Essential Components In part 1 of my series on effective literacy, I discussed the Science of Reading, the role of the brain when learning to read, and the importance of explicit phonics instruction when teaching reading. Explicit phonics instruction is critical when learning to read, but word recognition is not the only component that creates […]
reading instruction
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Boosting Critical Thinking Skills Through Guided Reading
by: Candice Yamnitz Guided reading: HOT stem posters, language objectives with higher DOK questions, and lesson plans designed with student thinking in mind, OH MY! In my dual-language 4th-grade classroom, we were set! The students were going to be critical thinkers. This eventually did happen with 100% of my students, but it wasn’t the whole […]
Posted inFeatured, Literacy, Special Education
5 Strategies to Help the Struggling Readers in the Special Education Setting
Everywhere you look, it seems a new program has sprung up to help the struggling reader in the classroom. More and more children, it seems, get referred for special education services because of reading deficits. So what can you do in the classroom to help? You could ask your RTI specialist, your special education teacher, […]
Posted inFeatured, Instruction & Curriculum, Literacy, Middle School
How to Write a Reader's Theater Play
[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”] The most valuable class I have ever attended was at first a mistake. My enrollment in “Reading 101: Strategies for Middle School Students,” offered at our local intermediate unit, was a […]
Posted inElementary School, Instruction & Curriculum, New Teacher Bootcamp
Tai Chi Beginnings: Building Structure in Second Grade
Tai Chi methodology is my secret to a smooth school year – a year that grants my second grade students growing independence, allowing me the ability to work with small groups. We move slowly, reviewing everything: pencils, crayons, notebook paper, and even, standing in line. This requires me to slow my usual fast and furious […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum, Literacy
Part IV: Reading to Learn: Comprehension
The purpose of reading is to learn. A text has the ability to transport us to other times and places, it can expand our knowledge and experience base and it is everywhere in our worlds. Understanding words, texts, passages, poetry, and books is an important part of reading. It is the end goal. To teach […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Part 3: What’s The Word? Decoding Skills in Reading
To teach your students to read you must know where they are. It is important to understand their current instructional reading level (accuracy and comprehension combined) as well as their fluency level. If you are unsure how to test your students and gather this data, check out my recent article, “See Jane Read.” Students below […]
Posted inCommon Core, Featured, From the Front Lines, Instruction & Curriculum, Literacy
Informational Texts: Speeches Delivered with Love from Bruce and Steve
For teachers who are looking for guidance on how to teach informational texts at the high school level, there is a model lesson on Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address at the EngageNY website. The text of the speech delivered by Lincoln on November 19, 1863, is short enough to fit on two pages or two bronze plaques on a memorial […]