Presidents Day 2023

 

John Fitzgerald Kennedy was our nation's 35th president, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. His presidency is remembered for conflict with the Soviet Union and Cuba, progress in spaceflight, and the beginnings of civil rights legislation. He is also remembered as a charismatic speaker.

Photo by Rapoport/Getty

Kennedy has been on my mind since attending a recent teaching workshop on Document Based Inquiry. In one of the sessions, we read speeches by Kennedy and Soviet President Nikita Khrushchev following the Cuban Missile Crisis and endeavored to view those words as ourselves, an American citizen in 1962, and a Russian citizen of that time. It was a good reminder that history is both complex and cyclical. Some of the things said by Kennedy and Khrushchev are not too far from what we are hearing from Biden and Putin regarding Ukraine.

I knew that this year's picture would honor Kennedy when I ran across this quote from his response to a Saturday Review presidential candidate questionnaire in the final days of his 1960 campaign for the presidency.

If this nation is to be wise as well as strong, if we are to achieve our destiny, then we need more new ideas for more wise men reading more good books in more public libraries. These libraries should be open to all—except the censor. We must know all the facts and hear all the alternatives and listen to all the criticisms. Let us welcome controversial books and controversial authors. For the Bill of Rights is the guardian of our security as well as our liberty.

Kennedy was a voracious reader
Photo from JFK Library collection

When I was younger, I aspired to be the President of the United States. In fact, the long term goals in my high school day planner included a run for the presidency in 2028. With less than a decade to go, I haven't yet created relationships in a political party or run for any public office. I hereby declare I will NOT be running for president in 2028.

However, I was appointed to the Coeur d'Alene Public Library Board of Trustees in 2020 and was just elected as chair of that board. Although that position does not require me to bear anywhere near the responsibility required of the President of the United States, the decisions I am making there often require careful deliberation and can weigh heavily on my mind. Much of our work is updating library policy. Making sure that our accessibility policy included miniature horses as service animals and  that other policies are updated to reflect current technology are easy decisions. Other work, such as selecting a new library director, approving COVID safety policies, and figuring out what should be included in a trustee code of ethics have been more difficult.

For the last year and a half on the board, most of our meetings have included public comment concerned about the books that are in the library. As trustees, we have the responsibility to approve a book selection policy, but the actual collection is chosen and maintained by the library staff. The board is also the last stop for any book that is formally challenged by a community member. 

It is my belief that the library should, as Kennedy said, include controversial books and controversial authors. It is up to an individual to choose which of those books come into their home to be read. There may be a question as to where they should be shelved in the library, but there is room in the library (and its book purchasing budget) for books that reflect and books that challenge the values and experiences of everyone in our community. "...We need more new ideas for more wise [people] reading more good books in more public libraries."

Happy Presidents Day! 

Should you seek to fix the blame for my past portraits:

2022 Zachary Taylor

2021 Gerald Ford
2020 Calvin Coolidge

2019 George H.W. Bush

2018 Richard Nixon

2017 Grover Cleveland

2016 Ulysses S. Grant

2012 - 2015 Lincoln, Arthur, Hayes, Taft, Garfield, and Theodore Roosevelt

Book Review - The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp

The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp
by Kathi Appelt
Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Paperback - May 20, 2014

Deep in the Sugar Man Swamp, Audie Brayburn's rusted 1949 Chrysler DeSoto has become home to raccoon brothers Bingo and J'miah. As brand new swamp scouts, their job is to monitor the swamp and wake up the mysterious Sugar Man in the event of an emergency. Their first five days on the job coincide with an ominous rumbling created by an animal threat drawing near.

Meanwhile Audie Brayburn's grandson, Chap, is learning what it means to be the man of the house following his grandfather's death. His family's way of life is in danger as their home and bakery at the edge of the swamp stands in the way of a proposed Gator Wrestling Arena and Theme Park. He needs a boatload of cash or a visit from the Sugar Man to stop this human threat.

