November - So Much to Look Forward To...

Earlier I posted about how I was excited for my first annual convention and the release of Notice and Note in November. Now I have two more reasons to be excited...

This week the July 2012 NCTE Council Chronicle with the annual convention preview arrived in my mailbox. As I was skimming through, there were plenty of reasons to know that it will be worth every penny. I loved this line from Sandy Hayes' welcome, "In reading through the mountain of session proposals, I realized that NCTE members share a kind of double vision with Bradbury's time traveler: we have the capacity to see things not only as they are but also as they could be. We aspire to change our world by embracing complexity, considering research, collaborating, working hard, and stretching toward an ideal" (p. 4). Right off the bat with the Preconvention Sessions the tough decisions will begin. All four sessions look amazing, but I will most likely either go to see Teaching: The Questions We Ask and the Answers We Find with Jim Burke, Penny Kittle, and Kelly Gallagher or Building Reading Communities Online and Off with Donalyn Miller, Sara Kajder, Teri Lesesne, and Franki Sibberson. See why it will be so hard to decide!

As if the regular components of the convention weren't enough for building anticipation, I decided that it would be worth it to stay the two extra days for the ALAN postconvention workshop. I have heard about all of the authors present and the box of books that comes along with it from one of my university professors. Originally I held back because of the additional expenses, but this week I decided that since this may be the only time I financially prioritize in order to go to the annual convention, I might as well get the full experience. Of course, as soon as I purchased it, I noticed the CEL Writing as Leadership postconvention with Penny Kittle, Tom Romano, Peg Tyre, Casey Olsen, Kelly Gallagher, and Harvey "Smokey" Daniels. So tempting, but alas, I can't attend both and have already signed up for ALAN. Like the Boothbay Literacy Retreat, this convention will be one of those dream PD opportunities.

When I was still buzzing with excitement over adding on the ALAN postconvention, I happened to stop by the Heinemann site again. Either this was just posted or I completely missed it last time, but an upcoming release for Penny Kittle is listed, Book Love: Developing Depth, Stamina, and Passion in Adolescent Readers. And yes, just like Notice and Note, I automatically pre-ordered it and can't wait for its anticipated November release. Just seeing Penny Kittle's name on it is enough to prompt that though, but I am really excited for the topic as well. It aligns well with my dissertation research and my intended continual focus on engaging and sustaining adolescent readers.

In the midst of the school year, November will be something to look forward to. Two weeks from today I officially start the school year with teacher work days, but between now and then I will meet with K-5 colleagues to discuss how the first year of reading and writing workshop went as well as thoughts for the upcoming year. Then I will also get together with some colleagues for our August for fun book club. Once the school year gets started, the months will be moving in fast forward.

November will be a nice month. The convention will fall a few weeks into the second quarter. The whirl of events that come with parent teacher conferences and the first quarter report cards will be complete. I will head out mid-week and when I return we will be on Thanksgiving break. A nice chance to let ideas from the conference settle and to savor time with family after being away. Both the convention and the quick break immediately after will be a chance to recharge and savor what has happened so far in the year and glimpse ahead to the possibilities for the remainder of the year.

Who else is planning on going to NCTE?

What upcoming professional books are you looking forward to their releases?

Notice and Note - So Excited

Today I was on Heinemann's site seeing if there was a book that I would be able to get in order to use up my extra credit points that I had accumulated before they phased out that program. I was thrilled to get What Readers Really Do. It had caught my attention previously, but after reading Pat Johnson's thoughts about it on the Catching Readers blog, I knew I would want to read it.

Needless to say, finding out that I had enough credit points to get the book had me excited enough. Then I was skimming the new books and was even more excited to see that Notice and Note: Strategies for Close Reading by Kylene Beers and Robert Probst is now officially on the page, providing the first glimpses into the front cover, table of contents, a Notice & Note flyer...

I first heard about the ideas behind the book when I attended the Boothbay Literacy Retreat two years ago. I loved the concept from the start and their thoughts about what to notice while reading have changed the way that I read and have influenced mini-lessons that I have taught to middle schoolers. By looking over the flyer, it seems like Beers and Probst have continued to refine and craft the book. I noticed the subtitle is a clear link to the buzz about close reading with the common core. I look forward to see how it all came together.

