Tips, Titles and Tools for Teachers
Literacy Resources for Reading and Writing Workshop
I can't believe it's the beginning of October! We are through the first six weeks of school. I've been amazed during the last few weeks as I've spent time in classrooms watching you establish your classroom communities. I'm looking forward to looking at data with all of you this week and determining how I can help support you and your learners.
This week I am sharing few new favorite books, as well as resources for reading and writing workshop. I've collected some excellent articles and blog posts related to writing workshop and Units of Study. I highly recommend you check them out. I am also sharing some posts related to using levels to plan for instruction in the primary grades, launching reader's notebooks, using sticky notes to track thinking and how to preview your next read aloud with you students. I hope these resources help support your instruction.
Happy Reading!
Shelly
A New Book to Love
Writing Resources
This blog post is a must read for all teachers who are interested in helping students to set goals. Betsy's examples directly relate to Units of Study in writing. In this post, she shares photographs and a step by step process for making goal setting part of your classroom routine.
Setting Group Goals in the Early Grades
You may want to check out Betsy's tips for creating group goals for her kindergarten writers.
How To Use The Word Wall: From a Student Point of View
Elizabeth Moore shares her tips (from a student's perspective) for supporting students in using word walls to spell high frequency words during writing workshop.
Kindergarten teachers, this one is for you! It will confirm your thinking!
Reading Resources
This is such an important article for us to read as we begin small group reading instruction. Reading levels were designed as a tool for teachers, not as a way for students to describe their reading ability.
Teaching Reading Before Decoding? YES!
There are many benefits to teaching our primary students to "read" before they learn to decode. This blog post reminds me of the importance of read aloud, text sets in our classroom libraries, as well as the importance of allowing students to put choice books in their book boxes.
Take a minute to read this blog post from Franki Sibberson before you begin your next read aloud. She has great tips for leading an interactive preview with students before starting the text. I love her anchor chart of leading students to think before reading!
Great New Blog Posts for Upper Elementary Teachers
Using Sticky Notes to Track Thinking
In this post, Franki Sibberson shares tips for using sticky notes with readers.
Launching Reading Notebooks Early in the Year
Frank has some great suggestions for launching reading notebooks in the upper elementary grades. I have her the new edition of her professional book, Still Learning to Read. Let me know if you would like to check it out for more ideas!
New Read Aloud Recommendations
Wish
Eleven-year-old Charlie Reese has been making the same secret wish every day since fourth grade. She even has a list of all the ways there are to make the wish, such as cutting off the pointed end of a slice of pie and wishing on it as she takes the last bite. But when she is sent to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina to live with family she barely knows, it seems unlikely that her wish will ever come true. That is until she meets
Wishbone, a skinny stray dog who captures her heart, and Howard, a neighbor boy who proves surprising in lots of ways. Suddenly Charlie is in serious danger of discovering that what she thought she wanted may not be what she needs at all.
Maxi's Secrets
I am currently reading this book. Like many of us, I have always been a fan of Lynn Plourde. Her first middle grade novel is beautiful and would be a wonderful read aloud!
When a BIG, lovable, does-it-her-way dog wiggles her way into the heart of a loudmouth pipsqueak of a boy, wonderful things happen that help him become a bigger, better person.
Timminy knows that moving to a new town just in time to start middle school when you are perfect bully bait is less than ideal. But he gets a great consolation prize in Maxi—a gentle giant of a dog who the family quickly discovers is deaf. Timminy is determined to do all he can to help Maxi—after all, his parents didn't return him because he was a runt. But when the going gets rough for Timminy, who spends a little too much time getting shoved into lockers at school, Maxi ends up being the one to help him—along with their neighbor, Abby, who doesn’t let her blindness define her and bristles at Timminy’s “poor-me” attitude. It turns out there’s more to everyone than what’s on the surface, whether it comes to Abby, Maxi, or even Timminy himself.
We Found a Hat
I Want My Hat Back has always been one of my favorite picture book read alouds! The third book in this series is due to arrive on Tuesday and I can't wait to share it!
Literacy Events at Atwood and Williams
Students at Atwood are enjoying books by author/illustrator Lauren Castillo this month with Mrs. Grenier. Teachers, check out the activity sheets in on the bulletin board in my room for more ideas! Extra copies of each title are available for teachers to sign out! Enjoy!!
WES Read In - November 9
We will be organizing a school-wide Read In at WES in the afternoon! Stay tuned for more details!
Author Visit with Tamra Wight - February 7
We can't wait to welcome Tamra Wight to WES in February! We will be participating in a community read of her mystery series in January!
Shelly Moody
Atwood Primary School
Williams Elementary School
Email: smoody@rsu18.org
Twitter: @shelmoody