From beginning to end, this was a fun book to read. I really enjoyed getting to know the characters. J'miah's nervousness at Bingo's death-defying tree climbs, Gertrude the giant rattlesnake's itchiness, and Coyoteman Jim's late-night thoughts at the local radio station made the characters feel real. Chap was the star of the story, though, as he longed for a message from his grandpa that would help him save the Paradise Pies Cafe. I was moved by the mixture of hope and longing as he revisited Audie's birding sketchbooks to search for ideas and advice.

When a book knows it's using terrific vocabulary!

As great as the characters were, the author's voice is what really makes this a special book. The frequent perspective changes between the human and animal world are often separated by chapters full of facts about topics ranging from the history of the Polaroid camera to the behavior of alligators that quickly tie in to the story's big picture. In addition, the book often draws attention to its own beautiful vocabulary. After one character proposes that the Sugar Man is no longer extant the author places the message "Extant. What a great word that is" in parentheses. It's one of many times that the narration pops off the page.

This was one of the 2019 Idaho Kids Vote Book Award nominees I had not read before this year's program began. When I started reading, I thought the Deep South setting was an unusual choice for our state book award. Wouldn't Idaho kids relate to a book about life in the mountains better? Even though we don't have bayous, our wilderness faces threats, too. I think the unfamiliar setting gives readers in Idaho just enough distance to consider the message of finding harmony with nature. Not only will that message stick with me, I think the laugh out loud moments and touching relationships in the book will have me remembering the residents of the Sugar Man Swamp for years to come.

Book Review - Mac B. Kid Spy: Mac Undercover

Mac B. Kid Spy: Mac Undercover
by Mac Barnett
Illustrated by Mike Lowery
Orchard Books
September 11, 2018

I received a free copy of this book through the Scholastic Insider program, but the opinions in this review are my own

What happens when a kid growing up in late 80s California gets a call from the Queen of England asking for help? He becomes Mac B. Kid Spy!

Mac is tasked with retrieving an interesting item stolen from the Crown Jewels. The Queen believes that the President of France has taken it, but Mac discovers the truth is much more complicated. He travels through Europe in order to find the Queen's missing item as well as some other items that have disappeared along the way.

This was a fun book and I loved the humor throughout it. As a kid who grew up in the 80s, I loved the references to the disappointing graphics of the Game Boy and comments like "Phones had cords. You can look that up." Those bits might lead to some fun conversations between parents and kids as they read. Mac's situations throughout the book definitely led to a few laughs, and I hope I'm not the only reader to suspect that he has a karate battle with a future world leader.

Although it was fun to read, it was a very simple book. The plot was straightforward and the vocabulary was basic. I think this would be a great choice for kids who are just entering the world of chapter books. More advanced readers may have a good time with this book, but it is not one that will give them a lot to think about. That being said, I gave this to my son as soon as I finished it. He was over halfway through less than a half hour after picking it up and I heard him laugh out loud as he read. It's not one that I will be recommending to the grade 3-5 students in my advanced learning program, but I do think it's one that many will enjoy finding in our school's library!

Idaho Kids Vote Book Award year two

One of my students, Hattie, created the logo

Last summer at this time, KidsVoteAward.com was still a week away from becoming a registered domain name. I wanted to get my kids talking and sharing about the books they read and reading more complex books. The idea of having a statewide book award had been bouncing around in my head since I saw displays for Oregon Battle of the Books and ORCA (Oregon Reader's Choice Awards) at Powell's books in Portland. That led to a flurry of activity for me that started in early July as I built the aforementioned website and began reaching out to others to make the Idaho Kids Vote Book Award a reality.

One of the inspiring displays

The premise of the award was simple. Teachers would nominate outstanding middle grade books that had been published in the last few years. They would then make these books available in their classrooms and encourage students to read about them. Kids would naturally talk about the books, but teachers could set up blogs and arrange connections with other participating classrooms to get the conversations flowing beyond classroom walls. Finally, in April, kids who read two or more of the books would vote to choose a winner.

With one year of the award completed, it's time to reflect and start thinking about the next one. Things went well in my classroom. Using my classroom budget and donations, I was able to get three copies of most of the books. There was buzz around them throughout the school year (especially the winning book). Although students talked about the books, not many chose to write about them when they created blog posts.

My students contributed one-sentence review blurbs to this bulletin board.