I am going to go ahead and pre-order the book now (estimated publication of November 15, 2012). I will also be attending my first NCTE annual convention later in the month, so there's some fun treats in store for November!

Pathways to the Common Core: Accelerating Achievement

On Sunday I finished Pathways to the Common Core: Accelerating Achievement by Lucy Calkins, Mary Ehrenworth, and Christopher Lehman. It is amazing! I would highly recommend it as a starting point for deeply understanding the underlying values behind the standards as well as some research-based suggestions for implementing them. 

In contrast to some resources out there, one of the most valuable assets to this book is the prevalence of teachers as professionals with knowledge about their schools and students. This is one of many sections from the book that I loved, highlighting teacher knowledge, "Any educator who wants to play a role in shaping what happens in schools, therefore, needs a deep understanding of these standards. That understanding is necessary for anyone wanting to be a co-constructor of the future of instruction and curriculum and, indeed, of public education across America," (p. 1).  

Rather than trying to sell a rigid, one-size-fits all implementation, the authors provide experiences for teachers to understand the standards and then consider what would be the best for their schools and students by collaborating together, rather than working in isolation. They also highlight the advantage of gaining a deep knowledge of what the standards do and don't entail in order to critically examine what others market as Common Core aligned implementations or resources. 

In the introduction they also provide a nice overview of common statements against the CCSS (reading as curmudgeons) as well as tapping in to what is positive about them (reading as if they were gold). I appreciated the way they set this acknowledging that there are concerns, but then moving into a solution oriented framework for making some positive changes given our current context of education. Embedded in related discussions throughout the book, the authors provide background of where we have been and where we can go with this reform effort if we have sound implementations that rely on teachers as professionals. In my summer reading list, I mentioned that my doctoral program sparked my interest for school reform and cultures of change, especially for authors such as Michael Fullan. The type of professional cultures that Calkins, Ehrenworth, and Lehman advocate align with what I love about the literature in general, including some quotes from Fullan. 

One can read the book for personal understanding; however, also embedded is a nice layer of suggestions for leading discussions and experiences among staff in order to have a collective understanding of the standards in order to develop school-wide goals. I especially loved that they referenced many free resources available on the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project site.

Pathways to the Common Core will surely be one of those books that I will read again and again. As I continue to gear up for the school year, thinking about how I will improve my practice with the values of the Common Core in mind, I also want to revisit Supporting Students in a Time of Common Core: English Language Arts Grades 6-8 published by NCTE.

Focusing on Assessment: Accessible Assessment for Older Grades

Earlier this week I wrote about how much I love the new resource, Accessible Assessment. I mentioned that it is recommended for grades 2-6, but that I would share ideas for using it in 6th-12th grade, as the resource still has a lot to offer for older grades.

Here are a few reasons why the resource is still relevant for older readers:

• The level of reflection that it supports is valuable for teachers at all levels to consider how they can closely examine how mindfully and intentionally they are using (or not using) assessments
• The concept that reading assessments should consider affective, global, and local assessments, rather than a more narrow view is still applicable
• The resource has flexibility to select from their provided assessments or adapt
• The resource provides an excellent framework for planning assessment throughout the year and recording data in a way that is manageable. Even if some aspects with the actual assessments need to be adapted for older grades, the helpful framework is still relevant.

While reading I could tell that some aspects were more appropriate for younger readers; yet, I thought about how that is where adaptation and/or differentiation comes in. For example, many adolescent readers that I have worked with did not need support with phonics, so I would not administer their local assessment related to this area to all students. In fact, even the authors recommend optimal grade levels to administer the assessment, rather than for all grades. Instead, it would be an aspect that I would keep in mind that may impact some of my older readers. When I notice that potential need for further support, then I would have ideas for assessments that may be appropriate. 

