Raising Readers and Writers

A small group of teachers met yesterday afternoon to talk about Troy Hick’s book, The Digital Writing Workshop.  I love that our group represents teachers from different buildings, different grade levels, and different comfort levels when it comes to using technology in our classrooms. All of us have a love of learning and a love for what we do each and every day in our classrooms.   One of the major topics of conversation was the importance of us, as teachers, taking time to actually explore and try the ideas presented in the book before we ask our students to do it.  We are going to work slowly through the book, giving ourselves permission to play with some new ideas, make mistakes, and learn from each other.  We are fortunate to have two of our district technology teachers be part of our group to help us on our journey.  We are also going to set up a forum where we can ask questions and share ideas online so that we can stay connected between the times we meet face to face.  I am so looking forward to this new study group and broadening my horizons when it comes to using technology with my students.

A few weeks ago, I was having breakfast with an old friend. We’ve known each other since our girls (who are now 22 years old) were in kindergarten and we decided to take on the role of Girl Scout leaders. She is a gifted teacher and someone I enjoy spending time with. We share the same passion for literacy and can commiserate about our children. She’s contemplating starting a blog and is worried about having enough to say. As we talked that morning, I came up with about 4 different topics that she could blog about. I told her that as things happen in your classroom or even your life, you  automatically think about how you could write about that on your blog.  She laughed and said, “It’s Blog Curse, you know, like Math Curse!”

Well, I was afflicted with “Blog Curse” yesterday at the Dublin Literacy Conference. As I listened to Dr. Tim Tyson and the other speakers, I thought of a million things I could write about. As Dr. Tyson talked about the possibilities with technology, he kept coming back to the point of teachers as leaders. He said, “School can be anything you imagine. The hard part is not plugging in the interactive white board. The hard part is envisioning the possibilities.”

For the last couple of weeks, I’ve been thinking about the possibilities for my 4th and 5th grade after school writing club. We finished writing scripts for the drama club and are ready to start something new. I want each of them to choose a topic that is important to them and makes them feel passionate. I want them to think about what means to much to them that they want the world to hear their voices. And I want them to know that their voices matter. Our final project will be a multi-modal, multi-genre display. I sent an email with my rambling ideas to our technology teacher and we are going to meet this week to discuss the possibilities. (I think she’s afraid to open any emails from me!)

I’ve also been reading The Digital Writing Workshop and Teaching The New Writing to get some ideas of where to go. Since I meet with my writing club tomorrow, I wanted to get started on something.

To begin with, I want the students to create a page that tells about themselves. I am going to read Looking Like Me by Walter Dean Meyers. I read Karen’s review and bought it right away (thanks to one-click shopping). I think the kids will love the vibrant illustrations and jazzy language. (I looked in the mirror and what did I see?  A real handsome dude looking just like me.  He put out his fist.  I gave it a bam!  He said, “Jeremy!  I said, “That’s who I am.”) I’m going to use it as a springboard for the students to think about the different roles they play in their lives. Then I’m going to have them create a page that shows who they are using Glogster. I just recently heard about Glogster and I took some time to explore it tonight (which means I’ll be up really late tonight finishing up my lesson plans). Here’s my attempt at introducing myself. I’d love to spend more time with it, but I do have to get more school work done tonight!

Kevin Hodgson commented on yesterday’s post how attending conferences like these energize us. I so agree with him. I can’t wait to get to school tomorrow and see my little ones and my writing clubbers. I have so much to share with them!

I was drawn to The Book Whisperer by the title.  Here was someone who shared my passion for students doing real reading instead of reading whole class novels, completing comprehension worksheets and doing word searches to build vocabulary.  I read Donalyn’s bio and saw that she was a fellow teacher consultant from the National Writing Project (North Star of Texas Writing Project).  I knew this was a book that I wanted to read.  I checked it out of the library (one click shopping from Amazon was taking its toll on my budget), settled down to read and was hooked!  I read the first 4 pages and decided that I had to own this book.  I needed to be able to mark pages, write in the margins, and add my own questions on the back cover.  So I literally stopped at Barnes and Noble on my way home to buy the book.  I am so glad that I did.