From the feedback I received, things did not go quite as well in the other 21 classes that signed up to participate. Few teachers were able to devote funds to buy all eight books. Others said their administration and district policies were roadblocks to connecting with other classrooms outside their district. Still, four classes contributed votes for the winner and suggestions for this year's award.

In the next few weeks I'll be ramping up for the second year of the Idaho Kids Vote Book Award. I'm presenting about it (and classroom connection strategies) at the P20 Conference at College of Southern Idaho. I'm also reading possible nominees for the award and hope to publish some book reviews here. Of course, there are some questions I still need to answer: How can we get nominated books into classrooms? What could remove some of the barriers to connecting classrooms? Is there a better way to make this accessible to students?

That's a lot to think about while I also catch up on household projects, work at my summer job, and take advantage of some extra family time I don't get during the school year. If you have ideas to help this succeed, please share. And I'll keep you updated as I continue to experiment and refine...

#IDedchat: Summer reading June 22, 2016

This week, I'll be hosting #IDedchat along with Sarah Windisch. It's summer, and that means we finally have time to sit down and read. I know my summer reading is always a mix of professional books, KidLit, pulp novels, and internet articles. Even though my to-read list is endless, I'm still always looking for recommendations.

Tonight, let's give each other some recommendations for summer reading. We will try to just have an open discussion and just throw out ideas from our own diverse reading lists. Think about the questions below to guide our discussion, and Sarah and I will throw them out throughout the chat if we need to keep the discussion moving.

I hope you'll join us tonight, and I really look forward to hearing your recommendations!

#IDedchat

Summer Reading

June 22, 2016

7 p.m. PDT / 8 p.m. PDT / 9 p.m. CDT / 10 p.m. EDT

Some of these questions come from a chat that I hosted for the gone, but not forgotten, #slowchated

What are you currently reading?

Which book do you most recommend for other teachers?

What is your all-time favorite book?

 Share something you read as a student that sticks with you to this day.

Why did it make an impact?

Share something you read that inspired a change in your practice this school year.

 Share something you have read and are still digesting.

 What do you most want your students to read?

Recent reads

Christmas break is a great time to recharge my batteries, reflect on how the first four months of the school year have gone, and re-tool for the rest of the year. This year, it was also a great opportunity to read some of the middle grade books that have generated a lot of buzz this year.

Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson

The most checked-out books in my classroom library are graphic novels, so I'm always on the lookout for good ones with well-developed characters and engaging story lines. Roller Girl did not disappoint. This story of a girl's first experience with roller derby during the summer between elementary and middle school is one of the best realistic fiction graphic novels I've encountered. I especially like how the protagonist, Astrid, demonstrates perseverance through the trials of roller derby camp. It also deals with many of the changing friendship issues that I see kids encounter as they transition to middle school.
I can think of a lot of my kids who I'd recommend this to. I have a feeling that I won't get the chance, though, because it will fly off my shelf before I can.

Circus Mirandus by Cassie Beasley

I was intrigued by Circus Mirandus since I first saw an image of the cover almost a year ago. I've heard great things about it since, but I didn't know what to expect when I started reading it. The story follows Micah Tuttle as he sets out to find help for his dying grandfather by finding the magical circus from his grandfather's stories.
I loved the way this story showed the love between a boy and his grandfather through the stories and experiences they shared. The scenes at the circus created a nice blend between realistic fiction and fantasy. I really enjoyed reading this, but felt like there was a little unfinished business at the end of the story that left me unsatisfied. Still, this is one I will heartily recommend to students. I this is a book that could get some of my single-genre readers to broaden their horizons.

The War that Saved my Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

This book was a surprise. I just recently heard about it at #titletalk and on a couple end-of-the-year favorites lists. My public library had it in their digital check-out library, so I gave it a try. The War that Saved my Life  may be the finest young-adult historical fiction I've read. Born with a club foot, Ada has been isolated from the world by an unloving mother. When the children of London are evacuated to the countryside as the threat of German bombing raids increases, Ada is able to start a new life when she and her brother are taken in by a reclusive villager. The author uses Ada's lack of experience with the outside world as an opportunity to thoroughly explain historical concepts that will probably be unfamiliar to young readers.

