During one of our family trips to the La Grange Public Library, my daughter selected From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks either from the YA shelf or as a recommendation from the librarian. Right away I could see Isabella was intrigued by the book’s whimsical cover of a young girl sitting at her desk contemplating on what …
Parents are concerned about learning loss and the negative impact the pandemic has had on mastering skills. So, the question is, how can parents help reinforce learning at home, specifically literacy? As parents, we often tell our children, “Pick a book and read for 20 minutes”. Yes, reading is a wonderful experience that allows children to travel worldwide, learn a …
Since the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) development, a significant emphasis has been placed on teaching students to read informational text. The goal is to equip students with proficient reading skills necessary for academic and professional success. Over the last several years, I have used the Close Read Strategy in my classroom. In a nutshell, the Close Read strategy guides …
Surrounding kids with various books and making them easily accessible this the best way to get them to read. Here are three ways to build an at-home library for your kids. Shop Local I am so fortunate to live in a town with a fantastic downtown, rich with restaurants, shops, and once upon a time, an amazing bookstore. I am, …
As I prepare for my upcoming classes, I wanted to share a simple but powerful strategy that I plan to sprinkle in throughout my sessions. Mark Twain once said, “I didn’t have time to write you a short letter, so I wrote you a long one.” Think about this! The ability to only select six words to tell an entire …
Being a reading teacher, my passion for children’s literature began way before the birth of my three lovely ladies. But, it was the birth of my first daughter that I obsessively began to buy books. I knew that if I was going to cultivate lifelong readers, the first step was to surround them with books. Seeing that our first daughter …