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May, in all its glorious chaos, is the time when I start my "next year" spiral of all the ideas, practices, routines, (decor) I want to change or do better for the upcoming year. This padlet article fit right in with my self-reflection and lists! The calendar point resonated most with me.
This year, I incorporated a calendar time as a math warm-up/message of sorts where students not only review date, abbreviations, day of the week (scary that some still just don't know what day it is) as well as showing numbers in different ways, base ten, money, time, word problems, etc.  As the year progressed, I started wrestling with how to make it more productive/engaging for all students or if I should just remove it completely.  We know routine and structure is so important for kids, but I was reminded that routines can be revised even if a new school year hasn't started yet!  I don't know if I will completely ax the calendar, but give myself the freedom to revise it more often throughout the year. I agree it shouldn't eat up a chunk of time, but if core skills are being taught or reviewed it could be beneficial. Hmm, lots to think about!

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The read to self time is something I have been struggling with in my transition to 2nd grade. I have about half of my kids who love to read independently and are focused for the 20 minutes. The other half do what they're asked to do, but I don't think that they're getting much out of it. I lead guided reading groups at this time, so I have been tossing around ideas in my head to make it more productive; possibly using a journal of some sort to get them more engaged (and hold the more accountable) during the read to self time. I remember when Dan talked about how he ran his reading journals in his classroom and I'd love to find a way to run that kind of program in my classroom. This is one of my goals for next year.
This was an interesting read and I loved reading other thoughts and ideas.

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For some students, reading independently is a great time to read for enjoyment, but not all students enjoy reading. For most students, I can see how this unsupported independent reading time is not productive. I have students complete a journal entry after reading independently using a simple rubric with reading strategies. They can use the rubric for any book and complete the journal independently. At the beginning of the school year, I like to read a book aloud and we journal together, as I model how to use the reading strategies while reading and using text evidence… Students learn how to use the simple rubric with reading strategies on their own. Then, for the rest of the school year, as students are engaging in unsupported independent reading time, they need to complete a journal entry without any specific teaching on a book. I think this makes their independent reading time productive, because they have a purpose for reading.

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I have not previously done calendar work with kiddos when they visit me, but this year I did incorporate short calendar time for a second grader this year. Seeing an absence of not even knowing what day it was or ordering months etc was a concern for me. Students we work with are often dealing with different challenges when first exposed to calendar skills in kdg that they can't make any connections when seeing one as they get older. As an educator/parent I wanted my children to know this basic life skill. In the world of cell phones many families have veered away from the house calendar. How are our children, as they get older, going to learn some of these skills that some parents are, unfortunately, not exposing their children to at home? Again, more is put onto the school to do what should begin/be discussed at home.
I have seen wonderful approaches to learning number sense with the use of the calendar in classrooms.

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I think the article hit home for a lot of us. I do still do the calendar, spelling lists and vocabulary words. However, my methods have changed as common core has come in. With calendar we do much more than just saying the date. We work on math partners, telling time for specials, math talk about what type of number it is (single/double digit...)etc. It gives the students practice on their math facts in a practical way. In first grade we went back to spelling tests a couple of years ago because we discovered the students didn't know or understand word patterns, blends/diagraphs.... We've changed the lists up to teach said patterns and added the sight words onto the list for practice. I also continue to teach the Isabel Beck vocabulary. While the students don't get tested on it, they love hearing the anthologies and learning the words. They enjoy using the words they've learned in their writing or finding them in books they read. I think part of the enjoyment is that they are not tested on them, it's just a form of enrichment.

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What Doesn't Work: Literacy Practices We Should Abandon  -Ken

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What Doesn't Work: Literacy Practices We Should Abandon  -Ken

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Best Practices VS. What Doesn't Work
I remember when METRA came to Washington School and gave everyone a bookmark with the TEN THINGS you should never do on or near railroad tracks. Growing up I had accomplished 7 out of 10 of the No-No List. I don't climb on stopped trains or on signaling devices that go over train tracks anymore, but it sure was fun at the time.

Point being, we grow as teachers every single day, week, month, and year. We comb through Best Practices and weed out What Doesn't Work. Journal articles, colleagues, workshops, and life experiences as a teacher can steer us to become better all the time.  Great dialogue with conversation will make us all better teachers so we can identify our current practices that are either outdated or ineffective for our students. We can also learn what works best in different situations.

As educators we either change after we discuss best practices as teams or when we are staring down the tracks as a freight train is heading our way, or when the Chicago Northwestern employees in trucks start to chase you, or when you have to explain to your mother how you were so lucky to have a dozen flattened pennies on your dresser or ..............

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Recess makes us better learners and better classroom citizens-and is probably most important for students with ADHD and attentional concerns. When we take away movement in the form of lunch recess, we are punishing these student for the entire rest of the day. It would be a major shift, but if we had an alternative to lunch detention, like a Parent Contract for no screen time that day or other agreed upon loss of home privilege, we could put the behavior discussions back at home.    Or maybe another way to make restitution for their problem behavior. This might work for some students.

