During a recent Instructional Improvement Block meeting, I had the staff read the first chapter of Katie Wood Ray's What You Know by Heart: How to Develop Curriculum for Your Writing Workshop. As we were all engrossed in our reading, I realized that what I know by heart today is a lot more than I knew a year ago. Why? I realized that I am seeing writing through a new lens.
I have found that as I have become a more avid reader and have begun to write, I am much more critical of the pieces I read and write. I make mental notes as I read, such as thinking about the choices the writer made. Things such as the use of words and descriptions that may transport me to another time and place or the point of view the person is writing from have begun to stand out. I am beginning to focus more on the author's craft and style and the implications the choices have for the reader. I have increased my reading tremendously over the course of the past year in an intentional attempt to become the lead reader in my building. I wanted to become more knowledgeable about books so that I could make connections to curriculum and recommend books to my students and staff. I also wanted to model good reading habits for them. In the process, I have been inspired to become a writer as well--especially as we move toward creating a writing curriculum for our building. I am still a novice writer who continues to learn, but I am much more willing to take risks and put myself out there. This comes from practicing writing more than I have ever done in my professional life. All of these experiences have allowed me to see reading and writing in new ways. Ways that I didn't notice before. I am excited about this new lens and the implications of my improved vision as an instructional leader.
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Review: Igniting a Passion for Reading
I recently read Steven Layne's book, Igniting a Passion for Reading: Successful Strategies for Building Lifetime Readers. It has been my quest this year to promote books and reading to the students and staff to see if I can make a direct impact on their reading lives. So, you can imagine my delight when I stumbled upon Layne's book. Layne's practical classroom experience, his unequivocal love of books, and his dry sense of humor shine through in this enjoyable and inspiring read.
Layne begins the book by outlining research and reporting that..."as a nation, we have more readers who can read and don't than we do readers who can't read at all" (p. 8). He strongly suggests that we need to start paying attention to the affective elements of reading instruction in order to boost the number of Americans who read on a regular basis. He cites that in 2002, only about 52% of Americans ages 18-24 reported reading books for pleasure. I'm sure those numbers are still pretty accurate in 2012, and the percentage of disengaged readers may actually be a bit higher by now.
In this day and age, it is easy for educators to get wrapped up in the skill part of reading--am I teaching my students how to read? It's true that this is a critical component. We must teach the skills that good readers need to navigate all types of text. However, we do our students a disservice if we neglect to focus on what Layne believes to be our true reading objective: fostering a lifetime love of reading in our students (p13). So what can we, as educators do to help ignite such a passion for reading that our students will read because they want to?
Some of the strategies Layne suggests for educators:
- Target alliterate readers and find books that interest them. Layne maintains that you must know your students and put books into their hands that are likely to strike a chord with them. He includes several interest inventories in the book to assist educators in identifying what students are interested in.
- Promote books through book chats. As educators, it is our duty to be well-read and informed about books that may interest our students. We must find time to do the "research" by reading many grade level appropriate books and also make time to advertise them to our students to help build interest and excitement. Layne includes a book chat prep sheet that will assist teachers in preparing to advertise a book.
- Read aloud to students on a regular basis. One of my favorite quotes in the book comes on page 54--"Reading aloud--a good book read well--is the number-one way to positively impact the disengaged reader." Choosing high quality read alouds from a wide variety of genres exposes students to a multitude of books in a powerful and exciting way. It allows students to make affective connections with books.
- Celebrate books and reading. This can be done through book discussions, author visits, book advertisements, and in some cases schools have even created reading cafes or lounges that provide students with a comfortable place designated specifically for reading.
For more information about this book and the author, please visit this website.
Saturday, October 20, 2012
Student Book Recommendations: Getting Students Excited About Reading
Today, as I was browsing Twitter, @donalynbooks posed a question that made me reflect on my practices as a principal. She asked: What are principals doing to get students excited about reading?
