Shirley McPhillips’ Poem Central invites students to move through poetry that we might not know exactly how to teach and to live with those words on their own terms – not needing us to facilitate all meaning and experience for them, says Jenni Miller.
Teaching with Text-Based Questions: Helping Students Analyze Nonfiction and Visual Texts is precisely what teachers will need to jumpstart critical thinking, high quality conversations, and tight writing, says reviewer Tess Alfonsin.
Calling academic language “the lifeblood of learning in all classes,” Jeff Zwiers describes how focusing on language use will lead to improved student achievement. Then he shows teachers how to help build it, says reviewer Mara Southorn.
David Booth’s Caught in the Middle is one of those rare books that truly has the capacity to help a teacher carve out a roadmap for a successful year of working with middle school readers and writers, says reviewer Jenni Miller.
Teaching with Comics / Working Draft
by Kevin Hodgson · Published 06/17/2014 · Last modified 11/27/2019
Often students are given graphic novels in a last-ditch effort to spark an interest in reading. In Kevin Hodgson’s 6th grade classes, comics are treated seriously as tools to promote better writing & deeper comprehension, using a unique skill set.
The Common Core Writing Book: Lessons for a Range of Tasks, Purposes, and Audiences by Gretchen Owocki provides quick, practical strategies closely aligned with each of the standards, says reviewer Linda Biondi. A sure winner in grades 4 & 5!
The topic of dictionaries came up in assorted conversations in the past few weeks, reminding Kevin Hodgson both of the power of those esteemed books of words as symbols of thought and scholarship, and the ways in which technology is completely altering the ease and means of how we find information when we need it.
Working Draft / Writing with Students
by Kevin Hodgson · Published 04/22/2014 · Last modified 11/16/2019
Eager to muse about the future of writing instruction, Kevin Hodgson calls on the handy ThingLink app to share reflections with nine authors featured in April’s Educational Leadership magazine. Penny Kittle, Carol Jago, Jeff Anderson, et al – read this!
Book Reviews / ELA with Digital Tools
by MiddleWeb · Published 04/18/2014 · Last modified 11/17/2019
In Create Compose Connect! Jeremy Hyler and Troy Hicks present strategies that can balance the need for rigor with reading and writing in the classroom – meeting the CCSS – while still meeting young people with technology that is relevant for them.
Former principal Sue Stephenson describes how she and a team of teachers recently helped seventh graders prepare and perform standup comedy routines, all the while learning serious writing, speaking and personal living skills. Video link included!
