The holiday seasons brings so much excitement to the classroom. From family traditions being shared to memories being made with classroom elf, there are so many moments to take in! One of my favorite things to do is read aloud and the holiday season is filled with wonderful Christmas read alouds for kids! I have […]
Spending time to set up literacy centers in kindergarten truly helps build a solid literacy foundation. Literacy centers allow students to practice reading and writing skill at their own pace because they are easily differentiated. There are many options of how to run and set up literacy centers and I typically had 8 centers that […]
Creating and maintaining organized literacy centers can be the key to a smooth and productive classroom. For kindergarten and 1st grade teachers, having a system that helps students find what they need, stay focused, and follow clear directions is crucial. Let’s explore three simple tips for organizing literacy centers and keeping them manageable! *Amazon affiliate […]
My sweet teacher friend shared this story, and I immediately knew we needed it for this blog post as we talk about the importance of dictation activities for students! My daughter was in our playroom trying to write the word slide. She asked me, “Mom, how do you spell the word slide?” I was in […]
When I was in the classroom, reading assessments looked like this: a large DRA box, a stack of running records that were to be carefully analyzed, leveled texts with lots of wear and tear, and maybe some checklists. But now that we know what we know, thanks to the science of reading research, we can […]
As teachers, one of our primary goals is to equip our young learners with the foundational skills they need to become proficient readers. As we dig into the Science of Reading research more and more, we see this in Scarborough’s Reading Rope through the word recognition strands. Fluency, the ability to read smoothly and accurately […]
Teaching reading is truly a science. As we learn more about the Science of Reading research that is rising to the top, schools are beginning to adopt best teaching practices for teaching reading. We are better equipped to support kids in reading. But even with our knowledge base growing, one thing still remains–we still have […]
Sound walls are a great change that many teachers are making in their literacy classrooms. Why? Sound walls are a great visual for students of how phonemes and letters or letter patterns are used to write words. Giving each student a copy of their own sound wall is a valuable tool in the classroom. Let’s […]
Have you heard the chant “when two vowels go walking, the first one does the talking”? It is commonly used to help teach vowel teams. I remember teaching my students this refrain during reading small groups. A few of my students were struggling with words like peach, read, and pie. I don’t remember where I […]
There are so many different tools and resources to use in your reading small groups that help your students with their reading skills. One of my favorite tools is using reading comprehension passages to help my students work on their comprehension skills. Let’s chat about reading comprehension passages with questions and how to use them […]
Recently, my friend’s daughter was reading on the couch as she was prepping dinner in the kitchen. She came and asked, “Mommy, what does the word “cat er” mean?” I didn’t understand what she was asking so I asked her to repeat the word. She said, “cat er”. “In my book it says, “My mom […]
Do you have favorite tools for baking? Or maybe favorite tools for a sport? I love to bake and have some that definitely make baking a lot easier. I love using my KitchenAid mixer when baking. It is so nice to not have to mix by hand or hold an electric mixer. I also love […]
I don’t think I realized how much learning occurs with the alphabet until after my third year of teaching. I don’t remember doing a lot of alphabet activities in my elementary years other than saying the alphabet. That was the knowledge I had when I started teaching. I went to a training the summer after […]
It’s September and school has settled in, your routines are becoming solidified, and it air starts to get cooler. I truly love to welcome September into the classroom because the pace of our day seems to find its rhythm. We are busy with centers as we get ready for reading small groups to start soon […]
As a teacher, I know you’re dedicated to fostering strong reading skills in your students. As things have been shifting and changing with the science of reading small group instruction and research in mind for several years now, it can feel like we are throwing the baby out with the bathwater at times. Leveled Books? […]
Alphabet arcs…you’ve probably seen them if you are a primary teacher. But do you know how to use them? Do you know why so many people think they are a valuable tool? I remember during my first year of teaching, a had a small group set of alphabet arcs. But I really didn’t know how […]
When it comes to the science of reading research, many teachers are probably familiar with it and the gist of what it means. But what about what that looks like in your classroom? What does bringing the science of reading research to your classroom and applying it actually look like? If you have questions like […]
When it comes to work work, how prepared do you feel? I don’t know about you, but I felt like when my students and I had everything we needed for word work time (whether it was a whole group lesson, small group lesson, or literacy center), I was way less stressed. You’d probably feel the […]
