Today we have a plethora of resources available to use in our classrooms. This allows students to get a meaningful text at their level. Matching text to students allows them to read more independently, practice note-taking skills and learn about classroom standards or content in a meaningful way.  Each student in our classroom comes to us […]
Literacy
Posted inGoing Paperless, High School, Instruction & Curriculum, Literacy, Series, Technology
Adventures in Going Paperless: Step One, Taking the Leap
urnA few years ago, my best teacher friend and I decided the entire population of the world could be dived into two kinds of people: spreadsheet people and stack people. Spreadsheet people sort and file. They label and color-code. Their organizational world is akin to the beloved spreadsheet after which they are named and on […]
Posted inFeatured, Instruction & Curriculum, Instructional Strategies, Literacy
Leveled Reading For Young Readers
One of the most frustrating situations I have as an early childhood educator is the misconception of “leveled” readers. Time and time again parents will tell me they’ve checked out these readers from the library or purchased readers that are “leveled” for their child, only to become frustrated when their child has difficulty reading the […]
Posted inFeatured, Instructional Strategies, Literacy
"I’m an N": Building Reading Identities in a Leveled Text Classroom
When I was young, I read voraciously. I remember my parents catching me awake after my bedtime, with a flashlight and a Matt Christopher book under the covers. As an early reader, I was obsessed with the Cam Jansen series by David A. Adler. I would take out a stack from the library and go […]
Posted inFeatured, Instruction & Curriculum, Literacy
Read Alouds – Not Just For Young Kids
[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”][bctt tweet=”Reading aloud is still an important part of language arts for older students as well as younger ones. “]Reading aloud to upper elementary and middle school kids allows them to hear […]
Posted inFeatured
Why I Read To Eighth Graders
They have to read on their own. You should be assigning reading and having them read it, not reading it all to them. That’s spoon-feeding. I have heard this for the past thirteen years I’ve been teaching. When I taught high school English, I would read The Odyssey aloud to my ninth graders,  The Great Gatsby to my […]
Posted inHigh School, Instruction & Curriculum, Instructional Strategies, Literacy, Uncategorized
Close and Critical Reading: So What?
This is the final post in the Close and Critical Reading (CCR) Series. If you want to catch up: The first post defines what CCR is and why all teachers should be using it to instruct their students in reading. The second post discusses the importance of teaching summary. The third post examines why it is important […]
Posted inElementary School, Instruction & Curriculum, Literacy
Making Connections in Reading
Readers process text in many ways to make sense of what they are reading. There are proven strategies strong readers use to help comprehend and process text.  For the first six weeks of school my fourth graders have been practicing making connections.  This skill involves using the text in the story or article to connect to your […]