Schoolwide Blog

Did Columbus Discover America? by Yetta Goodman

Yetta Goodman on historical context and how kids learn best when they think more deeply.

 

 

I just read in the paper something I that thought was interesting. Here's a teacher, somewhere in Pennsylvania and they're talking about Columbus. And she had the kids, through their discussion on Columbus, put Columbus on trial. More...

Reading aloud to bring the family together in the information age. By Richard Peck


The goal of my career is to write the book that brings the whole family together. I like to think I’m writing for people of ages ten until death. I try and put people of all generations in my stories because they are family stories. I think a book unites what the computer divides. More...

What are you doing for constitution day Sept 17th?

Public Law 108-477, enacted in 2005, requires public schools to provide an educational program on the U.S. Constitution on September 17, Constitution Day. It’s a great idea. All students need a healthy civics background, and celebrating the day our founding fathers signed the document which created our unique American democracy can make meaningful and memorable impressions. But September 17th comes in the first month of school. Most classroom teachers are still busy establishing the routines and rhythms of a new school year. Where can you find the time to prepare a Constitution Day lesson? More...

Reading is Magic

 

One of the first things you learn as a teacher is that children love to be read to.  I don’t care what age the kids are, I have had the pleasure of reading to students ranging from kindergarten to high school and without exception the room quiets, bodies relax, breathing slows, and eyes either close or watch intently.  It doesn’t take much more than an engaging narrative and a bit of theatrics to capture an audience.  The cliché is that music soothes the savage beast.  Well, I would argue that reading aloud has the same effect on students.  More...

Back To School Assessment

 

I’ve just completed my first full week of school; we’ve been back for exactly seven days.  One of my assessment strategies is to listen in while my students are working and to document my observations as they engage with the choices and materials available to them.  For two days last week I observed my students during math as they explored eight different sets of math manipulatives.  Initially I talked to the children about different ways they could explore each manipulative, adding some ideas when they didn’t seem to have many to suggest, but they were free to experiment with the materials at their table.  As I watched, I learned that some manipulatives were being used in ways that prompted math discoveries while others weren’t perceived as such by the children.  The latter will need to be introduced more intentionally to the children so that their math learning is more effective later on.  Also, I noticed that some manipulatives are intrinsically more motivating than others.   More...

Reading aloud to tweens and teens.

I believe that the trick to reading aloud to your tweens and teens successfully is to make it as fun as possible. Select books that you will both enjoy and feel comfortable sharing together. Get silly or serious depending on what your growing child enjoys most. Talk about the book as you read, but don’t take things too seriously. And, above all, don’t use this as an opportunity to lecture all the time, or that may end your read-alouds fast. More...

Why read aloud to toddlers and kindergartners?

 

Here begins the deep and wondrous world of picture books and repetition. I still love buying picture books and am glad to have a nephew to give me the excuse (not that I needed one).

This is also the age where the phrase “read it again” starts to pop up regularly! Always, always read it again! Read the book until you have it memorized. Read it until you dream of it at night. My daughter wanted to hear certain books so many times More...

How do you get students to read even when they don't have to?

Last night, while one of my nine-year-olds and I were lying around in the den cheering on a Mets team whose lineup we hardly recognized, I said to him, “C'mon, let's go upstairs and get started with a book.” He said, “No, today was Field Day and my teacher said we don't have to read tonight.”

“…we don't have to read tonight.”

 

Quite an interesting notion to offer a third-grader; More...

Alan Katz: Reading & Acting Out

They say that authors never stop thinking, never stop looking for the next good idea. And in fact, some of my books have been conceived while far from my traditional work environment. A notion for one book popped into my head while I was having a balled-up dirty sock catch with my son Andrew. Yet another was the result of a totally out of control dinnertime, during which the twins (then about five) had a spontaneous contest to see who could get closest to naughty words without actually saying any. (Of course, as a responsible parent I wasn't supposed to laugh or encourage such behavior, but believe me, it was hilarious. Fall-down funny. And it inspired my book Don't Say That Word!)

 

 

Why am I telling you all this? More...

JACQUELINE JULES: How Often Do You Need Reading? Try Counting the Ways!

At least once a year, I have a discussion with my elementary library classes about the need for reading. I begin by asking them if they want to grow up, have their own homes, and take care of themselves. Without fail, every hand goes up. Then, we make a list of all the grown-up activities that require reading: shopping, following road signs (and therefore driving), paying bills, finding a house or apartment, following directions for medicine, following a recipe, using the computer, etc.  After that, I ask the students to add the times they need reading in everyday and More...