reading

A SHORT TEXT SET AT YOUR FINGERTIPS: CELEBRATING WOMEN

Written by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim

This short text set celebrates women.  March is Women’s History month and it seems fitting - although we like to celebrate women all year long! 

Short text sets can be used to celebrate a certain group of people, especially a group that has been marginalized in the past, like women.  It can highlight accomplishments – in this case the Women’s Rights’ Movement – or anything else that makes these individuals unique and worthy of study. 

In the summer of 2020 a statue was unveiled in New York’s Central Park.  14 foot-tall and made of bronze, it depicts Sojourner Truth, Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton.  The monument is the first sculpture of real women (there are some fictional figures) ever erected in the Park’s history.  Of the 5,193 public statues depicting historical figures in America, only 394 are of women.

TRY THIS

Step 1

Print or project a photo of the Statue - this photo is a short text! Here is one you could use, but there are lots of examples out there so find one you like.

Women Statue

Statues often represent individuals worth remembering. Ask some questions to get the discussion rolling about who these women are and why we should honor and remember them:

  • Who are these women?

  • Can you tell anything about these women by just looking at them?  Look closely at their clothes, and the other things the sculptress chose to show

  • When did they live?

Step 2

The story of the effort that went into getting this historic statue erected is a fascinating one. The Story from Smithsonian Magazine is a great short text for you to read aloud or one that older students can read in a small group or independently.

Step 3

Let’s get to know these three fascinating women.  There are lots of ways to do this.  For example, read some of the wonderful short biographies about Stanton, Anthony and Truth (see the resources below) and:

  • Report on these women to the rest of the class.   Divide your group/class into three and each group could read about and then “report” to the rest about the woman they studied

    • Read a picture book about each one

    • Or a short biography (there are So many to choose from!)

    • Listen to a podcast (or two) about these courageous women

      • “American History Tellers” and “The History Chicks” are two we like (Please note: they are geared to adult listeners).  There’s a new podcast based on the “Who Was” series that is just for kids.  Hopefully these women will be featured on it in the future.)

  • Study some of these women’s words:

    • “Truth is powerful and it prevails.” Sojourner Truth

    • "Organize, agitate, educate, must be our war cry."  Susan B. Anthony

    • “The best protection any woman can have... is courage. ..” Elizabeth Cady Stanton

Step 4

If your goal is to increase reading volume and/or give students an opportunity to write about this topic, consider: 

  • Reading more about The Women’s Suffrage Movement

  • Listing the other women who should be celebrated

  • Writing about a woman who deserve to be celebrated and why you believe there should be a statue erected to honor her

  • Writing from the perspective of one of these women.  Perhaps a letter from one to the other

GOING DEEP & WIDE

Looking for more titles and short text types that add to and expand your text set? Check out these titles:

Celebrating Women
Celebrating Women 2

STAY TUNED!

More about short texts and short text sets coming soon!

A SHORT TEXT SET AT YOUR FINGERTIPS: PICTURE BOOKS

Written by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim

By design, picture books combine the wisdom of the words with the visual power of the illustrations to convey the story.  Beginning with the earliest readers, picture books create building blocks that promote a lifelong love of literacy.  

We love picture books because they can be read multiple times and for multiple reasons. We love to share picture books with students.  Sometimes we read aloud to students for pure pleasure or to showcase fluent reading.  Other times, we use shared reading as a way to dive into a book with students so that we can unpack the story and co-construct meaning together. 

Shared Reading

If you liked our Short Texts at Your Fingertips: Picture Books (Fiction), we think you’ll love these ideas about taking one short text about a favorite picture book and expanding it into a short text set.  Just a reminder:  If you don’t have this book at your fingertips, swap it out for one you do have  and imagine other short texts you can pair with it to create a short text set.  

TRY THIS

Step 1

Some children may need some historical background to understand this book.  Consider both the background knowledge the children already have and their developmental age when you introduce this book and texts that support this book in the short text set.

Start by sharing Who Are Your People?, written by Bakari Sellers and illustrated by Reggie Brown.  As you share the book, spend some time talking about the opening page.  Use this excerpt from the book to launch an authentic conversation about the people who have shaped you/us. 

Who are Your People?

Then, as you read the rest of the book, consider:

  • Listening to Who Are Your People? read aloud by the author, Bakari Sellers.

  • Leaning into the illustrations (check out Reggie Brown’s website) and references to the figures in the book which includes:

    • Muhammed Ali

    • Maya Angelou

    • Stacey Abrams

    • Martin Luther King, Jr.

    • Harriet Tubman

    • Barack Obama

    • Serena Williams

    • Jackie Robinson

    • Kamala Harris

    • John Lewis

  • Talking about the proverb in the book that says, “it takes a village to raise a child.”

  • Discussing the call to action at the end of the book that reads, “So what will you dream, and how will you change the world?”

Step 2

Sharing this picture book can lead to other reading, writing, and talking opportunities, especially when you curate a short text set that includes picture books and other short text types like the example below.  Take a look.

Picture Books

Use this short text set during whole group shared reading, with small groups or give students individual opportunities to read the texts to learn more about civil rights, Black heroes and resistance stories.  

In addition, you could:

GOING DEEP & WIDE

Looking for more titles and short text types that add to and expand your text set?  Check out these titles:

Hero's Books

STAY TUNED!

More about short texts and short text sets coming soon!

A SHORT TEXT SET AT YOUR FINGERTIPS: CEREAL BOXES

Written by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim

A LITTLE BIT OF BACKGROUND

Back in early 2020 at the beginning of the pandemic, you may have caught our Short Texts at Your Fingertips Series focused on keeping kids reading, writing, and talking during remote learning.  A lot has changed since then, although not as much as we hoped… Something that remains  constant regardless of Zoom, social distancing and everything else in this new “normal,”  is that kids continue to  crave texts that entertain, inform and  inspire them.

