As we’re preparing to engage classrooms full of kids in the shared reading of sufficiently complex text, the teachers that I am working with have made some predictions about the challenges they might face. They want to handle them as pro-actively as possible, so their instructional planning is attending to these hunches. For instance: We predict [...]
As we’ve begun examining each of the six instructional shifts called for by the Common Core, teachers have shared their own stories, often times lingering over many details that support the call for such changes. For instance, we know that many readers are struggling to access grade-level text. We know that when this text is [...]
“What have we been studying in kindergarten this spring?” Heather asked her students. “Things that hatch!” They sang. “And how have we been doing that?” Heather asked. A jumble of ideas poured out of them at once, and fingers were pointing to different corners of the room, where a bunch of creatures were in the [...]
Jessica Gentner, Fifth Grade Teacher at Lindbergh Elementary School in Kenmore, New York Parent-teacher conferences were different for our family this year, thanks to our school district’s recent decision to move toward standards-based grading and report cards at the elementary level and this very talented teacher’s thoughtful use of formative assessment processes. Jessica Gentner is [...]
An interesting conversation is beginning to take shape on the English Companion Ning relevant to yesterday’s piece in the NY Times about providing choice to student readers. I was surprised (and kind of saddened) that this approach was touted as the “future of reading” and that it was contrasted so sharply with other forms of [...]
I’ve watched Erin McKean speak to redefining the dictionary with quite a few different teachers this year, particularly during conversations that focus on vocabulary instruction. Check it out: So now…….I’m kinda loving what’s she (and a team of friends) are up to here.
I’m just wondering: how many people who adamantly oppose book censorship actually tolerate the ways in which the web is censored for students and teachers (and of course, so many others)? Perhaps it isn’t fair to make this comparison, but I’m playing with doing exactly that. What do you think?
The Chosen One is Carol Lynch Williams’ harrowing account of one child’s journey toward truth, faith, and freedom. Thirteen-year-old Kyra Leigh is forced to explore the complexities of her family and her community when confronted with a reality that she is unable to accept. Raised within the confines of a polygamist compound, Kyra nurtures several forbidden [...]
A few people that I know are in the process of populating their shiny new RSS feeds this week. I spent some time updating my links toward the bottom of the left sidebar recently, so take a peek at some of my favorite edublogs, and please suggest others that I might want to add! I’m [...]
You know the kid: the one who grows his bangs a little longer to hide the eyes beneath his glasses. This way, you’ll never know exactly where he’s looking…..up at you or his peers….or inside his desk, where the work that matters most to him awaits. We’ve all had students who are so immersed in [...]
