Comprehension Going Forward

In a recent Heinemann email advertisement, I heard about Comprehension Going Forward: Where We Are/What's Next, and I was instantly excited upon seeing so many well-respected contributors, as well as Harvey Daniels as the editor. I could not believe my luck when I saw it at my university library as I was skimming the literacy area for resources for the reading and writing workshop class that I will be teaching. Last night once the girls had fallen asleep and I finished another book I have been reading for my dissertation methodology, I was already tired but could not resist at least glimpsing through the book.

Right from Harvey Daniels' Welcome and Introduction I was hooked. He stated, "In these pages, sixteen distinguished authors show what comprehension instruction looks like when it is 'done right'" (p. 4). He then described a meeting in which the contributors got together to talk about comprehension and the possibility of writing the book. When reading this I was thinking about the energy and buzz that must have been surrounding the meeting, thinking it made me exited to read the book. Shortly after Daniels stated, "I've tried to edit this book so that it feels like the meeting in Denver--conversational, energetic, reflective, principled, forward-looking, and leavened with humor," (p. 6). He also mentioned that one avenue to keep this tone was by having the contributors comment on each others writing in the margins. I thought back to how I loved that aspect in Adolescent Literacy and was glad they decided to weave that component in.

As I started reading Ellin Oliver Keene's first chapter, I could instantly connect, as it focuses on a school closely examining strategy instruction and making sure that the strategies were actually enhancing understanding, rather than students just using strategies to use them. My colleague and I had very similar conversations this year, so I loved being able to catch glimpses into the other teachers' conversations, adding more depth to the voices. It was in that first chapter that I realized, I couldn't read this book as a library copy. Pen in hand and paper beside the book, I was worried that I was going to get so engrossed in the book that at any moment I was going to fly forward with the pen to underline or make a note in the margin before remembering it was not my copy. I also thought about how I would want to have my own copy with my notes right in the book for future reference.

Instead of continuing to read page by page, I started to skim through. I noticed more and more that I loved about the format of the book, as well as noticing many engaging topics. Here are some of my favorite aspects of the book's layout:

• The front flap and first page are a heavier weight of paper, containing a picture of each contributor with a quote and their signature.
• The start of each chapter has the author's signature, which I liked as a more personalized touch.
• Just as with Adolescent Literacy, I did love the comments aspect, but as I ran across them and saw how each comment was signed at the bottom with the commenter's first name, I loved this feature even more. It made it feel even more like a conversation among friends and indeed functioned to give the sense of energy and excitement about being part of the dialogue with each other.
• At the end of the book they compiled a list of the contributors' three favorite books or articles. It is in alphabetical order with and annotation and the contributor's initials at the end.

In her annotation about why Adolescent Literacy is one of her favorite books, Ellin Oliver Keene stated, "How can you not love a book that includes writing about adolescent learning from some of the most learned and practical people in the field today? I think this book sets a new standard for edited volumes. It covers a very wide range of topics and is so reader friendly and useful," (p. 256). I thought to myself that Comprehension Going Forward did an excellent job of meeting up to this new standard for edited volumes and demonstrates many of the same superior qualities as Keene was mentioning.

I have been trying really hard to not buy books until I catch up with the piles and piles of books that I already have waiting to be read. However, the farther I moved forward in the book, I realized that there were multiple links to my dissertation, the one loop hole I put for myself in being able to buy new books. From reading the books list at the end, I decided to also buy Apple and Beane's Democratic Schools, as well as Bracey's Education Hell: Rhetoric vs. Reality.

I noticed on the Heinemann site that Comprehension Going Forward is also offered as a book study bundle. For schools doing a book study, this would be an excellent choice for k-12.

Continuo de adquisición de la lectoescritura

Yesterday I posted about Pinnell and Fountas' The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades PreK-8 and mentioned that I am excited to share it with teachers at my school. However, hearing about great resources is always bitter sweet for Spanish side or bilingual teachers. While many aspects of resources/concepts can be directly translated over to Spanish, that involves time and effort, not to mention, carefully considering aspects that should not just be translated over. It will be so nice to introduce the English and Spanish Prompting Guides and the Continuo de adquisición de la lectoescritura: Grados PreK-2: Guía para la enseñanza, alongside the English continuum resource. I am hoping that eventually Pinnell and Fountas will have a full PreK-8 version available in Spanish.