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I used to give prizes away for various things but now only use them to get permission slips back or RSVPs in a timely fashion.  I tell the kids...."If I get this form back signed by X date, you get a prize. Works every time and I'm not chasing people down.

Vocab words are tough for EL students and certainly copying definitions are not helpful at all for them. They need repeated concrete experiences to make words meaningful both in spelling and meaning.

Spelling tests are questionable. Some kids benefit and love spelling tests , others don't because it causes great frustration. In my opinion, spelling tests are only useful if the kids know the meaning of and frequently use the words being tested.

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I have been guilty of giving trinkets with the ticket system and have gone away with it. My little kids love praise so moving to no rewards has been easy because they are 5 and love school. I think my big aha moment was with my fourth child. Not a big fan of reading like my other kids and couldn't find that great book to say he loved reading. His fourth grade teacher made the biggest impact. He had many reading conferences, introduced him
to many books and it wasn't until third trimester that my son finally found the book and series that he loves!  It was perseverance and not rewards that got him hooked. Thankfully he continues to read and looks forward to finishing the book and reading the next one in the series.

I am currently reading several of Jennifer Serravallo's books on reading strategies and differentiated groups for reading. I am finding that there are many ways to incorporate guided reading, spelling, and vocabulary in these groups. Not sure how I am going to do it all but it's giving me good food for thought.

I also found a new way to look at readers workshop thanks to Jenn Harris! I am enjoying reading what this author has to say about readers workshop and it is really making a big impact on my kids this year.

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I remember when I was in school (elementary through high school) those awesome vocabulary lessons. The common practice was to look up definitions in a dictionary and write them out.  I guess the good news was that I learned how to use a dictionary, but those definitions didn't last too long in my brain.  I found that I learned new words by using them regularly.  This can be difficult in the classroom when trying to use  content area vocabulary because many times you only use it during the specific curriculum you are teaching.  I do like using graphic organizers to help with learning these words.  Students need a chance to use them.

I am not a big fan of "bribing" students for good behavior or for doing what they are supposed to do.  However, I have rewarded students with a book of their choice if they completed a reading goal.  Every student who reached their reading goal for the month received a book from me.  I bought books from Goodwill for  1.00 each, or got them at garage sales so it wasn't too big of an expense.   I was happy to get books into student's hands, and most students received a book of their choice each month.

I remember my mom quizzing me all week for spelling tests.  The problem I had was that I wasn't good at memorizing.  I'd do okay, but rarely aced the tests. When I first began teaching, I gave weekly spelling tests.  The students received the list on Monday, we did a couple lessons during the week, and the test was on Friday.  Some of my students were like me growing up.  Other students didn't even need to study.  As I continued teaching I realized that these spelling tests didn't tell me much.  So, instead I used a "Go For It" booklet.  During writing workshop I would have students write the words (not all) they misspelled in their writing in their Go For It book.  These words became their spelling words for the week.  Partners would quiz each other on the words.  Some students had 10 words, while others may have had only 3.  It was an easy way to differenciate spelling lists.  During my spelling lessons, I would do mini lessons on common mistakes my students were making.  It took a while to get some parents on board, but after a while it made sense to them.

I used a reader's workshop approach for many years to work with my students in reading.  Some students used the same book and I met with those students more frequently than others.  Students would work on whatever the learning objective was for that day using their just right books. Students would write/document in their reading notebooks.  I conducted individual conferences with students to verify understanding.  As Erin previously mentioned I was able to see most students within a few days.  I met more frequently with my lower readers.  My higher students kept asking me when I was going to conference with them.  I think both students and myself ejoyed this interaction.

Finally, I'm glad we are rethinking homework. Most, if not all, should be review and keeping students in from recess for these types of assignments doesn't always make sense to me. Yes, their are chronic cases. I would email/call parents if this was an issue and I did send a couple of frequent flyers to detention. It didn't solve the issue. More emails and calls. I discovered that sometimes my students wanted to do the work, but couldn't due to family situations or other issues. I sometimes would modify the assignments for these students and that occasionally worked. I'm a firm believer that students really need their recess time to run around and let of some steam.

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I think the idea of calendar time needs to be updated.  When I began teaching, calendar was part of the curriculum in Kindergarten.  However, with the passing of Common Core, it was taken out.  When I moved to second grade, I witnessed Barb Harper doing calendar time. When I asked what she was doing, what she was doing was very Common Core based.  She was counting coins for each day and trading coins in when possible, counting the days of school, then counting 10 more and 10 less (off the decade), and telling time for specials that day.  I think that if what you are doing is standard based and "not dressing a bear for the weather" then it can be an effective time.  However, it can also be a time waster.

Spelling tests is a difficult one.  As Amy said, when done with patterns and phonics in mind and it's leveled, it can be a way of teaching and assessing.  However, if it words from a story that are not related to any meaningful connection to the students, then it can be a waste of time and effort.

Earning trinkets for reading is outdated to me. Being a successful reader should taught as an intrinsic reward in itself. Students need to feel success as the reward and not earning "stuff". Building self esteem and internal self-awareness will help the students in the long run.

