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Reading aloud to middle and high school students encourages them to think critically, fosters a sense of community, and makes learning fun.

"Did I have you in seventh-grade language arts?"

As the spark of recognition intensifies, the first question is followed by, "Do you still read The Glass Castle to your students?"

Read-alouds leave an impression on students long after they leave the classroom.

There are different ways you can include read-alouds within your classroom routines. You can use them as a warm-up for the day's lesson or integrate them as part of a larger unit of study about reading or writing effectively. Students can even use read-alouds themselves to go on self-guided reading and writing journeys. I'll share with you a lesson where I used a read-aloud to teach writing and then share examples of independent interdisciplinary projects that students can do.

A Read-Aloud Lesson

Vocabulary building (5-10 minutes): When students enter the room, a new vocabulary word from the day's read-aloud is on display. This immediately engages kids, and they quickly settle in-for one thing, they know they'll soon hear the read-aloud.

We study and understand the word in a variety of ways. Through vocabulary immersion games, students learn how to apply the unfamiliar word by writing original sentences, researching synonyms and antonyms, and creating a pictorial representation of it. The culmination of this portion of class is that students share their work with their peers.

As an extension of the lesson, when students come across unfamiliar words, they use these same vocabulary techniques. It's inspiring to hear one student say to another, "I also learned that word from a book I was reading!" When students read their own books, I encourage them to make their own word discoveries as part of our vocabulary practice.

The read-aloud (5 minutes): After we discuss as a class the key story developments from the previous day, I begin the read-aloud. Looking around the room, I can tell the students are completely immersed. At this point, the text for them comes to life. To sustain the buzz in the classroom and encourage discussion, I make sure the read-aloud ends on a cliffhanger.

I'm thinking...

What stood out to me was...

A question I have is...

I'm wondering...

A connection I made was...

I feel...

I disagree with...

I can relate to...

I would change...

Discussion (5-10 minutes): We transition from the read-aloud to students talking in small groups and then into a whole-class discussion. Instead of my asking a single question, which may limit responses, students use discussion starters like the ones below, which allow for a more creative flow of ideas and increased participation:

This is a student-led segment of class where students call on one another. It frequently results in passionate, animated debates, with everyone eager to express their viewpoints. "If I were the dad, I would never have done that!" one student might argue. "What he should've done instead was...." Then another student will add to the discussion. It's impossible to overstate the importance of selecting an evocative read-aloud text for stimulating productive discussion.

Reading and writing mini-lesson and workshop (30 minutes): I use the read-aloud text as a model to demonstrate a reading or writing strategy during the mini-lesson. Take, for example, the goal of encouraging students to include setting details in their writing. I'll begin by handing out copies of the read-aloud text. Next, students collaborate in small groups to highlight, analyze, and discuss the passage's setting details.

Students then go through their own independent reading book looking for examples of setting details. Finally, they write and highlight vivid setting details in their own pieces, then present their favorites to the rest of the class.

Further Creative Connections

The read-aloud also provides a platform for other creative explorations. Here are a couple to consider.

Projects: Since reading aloud Jeannette Walls's memoir The Glass Castle, my students are inspired to create real or digital models and floor plans of their own glass castles. Everything from cardboard dioramas and meticulous doodles to Minecraft and Tinkercad mansions demonstrates my students' ingenuity and excitement. During a gallery walk showcase, they describe their models using the vocabulary they've learned. They share feedback and celebrate each other's creativity.

Describe the characters in the scene. How do they look? How do they act? Decide which group members will perform each role.

Will your scene have a narrator or be told from a first-person perspective?

What problem does a character or characters face?

What's the theme or lesson? What message should your audience take away from your performance that will leave an impression?

What props and/or creative elements will you include?

Playwriting and performances: Students reenact or create new situations based on the day's read-aloud. Groups use the guiding questions below to plan out their ideas before drafting their skits.

For example, I've had students write a scene from Quixote the cat's perspective from The Glass Castle, depicting his new life after getting tossed out of a car window.

When students act out characters' experiences, it also cultivates empathy and helps them to relate to the story on a deeper level. Often my students choose to reenact scenes of homelessness, filming themselves outdoors in winter, lacking essentials.

Interdisciplinary Connections

Create tourist brochures with information about the cities where the characters lived

Read articles about underlying issues in the United States, such as poverty and food insecurity

Collect and compare statistical data about the various cities where the author lived

Investigate things that interested the father character, such as binary numerals and the solar system

Write and perform songs based on characters' experiences

Read-alouds can be expanded outside of language arts. Here are just a handful of the areas that my students explored based on their own interests in subjects related to The Glass Castle.

Read-alouds encourage enthusiasm and creativity in the classroom, transforming isolated lessons into ones that stick. They encourage students to think critically, foster a sense of community in the classroom, and make learning fun and enjoyable. I've never looked back since I started reading aloud to my classes years ago.

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Using Read-Alouds to Boost Students' Creativity

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Reading aloud to middle and high school students encourages them to think critically, fosters a sense of community, and makes learning fun. "Did I have you in seventh-grade language arts?" As the spark of recognition intensifies, the first question is followed by, "Do you still read The Glass Castle to your students?"

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He has several iterations of this work for various content areas, but his work on effect size is something every educator should look at.

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Find out more about John Hattie’s Visible Learning meta-study

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Check out their book The Writing Revolution by Hochman and Wexler

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Check out their book The Writing Revolution by Hochman and Wexler

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The book has a lot of different writing activities that can be used in any classroom. It also offers plenty of examples from all content areas - Even Math!

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The Writing Revolution - Empower teachers to help students

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By training educators in The Hochman Method©, The Writing Revolution (TWR) aims to help all students become proficient writers, readers, and critical thinkers.

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Jennifer Serravallo books through Heinemann

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Jennifer Serravallo books through Heinemann

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Serravallo has a Writing Strategies Book and a Teaching Writing in Small Groups: Check them out here: https://www.heinemann.com/jenniferserravallo/?wtime=%7Bseek_to_second_number%7D%3Fwtime?wtime=%7Bseek_to_second_number%7D&utm_source=googleads&utm_medium=&utm_campaign=&utm_term=&utm_content=&hsa_acc=4700717789&hsa_cam=18922508526&hsa_grp=&hsa_ad=&hsa_src=x&hsa_tgt=&hsa_kw=&hsa_mt=&hsa_net=adwords&hsa_ver=3&gclid=Cj0KCQiA-JacBhC0ARIsAIxybyMDPCoy2o488XqSpMsrF0ovzEgJw1n-za5Xs9NaPkSpwrfHYYf3F-4aAsOJEALw_wcB

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She has an original Reading Strategies Book and a new one called The Reading Strategies Book 2.0. These are great resources that offer quick lessons in various reading strategies for grades K-12.

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A research-based approach to literacy development

As educators, we work persistently to meet the needs of every student.

Our efforts toward this goal can be impacted by countless factors-our students' strengths and needs, our school environment and resources, state and federal standards, the input from countless invested community voices, time limitations, and more.

Hi, I'm Jennifer Serravallo

educator, author, speaker, and founder of Literacy Strategies Consulting, LLC.

I work worldwide alongside K-8 educators like you to develop proficient, enthusiastic readers and writers using research and practical strategies.

My model for supporting both students and adult learners is based on continuous data collection, intentional goal-setting, explicit strategy instruction, and responsive feedback.

With 20+ years of teaching experience, 15 books and teaching resources published, and an incredible consulting team by my side, I'd be honored to join the work in your district, as we collaborate to build knowledge, skills, confidence, and excitement around literacy learning and instruction.

personalize your literacy learning to match your interests, goals, and how you learn best.

From best-selling books to customizable professional development, you can personalize your literacy learning to match your interests, goals, and how you learn best. No matter how you choose to work with me, you'll get practical, timely strategies for learning and teaching, driven by needs-based assessments and backed by current research.

Professional Development

Collaborate with us for customized professional learning experiences based in your classroom, school, and district; or choose online workshops or webinar series.

Printable Resources

Download ready-to-use resources, including writing templates, assessments, study guides, and resources in Spanish.

Podcast

Keep up to date with current research and get realistic ideas and solutions for your classroom. Listen in as I interview researchers and scholars and have post-interview discussions with colleagues about practical takeaways.

Read about research-driven best practices using my best-selling books such as The Reading Strategies Book 2.0 (new 2023 edition!), The Writing Strategies Book, my comprehension assessment and teaching resource Complete Comprehension, and more.

