Literacy Now

Our students’ learning and independence happen one intentional moment at a time. As we start the school year, just how do we best plan for these incremental steps toward truly independent and engaged readers?  I’ve found it helpful to focus on a handful of key milestones each month so I don’t become overwhelmed and distracted by everything I want to accomplish across the year. In this post I share Reading Milestone Calendarsthat remind us of the key moments in our fall reading classrooms.

What to focus on in September

Although focusing solely on structures in September to create a solid management routine can be tempting, I’ve found that getting independent reading up and going from the start is equally important. On the very first day of school and every single day afterward, I make sure students have books in their hands that they can read and actually want to read.

Students can organize books in the classroom into bins by category and topic—and not only is this task great for reading, but it’s also a terrific ice breaker. Students create labels for these book bins such as “Tear Jerkers,” “For Dreamers,” “Crime Solvers” and “For Adventure Seekers.” Rather than label the books by reading level, I suggest you keep the level on the inside or cover of the book. When choosing topics for the larger categories and labels for book bins think, “What would kids actually say to one another in a book talk?” Students tend to be motivated and engaged by topics they care about much more than a reading level label.

Getting students turning pages is one thing, but it’s jump-starting our own curiosity as teachers that matters most, because our reading instruction is only as good as the quality of our last mining expedition. As I’ve written about in my book, Mindsets and Moves (Corwin 2016), right from the start of the school year we can take on the role of a Miner, uncovering what—and how—each of our students read. In order to get to know students well and value who they are as people and readers, we observe them in action, talk about their process, and listen to them read. By getting to know students well, we can make sound instructional decisions for the rest of the school year.

By mid-September, assess your students’ current reading stamina and set a goal for how much more they will be able to read by the end of the month. If they can read for seven minutes on day one, aim for about 15 to 20 minutes in a few weeks. You can chart your progress, share strategies for building focus, and talk honestly about setbacks and challenges. Stamina is developed over time and requires our patience.

By the end of the month (if not a little sooner) introduce students to their reading notebooks. A reading notebook is not a place to complete assignments for the teacher. Instead, it is a place for students to document and develop their thinking about the texts they read. Give students choices right from the start about what they write down and how they choose to write it. Show examples of structures such as a timeline, t-chart, bullets, and visuals, but allow students to decide what works for them. Build excitement for these notebooks by having a gallery walk of decorated notebooks, discussing how you will use them in the coming year, and letting students know they are in charge of what and how to record their thinking. These notebooks become a boon to conferring and formative assessment.

A third initiative in the march toward independence is to dare to make yourself known as an independent reader. We have known for years about the benefits of sharing with students the magazines we read to relax with on trips, favorite authors, guilty pleasure “commercial” fiction or “geeky” science reads, but this September and throughout the year, model your mindset and goals as a reader. Spend time every week in your read-alouds, minilessons, and conferences showing students how you reflect on your strengths and challenges and then how you go about forming personalized goals for yourself. For example, I might share how I tend to focus so much on predicting the plot that I read too fast and miss out on some of the author’s vivid language and word choices.  Once you have modeled this process, invite students to do the same. No need to worry if the goals are “good” yet; instead, focus on the process of setting a goal, as this helps students develop ownership of their reading lives. Students can work with a partner to talk through their self-reflections and help each other choose strategies that will help them accomplish their goals.

The Reading Milestones Calendar offers these reminders and reflective questions you can use when planning for September. There’s a link at the end of this post so you can print your own.

What to focus on in October

If we look ahead to October, we can build on the solid foundation we laid in the previous month. Much of the work we began in September will carry over such as building stamina and reflecting on and setting new goals. We also continue to get to know our students well taking on the role of a Miner.

Begin a weekly book talk ritual in your classroom by giving students approximately 10 minutes to share some of their book recommendations with a partner or small group. Older students can write reviews or create a class Goodreads account or book talk blog. Model how to give a book talk and how to sell your book so others will want to read it. We know books become popular when students tell one another about them, so create space where students talk about books on a regular basis.

While continuing to be a miner, take on the role of a mirror, offering feedback to students about how they are reading and what is working for them. Like a mirror, you reflect back on them their own process as readers, which is profoundly supportive to students’ independence and self-concept as readers. When we take the time to explain to students that we see them, really see them, and value all they already know how to do, we build a respectful and trusting relationship. In so doing, before jumping in and teaching new strategies, you are supporting what students already know how to do by reinforcing it and explaining how it helps them as readers. Students will be more willing to develop ownership and independence when they trust you and feel safe to take risks in the classroom. This mirroring work is all part of moving students from a fixed mindset about their abilities to a growth mindset.

You’ll find some reminders of these milestones in the October calendar. You can print your own copies of both of these calendars here.