Another potential adaptation that I thought of as reading is that the authors provide a Reading Attitude and Identity Survey. It seemed very familiar to another survey that I was familiar with and previously used with my students, Adolescent Motivation to Read Profile (Pitcher et al., 2007), which was adapted from Gambrell et. al (1996). Once I double checked the article that talked about the adolescent version, I realized that they were similar because the survey provided in Accessible Assessment was also adapted from Gambrell et. al (1996) as well. Thus, teachers of adolescents who want to use the concept of being more cognizant of affective aspects in their classrooms could use or adapt the AMRP, rather than using the survey provided in the book. However, they could still use the rationale and suggestions of how to organize the data and consider teaching implications from Accessible Assessment.

The grade level reading passages included in Accessible Assessment only provide two passages each for grades 2-5, so this is another area that would need to be adapted for older readers. For the last few years I used QRI in my classroom. It provides a lot of informative information but can also be time-consuming. I had already made decisions, as suggested in the QRI text, in order to decide how I wanted to use the tool since it would be way too time-consuming to use it to its full capabilities with every single student; nonetheless, conducting QRIs still used quite a bit of class time. However, when reading Accessible Assessments, I liked some of their ideas about grade-level passages that aligned with their over-all concept of manageable assessments. Since the passages included with the resource would not be appropriate for most older readers, I would suggest trying out some of their ideas with grade-level passages from other resources. 

Overall, the underlying philosophy and beliefs behind Accessible Assessment, as well as the level of deep conversations that it inspires, transcend a wide range of age groups. This post contains a few of my thoughts on how I would utilize the resource with adolescents. While I pointed out some aspects that would need to be adapted for older students, there were many other ideas that would still be appropriate for older readers without adapting. Many aspects would nicely weave into the conferring portion of reading workshop. I am sure that other secondary teachers would also notice the value and would be able to add valuable contributions to an on-going discussion about assessment at the secondary level.

Articles cited:

Gambrell, L. B., Palmer, B. M., Codling, R. M., & Mazzoni, S. A. (1996). Assessing motivation to read. The Reading Teacher, 49, 518-533.

Pitcher, S. M., Albright, L. K., DeLaney, C. J., Walker, N. T., Seunarinesingh, K., Mogge, S. ... Dunston, P.J. (2007). Assessing adolescents' motivation to read. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 50(5), 378-396.

Focusing on Assessment: Accessible Assessment

I read Accessible Assessment: How 9 Sensible Techniques Can Power DATA-DRIVEN Reading Instruction in order to consider recommendation for inclusion as a required text for coursework at my university. When I first heard about the text, it captured my attention, seeming like it would be a good fit with the current context of education, including the move toward the Common Core State Standards. It also seemed to recognize the need for assessments that are meaningful and manageable. Furthermore, information I read about the book provided glimpses into the scope of the assessments, ranging from affective, global, and local, an aspect that stood out, knowing that they were not narrowly defining what counts for readers. I knew that I would want to take a close look at this resource because if it was as good as it sounded, it would have so much potential.

The back cover states, "Accessible Assessment isn't like many of today's complex, time-consuming assessment programs. It combines nine informal techniques into a manageable, calendarized framework that makes sense and drives highly targeted, differentiated instruction." Once I started reading, it was easy to see that the back cover provided a very accurate description.

Another asset of the text is the strong underlying layers of support for rich discussions. Not only did the authors outline their ideas and provide rationales for the inclusion, they provided a framework and encouraged discussions for deep reflection and dialogue. They made it clear that they were not simply "selling" their assessment ideas. For example, they stated, "Users of Accessible Assessment need to keep in mind that they can decide from among the nine assessments provided, from among those they currently use, or from research-based sources to design an assessment protocol that addresses affective, global, and local knowledge" (p. xv).

The introductory section frames the rest of the book by explaining their literacy beliefs and discussing four essential questions that they bring up while discussing each of the assessments throughout the text. They also provided a strong rationale for why they think the recommended assessments can have a positive impact on teachers and students, as well as an example of how one teacher could utilize the book, modeling the active participation involved in the assessment process, rather than approaching the resource with a receptive approach.

