Last week, I wrote about writing about reading.  Today, I had the pleasure of attending a workshop by Heinemann today and author, Lester Laminack.  He writes children's books, as well as teacher professional books on reading aloud. Saturdays and Teacakes, one of is books, is a great memoir book to share with students. He is a very passionate person about using books to not only teach students about reading but to use these books to teach writing.   A few of his ideas from today are below.

Consider the following........

• Rather than asking students questions at the end of their reading, they will demonstrate their comprehension more by asking questions. Not questions to ask each other that they know the answers to but what has the text left them wondering about? What are you still confused about? 
• When reading to students, read the text one time through without comment or talking.  After you finish the story, give the students a minute or two of quiet to process what has been read before discussing.
• Go back to the text several times for different purposes. Consider reading only the page or section that will be part of that lesson. Lester Laminack goes so far as to suggest a teacher could have 5-10 books that are used all year for specific lessons. 
• When we want students to write, we have to be sure that the students can effectively use the skill or strategy in reading. When a reader is working through a text that is has a specific craft used by the author, the students need to be able to notice the craft, identify the craft, understand why the author used it, and then try it in writing. 

Reading and writing are connected and support each other.  We need to take time everyday to read to students of all ages to allow students an opportunity to use some of the best examples of writing to support both reading and writing. 

writing in our classrooms

Donald Graves wrote the introduction to Nancy Atwell's book, In the Middle.  When he was asked about writing in the classroom, he states that it is more about the conditions in the classroom, than a certain methodology.  What are the conditions that encourage good writing?   In his post through the Heinemann blog, he states there are a few conditions to consider when promoting good writing.

• Time-We need to set aside time to write.  How much of your students' day is spent writing?
• Choice in writing.  Not every writing piece needs to be student choice but students should have some choices in their writing. 
• Response- Response to Reading, Response in Social Studies and Science. Students should be writing across the curriculum. 
• Demonstration-Teachers demonstrate and model good writing, as well as the behaviors of a writer.
• High Expectations
• Room Structure-Is your room set up in a way that promotes writing? 
• Evaluation- How do you evaluate your students writing?  

As teachers, we want to encourage writing in our classroom to improve writing.  However, writing also builds reading. The two are connected. Time spent writing is time well spent!

Why don't they love reading?....

After working with many different students over the years in several different grade levels, I've found myself asking this frustrated question week after week. While the initial question I asked myself was, "Why don't they love reading?" it soon evolved into, "How can I help them love reading?". While the "why" question is very important, I started to feel like it made me feel helpless as a teacher. Why don't they read at home? Why can't they find a book they enjoy? These questions were good ones, but they weren't at the heart of what I do as a teacher. See, the process of reading isn't the only thing we teach. We must also look at the process of becoming a reader. Becoming a reader is what will help our students strive and thrive long after they have left the walls of our schools. Even our proficient readers are at risk of never picking up a book in their adult life if we don't instill the love of the written word. In a time of Common Core and state testing, it can be difficult to remember the true pleasure that just reading a good book can bring. So where do we begin? Three points to consider:

• Students can't enjoy what they can't read.
• It's important to talk with students about what they are choosing to read. Many students select books they see friends reading or that others have suggested. It's important to teach students what it means when a book is too difficult. And I challenge us to this: Teach students to know for themselves. Don't tell them a book is too hard or limit what they read by a Lexile number. Work with them to understand what a good fit book will feel like as a reader.
• Encourage students to think about their interests
• I was amazed when I sat down with a twelve-year-old student the other week to talk about a book he was reading and the first words out of his mouth were, "I hate this book." I followed up by asking him why he was reading something he disliked so much. He didn't know. I probed further and asked, "Well, what types of things do you normally like to read about?". He still didn't know. The more I talked with him I came to realize that this wasn't an act. He truly had no idea what he liked to read or what types of stories grabbed him as a reader. As teachers, we need to encourage students to think about themselves as individual readers and then enter the library to select a book with that knowledge.
• Allow students to abandon.
• I recently picked up a copy of Still Missing by Chevy Stevens. The book had come highly recommended by a friend and I was excited to read it. As I progressed through the chapters I started to realize that I didn't care for the book at all. The story line wasn't engaging and the writer's style did nothing for me. Now imagine if my husband had sat next me to on the couch and said, "I know it's not your favorite book, but you really should finish it. You can't just start a book and then drop it. Keep reading and maybe you'll like it by the end of the story." Ugh! I certainly would be frustrated and start to resent picking up a book at all. Of course there are certainly times we need to encourage students to stick with a challenging text, but we also need to truly listen to them when they're being honest enough to talk to us about their reading.

