Choice Lit Topic: Common Core
Teachers and school leaders have a sense of urgency in understanding and implementing the Common Core. We share the experiences of teachers as they wrestle with new definitions of persuasive writing in the Common Core and build their nonfiction libraries. We include many resources from literacy coaches and school leaders as they bring together teachers to discuss and try out the Common Core in their classrooms. Whether it’s one teacher working with a few students, or a district looking to coordinate resources across hundreds of classrooms, we’ve got the materials you need to figure out how to integrate standards into your work while maintaining the integrity of your beliefs about literacy instruction.
Results
Limiting and Extending Choice in Student Research Projects
Have you read enough research projects on bears, baseball, and badminton? Over the past several years, I have learned unlimited choice in research projects does not always make students’ writing...
Finding the “Ex” Factor in Explanatory Writing
Explanatory writing isn’t as simple to define as it sounds. Recently there has been an explosion of conversation about explanatory writing and the way it feeds argument writing. Explanatory writing...
Owl Research: Whole Class Explanation of Marking Up Text
Andrea Smith explains a close reading activity her fourth-grade students will complete as part of their owl research.
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...
How to Eat an Elephant One Bit(e) at a Time: Reading Complex Texts
There is a saying: “When eating an elephant take one bite at a time.” Attributed to Creighton Abrams, we have come to use this phrase to help us understand that...
Independent Reading By the Numbers Is NOT Text Complexity
If we’re not talking to kids about what they’re reading, then it doesn’t matter what kind of book they choose. It’s the thinking and talking that help students unravel a...
From “Show Me the Lessons” to Sustainable Planning (Part 4 of the Opinion/Argument Writing Series)
Years ago when teachers were first encouraged to use mentor texts to model for writers and weren’t sure how, I had a lot of requests for help. I heard from...
Thank You For Arguing
Often when I consider a fun, fresh way to connect students to a new strategy or subject matter, my own children are a great frame of reference because they love...
I Love a Good Argument
It’s been interesting to watch the genesis of teachers’ relationships with opinion and argumentative writing this year. For many of the intermediate teachers I work with, it began with distinguishing...
Common Core Booklist: Writing Personal Narratives
One emphasis of the The Common Core State Standards in Writing is narrative writing for fourth graders. When looking closely at the standards, students are expected to develop an experience...
Teaching Revision Through Talk, Routines, and Drawing
The Common Core Standards for writing require that students learn the concept of revision from a very young age. When we are working with K-2 students we want them to...
Chronology in Nonfiction (Common Core Booklist)
As I try to choose books that will help my students meet the expectations of the Common Core State Standards, I find myself needing to look across grade level expectations...
Unpacking the Kindergarten Common Core Standards
It had been a long year. Our district was implementing the Common Core and the new content standards for Ohio. We had revised our progress report card to reflect these...
Supporting Young Writers with Opinion Texts
I believe that effective teaching is about hearing all the voices -- making sure that every student is valued, heard and respected and knows that his or her voice can...
Introducing the Common Core Standards in Writing (Part 2)
We began our morning with this objective: “We will read, unwrap and reflect on the ten Common Core State Standards related to writing and the first three language standards. We...
Rethinking My Nonfiction Library in Response to the Common Core
The focus on nonfiction reading in the Common Core has us all thinking of ways to move our students forward as nonfiction readers. The new focus on nonfiction has provided...
Essay Writing: Thesis Statements and Supporting Details Minilesson
Beth Lawson works with her 4th graders to develop essays with strong thesis statements and supporting details, using a folder organization system to highlight different thesis statements for each child....
Conferring About Thesis Statements
In this conference with a 4th grader, Beth Lawson talks about supporting details for thesis statements. This is part of the video series from Beth's room on essay writing.
Stuck on a Thesis: Conferring
In this conference with a 4th grader, Beth Lawson works with a student who has chosen a challenging essay topic and is struggling to develop his thesis.
Common Core Conversations: Text Complexity
When you hear the word "complex" what comes to mind? Complicated? Difficult? Many parts? More challenging? We had these associations as we began our inquiry into the Common Core shift...
Unpacking the Common Core Standards: Compare and Contrast Nonfiction
Informational texts will become more and more important as states move toward implementing the Common Core. Looking carefully at the nonfiction standards is essential for teaching well. As teachers, we...