"Our day with Jennifer was just amazing! Everyone was so engaged, enthusiastic, excited and on board, and I know we all found the strategies and resources to be so valuable. We got a ton of feedback on how people loved the day, and we are thrilled with everything."

- Lisa Thomas, Program Manager & Teacher Consultant, POPEY Conference

"I have so much more confidence in the journey I'm responsible for guiding readers through. I have read many books that leave me inspired to teach reading, but this is the best book I've read in terms of feeling equipped to decide on goals and strategies. It's amazing how much valuable information is packed into a surprisingly quick read. This will live right next to my plan book - I will refer to it constantly."

- Reader review for Understanding Texts and Readers, Goodreads

"The skills and strategies we are learning make teaching writing more manageable, through the use of small groups. Creating goal oriented groups have focused our teaching. We feel rejuvenated as teachers of writing."

- Shannon Ticali, 2nd Grade Teacher

"On behalf of all of us at 826 National-and also very much personally from me-thank you so much for joining us for the 826 Summer Learning Session. It was an incredible few days of learning together, with so much thanks to your participation. We are tremendously grateful for your time and shared expertise, and we look forward to continuing discussions from your session and applying this learning to our work in the year ahead."

- Kait Steele, Director of Field Operations, 826 Summer Learning Conference

"Jen knocked it out of the park today in her session with Oregon educators."

- Penny Plavala, Oregon State Literacy Association

"You did an absolutely outstanding job today. Your energy and enthusiasm are contagious! I was blown away by your ability to personally connect with people via chat and the Q and A section. Did I hear right... you answered over 40 questions during one of our work sessions this afternoon?! Wow! Today was the type of motivation and guidance our teachers needed to push through the next few months."

- Ryan Nevius, Executive Director, IL ASCD

learn more about customized professional learning.

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Practical, research-based strategies for learning & teaching literacy. Develop proficient readers & writers with Jennifer Serravallo, best-selling author.

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This is a great resource that offers collaboration strategies and activities to incorporate in any classroom

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Unlocking the Power of Classroom Talk by Shana Frazin and Katy Wischow

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Offers a lot of resources and books on writing.

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Carl Anderson is an internationally recognized expert in the teaching of writing for grades K-8. He works as a consultant in schools and districts around the world. Carl is the author of numerous books on teaching writing, including the new A Teacher's Guide to Mentor Texts K-5, The Teachers' Guide to Writing Conferences K-8, and the best-selling How's It Going? A Practical Guide to Conferring with Student Writers.

Carl began his career in education as a teacher in elementary and middle schools in the Bronx, New York, Bardstown, Kentucky, and Northbrook, Illinois. Today, he's known for his in-school residencies, PD workshops, keynotes, and webinars.

Carl is also known for being an avid fan of the Beatles and Bob Dylan, and for his lifelong passion for sailing. He lives in Brooklyn, New York, where he lives with his wife Robin, and is thrilled when his adult children visit them.

You can find Carl on Twitter at @conferringcarl, and on Instagram, carlandersonconferring. You can email him at carlanderson1@mac.com.

-

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Carl Anderson | Internationally recognized expert in the teaching of writing for grades K-8

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Carl Anderson is an internationally recognized expert in the teaching of writing for grades K-8. He works as a consultant in schools and districts around the world. Carl is the author of numerous books on teaching writing, including the new A Teacher's Guide to Mentor Texts K-5, The Teachers' Guide to Writing Conferences K-8, and the best-selling How's It Going?

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Has some great books on grammar.

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Jeff has been sharing writing strategies with teachers and students for over 30 years. Whether presenting at national conferences like NCTE, ASCD, or in classrooms or writing his books for teachers or middle grade readers, Jeff's passion for writing and grammar inspires teachers and young writers to soar. When he's not writing with his "revising" dogs at home near downtown San Antonio, Texas, he's walking, talking, or doing staff development around the US (and sometimes New Zealand).

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Listen to POPcast: A Patterns of Power Podcast Spotify Apple Audible Jeff has been sharing writing strategies with teachers and students for over 30 years. Whether [...]

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Breathing New Life Into Book Clubs: Sonja Cherry-Paul & Dana Johansen | Learn the essential strategies for creating, sustaining, and improving classroom book clubs!
https://www.heinemann.com/products/e07685.aspx | By Heinemann Publishing | Facebook

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273 views, 1 likes, 1 loves, 0 comments, 0 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Heinemann Publishing: Learn the essential strategies for creating, sustaining, and improving classroom book clubs!...

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Has a ton of books about education.

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Douglas B. Reeves Books | List of books by author Douglas B. Reeves

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Looking for books by Douglas B. Reeves? See all books authored by Douglas B. Reeves, including Leading Change in Your School: How to Conquer Myths, Build Commitment, and Get Results, and Ahead of the Curve: The Power of Assessment to Transform Teaching and Learning, and more on ThriftBooks.com.

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Great for PreK-2 - Books on reading and writing.

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Matt Glover Books | List of books by author Matt Glover

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Looking for books by Matt Glover? See all books authored by Matt Glover, including Already Ready: Nurturing the Writing Lives of Preschoolers, and Engaging Young Writers, Preschool-Grade 1, and more on ThriftBooks.com.

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A Teacher's Guide to Writing Workshop Essentials

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A Teacher's Guide to Writing Workshop Essentials

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A Teacher’s Guide to Writing Workshop Essentials: Time, Choice, Response | Professional Resources | Teacher Education | Store | Learner US Site

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Great resource for middle/high school teachers wanting to move away from the whole class novel.

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I recently escaped all of my family responsibilities (thanks Maggie!) to film a quick tour of my latest book, A Novel Approach. I hope it helps to give you a sense of what the book has to offer, and whether it might be helpful in thinking through your own work. Check it out!
https://blog.heinemann.com/tour-novel-approach-kate-roberts

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Take A Tour of A Novel Approach - Kate & Maggie

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I recently escaped all of my family responsibilities (thanks Maggie!) to film a quick tour of my latest book, A Novel Approach. I hope it helps to give you a sense of what the book has to offer, and whether it might be helpful in thinking through your own work.

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Developing Readers in the Academic Disciplines is a great book for all content area teachers 6-12 to help with literacy skills specific to their content area.

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Being literate in an academic discipline means more than simply being able to read and comprehend text; it means you can think, speak, and write as a historian, scientist, mathematician, or artist. Doug Buehl strips away the one-size-fits-all approach to content-area literacy and presents a much-needed instructional model for disciplinary literacy, showing how to mentor middle and high school learners to become "academic insiders" who are college and career ready.

You can create a quote by adding products to your cart and selecting Quote in checkout.

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Developing Readers in the Academic Disciplines, Second Edition

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Being literate in an academic discipline means more than simply being able to read and comprehend text; it means you can think, speak, and write as a historian, scientist, mathematician, or artist.

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Ten Tips with Kylene Beers & Robert E. Probst: Tip 1 Teach More by Talking Less

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Check out some of their tips for teachers, but they also have great books. Notice & Note, Reading Nonfiction, and Disrupting Thinking.

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Ten Tips with Kylene Beers & Robert E. Probst: Tip 3 Reading as a Transaction

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Check out her work on reading and writing in elementary.

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University of Michigan School of Education

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She has served as Co-Principal Investigator of projects funded by the Institute of Education Sciences, the National Science Foundation, the Spencer Foundation, and the George Lucas Educational Foundation, among other organizations. Duke has been named one of the most influential education scholars in the U.S. in EdWeek. In 2014, she was awarded the P. David Pearson Scholarly Influence Award from the Literacy Research Association. She has also received awards from the American Educational Research Association, the Literacy Research Association, the International Reading Association, the National Council of Teachers of English, and the Michigan Reading Association.

Duke serves as a consultant for a number of education and policy organizations, and speaks widely on literacy education. Duke is author and co-author of numerous journal articles and book chapters. Her most recent books are Inside Information: Developing Powerful Readers and Writers of Informational Text through Project-based Instruction and Beyond Bedtime Stories: A Parent's Guide to Promoting Reading, Writing, and Other Literacy Skills From Birth to 5, Second Edition. Duke also has a strong interest in improving the quality of educational research training in the United States. Her Twitter handle is @nellkduke.