We are amazed at the number of educators worldwide who visit and revisit the original blog posts in this series.  We understand why.  Time is never on our side and having resources at your fingertips is essential.  We’ve spent hours in classrooms and across screens with teachers putting these short text ideas into action and we’ve added on because, let’s face it, that’s what educators do.  We revise, rethink, rework, and redo in order to meet the needs of our learners’ individual and collective needs and wants.  

You know that we love all kinds of short texts.  Some of our favorites are included in the graphic that follows:

Short Texts

The beauty of a short text is that it naturally invites readers to read, write and talk more!  As we co-plan with colleagues, we select one short text and then dream up other possible short texts that will get kids jazzed up and engaged in our literacy work.  From that noodling comes short text sets.  Say it too many times and it becomes a mouthful.  Stick with us and give some of these ideas a try and, before long, we think you’ll have the words, ideas, and texts rolling off your tongues too! 

A SHORT TEXT SET AT YOUR FINGERTIPS: CEREAL BOXES

If you liked our Short Texts at Your Fingertips Blog Posts about Cereal Boxes, we think you’ll love these ideas about taking one short text about a cereal box and expanding it into a short text set.  Just a reminder:  If you don’t have this cereal at your fingertips, swap it out for another type and consider these texts and others to create your text set.  

Cereal Books

TRY THIS

Step 1

Use the back panel of the Cheerios cereal box for a shared reading experience.  Use the back panel (and other panels too!) to explore the activities provided so that students can use different skills and strategies. Invite students to:

  • Complete a cloze activity similar to a “Mad Libs” and then read the finished piece out loud, showcasing fluent reading.

  • Play a word study game by making new words using the letters from “Crunch Time”.

  • Use their reading, math and critical problem-solving skills by solving breakfast equations while “Crunching the Numbers”.

Step 2

Ask students to select one or more short texts they’d like to explore independently or with a partner.  In addition, you could:

  • Invite readers to find cereal boxes at home, bring them to school and set up a “cereal museum”. Students can label the displays with interesting facts.

  • Host a cereal tasting. It’s oodles of fun. Students can design a survey to find out peer opinions about the crunchiest, sugariest, tastiest cereals. 

  • Encourage students to design their own cereal.  Draw it, name it, describe it. Then share ideas with others.

GOING DEEP & WIDE

To go beyond cereal boxes, consider:

  • Naming the main ingredients listed on the cereal box and research and read to find out more about each. 

  • Watching (or reading) some of the “how is this made?” genre of videos and talk about ideas worth remembering. Here’s a note catcher you can use if you are interested.

  • Picking a topic from the short text set and going a little further. Invite students to make a list of questions about the topic that pique their interests. Use this to jumpstart a mini-research project. This can be a short-term or long-term inquiry. Regardless, it will get kiddos reading, writing and talking galore!

STAY TUNED!

More about short texts and short text sets coming soon!

Looking for Summer Online Courses?

I love the work I do. I especially love my continued connection with Ashland University — flexible, affordable, job-embedded offerings that help educators further their knowledge through professional development courses as well as graduate programs.

If you or anyone you know is looking for summer courses — check out these offerings.

Summer Online Courses

Click this link for more information!

What's Our Response?

I’m really excited to announce the release of my new book, What’s Our Response? Creating Systems and Structures to Support ALL Learners! To order, click the image below or use THIS LINK. A BIG thank you to FIRST Educational Resources for the collaboration, support and publication of this book. To order multiple copies of thE book at a discounted price, please send an email to info@firsteducation-us.com.

In education time is never on our side. Too much time is being spent in meetings to discuss students’ deficits and not enough time harnessing their assets. Students come to school each day with individual and collective wants and needs, and it’s our job to harness who and where they are. The RtI process doesn’t have to be a machine model approach with an over-reliance on short sided skill and drill; it can be a dynamic, flexible, in-the-moment response focused on good instruction. This book explores how to keep students at the center of decision-making so that the focus is fidelity to our students instead of fidelity to content, curriculum or program by addressing 5 Problems of Practice with RtI which include:

  • We need to break out of the RtI box.

  • We need to honor and increase teacher autonomy and agency.

  • We need child study teams focused on students’ assets.

  • We need to increase students’ thinking and doing time.

  • We need good instruction because that makes the best interventions.

This book is filled with dozens of ready-to-use, solution-oriented tools to create asset-based responses that support ALL learners!

I’m currently scheduling consulting for this summer and next school year — both in person and remote options depending on travel restrictions, guidelines, school needs and budgets. Reach out if you’d like to discuss ways I can support your efforts in creating asset-based responses across classrooms and Tiers OR any other professional learning opportunities.

Using Short Texts to “Warm-up” Reading Muscles & Build Community

Written by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim

Last spring, when the world did an abrupt pivot and teachers and parents were suddenly teaching on screens from home, we offered a series of blog posts.  We suggested using short texts that could be found “right at our fingertips” to create access and interest to keep children reading.   Please find all the posts below:

“WARM UP” THOSE READING MUSCLES

Now it is August.  The hoped-for, regular, back-to-school, normal that we are used to is clearly not going to happen.  Instead, we are faced with a lot of uncertainty and a myriad of education models.  Whether you are teaching remotely, face-to-face, or in a hybrid model, you will be meeting children who have not been in a classroom in more than 5 months.  While we hope that each of them had a rich reading life all summer, we will be facing a wide variety of experiences and skills.

Short texts offer a way to ease back into reading in a comfortable, low-stakes way because they are easy to read and discuss in one sitting.  Short texts are great to use with students across grade levels and content areas because they:

  • Create conversation starters that can positively impact whole group, small group and one-to-one learning

  • Increase reading volume by reading widely (lots of topics) and deeply (read a lot about one topic)

  • Help students read the world around them, not just what they find in books

Short texts give us reasons to read, write, talk, and think because they entertain, inform, and often inspire us.   Here’s what we mean.