As good as this was, I won't be able to add it to my classroom library. There is some strong language near the end that will keep it off my shelves. Still, it's a terrific book and I wouldn't be surprised if it won this year's Newbery Medal.

I hope to read a lot more middle grade books in the coming year. My school library recently ordered some of the other buzzed-about books from 2015, my to-read list from my classroom library is long, and there are sure to be some to add to my list in 2016. I look forward to hearing what my students and PLN recommend!

Purchases made at my links to Amazon provide me with a small compensation that I use to purchase more books for my classroom library. Although I greatly appreciate purchases made through my links, I encourage you to support a local bookstore if you have one available.

Getting ready

Another school year starts on Tuesday. Am I ready? I sure hope so. No matter what next week brings, I had a terrific week of getting ready for the new school year.

On Monday, my principal gathered our entire school staff for team building and goal setting at the North Idaho College Challenge Course. We've always had a tight staff, but it was amazing to see the trust exhibited on that ropes course. About half of us were willing to go up and try the high wires, rickety bridges, and swinging balance beams, but everyone took part hoisting ropes and working together on the ground-based challenges. It was the best start to teacher meetings I've ever experienced.

Tom Schimmer came to speak to all of our district's teachers about grading on Tuesday. He presented the idea of a standards-based mindset for grading. I really got a lot from his presentation, but the best were his explanations of summative vs. formative assessment that helped me understand the difference better than ever. We also received copies of How to Grade for Learning by Ken B. O'Conner for a district-wide book study. I'm excited to delve into this topic.

The purpose of summative assessment is to verify that learning has occurred & report that to someone -@TomSchimmer #CdAedchat #271leads

— Jim Windisch (@TeacherWithTuba) September 1, 2015

Formative assessment keeps learning on track & supports continual improvement -@TomSchimmer #CdAedchat #271leads

— Jim Windisch (@TeacherWithTuba) September 1, 2015

Speaking of book studies, my school staff read Dave Burgess's Teach Like a Pirate this summer. I read it the year before, but I was happy to share the experience with my staff. We had a pirate party to celebrate and discuss some of the ideas that came from reading it. Many of the teachers commented that the high school orientation of the book was difficult, but everyone came away with ideas for the coming school year. For me, the best part of our discussions was hearing about the plans to bring more joy into the classroom. The emphasis on testing and rigor has taken a toll on our kids and I'm glad to see our school focus on incorporating more fun and excitement into the good work we're already doing. I put up a Teach Like a Pirate bulletin board in our staff room with space for teachers to add notes about the ways the book affects their classrooms. I look forward to seeing what shows up there.

In addition to getting ready for the new school year as a teacher, I am the parent of a kindergartener this year. Thursday was kindergarten orientation for parents and our school's open house. Orientation was a remarkable event. My school's kindergarten team, Title I teacher, and district math coaches gave parents games and strategies to help their little guys succeed. We left the event with great information on assisting our son with handwriting, reading, and number sense. The evening's open house was a blast, too. It totally changed my perspective to experience this event as a parent. My son is lucky to have some friends from preschool in his class, because I think that helped put him at ease. He also got to meet his teacher, find his locker, and play on the playground. He seems really excited to start school next week: I'm the one who's nervous about it.

Finally, I was able to end the week with one of my favorite things: seeing and hearing live music. Sarah and I went to see Junior Brown in Spokane at Pig Out in the Park. I've loved Junior Brown's music since I was in high school. I saw him perform last time he visited the area nearly 20 years ago, when the world looked like this music video.

If it's possible, he was even better at playing the guit-steel this time around. The sounds he creates with his instrument are absolutely jaw-dropping. When we discussed it on the way home, we figured that he's had 20 more years of practice. I want to continue improving my practice as a teacher the way he has improved as a musician - maintaining my enthusiasm, experimenting with new techniques, and refining my craft. Here's to another year of practice!


Here's some more recent concert footage if you want to see what I mean about what happens with 20 years more practice!

Book blog update

The Bryan Book Blog

Before Christmas break, I was at a crossroads with my students' book reviews. I had some very high quality reviews, and others that still needed some work.

