"Every classroom has readers who struggle with texts. Whatever their challenges, it is our job as teachers to help them negotiate the texts of their world." Linda Hoyt Classroom-ready solutions to support K-6 striving readers at your fingertips In elementary classrooms across America, there are increasing numbers of students with specialized learning needs-striving readers who need additional support to reach their academic potential. Linda Hoyt and colleagues support these learners with strategic interventions and tools in this easy-to-use handbook for whole class, small group, and one-to-one instruction. Dip into the three parts-Nonfiction, Fiction, and Assessment-where commonly-asked questions from teachers like you frame a menu of solutions covering a variety of instructional possibilities. Following each question you'll find: Side-by-Side Observations-portraits of striving readers and the tools and solutions that will benefit their development Solutions-a wealth of instructional tools and scaffolds to support K-6 readers Formative assessment tools-reading records, observation checklists, story maps, and more-also available in a customizable format on the accompanying CD-ROM.
As more English learners enroll in school each year, teachers and administrators are concerned with the large gap in reading and academic standing between ELs and students performing at grade level. This book addresses the language, literacy, and content instructional needs of ELs and frames quality instruction within effective schooling structures and the implementation of RTI.
Reading Connections: Strategies for Teaching Students with Visual Impairments offers an in-depth and user-friendly guide for understanding reading instruction for teachers and professionals seeking to improve the reading skills of their students who are visually impaired. The book addresses in detail the essential components of reading--phonemic awareness, phonics, reading fluency, vocabulary, and reading comprehension--as well as other key reading components and subskills. While this book addresses the needs of students who read print, braille, or both, much of the book is also consistent with strategies for teaching reading to students who have, or are at risk for, developing reading disabilities. Teachers of students with visual impairments, as well as family members and other professionals who work with children who are blind or visually impaired, will find within this book a repertoire of strategies and activities for creating a balanced, comprehensive plan of reading instruction for each student and for teaching the essential reading skills necessary for students' success.
Use these fun, easy-to-use activities to tackle the most challenging aspect of reading! "Finally, someone has written a practical book filled with easy-to-read comprehension strategies. I will definitely use this book with teachers in my district to teach about and review comprehension strategies. The section on ′How Can We Learn More′ is also fantastic. Thank you, Kathleen Jonson." --Hazel Brauer, Literacy Coordinator Jefferson Elementary School District, Daly City, CA "This book is a comprehensive, well-organized guide to teaching reading comprehension. The clear, consistent layout of the lesson plans makes it easy for the teacher to locate and implement appropriate lessons quickly. The examples are very helpful and the templates allow a teacher to begin lessons immediately. The wide variety of lesson plans makes this guide truly useful for all grade levels." --Myra Gamble, Reading Specialist Spring Valley School, Millbrae, CA Comprehension is the final goal of reading, but because it involves several cognitive processes, it remains the most difficult facet of reading development to teach. Based on the recommendations of the National Reading Panel Report, 60 Strategies for Improving Reading Comprehension in Grades K-8 provides teachers with a ready-to-use toolkit of tried-and-true learning strategies designed to actively engage students in cognitive processes, including predicting, visualizing, making inferences, monitoring, synthesizing, and summarizing. Developed as specific instructional procedures with clearly delineated steps for implementation, these entertaining activities are effective in all types of classrooms. Each of the 60 strategies in the book includes: Grade-level recommendations Goals for each strategy Step-by-step instructions Graphics and examples of student work Directions for modifying strategies for different grade levels Literary expert Kathleen Feeney Jonson has created an exciting resource to help educators teach the most difficult piece of the reading process: comprehension. Offering a rare combination of fun and function, these strategies are sure to get students to listen, laugh, and most important, to learn.
"Prepare students for future success by using effective reading instruction that's proven to work. The Teaching Reading Sourcebook, updated second edition is an indispensable resource that combines evidence-based research with actionable instructional strategies. It is an essential addition to any educator's professional literacy library--elementary, secondary, university."--P. [4] of cover.
While most children learn to read fairly well, there remain many young Americans whose futures are imperiled because they do not read well enough to meet the demands of our competitive, technology-driven society. This book explores the problem within the context of social, historical, cultural, and biological factors. Recommendations address the identification of groups of children at risk, effective instruction for the preschool and early grades, effective approaches to dialects and bilingualism, the importance of these findings for the professional development of teachers, and gaps that remain in our understanding of how children learn to read. Implications for parents, teachers, schools, communities, the media, and government at all levels are discussed. The book examines the epidemiology of reading problems and introduces the concepts used by experts in the field. In a clear and readable narrative, word identification, comprehension, and other processes in normal reading development are discussed. Against the background of normal progress, Preventing Reading Difficulties in Young Children examines factors that put children at risk of poor reading. It explores in detail how literacy can be fostered from birth through kindergarten and the primary grades, including evaluation of philosophies, systems, and materials commonly used to teach reading.