Entertain -- brings us joy 

Inform -- teaches us new information and/or renews our thinking about ideas and topics 

Inspire -- motivates us to read, write and share more

BUILDING COMMUNITY

When we ask a group of students to read the same short text, whether they are face-to-face in the same room or interacting online, it gives them a common experience and a way to build community and positive relationships.  Here are some examples of short texts your students might enjoy!

ELEMENTARY

Picture books are wonderful short texts! Check out these resources about friendship, community and being an upstander! Click the links below to order copies!

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My Friend is Sad by Mo Willems

  • Use the text as reader’s theater.

  • Examine the thought and speech bubbles and the use of punctuation.

The Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig

  • Read the story aloud and discuss their friendship.

  • Discuss the problem in this story and how it is resolved.

Strictly No Elephants by Lisa Mantchev 

  • Discuss how it feels to be excluded.

  • Discuss how it feels to be included.

  • Use this book as a springboard to creating a classroom community where all feel included.

Giraffe Problems by Jory John

  • Read this story aloud or listen and watch it using this link.

  • Discuss the giraffe’s perspective compared to the other animals.

  • Make a list of ways we can be a good friend to others.

The Power of One by Trudy Ludwig

  • Talk about different ways to be an upstander.

  • Think about and discuss, What is an “act of kindness”?

  • Make a list of different acts of kindness that we can do for one another each day.

MIDDLE SCHOOL

Excerpts of novels, picture books, podcasts and short stories are great to use when curating short texts.  Reading short texts often leads to reading longer texts, especially when students’ interests have been piqued or they connect with authors.  Check out these resources about friendship, community and being an upstander!

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Two Naomis by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich

  • Read an excerpt from the book.

  • Read and/or write a review about the book.

  • Listen to the podcast with Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich.

  • Read the entire book together or offer it to students who may want to read it independently.

  • In addition, check out 50 Must Read Middle School Friendship Stories curated by Book Riot for more ideas!

Weslandia by Paul Fleischman

  • Discuss what it means to accept [and show acceptance of] others.

  • Talk about ways we can ensure that everyone in our learning community feels accepted and welcome.

One by Kathryn Otoshi

  • This book, often thought of as a book to read with younger students, is an amazing story to spark discussion with older students.

    • Share and discuss the definition of upstander.

    • Discuss what it means to be an upstander.

    • Investigate websites committed to anti-bullying work.  Here’s one example.

Dear Bully: Seven Authors Tell Their Stories by Dawn Metcalf

  • Read aloud and discuss one story or give students an opportunity to read several stories from this anthology.

  • Find and share quotes related to being an upstander such as, “If not now, then when?  If not me, then who?” [Hilell].

Dictionary of a Better World: Poems, Quotes, and Anecdotes from A to Z by Irene Latham

  • Explore this book and the many words, definitions, ideas, and illustrations across several days.

  • Give students an opportunity to talk about how they can apply each word to create a better, more accepting, world.

TRY THIS!

Step 1

Choose a short text that you feel will grab your readers’ interests such as a short magazine article or a top ten list. Look for an engaging and “easy” text.  This experience should be fun, more like dipping your toe into a nice warm bath than plunging into an ice cold lake.  Find a way to make it available to your readers.  Consider print copies or post it in a place where your students can either read it online or print it for themselves.  Before reading, ask students:

  • What do you notice about this piece?  

    • Title

    • Author

    • Illustrations,  images or graphic elements

    • Headings, subheadings

  • What do you already know about this topic?

  • What do you wonder?

Step 2

Read the text.  Decide if you want students to mark the text in some way to hold their thinking or if you want students to make that decision.  Consider sharing ways students could hold their thinking to note important or interesting information. Students could:

  • Take notes in a notebook or on a piece of paper.

  • Use sticky notes to capture their thinking.

  • Create margin notes and/or highlight words, sentences or sections. 

Step 3

Share your thinking with others.   Some ways to do this include:

  • Pose a question and have everyone answer it (on a post-it or via an online forum).  Provide time to read others' answers.

  • Ask readers to pose a question, then have readers answer someone else’s question.

  • If students noted their thinking in some way, ask them to pick 1-2 ideas to share with others.

Step 4

Look for other reading, writing and talking opportunities using this short text type.

Reading Ideas 

  • Present students with another short text similar to the first.  Compare them.

  • Present students with another piece that is on the same or similar topic, but is a different genre (e.g. both pieces are about penguins: one is an article and the second is a poem).  Compare the pieces.

Writing Ideas

  • Use the short text as a mentor text.  Writers write about a topic they know a great deal about using the same genre and style as the piece you read together. 

  • Make a top ten list. Be sure to share them with others.

Talking Ideas

  • Invite conversation about students’ reading lives. Ask:

    • Where do you like to read?

    • How long do you like to read?

    • What types of texts do you like most? Least?

Step 5

Invite students to share other things they have been reading.  Students could share book titles, but it could also mean that they talk about other text types and genres they particularly like (e.g. graphic novels or magazines or a reading website).

COMING SOON!

Short Texts:  Mighty Mentors That Move Readers and Writers Forward by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim (Benchmark, 2021).

Short Texts at Your Fingertips: Launching into Summer Writing

Written by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim

SHORT TEXTS AT YOUR FINGERTIPS: LAUNCHING INTO SUMMER WRITING

For the past ten weeks, we have offered a series called Short Texts at Your Fingertips.  One or two times each week, we provided teaching ideas around a different type of short text that is easily found in the home, so that no family feels under-resourced. The ideas we have shared were easily integrated into any curriculum and pedagogy, from Workshop to basal. If you are a caregiver, teacher, or curriculum director, these brief but mighty texts and lessons are our way of saying thanks. And our way of giving children authentic and enjoyable reading and writing engagements each day. For some, summer is already in full swing.  For others, summer is just a few short weeks or days away.  Regardless of when your school year ends, it’s important that students of all ages keep reading and writing across the summer months.  Last week we wrote about the WHY and HOW to create voluminous readers this summer!  You can read that post here.  This week we wrap up this series with the WHY and HOW to create voluminous writers this summer! A big THANK YOU to my friend and colleague for being such a great thinking partner and writing partner!

