Good stories are powerful. They have a way of seeping into our souls and lingering in the backs of our minds. For years, stories were the main way that knowledge was passed between generations. Reading to my sixth...

One of the worst assumptions I made as a young classroom teacher was that each and every student in my class would possess a fully developed framework for reading and writing in my class. Maybe this was because I had...

If all my students earned 100% on their reading assessments, but then left my classroom hating reading, I have failed as a teacher. It is not in the Common Core Standards to foster a lifetime love for reading. The...

Much of the writing we assign our students is public writing—writing to communicate with others. Writing-to-learn is personal writing, writing that helps students increase comprehension of texts—fiction...

Change. A six-letter word bandied around a lot. Politicians use the word every election cycle to argue for the need of the electorate to select new leaders. In a democracy, change means so much more. Citizens have the...

Nearly six million middle school students today are reading below grade level—a shocking number. The National Center for Education Statistics' 2017 report, The Nation's Report Card: Mathematics and Reading...

One of my favorite days of the year is when I give students their first independent reading assignment. I believe the best way to keep the love of reading alive is for students to read what they love and share their...

Much of the writing we assign our students is public writing—writing to communicate with others. Writing-to-learn is personal writing, writing that helps students increase comprehension of texts—fiction...

Much of the writing we assign our students is public writing: writing to communicate with others. Writing-to-learn is personal writing, writing that helps students increase comprehension of texts—fiction and...

Reader response compels readers to interact with the text and makes visible for readers and their teachers the depth of text comprehension. This is the fifth in a series on scaffolding writing-to-learn by teaching a...