Good luck with your reading milestones! Remember: Nothing is accomplished overnight. Be patient with yourself and your students, and don’t forget to record your celebrations on this calendar too. Time to celebrate gives us a boost and motivation to go after the next one.

Gravity Goldberg is a literacy consultant and author of Mindsets and Moves: Strategies That Help Readers Take Charge (Corwin, 2015) and coauthor of Conferring With Readers: Supporting Each Student’s Growth and Independence(Heinemann, 2007) in addition to managing her blog. This post is one in a series on how teachers can create more independence in the classroom by embracing new roles. She also can be reached via Twitter. 

Simon will always share a special place in my heart. He was absent the entire first month of my first year of teaching because of an infection. The remainder of the year was spent flirting, thinking about his suave attire, and anything that was not work. My second year, Simon was in my remedial reading and writing class. That year, I learned Simon had to choose between taking care of his family and going to school. He was a veteran of “the hard knock life” and the result was an education full of holes.

My classes almost always start with reading; it’s predictable and sets a reflective tone I want to cultivate. Simon anticipated this time and escaped it with Houdini-like efficiency—he was diagnosed with ADHD. After observing Simon’s behavior, I determined he had two significant barriers to reading. First, he didn’t read well and no one wants to put their heart into unsuccessful activities he or she doesn’t enjoy. Second, exerting the energy necessary was more than he was willing to expend. The result was the need to escape each time the class was to read.

In my experience, students who don’t like reading do one of three things: (1) continually dispel every book as awful, (2) escape situations where it is required (can be texting or asking to do a different activity), or (3) avoid the requirement by ditching class.

The ABA way

I was exposed to Applied Behavioral Analysis as therapy for my daughter’s Aspergers and ADHD traits. What seemed like a miracle at the time was backed by decades of science and endorsed by every major medical group in the United States. In 1968 Baer, Wolf, and Risely described ABA as the process of applying behavioral principles to improve specific behaviors while simultaneously evaluating the changes and whether they can be attributed to the process. As a parent, my view was of a lot of charts, observations, and incredible change in my daughter’s behavior.

The process

With younger children, caregivers are natural behaviorists. If a baby cries, we go through a list: Does the baby want to avoid or gain something? Does the baby want attention or is there too much stimulus (noise)? Once children can talk, caregivers begin to focus on the physical characteristics of the behavior. “Stop crying!”, “Don’t hit!”, “Sit down!” Teachers must realize that behavior only continues if it is reinforced and reinforcement is often covert. If a child stands at an inappropriate time in need of attention only to be corrected by a stern “sit down,” the child has been reinforced and will likely repeat the behavior. ABA focuses on the five functions of behavior: to gain attention, to gain a tangible, to gain or escape sensory stimulation, to escape attention or a task, to avoid attention or a task. The first step to changing behavior begins with identifying the function.  

The next step is reinforcement. For anyone to choose an alternative behavior over what they are prone to do, there must be significant incentive. I use a worksheet with a variety of incentives including food, phone use, and iPads. Students prioritize the incentives and we develop systems, like tokens, to reinforce the correct behavior. It’s important to realize that students often don’t know how they are supposed to act, so instruction on things like respect or restraint is necessary. The last step is the application and analysis. I use a chart to document the increase or decrease of the problem behavior. Always begin with easy goals and increase; students have to feel successful so the process isn’t seen as a punishment. Normally the behavior gets worse before it gets better, but if the behavior continues, either the function is incorrectly hypothesized or the incentive isn’t strong enough.    

Results

I determined Simon wanted to avoid reading because he considered himself a poor reader. This will not change overnight, which means Simon must do a lot of reading in the meantime. I first set a goal, “Simon will begin reading within five seconds of being assigned” and then set up an achievable goal to begin, “Simon will check his texts and then begin reading.” Essentially, Simon avoided reading out of self-preservation; he didn’t want to feel stupid. So I reflected on what I knew about him and came up with a significant incentive.

We met at lunch one afternoon and discussed his behavior. I told him what I expected and offered him the chance to stay in my room to “hang out” as long as he met the expectation. I then explained how I would prompt him physically and verbally and then gesture if he was having trouble. Simon was on board and met the expectation quickly. Eventually, I removed the incentive until the adverse behavior was extinct. Several times throughout the year we reinstituted the program for his escape behaviors and others, something ABA terms “maintenance.”

I often wonder about the difference teachers and parents could make if everyone simply knew the functions of behavior. There is an enormous amount of information on YouTube, Pinterest, and various websites that offer ABA methodology for free. The changes to my classroom and family cannot be understated. Good luck!  