SUMMER WRITING

There is always lots of talk about summer reading.  Children take home books and reading lists.  Writing often gets a line or two at the bottom of the book list (e.g. “Don’t forget to write.”)   We would argue that writing needs equal attention.  Encoding is just as important as decoding and picking up a pencil can be just as easy as reading that short text.  Just as readers need daily practice, writers also need time and motivation to write.  There are lots of ways to incorporate writing into your summer plans. While some children can (and will) write and write and write, all children can create some short texts.   One of the most important ways to encourage writing is to make sure your young writer has ample materials and some great inspiration.  Read on for ideas!

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TRY THIS!

Step 1

If you are looking for some strategic ways to support summer writing, here are some possible pathways:

  • Read about authors and their writing process. Here are a few to get you started:

    • Reading Rockets has lots of videos of amazing authors talking about their work

  • Often some new writing materials to help motivate -- a new notepad or notebook and some beautiful new pens often helps, a lot. See below for more thoughts about this!

  • Correspondence is a great motivator.  A teacher or relative makes a great pen pal.  The correspondence can take place via text, email or mail.   

Step 2

Help students make a plan for summer writing.  Ask:

  • How many days each week will you write? 

  • How many minutes will you spend writing each time you write? 

Ask students what they want to write about.  Do they want to write:

  • Fiction or nonfiction?

  • Notebook entries

  • Poems

  • Letters or postcards or texts

Step 3

Ask students to identify different places to write.  Create a short list of places that might be a perfect place to write, such as:

  • The kitchen table

  • At the computer

  • At the park on a bench

  • Under a favorite tree

  • On the airplane or train

  • On the sidewalk with chalk

  • Anywhere and everywhere as long as there is paper and a writing utensil

Step 4

One of the keys to writing voluminously is to have writing supplies on hand.  Some supplies that promote writing:

  • Paper (lots of it)

    • Unlined (aka copy paper)

    • Lined

    • Construction paper, card stock, etc.

  • Pencils and pens (adults have their favorite writing instruments, encourage your writers to explore different tools)

  • Crayons, markers, paint (many authors need to draw first to “rehearse” their stories and other authors want to illustrate their words)

  • A stapler (and a staple remover) for making books

  • One or more notebooks (for catching all those great ideas and for taking places so there is always somewhere to write)

  • A computer (for those who want to write with a keyboard)

Step 5

Keep reading!  Writers get inspiration from other writers.  Use a loved author as a mentor and try to write in the same style.  Or write a sequel to a favorite story and another in the series.  Here are some other ideas to spark some writing!

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Step 6

Get some other ideas from our other blog posts.  Each one of them can inspire some writing.

Step 7

Get the writing out into the world.  Writers need to “publish” their work and have it read.  Some ideas:

  • Send a piece to a relative or friend

  • Post it on social media

  • Make an author’s video and send it to others to watch

  • Host a virtual (or real) book signing

  • Write a letter and send it off 

FOR MORE  RESOURCES, CHECK THESE OUT!

COMING SOON!

Short Texts:  Mighty Mentors That Move Readers and Writers Forward by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim (2022)

Short Texts at Your Fingertips: Launching into Summer Reading

Written by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim

SHORT TEXTS AT YOUR FINGERTIPS: LAUNCHING INTO SUMMER READING

For the past ten weeks, we have offered a series called Short Texts at Your Fingertips.  One or two times each week, we provided teaching ideas around a different type of short text that is easily found in the home, so that no family feels under-resourced. The ideas we have shared were easily integrated into any curriculum and pedagogy, from Workshop to basal. If you are a caregiver, teacher, or curriculum director, these brief but mighty texts and lessons are our way of saying thanks. And our way of giving children authentic and enjoyable reading and writing engagements each day. For some, summer is already in full swing.  For others, summer is just a few short weeks or days away.  Regardless of when your school year ends, it’s important that students of all ages keep reading and writing across the summer months.  In this blog post we talk about the WHY and HOW to create voluminous readers this summer!  Stay tuned for next week’s blog post where we wrap up this series talking about the WHY and HOW to create voluminous writers this summer!

SUMMER READING

Readers bring so much to the reading experience. We love chapter books and novels, but we also know that for some kids short, interesting texts  will  keep them reading.  We think about reading as eyes on print - eyes on print - EYES ON TEXT.    It doesn’t matter if you are reading a long text or a short one, reading often with many pages turning is what creates voluminous reading.  We want kids to be in the driver’s seat so that they can create reading habits that last into adulthood.  Choice helps kids to feel empowered.  We often tell students that becoming a stronger reader requires building muscles.  When we are building our basketball or soccer muscles, our karate muscles, our art muscles (or even cooking muscles), we have to practice in order to get better and stronger.  The same is true for reading -- we get better at reading and build our reading habits when we read widely [lots of text types] and deeply (reading lots about a topic, idea, or author).

TRY THIS!

Step 1

Ask students what they want to read about.  Do they want to read:

  • Fiction or nonfiction?

  • Short texts or novels/chapter books?

  • Books and texts by the same author or different authors?

  • With someone or on their own?

If you want to find out about students’ interests and curiosities, consider using one of these surveys:

Step 2

Ask students to set up a summer reading goal.  Ask:

  • How many days each week will you read? 

  • How many minutes will you shoot for each time you read?  

If it’s helpful, ask students to set up a summer reading calendar outlining the days and times they plan to read.