Thanks to advice from Erik of This Kid Reviews Books, Pernille Ripp, and some great educators from the Maryland elementary school chat (#mdeschat) I think I've found the way forward. When we returned from break, I told my students to publish when they personally felt ready. It was interesting to see the self-reflection my students used in deciding whether or not to publish.

Students were excited to see their reviews online and read reviews from my other classes. Plus, having the work published has allowed students to collect comments on their work. On one of the first days when students were able to comment on others' work I immediately had two girls come to me for advice. They noticed one of the reviews was full of capitalization and grammar errors. They wanted to know if it was appropriate to comment about it. We talked about making the comments constructive and helpful. They were able to comment in a way that highlighted the strengths of the review while still expressing concern that the review didn't match the quality of our other published reviews.

This review of The Candymakers is one of
the highest quality examples on our blog

Due to privacy concerns, my students had to set up their blog pages with self-chosen pen names. At first I was a little worried about the online behavior that comes with anonymity. In practice, it has been terrific. When students don't know for sure who the author is, I find that they are looking at the content of the book reviews carefully, rather than just heaping praise on their friends' reviews. I've also noticed students trying new books that may have been outside their comfort zones based on a published review.

One of the most exciting things for my students has been receiving comments from outside. I've shared the book blog address with the #comments4kids tag on Twitter a few times. We've received a variety of comments ranging from praise for a job well done to questions that ask the reviewer to dig deeper. I'd love to collect even more comments, so please visit the Bryan Book Blog and add your own.

Unfortunately, I still have a few students who haven't published a book review yet. Most of these are students who recognize that they need to make improvements before publishing, but they are choosing to work on other projects when we have reading/writing workshop. I will communicate my expectation that every student publish one review to the blog before spring break. I'll be checking in with these students to see how I can support them in revision and editing before that deadline rolls around.

Having my students blog has been terrific! I love seeing how the process is evolving this school year as my students publish and receive feedback. I'm also thinking ahead to some changes in my approach for next school year when I'll be able to get started with blogging from the beginning. And I will keep you updated as I continue to experiment and refine...

#SlowChatEd For the love of reading...

Once again, I'll be hosting #SlowChatEd Hopefully you can join us for this week's chat. (January 20-24, 2015)

Image from Personal Excellence

Reading. It's the key to much of what we do as educators. Even the subjects that aren't about "learning to read" such as Math, Science, and Physical Education still require "reading to learn." And, of course, reading isn't just about books. Reading is the key to digital learning, too. Heck, you're reading right now so you will know what is happening when you read the #SlowChatEd tweets all week.

How do we become readers? How can we encourage our students to become readers? We'll spend the week sharing titles and links to books, articles, and blog posts. Hopefully, these examples will reveal some of our personal experiences as readers and the experiences we create for students to turn them on to reading.

Image from Wikimedia Commons

After last week's Fortunately...Unfortunately chat, I want to continue the great interaction and depth the #SlowChatEd community brought to those topics. So, I challenge you to ask each other questions, reveal your answers a little at a time, and have some fun while you're learning.

There is also a special assignment this week. During last week's chat, Lindsey Lipsky reminded us about the great READ posters of days past.

@davidtedu @FarleyJeffrey Fortunately, you collect old 80's READ posters that you can put up over them. #SlowChatEd pic.twitter.com/8OtkMQ4ExL

— Lindsey Lipsky M.Ed. (@LindseyLipsky) January 13, 2015

Sometime this week, make your own READ poster or find a favorite vintage one and share it with all your #SlowChatEd friends. If you post the best one, you'll be temporarily crowned emperor of the EduTweeters. It should be a terrific week, and I look forward to learning from all of you!

Your host for the week,

-Jim Windisch

Cross-posted to slowchated.wordpress.com

Book review botheration

My students are writing a book review blog. I've been excited about this project since reading The Book Whisperer at the beginning of summer. It goes live next week, but I have a problem.

We worked together as a class to identify what a good book review looks like. We looked at professional reviews from The Horn Book and The Children's Book Review, and student-written book reviews at Reader Views Kids. But we were most impressed by the reviews from This Kid Reviews Books. Inspired by his format, my kids decided to write book reviews in two sections: a summary followed by their opinion.