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She has served as Co-Principal Investigator of projects funded by the Institute of Education Sciences, the National Science Foundation, the Spencer Foundation, and the George Lucas Educational Foundation, among other organizations. Duke has been named one of the most influential education scholars in the U.S. in EdWeek.

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Has a handful of great resources for reading.

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Literacy advocates with a deep passion for books-bestselling author Donalyn Miller and 5th grade teacher Colby Sharp-showcase the power of children"s access to books, providing teachers and administrators with the tools and information they need to increase children"s meaningful engagement with books and to launch or sustain book access initiatives in their communities.

Through research and testimonials from voices in the field and their own classroom experiences, Miller and Sharp provide practical and resourceful information on a range of topics, including examples of successful school and classroom libraries, the power of book ownership, the importance of access to culturally diverse books, and meaningful family-community reading engagement.

In Game Changer! You"ll Find:

Years of independent reading classroom program know-how and research for educators at every level.

Routines, rituals, and lessons for developing a community of readers in schools and classrooms.

Practical tips on ways to develop children"s positive reading identities, reading engagement, and academic growth.

Tactics to increase access to and use of diverse children"s and young adult literature and an appreciation for its role in children"s literacy development.

Suggestions for fostering independent reading habits at school and at home.

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Literacy advocates with a deep passion for books-bestselling author Donalyn Miller and 5th grade teacher Colby Sharp-showcase the power of children"s access to books, providing teachers and administrators with the tools and information they need to increase children"s meaningful engagement with books and to launch or sustain book access initiatives in their communities.

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Language Essentials for Teachers, Third Edition

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A Fresh Look at Phonics

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A Fresh Look at Phonics: Interview with Wiley Blevins, Ph.D - Kindergarten Kiosk

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In this week's podcast we talk phonics instruction with Wiley Blevins! Dr. Wiley Blevins is a world-renowned expert on early reading, and author of the seminal book Phonics From A to Z and A Fresh Look At Phonics , among many other works.

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Overcoming Dyslexia is for Everyone Who Struggles to Read Clear, practical, science-based information and advice for successful results.

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The Six Shifts Where Science of Reading Meets Balanced Literacy. We provide resources, professional development, and literacy audits for busy literacy educators like you.

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ILA NEWS

ILA News | November 9, 2023
Submitted students' perspectives on diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice for a chance to be included in the 2024 AERA Annual Meeting.

Research Advisory | Oct 2, 2023
Additional resources, including webinars, available now.

Digital Events | Sept 19, 2023
Free ILA Webinar About Dyslexia
Registration is now open for a new, free ILA Webinar: Dyslexia: What We Know and What We Want to Know.

Free New Resources for JAAL
First set of the new JAAL Literacy Insights available for download.

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ILA is a global advocacy and membership organization of more than 300,000 literacy educators, researchers, and experts across 86 countries.

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K-12 Education Research & Insights Featured Research & Insights Receive Industry-Leading Insights Directly in Your Inbox. Subscribe Today All K-12

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The Revenge of Analog: Real Things and Why They Matter

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The Revenge of Analog: Real Things and Why They Matter [Sax, David] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. The Revenge of Analog: Real Things and Why They Matter

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From the author of Proust and the Squid, a lively, ambitious, and deeply informative epistolary book that considers the future of the reading brain and our capacity for critical thinking, empathy, and reflection as we become increasingly dependent on digital technologies.

This book comprises a series of letters Wolf writes to us-her beloved readers-to describe her concerns and her hopes about what is happening to the reading brain as it unavoidably changes to adapt to digital mediums.

Wolf draws on neuroscience, literature, education, technology, and philosophy and blends historical, literary, and scientific facts with down-to-earth examples and warm anecdotes to illuminate complex ideas that culminate in a proposal for a biliterate reading brain. Provocative and intriguing, Reader, Come Home is a roadmap that provides a cautionary but hopeful perspective on the impact of technology on our brains and our most essential intellectual capacities-and what this could mean for our future.

Available today. Click here to buy.

New York Times Book Review, New & Noteworthy
"The author of "Proust and the Squid" returns to the subject of technology's effect on our brains and our reading habits. This is an even more direct plea and a lament for what we are losing, as Wolf brings in new research on the reading brain and examines how the digital realm has degraded her own concentration and focus."

Publishers Weekly, Starred Review 2018

A decade after the publication of Proust and the Squid, neuroscientist Wolf, director of the Center for Reading and Language at Tufts University, returns with an edifying examination of the effects of digital media on the way people read and think. A "researcher of the reading brain," Wolf draws on the perspectives of neuroscience, literature, and human development to chronicle the changes in the brain that occur when children and adults are immersed in digital media. When people process information quickly and in brief bursts, as is common today, they curtail the development of the "contemplative dimension" of the brain that provides humans with the capacity to form insight and empathy. In describing the wonders of the "deep reading circuit" of the brain, Wolf bemoans the loss of literary cultural touchstones in many readers' internal knowledge base, complex sentence structure, and cognitive patience, but she readily acknowledges the positive features of the digitally trained mind, like improved task switching. Wolf stays firmly grounded in reality when presenting suggestions-such as digital reading tools that engage deep thinking and connection to caregivers-for how to teach young children to be competent, curious, and contemplative in a world awash in digital stimulus. This is a clarion call for parents, educators, and technology developers to work to retain the benefits of reading independent of digital media.
Nature
"This rich study by cognitive scientist Maryanne Wolf tackles an urgent question: how do digital devices affect the reading brain? Wolf explores the "cognitive strata below the surface of words", the demotivation of children saturated in on-screen stimulation, and the power of 'deep reading' and challenging texts in building nous and ethical responses such as empathy. She advocates "biliteracy" - teaching children first to read physical books (reinforcing the brain's reading circuit through concrete experience), then to code and use screens effectively. An antidote for today's critical-thinking deficit."

A cognitive neuroscientist considers the effect of digital media on the brain. In this epistolary book, Wolf (Director, Center for Reading and Language Research/Tufts Univ.; Tales of Literacy for the 21st Century, 2016, etc.) draws on neuroscience, psychology, education, philosophy, physics, physiology, and literature to examine the differences between reading physical books and reading digitally. Access to written language, she asserts, is able "to change the course of an individual life" by offering encounters with worlds outside of one's experiences and generating "infinite possibilities" of thought. She is worried, however, that digital reading has altered "the quality of attention" from that required by focusing on the pages of a book. Researchers have found that "sequencing of information and memory for detail change for the worse when subjects read on a screen." Reading digitally, individuals skim through a text looking for key words, "to grasp the context, dart to the conclusions at the end, and, only if warranted, return to the body of the text to cherry-pick supporting details." This process, Wolf asserts, is unlike the deep reading of complex, dense prose that demands considerable effort but has aesthetic and cognitive rewards. Physicality, she writes, "proffers something both psychologically and tactilely tangible." The author cites Calvino, Rilke, Emily Dickinson, and T.S. Eliot, among other writers, to support her assertion that deep reading fosters empathy, imagination, critical thinking, and self-reflection. The development of "critical analytical powers and independent judgment," she argues convincingly, is vital for citizenship in a democracy, and she worries that digital reading is eroding these qualities. Borrowing a phrase from historian Robert Darnton, she calls the current challenge to reading a "hinge moment" in our culture, and she offers suggestions for raising children in a digital age: reading books, even to infants; limiting exposure to digital media for children younger than 5; and investing in teaching reading in school, including teacher training, to help children "develop habits of mind that can be used across various mediums and media." An accessible, well-researched analysis of the impact of literacy.
Library Journal (starred review)
"Wolf (Tufts, Proust and the Squid) provides a mix of reassurance and caution in this latest look at how we read today. . . . A hopeful look at the future of reading that will resonate with those who worry that we are losing our ability to think in the digital age. Accessible to general readers and experts alike."
San Francisco Chronicle
"Wolf is a lovely prose writer who draws not only on research but also on a broad range of literary references, historical examples, and personal anecdotes. The strongest parts of Reader, Come Home are her moving accounts of why reading matters, and her deeply detailed exploration of how the reading brain is being changed by screens.... Wolf makes a strong case for what we lose when we lose reading."
The Wall Street Journal
"The digital age is effectively reshaping the reading circuits in our brains, argues Ms. Wolf. But there's hope: Sustained, close reading is vital to redeveloping attention and maintaining critical thinking, empathy and myriad other skills in danger of extinction. Luckily, her book isn't difficult to pay attention to."

