Discussion strategies in the classroom Do your students use discussion strategies in the classroom? If not, you NEED to! Before we dive in, let me share a brief story that will show you why. Imagine this: Your readers just finished Charlotte’s Web. You say, “Alright, let’s discuss. Who wants to
What is direct instruction and gradual release? Have you ever taught an ELA lesson that didn’t go as planned? Or that you thought would be totally amazing, but your kids weren’t engaged? Or how about my all time favorite…the one where you deliver a perfect lesson (one you wish you
Teaching Main Idea No matter what grade level you teach in elementary, teaching main idea and supporting details can make any teacher pull out their hair! It’s a complicated skill that we try to build on year after year. It’s not easy to teach and it’s not an easy concept
Instructional Frameworks What is an instructional framework? I’m so glad you asked! An instructional framework is a lesson plan template or format, in which you can plug in your lesson content. Some frameworks are very detailed, and some, not so much. There are several reasons why you should use an
Teaching Summarizing Teaching summarizing strategies can be one of those reading comprehension strategies you dread to teach. Where do you start? Teach main idea? Teach how to summarize a sentence? A paragraph? A page? Whole book? First of all, let’s chat briefly about the why. Of course, it’s a necessary
Improve Reading Comprehension Do you need to improve reading comprehension? Is it at the top of your list of things-I-need-to-teach-better? It was always on mine, too! Let me give you a scenario in which you are probably all too familiar: You have a reading curriculum that you are obligated to
Teaching comprehension strategies is a lot easier when you have a proven framework to use!
I help teachers learn to design and teach effective ELA lessons using instructional frameworks, content strategies, and simple routines. I believe that effective teaching is more of a science than an art and will have a direct impact on student achievement. I also believe in the power of Diet Coke, data, and simplifying teaching (not necessarily in that order:)