Step 3

Ask students to identify different spots for their summer reading.  Create a short list of places that might be a perfect reading nook such as:

  • Comfy chair

  • Snuggled up on a couch

  • On the porch or in the backyard

  • At the park on a bench

  • Under a favorite tree

  • In the car

  • On the beach or at the pool

  • On the airplane or train

  • In bed on a rainy morning

Step 4

Ask students to gather a stack of summer reading books and texts.  Consider creating a stack and taking a picture of the spines to celebrate summer reading goal setting!  Here’s an example:

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Step 5

Visit the local library regularly (either online resources or if possible, in person).  And, make sure all readers have their own library card!  

Step 6

If it’s short texts that you are interested in, check out our blog series which is filled with lots of resources that can be found right at your fingertips! 

And don’t forget to think about how you will make these  short texts easy to access and use.  Maybe you have a basket or tub filled with inviting short texts or longer texts with the short pieces bookmarked and ready to go at a moment’s notice.  Or, if you have some printed short texts, fill a binder, manilla folder, or two-pocket folder so that you can store them easily and read them over and over again.

FOR MORE RESOURCES, CHECK THESE OUT!

COMING SOON!

Short Texts:  Mighty Mentors That Move Readers and Writers Forward by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim (2022)

Short Texts at Your Fingertips: Articles

We offer you Short Texts at Your Fingertips. One or two times each week, we provide teaching ideas around a different type of short text that is easily found in the home, so that no family feels under-resourced. These ideas can integrate into virtually any curriculum and pedagogy, from Workshop to basal. If you are a caregiver, teacher, or curriculum director, these brief but mighty texts and lessons are our way of saying thanks. And our way of giving children authentic and enjoyable reading and writing engagements each day. 

Written by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim

SHORT TEXTS AT YOUR FINGERTIPS: ARTICLES

Articles are a perfect short text.  Found in newspapers (the old-fashioned ones still found in driveways and at newsstands and now also online), in magazines and on websites, they are easy to find and easy to share.  While we all want to be careful about how much of current events we share with children, there are lots of fascinating articles to share with any age group.  Sports stories are often the hook needed to get a reluctant reader interested.  And, if you read about a game you watched or attended, you bring lots of background knowledge to your reading.  We are particular fans of the quirky human interest story: the armored truck with the faulty door that spills thousands of dollars in cash all over the highway or the message in the bottle that washes up a 100 years after it was dropped into the ocean on the other side of the world.  There really is an article for everyone.

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TRY THIS!

Step 1

Find an article you want to share.  There are lots of places to find articles.  One excellent source is your local newspaper.  It is a great source of information about your town or neighborhood and is likely to be filled with issues and events of interest to your young readers.  Local papers usually have online platforms, making it easy to share the article or get a printer-friendly copy in readers’ hands. In addition, there are many online sites to peruse so take a look at the resource list provided below.  

First, select a subject matter that will interest readers.  Consider a:

  • Current event

  • Human interest story

  • Sporting event

  • Historical event (old newspapers also have fascinating articles)

Next, ask yourself, will you and your students read the article:

  • All together?

  • Partially together and partially on their own?

  • On their own?

Step 2

Discuss the article.  There are many ways to guide the discussion such as:

  • Look at the features of the article and talk about their importance. 

    • Headline -- What is this article about?

    • Byline -- Who wrote this article?  Can you figure out their job at the publication?

    • The “Lead” --  How does this article begin?  What’s the pithy sentence or two right at the top to catch readers’ attention?

    • Photograph / Image -- What do you see?  Is there a caption?  If so, what does it teach you?

    • Quotes -- What are some one-liners from the article worth noting?

  • To keep the conversation going, considering asking:

    • What are some facts from this article?

    • Do you have any connections or new ideas based on your reading?

    • What are your opinions about this article?

    • What other questions do you have about what you read? 

Step 3

Ask students to brainstorm a list of interesting topics that they may want to learn more about (such as animals, space, rainforest).  Then, invite students to go on an article hunt and find 1-2 articles related to any of the topics that were generated.  Ask students to share the articles with their peers.  This can lead to high interest, voluminous reading filled with texts curated by students for students.  For more on ways to curate texts to inspire voluminous reading, check out this blog post.

Step 4

Give students opportunities to write their own articles for their peers or for online publication submission.  Check out these two resources:

  • Time for Kids  - A great site which includes articles by grade level. 

  • Google has some free templates that students can use to create their own newspapers. 


FOR MORE  RESOURCES, CHECK THESE OUT!

  • DOGO News - A great site that one can search by topic.

  • Scholastic News  - A tried and true publication which is organized by grade level.

  • News For Kids  - Lots of interesting articles organized by date, with the most recent articles at the top.

  • KidsPost  - This the kids’ section of “The Washington Post”. 

  • Teaching Kids News - A site started by a parent and a teacher and geared for grades 2-8.

COMING SOON!

Short Texts:  Mighty Mentors That Move Readers and Writers Forward by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim (2022)

Co-Planning: Reading & Writing Mini-Unit Focused on Expert Studies [PART 4]

Written by Julie Wright & Barry Hoonan

HOW WE GOT INTO PROFESSIONAL CAHOOTS WITH ONE ANOTHER

We’ve had the pleasure of knowing and working with one another for the past seven years.  We met at a school in Harlem, Julie as an Instructional Coach and Barry as a Model Classroom Teacher and Instructional Coach. Our work continued well past that experience.  With Barry out west and Julie on the east coast, we’ve spent the majority of our years working across 3000 miles.  Highlights include Sunday morning co-planning sessions and co-authoring What Are You Grouping For?, Grades 3-8: How to Guide Small Groups Based on Readers -- Not the Book.  We’ve always enjoyed being THINKING PARTNERS and we believe educators need someone to think beside now, more than ever.

A DISCLAIMER OF SORTS

As we navigate and co-plan learning during the weeks ahead, here are a few shared agreements:

  1. We are not going to edit these videos which means it might be clunky at times.  You might get a barking dog, tech glitches, or family interruptions.  We know you’ll be able to relate and hope you’ll be understanding.