In my post titled, Kicking Off the Year Promoting Reading, I outlined 5 steps I was taking to set the stage for a culture of reading at my school. Today, I'd like to highlight one of the things that is happening as a result of some of the steps I have taken to become a major promoter of reading at my school.
Student Book Recommendations
As students became excited about my morning book reviews and recommendations as part of my 180 #bookaday challenge, I started having students come to me in passing and telling me about a book they were reading and that I "just had to read it" too. I started having teachers have their classes share a book with me that they were really excited about as I went in to do walk-throughs, observations, or visits. I thought, I'm onto something here. So, I decided to have students begin making formal recommendations to me. I gave teachers master copies of book recommendation forms and purchased a "magic book" for the students to drop the recommendations into. (One of those decorative boxes that look like a book that you can find in any home decorating store.) Then, I shared my "magic book" on the announcements and told the students they could choose to recommend books they were reading to me and I would select one student each week to join me on the morning announcements. Another bonus here--they have to write and explain why the book is worthy of their recommendation! I have posted all of the recommendations on the doors to my office. I am beginning to run out of space and plan to begin covering a bulletin board outside my office too. The students are so excited to hear their name called as a presenter and their eyes light up when they see that I have their recommendation hanging in my office.
We are becoming a school community that talks about books, recommends books to others, and views reading as an exciting component of our culture. Through my daily reading challenge, I am reading some great books and feel better equipped to match readers with books. I am trying to lead by example and show my students the joy of reading, and I am reaping the rewards of hearing the excitement in their voices or seeing it in their writing when they are recommending books to me. Just by reading and having a dialogue about books, we are well on our way to becoming a school where readers flourish.
In my post titled, Kicking Off the Year Promoting Reading, I outlined 5 steps I was taking to set the stage for a culture of reading at my school. Today, I'd like to highlight one of the things that is happening as a result of some of the steps I have taken to become a major promoter of reading at my school.
Student Book Recommendations
As students became excited about my morning book reviews and recommendations as part of my 180 #bookaday challenge, I started having students come to me in passing and telling me about a book they were reading and that I "just had to read it" too. I started having teachers have their classes share a book with me that they were really excited about as I went in to do walk-throughs, observations, or visits. I thought, I'm onto something here. So, I decided to have students begin making formal recommendations to me. I gave teachers master copies of book recommendation forms and purchased a "magic book" for the students to drop the recommendations into. (One of those decorative boxes that look like a book that you can find in any home decorating store.) Then, I shared my "magic book" on the announcements and told the students they could choose to recommend books they were reading to me and I would select one student each week to join me on the morning announcements. Another bonus here--they have to write and explain why the book is worthy of their recommendation! I have posted all of the recommendations on the doors to my office. I am beginning to run out of space and plan to begin covering a bulletin board outside my office too. The students are so excited to hear their name called as a presenter and their eyes light up when they see that I have their recommendation hanging in my office.
We are becoming a school community that talks about books, recommends books to others, and views reading as an exciting component of our culture. Through my daily reading challenge, I am reading some great books and feel better equipped to match readers with books. I am trying to lead by example and show my students the joy of reading, and I am reaping the rewards of hearing the excitement in their voices or seeing it in their writing when they are recommending books to me. Just by reading and having a dialogue about books, we are well on our way to becoming a school where readers flourish.
Sunday, September 16, 2012
A Need for Early Childhood Education
One of the first things I read this morning stirred up my passion for early childhood education. In an article titled, Our Children, Our City: In Indiana, we fail our children in thinking early learning is optional, not essential, Scott Ellison and Robert King once again highlight the need for our state to get on board with funding Pre-K programs.
With Indiana's K-3 Reading Initiative to have all 3rd grade students pass a state reading assessment that will determine their readiness to move on to grade 4, you would think that there would be more urgency to help our students come to elementary school better prepared. Have we become so focused on college and career readiness that we are failing to recognize one of the most important times in our students' lives--what happens between birth and age 5?