Following the introduction, the authors detail each of the assessments in a very user-friendly, organized fashion, divided by the three types of assessments (affective, global, and local). For each individual assessment within the three sections, the authors started with their four essential questions that not only scaffold reflective teaching but also provide a rationale for the assessment. Then they provide support materials (when applicable) and clear descriptions of the assessments, as well as suggestions for how to use the data. Each of the instructional implications sections highlighted whole-group instruction, small-group reading, independent reading, and cross-content suggestions. In addition, they provided specific examples of how to make the concepts present in the classroom. The end of each section was one of my favorites - teacher and student self-assessment, yet another layer to support continual development of capacity.

The end of the book includes further explanation of the assessment beliefs that drove their decision making process while creating this resource, drawing from research and experience. The following statement caught my attention, "The beliefs are an out-growth of our combined eighty years of experiences that span teaching and assessing reading in grade levels and content areas from kindergarten through college, and with both novice and veteran teachers," (p. 153).

The more I read, the more I loved it and recognized the value of the resource for a range of scenarios: higher education coursework, mentoring, teaching, summer literacy camps, etc. Though the text is marketed for grades 2-6, many of the assessments would still be relevant for older students. I will write a future post about what I would recommend for 6th-12th grade teachers. Their range of experiences (highlighted in the paragraph above) are very present in the text making it truly beneficial for educators in a variety of positions and at different stages in their careers. I will be recommending the text to the director at the school where I taught the last three years and to my department for inclusion in course(s).

Focusing on Assessment: The Hook Behind the Resources

I started this post intending to write about Accessible Assessment after talking a little bit about a common thread between it and So What Do They Really Know? Yet, I realized that my writing was going in another direction. I still had more to say about just why the types of assessments we use are so vital and as a result, why both of these texts hooked me because of their close alignment to my literacy beliefs.

The current context of education definitely has a sharp focus on data and assessment, yet I am at times worried with the type of assessments that are valued and the decisions that educators make about students based on limited data and/or without considering the full student. I know that at times teachers are not allowed to control some of the decision making process, and depending on the context, they may fall anywhere on a spectrum ranging from feeling like they are treated like a technician to feeling like a professional. Yet, I still have strong beliefs that regardless of where teachers encounter themselves, the more they understand about assessment and data the better, allowing them to carefully analyze expectations and practice in order to improve as a practitioner.

My dissertation in progress is a narrative inquiry, so I have been closely analyzing and considering my personal teaching experiences including both ends of the spectrum. My third year teaching, I was in a context where I mainly taught sixth graders with scripted reading instruction with strict expectations to follow the curriculum with fidelity, leaving little room for implementing other aspects that I highly valued.

At the time I was completing a practicum for my reading endorsement, and revisiting my practicum journal has reminded me just how conflicted I felt. The way that I taught that year clashed with my personal literacy philosophy, yet I did not necessarily feel confident that I "had all the answers". I knew what I would do if given the flexibility, but I also knew that along with that, I would need to have a supportive environment that would allow for space to build capacity over time.

During that year, placements were made primarily on measures of oral reading "fluency" (narrowly defined as speed) and in-program placement tests. I knew the needs of students in my classes were very different, and Marsha Riddle Buly influenced this thought process the summer prior when she taught a course that I attended while on exchange to Mexico. She shared articles* that she had written about findings from a study she and a colleague conducted about the varied needs of students who did not meet state assessments in Washington.

Experiences with one parent in particular stand out from that year - a parent who wanted answers, wanted to know what her child truly needed to grow as a reader. She checked in with me, as well as a couple of school leaders. I did not feel that she received the information she needed to know, a true diagnostic assessment. I was able to notice a lot about her in class, but the program and in-program assessments did not really get at the big picture, and I was told to focus on instruction. However, I knew that diagnostics and instruction were intertwined. This was an area where I would want to continually grow, and I knew that in order to truly understand my students' needs and have the flexibility to adapt instruction to tailor to those needs, I needed to look for a new position.