Nick Murja teaches remedial reading and writing at Palo Duro High School in Amarillo, TX. He is working on a PhD in Literacy, Language, and Diversity at Texas Tech University.

Being able to name the letters of the alphabet is the best predictor of beginning reading achievement, even though knowing the names of the letters does not have a direct impact on a child’s ability to read.

As a literacy consultant in more than 100 kindergarten rooms over the past 30 years, I have found many kindergarten teachers befuddled by the fact that their children could name all the letters of the alphabet and a phoneme often associated with each of the letters but could not read or write.

I explain that without meaningful writing and reading activities, children see no reason to go beyond naming letters to writing letters and eventually learning the alphabetic principle (sound to letter relationships). Children actively construct their own literacy learning about phoneme–grapheme correspondences when they engage in the process of meaningful writing  in a writing workshop based on the research of Graves and Cambourne’s Conditions.

Then I proceed to show teachers how children engage in writing and how I guide them during the process. I particularly want to demonstrate a very useful strategy that I devised when I noticed children struggling to remember the formation of a certain letter. I call it the “ABC Song Strategy.” It is sung to the tune of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" (see my video here for demonstrations and details).

This ABC Song Strategy has worked almost every time for kindergartners except for directionality mix-ups that require a “moving model” of the letter’s formation. However, the ABC Song Strategy does need frequent reinforcement, especially in the beginning of the year. That is why we practice it every day a few times in the “Alphabet Time” of Getting Ready for Writing Workshop.

“I love the emphasis on singing the ABCs often; one student who I worked with needed to sing the song to find a letter for a sound in almost every word she wanted to write,” says Jeni Tyjeski, a preservice kindergarten teacher. “As the semester went on and she put more sounds with written letters, we sang the song much less frequently, but she knew if she forgot what the letter looked like she could always sing the song. Watching this child develop as a writer from hesitant and reliant on my guidance to bubbly and full of ideas was incredible!”

Although being able to name the letters of the alphabet is important, being able to write the letters at will and connecting them to a sound, also known as “invented spelling,” is even more important. Invented spelling is the very best predictor of reading, and it allows children to begin to know meaning before they know how to actually spell a word.

Arlene C. Schulze is a longtime reading teacher and specialist. She holds a lifetime degree in elementary education from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and a master’s degree in reading from the University of Wisconsin, Steven’s Point (UWSP). She has been a K–2 literacy consultant for three school systems in North Central Wisconsin and a literacy instructor in language arts and reading at UWSP for many years. She is the author of the book Helping Children Become Readers Through Writing. Currently she is tutoring struggling readers in northern Wisconsin.

Although many students eagerly await summer as a time to move away from books, it’s actually the ideal time to move toward them. During these vacation months, young people have free time and choice, luxuries that open the door to exploration of the written word. However, after months in school of being told what to read and when, many kids are resistant to hitting the books. After more than a decade in education, I use certain practices to dissipate this resistance and get children reading.

Provide choice

Reading is often seen as a chore because students are asked to read about topics that don’t excite them. During the summer, allow kids to choose what they want to read. Kids who are typically reluctant readers often will become consumed by books on subjects they’re passionate about.

Layer in complexity

Help students to pursue their interests by suggesting they read a variety of texts and points of view on their preferred subject. Most curricula encourage students to compare and contrast readings and read paired text for good reason: This practice gives students a deeper understanding of a topic and builds their critical thinking skills. Over the summer, practice this widening of view with diverse text and a variety of media.

Think outside of the (book) box

Don’t limit summer reading goals to just books. For many students, magazine and newspaper articles are a great option to get started with daily reading and to feel a sense of accomplishment at the end, having learned something new. With shorter articles on topics they’re excited about, students may be willing to make the effort to read more challenging text.

Keep in mind that any reading is good reading

During the school year, students are told what to read as a class and often their independent reading choices are limited to their level. Allow for more freedom and fluidity over the summer. Comic books and graphic novels count. If your middle schooler wants to revisit his beloved Captain Underpants from elementary school, let him. Reading only elementary books all summer wouldn’t be a good idea, but one won’t hurt and still maintains the reading practice.

Add interaction

Although independent reading is necessarily a solitary activity, there are ways to make it social. Adults love book clubs as a forum to discuss what’s on their minds after a great read, and kids feel the same. To add in this social element and move themes and questions off the page, parents could read the same articles or books that their kids choose, so they could discuss the text together. Parents or teachers could organize in-person or online book/article groups to give kids some accountability for finishing reading by a certain date and to give them a chance to discuss their perspectives.

Add incentives

Intrinsic motivation is ideal and comes from providing choice, but extrinsic motivation helps, because there will be no grades and probably no due dates over the summer. Parents, teachers, or both can devise reward systems for their children and students, and many organizations sponsor free online summer reading contests and activities. ReadWorks, Zinc Learning Labs, and Newsela all offer summer reading programs in a variety of formats.