BLURBS
"In this profound and well-researched study of our changing reading patterns, Wolf presents lucid arguments for teaching our brain to become all-embracing in the age of electronic technology. If you call yourself a reader and want to keep on being one, this extraordinary book is for you". Alberto Manguel, Author of A History of Reading, The Library at Night, A Reader on Reading, Packing My Library: An Elegy and Ten Digressions

"This is a book for all of us who love reading and fear that what we love most about it seems to slip away in the distractions and interruptions of the digital world. Here we are challenged us to take the steps to ensure that what we cherish most about reading -the experience of reading deeply-is passed on to new generations. Wolf is sober, realistic, and hopeful, an impressive trifecta. Her core message: We can't take reading too seriously. And for us, today, how seriously we take it, will mark of the measure of our lives. " Sherry Turkle, Abby Rockefeller Mauzé Professor of the Social Studies of Science, MIT; author, Reclaiming Conversation: The Power of Talk in a Digital Age; Alone Together: Why We Expect More From Technology and Less From Each Other

" Our best research tells us that deep reading is an essential skill for the development of intellectual, social, and emotional intelligence in today's children. In our increasingly digital world - where many children spend more time on social media and gaming than just about any other activity - do children have any hope of becoming deep readers? In her must-read READER COME HOME, a game-changer for parents and educators, Maryanne Wolf teaches us about the complex workings of the brain and shows us when - and when not - to use technology." Catherine Steiner-Adair, Author of The Big Disconnect: Protecting Childhood and Family Relationships in the Digital Age

" Scholar, storyteller, and humanist, Wolf brings her laser sharp eye to the science of reading in a seminal book about what it means to be literate in our digital and global age. Informed by a review of research from neuroscience to Socratic philosophy, and wittily crafted with true affection for her audience, Reader Come Home charts a compelling case for a new approach to lifelong literacy that could truly affect the course of human history. From the science of reading to the threats and opportunities posed by ubiquitous technologies for the modern preschooler, Reader Come Home reminds us that deep literacy is essential for progress and the future of our democracy. Bolstered by her remarkably deft distillation of the scientific evidence and her fully accessible analysis of the road ahead, Wolf refuses to wring her hands. With rigor and humility she creates a brilliant blueprint for action that sparks fresh hope for humanity in the Information and Fake News Age. Reader Come Home is this generation's equivalent of Marshall McLuhan's The Medium is the Message. Maryanne Wolf has written a seminal book that will soon be considered a must read classic in the fields of literacy, learning and digital media." Michael Levine, Sesame Street, Joan Cooney Research Center, Co-Author of Tap, Click, and Read: Growing Readers in a World of Screens.

"A love song to the written word, a brilliant introduction to the science of the reading brain and a powerful call to action. With each page, Wolf brilliantly shows us why we must preserve deep reading for ourselves and sow desire for it within our kids. Otherwise we risk losing the critical benefits for humanity that come with reading deeply to understand our world."-Lisa Guernsey, Director, Director, Learning Technologies, New America, co-author of Tap, Click, Read: Growing Readers in A World of Screens

"Maryanne Wolf has done it again. She has written another seminal book destined to become a dog-eared, well-thumbed, often-referenced treasure on your bookshelf.... Reader Come Home conveys a cautionary message, but it also will rekindle your heart and help illuminate promising paths ahead." -International Dyslexia Association
"Wolf wields her pen with equal parts wisdom and wonder. The result is a joy to read and reread, a love letter to literature, literacy, and progress."-"Timely and important.... if you love reading and the ways it has enriched your life and our world, Reader, Come Homeis essential, arriving at a crucial juncture in history."-BookPage, Well Read: Are you reading this?, Robert Weibezahl Shelf Awareness, Reader, Come Home "The book is a rewarding read, not only because of the ideas Wolf presents us with but also because of her warm writing style and rich allusion to literary and philosophical thinkers, infused with such a breadth of authors that only a true lover of reading could have written this book. It is a necessary volume for everyone who wants to understand the current state of reading in America.""I've just finished reading this extraordinary new book... This book is essential reading for anyone who has the privilege of introducing young people to the wonders of language, and especially those who work with children under the age of 10." -Englewood Review of Books "How often do you read in a deep and sustained way fully immersed, even transformed, by entering another person's world? Maryanne Wolf cautions that the way our engagement with digital technologies alters our reading and cognitive processes could cause our empathic, critical thinking, and reflective abilities to atrophy. This in turn could undermine our democratic, civil society." - -Stanford Daily
"MaryAnne Wolf's Reader, Come Home: The Reading Brain in a Digital World (2018) returns after 10 years to map a cognitive landscape that was only beginning to take shape in her earlier book, Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain (2008). In Reader Come Home Wolf is looking to understand how our brains might be adapting to a new type of reading, and the implications for individuals and societies. The book is a combination of engaging synthesis of neuroscience and educational research, with reflection on literature and literary reading." -

"Wolf is a serious scholar genuinely trying to make the world a better place. Reader, Come Home is full of sound....advice for parents." -

"Reader, Come Home provides us with intimate details of brain function, vision, language, and neuroplasticity. Wolf has endeavoured to make something extremely complicated more accessible and for the most part she succeeds. The book is written as a series of letters to you, the reader. If you are a parent, it will probably be the most important book you read this year." -Bookshelf (Also published at guelphmercury.com )

PRAISE FOR READER, COME HOME FROM INDIA
" In her new book, Wolf...frames our growing incapacity for deep reading. She...explains how our ability to be "good readers" is intimately connected to our ability to reflect, weigh the credibility of information that we are bombarded with across platforms, form our own opinions, and ultimately strengthen democracy." -

"Wolf raises a clarion call for us to mend our ways before our digital forays colonise our minds completely." - Deccan Herald

PRAISE FOR READER, COME HOME FROM ITALY
"Maryanne Wolf goes to the heart of the problem: reading is a political act and the speed of information can decrease our critical thought." - Corriere della Sera, Pier Luigi Vercesi

"Neuroscience-based advice to parents of digital natives: the last book of Maryanne Wolf explains how to maintain focus and navigate a constant bombardment of information."- La Repubblica, Elena Dusi

"Are we able to truly read any longer? This is the question that Maryanne Wolf asks herself and our world."-Anderse, Germana Paraboschi

"This last beautiful book of Maryanne Wolf both suggests that we protect children from screen dependency and also that we.... need to give back the joy of the reading experience to our children!"-Corriere della Sera, Alessandro D'Avenia

"The heart of this book brings us to our own "deep reading" processes--- the ability to enter into the text, to feel that we are part of it." -Il Sole 24 Ore, Carlo Ossola

ADDITIONAL ANNOUNCEMENTS, REVIEWS, AND MENTIONS
The Guardian, Skim reading is the new normal. The effect on society is profound(chosen as one of the top stories of 2018)
San Francisco Chronicle, Weekend Booking, John McMurtrie San Francisco Chronicle, 'Reader, Come Home,' by Maryanne Wolf', Sophie Haigney National Post, I skim, you skim, we're all skimmers in a digital world. But it's altered our brains, Robert Fulford Chicago Tribune, One essential book for learning how to spot fake news and read anew in the digital era, The Biblioracle The Paducah Sun, Technology isn't making us dumber, we are, Sean Niestrath The Wichita Eagle, Turn the page or scroll down: Technology is reshaping reading lessons-and kids' brains, Suzanne Perez Tobias The Washington Post, What we lose by reading 100,000 words every day, Jennifer Howard

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From the author of Proust and the Squid, a lively, ambitious, and deeply informative epistolary book that considers the future of the reading brain and our capacity for critical thinking, empathy, and reflection as we become increasingly dependent on digital technologies.

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Culturally Responsive Teaching and The Brain

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Culturally Responsive Teaching and The Brain

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https://us.corwin.com/en-us/nam/culturally-responsive-teaching-and-the-brain/book241754

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Zaretta Hammond: Culturally Responsive Teaching 101 | #PLtogether

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From math, literacy, equity, multilingual learners, and SEL, to assessment, school counseling, and education leadership, our books are research-based and authored by experts on topics most relevant to what educators are facing today.

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From math, literacy, equity, multilingual learners, and SEL, to assessment, school counseling, and education leadership, our books are research-based and authored by experts on topics most relevant to what educators are facing today.