Last weekend, I was in one of my favorite places to read…the beach on Lake Erie (really any beach will do) when I was able to  really delve into this book.  I loved her introduction, “I AM NOT A READING RESEARCHER.  I am  not a reading policy expert.  I do not have a Ph.D.  What I am is a reading teacher, just like many of you.”    Wow!  Here was someone I could relate to.  The more I read, the more I felt like I had found a new friend, even though I’ve never met Donalyn.

Donalyn believes without a doubt that if we want our kids to be better readers we need to give them time to read.  Everything she asks her students to do is an authentic reading task.  Her kids are given choice in their reading selections, they are encouraged to read in a variety of genres, they write letters to her in their reader’s notebooks, and they share recommendations as they find new great reads.  Her classroom is a place where readers thrive, even those who have previously struggled.  Her classroom is a place of give and take.  She also shares that even experienced readers like her sometimes have difficulty getting through a book.  I appreciated her honesty about her struggles with working with others who don’t share her beliefs as they focus on using worksheets to help students “get ready for the test” and the difficulty in saying good-bye to her 6th grade students knowing that they won’t be given the reading freedoms they had in her room as they move on through school. 

Even though Donalyn teaches 6th grade, her ideas hold true for all grade levels.  She has helpful websites and books to guide teachers as they look for books for their students.  One of them is Jen Robinson’s Book Page, which I read regularly.  She also has some good ideas for those adults who are not passionate readers themselves.  She had her students help her design the “Ultimate Library List” which is in the appendix as well as student forms she uses in her classroom. 

I can’t say enough about this book.  It validates everything I believe about the teaching of reading and writing.  You can follow Donalyn’s blog to get more inspiration.

I smiled as I read Franki’s post today, because I was thinking all the reading I’ve done and the reading I still want to do!  I have started several professional books (my brain is on overload), I have an unopened Amazon box sitting patiently, waiting for me to peel off the tape, I have a book on reserve at the library, and 2 new boxes arrived today, which I have opened.  All of them hold important information that I can’t wait to read. All of them will help me grow as a learner and a teacher.

I’m looking forward to going to Cover to Cover next week with some colleagues to order mentor texts.  I received a Jennings Grant to begin the process of creating a Model Writing School at our building last school year.  Our group, which included our building principal, developed a close relationship as we became a community of writers and professionals discussing our beliefs about the teaching of writing.  Imagine my surprise when I discovered that we still had grant money to spend.  I guess that’s a good problem to have!  I ordered Mentor Texts and Nonfiction Mentor Texts by Lynne R. Dorfman and Rose Cappelli for each teacher.  I have used Mentor Texts in my own classroom since it was published in  2007.  I was so excited when I discovered Nonfiction Mentor Texts.  One of the many things I like about these books is the Your Turn Lessons at the end of each chapter.  The authors give specific lessons to help the teacher get started.  Sometimes we need the extra scaffolding  just like our students.  I know I’ll be using this book a lot as I revamp my nonfiction unit for the upcoming school year.  I also was able to order several copies of Carl Anderson’s newest title, Strategic Writing Conferences for our building.  I’ll be exploring this book  and the DVDs  this summer.