  2. The ideas we share are NOT “the way” or “the right way” -- they are just one way to approach things.  And, we are figuring it out as we go along too. We hope you’ll take the big ideas we are discussing and — adopt, adapt or improve upon them — making them fit your settings, interests and needs. 

  3. We suggest focusing on process -- our work will continue to unfold between video segments.  That’s why if you pop back into our shared document links, you’ll notice changes because we’ll be adding ideas.  That’s because responsive plans evolve across the days and weeks.

HERE’S WHAT WE ARE UP TO

  • Kids have been learning from home for several weeks now.  Barry and Julie have a co-planning routine and they “meet” about 1-2 times each week.  Sometimes we switch on the video, other times we don’t.

  • Barry’s students have settled into a learning from home routine, sort of.  Each week brings about new celebrations and new challenges.  

  • Kiddos are knee-deep in an Expert Studies mini-unit. They are taking a 3-day pause from the unit to experience “camp”. During this time, they would typically spend 3 days out in the woods to experience outdoor exploration and learning as a community. Due to the pandemic, camp will take a different form this year.

THINGS WE ARE THINKING ABOUT NOW

  • How can kiddos use their “camp” experience to fuel the end of the Expert Studies mini-unit?

  • What if kiddos do a 2 minute presentation to a small group focused on their expert study and use that as a dress rehearsal for the end demonstration? If we used this as a mid-process reflection, maybe they could figure out what they need next.

VIDEO

If you are interested in watching a coach and teacher co-plan — working as THINKING PARTNERS in response to the unique times we are currently experiencing — check out this video.

OTHER LINKS & RESOURCES

Our DRAFTY, dynamic, in-motion, evolving plans: Co-Planning: Julie & Barry

Planning Templates: Co-planning Templates

Small Group Plans: Small Group Reading & Writing Lesson Plans to Adopt, Adapt or Improve [During Remote/Distance Learning]

Interested in post-it note planning, check out one of these resources: Chapter 8 & 9 Resources from What Are You Grouping For?, Grades 3-8: How to Guide Small Groups Based on Readers -- Not the Book.

BARRY’S REFLECTIONS

  • We’ve got small groups meeting. Do we need to switch them up or would it be beneficial to keep them the same?

  • How, when, where can I use some co-created texts from last year [Barbie study] to inspire the work in this mini-study?

  • I need to collect artifacts from last year’s students and use them as models for anyone who needs them.

JULIE’S REFLECTIONS

  • How can we use the ideas in this Expert Study mini-unit to ignite summer reading, writing, and talking about things that you find interesting?

  • What will kiddos do this summer in lieu of some typical summer activities? Are there new ways to host “meet ups” or “check ins” for kiddos who want and/or need it?

WANT TO SUBMIT A QUESTION or CONNECT WITH US?

If something we’ve shared inspires new ideas or ignites some questions, reach out to us using THIS FORM and we’ll do our best to get back to you!

Short Texts at Your Fingertips: Short Stories

We offer you Short Texts at Your Fingertips. One or two times each week, we provide teaching ideas around a different type of short text that is easily found in the home, so that no family feels under-resourced. These ideas can integrate into virtually any curriculum and pedagogy, from Workshop to basal. If you are a caregiver, teacher, or curriculum director, these brief but mighty texts and lessons are our way of saying thanks. And our way of giving children authentic and enjoyable reading and writing engagements each day. 

Written by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim

SHORT TEXTS AT YOUR FINGERTIPS: SHORT STORIES

Short stories provide lots of benefits for readers of all ages, one being they are short! Or  Short stories provide lots of benefits for readers of all ages.   For one thing, they are short!  They are usually fast-paced with a single-plot.  Short stories have other benefits too. Readers can read from start to finish, avoiding the struggle of failure to launch and failure to finish.  Short stories give readers opportunities to try new genres and authors.  Short stories are portable, tradable, can easily be read several times, and can be a path to reading longer texts.  Short stories are a great resource to use in flexible, small groups where kiddos have many opportunities for reading, writing, and talking opportunities!

We get jazzed up by short stories -- both stand alone stories and those collected in anthologies.  We would be remiss if we neglected to mention a favorite short story type called a picture book.  We wrote about picture books -- check it out here.  Take a look at some of our favorite short story anthologies.  They are sure to pique students’ interests, inspire reading more and more often, and create culturally responsive reading opportunities for students across grade levels.  

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LINKS TO THESE TITLES

Take the Mic: Fictional Stories of Everyday Resistance by Jason Reynolds, Samira Ahmed, et al.

Guys Write for Guys Read: Boys' Favorite Authors Write About Being Boys by Jon Scieszka

Fresh Ink: An Anthology by Lamar Giles

Baseball in April and Other Stories by Gary Soto 

Flying Lessons & Other Stories by Ellen Oh

A Stage Full of Shakespeare Stories (World Full Of...) by Angela McAllister

Once Upon an Eid: Stories of Hope and Joy by 15 Muslim Voices by S. K. Ali and Aisha Saeed

Funny Girl: Funniest. Stories. Ever. by Betsy Bird

5-Minute Marvel Stories (5-Minute Stories) by Marvel Press Book Group, Brandon Snider, et al.

TRY THIS!

Step 1

Find a short story you want to share.  There are lots of ways to share a short story.  Ask yourself, will you share the short story:

  • As a read aloud?

  • As a text for shared reading?

  • With a small group?

  • With an individual student?

Next, ask yourself, will you and your students read the short story:

  • All together?

  • Partially together and partially on your own?

  • On your own?

Then, ask yourself, will you and your students:

  • Read just for the sake of reading?

  • Jot some notes, draw some images, write about what you are thinking or wondering about your reading?

