Intervention teacher for striving readers, literacy coach, author Cohort 2 Goyen Foundation Literacy Fellow. Bird nerd and word nerd.
Spokane, WA
Joined May 2019
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Week 6 of #FishtankELA. I observed our third graders starting their unit, "Rediscovering Thanksgiving." The unit explores the holiday from multiple perspectives, using grade-appropriate texts. Students started out learning basic facts about the English colonies. (1/4)
Week 5 of #FishtankELA and many grades are coming to the end of their first units. The fourth graders finished reading "Where the Mountain Meets the Moon" and cheered. For many it was the first novel they'd ever read. (1/6)
Next week, our 2nd graders will visit a wildlife refuge, to experience forest habitats first hand. Their unit on habitats starts with learning about forests. They will learn about how energy flows through a habitat - something our students used to learn about in 5th grade. (3/4)
Today I chatted with a student wearing an ESPRIT sweatshirt that had the same multi-colored tote I had in the 80s.
My book, Reading Beyond the Basics, is on sale with an Amazon coupon until Oct. 19! Check it out if you want simple, research-backed ways to enhance your reading lessons for grades 2-6 - whether you have a reading program or not. (Link below).
One of the best prices I’ve seen:
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Week 5 of #FishtankELA and many grades are coming to the end of their first units. The fourth graders finished reading "Where the Mountain Meets the Moon" and cheered. For many it was the first novel they'd ever read. (1/6)
Week 4 of #FishtankELA is behind us, and one thing I've noticed as I support different grades is the consistency with which tools are used and the way skills are stranded intentionally across the units and across grade levels. (1/4)
Fifth grade is finishing "A Single Shard" and I received a text from a teacher with a quote from one of her students. After the character of Crane-Man dies (spoiler for 15-year old novel) leaving his friend Tree-Ear, the student said:
(2/6)
ALT text reading: “I don’t believe in love anymore. Crane-man and Tree-ear were the dynamic duo.”
Week 4 of #FishtankELA is behind us, and one thing I've noticed as I support different grades is the consistency with which tools are used and the way skills are stranded intentionally across the units and across grade levels. (1/4)
We are three full school weeks into #FishtankELA, and I plan to start weekly updates (with some random dailies) next week. A few reflections:
The most powerful driver behind our curriculum adoption and implementation was a desire for equity - (1/6)
Looking across Fishtank, I can see how a strand like research skills is deliberately built year after year - from researching together using shared texts to doing so independently from a variety of new texts. When every teacher or even grade level plans, that is missing. (3/4)
Pretty sure I have the best job at my school: I greet students as they come off the bus.
Kids: you're going to start your day with a welcome and a smile from a grown-up. If the bus ride was sad, hugs are on offer. Forgotten backpacks are scooped up. We got this.
Way too often, teachers have told me that - compared to others who give them feedback - I'm a good coach because I'm "actually helpful."
Team, what are we even doing if teachers don't feel like we're baseline helpful? How can we dig in and learn how to answer Laura's questions?
Of course not. But I am seeing a meaningful difference in rigor and student effort in those classrooms where teachers have jumped into the resources fully.
In a week in which the educational conversation has revolved around what we owe America’s kids… (5/6)