If you step into any kindergarten classroom, you will quickly recognize that there is a vast range of abilities and school readiness among students. Some will know their alphabet, be able to count, have had experiences with books, and will be able to write their name. Others will not be able to recognize a single letter of the alphabet, have had little to no experiences with books, and may have never picked up a pencil or crayon.
This is my thirteenth year in education, and I can honestly tell you that school-readiness is one of the single-most important factors in determining a child's early and continued success in school. Yet in Indiana children aren't even required by law to attend school until they are age 7, nor are they required to attend kindergarten. These state statutes continue to blow my mind. In the article, Ellis and King contrast the extreme gap in beliefs between an optional early childhood education in Indiana and South Korea's mandate that children begin preschool at age 3. Why does Indiana continue to believe that early learning experiences--including kindergarten-- are optional?
Most legislators will tell you that the answer is simple: money. This may be true, but it is hard to believe that there isn't something more that could be done. After all, the state cut education funding by $300 million dollars a couple of years ago, causing many teachers to lose their jobs and quality educational programs to be cut. Recently, the government announced that they found out that this money was really there--it was an accounting error. (Insert your own comment here.) With that said, other states have been creative and have earmarked funding sources such as their state lottery revenue to help with educational needs--something that Indiana touted when first bringing the state lottery to Hoosiers in 1988. Amazingly, 2012 was the first year that Indiana was able to up the ante on full day kindergarten funding--a one year grant that assisted school corporations enough to be able to offer full day kindergarten free of charge for our patrons--still not fully funding it as touted in the media. In the past, we have charged parents tuition to have their child in a full day program to help offset the funding deficit. Even with the funding increase, we still had to advertise the free full day kindergarten as optional. Fortunately, all of my kindergarten students are full day this year-- something that has been a long time coming! I am looking forward to seeing the payoff for them as they progress through elementary school.
Funding Pre-K will not alleviate all of the gaps in readiness and achievement, but it sure would be a great place to start. If we could get all students at age 3 or 4 into a structured educational environment that allowed them to play, explore, learn, and have rich experiences with literacy and numeracy, I believe we would see an increase in not only the test scores our students are measured with, but in the output of educationally well-rounded and successful "college and career ready" citizens. Shouldn't that be our goal?
Let's continue funding for full day kindergarten, require students to start school by age 5, and find a way to make Pre-K happen, Indiana! Our children are our most valuable resources, and our future depends on it!
With Indiana's K-3 Reading Initiative to have all 3rd grade students pass a state reading assessment that will determine their readiness to move on to grade 4, you would think that there would be more urgency to help our students come to elementary school better prepared. Have we become so focused on college and career readiness that we are failing to recognize one of the most important times in our students' lives--what happens between birth and age 5?
If you step into any kindergarten classroom, you will quickly recognize that there is a vast range of abilities and school readiness among students. Some will know their alphabet, be able to count, have had experiences with books, and will be able to write their name. Others will not be able to recognize a single letter of the alphabet, have had little to no experiences with books, and may have never picked up a pencil or crayon.
This is my thirteenth year in education, and I can honestly tell you that school-readiness is one of the single-most important factors in determining a child's early and continued success in school. Yet in Indiana children aren't even required by law to attend school until they are age 7, nor are they required to attend kindergarten. These state statutes continue to blow my mind. In the article, Ellis and King contrast the extreme gap in beliefs between an optional early childhood education in Indiana and South Korea's mandate that children begin preschool at age 3. Why does Indiana continue to believe that early learning experiences--including kindergarten-- are optional?