Like the English PreK-8 version, this Spanish adaptation is neatly divided by card stock dividers with tabs, though the resource is much thinner since it only has a PreK-2 range. The tabs are also for grade levels, rather than type of continuum, with the exception of one guided reading tab; however, the same seven continuums are represented in the book. The introductory and background information about each of the continua is the same or almost exactly the same, but as marketed, there are differences in the continuums, specifically tailored to Spanish literacy development.

Much like the Spanish Prompting Guide,  the vast majority of the book is actually in English. At first I was surprised with the amount of English, which shifts the target audience to teachers who have a high level of English proficiency, rather than monolingual Spanish literacy teachers or bilingual teachers with a high level of Spanish proficiency who prefer a resource in Spanish. I would have liked to have seen more Spanish, especially with literacy language, as there are some words that bilingual professionals, even if they grew up in a Spanish speaking country, might not know if they have received all of their teacher education/literacy background in a US English speaking context. When I started teaching in English and Spanish, there were a lot of words specific to talking about literature and writing that I had to look up. It would be nice to have those translations already available in this resource. In some cases it is, but it would be nice to have it consistently throughout.

However, I would rather see a resource such as this that truly examines what is relevant in both languages vs. what is unique to Spanish, rather than having a full English resource directly translated completely into Spanish without regards to differences in language development. I can also see the advantage of having the explanations and background information in English for teachers who may prefer to read the majority in English but have the specific Spanish language adaptations for the continuum, as presented.

I am excited about the potential for this resource to allow for common language for grade level English side and Spanish side teachers having conversations about literacy levels in two languages. It will really help to give a detailed picture of strengths, areas for support, and aspects that students are (or aren't) transferring between the two languages. The introduction says, "The basic descriptions of behaviors and understandings to notice, teach, and support for grades prekindergarten through 2 have been revised and adapted to meet the developmental literacy needs of Spanish-speaking children" (p. 1). I love the wording notice, teach, and support, as it so accurately highlights benefits of the tool. In dual immersion settings, the continuum actually has a farther reach than native Spanish-speaking children, as it will also provide valuable insights for students who were monolingual English speakers upon entering school who are emerging as bilingual learners.

I can see how this Spanish adaptation in conjunction with their Sistema de evaluación de la lectura would be very powerful because again, for the Spanish student books they did not just translate their English Benchmark Assessment System books. Instead, they created new, authentic books in Spanish that are responsive to the uniqueness of Spanish literacy development. I look forward to checking back later to see other resources that Pinnell and Fountas develop in Spanish.

*Copy provided

The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades PreK-8

Earlier this summer I got a taste of Pinnell and Fountas' Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades PreK-8: A Guide to Teaching second edition through the section they included in Literacy Beginnings. As I was reading through the full book, I noticed that I was switching back and forth between reading like a mom and reading like a teacher. I often looked at the PreK to think about where my five year old is coming from and the kindergarten to see where she is heading this year, I looked at second grade thinking of my older daughter, and of course, I looked at the 6-8 thinking of my students.

I am impressed with the overall resource that is packaged much like Literacy Beginnings with the durable card stock and tab dividers for different sections. After a general introduction, the book is divided into a series of seven continuums, such as shared and performance reading, writing about reading, and oral, visual, and technological communication. Each continuum is detailed by grade level, with the exception of the final continuum Guided Reading (Level A-Z), which breaks it down by guided reading level. In addition, each continuum is broken down into further categories. Some are consistent through multiple continuums, such as thinking within text, thinking beyond text, and thinking about text. As such, the different continuums each have something unique to offer, while complementing each other well, forming a cohesive whole. Pinnell and Fountas took special care in the beginning and throughout the book that the stages are not exact as students progress at different rates, as well as the possibility of being at different places for different aspects.

I love that the resource gives teachers a chance to intentionally think about various aspects of individual students. For example, this would be a powerful resource to use with reading workshop to consider which support would be most appropriate for any given student, as well as really pinpointing strengths and areas of growth. I can see how there would be aspects on the continuum that teachers might not have thought of but upon skimming through, the information could give valuable insights, automatically making perfect sense once the continuum brings it to a surface level of awareness. Over time the resource would definitely be a valuable tool to continue building teacher capacity for meeting student literacy needs.

This is another resource that I am excited to share with teachers next week in our reading and writing workshop course, as well as keeping in mind as I talk with teachers about literacy. Tomorrow I will be posting about the Spanish version for PreK-2.