The few years after I had the opportunity to continually build on my base of knowledge and teach in a way that aligned with all those thoughts of how I would respond to student needs if I was not bound to a scripted program. I became familiar with a wider range of assessments and data, some more helpful than others and some easier than others to manage time-wise.

Based on my experiences, that is why as I read Accessible Assessment and So What Do They Really Know? the authors' assessment philosophies stood out so much. With those thoughts in mind, I think I will be ready to continue on with a look at each of these resources in my next posts.

*References for Riddle Buly articles.
Riddle Buly, M., & Valencia, S. W. (2002). Below the bar: Profiles of students who fail state reading assessments. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 24(3), 219-239.

Valencia, S. W., & Riddle Buly, M. (2004). Behind test scores: What struggling readers really need. The Reading Teacher, 57(6), 520-531.

Focusing on Assessment: What Really Matters?

Last week I mentioned that I would be doing a series of posts Focusing on Assessment, including thoughts about two books I just read, Accessible Assessment and So What Do They Really Know? In the next couple of days I will talk about each of these resources separately, but first I wanted to highlight one aspect that stood out right away as I was reading each of the books. Throughout the resources the intentionality behind assessments and the recognition that not all assessments and data are equally helpful for teachers was ever-present. All of the authors advocated for helpful assessments, those assessments that can truly provide teachers with data to inform instruction. 

As an educator, when reading resources, it is essential to see that the authors have an understanding of the current context of teaching and of the demands on teachers' times. The authors of both books did so. The resources were distinct, yet they had that common thread of strong convictions about why assessment is necessary and the types of assessments that they value. Ideas did not represent a narrow definition of assessment, but rather a clear understanding of various factors that teachers must consider in order to really know their students and their needs. 

Focusing on Assessment Series

Winter break is always a chance to catch my breath and to deeply reflect. This winter break I am reading different books, but a couple of the books that I am reading focus on assessment. I thought it was a perfect time of year to have a series on my blog centering around assessment.

For the last few years winter break was a time for me to read and assess writing work samples in English and in Spanish (1 in each language for each of my students). It was always time consuming to say the least, but I always loved the process because it gave me a chance to really notice and reflect on the writing in front of me, as well as what I knew about the students and insights into them as writers and readers from classroom interactions.

This year with my position in teacher preparation, I don't have any assignments to correct over the break since the term ended. Instead, I am enjoying reading, writing, and reflecting.

In this series, I will specifically focus on the following two books:

Accessible Assessment: How 9 Sensible Techniques Can Power DATA-DRIVEN Reading Instruction

So What Do They Really Know?: Assessment That Informs Teaching and Learning

Reading and Writing Workshop Training: The Power of Seeing

By and far one of the most powerful aspects of the training was sharing video clips of workshop teaching.  I think that and being able to experience workshop first hand were the most helpful and influential for teachers. One teachers even commented that she loved the writing style for the Calkins' units of study resource, which really paints the picture of what is happening, but that she would much rather prefer to just watch it. She talked about how she is a visual learner. Even though I don't necessarily consider myself a visual learner, I can relate to the power of being able to actually see it. I loved the DVD component of Penny Kittle's Write Beside Them and was thrilled to see the Atwell resources after reading so many of her ideas.

I could tell every time I showed a video clip that it really helped to solidify the concepts we were talking about or to open up a whole other avenue of possibilities. I shared clips from Atwell's resources for reading and writing workshop, and clips from Calkins' videos for writing workshop. It really helped to have the Calkins' resources to show how it looks k-5, while having the Atwell resources to show what it looks like at the middle school level. Teachers could get ideas that they could adapt to their grade level from every video clip, yet there was also the added value of seeing how workshop teaching can progress and the foundation that the younger years can provide for the older years being even more powerful.

I will be watching for more video resources. I was excited to see that Stenhouse has a new Patrick Allen resource coming out focusing on reading conferring. I'm sure that would be an amazing one to add to any workshop resource library!

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!

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.