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Creating Learning Environments Where Students Thrive

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After reading this book educators will feel equipped to design their own inquiry units in a scaffolded manner that promote a gradual shift of control of learning from the teacher to the learner. Exploring student passions, curiosities, and interests and having these shape essential questions, units of study, and performance tasks are all covered in this powerful book. Learn to keep track of the many inquiry topics in your classroom and have students take ownership over their learning like never before!

Trevor MacKenzie provides readers with a strong understanding of the Types of Student Inquiry and proposes a framework that best prepares both educators and learners for sharing the unpacking of curriculum in the classroom as they work together towards co-constructing a strong Free Inquiry unit. Helpful illustrations for in-class use, examples of essential questions from a variety of disciplines, practical goals for making progress in adopting inquiry into your practice, and powerful student learning linked by QR codes throughout, Dive into Inquiry will energize, inspire, and transform your classroom!

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https://readinquirewrite.umich.edu/

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Read, Write, Inquire 9780807763339 | Teachers College Press

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A Guide to the Reading Workshop, Primary Grades

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A Guide to the Reading Workshop, Primary Grades [Lucy Calkins, Calkins] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. A Guide to the Reading Workshop, Primary Grades

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GUIDE TO WRITING WORKSHOP-GRADES 3-5 [Lucy Calkins] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. GUIDE TO WRITING WORKSHOP-GRADES 3-5

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Interactive Read Alouds are one of my favorite things to do in the classroom, as you may know. 😉 I love doing them with my class, but they can be a pain to prepare for. Read on for 5 easy steps for how to plan an Interactive Read Aloud.

1. Pick a Book

The very first thing you're going to want to do is pick a book. Whether it's a mentor text for your reading or writing lesson, or your students need practice retelling or identifying the story elements, there are so many good books out there. You need to pick one that works with the skills you want to teach.

Some things to keep in mind when you're picking a book are:

The listening level of your students. The book does not have to be at their reading level, but it DOES have to be at their listening level. Some picture books will be too easy for them and some will be too hard.

The vocabulary level of your students. Just as you wouldn't want to read a book way over your students listening level, it's important to keep their vocabulary level in mind. If you have ELL students you will want to pay particular attention to the vocabulary. If they don't understand the words of the book, you cannot expect them to practice focus skills because they will be too busy trying to comprehend.

Is the book good literature? We all know those books that are not very high-quality. We always want to share books that set a great example for literature.

Is the book fun and entertaining? If you are excited to share a book with your students, they will be excited to listen and participate. If you are not, then they will not be either. They react to books how you react to books.

If you're looking for great books, check out this list HERE from the Teacher's College Reading and Writing Project from Columbia University, New York. If you use reading or writing workshop, this is an especially great list.

2. Read the book several times

Once you have picked your book you're going to read that book many times. Get to know and love that book. You will typically do two readings with an IRA so you want to make sure it's a good, quality book and one you don't mind reading over and over again. Believe me, if it's not a book you don't love, you're not going to want to do that IRA with your kids and they will definitely feel the way you do about that book. Like I said earlier, it is so important to express your love for every book you read so your students will feel the same way. Act as if it's a treasure to share this book with them.

3. Determine a couple of focus skills

A focus skill can be whatever you want to work on with your class. There are endless amounts of skills you can focus on with an IRA, it just depends on your class and your students. When you are picking focus skills I would suggest keeping it to 2-3. You do not want to have too many because then the students are not getting explicit instruction and practice.

Here are some focus skill ideas:

Depending on whether your book is fiction or nonfiction will also determine the focus skills. I typically will do an IRA twice with the same book, so if you want to have different focus skills for each time reading that works too.

When I plan an interactive read aloud, the first one will typically focus on predicting, connecting and vocabulary. The second reading I will often have a more common core focus where the students practice describing the story elements and retelling. Those skills are easier to practice after they have heard the story a couple of times.

4. Choose Vocabulary Words

The next step you're going to want to do is determine some key vocabulary words from your book. One of the best things about an IRA is the vocabulary instruction that happens. I would suggest picking 2-4 words that students will need to know in order to understand the book.

Here are some important tips when you plan an interactive read aloud

1. Think about common, important, and functional words

2. Explain the meaning with kid-friendly definitions and pictures.

3. Interact with the words (write/dictate sentences, draw picture, fill in the blank, compare, etc.)

4. Model and use repetition to practice words

If you have a high number of ELL students in your classroom, like I do, I typically pre-teach the vocabulary words before we start reading. That way when we come to them, they will already have an idea of what the words mean and will better be able to understand them and add them to their own vocabulary.

If you do not, then I will teach the words as they come up in the book. That way the students can predict what they think it means and use context clues to determine the meaning. That is a very hard skill, so I like to make sure we practice it as much as we can.

5. Plan Before, During & After Reading Activities

The last thing you're going to plan are the activities you want to do before, during and after reading. When you're picking activities, be strategic about when and where you do them. You don't want to stop too many times but you also want to stop enough so you can work on your focus skills.

Some things you can do BEFORE you read are:

Identify title, author, illustrator, and purpose for reading

Sneak peak at book

Activate background knowledge and schema

Make predictions.

Here are my activities for before I read the first time. I will often do all of these really quickly, as I find them all very important to do before reading this book.

Some activities you can do DURING your reading are:

Discussion and sharing

Make connections

Emphasize vocabulary

Respond to text & make it interactive!

There are many ways you can make it interactive. Here are some of my favorites: turn and talks (T&T), act it out, opinion (thumbs up/down), stop and jot/draw, class discussion.

Here's a sample of my first (1) reading with my thinking out loud and my activity, a turn and talk.

And here's an example from my second (2) reading with my think out loud and activity, an act it out.

And some activities you can do AFTER you read are:

I typically put all of my options for activities after I read on one sticky note. That way I can do one or several depending on how I felt the reading went.

Now, these are not all the things you can do before, during and after a read aloud. I have planned a 3 part series for things you can during IRAs, but these are definitely great places to start.

When you are determining your activities, take sticky notes and write your thoughts on them and the activities you want to do and stick it on the page you're going to do it on. That way, as you're reading, your thoughts and notes are right there and you don't have to remember what you wanted to teach.

Next, if you're doing two readings, do your sticky notes in 2 different colors to keep track of what to do during each reading.

I have created an interactive read aloud planner for you to use to help you prepare. I will use this planner before I do my sticky notes that way I have my thoughts and ideas all in one place before writing out my sticky notes.

Click >>HERE<< or the picture to get this planner to help you plan your next IRA.

Now, if you're really looking for easy IRA planning, I have done it for you for some of my favorite books. Click on the image below to see the resources I have made where I have planned 2 complete interactive read alouds for you.

More about interactive read alouds

Check out these other blog posts all about interactive read alouds

Or check out >>THIS<< blog post!

Please pin and share so others can see these tips.

There it is! How to plan an interactive read aloud. As always, I hope I've made it easy for you to implement interactive read alouds in your classroom. Please comment below or email me at paigebessick@gmail.com if you have anything to share!

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How to Plan an Interactive Read Aloud in 5 Easy Steps - Paige Bessick - The Interactive Teacher

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Interactive Read Alouds are one of my favorite things to do in the classroom, as you may know. 😉 I love doing them with my class, but they can be a pain to prepare for. Read on for 5 easy steps for how to plan an Interactive Read Aloud. 1.

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Serving Multilingual Learners of All Ages

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Do you remember when you were in school and your teacher said it was time for read aloud? I don't know about you, but for me, that was a joyous time. It was a time for my imagination to soar. I could take the words that were flowing so eloquently from her mouth and create a movie in my mind. I loved it.

As a classroom teacher, reading aloud to my own students became my favorite thing to do (maybe because it was magical for me as a child). I wanted to share that experience with them. But I also wanted to lift the level of learning a notch. Rather than this time being only a time for input, I was hoping to create some opportunities for output as well.
ENTER Interactive Read Alouds!
​According to the International Literacy Association, a read-aloud is the practice of a teacher orally reading a text with large or small groups. Pictures or text may be shared visually with the students whose primary role is to listen and view illustrations. The intent is to model proficient reading and language, promote conversation, motivate, and extend comprehension and conceptual understandings.

In a traditional (okay, let's just say old school) read aloud, the experience is a one-way street. The teacher reads and the student listen. There is no interaction, discussion, or time for students to express themselves during the read aloud. It's probably what I disliked most about read aloud when I was a kid. No one was allowed to talk while the teacher read.