Finally, ask yourself, will you and your students talk about the short story:

  • All together during the whole group?

  • In a half group?

  • In small groups?

  • One-to-one between teacher and student?

Step 2

Find other short stories that students will enjoy reading.  Check out these online resources:

Step 3

Select other short stories you want students to read.  Decide:

  • Will all students read the same short story?

  • Will students have choices in the short stories they read?

  • Will students go on a hunt and find [or curate] short stories for their peers to read?

Step 4

Consider giving students opportunities to write their own short story for their peers or for online publication submission.  Here are some publications that accept short stories written by students:

FOR MORE RESOURCES, CHECK THESE OUT!


COMING SOON!

Short Texts:  Mighty Mentors That Move Readers and Writers Forward by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim (2022)

Co-planning a Mini-Unit to Wrap Up the Year with JOY!

I’ve had the pleasure of knowing and working with Shannon for the last few years. We share a common love of books and we are both self-proclaimed pen snobs — meaning we are both “pen-picky” and enjoy trying to convince one another that our favorite pen type is the best. Shannon is a continual learner — with an ongoing stream of inquiry. She’s a joy to co-plan with because she exudes happiness as she noodles ideas, thinks through wonderings, and creates ways to support her students — and her learning community — in collaborative, heart-felt ways.

A DISCLAIMER OF SORTS

A few shared agreements:

  • As I co-plan with teachers, I’m not going to spend much time, if any, editing the videos.  This means it might be clunky at times.  You might get a barking dog, tech glitches, or family interruptions.  I hope you’ll be able to relate. Thank you, in advance, for assuming best intentions and for your understanding. In addition, not everything we do together is recorded.

  • The ideas shared in these videos are NOT “the way” or “the right way” -- they are just one way to approach the work.  I hope you’ll spend some time actively studying the co-planning conversation. As you listen, take stock of the ASSETS that emerge from the conversation.  Think about:

    • What’s the WHY behind our work?  

    • What moves are we trying to make in service of students?

    • Name the implications for your work going forward.  What might you adopt or adapt to fit your setting, interests, and/or needs?

  • Focus on process versus end product.  The work will continue to unfold even if it’s not captured on video segments.  If you check back into our shared documents, you’ll notice changes because our work is dynamic, not static, and will evolve across time.

HERE’S WHAT WE ARE UP TO

  • Shannon’s students have settled into a learning from home routine and are launching into their 8th week. Each week brings about new celebrations and new challenges.  

  • Shannon wants her students to end the year with a mini-poetry unit, celebrating reading and writing!

THINGS WE ARE THINKING ABOUT NOW

  • How do the enduring practices we use in the classroom translate -- or not -- to remote/digital learning from home?

  • What’s the WHY behind this mini-poetry unit?

  • What’s going to get kiddos jazzed up about reading and writing poetry?

  • What end demonstrations or learning celebrations can we co-create with students to honor their work?

VIDEO

If you are interested in watching a coach and teacher co-plan — working as THINKING PARTNERS in response to the unique times we are currently experiencing — check out this video.

SOME REFLECTIONS

  • What poem types will be new/unfamiliar to students?  What poem types will feel like “old friends”?

  • Will students write poetry on paper or on the computer?  They have options so I’m wondering what they will choose?  

  • Will students illustrate some of the poems they write?

  • Is there a way to help students collect all of the poems they are reading and writing [a binder or folder] to keep them organized at home?  If so, maybe they could be used to inspire reading/re-reading poetry over the summer.

OTHER LINKS & RESOURCES

Our DRAFTY, dynamic, in-motion, evolving plans: Julie & Shannon: Co-planning Mini-Poetry Unit

Small Group Plans:  Small Group Reading & Writing Lesson Plans to Adopt, Adapt or Improve [During Remote/Distance Learning]

Short Texts at Your Fingertips:  Poetry

If you want to learn more about Shannon’s classroom, check out her blog!

IDEAS TO CHEW ON

As most educators would agree, working from a distance is not the same as in-person experiences. In my work as a consultant, it’s not unusual for me to work across the miles with teachers. In fact, most of my consulting contracts include some form of this type of professional learning, particularly as we prepare for our work together in the classroom. Planning and working across the miles is how we often get a jump-start to our work together. The difference, of course, is the work we are typically planning is NOT from a distance. So, that is where we are trying to make a shift.

I’m in good company when I say we are all kind of tired of this by now. However, with so many unknowns about what school will — or should — look like in the fall, we are using this spring as a dress rehearsal of sorts. We are asking:

  • What’s working? What’s clunky?

  • Who are we reaching and supporting in ways that are making a difference?

  • Who are we concerned about? What don’t we know that we should know?

  • How will we stay connected and minimize the “distance” that separates us?

  • How will we create compelling, sophisticated learning experiences that take into account our foundational beliefs and practices in ways that nature and inspire students?

Two pieces I’ve recently written that might be of interest are:

Until next time — keep at it! You’ve got a whole crew of educators cheering you on because we know the spirit and camaraderie surrounds us all! Reach out if you’d like to chat about ways I might be of service and support your efforts!

Short Texts at Your Fingertips: Poetry

We offer you Short Texts at Your Fingertips. Twice each week, we provide teaching ideas around a different type of short text that is easily found in the home, so that no family feels under-resourced. These ideas can integrate into virtually any curriculum and pedagogy, from Workshop to basal. If you are a caregiver, teacher, or curriculum director, these brief but mighty texts and lessons are our way of saying thanks. And our way of giving children authentic and enjoyable reading and writing engagements each day. 

Written by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim

SHORT TEXTS AT YOUR FINGERTIPS: POETRY

Poems are the quintessential short text.  Easy to find and usually under a page in length, poems are our “go-tos” for lots of reasons.  Sometimes we use poems in the classroom whenever we need a little something extra or we use them as part of a poetry unit.  We always have a few poems on deck and now is the perfect time to bring them out.  There are poems about every subject imaginable and almost as many types of poems to read or write about them.  There are rhyming poems and odes and poems for two voices.  There are so many different types, we could really write many blog posts about poetry.  For today we are going to think about just two: concrete poems and acrostic poems.  Both are easy to understand, easy to write and easy to love. 