*Copy provided

Atwell Workshop DVDs

I have mentioned Nancie Atwell's Reading in the Middle and Writing in the Middle DVDs a few times but still have not done an official post of them as a resource. I highly recommend buying the DVDs as the bundle unless you only teach one of the two subjects. Each of the resources comes in a folder with a DVD, a CD with additional resources (including reproducible forms and student examples), and a facilitator's guide. The folder also outlines the titles and times of the different clips, ranging from around a minute to fifteen minutes in length. The reading set contains more than 20 resources on the CD, while the writing set contains more than 45. The facilitator's guide shows how the DVDs and CDs complement each other well, in addition to providing a sample organization and discussion questions.

Both DVDs start and end similarly, showing Atwell setting up her classroom and then reflecting on the end of the classroom. There is some common language in these introductory and concluding clips before shifting to the specific content. A large portion of the video footage is from the start of the school year when Atwell is establishing procedures, but there are also some features that show the progression later on. I love that it showed glimpses from different points in the school year.

Even though I watched the DVDs in the spring when I received them, I just viewed them again to take notes about each section as a future reference, as well as notes about when I might use the resources to supplement the facilitator's guide. With this next school year I will utilize this resource in various contexts. First, I will use it as support materials for a reading and writing workshop training that I will be doing in August. Additional clips will also be beneficial for my colleague that will be filling in for me next year, and I will also use them for the children's literature courses that I will be teaching next year for pre-service teachers. Last spring I showed one of the book talk clips to the children's lit class.

It is always nice to see concepts in action, especially when it is a teacher so highly regarded as Nancie Atwell. I appreciated seeing her calm, yet firm demeanor to set up the ideal workshop environment. This is a great resource to complement the other Atwell resources already available through Heinemann, as well as her Scholastic book, The Reading Zone. We are able to see how her years of experience, teaching intentionally and learning along with her students to determine how to continually improve, have fostered the respectful, stimulating environment of readers, writers, and thinkers shown in the DVDs. This is one of those resources that has value for a range of previous experience, from those who are just familiarizing themselves with workshop to those who are veterans.

One additional aspect is that all royalties from the sales of these resources goes toward tuition assistance for students at the school that Atwell founded in Edgecomb, Maine, the Center for Teaching and Learning. That of course made me happy!

Making Time for Writing

Earlier this summer I received a forwarded message via email of our state superintendent's updates, and my heart sank when I read the following paragraph:

In this budget, the legislature has suspended the writing assessment at 4th and 7th grades and has limited the high school writing test to one opportunity in the 11th grade. This will result in a significant cost shift to districts at a time when they can least afford it and will result in fewer opportunities for our students to demonstrate their mastery of writing. We know that writing is a key predictor of college and career success, and starting in 2013 all students will be required to demonstrate their proficiency in writing in order to meet new graduation requirements. These cuts to the writing assessment mean that we are making it harder for students to earn a high school diploma. Because of this reduction, we will need to ask more of our districts and schools in order to provide the supports and opportunities critical to student success. 

While dismayed, I was not completely shocked. In the previous years I had seen the state go from two raters in grades 4, 7, and 10 to only single scores in 4th and 7th grade to save money. I had heard teachers in Idaho talk about how their writing assessment had already been eliminated. Immediately I also thought, "What's tested is taught," and I sent an email to a team at my school explaining that I hoped we would maintain a focus on writing, despite this change, to the benefit of students long-term.


As I was looking for a link to her announcement, I noticed that back in May Susan Castillo had talked about why she did not agree with proposals to eliminate the assessment. In the article, Kimberly Melton wrote, "But some state lawmakers say they must identify more cuts, including scraping the state writing assessment, a move they say could save the state nearly $3 million. Writing is the only state assessment not required by the federal government." And there it is, confirming my initial thoughts, the logic that if it is not tested, why do we need it? As if writing was not pushed to the side enough already with the majority of the attention shifted to math and reading. I fear that without assessments at different points along the way, there is a big danger that writing just won't happen in many schools (or at least not taught enough). 


Balancing time is always a big area of reflection. Recently Ashlee asked me: 

How do you integrate the use of a notebook in middle school? We don't get a lot of time with the students as it is, so how do you schedule writing time? Every day? Bellwork time? 