Altered books by Bryan Elementary students

As the teacher, I led discussions about what made for a good book review. We read about writing book reviews and revising with a partner from the Writer's Express handbook. I wrote an example review using the format we chose as a class. I've offered suggestions on their Google Docs. Still, about a third of my students haven't written a quality book review yet. 

Some of my kids' reviews lack detail. When I push for more, they say that more detail would result in giving spoilers. Other reviews lack specifics in the opinion section and just say "it was a good book," without giving examples of the things that made it shine.

Other students have written beautiful reviews that tell just enough about the book to entice a reader. The opinions include reasons why the characters or settings were just right and comparisons to other books. Those reviews are ready to publish and represent the type of work I expect from students in an advanced learning program.

I'm struggling with where to go from here. I know that we'll post the detailed reviews this week, but not the others. This year, I've been working at building a culture of going back to review and revise work until it is top quality. I'm not allowing students to get a low grade and move on. How do I continue to support those students to develop their writing? Where do I find the balance between pushing them to improve and motivating them to write?

Please let me know if you have some ideas. I want my 4th and 5th graders' writing to shine. I know we can get there with some more time and effort. And I'll keep you updated as I continue to experiment and refine...

P is for passion

Image from a presentation by Christy Hilbun

The #IDedchat study of Teach Like a PIRATE has begun. And the P in PIRATE stands for passion, an essential element for any good teacher. Author Dave Burgess asks readers to answer three questions about passion. I decided to post my answers here.

"Within your subject matter, what are you passionate about teaching?"
When I was teaching fifth grade, this would have been an easy answer: U.S. History! I love our country's early history: the crazy adventures of the first European explorers, the hardships of colonization, the passion that ignited the revolutionary war, and my all-time favorite topic: the three branches of government. Next fall, when I am officially an advanced learning teacher, those aren't technically within my subject matter. Instead, I'll be teaching reading and math switch groups for third, fourth, and fifth graders.
My passions in reading and math aren't as easy to define. I'm passionate about good storytelling and the ability to get lost in a great book. I'm passionate about learning through non-fiction. I'm passionate about connecting mathematics to real life. I want my students to fall in love with reading for pleasure and reading to learn. In math, I want them to see mathematics as a language for communication and problem solving. If I can weave those into every class, the passion will be there.

"Within your profession, but not specific to your subject matter, what are you passionate about?"
Lifelong learning is definitely a passion! When I was in school, I wasn't a good student, but I was a good learner. I would take an idea and run with it, puzzling though multiple solutions or seeking out books to learn more. My greatest goal as a teacher is to create lifelong learners. I want my students to have the tools to learn and discover about anything they want or need to know.

"Completely outside your profession, what are you passionate about?"
I love my family! I want to spend quality time with them and have fun. Music is a big part of my life. I play the tuba whenever I get a chance, but listening to music is one of my favorite activities. I grew up loving my grandpa's big band records. I still love the music of his era, but I've branched out to have very eclectic tastes: I'll listen to anything! Food is always on my mind. I enjoy cooking just as much as eating.  I studied the Titanic disaster in-depth throughout high school and college, and I still add to my library of books and articles about the ill-fated maiden voyage. And I can't get enough of surprising and obscure facts: I'm constantly reading articles from mental_floss and sharing all of the crazy things I learn with anyone who will listen.

Now that I've identified my passions, it's time to bring them into my classroom. I'm looking forward to learning how to do that in the rest of Teach Like a PIRATE. And I'll keep you updated as I continue to experiment and refine...


If you would like to join the #IDedchat study of Teach Like a PIRATE, let me know in the comment section or by contacting me on Twitter @teacherwithtuba We just got started, and would be happy to build a larger group!

Inspiration from The Book Whisperer

Image from Amazon.com

My first professional read of the summer was Donalyn Miller's The Book Whisperer. I came away from it questioning everything I've done as a reading teacher. And I'm happy to be doing that.