On the contrary, during an Interactive Read Aloud, the teacher provides ample opportunities for students to interact with the text. Students talk with a partner, act out parts of the book, draw a picture related to the reading, or respond in writing.

The best Interactive Read Alouds are carefully, pre-planned by the teacher. The teacher can stop to ask questions or have students respond at critical parts of the text when the planning is done ahead of time.

The term interactive refers to the active learning that occurs while reading aloud high-quality literature. It characterizes the teacher and students having a conversation as they process the text together. It provides students an opportunity to extend their understandings through talk. This talk provides evidence of their thinking. (Fountas & Pinnell, 2001, 2011)

In both cases, whether traditional read aloud or interactive, the teacher models proficient reading so students can hear what an expert reader sounds like and how a reader engages with text. The teacher also models thinking about the text. What is happening? What is the character doing and why? What am I thinking now? Basically, students get to hear what happens in the reader's head. They are also able to experience a text that is at a higher level than they are capable of reading on their own. And this is big for students who are reading below grade level. Imagine if students are only able to interact with text that they are capable of decoding. Gaps are created. When we read aloud to students, we invite them to interact with text at higher levels than they are able to decode on their own. Typically, kids can think, speak, and listen at higher levels than they are able to read independently.

Steps to creating your own Interactive Read Aloud:
*Select a book and a focus
*Preread the book and think about your thinking
*Select 3-7 vocabulary words or phrases to highlight
*Make purposeful stopping points and note them in your book with a sticky note
*Use gestures, eye contact, visuals and expression to support ELLs

In this video, Linda Hoyt explicitly demonstrates with students how to talk to your Thinking Partner while she shares an Interactive Read Aloud on a nonfiction book. (5 minute clip)

The value of a read aloud, whether it be interactive or not, cannot be underestimated. Children of all ages benefit from being read to regularly. I'm an advocate for daily! This TED Talk by Rebecca Bellingham speaks volumes about the benefit of reading aloud. If you have 9 1/2 minutes to spare, watch it and then share it with teachers and parents! We all need a reminder every now and then.

Research has demonstrated that the most effective read-alouds are those in which children are actively involved asking and answering questions and making predictions rather than passively listening (Dickinson, 2001).

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Do you remember when you were in school and your teacher said it was time for read aloud? I don't know about you, but for me, that was a joyous time. It was a time for my imagination to soar. I could...

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What is an interactive read aloud?

An interactive read aloud is an instructional strategy done whole-class in which the teacher reads aloud a text to the class. What makes it interactive is that the teacher makes intentional pauses for conversation with students about different aspects of the text.

Teacher: Now the black snake is here./Its venom burns the land./Courses through the water,/Making it unfit to drink. What might the author mean by "black snake" here? Turn to your elbow partner and talk about that. [Waits, then asks for a volunteer to share.]

Student: The snake is black because it is the oil from the pipeline contaminating the water, like venom.

Teacher: Thank you, Joe. And what makes you say so?

Student: The snake is illustrated in the shape of a pipeline.

Teacher: And then what broader meaning might this snake have? Is there a snake in your life that is spewing metaphoric venom?
From We Are Water Protectors

Students think and talk about the text to make-meaning. The questions - as specific or broad as the teacher decides- can support students in learning new reading skills, practicing concepts they've learned in the past, and/or just warming up students to a closer, guided reading experience. How about for joy.

The book the teacher selects is very intentional for how it relates to other instructional goals and texts in the unit of instruction. For example, the above excerpt is eliciting symbolism, which could lead into the day's lesson on the canonical text, scaffolding one idea to the next.

Why a picturebook?

"A picturebook is text, illustrations, total design; an item of manufacture and a commercial product; a social, cultural, historic document; and foremost, an experience for a [reader / beholder]. As an art form it hinges on the interdependence of pictures and words, on the simultaneous display of two facing pages, and on the drama of the turning page." ( Bader, B. (1976). American picturebooks from Noah's Ark to The Beast Within. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.)

Using picturebooks in the secondary classroom invites this art form into the classroom with a great deal of potential for literary appreciation, which may also inspire a future picturebook author. The literary lessons in craft and concept are quite sophisticated.

Ways to enrich curriculum with picturebooks

1. Tap prior and/or build background knowledge: Any time during a unit, you can use a picture book that will offer familiar images, characters, setting, and stories to warm-up students for variations on what they already know. This can also build background knowledge by introducing the above elements.

2. Front load or introduce concepts or skills: If there are terms you are going to use in a more complex text, introducing the skills and the language of the skills with a picturebook can scaffold the process.

3. Text comparison work: Almost every state has a standard about comparing texts. This is one way you can support students in this comparison work: Students will evaluate points of view and perspectives in more than one grade‐level literary and/or informational text and explain how multiple points of view contribute to the meaning of a work.

4. Literary study: Picturebooks can be their own unit to study such as analysis of adaptations or the craft and publication of picturebooks or a study of the evolution of picturebooks.

5. Public Speaking-Presentation: Students can do their own interactive read alouds with small groups to demonstrate knowledge of skill and concept

A Classroom Example: Momaday and Lindstrom

N. Scott Momaday's The Way to Rainy Mountain is a memoir that high school students may read in 10th or 11th grade. More likely, students will read the prologue or excerpts from the memoir as part of a longer unit on Native American literature or a study of Indigenous authors. Published in 1969 by this Pulitzer Prize winning author, the prologue is about Momaday's journey to visit the grave of his grandmother through the landscape of his Kiowa ancestors from their beginning in the Montana area to their resettlement in Rainy Mountain, Oklahoma. In the 3 pages of the prologue, readers are welcomed into Kiowa landscape with shifts from past to present as Momaday remembers Kiowa as proud warriors alongside myths about the sky and stars.

If students have not read much by and about Native American authors, they may not know that references to elders, landscape, and historical events can be told so poetically, that such syntactical rhythm is the embodiment of author perspective, and they may struggle to follow the sequence (i.e., flashbacks) as Native American literature is not and cannot be linear.

Picturebooks are a great way to tap prior or build new knowledge and learning about Native Americans while also offering some common ground or an access point to students who may not have ever read first indigenous persons accounts.

Picturebooks are also a way to frontload some elements of Native American literature so that they can tune into the sophisticated syntax of Momaday's writing. By elements, I mean imagery and symbolism. You can teach setting, sequence, symbolism, and repetition - for example- through the art of the picturebook as a core text and as part of scaffolding a series of texts.

There are several picturebooks that can serve as a wonderful 10-15 minute interactive read aloud with high school students to set them up for a reading of Momaday's writing, but I have chosen Carole Lindstrom's We Are Water Protectors to model my process of planning an interactive picturebook read aloud. Author Carole Lindstrom is Anishinabe/Métis and is a proud member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe Indians. She was born and raised in Nebraska and currently makes her home in Maryland. So, right away, with these two stories, we see representation from indigenous writers who have lived in Montana, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Maryland. This story, however, was published in 2020 in response to the Dakota Access Pipeline protests- a contemporary, more proximate story to the lives of our students. In this story, and Ojibwe girl becomes an activist after learning about the black snake contaminating her community's water. Like Momaday's story, the stories of elders warn of the past repeating, and like Momaday, the pronouns of "we" and "our" tell the collective experience alongside the "I" that, with others, can advocate for change. The imagery of water comes up in several ways - from Mother Earth, to the womb, to veins and tears. The song "We stand/With our songs/And our drums./We are still here" repeats throughout the book emphasizing the theme and the need to protect the water for all the "we" as "stewards of the Earth."

(I thought about Thoreau when I first read this book and how it would be fascinating to compare Thoreau's use of the I pronoun as he ponders nature alongside this story.)

Almost every state has a standard about comparing texts. This is one way you can support students in this comparison work: Students will evaluate points of view and perspectives in more than one grade‐level literary and/or informational text and explain how multiple points of view contribute to the meaning of a work. The Momaday and Lindstrom texts invite students to evaluate the perspectives and how they contribute to the meaning of the work, such as the time period and place. As a teacher, you could model the comparison with the picturebook and then introduce another text for students to include in this comparison.

Note: There is a new free graphic novel Chilocco Indian School: A Generational Story; it can be downloaded for free at chilocco.library.okstate.edu/graphic-novel. There are also project-based learning modules for the classroom. All three of these texts (and others) are a wonderful text set for a unit on Native American literature to tell the story of, borrowing a line from We Are Water Protectors, "We are still here."