About three years ago when I shifted over to being a mainstream teacher (as opposed to ESL and reading pull-out support in the first three years), I started to read voraciously about writing and teaching writing. I remember early on reading about how it is not too uncommon for some schools or teachers to push writing up until the assessment and then not include writing as much or at all. I remember the author(s) advocating for the place that writing has in the curriculum all year long. This highly influenced me, and I have tried to always keep this in mind. Nonetheless, as Ashlee mentioned in her full comment, time is often an issue in language arts when there is so much that it could encompass. 


Throughout the years my schedule has changed. Two years ago, I had longer class blocks. Last year it was shortened to about an hour to an hour and twelve minutes, depending on the class period. It was a difficult juggle trying to decide how to incorporate all that I thought was important in a shorter period of time. Nonetheless, I was dedicated to incorporating writing every single day of the school year. In the very rare occasion that we did something out of the ordinary of our regular workshop schedule, such as watching a Teach for Tolerance film during our Take a Stand Unit, then students did not have writing workshop per se, but they did write a reflection on the video. 


This year, in a typical class about 45 minutes was spent on reading, while around a half an hour was spent on writing. With regards to notebooks, I introduce them early on in the school year and emphasize them as a tool to gather ideas and explore. I also emphasize the power of slice of life stories. As far as whole class, guided activities with writer's notebooks, I typically utilize them more at the start of a genre studies, as we collect and share ideas together before moving into drafting. However, during writing workshop, I let students know that they can always use their writer's notebook to gather more ideas or to aid in other stages of the writing process. 


In my first year of teaching, I did have my high school ESL students start with independent reading, followed by a daily prompt response in their notebooks, but I have not done this since. I have read about others using writer's notebooks for prompt quick writes and would like to experiment with that on a consistent basis again because I think about how I appreciate and grow as a writer because of Laurie Halse Anderson's Write Fifteen Minutes a Day or Ruth Ayres' new discover. play. build. prompts. There are so many possibilities with notebooks... 


Next year the class blocks may be even shorter. Regardless, language arts is always a delicate balance - considering how to integrate everything that we value. I remember reading once that it is essential that every component of language arts serves multiple purposes and to emphasize the link between reading and writing to maximize the time available. I am a firm believer that decisions need to be based on considering the big picture, thinking about the purpose of education, as well as what we think contributes to well-rounded individuals, rather than simply focusing on the narrow range of what is tested.

What Really Matter for Struggling Readers

This summer as I am reading away for my literature review, I have realized that Richard Allington is one of my favorite literacy researchers. While reading his book, What Really Matters for Struggling Readers: Designing Research-Based Programs, so much of what he said resonated with me. I appreciate his convictions that he backs up with quality research, while also providing suggestions on how to be critical consumers of research.

Often when thinking about assessments and student growth, I think about whether or not those assessments are measuring something that I value most highly. In the introduction to the What Really Matters Series, it says, "Our aim is that all children become active and engaged readers and writers and that all develop the proficiencies needed to be strong independent readers and writers" (p. ix), which aligns with what is most often in the back of my mind when evaluating the merit of different opinions on literacy. Throughout the book Allington comes back to this concept often as the title "really matters" implies.

While reading it is easy to see that Allington is an authority in the field, having a strong grasp on the current educational context, as well as the historical roots. I appreciated his thorough explanation of research and policy, as well as the impact of different stakeholders not paying attention to the research. He complements the research with many examples of school and classroom implications. Most importantly, he shares his thought provoking expertise with an engaging voice that makes for an enjoyable read.

Flipping through the book my notes and underlinings are everywhere. If I had to choose one book for literacy teachers to read, this might just be it!

Moving the Classroom Outdoors

New from Stenhouse in both paper and e-book versions is Herbert Broda's Moving the Classroom Outdoors: Schoolyard-Enhanced Learning in Action. I was excited to read more about the possibilities of outdoor learning, a topic that I do not know much about. In fact, the main experience with outdoor learning that I remember as either a teacher or a student was at UNLA, a Mexican university while on exchange. I always loved sitting in one of their two outdoor classroom meeting areas.

As a teacher, I have never utilized the outdoors that much. Very occasionally we would go outside to read or write, but that was about the extent of it. Toward the end of the school year we were talking about outdoor learning as a staff, so I was excited to have a chance to read Broda's book and I will also be sharing it with my co-workers.