The big question I've started to ask is: "Do the things I do in class promote reading?" My reflection reveals a mixed record. I have always taught in Accelerated Reader schools and put quite a bit of effort into calculating, monitoring, and rewarding student reading goals. No matter how high or low I set the goals, I always had about 25% of my students who never reached a grading period goal. As I conferred with and observed these students, I found that they would start books, but rarely finish. They weren't motivated to read and earning AR points wasn't doing anything to help. The time I invested on managing reading would have been better spent promoting reading. As a teacher, I need to help connect kids to the books that will make them passionate about reading. I should start with book recommendations to the class and individuals. My classroom needs a "reading culture" where students talk about and trade books on a regular basis. Reading is intrinsically motivating, and students need the opportunity to learn that.

Another big idea from The Book Whisperer is how important it is to have self-selected independent reading time in school. I haven't given my students much time for that in the past few years. Our reading program was focused on direct instruction in reading strategies and practice with short passages. I saw growth in comprehension ability, but I can't recall having a student learn to love reading under that instructional model.

So what will I do next year? Next year, I'll be teaching my school's advanced learning program: teaching the high math and reading switch groups for grades 3-5. I plan to start each of my reading switch classes with independent reading time. Donalyn Miller asserts that beginning class with independent reading time is more effective than any entry task that can become "busy work." Next, I'll set a 40 book goal for all of my students and help them set up personal reading logs to keep track of progress. I'll also set some genre requirements. At least ten of their books will be free choice, but I plan to require students to read some biographies, historical fiction, fantasy, science-fiction, classics, and informational non-fiction. Finally, I want to give my students an authentic audience to share about the books they read. We'll post reviews in our classroom and school library, create a blog of book reviews, and create opportunities to talk about books.

In addition to my work with students, I want to read more. If I've read the best books in current children's literature, it will be easier to help my students connect with just the right book. I'm going to set some time aside each day for reading. I expect that my students will give me some good suggestions, but if you can think of a must-read book for grade 3-5 let me know in the comments. After 11 years of teaching fifth grade, I feel pretty comfortable with the upper elementary literature, but I have no idea what third graders read.

I know it will be a great year for reading! I can hardly wait to see how these changes will build excitement for reading in my classes. And I'll keep you updated as I experiment and refine...

Summer reading

Summer vacation just started and like most teachers, I'm already thinking about next year.  After 11 years of teaching fifth grade, I'm switching jobs. When I return in the fall, I'll be the Advanced Learning teacher at my school. I'll be teaching the high math and reading switch groups for third, fourth, and fifth grade. I'm looking forward to it, but it will be a big change. To prepare, I've made myself quite a list of summer reading. I'd love to share ideas from these books with anyone else who is reading them this summer and hear ideas from those of you who have made these books a part of your practice. So, in no particular order, here is my summer reading list:

The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller

Every year it seems like I have more and more reluctant readers - students who are capable, but just don't choose to read. The Idaho Core Standards definitely require more of our readers than our previous standards. With those changes and our school dropping Accelerated Reader next year, I hope this book will give me some new ideas for my reading switch groups.

Teach Like a Pirate by Dave Burgess

When I first joined Twitter, this was the book that kept popping up in my feed.  I downloaded it before my spring break vacation, but I haven't found the time to read it yet. At last week's #idedchat, the book came up and I hastily put together a book study group for the summer. I'll post details about the book club as we figure it out.

Understanding by Design by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe

This is another book that the teachers I admire most on Twitter frequently reference. In my new position, I am switching from having a somewhat flexible schedule with my students to 50 minute blocks with a group.  I need a plan that will give me the most impact with my short time. I'm hoping to find some ideas here.

He's the Weird Teacher by Doug Robertson

I am always amazed by what a fun and friendly community of teachers I have found on Twitter. And one of my favorite Twitter events is Wednesday night's #WeirdEd chat. We've discussed how being weird in the classroom builds relationships, how education relates to Pixar movies, and had a very serious exploration of violence and safety in schools.  Doug Robertson is the ringleader of this wonderful chat, so I want to read his book. Plus, I've overheard students say the title of this book when talking about me. If my kids want me to read it, so be it!

Mindsets in the Classroom by Mary Cay Ricci

This was my principal's teacher appreciation gift to the staff. I've heard quite a bit about Carol Dweck's book, Mindset, and the power of moving from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset. I generally have a growth mindset, but I don't know how to impart that to my students. Maybe I'll find a plan here.