How to discover picturebooks

You may have a story or text that you already teach every year, so you can search picture books with a similar theme, time period, culture. In this video, I look at a few picture books and think through ideas, imagining possibilities. I did a Google search and then requested some books from my library. I also visited the library to find more. (Caution: You will find yourself on the carpet of the library reading for hours, so why not check out two dozen books and let your students do that in the classroom.)

Deciding what concepts and skills to emphasize

In this video, I share my noticings and inner thoughts as I read. Students may benefit from hearing your inner monologue of making meaning. I do this here to begin to plan what I can teach or what I want to help students pay close attention to. I bet the will notice similar things that I do, so I think I will just ask questions like "what do you notice" or "what might this mean." The intentional pausing depends on the purpose of the interactive read aloud:

Look to your essential questions: How does society influence our identity and the choices we make? What choices do people make in the face of injustice? What are civil rights and who decides?

Look to your content area standards:

Students will actively listen and speak clearly using appropriate discussion rules with control of verbal and nonverbal cues.

Students will evaluate details in literary and non‐fiction/informational texts to connect how genre supports the author's purpose.

Students will evaluate the extent to which historical, cultural, and/or global perspectives affect authors' stylistic and organizational choices in grade‐level literary and informational genres.

Students will analyze how authors use key literary elements to contribute to meaning and interpret how themes are connected across texts.

Students will evaluate points of view and perspectives in more than one grade-level literary and/or informational texts and explain how multiple points of view contribute to the meaning of a work

Preparing for the interactive read aloud

In this video, I try to show you how I prepared for the read aloud. I put sticky notes inside the book at places where I wanted to pause to elicit thinking about symbolism (the snake) and imagery (the water) and the role of elders along with questions about the sort of issues students are passionate about. This would be a unit on Native American literature, but I think the essential questions that would allow students personal connection if they are not Native are these: How does society influence our identity and the choices we make? What choices do people make in the face of injustice? What are civil rights and who decides? After reading this picture book, they'd be ready to make some initial responses, and then Momaday's story would deepen, complicate this question along with other texts in the unit.

Conclusions

You may be having doubts about interactive read alouds with picturebooks in the high school classroom. I wonder what is at the heart of the doubt- not rigorous enough, no time, students wouldn't take it seriously. I think that, if you try it, you will discover something quite remarkable happening in your classroom, and I'd love to hear all about it.

PPAT-Friendly Lesson Plan

Interactive-Read-Aloud-Lesson-Plan-1

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Interactive Read Aloud with Picturebooks in High School

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What is an interactive read aloud? An interactive read aloud is an instructional strategy done whole-class in which the teacher reads aloud a text to the class. What makes it interactive is that the teacher makes intentional pauses for conversation with students about different aspects of the text.

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Social Studies Interactive Read Alouds – Flying into Learning

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If your social studies units have been dragging lately, I have just the tip for you! Try reading aloud picture books during your history lessons! I love using picture books to introduce content in social studies in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade! The text and illustrations grab students' attention and help them to visualize history.

How Do Picture Books Support Learning in Social Studies?

Using interactive read-alouds during a social studies lesson or unit is a great way to integrate literacy in the content areas. Picture books can help provide background knowledge for students that may have some gaps. They can also help you pre-teach important vocabulary words students will see in the upcoming lessons. In addition, they can springboard to class discussions in which you can identify any misconceptions students are bringing to a new lesson or unit.

Picture books are great for your auditory and visual learners, and the illustrations can help all students retain new learning! Displaying color photos of the real people, places, or objects seen in the book can also help students can make connections to the content you're teaching.

Literary nonfiction picture books make the dry facts more memorable because the information is presented through storytelling. This genre also provides background information and context to help students understand why certain choices were made in history. Read more about teaching literary nonfiction here!

I also love that you can double-dip into language arts by incorporating reading skills and strategies in your history lessons. Plus, you can weave in higher level thinking skills for social studies, like:

recognizing change over time

identifying cause and effect relationships

sequencing events

recognizing different perspectives and points of view

drawing conclusions and making inferences

identifying costs and benefits of various decisions

Also, I like to pair my picture book read-alouds with an anchor chart. This is really helpful to have to refer back to during the lesson or unit. Some examples are:

KWL

somebody-wanted-but-so or somebody-wanted-but-so-then

cause and effect

key people, places, or vocabulary

fact vs. fiction

compare and contrast

History Topics That Picture Books Can Support

Where can you incorporate picture books in your social studies lessons? Everywhere!

geography

historical events and time periods

contributions of important individuals

culture

community life, roles, occupations

economics

government

immigration

farming

transportation

local/state history

current events

Recommended Picture Books for American History

There are tons of great picture books you can use to introduce American history to your upper elementary students. Here are just a few of my favorites:

he Little House by Virginia Lee Burton: change over time, past vs. present, industrialization, rural vs. urban areas

fore She Was Harriet by Lesa Cline-Ransome: Harriet Tubman's life and contributions, Civil War, abolition

We the Kids: The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States by David Catrow: formation of the United States, laws, rights, government

The Other Side by Jacqueline Woodson: segregation, discrimination

George vs. George: The American Revolution as Seen from Both Sides by Rosalyn Schanzer: causes of the American Revolution, George Washington

Encounter by Jane Yolen: colonization, Columbus, native peoples

The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi: immigration, cultural diversity, customs

What social studies picture books do you love to use with upper elementary students? Feel free to let me know in the comments!

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Teaching Social Studies with Picture Books - Alyssa Teaches

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If your social studies units have been dragging lately, I have just the tip for you! Try reading aloud picture books during your history lessons! I love using picture books to introduce content in social studies in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade! The text and illustrations grab students' attention and help them to visualize history.

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7 Note-Taking Tips to Make Studying a Breeze | Grammarly Blog

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People with photographic memories can remember every word from a lecture or book, but the rest of us can benefit from taking notes! Note-taking is a natural and quite effective method of learning where you write down only the most important parts of a lesson or reading to review later. But the value you receive from note-taking is only as good as the notes themselves.

Why take notes?

The more complex a lesson or topic, the more useful your notes are. For higher learning, like graduate school or when writing a thesis paper , you won't get far without note-taking. Moreover, the act of writing information down helps you remember and recall it later . The combination of motor skills, touch sensation, visual cues, and extra time all facilitate memory formation more than just by listening or reading alone.

Handwritten vs. digital note-taking
Pros of note-taking by hand:

memory formation

sketching or creating diagrams as visual aids

Pros of note-taking via digital device:

physical convenience (fewer hand cramps)

copying and sharing notes with others

Different methods of note-taking

With that in mind, there are a few different methods of note-taking for certain types of people or situations. We list five of the most common ones below so you can see if any options appeal to you.

Outlining

Note-taking outlines are divided by main topics, subtopics, individual points, and subpoints, with room for examples and quotes as needed. This method works especially well with digital word processors, since you can also go back and add new points later.

Typically, outlined notes follow a structure of Roman numerals, capital letters, Arabic numerals, and lowercase letters (in that order), as in this example:
I. Main topic 1 A. Subtopic 1 a. Subpoint 1 or example b. Subpoint 2 or example B. Subtopic 2 II. Main topic 2
Charting

Charting is a particular type of note-taking that works best when multiple topics are discussed simultaneously, as with comparisons, or when one topic is dissected into multiple parts (i.e., pros/cons).

Essentially, you just divide your page into two or more columns, with each column assigned to a single topic. Every time a pertinent fact is mentioned for one of the topics, jot down a note in the corresponding column.

Charting helps keep your notes organized during lessons that go back and forth between topics rapidly. However, in lessons where only one topic is discussed at a time, this method will only slow you down.

Mapping

For visual thinkers, it might help to take notes using a mind map, or simply "mapping." This note-taking technique utilizes branching graphs-like spider diagrams-to organize information in a way that's easy to group and comprehend.

Mapping has its problems, especially when you have to guess how much space on your paper the information will take up. It's best used when you're having trouble organizing your own thoughts; seeing ideas linked visually can help you understand their connections.

For this reason, you might want to take notes in a more conventional way during the lesson, and then create a mind map afterwards from your notes to assist in studying.

Cornell Notes system

Popularized by Cornell University professor Walter Pauk, the Cornell Notes system, also called the Cornell method, aims to make note-taking faster and more efficient by allocating dedicated space on a page for different types of information.

