Reading is not an easy task for young readers. Children need to practice various reading strategies to become skillful readers. A lot of reading strategies have been shared with educators through professional books and websites.[1] Simple keywords searches on the internet will also bring many resources for teachers, including how-to videos and downloadable worksheets. Indeed, … Continue reading Story Train: A Strategy for Retelling, Summarizing, and Sequencing by Jongsun Wee
#ReadingWars and Equity by Allison Sirovy
Following the #ReadingWars on social media? If you are, you may feel like me—lost and confused. Although I teach middle school English, reading instruction is near and dear to my heart because I teach in a school where many of our readers are considered striving readers. (Please note the phrase "striving readers." It is intentional: … Continue reading #ReadingWars and Equity by Allison Sirovy
“It’s Not the Teacher’s Job”: Talking About Death and Death-Related Grief with Picture Books in Classrooms by Jongsun Wee and Heather J. Fye
Introduction Death was not taboo in children’s literature before the 20th century (Clement and Jamali 5), but its presence disappeared from after World War I to the 1970s in Western children’s literature (12). Death is still a controversial topic and difficult to talk about. Some adults may avoid discussing death as they wish to guard … Continue reading “It’s Not the Teacher’s Job”: Talking About Death and Death-Related Grief with Picture Books in Classrooms by Jongsun Wee and Heather J. Fye
Five Ways in Which High-Quality Literacy Instruction Can Increase Student Interest in Our Content Areas by Kelly Birkett
[pdf version here: Birkett-FiveWays] Each year, on the day after Labor Day, the invasion begins. We stand in the hall next to our classrooms at the sound of the warning bell, and feel the adrenaline rush through our veins as we hear the sound of excited chatter of our new students. It continues to pulse … Continue reading Five Ways in Which High-Quality Literacy Instruction Can Increase Student Interest in Our Content Areas by Kelly Birkett
Increasing Student Motivation in the Classroom by Mary Jo Kerekes
[pdf version here: MaryJoKerekes-StudentMotivation] How do I increase student motivation in my classroom? It is a question that I ask daily. Some students have a desire to “get a good grade”, others have a desire to learn something new, and others….well um...just really don’t seem to care. They are in class because they “have to be” … Continue reading Increasing Student Motivation in the Classroom by Mary Jo Kerekes
The “Write” Track: Effectively Leading Your School to Incorporate Writing in Every Classroom by Jennifer Simpson
[pdf version here: Simpson-TheWriteTrack] Currently, 42 states, the District of Columbia, four territories, and the Department of Defense Education Activity have adopted the Common Core State Standards (NGA). Minnesota adopted the ELA standards, but not the math. Within the Common Core Standards for English Language Arts, there are specific writing standards that have been a … Continue reading The “Write” Track: Effectively Leading Your School to Incorporate Writing in Every Classroom by Jennifer Simpson
Making Literacy Teaching a Priority in a Culturally Diverse Classroom by Adrienne Rische
[pdf version here: Rische-LiteracyTeachingCulturallyDiverse] Implementing culturally relevant pedagogy in the classroom has become an increasingly important priority for English teachers. In this piece, I will explore the difficulties that come with selecting culturally relevant texts and many of the misconceptions that teachers have about teaching literacy in culturally diverse classrooms. It has not been long since … Continue reading Making Literacy Teaching a Priority in a Culturally Diverse Classroom by Adrienne Rische
Read Them Together: Paired Book Reading for Global Literature by Jongsun Wee & Barbara A. Lehman
[pdf version here: Wee-Lehman-ReadThemTogether] Abstract: The need for global literature is growing as the society rapidly becomes more diverse. This study documented American children’s responses to global literature when it was paired with a home country book. The data were collected in a third grade classroom in a midwestern state. The results showed that in paired … Continue reading Read Them Together: Paired Book Reading for Global Literature by Jongsun Wee & Barbara A. Lehman
Minnesota Preservice Teachers’ Perceptions of LGBT-Themed Children’s Literature by Jongsun Wee
[pdf version here: Wee-Perceptions of LGBT-themed Children’s Literature] Diversity is an important topic that preservice teachers need to explore a great deal before they launch their career. The state of Minnesota recognizes the importance of understanding diverse learners in education and lists it in standard 3 in Minnesota Standards of Effective Practice for Teachers (see: … Continue reading Minnesota Preservice Teachers’ Perceptions of LGBT-Themed Children’s Literature by Jongsun Wee
Teaching The Giving Tree by Kandi Heenan
[pdf version here: Heenan-TeachingTheGivingTree] Introduction The struggle is real. Defending the significance of using literature across the curriculum is something many instructors face—especially teaching “kid’s books.” Lessons, moral or academic, can be gained from any type or genre of literature. Children’s books specifically, even those as perceivably simplistic as works by authors like Seuss and … Continue reading Teaching The Giving Tree by Kandi Heenan
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