Dear Educator,
Don't forget to check to out our upcoming workshops and take advantage of our 10% discount when you register 3 or more participants!
Happy Thanksgiving & Teaching!
-Kelly Harmon & Randi Anderson
Text Suggestions for November
When we choose texts for our students to read, we should choose texts that require students to use the metacognitive strategies in our learning targets to process the text and capture students' interests! Texts can and should be used more than once. Think of how many times you have watched your favorite movie. Each time, you discover or learn something new. It's a great time of the year to use texts that focus on our American traditions and history while having fun reading various types of texts.
Great Read Alouds for November:
Pete the Cat: The First Thanksgiving
I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie
Text Suggestions for Close Reading:
Kids Ditch Princess Costumes in Favor of Super Hero Costumes
Turkey Gets Presidential Pardon
Text Suggestions for Fluency:
Texts for Comprehension Strategies:
Habit of the Mind: Thinking Flexibly
Problem solving involves being able to think flexibly. When we think flexibly, we see other perspectives, generate alternative ideas, and make decisions about the best course of action. It's easy to say, "that's impossible" or "that will never work" but, being able to look at the situation and try to solve it by thinking flexibly is the sign of a growth mindset!
I have used Art Costa's "Habits of Mind" as a springboard for discussion.
Using children's literature or novel studies, we can help students identify with characters who demonstrate examples and non-examples of positive academic behaviors. Below are a few books you can read and discuss during the next few weeks of school.
 |  |  |
Eggbert The Slightly Cracked Egg Eggbert is a little egg who lives in the fridge with all the other food. One day, it is discovered that Eggbert has a crack. When he is ordered to leave, Eggbert is so upset. He sets our trying to find a place where he fits in. After his long journey full of disappointment, he sees his crack through a new lens. He is perfect and unique just the way he is! Habits of the Mind: Thinking Flexibly, Responding with Wonderment and Awe. | The Rainbow Fish The Rainbow Fish is the most beautiful fish in the sea. One day a small blue fish asks for one of the Rainbow fish's scales. The Rainbow fish says "No!" and quickly sees how the rest of the fish no longer want to be his friend. It isn't until he talks with the wise octopus that he learns he must think and act differently in order to find happiness. Habits of the Mind: Thinking Flexibly, Listening with Understanding & Empathy, | The Most Magnificent Thing This is the story of a regular girl and her best friend who enjoy making magnificent things together. One day the creation doesn't turn out as planned. The girl gets very frustrated and lets her anger get the best of her until her best friend suggests a walk. During the walk, the girl starts to look at the creations she has made in a new light and starts to see things differently. Habits of the Mind: Thinking Flexibly, Persisting, Managing Impulsivity. |
Eggbert The Slightly Cracked Egg
The Rainbow Fish
The Most Magnificent Thing
 |  |  |
Intentional Writing Instruction: Teaching the Process, Craft, & Conventions of WritingNovember 14, 2016 - San Antonio, TX Join Kelly Harmon this fall to explore Writer's Workshop! Learn how to effectively teach the process, craft, and conventions of writing in engaging and rigorous ways! Explore strategies and ideas for exciting your students about writing such as using the latest technology to publish pieces and responding to literature in meaningful ways. Click here to learn more! | From Phonics to Fluency: Developing Reading ProficiencyNovember 28, 2016 - Mansfield, TX December 9, 2016 - San Antonio, TX | Creating Intentional Readers: Comprehension Strategies The Follow FIGURE 19 January 11, 2016 - Dallas, TX January 27, 2016 - San Antonio, TX In this energizing, fast-paced seminar, educators will learn how to guide students' intentional thinking about reading complex texts. This seminar is focused on teaching students the six key Figure 19 Comprehension Strategies. Kelly Harmon will provide instruction, activities, and ideas for engaging students in close and recreational reading. For more information, visit our website! |
Intentional Writing Instruction: Teaching the Process, Craft, & Conventions of Writing
November 14, 2016 - San Antonio, TX
Join Kelly Harmon this fall to explore Writer's Workshop! Learn how to effectively teach the process, craft, and conventions of writing in engaging and rigorous ways! Explore strategies and ideas for exciting your students about writing such as using the latest technology to publish pieces and responding to literature in meaningful ways. Click here to learn more!
From Phonics to Fluency: Developing Reading Proficiency
November 28, 2016 - Mansfield, TX
December 9, 2016 - San Antonio, TX
Creating Intentional Readers: Comprehension Strategies The Follow FIGURE 19
January 27, 2016 - San Antonio, TX
In this energizing, fast-paced seminar, educators will learn how to guide students' intentional thinking about reading complex texts. This seminar is focused on teaching students the six key Figure 19 Comprehension Strategies. Kelly Harmon will provide instruction, activities, and ideas for engaging students in close and recreational reading. For more information, visit our website!
Marzano Center: Essentials for Achieving Rigor Series in San Antonio, TX
In Core Instruction, teachers will learn to construct and implement instructional strategies that help students build foundations when learning new grade-level specific TEKS content.
January 10, 2016- Essentials for Achieving Rigor: Deepen Core Instruction
In Deepening Core Instruction, teachers will learn to construct and implement research-based instructional strategies that support students as they expand, apply, and deepen their understanding of the TEKS student expectations.
February 15, 2016- Essentials for Achieving Rigor: Learning Targets and Measures
In Learning for Targets and Measures, teachers will learn to construct and implement rigorous TEKS-based learning goals and performance scales that not only help students understand what they are learning but also drive instructional decisions.
February 16, 2016 - Essentials for Achieving Rigor: Facilitating Complex Learning
In Facilitating Complex Learning, teachers will learn to construct and implement research-based instructional strategies that ask students to utilize the knowledge and skills they learn. Highly effective strategies will be modeled and recommended for use when facilitating students as they engage in cognitively complex tasks.
All sessions are offered at Education Service Center, Region 20.
Rounding Up the Rhyme
Rounding Up the Rhymes is a great phonics activity to use in the primary grades. Patricia Cunningham developed this activity to be used during the word work instructional block Here are the six easy steps to implementing this activity in your classroom!
Thanksgiving Texts to Use:
I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie
Rounding Up the Rhymes (Cunningham)
Select a text that contains rhymes to read and reread.
- Round up the rhymes by asking the children identify words that rhyme. Write the rhyming words on index cards and put them in a pocket chart.
- Underline the spelling pattern in each word.
- Discard any rhyming words which do not follow the spelling pattern. (example: heard, bird)
- Use these words to read some other words. Write a word that rhymes and has the same spelling pattern as one of the rounded up pairs. Ask children to put it with the words that have the same spelling. THEN, read all three words together.
- Continue step 5 for other words.
- Complete the activity by having students attempt to spell some words using the patterns.
Like this activity? Join us at one of our From Phonics to Fluency Workshops this fall to learn more about increasing students phonics knowledge and fluency this year! Click here to learn more!
Kelly Harmon & Associates, LLC