Summer Reading Wrap-Up

This summer I have enjoyed reading so many great books that will contribute to shaping my curriculum this year. Best of all, they complement my literacy philosophy and will improve what I was already doing rather than a total overhall of my beliefs of best practices. The countdown is on, and I officially have just 26 days until the teacher return date at my school. This weekend I decided to read three more professional development books, while continuing to revisit previous materials as I have been synthesizing concepts from multiple resources.

Here are the remaining new books, and I read a little bit from each last night. I just could not choose which one to read since I am interested in all of them.



Mechanically Inclined: Building Grammar, Usage, and Style into Writer's Workshop by Jeff Anderson

I got a lot out of Anderson's Everyday Editing, so I am excited to see his first book where he originally presented his ideas. The two books are invaluable resources, and I can't wait to see the difference in my students' writing once I introduce his ideas this year. It will even help me to be more conscious of "good" writing as I am modeling writing for my students.



TeamWork: Setting the Standard for Collaborative Teaching, Grades 5-9 by Monique D. Wild, Amanda S. Mayeaux, and Kathryn P. Edmonds

This book just came in the mail along with Mechanically Inclined yesterday. Since my original blog focuses on balancing time between career and family, I am interested to see the tips that this book will have to best utilize my time at work.



Lessons that Change Writers by Nancie Atwell

Earlier this year I was very excited when my director fulfilled my request to get Nancie Atwell's mini-lesson bundle through Heinemann. I have always loved Atwell resources. During the year I was able to start implementing the other half of the bundle Naming the World for poetry. I also just bought In The Middle again. Last year I checked it out from the library, but I decided that I would want my personal copy to refer to frequently. Lessons that Change Writers looks like it will be a great complementary text because it shows how Atwell's classroom has evolved since she wrote her previous books.