Literacy Learning Zone

__________________________________________________ The March Slice of Life Story Challenge hosted  at the  Two Writing Teachers . Join us for a month of writing! __________________________________________________ My almost eight year old girls are swimming in the seas of graphic novels. They started with the popular "classics" of Smile and Sisters . I read these books years ago, but cannot recall the details of the content. I wonder if it's appropriate for second graders, but I understand that some things will just go over their heads. I decided I better reread these books, but also thought about introducing them to another graphic novel series I thought they would enjoy: Babymouse. I brought home the first five books in the series and Peyton devoured three of them in two days. I agreed to bring home the rest of the ...

We have teamed up with yet another fabulous author  and PD book for #cyberPD!  This July we are reading and learning together around  Vicki Vinton's newest title:  Dynamic Teaching for Deeper Reading: Shifting to a Problem-Based Approach .  Join in the conversation in our   #cyberPD Google Community ! *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  * My Thoughts and Reflections I'm finally here and ready to join in the conversations around  Dynamic Teaching for Deeper Reading: Shifting to a Problem-Based Approach ! Family time, vacation, and several district workshops took precedence at the beginning of July. I read the chapters prior to vacation, but never had the time to bring all my thoughts together in one place. I'll finally be able to read other responses too and learn alongside all of you! I...

__________________________________________________ The March Slice of Life Story Challenge hosted  at the  Two Writing Teachers . Join us for a month of writing! __________________________________________________ Yesterday I attended an all day conference, "A Day at Judson" with Dr. Jan Richardson ( #ADAJ2017 ) about "Next Steps for Struggling Readers: Guided Reading and Beyond." It was a packed day of learning coming at us fast! A colleague and I took notes collaboratively.  It's best when two of us can add notes and photos to capture the day. Now I need time to process all the information shared and add pieces into my every day practice and interventions plans in place. Some highlights: Judson University is a beautiful little campus. A prayer by  Dr. Steven Layne    started our day of learnin...

Slice of Life is  hosted  at the  Two Writing Teachers Join in and share a slice of your life.  _____________________________________________________ November arrived quickly, but we were ready. My colleague, Karen, and I have celebrated Picture Book Month in our classrooms over the last few years.  However, this year we decided to share this special month with not just our small groups of students, but with everyone at our school. We started thinking about the importance of reading aloud picture books: Builds commUNITY (Thanks to JoEllen McCarthy for this!) Develops empathy Builds vocabulary Allows for deeper thinking Sho...

Slice of Life is  hosted  at the  Two Writing Teachers Join in and share a slice of your life.  _____________________________________________________ I'm thrilled to say that I am finally in a routine of meeting with my small groups of students (a.k.a intervention groups).  It feels so good to be spending time with students face-to-face who are just as excited to see me! These kids amaze me every day when they get the opportunity to move to a smaller learning space where we are surrounded by books and not distracted by anything else.  It's just us and books and time to connect and read. We are creating our small group learning comm...

Slice of Life is  hosted  at the  Two Writing Teachers Join in and share a slice of your life.  _____________________________________________________ For six years of her life, I have provided my daughter choice when it comes to selecting books to read. At the public library we visit often, she will grab a book that interests her, sit down on the ground, and slowly, carefully study the book page-by-page to decide if it will make it into the check out pile. There are no levels or discussions about letters. There are no rules or boundaries. (I'll be honest. There have been an occasional eye roll at a book selection ... but I can only take so muc...

This summer a  really BIG! group of educators   are reading and learning together online.  I am participating and  co-hosting this year's sixth annual #cyberPD event  with my online colleagues  Cathy Mere  and  Laura Komos .  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  * New this summer!  Weekly Twitter chats about the scheduled reading.   The next chat is  Thursday, July 21st  @ 9 AM CST/10 AM EST  using the  #cyberPD  hashtag. Our final Twitter Chat is scheduled for WEDNESDAY, JULY 27th at 8 PM est/7 PM cst Kate Roberts and Maggie Beattie Roberts  will be joining in the #cyberPD chat!   *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  * ...