I absolutely loved The Daily 5, so I was looking forward to reading Joan Moser and Gail Boushey’s (The Sisters)  The CAFE Book:  Engaging All Students in Daily Literacy Assessment and Instruction.  My grade level colleagues will be meeting this summer to discuss the book and how to implement it in our rooms.  I began using Daily 5 and The CAFE in my room last year and I really liked it.  I made some modifications to meet the needs of my own classroom.  I love their style of writing because I feel like I am sitting across the table with them chatting about literacy.  Both books  are easy to read and user friendly.  For those who don’t know The Sisters, Daily 5 is a tool to manage your classroom during reading workshop.  Students learn to make choices among 5 different literacy activities (Read to Self, Buddy Read, Work on Writing, Word Work, and Listen to Reading) while the teacher works with students in small groups.    CAFE stands for Comprehension, Accuracy, Fluency, and Expanding Vocabulary.  After assessing students, The Sisters group students flexibly according to their  needs.  So the students in your groups may be reading at different levels, but need the same strategy lessons.  Students keep track of their reading goals and meet with the teacher in whole group, small groups, and individually.  You can read more about The Sisters and their work at their website www.TheDailyCafe.com. 

This evening, I opened Guided Math:  A Framework for Mathematics Instruction by Laney Sammons.  I often get frustrated with math because I feel like don’t always meet every one’s needs.  Last year, I dabbled in using a Math Workshop approach and was excited when I stumbled upon this title.  I already love this book.  After experiencing the same frustrations, the author created this model that allows students to develop their mathematical skills at their own pace.  (Sound familiar when you think about literacy?) There are 7 components to the model:  1. A Classroom Environment of Numeracy, 2.  Morning Math Warm-ups with Calendar, 3.  Whole Class Instruction, 4.  Guided Math Instruction with Small Groups, 5.  Math Workshop, 6.  Individual Conferences, 7. Ongoing Assessment.  I’ll review more of it as I read it.

Finally, I’m waiting for iBrain:  Surviving the Technological Alteration of the Modern Mind from the library.  Our technology teacher told me about this book and it sounds fascinating.  Research has been done that shows our technologically native students’ brains are actually being rewired.  Because I am working hard to stretch myself when it comes to technology, this book is one I want to read. 

My friend laughed at me when we saw each other yesterday.  I had told her at the beginning of the summer that I wasn’t working this summer for the first time in many years.  I was just going to work in my garden and read books just for fun.  Well, she knows me better than that.  I guess there are just some habits I can’t break!

Katie from Creative Literacy has a great post today.  She interviewed Mark Overmeyer about his  new book, What Student Writing Teaches Us.  His book is due out in July and I know that I want to get a copy of it.  You can preview the book online here.  I’ve also ordered his first book, When Writing Workshop isn’t Working.  I think both of these books will be great resources for our school’s teacher writing group.

I had the privilege of hosting Carl Anderson in my classrom last month through the Literacy Connection.  He recommended the book, Holding on to Good Ideas in a Time of Bad Ones by Thomas Newkirk.  Well, if Carl Anderson is going to recommend a book, I’m going to read it.  Each page brings validation to what I strongly believe.  He argues that many of the mandates passing through our schools are only holding our students back.  He cites the study The Neglected Rpublished by the National Commision on writing:  Writing is how students connect the dots in their knowledge. Although many models of effective ways to teach writing exist, both the teaching and practice of writing are increasingly short-changed throughout the school and college years…Of the three “Rs,” writing is clearly the most neglected.  In this time of NCLB, teachers feel the pressure to make sure their students perform well on state mandated tests and good teaching often goes by the wayside. 

Thomas Newkirk has 6 principles that guide his teaching: (1) Balance the Basics:  An Argument for Parity Between Reading and  Writing, (2) Expressive Writing:  Maybe the Best Idea of All, (3) Popular Culture as a Literacy Tool, (4) Literacy and Pleasure:  Why We Read and Write in the First Place, (5) Uncluttering the Curriculum, and (6) Finding a Language for Difficulty:  Silences in Our Teaching Stories.

This thought provoking book  is easy to read. Thomas Newkirk presents his points in a humorous way that blends pedagogy with day to day stories of real life in the classroom.  It is insightful as you will find yourself saying, “Yes!” many times over.  I highly recommend this book for all…those frustrated with the direction their district is taking, or those who just need validation that what they are doing in their classrooms is what is best for kids.