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I found that when I pushed into Dan's and Kim's rooms in the past, we were able to get through the whole class in a few days (about 20 minutes a day) with book conferences. Students read independently or worked on their literacy journals responding to a daily prompt from the read aloud or their books until they were called to meet with one of us. I just ran across some quotes I found from past students who really loved the conferences and sharing their books. There were other students who were less engaged but they still got the push to keep reading the same book or find a really good fit. I can see how that would be difficult to get through everyone each week without assisttance but even once every two-three weeks would help motivation and teacher connection/knowledge of what each student is doing with their independent reading. I kept simple notes that I was able to share with the teacher if there were concerns, other times the teacher only needed to know if the student was progessing.

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Looking up the definition: As the article says, so many other ways to expand vocabulary. Looking up definitions is way too tedious and time-consuming. Then to actually write that all out!  Weekly vocabulary tests fall under the same category as weekly spelling tests - maybe learned for the test then forgotten.

Reading Incentives: Student Council has been guilty - a couple of years ago we gave out I Love to Read bracelets for completing the Read Across America program.  Motivating with books is good but can be expensive.  Maybe rewarding with 5-10 minutes in a special Book Nook in the classroom.  Or if/when the LLC is remodeled, a cozy Book Nook corner there. Or just praise.

Weekly spelling tests: Never liked them. An individualized, developmental approach tied to their phonics instruction is so much more appropriate. Kids shouldn't be trying to spell words they can't even read.  However, how does a teacher individualize 25 lists???

DEAR: As someone who loves to read, this is a tough one for me.  There are many other studies out there that do support DEAR time.  I do think that conferencing with teachers is important, though, to make kids accountable (do we know any kids who pull out book after book and only read the first page??).  But again, how can this work with all the other things classroom teachers are required to complete??

Recess punishment: I totallly agree that very often the kids who need recess most are the ones who seem to lose it more. I'm sympathetic with classroom teachers - sometimes there is just nothing else that can be used to deliver a consequence. Perhaps just taking away the first 5-10 minutes is enough to make an impact.

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I've never much been a fan of buying good behavior. I definitely have tried it, but I don't think I ever had better results with prizes than I do without them. I've had the best outcomes with talking to kids about how much they've improved in whatever they are working on, identifying what they think they did that brought about the improvement, and congratulating them on their hard work and perseverance. The success becomes the motivator to continue to work hard. The time spent shopping for prizes always seemed like missed instructional time too.

I struggle with the spelling lists. I give them. Mine are modified by number of words and difficulty of words, but based on a common pattern. Individual lists sound great, but I have never actually seen this done and reading about it just isn't enough to give me confidence to take the leap. I can't wrap my head around the management and accountability piece. Students also seem to think there isn't value in it unless it's tested. I know research says the tests don't improve spelling, but I know from experience that spelling skills tanked the years we didn't test. I'm willing to try another way, but need support in management of differentiation and assessment.

I remember looking up vocabulary words as a student. I was mindlessly just copying definitions, not even paying attention to the actual meaning. A total waste of time. Came across a new mind mapping iPad app I'd like to try called Popplet. Students can show how concepts or vocabulary  words are interrelated. You really need to have a good working understanding to do this.

In response to the unsupported SSR: I struggled a few years with the literacy framework given by the district and making it work for me. I often have the kids read silently while I work with guided reading groups, but then I'm not available to monitor. Another way to do it would be to run a readers workshop and confer with kids about their self selected books, but there isn't enough time to do both guided reading and readers workshop. To get a blend of approaches, about once a month, I have my students bring their self selected choices and logs to guided reading. On the day, rather than have a guided reading lesson, we confers out books they've read and are currently reading. I get to make sure they are making appropriate choices, hold them accountable for reading by checking and talking about books they've logged, and make recommendations for future reads. I also spend a lot of time at the beginning of the year talking about appropriate book selection and how to monitor their own reading at the beginning of the year.

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I have read this article before and can say I'm guilty of a few of these. I'm guilty of unsupported independent reading and weekly spelling lists, (some calendar time too). I have to pose the question of what to with primary students then?! I have a list a mile long on phonics skills/word patterns to expose kids to. I have some kids who could still be focusing on at/an words if I had differentiated lists.

Same with unsupported guided reading. I tend to use this time as more book exploration. I allow students to read interest books and begin to experience books. With so many varying levels, reading An Apple doesn't leave many discussing points.

My question is how and when do we provide exposure to word patterns and books if I don't structure everything for individual students? Especially when the report card isn't set up for individual learners but standards to be mastered throughout the year.

Great things to think of though!

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Read the article "What Doesn't Work: Literacy Practices We Should Abandon" https://www.edutopia.org/blog/literacy-practices-we-should-abandon-nell-k-duke
Post your reflection to this Padlet by 5/16 at 10pm, and you will be entered in a drawing for a totally awesome prize at the 5/17 staff meeting. You must include your name to be in the raffle!