An anthology — or collection of poems — is a great resource to encourage voluminous reading. You’ll find anthologies that are filled with one particular type or various types of poems. Some anthologies are authored by one poet while others by many. …

An anthology — or collection of poems — is a great resource to encourage voluminous reading. You’ll find anthologies that are filled with one particular type or various types of poems. Some anthologies are authored by one poet while others by many. And, poetry anthologies can be about one subject — such as sports, weather, or honoring important people — and others are filled with poems about various topics. You can’t go wrong with a poetry anthology — there’s something for everyone!

TWO TYPES OF POEMS

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TRY THIS!

Step 1

Find a poem or poems to share.  We suggest you introduce one type at a time (i.e. get to know and understand concrete poems before moving onto another type of poem).

Some places to look:

  • Poetry books you may have on your bookshelf

  • Go online (So many to find!).  See the resources below.

  • Write your own.

Step 2

Study the poem or poems you have chosen. Things to consider:

  • Will you show the poem first?  Or read it first?  Both approaches have advantages.  Note: we usually show both of these types of poems before reading the words because the visual is such an important aspect of these particular forms.

  • Ask the readers what they notice about the way the poem looks.

  • Ask the readers what they notice about the words of the poem.

  • After studying one poem, readers can start to shape (pun intended!) their own definition of this type of poetry.

Step 3

Look for other reading, writing and talking opportunities using this short text type.  Here are some examples:

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Step 4

Look for other concrete or acrostic poems and read those too!  You could also consider:

  • Write a concrete or acrostic poem and perform / read your poem to others.  Make sure you display or show your poem too!

  • Writing an acrostic poem for each of your readers (a quick poem to brighten up their day)

  • Use the acrostic or concrete poem builder app (listed in resources below) to generate a poem.

  • Use a “found” word as the foundation of an acrostic poem

Other Fun Poetry Types to Try:

  • Haikus

  • Limericks

  • Free Verse 

FOR MORE RESOURCES, CHECK THESE OUT!

Acrostic Poems

Concrete Poems

COMING SOON!

Short Texts:  Mighty Mentors That Move Readers and Writers Forward by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim (2022)

CO-AUTHOR: ELIZABETH KEIM

Elizabeth Keim is a New York City based educator with more than 25 years of experience. She is currently an AIS Reading Teacher/Reading Recovery teacher for a school in Mamaroneck, New York. Previously she taught in District 2 in Manhattan,  serving as a classroom teacher, reading specialist, and library teacher. In each of these roles,  she knows that, "it is all about finding a text that truly captures a particular reader."  She has taught Undergraduate and Graduate level courses at New York University and Bank Street College of Education, as well as workshops for teachers and parents.  An avid birder, Elizabeth enjoys her time in Central Park every spring and fall. Her most thrilling sightings to date are: A rare Kirtland's warbler and the tutti frutti colored Summer Tanager.

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Short Texts at Your Fingertips: Trivia

We offer you Short Texts at Your Fingertips. Twice each week, we provide teaching ideas around a different type of short text that is easily found in the home, so that no family feels under-resourced. These ideas can integrate into virtually any curriculum and pedagogy, from Workshop to basal. If you are a caregiver, teacher, or curriculum director, these brief but mighty texts and lessons are our way of saying thanks. And our way of giving children authentic and enjoyable reading and writing engagements each day. 

Written by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim

SHORT TEXTS AT YOUR FINGERTIPS: TRIVIA

Did you know that the singular form of trivia is trivium? Did you also know that in Latin trivia means “triple way” because long ago European students learned about three disciplines which included grammar, logic, and rhetoric.  Did you also know that the term trivia dates back to 1589 and has been references by many as insignificant pieces of information, The big question is whether you agree with Merriam-Webster’s definition that trivia is “unimportant facts, matters, or details” or if you believe trivia holds a significant place in our knowledge stream or if you believe that trivia is a fascinating and worthy pursuit.   Regardless, trivia is everywhere, it’s at your fingertips, and is one short text type that grows exponentially by the day.  

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TRY THIS!

Step 1

Think about where you can find trivia that will entertain, inform and inspire readers. 

  • Do you already know some trivia that you could share?

  • Do you have trivia books on your shelves?

  • Do you have magazines that include trivia?

  • Do you have online access where you can find trivia that piques interests?

  • There is often a page of “extra” facts (aka trivia) at the end of a nonfiction picture book.  

Step 2

Find trivia to share.  Things to consider:

  • Will you share trivia about one topic, such as sports or food, or multiple topics?

  • Will you ask students to find trivia to share?  Do you need to create shared agreements about what types of trivia are appropriate?

  • Will you share trivia as a regular routine at the beginning or end of the day [or class period] OR will you create a learning progression across a few days using trivia?

  • Once you’ve selected trivia to share, take a closer look and think about other reading, writing, and talking opportunities are tucked inside this short text. 

Sometimes trivia is set up in different formats.  Here are two examples:

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Step 3

Look for other reading, writing and talking opportunities using this short text type.  Here are some examples:

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Step 4

Look for other trivia that you find and read those too!  You could also consider:

  • Sharing a Fun Fact [trivium] during breakfast [families] or during a morning/class meeting [educators] each day.

  • Hosting a trivia day or night.

  • Asking students to do a mini-research project about a topic of interest and write trivia to share with others.

FOR MORE RESOURCES, CHECK THESE OUT!

Books

Games & More

Online Resources

COMING SOON!

Short Texts:  Mighty Mentors That Move Readers and Writers Forward by Julie Wright & Elizabeth Keim (2022)

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