Make reading a habit

Most of us strive on structure when it comes to sticking with new or challenging activities. A reading practice is no different. Summer reading is easier when families set a regular no-screens reading time that ideally the whole family or at least one parent participates in. Just like with athletic training, you should start with a realistic goal and then add on as reading becomes more regular. Just like you wouldn’t ask a 3K runner to be ready for a marathon next week, don’t expect a child who is used to very little independent reading to start off with two hours a day. Be sure to set a goal that can be accomplished in the sweet spot of discomfort: not so much that the reader wants to give up, but enough that she’s growing.

Remember to have fun

All too often school and assigned reading are seen as drudgery with little real-world relevance to students. Summer independent reading should feel like the opposite! This opportunity to get kids reading what they’re interested in and what is relevant to them has the potential to completely shift their relationship with reading in the fall, so be sure to keep this in mind with positive, encouraging energy!

Colette Coleman graduated from Yale University and entered the world of education in 2005 as a middle school teacher in Los Angeles through Teach For America. She earned her master’s degree in education and taught at an international school in Indonesia. She then moved out of the classroom to support schools in the implementation of new education technology and is currently in New York City working as the Director of Community Engagement at Zinc Learning Labs, an online reading program for middle and high school students.

Many elementary schools are expanding literacy blocks in an effort to improve reading achievement. Teachers work with guided reading groups while other students work independently, often at a literacy center. Although specific activities may vary, the common thread is the colossal amount of work that students are not doing during this time. Such was the case at the school just outside Winston-Salem, NC, where Valarie Hazel, a 23-year veteran of public education, teaches.

Wasting time and opportunity

Most of the students here read below grade, some significantly. Perhaps as a consequence, many have become expert at avoiding work, usually quite loudly. Arguments are frequent and impassioned, even when the stakes are meaningless—a prolonged squabble over possession of a book that neither student intends to read or extended debate regarding whose turn it is to go first.

Valarie, a fourth-grade teacher, was frequently interrupted in her small-group instruction to redirect disruptive students. Transitions between centers were lengthy and chaotic. Much of her instructional time was consumed with managing student behavior.

Data-empowered, not data-driven

“I had been using materials from the resource room,” Valarie explained. “I just worked with what we had.” Because only a few of Valarie’s students read on grade level, the activities were simply too difficult. “They didn’t want to try because the work was too hard.” She could support students’ on-grade level efforts during guided reading groups, but independent work required tasks at which they could succeed in her absence.

Using a variety of assessment data, Valarie determined each student’s literacy skills and deficits, which dictated what activities she included in the centers. She tapped the wealth of free, reproducible resources available online, printing and cataloging dozens of learning games that reinforced a range of skills. This enabled her to quickly change out tasks as students developed greater competencies.

At each center, students tracked their progress. At the fluency center, for example, students logged the date, the title of the reading passage, and their words per minute for each of three turns. Although this can be used as an external accountability measure, its real value is allowing students to register an immediate payoff to their center work.

Logistics

For every activity, Valarie replaced complex instructions with kid-friendly language. These instructions were included with each center but only for reference purposes. Before placing an activity in a center, “I put the game on the Promethean board, and we all played it together. Then I made enough copies [so students] could practice in groups.” Only when she was convinced that students could administer the centers themselves did she allow them to work independently.

She created a rotation schedule and placed it where everyone could see it. Names of centers were inserted in a clear, plastic pocket chart. As students cleaned up from one rotation, Valarie moved the center names to a different set of students for the next rotation.

To further limit the opportunities for disruption and to increase time on task, Valarie shifted from student teams to student pairs. The smaller the group, the less downtime each student had between turns. Using her assessment data, she paired students who were within a few reading levels of each other, changing the pairings as student abilities changed.

Teachers with larger classes may assume they lack the necessary space for 12 or 14 centers, but none of the activities require an area larger than two desktops. Most are stored in pocket folders that the students retrieve from a box at the front of the room. Others, like the game Boggle, remain in their original boxes but sit on the same shelf.

Valarie accepts that students who have never been asked to self-regulate require continual practice. Further, disengaged students often need a personally relevant reason to persist at an activity, and so she may need to work individually with students to set literacy goals that are supported by their center work. Great teaching is not a place at which you arrive but a constant process of becoming.

Deb Teitelbaum joined the faculty of the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching in 2011. She holds a PhD in Educational Administration & Policy from the University of Georgia. She also taught high school English and theater in Lombard, IL, for 11 years, during which time she attained National Board certification. She is also on Twitter.