"Stone Fox"

Little Willy is a wonderful character to analyze!!!

Students needed some front loading on dog sled racing and the concept of taxes, which led to a lively discussion!!!

Here is a copy of the graphic organizer we used... Sorry, I could not get it to rotate...but the website for this and other wonderful graphic organizers is

http://www.sanchezclass.com/reading-graphic-organizers.htm

"Oliver Button is a Sissy"

A heart-felt story about a boy who is a little different. My students were glued to this story. I used it as a read aloud to introduce narrative elements of fiction.

The students did a wonderful word sort and discussed how 'dancing' could be the problem in the story, or was it the solution?

This is a wonderful book to add to your selection no matter the grade level...all students, and teachers, can relate!!!

Professional Literature

"If I were to ask you to close your eyes and envision the perfect classrooms scene, what would you see? What would you hear and smell and feel? Think big! If everything were going just the way you'd like it to, what would be happening? What would your kids be doing? How about you?" Debbie Miller

I love, love, love this book! In addition to helping you define your beliefs, align your practice, and take action, Debbie also talks about 'schema theory'-connecting new learning to what we already know-in a very concrete way. She gives clear and explicit examples how to do this as well as several pages of colorful photos.

By using this book, Debbie helped me walked through my teaching practices and think deeply about them. Because of this I have a new lesson plan template I cannot wait to try out and cannot wait to get into the classroom to put in place several new ideas.

It is an interesting read with deep impact. Thank you to my colleague, Jen D., for recommending it!

Character Traits

While reading "My Brother Sam is Dead" with fifth grade students, they filled in the following chart to reveal character traits of the major characters. By using this form, students were asked to think deeply about the characters and discuss how their traits influenced the events in the story. One group filled in a chart on Father, another on Tim, and yet another on Sam. Some students also wanted to do a chart on Mother...a quiet, but pivotal character. At the end of the story we were able to take the charts and compare the characters. Interesting to learn how members of the same family can have similar traits, yet act and behave so differently.

Seven Simple Secrets

I just finished reading the "Seven Simple Secrets: What the BEST Teachers Know and Do!" The authors, Annette Breaux and Todd Whitaker list the seven secrets is a clear concise manner. They include detailed descriptions, examples and poems to really help the reader reflect. A great book for validation or a reminder of the impact we, as teachers, have on our students. Enjoy!

Teacher's Lending Literacy Library

Phew! After three weeks of collecting, sorting and cataloging, we are finally finished! Jen D., Annmarie D. and myself spent weeks gathering materials that over the years had found homes all throughout our building. Our school has tons of content materials that are literature based. However, I noticed last year when we were doing a topic of study, the books would be in one place, teacher manuals in another, videos and audios in still another! Then to make matters worse, when we were finished, I'd find more materials that could have been utilized. So, this year, our leadership gave us the 'go ahead' to weed out materials that were 10+ years old and to organize current materials according to topic of study. Although it took three weeks, it was time well spent. This coming year, teachers now have materials organized and a new lounge in which to plan curriculum.

The area is divided into various sections. First there is a case just of teacher references.These include books on differentiated instruction, small group instruction, pedagogy etc.

Next, is our first and second grade sections which boast books, adios, magazines and instant learning centers. We hope to be able to continue adding to this area for years to come.

The main portion of our materials lend themselves to third, fourth and fifth grade science and social studies. They are arranged according to topic of study for each trimester. There is also a section for ELA fiction related materials that either, directly or indirectly, support the content area. Our goal is to reinforce ELA skills through content and to piggyback subjects on one another for added exposure and support.

In addition to our content based/ELA section, we have a leveled reading section. We are very excited to be able to offer all of these materials to our teachers to invoke a stronger and more committed curriculum.

Finally our 'accountability' system...each bin has a list of materials that are housed in that particular bin located in a sleeve card. Teachers simply fill in the 'sign out' card and place it in the pocket chart hanging on the wall. When they return the bin, they simply return the 'sign out' card and store it back in the pocket with the inventory card. KISS (Keep It Simple Sweetie)

Planting the seed in writing

Here is a writing activity that went very smoothly. Students were given multiple opportunities to read about plants, their parts and how the parts all function together to ensure their survival. Vocabulary was woven into lessons as well as 'dressing' bare bone sentences. Once the theme, idea, and mechanics were heavily implanted, we began our write. We chose to use a basic outline format for the graphic organizer. We implemented the gradual release of responsibility to teach and produce this outline.

Students were then asked to write an expository essay explaining how the various functions of a plant worked together to help it survive. The results were spectacular! Here is a sample of some of the third graders' work.

When students were finished, their writes were assembled into a book, and put into the reading center for all to enjoy.