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Noticing Words to Expand Vocabulary: Conferring with Mariah
In this conference with six-year-old Mariah, Joan Moser of "The Sisters" has chosen to focus on expanding vocabulary. Joan uses the charts in the classroom linked to read-alouds to anchor...
The Sisters Redesign a New Teacher’s Storage Area
The Sisters help a new teacher, Amy, sort through junk she inherited from previous occupants of her classroom. They use the "piles" method to sort through materials, separating books and...
Whole-Class Vocabulary Lesson, Grades K-2
In this five-minute video, Joan Moser of "The Sisters" teaches a whole-class vocabulary lesson. The focus is on helping students notice interesting words, and make connections between daily read-alouds and...
Word Choice Lesson: A Collaborative Coaching Session with a New Teacher
When I work with a new teacher in his or her classroom, it's a collaborative experience. We design and teach together over time, sharing what works and what doesn't. In...
Introducing Bull’s-Eye and Waves Written Responses in Synthesis Work
My students helped me understand that to synthesize what you are reading, you have to stand in two places at once: in your own shoes and in the shoes of...
Fonts Lesson: A Revision Strategy for Transitional Writers
I recently added a nonfiction reading time at the start of the day, and I've found this time has changed many of the conversations about reading and writing with the...
Reflection Sheets: A Tool for Assessment and Conferring
I use reflection sheets a few times a month with my third- and fourth-grade students in reading and writing workshops. The students answer a few questions around some issue we...
Fonts: Small Group and Conferring with Intermediate Writers
In this follow-up to a whole class lesson and discussion on fonts, Franki Sibberson pulls together a group of third and fourth graders from her class who have asked to...
Concepts of Print: Conferring with a Kindergartner
In this conference with five-year-old Mariano, Joan Moser (of "The Sisters") assesses his understanding of reading, print, and books at the start of the school year. After the conference, Joan...
Conferring with a Child in the “Silent Period”
Larisa is a six-year-old who speaks Russian at home, and is in the "silent period" in school. In this conference, Ruth Shagoury demonstrates different strategies for eliciting responses from Larisa....
Writing About a War-Torn Home: Zerina Talks About Finding Her Writer’s Voice
English language learners enter our classrooms with histories from many different cultures—sometimes as immigrants from other countries. Although there are many reasons why families choose to immigrate, none are more...
Conferring with Anna
Anna is a five-year-old student in an Oregon kindergarten classroom who speaks Vietnamese at home. In this conference with Ruth Shagoury, she shares writing about her classmates and a snake,...
Every Language Counts: Adding Multilingual Counting Activities to Morning Meeting
Every year I have children who come from homes with many different first languages. In the past year alone, first languages included English, Spanish, Hmong, Cantonese, Vietnamese, and Russian. One...
Spacing Words: A Minilesson with Young Writers
In this two-minute video, Andie Cunningham reinforces the concept of spacing words with her kindergartners using her own writing and a brainstorming web.
Listen In: Jeffry’s Ocean Story
As a literacy coach, I'm lucky to be in the same class once a week for writing workshop throughout the year. Sometimes I refer to it as my "lab classroom,"...
Boys’ Book Club in Second Grade
"The girls started it." That's how Linda remembers book clubs were born in second grade. Two girls had become interested in the Warriors series by Erin Hunter and...
Mentor Texts and Teacher Modeling: The Listing Strategy
In this video from her fourth-grade classroom, Aimee Buckner teaches the "listing" strategy, using the book This Is the Tree: A Story of the Baobab as a mentor text. Aimee...
Tweeting an Author
Katherine Sokolowski helps Amelia send a tweet to a favorite author.
Conferring in Kindergarten: Drawing to Learn
Hayley Whitaker confers with a kindergartner and helps him make meaning through drawings.
Conferring on Inferring in Second Grade
Linda Karamatic works with a student who is reading the Stink series as he tries out a new tool for documenting inferences as he reads.
Setting the Room for Collaboration
Gretchen Schroeder offers advice on how to arrange a high school classroom for collaboration and connection.
