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
Book Matchmaker: A Friendship Theme for Literature Circles
Recently Joan asked me to recommend some books that dealt with the theme of friendship. She was planning a set of literature circles, and in the past had never...
Preparing for Book Talks
In this first video in a two-part series, Katie Doherty meets with her sixth-grade students who will be sharing their book recommendations with the class. To download the preparation sheet...
A Congenial Parent Night
Parent Night . . . most classroom teachers schedule a meeting during the first few weeks of school. The task sounds straightforward -- welcome parents, introduce yourself, and explain all the...
What Messages Do We Give Students with Our Classroom Library Design?
In the article Room for Beliefs: Linking Classroom Design and What We Value, Debbie Miller helps us think through the ways that our room design reflects the things we value about...
“This Could Be Our Family”: Books for Children with Lesbian and Gay Parents
My daughter Alysa and her other mother snuggled into the recliner, not saying a word. The only sound I could hear was an occasional page turning. I took this as...
Our Daily Question: Building a Community Through the Data We Collect
As a mother and a teacher, I discovered that choice and authentic experiences are priceless, yet challenging gifts for children going about their days living and learning. Choice and authentic...
Living Words: Integrating Word Study, Technology, and Content Literacy (Part 1)
I will be honest. I am a "digital immigrant," a person new to rapidly changing technologies. I am proud to say that I am adjusting, and I've accepted the fact...
Thinking About 5th Grade Read Alouds
It's that time of year again -- the time when I sit down at my diningroom table, surrounding myself with books I have read recently and some old favorites. And...
Creating a Model Writing School
It's 3:45 p.m. after a long day of teaching. Our media center is buzzing as teachers excitedly greet each other, grab a quick snack, catch up on the day, and...
Dear Mrs. T: Moving Students from Summaries to Rich Response
"Dear Mrs. T" are three of my favorite words in my 5th grade reading workshop. They are the first three words in the reading letters I receive from my students...
From Page to Screen: My Top Ten Film Adaptations of Children’s Books
My friend and I went to the movies last month to see The Time Traveler's Wife, the film adaptation of one of our favorite books. I had my fingers crossed. Watching...
Making a Difference: Examples from Children’s Literature (BOOKLIST)
Last year, my nine-year-old daughter Ana decided that she did not want gifts at her birthday party. She had heard about other kids who had used their birthday party as...
Vocabrity: Fun with Words for Middle School Students
It was my mom's 60th surprise party, and my cousin Joe introduced us to this way fun game called Celebrity Salad Bowl. Each person gets three slips of paper on...
Using Summer Reading to Expand the Whole School Reading Community
I have always worked hard to prepare my students for a summer of reading. When I was a classroom teacher, we spent quite a bit of time during our last...
The Joy of Letter Writing: An Integrated Unit for Intermediate Students
Note to self: Never underestimate the power of FUN in writing workshop. It started as a fairly typical unit of study. I knew that according to the academic content standards,...
Books That Invite Thoughtful Conversation in Grades K-2
One of the favorite parts of my new job as a school media specialist is that I get to read aloud to primary students again. There is nothing like seeing...
Where Am I?: The Power of Wordless Photo Books for Preschoolers
With pre-kindergarten learners, it is essential to help them see the connections between themselves and the experiences we structure for them. To help with this, we often photograph our children...
The Book Lovers Quilt Project
"Ida B. is the book I fell in love with this year," 11-year-old Sara gushed to Ruth. "I've read it 12 times. I even own three copies, I'm so obsessed....
Creating a Culture of Literacy
My in-laws really love sports. My nephews spent their entire infancies in onesies emblazoned with professional team logos. As soon as they were old enough to get out of their...
Easing into Assessments During the First Six Weeks of School
As Lucy Calkins reminds us in The Art of Teaching Reading, "Once you really pull in close to consider children's understandings (and misunderstandings), it quickly becomes clear that 'simply' giving children...
Supporting Readers During Workshops: The First Few Weeks
Today was my second grader's first soccer game of the season. This fall he begins his first full season. Before this year, he had had a couple anxious years trying...
