No More “I’m Done!” Fostering Independent Writers in the Primary Grades is a new book out this month from Jennifer Jacobson. Since I consult with primary grade teachers, as well as upper elementary… Read More
I’ve long enjoyed reading aloud from What You Know First and When the Relatives Came when teaching memoir. I now have another text, Grandma’s Scrapbook written by Josephine Nobisso and illustrated by Maureen… Read More
Today I administered “The Sequel” of Indiana’s standardized test to a small group of sixth graders. This portion was all multiple choice. Last month was the first round of the test where students… Read More
Welcome to my office. I’ll share some images and a little candid commentary. At the end I reveal my dark secret about organization. Computer Area I’ve used this so much the letters are worn off… Read More
Be sure to have a poem you love inside of your pocket this-coming Thursday, April 29th, 2010 since that’s Poem in Your Pocket Day. This day is such a big deal in New… Read More
Last weekend I re-watched “With Honors,” the 1994 film starring Joe Pesci and Brendan Fraser. If you haven’t seen it, “With Honors” is about a Harvard senior who develops a relationship with a… Read More
Today I listened to Jeff Anderson speak. (Tomorrow I’ll be part of a study group he’s leading and watch him model in classrooms.) He is the author of Mechanically Inclined and Everyday Editing… Read More
You may consider today’s post random, however, I prefer to think of it as eclectic. There are some things I’ve been meaning to share, some things I’ve been preparing to share, and some… Read More
One thing I’ve noticed as I’ve worked with many teachers across grade levels is we all have a different tolerance for noise level. This makes me realize that all of our students probably… Read More
Springtime not only brings more poetry into our classroom, but it also ignites a desire for many middle school students to ask each other out. When I taught fifth grade, I noticed some… Read More
Recently I was directed to Amy Ludwig VanDerwater’s new blog, The Poem Farm. Amy’s poetry, photos, and insights are inspiring. You’ll find yourself filled with ideas for making poetry come alive in your… Read More
Today was frustrating at work school. (I know it’s been a rough day when I begin referring to it as work.) On the way home Sam fell asleep in his car seat, which… Read More
Nearly every professional book I’ve ever read has encouraged me to include guides about writing in the classroom writing center. Year-after-year, I tried to search for books about writing for kids to stock… Read More
When I was first learning about Writing Workshop, it was difficult for me to wrap my head around the process each student would be going through. I spent a lot of time thinking… Read More
I recently received an e-mail asking me: How do you organize your material (mentor texts, charts, minilessons, etc.) for Writing Workshop? I have just collected so much stuff this past year to do… Read More
My husband and I spent last week visiting our families in the NY Metropolitan Area. When we returned to our home in Central Pennsylvania, we were greeted by bursts of yellow on our… Read More
@raisealithuman (Stacey)
@ruth_ayres (Ruth)