The Fountas and Pinnell Prompting Guide

In The Fountas and Pinnell Prompting Guide: A Tool for Literacy Teachers, Part 1 the authors provide a resource for teachers to aid in getting to know their students as individual readers and writers and then intentionally make instructional decisions to meet the needs of students. In the introduction they explain, "Your role is to notice each student's precise reading and writing behaviors and provide teaching that supports change in what she can do over time. As you infer from the behaviors how a reader or writer is building a system of strategic actions, you can make effective instructional decisions" (tab 1). I love that the authors refer to it as inferring from behaviors; I had not thought about it with that term, but it is precisely what teachers do when closely paying attention to students.

The guide is constructed on thick paper with a cover that can be used to set the guide up on a table for teachers to easily flip through it utilizing the convenient tabs during instruction. The tabs provide various summarized focal teaching points for both reading and writing, including left/right, voice-print, word beginnings, rate pausing, placing words, and monitoring/correcting. In addition, each tab lists the broader goals such as early reading behaviors, general problem-solving, and constructing words.

The pages have an easy to follow lay-out that is simple in order to avoid making the page too busy. Each section provides a brief introduction and instructions for teachers about what to observe in students. They also have headings with the full versions of the focal teaching points, as opposed to the condensed versions on the tabs. The pages are divided into three columns under each heading that mirror the cover words and color scheme: teach (in purple), prompt (in red), and reinforce (in green).

It is clear that Fountas and Pinnell decided to keep a clean, crisp layout to match their purpose of classroom utility vs. other professional development resources meant to provide detailed explanations. While the resource on its own is powerful, it would be even more advantageous for those using it to have a rich foundation in literacy learning as well. Luckily, the authors provide a list of professional references in the introduction which will be valuable for teachers who do not yet feel confident with their level of understanding behind the teaching points in this prompting guide.

The product is marketed as a scaffold for k-6 teachers. While some of the tabs are definitely relevant only to emergent literacy, such as reading left to right or the verbal path for letter formation, I agree that many of the other tabs are appropriate and helpful for the upper grades. As a mom, I appreciate the resources for younger grades because it is farther from my comfort zone when it comes to literacy. For example, the verbal path for letter formation is helpful because I have never had to explain how to form letters as my students already know how, so it is a tool that will help me as a parent.

Fountas and Pinnell also have the prompting guide available with Spanish components for bilingual literacy teachers. Tomorrow I will post more about that version.

Copy provided by the publisher

Literacy Beginnings

Literacy Beginnings: A Prekindergarten Handbook by Gay Su Pinnell and Irene C. Fountas is one of those books that surprised me with its size when I pulled it out of the box. Though I often notice page length when I am looking at books, I must not have with this one. As soon as I received it, the handbook part of the title was apparent. With 462 pages and 8 card stock weight pages with tabs to divide the sections, the book is a comprehensive introduction of main concepts, as well as organized in a way that it is user friendly.

The chapters are quick and concise with a Key Understandings to Think About and a Notes section at the end of each one. There are many pictures and illustrations to support the text, including a color insert showing various pictures of classroom set-up and student writing samples. Each chapter starts with a quote from educational and literacy leaders. A little less than half of the book is set aside for the appendices, which has a plethora of support to the ideas mentioned in the earlier sections of the book, including nursery rhymes, poetry, and songs, inquiry projects, literacy and language lessons, lists, and templates. It is apparent that the authors and Heinemann carefully thought out how to package the resource in order to make it highly useful.

I love the book for all of its possibilities! I was reading it more from a parent angle, looking for ideas for summer learning with my daughters (almost 5 and almost 8). While reading I was noticing that many of the ideas and the philosophy behind them reminded me of the Marie Clay resources that I have read, including her newest set of three books. I was going to write myself a note about this toward the front of the book, and coincidentally the first page that seemed to have enough space to write my note was a dedication page to none other than Marie Clay.

As a secondary language arts teacher, I loved that I could see how this resource aligns with the reading and writing workshop that my students do as 6th - 8th graders. I appreciated that I could envision the strong foundation that the ideas Pinnell and Fountas suggest would build for prekindergarten students before they even start kindergarten. By valuing children as readers and writers, even when their reading consists of talking about the pictures or retelling what they remember from a favorite book and their writing is mainly drawing, children will continue to grow into confident readers and writers.