Most legislators will tell you that the answer is simple: money. This may be true, but it is hard to believe that there isn't something more that could be done. After all, the state cut education funding by $300 million dollars a couple of years ago, causing many teachers to lose their jobs and quality educational programs to be cut. Recently, the government announced that they found out that this money was really there--it was an accounting error. (Insert your own comment here.) With that said, other states have been creative and have earmarked funding sources such as their state lottery revenue to help with educational needs--something that Indiana touted when first bringing the state lottery to Hoosiers in 1988. Amazingly, 2012 was the first year that Indiana was able to up the ante on full day kindergarten funding--a one year grant that assisted school corporations enough to be able to offer full day kindergarten free of charge for our patrons--still not fully funding it as touted in the media. In the past, we have charged parents tuition to have their child in a full day program to help offset the funding deficit. Even with the funding increase, we still had to advertise the free full day kindergarten as optional. Fortunately, all of my kindergarten students are full day this year-- something that has been a long time coming! I am looking forward to seeing the payoff for them as they progress through elementary school.
Funding Pre-K will not alleviate all of the gaps in readiness and achievement, but it sure would be a great place to start. If we could get all students at age 3 or 4 into a structured educational environment that allowed them to play, explore, learn, and have rich experiences with literacy and numeracy, I believe we would see an increase in not only the test scores our students are measured with, but in the output of educationally well-rounded and successful "college and career ready" citizens. Shouldn't that be our goal?
Let's continue funding for full day kindergarten, require students to start school by age 5, and find a way to make Pre-K happen, Indiana! Our children are our most valuable resources, and our future depends on it!
Sunday, September 9, 2012
A Sense of Belonging
Building a strong sense of community in the classroom is extremely important. This year, as the staff begins making improvements in the area of writer's workshop, we are also emphasizing the importance of building a sense of belonging for our students. If we want our students to feel comfortable speaking and writing about personal experiences, they need a safe and accepting environment in which to do so. One way we are promoting community-building in our classrooms is through "morning meeting" or "community circle."
Fortunately, we have a resident expert in this practice. Our 4/5 High Ability teacher worked with the instructional coach to videotape her morning meeting and gave a highly informational presentation to the staff on what a morning meeting in her classroom consists of. More importantly, she outlined all of the benefits of the morning meeting. The most beneficial element, in my opinion, is the sense of belonging that students get from this daily interaction with their peers. They learn that they are part of a classroom "family" and that they take care of each other, have fun together, and learn together.
Teachers have a lot on their plates right now and may not feel that they have time in their daily schedules to devote to a 15- 20 minute meeting with their class. However, if they take just 15-20 minutes of their day to focus on creating a positive learning community within their classrooms, they may spend less time dealing with behavior issues and may see an increase teamwork, effort, pride, and perseverance.
As I walked through the building last week and witnessed several classrooms having their meetings, it was clear that many of the teachers are seeing the benefits of this daily ritual. I am anxious to see the positive impact on not only their classroom community but on the culture of the entire school. We must continue to create the time to build a positive learning community and help all of our students feel a sense of belonging. It is up to us to help our students find their voice, their role, and their significance in their school community. It is time very well spent!
Fortunately, we have a resident expert in this practice. Our 4/5 High Ability teacher worked with the instructional coach to videotape her morning meeting and gave a highly informational presentation to the staff on what a morning meeting in her classroom consists of. More importantly, she outlined all of the benefits of the morning meeting. The most beneficial element, in my opinion, is the sense of belonging that students get from this daily interaction with their peers. They learn that they are part of a classroom "family" and that they take care of each other, have fun together, and learn together.
Teachers have a lot on their plates right now and may not feel that they have time in their daily schedules to devote to a 15- 20 minute meeting with their class. However, if they take just 15-20 minutes of their day to focus on creating a positive learning community within their classrooms, they may spend less time dealing with behavior issues and may see an increase teamwork, effort, pride, and perseverance.
As I walked through the building last week and witnessed several classrooms having their meetings, it was clear that many of the teachers are seeing the benefits of this daily ritual. I am anxious to see the positive impact on not only their classroom community but on the culture of the entire school. We must continue to create the time to build a positive learning community and help all of our students feel a sense of belonging. It is up to us to help our students find their voice, their role, and their significance in their school community. It is time very well spent!
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