5/25/2018
Begin Writing with a Question

Adapted from Poems are Teachers by Amy Ludwig VanDerwater When a writer begins a text with a question, readers cannot help but consider the questions themselves. A story might begin with an internal... more

5/24/2018
Use Tools to Help you Listen to Talk in Your Classroom

Adapted from Teaching Talk by Kara Pranikoff If you’re interested in working on talk in your room, the first step is to listen. All listening involves some level of bravery (it’s never easy to listen... more

5/23/2018
Hone the Skill of Conferring

Adapted from 180 Days by Kelly Gallagher and Penny Kittle Because conferring is so important to both individual writers and our whole-class teaching, every year we work to get better at it. We confer... more

5/22/2018
Letting Students Do the Talking

Adapted from Teaching with Mathematical Argument by Despina Stylianou and Maria Blanton As scholars have noted, student “thinkalouds” are critical in developing deep understanding of... more

5/21/2018
Choose Digital Tools Intentionally and Strategically

Adapted from Literacy Coaching by Stephanie Affinito Guided by your coaching goals, begin by choosing a small number of core digital tools. What aspects of your coaching do you want to enhance? What... more

5/18/2018
Support for Independent Reading

Adapted from 180 Days by Kelly Gallagher and Penny Kittle Modeling the range of reading we do honors the diversity of texts and the purposes for reading that, of course, vary by reader. Students... more

5/17/2018
Engagement and Inquiry

Adapted from The Curious Classroom by Harvey "Smokey" Daniels Sometimes school is boring. This is not news to students, but the adults seem to have just gotten the message. Suddenly there is talk... more