Most importatntly, by following the books ideas, teachers will work toward a life-long love of reading and writing, rather than relying on drills and rote memorization that while it might show desired results on standardized testing will not necessarily mean that they are highly skilled readers and writers. Though the target teaching range is prekindergarten, I also believe the resource would be valuable to primary teachers for its literacy philosophy, balanced literacy in the classroom, and possibilities for workshop teaching in the younger grades components.

One final note is that I already know my daughters are going to love what we do this summer inspired by this book. Last night I called my younger daughter over to do the letter recognition sheets with her (pp. 432-433). Of course it ended up not being the best scenario because my older daughter ran over and though I told her that I wanted to see what her younger sister knew, she still would not provide sufficient wait time and started either blurting out or whispering letters to my younger daughter a lot of the time. Nonetheless, when we were finished, my younger daughter wanted more. I thought to flip to the front of the appendices and told her that we could sing some songs together, which she loved. This morning as I had the book to the side of the computer so that I could type my review, she just came by, saw the book and said, "Hey, can we do more fun stuff from your book?"

I am looking forward to blending some of their ideas with mine, as well as differentiating for my older daughter this summer. I think that we are going to start with a focus on food since the handbook had many ideas throughout, and summer is a perfect time for the concept. My older daughter was saving her apple seeds the other day, saying she wanted to plant them, which lends perfectly to many literacy and inquiry activities. We also receive a lot of produce each week from Bountiful Baskets, so we talk about all the different fruits and vegetables. They also enjoy cooking and baking with me, and we will have more time for that during the summer.

I highly recommend this comprehensive resource to parents, prekindergarten teachers, and primary teachers - another great book from Heinemann!

Pathways to Early Literacy Series: Discoveries in Writing and Reading

Following along with my curiosity into early childhood and primary literacy development, Marie Clay's new series, Pathways to Early Literacy Series: Discoveries in Writing and Reading, including How Very Young Children Explore Writing, What Changes in Writing Can I See?, and The Puzzling Code caught my attention. Once I received them, I read through them quickly as they are brief, each only 52 pages or less. Though there is some cross-over, such as having the same first pages to give the series overview and introduction, each book has its own specific focus.

One aspect that was emphasized throughout all books and that closely aligns with my philosophy was the image of parents and teachers as close observers - setting up the stage for children to be curious about reading and writing, helping children build a strong desire to explore, celebrating new attempts, and gently introducing new avenues for continual growth. While reading, I was often thinking back to my own daughter and how much her literacy has taken off this year, about how glad I am that I resisted having her switch into a special education pull-out model where she would have received scripted instruction, about how she just needed more time and space to develop at her own pace, in this frantic, data-driven educational context.

Lately my daughters have been fascinating me - two distinct individuals, at two different stages (almost four and almost eight). Earlier this year I started to officially document their literacy growth and what I am noticing in a writer's notebook. I have been reflecting on what I notice and how my experiences with them and my teaching experiences are reciprocal, both supporting each other. I was thrilled to see Clay encouraging parents to do what I had just barely started - dating and collecting writing and noticing growth and new explorations, as well as observations about their awareness of print.

I wish that every child had a caring adult noticing, observing, celebrating, and encouraging as Clay recommends. In the spirit of parents' role in literacy development I just read a post for the Slice of Life Challenge that goes along so perfectly with the intent of this series with Kevin explaining his son presenting him with his first comic. I love how well he captured his son's mannerisms.

I appreciate that the series of books are short and to the point, while providing many examples of student explorations at various stages. Each one can be read as a stand-alone or as a group of three. Through reading the book I received affirmations of what I am already doing, as well as additional suggestions to support my daughters' literacy development.

Because the intended audience is parents, caregivers and teachers of preschoolers and new entrants, I know that not all readers would have an education/literacy background. I think the length and format of the texts is ideal for the audience as an overview and foundation of literacy philosophies. My sister has a kindergartner and an almost three year old, so I would like to share the books with her and see what she thinks.

