While the month of April may not feel as packed with fun holidays as some months, there are still a lot of holidays and themes we can bring into the classroom to integrate into science and social studies. There’s spring, Earth Day, and Easter (even if it’s in the form of bunnies and chicks). One […]
When you hear the phrases RTI, intervention activities, and reading intervention support, how do you feel? What comes to mind? I know when I was in my early years in the classroom, it hurt my brain. Managing RTI and intervention activities were just going to send me over the edge some years, but I really […]
Learn how to use a science-based approach to teaching high-frequency words called “heart words”. Early in my teaching career, I can remember telling parents to practice high-frequency words at home. I told them to make flashcards and practice, practice, practice. I often explained that these words had “tricky parts” in them and that some of […]
Interactive read aloud lessons are powerful. When you have a quality book and an effective lesson, you can get so much bang for your buck when it comes to teaching. Students are usually captive when you read aloud to them. You can use this time to build and deepen their comprehension skills. But do you […]
When it comes to the science of reading research, how do you feel? Do you want to learn more, but aren’t sure where to start? Do you feel like a rising expert, but need more ways to help your students master foundational reading and writing skills? Or maybe you’re somewhere in the middle and just […]
No matter what grade you teach in elementary, helping students develop strong social-emotional skills is always a part of your unspoken curriculum. Helping our young students grow into confident, kind adults can be done in so many different ways. One of my favorite ways to do this is to use books to teach social skills. […]
When it comes to teaching students to learn how to read, there are so many different resources and tools for teachers. One of my favorite tools is a reading passage. You can pack so much teaching and practice into such a short amount of text with reading passages. But which kind should you use – […]
February sure has lots of fun holidays and events to celebrate – Groundhog Day, President’s Day, and Valentine’s Day. The list goes on. But do you know what we can celebrate on February 1st? World Read Aloud Day! World Read Aloud Day is a day to celebrate the power of reading aloud and sharing stories. […]
Interactive read aloud lessons were always one of my favorite times of the day. Not only do you get to gather your students together and help them develop a love for reading and expose them to a variety of books, but you get to help them strengthen their reading skills and strategies to build a […]
If you’re letting go of running records or wondering if they’re the best thing for your readers, but aren’t sure where to start, you are not alone, friend! Many of us have used running records and the MSV three-cueing system in our reading small groups. If you’re like me, I took many running records on […]
Are you looking for books for your January read alouds to help your students develop strong reading comprehension skills? If so, then you’re in luck! The good news is that the month of January easily lends itself to books with great themes. Some of them include winter, the new year, and Martin Luther King, Jr. […]
Use these making predictions activities and lesson plan ideas to help your students develop stronger reading comprehension. When you’re sitting and reading a book aloud to your students, how do you know they’re engaged and listening? How can you tell students are listening to learn and comprehend? One easy way is to find out if […]
An important component of reading comprehension is the ability to synthesize or draw from multiple sources to gain new information. If you teach reading strategies, chances are you’ve heard this term before, but what exactly does it mean for our young readers? And how can you help students learn this skill? Learning how to teach […]
One morning, I had a conversation with my four year old that reminded me about why morphology is important. It went a little something like this… Daughter: “Mom, Mrs. Miller is the kinder teacher I’ve ever met.” Me: After thinking for a minute. “Are you saying Mrs. Miller is the most kind teacher you have […]
With all of the science of reading research coming to the surface over the last few years, there have been so many words floating around. I’ve been getting lots of emails from teachers asking about the “ph” words: phonemic awareness, phonological awareness, and phonics. I don’t blame them – there is so much to relearn […]
October is always such a fun time in the classroom! It starts to feel like fall (for the Texans at least), and there are so many fun fall-themed activities I loved to bring out for my students. One great way to bring in the season and holidays is with read alouds. October read alouds can […]
We’ve all learned so much now that the science of reading research has come to light in the past few years. We’ve learned that our young readers need explicit and frequent phonics instruction. We also learned that our approach to reading small groups needs changes like how we prompt our readers and how we assess […]
Many of you who have been around for a while know our family is an adoptive family. When we first brought my daughter home, we saw firsthand how little she had been read to at the age of three. She had no interest in books. The more we read to her and the more she […]