Basically, you divide your page into two columns: the recall column (left) accounts for one-third of your page, and the note column (right) accounts for two-thirds of the same page. In the recall column, you write the main topics, keywords, or questions, with supporting notes written directly across in the notes column.

At the bottom of the page, five to seven lines are reserved for a summary, where after the lesson or reading you reiterate the main points of the entire class, chapter, etc.

SQ4R

The SQ4R method of note-taking is exclusively for note-taking while reading, so it won't be of much use in a classroom. The name stands for the steps of the process:

Survey: Take about three to five minutes to skim or "survey" the reading, writing down all the major headings, subheadings, topics, and other key points.

Questions: Based on what you saw while surveying, write down any broad questions you have about the text.

Read: Now, actually read the text, section by section, keeping an eye out for the answers to your questions from the previous step.

Recite: After each section, write down all major ideas, keywords, and concepts-in other words, . Again, answer the questions you posed in the second step as best you can.

Relate: As a trick to enhance memorization, try to develop personal connections to what you just read. Can you relate to any of the topics discussed? Does the information remind you of anything in your own life?

Review: When you're finished, reread your notes to increase retention and help with studying.

This method was originally called SQ3R. The newest R, , was added subsequently after research showed a connection between personalizing information and retaining it.

7 advanced tips for note-taking

1 Add dates and topics at the top

Remembering which topics were discussed during which classes or chapters can get confusing, especially when you're taking multiple courses at once. To stay organized, write the date and topic at the top of each new note-taking session. That'll make it easier to find what you're looking for later.

2 Prioritize the speaker or text

We all want our notes to be as thorough as possible, but don't ignore the teacher or text because you're too focused on note-taking. Always keep the speaker or reading at the center of your attention, and take notes only to complement your direct learning, not supplant it. Prioritizing notes over the lesson is putting the cart before the horse.

3 Prepare beforehand

There's a lot going through your mind in the middle of class or during a reading session. Minimize the amount of distractions in your head by handling some of the busy work beforehand. This includes any reading or preparatory assignments that let you know what to expect during a lecture, as well as reviewing your previous notes so you don't accidentally write the same thing twice.

4 Review notes while they're fresh

A lot of people save their notes until study time, but it helps to review them once or twice shortly after they're written. For one thing, this greatly improves memory retention and imprinting the information. Other benefits are to see if you missed anything, or to clarify a typo or word written sloppily. If you catch these mistakes too late, you may not remember what you were trying to say.

5 Pay attention for signals in lecture/reading

Certain words or phrases mentioned by a lecturer or book can signal the information will be important, as well as certain of the lesson like the beginning and end. If you can recognize these cues, you can be ready to take notes on what follows. Here are some examples of signals:

6 Identify what is and is not worth writing down

The advantage of note-taking is that it summarizes what you learned for quick reference. If your notes are just as long and detailed as the source material, they're not exactly helpful.

Write down only what is essential, and leave out the rest. If you waste time writing down every tidbit or fact, not only will that distract from the actual lesson but also you won't be able to differentiate what's significant and what's extra later. Personal anecdotes and off-topic tangents are good examples of when you need to take notes.

7 Use shorthand if needed

Shorthand is just a fancy word for using abbreviations and other time-saving writing tricks. We use them all the time online and when texting so we can write more quickly, and that also applies to note-taking.

In particular, you can use "&" for , "bc" for and "ex." for , just to name a few. Feel free to invent your own shorthand for words that you personally use a lot-just don't forget what they stand for!

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7 Note-Taking Tips to Make Studying a Breeze

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People with photographic memories can remember every word from a lecture or book, but the rest of us can benefit from taking notes! Note-taking is a natural and quite effective method of learning where you write down only the most important parts of a lesson or reading to review later.

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Basics of Visual Note-taking for Teachers

Posted at 2:55pm in by Graphic Facilitation, Graphic Recording, Live Drawing, Live illustration, Meeting Engagement, Online meetings, Scribing, Sketchnotes, Virtual Graphic Recording, Visual note-taking, Visual Notes Tanya Gadsby

Teachers can use visual notes in almost any classroom setting: when you're explaining a topic, or when students are sharing ideas, insights, or presenting. Visual notes help enhance learning and information retention. They're effective for any student - whether elementary, high school, or post-secondary.

This free template outlines some of the basics of visual note-taking, but check out the video and the article below for more details!

There are a few basic building blocks of visual notes. Layouts are core to visual notes, as the clarity of your visual notes is all about how you organize content on the page. Other components include text, banners & boxes, dividers, bullets, images, and colors. You'll be a visual note taking super hero if you have a basic understanding of these.

Layouts

Your layout is how you organize the content and the "path" you want the viewer to follow. There are many ways of laying out your visual notes, but these are five basic ones.

1. Columns

Split the page into three, and start drawing left to right, filling up each column as you go.

2. Pathway

Snake your content around the page, and you might use a big arrow to guide the reader.

3. Hub and spoke layout (or mind map layout)

Your main topic is the hub in the middle, and sub topics radiate out. For example, you might have a diagram of an animal cell as the hub and each component of the cell as a spoke.

4. Boxes

Like a comic book, you might like to work with boxes as your main layout. Each box could be a different topic.

5. Popcorn layout

A popcorn layout is more open to putting content anywhere on the page.

Text

It's best to keep your text organized by Main Idea, Sub-Idea, and Supporting Text. Your main idea is the big topic you're covering, and it might have multiple sub-ideas. Same for the supporting text.

An example might be dog breeds as our main idea. A retriever could be a sub-idea, since it's one type of breed. And the characteristics of a retriever can be listed underneath. A different sub-idea might be a basset hound, as it's a different breed.

Banners & boxes

Banners and boxes are containers for your content. They really help split up a lot of text, and help the eye navigate the page. They also don't have to be banners and boxes - they could be an image like a car!

On our example here, we've added a big banner to the title so it stands out more, and banners to the sub-titles. You can see we've put each feature of a glacial valley into a separate box, and added bullet points to anchor our text.

Dividers & bullets

Dividers are great for splitting up content you've captured to help differentiate it. Dividers can be any style of line or shape you can think of.

Bullets are another type of divider because they help anchor each piece of text you've written in a list. These are a few simple ones, but bullets can be whatever you think up!

Color

We could go down a rabbit hole on color theory, but a good principle to keep in mind is dark colors are best for text, and light colors are best for background content that you don't want to compete with your text. Background content can also include arrows, shapes, and dividers.

You can also use a bright color, such as red or orange, to make a key idea pop in your text.

Images

Sometimes people think they need to be an artist to take visual notes. But this is not true - you don't have to be an "artist" to take effective visual notes. Visual notes that are mostly text, or just arrows and stick figures, can be highly effective.

It's helpful to practice drawing a few simple icons you might use over and over. Such as a piece of paper for a big list, a light bulb for ideas, or if you're a math teacher, maybe have a decent set of 3D shapes or triangles.

You also don't need to draw live! You can save your icons as individual images, and simply insert them into your visual notes when you need them.

Sharing your visual notes

For online classes, you can share your visual notes through screen share in Microsoft Teams, Zoom, etc.

And in the classroom, you can share visual notes to a Smart Board or projector. This is great if you don't want to be on your feet all day at the front of the class. Some people also find working on the smaller screen is easier and quicker than writing on a large smart board.

We've been taking visual notes in conferences around the world since 2010 (visual note-taking is also called live drawing, graphic recording, visual scribing, sketch-noting). We're always exploring new methods and ways of using visuals to explain complex topics - from to clickable graphics to augmented reality!

Have an idea for a visual project? We'd love to hear from you, so send us a message!

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Basics of Visual Note-taking for Teachers - Fuselight Creative

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Posted at 2:55pm in by Graphic Facilitation, Graphic Recording, Live Drawing, Live illustration, Meeting Engagement, Online meetings, Scribing, Sketchnotes, Virtual Graphic Recording, Visual note-taking, Visual Notes Tanya Gadsby Teachers can use visual notes in almost any classroom setting: when you're explaining a topic, or when students are sharing ideas, insights, or presenting.

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Student Ex

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3. Examples of Note-taking - Students' Writing for English D

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Power Lesson: Note-Taking Stations | Cult of Pedagogy

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To take quality notes, students need to be taught how. This fantastic station-rotation lesson gets the job done, and it can be used with all kinds of other content as well.