In addition to my professional reading, I hope to read some kid lit as well.  Now that I'll be working with younger students, I'm looking for suggestions of quality books that would be appropriate for good third grade readers.  Still, I have a few books in mind to read that should be of interest to my fourth and fifth grade students:

• The Titanic Trilogy by Gordon Korman
• The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
• The One and Only Ivan  by Katherine Applegate

Now that my list is in writing, I need to follow through! Please let me know if you have any other kid lit suggestions or insights into the professional books I'm reading. I'm sure I'll post some reflections and ideas for how I'll apply these new ideas to the upcoming school year after reading. And I'll keep you updated as I continue to experiment and refine...

Images from Amazon.com

Inspiration from the Common Core Text Exemplars

When I first began studying the Common Core Standards, I was struck by the emphasis on text complexity. Every time I opened my book of English and Language Arts standards I paused when I came to that phrase: the one that set the expectation for students to "read and comprehend ... at the high end of the grades 4-5 text complexity band independently and proficiently."  What was a text complexity band?  How could I know if my students were reading appropriately complex text? I knew that many of the selections in the reading series I agreed to use to fidelity were not complex.  The Accelerated Reader reading levels that I labeled on all of my classroom library books didn't appear to indicate text complexity either: Captain Underpants and the Revolting Revenge of the Radioactive Robo-Boxers by Dav Pilkey is the same AR reading level as Neil Gaiman's (very adult and complex) American Gods.

Then I figured out that the CCSS ELA standards had appendices. And one of these, Appendix B, has a list of text exemplars.  That was where I would find an easy answer, right?  Not exactly - it takes perseverance to figure it out.  I've heard our district reading coaches and others say that the list is not to be used as a curriculum or required book list, but I knew I would need to have my students work with a variety of texts on the list so I could understand how they interacted with complex texts.  Hopefully I could learn from that until I was able to identify appropriately complex texts on my own.  I'm not there yet, but I'm making progress.

I started the year by putting together a Springpad notebook to keep my ideas for working with the 4-5 exemplars and link to the articles and poems that were available for free online. Then I wrote a grant proposal to our local education foundation, EXCEL, to fund copies of a few of the non-fiction books on the list.  All through the school year, I have been trying out ideas with these texts. I'm finding that the complexity is a big jump from the texts I used last year. Still, it is amazing the insights my kids have as they read this material. Here are three of the things we have done:

Celebrity endorsement from Mariah Carey

Bandwagon example (and she doesn't sit on babies)

The Kid's Guide to Money by Steve Otfinoski 

We're just finishing this one up in my reading switch group. Kids have worked to make a business plan and create advertising using information from the book as a guide.  My students also did some terrific persuasive writing and had a class debate over whether kids should be allowed to have credit cards.

"Casey at the Bat" by Ernest Lawrence Thayer 

This poem had a sample performance task from the Core Standards: "Students refer to the structural elements (e.g., verse, rhythm, meter) of Ernest Lawrence Thayer’s “Casey at the Bat” when analyzing the poem and contrasting the impact and differences of those elements to a prose summary of the poem." My students had a difficult time with the vocabulary of this poem. I found a nice text summary of the poem in this poetry unit from Pottsgrove School District in Pennsylvania. Even though they had a difficult time expressing exactly what it was that gave the poem a greater impact than the prose summary, my students had rich discussions around these texts.

“Fog” by Carl Sandburg and “Dust of Snow” by Robert Frost 

 I thought these two poems made for a nice comparison and contrast activity with my students.  Both evoke natural scenes of weather, but in very different ways.  First, I asked my students to look at the animal in each poem.  “Dust of Snow” describes the actions of a crow while “Fog” uses a cat as a metaphor for fog.  Next, students examined the rhyme and rhythm of the two poems.  After discussing, students wrote a paragraph comparing and contrasting the two poems. They noticed the metaphor in "Fog" right away and most of my students had a lot of success with this activity.

I would love to hear other ideas for working with the text exemplars list. Has anyone reached a high level of comfort in finding appropriately complex text?  Have you identified some outstanding excerpts from some of the longer texts on the list? I look forward to hearing your ideas.  And I'll keep you updated as I continue to experiment and refine...