Reading Workshop

Setting Expectations for Interactive Discussions             In order to facilitate more effective discussions, we cannot simply sit back and hope that our students understand what we expect them to do when we discuss a text. We need to make our expectations for interactive discussions clear and explicit, sharing our ideas and preferred vision for these discussions with our students if we expect them to participate in particular ways. When we share our expectations with our students, we help them understand the purposes and procedures for these interactions. I have listed below some expectations that I would share with my students early in the school year to help set the tone for our discussions. Ideas are Honestly Reported – Expecting students to share what they honestly think and feel is the most important goal we can instill in our students. If students aren’t willing to share what they really think our discussion...

This book has been, unfortunately, one of my worst selling books. However, I feel it is some of my best research and writing on how teachers talk with students. The book's title is a term I have never used and I fought with Scholastic to call it  " Talking Comprehension: Using Language to Expand Understanding "  or something like that.  This excerpt is from the opening chapter:          To begin, talk is ubiquitous. I mean, everyone is doing it, including classroom teachers. However, it seems no one is talking about it. This begs the question, “Why isn’t anyone, especially classroom teachers, talking about talk?”. Talk is the primary means upon which you draw to implement your curriculum, in general, and the talk that you use, specifically, during your reading lessons and literature discussions is profoundly significant. It is through talk that most things are learned, most information is shared, and through which we negotiate and reconsider our ...

Reason Number 1: Reading Aloud Increases Test Scores   Since administrators, school board members, legislators and the United States Department of Education often rely on increased standardized test scores to defend particular classroom learning experiences and instructional practices, we begin by stating that scientifically-based reading research shows that reading aloud with older readers increases achievement on standardized test scores and helps develop students’ reading abilities. The Commission on Reading ( Becoming a Nation of Readers ) concluded, “the single most important activity for building the knowledge required for eventual success is reading aloud to children.” Reading aloud increases student’ background knowledge, introduces them to various story structures and demonstrates competent reading strategies. All of these positive effects of reading aloud contribute to students’ reading ability and achievement on standardized tests. Reason Number 2: Reading aloud introduc...