I got a call from the office. “Matt, a parent is here and would...
“What Are We Learning Today?”: Transitioning with Compelling Questions
"What are we learning today?" I used to hear this every day, every class period, from at least half of my seventh-grade social studies students. It was frustrating. I used...
Transition Time in Middle School
In the past year, I’ve started taking what my husband calls “insanely hard workout classes.” I’ve never sweated so intensely, cursed (usually silently) so frequently, or struggled so mightily to...