I am excited to continue learning alongside them. Soon I will be reviewing more books focusing on early literacy, including another book that I just received from Heinemann, which is much more detailed and comprehensive, Literacy Beginnings, as well as some Stenhouse titles.

Boothbay Literacy Retreat - New Technology Resources

One of the benefits of the Boothbay Literacy Retreat was Sara Kajder's technology sessions. Two of the tools that she showed us that I am most excited about are Storybird and ZooBurst. Both are means to create digital books, providing art work as a scaffold. I am excited to integrate them in to my writing workshop; I can imagine students really enjoying them.

Here is a quick example of a project that I did using Storybird. I look forward to exploring with it more in the future:

This I Believe... A Brief Snapshot of Some Literacy Beliefs on Storybird

Reflections on Night 1 (the abbreviated version)

I have been doing some assignments to go along with the Boothbay Literacy Retreat in order to earn graduate credits as an independent study toward my doctorate. One of the assignments that I built in as I proposed what I would do for the course was reflections. Last night when I got back from the evening of events, I reflected on the experience this far. I will try to post abbreviated versions of my reflections on the blog. As I started typing I realized that I should narrow it down to one piece of the evening.

Last night Kylene Beers gave us a glimpse into the history of the retreat, now in its third year. She mentioned that her and Robert Probst's vision was to have a retreat, rather than any other style of professional development. They wanted to make sure that it was hosted at a stunning location in the north, so it would not only be beautiful, but it would be cool enough in the summer to spend a lot of time outside. It was also important to end the first night with storytelling. We were in for a treat. Penny Kittle read aloud to us from her books, Public Teaching and The Greatest Catch. In the moment, I was not focusing on anything else but the stories of her life and teaching that were captivating me.

Yet, when I sat down to reflect last night, I realized so much more was happening. Penny Kittle was reaffirming my belief that regardless of the age, we should be reading aloud. Though I advocate reading aloud and read to my students on a daily basis, I had always thought of myself as someone who did not enjoy texts being read aloud. My mind often wanders and then I am not able to flip back to see what I missed. I thought it had to do with the type of learner that I am. However, last night my mind was engaged the whole time. I realized that as an adult, I can enjoy being read aloud to with the right text and the right reader. I thought back to why I enjoyed the experience so much, and thus, Penny's storytelling turned into a mentor for how to read aloud - facial expressions, voice intonation, pausing...

Another layer of learning from this was a mentor as a writer. Penny wrote with incredible voice, and it was fun to actually hear it being read aloud from her so that the voice comes through even stronger. I can imagine her students being enthralled when she is sharing her writing with them as mentors of process. Again, I was thinking about the way she was reading and the effect it had on me and relating it back to looking at my teaching to examine how I can improve when I am sharing my writing with my students.

Finally, it was inspiring. As she was reading, she was making me want to grab for my writer's notebook listing out my own teaching experience stories and what I would tell if I was writing a collection of essays about my teaching experience. Since I went to bed last night right after returning from the session to shower and reflect, I think I will wrap up this post and grab my notebook and feel the wonderful release of thoughts on paper.

(If you want to see a brief post about the weather here, you can see it on my other blog.)

Peaceful Relaxation

I am sitting on the deck of my section of the cottage at Spruce Point Inn, waiting for the Boothbay Literacy Retreat to get started. The weather is beautiful with a nice, cool breeze. Inside the cottage has a cute desk sitting in front of a window. When I walked in I couldn't help but think of the cabin where my husband and I stayed for our honeymoon by a small lake nearby our hometown. While this time I am on my own and overlooking the ocean, the same sense of serenity is there. Number one on the list that I am sure will grow exponentially about what I am grateful for in this professional development experience. Well, I guess number one could have been the excitement building as I was waiting in the lobby for my room to be ready and saw Penny Kittle walk in, then Sara Kajder, followed by Linda Rief (recognized from the covers of their books that I have). It helped me realize that I am actually here! Wait, backing up even more, maybe number one should be looking through the stacks of beautiful journals, all different sizes and styles, spread out over the tables and getting to choose one at registration.