GENRE-FICATION is a trend to make libraries more like bookstores, and it is transforming student motivation and interest in reading! School librarian, Stephanie Davis, shares the 5 steps she took to switch from the Dewey Decimal System to a library organized by genre, and tells why she would never go back! “I love mysteries, can you find one for me?” “My …
Nonfiction in Unit 5.1, Earthquake Terror
Get the full list of nonfiction links students will access during the 5th grade C. I. A. Unit of Study, Earthquake Terror. Click on the links to view and print each nonfiction article in this unit and book club! The more students know about the topic of a story, or nonfiction text, the greater their understanding and learning will be …
Nonfiction Pairings: Esperanza Rising
Get the full list of nonfiction links students will access during the 6th grade C. I. A. Unit of Study, Esperanza Rising. Click on the links to view and print each nonfiction article! The more students know about the topic of a story, or nonfiction text, the greater their understanding and learning will be as they read. Reading several texts …
Nonfiction Pairings: The Children of the Dust Bowl
Get the full list of nonfiction links students will access during the 6th grade C. I. A. Unit of Study, The Children of the Dust Bowl. Click on the links to view and print each nonfiction article in this unit and book club! The more students know about the topic of a story, or nonfiction text, the greater their understanding …
The Pull of The Chapter Book
How does a child know that he or she has become a good reader? When you talk to children about reading, you find out that they have their own reading milestones—the first time they read a book, the first time they read a chapter book, and the first time they read a longer book, like Harry Potter. Children feel a …
How to Group Students for Reading
FAQ: I have a question about how to group students for reading. Currently we are using a walk-to-read structure but will be switching curriculums to the Read Side By Side Reading Program. Is it okay if we keep our walk-to-read model with this program? The Read Side By Side Reading Program is a core program designed to be …
3 Must-Haves for a K-2 Reading Program
Selecting a reading program for the primary grades can be overwhelming with so many aspects to consider. Bethany Robinson offers 3 must-haves for your K-2 reading program, based on her 14 years of experience working in high-needs schools. A strong K-2 reading program should create an even balance between oral language development, listening comprehension, isolated phonics work, and fluent …
Tips for Better Book Club Discussions
How do you get your students to talk during book club discussions? Sarah Collinge, author of the C. I. A. Book Club Teacher’s Guides, gives some helpful suggestions! You have started your first book club unit, students have read the first quadrant of their assigned novels, and they have diligently taken notes while reading. Now the day is here when …
The Conflict Between Differentiation and Scaffolding
What is the difference between differentiation and scaffolding? While educators have long defined these strategies as being almost identical, they are, in fact, in sharp contrast to one another. Differentiation adjusts the text to the child, while scaffolding enables the child to read and comprehend at a higher level. The concept of differentiating instruction is close to celebrating its …
Setting Up the Classroom Library
Setting up the classroom library can be a daunting process. How do you organize books? Do you focus on reading levels or sort books by genre? Do you sort books into bins or place them on a shelf, spines out? How many books should be in a classroom library? And how do you create a classroom library on a dime? …
Sarah’s Year End Review
The students and I know our classroom would have been a very different place without CIA this year. I know: CIA determined our reading block structures (we missed it when we had breaks between). CIA set a social studies theme that helped us with our actual social studies big ideas. CIA helped me facilitate student independent work habits in a …
Dawn’s Year End Review – Looking Forward
It is hard to believe that another school year is going to be over in just a few days! It seems like it was just yesterday that started. With all the craziness that come with closing up a classroom for the year, and the fun activities that are scheduled, I find myself reflecting and thinking about what I plan to …
Historical Fiction – Chains
My class will begin reading Chains in January. There are a couple of things I think about, one the genre is Historical Fiction and two, it will be the longest book students have read so far during the school year. I know from past experience that the length of the book will, at first, intimidate them. In order to help …