Choice Lit Topic: 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.
Results
Keeping “House” in a Literacy-Rich Classroom
Housecleaning is not one of my favorite chores, but it is necessary for my life to be organized (and for me to have some sense of sanity considering the pace...
Coaching Out of Chaos: Helping New Teachers Establish Management Systems
One of my friends is a highly creative type with many big ideas. The other night he was talking about website design, and wondering aloud if he created a business...
Pencil Plans
I've always had a very comfortable relationship with No. 2 pencils. William Styron You are about to get really honest with yourself and no one else has to hear...
Who Rules?: Creating a Classroom Code of Conduct with Students
Each June I created a teacher report card for my students. Some of the most interesting feedback I got came from two continua that I asked students to place me...
“I Am the One Who . . .” Building Writing Skills and Community in Middle Schools
In this 12-minute video, Katie Doherty leads her sixth-grade students as they try the prompt "I am the one who . . ." during writing workshop. This is an excellent...
Read Alouds for the First Day of School
Last year we surveyed Big Fresh subscribers to learn their favorite literacy activities for launching the school year with students and colleagues. This week and next we'll feature suggestions for read alouds...
Unexpected Gifts: Technology and Community in the First Days of School
The first week of school is exhilarating, exhausting, and full of surprises. My thoughts about school bounced me out of bed at 4:45 in the morning all week (not typical...
Literacy Rights and Responsibilities
Something bad was happening. I looked around the room during reading workshop at my students who should have been eagerly gobbling up the pages of their choice books, and this...
You Never Know What You’re Going To Get
One of the things I find myself struggling with is that as I get older, I get busier. As my retired dad gets older, he has more time. This is...
Preschool Book Browsing Time
This five-minute video from Kelly Petrin's preschool classroom shows the value of book browsing time. Kelly explains the skills children develop in language, book handling skills, and literacy independence during...
Primary Series Study
One of my first goals at the beginning of the year for my first and second graders is to help them find and choose books to fill their book bins....
Persuasive Pamphlets
My state and district standards require that seventh grade students should be able to write persuasively. Traditionally, teachers meet this standard by assigning a speech or a paper, and I...
Literacy Letters: Helping New Students Understand Ongoing Assignments
How do teachers bring new students up to speed with ongoing assignments? In this video from Katie Doherty's middle school classroom, Katie presents the latest "Literary Letters" assignment to her...
Getting to Know Multilingual Learners at the Start of the Year
As you get ready for the school year, you'll hear this classic and fundamental advice: Get to know your students. What does this mean when it comes to meeting and...
Starting a Newbery Club with Students
The Newbery Award has long stood for excellence in children's literature. About five years ago we started reading potential nominees and trying to predict the winner before it was announced....
“The Wrath of Guess Jeans”: Reading, Writing, and Cliques in Middle School
In this first video in a three-part series, Katie Doherty leads her 6th graders through a response activity. The text they are reading was written by a middle school student...
Make it Personal
I'll admit it; one of my favorite movies is You've Got Mail. I've watched it dozens of times because I'm enchanted with the children's bookstore in the film, the "Little...
Launching the Newbery Club
The students arrived at 8:00 in the morning for the first Newbery Club meeting, and it was exciting to see them carrying their books. We took a quick inventory of...
Quick Takes: Advice on Book Hogs
In this quick take video, Franki Sibberson gives advice for dealing with "book hogs" -- those students who try to grab any new book when it appears in the classroom...
Reflections on a Year of Read Alouds
Last summer at about this time, I started to gather books I loved and thought my fifth grade students would also enjoy. My goal was to make a list of...
“The Wrath of Guess Jeans”: Response and Read Around
In this second video in a three-part series, Katie Doherty leads her 6th graders through a response activity. In this installment, the students respond orally and share some of their...
