In Forged by Reading: The Power of a Literate Life, Kylene Beers and Bob Probst offer insights and strategies to help teachers consider how reading and writing relate to change, power, and hope. Reviewer Katie Durkin highly recommends the book as a tool to examine practice.
High interest text sets tied to essential questions and in varied formats help emergent bilinguals stick with a particular topic as they learn how to read strategically. Elizabeth Hagan and her colleagues brought Malala Yousafzai to students’ attention with a range of sources.
“Let’s face it, adolescence isn’t plump full of safety and confidence. It’s a developmental stage in which students want and need to be connected and valued.” No wonder middle schoolers dread the “correction” approach to grammar. Jeff Anderson and Travis Leech have found a better way.
Sunny Nwazue discovers she is a witch in Nnedi Okorafor’s novel about how a girl raised amid Nigerian-American culture experiences tween life in Nigeria. Dina Strasser recommends the book for its overt tackling of racism, ableism, and sexism as well as its narrative magic.
Collaboration / The Unstoppable ML Teacher
by Tan Huynh · Published 03/23/2021 · Last modified 03/28/2021
Every co-teaching partnership has a story. One of language specialist Tan Huynh’s partnerships started off rough but became the most collaborative team-up in all his years teaching. Why? They created a schedule that included co-planning time and used the time strategically.
Similar to the benefits of class read-alouds and independent reading, podcasts can be incorporated as a way to increase students’ understanding of stories and information, with kids often making “text to self” connections. Kathie Palmieri includes sources and favorites.
Close Reading the Media / Visual Literacy
by Frank Baker · Published 03/16/2021 · Last modified 03/17/2021
So much of our world is visual. Helping students learn how to “read” images and detect fakery and manipulation should be part of a 21st century education. Media literacy expert Frank Baker shares lots of ideas, insights and resources to get teachers and students started.
To celebrate Women’s History Month, middle grades teacher Kasey Short offers a list of nonfiction and fiction books representing a wide range of girl’s and women’s voices and experiences. All students benefit from reading about smart, brave women who make positive impacts.
Podcasts / Reading for the 21st Century
by Alex Valencic · Published 03/08/2021 · Last modified 03/09/2021
Professional books play an important role in every savvy educator’s growth and development. Podcasts can serve the same purpose, writes instructional leader Alex Valencic. Podcasts not only stimulate our thinking, they lead us to new authors and help us expand our PLNs.
If you are considering attending a virtual education conference or have an opportunity to present virtually in 2021, do it! MS teacher and conference veteran Kasey Short shares tips for session selection, virtual connecting, avoiding screen overload, notetaking, and more.
