I was reading some of the blogs in my Google Reader today and saw that Lois Lowry, one of my favorite authors, responded one more time to the NY Times article on reading workshop that created such a buzz this weekend. While I respect Lowry and absolutely adore her work, I’m going to have to [...]
Filed under: rants | Tagged: choice in reading workshop, independent reading, reading workshop | 14 Comments »
It’s been a crazy few days for reading in the news. First, I was devastated to learn that Reading Rainbow has been cancelled and its final episode aired on Friday. I remember watching Reading Rainbow often as a child and singing the theme song even more often. “Butterfly in the sky, I can go twice [...]
Filed under: education, independent reading, kidlitosphere, middle school language arts, rants, read alouds, readicide, reading research, reading workshop, reluctant readers | Tagged: A New Assignment: Pick Books You Like, independent reading, kate messner, lois lowry, meg cabot, monica edinger, reading choice, reading rainbow cancelled, reading workshop, reading workshop in middle school | 6 Comments »
Some of you have already headed back to school, but I begin next week. As I plan my blog posts for the next few days, I am wondering what you want to know! Please answer the poll below and I will try to tailor my posts to the most popular choices!
Filed under: middle school language arts | Tagged: middle school language arts, polls | Leave a Comment »
Pick up any of Nic Bishop’s amazing nonfiction books and you will realize it’s a gateway book. Suddenly, your world will be opened to his world of nonfiction. Bishop brings his knowledge of biology and life on earth to his books and also fills them with his own gorgeous photographs. The result is a [...]
Filed under: non-fiction, reviews | Tagged: marsupials, nic bishop, nonfiction for kids | 1 Comment »
Inspired by Beloit College Mindset List, here is a look at the cultural touchstones that have shaped the lives of the students who will be entering my classroom this year. I was inspired to do this after reading Beloit’s most recent list and realizing that my newest students were born the year I entered high [...]
Filed under: 21st Century Literacies | Tagged: beloit college mindset, class of 2012 | 5 Comments »
I spent the last few days working on the curriculum for my enrichment class. This year each teacher will teach a 30 minute enrichment period on a topic they are passionate about. I love the idea and am thrilled to delve deeper into the monarchs with my classes! I will teach the class 4 times, [...]
Filed under: enrichment, monarch butterflies, monarchs | Tagged: monarch butterflies | 4 Comments »
I received an email from a reader today and I am hoping some of you can help her! Hi, Could you steer me towards a middle grade novel in which a child deals with a mom who has breast cancer? I don’t want one in which the mom dies. I can find a few picture [...]
Filed under: cancer | Tagged: books about breast cancer | 7 Comments »
Yesterday on Twitter I followed a link to Musing of a Book Addict’s post Venting About The Fate of Reading and Reading Teachers. As I read her post, I felt myself growing more and more frustrated. Sandra laid out her own anger with the canned and scripted reading program she is expected to use with [...]
Filed under: education, independent reading, rants, reading | Tagged: real reading, scripted reading programs | 11 Comments »
I’ve been struggling with this review for the past few days. You see, the photograph on the cover of David Levithan’s Love Is the Higher Law is identical to the view of New York from my hometown. I can see the beams of light from my bedroom window at my parent’s house. My hometown lost [...]
Filed under: reviews | Tagged: 9/11, 9/11 YA, david levithan, september 11th | 3 Comments »