The untold story of the root cause of America's education crisis--and the seemingly endless cycle of multigenerational poverty. It was only after years within the education reform movement that Natalie Wexler stumbled across a hidden explanation for our country's frustrating lack of progress when it comes to providing every child with a quality education. The problem wasn't one of the usual scapegoats: lazy teachers, shoddy facilities, lack of accountability. It was something no one was talking about: the elementary school curriculum's intense focus on decontextualized reading comprehension "skills" at the expense of actual knowledge. In the tradition of Dale Russakoff's The Prize and Dana Goldstein's The Teacher Wars, Wexler brings together history, research, and compelling characters to pull back the curtain on this fundamental flaw in our education system--one that fellow reformers, journalists, and policymakers have long overlooked, and of which the general public, including many parents, remains unaware. But The Knowledge Gap isn't just a story of what schools have gotten so wrong--it also follows innovative educators who are in the process of shedding their deeply ingrained habits, and describes the rewards that have come along: students who are not only excited to learn but are also acquiring the knowledge and vocabulary that will enable them to succeed. If we truly want to fix our education system and unlock the potential of our neediest children, we have no choice but to pay attention.
In this fully revised and expanded third edition of the bestselling Reciprocal Teaching at Work, Lori D. Oczkus provides both tried-and-true and fresh solutions for teaching reading comprehension. Reciprocal teaching is a scaffolded discussion technique that builds on the Fab Four strategies that good readers use to understand text: predicting, questioning, clarifying, and summarizing. With a focus on these four evidence-based and classroom-tested strategies, Oczkus presents new ways to use reciprocal teaching to improve students' comprehension while actively engaging them in learning and encouraging independence. Appealing to students and teachers alike, reciprocal teaching encompasses social aspects of teaching and learning with modeling, think-alouds, and discussion. This helpful guide is packed with fresh material, including * More than 40 new and updated step-by-step lessons and minilessons that reflect current thinking and best practice. * Dozens of rich suggestions for diving into informational texts. * Updated research and relevant results that show the effectiveness of reciprocal teaching. * Creative and targeted tips that capitalize on the specific benefits of whole-class settings, guided reading groups, and literature circles. * Ideas for differentiating instruction for struggling readers and English language learners. * New and newly designed support materials, including reproducibles, posters, bookmarks, and a lesson planning menu. With a wealth of ideas to get you started—and keep you going—this is the all-inclusive resource you need to help students become active, engaged, and independent readers who truly comprehend what they read. Reviews and Testimonials "Literacy coach and author Lori Oczkus knows how to take the best of what works from long-established research and showcase it to make teaching and learning more effective, engaging, and enjoyable. In her latest edition of Reciprocal Teaching at Work, she demonstrates how to scaffold instruction so that all K–12 students can benefit from reciprocal teaching techniques, what she calls the "Fab Four"—predicting, questioning, clarifying, and summarizing—in whole-group, guided reading, and book club settings, for both fiction and informational texts. In clearly delineated lessons and minilessons, Lori deftly shares how to support students' learning, including English language learners and students who struggle, so they can successfully apply and monitor those four discussion strategies—as well as troubleshoot problems—to yield significant progress in their reading comprehension. Filled with great practical ideas, this gem of a book is a must-have for all literacy educators!" —Regie Routman, author of Read, Write, Lead; Literacy Essentials, and Reading Essentials "Reciprocal teaching works to push students into deeper learning. There are decades of research on the impact of this instructional approach, and this book shows you how to implement and refine the practice such that all students succeed." —Doug Fisher, author of Checking for Understanding and Visible Learning for Literacy "One of the great instructional research discoveries of the past three decades has been the efficacy of reciprocal teaching for improving student learning and reading comprehension. More than anyone, Lori Oczkus has explored practical ways for making reciprocal teaching an integral part of nearly any classroom setting. This current work by Lori represents the epitome of her work in translating reciprocal teaching research into practice. Readers will find this immensely readable book filled with strategies that can be easily implemented and that will improve student learning. If you are interested in improving your students' reading achievement, you need to read this book!" —Timothy Rasinski, author of The Fluent Reader and Close Reading with Paired Texts "In this new edition of Reciprocal Teaching at Work, Lori Oczkus offers new thinking while reinforcing the best practices that make her ideas timeless. Through these engaging lessons and smart instructional moves, you will empower your students to build the confidence and competence they need to become strong, independent readers." —Donalyn Miller, author of The Book Whisperer "On every page of this book, in every activity and plan, the voice of a gifted and empowering teacher inspires the reader. In a major revision of her classic work, Lori Oczkus engages the immediacy and demands of today's classrooms with the most robust constellation of strategies for teaching comprehension. She compellingly demonstrates how the "Fab Four" are engaged across the grades, and she powerfully scaffolds, supports, and reassures teachers in their efforts to incorporate reciprocal teaching across a broad communication, textual, and digital terrain." —Shane Templeton, Foundation Professor Emeritus of Literacy Studies University of Nevada, Reno, NV
If you’ve ever considered playing sick, had a hard time getting started on your homework, thought your teacher was on your case, or wondered how many days were left until summer vacation, this collection of funny school poems is for you. Homework Would Be Fun… If Your Teacher Assigned This Book as Required Reading! — If you’ve ever considered playing sick, had a hard time getting started on your homework, thought your teacher was on your case, or wondered how many days were left until summer vacation, this collection of funny school poems is for you. Bruce Lansky has written five new poems for this book and selected nineteen others from some of his favorite poets, including Kenn Nesbitt, Ted Scheu, and Robert Pottle.