Looking for more ideas on how to foster a love of reading in your students? Check out Book Love by Penny Kittle. While geared more towards the older grades, teachers of all grade levels will love its message. It will change your thinking forever.

Strategies to Support All Our Readers- Literacy

We want our students reading. We know the more students read, the better they become as readers.  It is not uncommon for struggling readers to avoid it. The result is a widening of the gap of the student's performance and the expectation.  So what do we do?  According to Harvey "Smokey" Daniels and Steven Zemelman, in Subjects Matters, there are a couple of strategies for teachers to use that may prove beneficial. While this is not a complete list, there may be an idea or two to consider.

1. Create a supportive relationship.  Students who struggle generally know that they are not meeting expectations.  A teacher that demonstrates to the student that they believe in them can go a long way. 
2. Model thoughtful reading using think-alouds.  I have written before about this. Generally think alouds are part of the focus lesson in the gradual release model of instruction.  However, it is never wrong to model more often for readers who need this level of support. This strategy can be highly effective. 
3. Promote self-monitoring. Readers need to learn to identify when they are having difficulty and shown effective ways to get themselves back on track. 
4. Use materials that the students can successfully read.  Give students materials at their level. This is so important to building abilities (and confidence).  While we also need to give them opportunities to work with more challenging text, be strategic by providing a higher level of support. 
5. Build engagement with the text.  Choose wisely. Students who are interested in the text will also want to discuss. This promotes comprehension. 
6. Provide books and materials in various formats.  

Gmail Tips and Tricks

Some days it can feel like all we do is manage e-mail.  Below are a few tips and tricks to make this part of our job a little easier:

1. Archive vs. Trash: 
• G-mail has the ability to archive messages.  When you are done reading a message you can select the "archive" button to archive the message.  This will remove it from your inbox, but it will not delete it.  In a sense it is putting it a filing cabinet where you can always pull it up later.  I use the archiving feature for any e-mail that I think I might need later.  You can easily find the message again by using the search bar at the top of your screen.  You can search by many features such as any word in the message, the sender, or the receiver.
• When you select the trash can you will delete your e-mail.  It will be saved in your trash for 30 days, and then it will be automatically deleted forever.  I use the trash for any message that I know I won't need again.  (ie- something that is due that day, or a reminder to complete a task that I have done.)
2. Organizing your Inbox:
• Typically, your unread messages are the ones you want to see the most.  You can reorganize your inbox with just a few simple clicks so that your unread messages appear at the top of your screen.  Click on the gear on the right side of your screen.  Select "Settings".  Select "Inbox".  Then choose "Unread items in the first section". 

          All of your read messages are still available, they are just underneath your new messages.   

   3.  Coding your messages:

• Many of us know that if you click on the star next to your message in the main screen you will "star" your important messages.  However, there are several options for codes that can appear in this same spot.  Select the gear.  Select "Settings".  In the general tab scroll down to "Stars".  Here you can select any of the "not in use" codes and drag them up to the "in use" section.  The codes will appear in the order that you place them in this section.  Below is a screenshot of my codes.  So, when I click on the star in my main Gmail page the ! appears first.  If I click the star again it will turn into the ?.  And, if I click it again, it will turn into the yellow star.  

I hope these tips and tricks help as you try to manage and organize the many messages we all receive each day.