Broda divides the book into different chapters followed by spotlights of different people who have incorporated outdoor learning in their schools. As a novice to the concept the book was perfect to highlight the range of ways in which teachers can include outdoor learning. Yet, I think it will also have a lot to offer for those who already incorporate outdoor learning but are looking for new ideas.

Broda emphasizes that teachers should not see it as one more thing to squeeze in, but rather a powerful opportunity to teach aligned to content standards. One of the aspects that I loved the most was that Broda had frequent photographs, as well as expressing possibilities that would require different amounts of time, resources, and involvement levels. While reading I was mainly thinking about my colleagues, thinking it would be more relevant to their content areas; however, the more I read, I realized that there were a lot of language arts possibilities.

Broda did an excellent job of sharing ideas for different content areas, as well as cross-curricular units.  He did not just spark a lot of ideas, but he had tips in order to effectively integrate in outdoor learning including planning (both realistic short term and long term goals), organization, safety, and communication. His son, Matthew Broda, also wrote a chapter about how to weave technology into the concept of outdoor learning.

This summer for one of my doctoral courses we visited two schools in Boise, Idaho, and coincidentally, they both had outdoor learning components. ANSER Charter School incorporates expeditionary learning. A professor in one of my previous classes talked about how his children who are now in at the secondary level still remember a project they did as kindergarteners focusing on birds that the school does every year. The kindergarten classroom is in a portable outside of the main school building. What stood out to me the most was that it was very welcoming and inviting, instantly making me think about my Mom's yard and the hours of joy that my daughters spend in it when we visit. There is a beautiful archway as well as a wooden fence that a parent made in the shape of different birds. What lucky kindergarteners! The general playground also has a gazebo. Another school, Taft Elementary, has a beautiful garden that the school community has been developing in different stages with square foot gardening. It was impressive to see how far their garden had come, as well as hearing about future plans.

Reading Moving the Classroom Outdoors soon after visiting these two schools helped me to picture even more some of the many potential ways to integrate outdoor learning at different levels: individual classroom, cross-classroom, whole school, and community levels. While reading, I also thought about how this book complements Georgia Heard's A Place for Wonder well. I look forward to seeing the role that outdoor learning will play at our school.

*Copy provided by the publisher

Reading and Writing Workshop Training: Writer's Notebooks

Yesterday I shared which Heinemann resources I will use for an upcoming Reading and Writing Workshop Training. A huge portion of the workshop will focus on teachers as writers, as well as experiencing the workshop setting from the learner side. As such, I will be using writer's notebooks to model the process of gathering ideas, mirroring the process that I use with my students. 

Back in 2007 I went on a summer exchange for educators to Mexico (now located in Argentina) through AHA International and had a course with Dr. Marsha Riddle Buly. Through the class, I was introduced to writer's notebooks and am so thankful that I attended the course as it has definitely been a pivotal experience for me as a literacy teacher. I continue to value the power of writer's notebooks that she introduced to me.

After Dr. Riddle Buly sparked my interest in notebooks, I began to read more and more, as well as integrating them into my classes and learning through experience. Aimee Buckner's book was highly influential, as well as posts on Two Writing Teachers.

I also absolutely love Ruth Ayres new blog that focuses on her as a writer, giving frequent glimpses into her writer's notebooks. I will be highly recommending this site, as well as participating in Two Writing Teacher's Slice of Life Story Challenges.

Reading and Writing Workshop Training: Heinemann Resources

This summer my to-do list keeps on growing, but one of the items that I am most looking forward to is putting on a training for teachers at my school and potentially a couple from another school in the area focusing on k-8 reading and writing workshop. I will be posting about my planning, as well as how it goes, but for now I wanted to post some of the main Heinemann resources that I will be utilizing.

From Nancie Atwell:

Her DVD bundle Reading in the Middle and Writing in the Middle (I still need to post about these.)

Lessons that Change Writers

It looks like the school will end up being able to get Lucy Calkin's workshop resources. I am crossing my fingers and can't wait to actually preview these materials in preparation. I think Calkin's resources will be the perfect k-5 support, while the 6-8 teachers will be able to utilize Atwell's Lessons that Teach Writers that the school already has.

Units of Study for Primary Writing: A Yearlong Curriculum

Units of Study for Teaching Writing, Grades 3-5

Tomorrow I will be posting about writer's notebooks in relation to the training.