Summer List

I love summer! My list is full of things that make my days happy, and my school year easier.

1. Read

 I try to read a book a day! When I lived in Amarillo, the public library had a book sale. You could fill a grocery sack full of books for $5. You know, those grocery bags that you are SUPPOSED to take to the store to cut back on waste. I use those....for books. Several bags means many books. Then I bring them home and put them, in alphabetical order by author (of course), on shelves, in drawers, inside trunks. During the summer I read them, in a sort of alphabetical order. One A....then one B, etc.  I can't just let my OCD tendencies go for the summer. And I read until the end.Sometimes the books are completely forgettable. Sometimes, the characters are old friends, come to visit for the summer. 

2. Clean

....the house, the closets, the pantry, the washing machine. (I do all of the following between reading!)

3. Cook

because I'm cleaning the pantry, the freezer. Also, I have time. And, I double cook, freeze, and have meals to get me through those first, time-consuming weeks of school. 

4. Spend time with friends. 

It's on my calendar. But nothing is planned yet. I need to get on that! 

5. Fish -boat - spend time outside.

It's been raining, so the boat ramp is closed. Still, it's only the first week of summer.

6. Catch up on doctor's appointments

Dentist yesterday - rest today!

However, that colonoscopy I've been putting off....still haven't made that appointment. 

7. Spend time with family

My parents just left. We need to get to Houston to see our sons. And we need to meet Austin's fiance's parents. But, have you ever driven in Houston??? Courage is needed. And a lot more rest. 

8. House projects

Touch up paint

Hang curtains

It's a new house....so that shouldn't be too difficult. I can definitely do this between chapters!

9. Pinterest projects!

Pinterest overwhelms me. I've taken to creating a to-do this week board, and I put about 7 pins on it. One of which is a drink recipe. And a house project!

10. Go to professional conferences, workshops, coaching book study. 

( A typical teachers "summer off",)

11. Read a professional book and blog about it!

So, the book I'm reading is Great Habits, Great Readers by Paul Bambrick-Santoyo, Aja Settles, and Juliana Worrell. I'm thinking I can read a chapter a day!

And I'll blog about what I find interesting. Which is what THIS blog is really about!

Great Habits, Great Readers

Today I read the introduction. Let me say, I believe this book can change classroom landscapes. I feel like it takes all those pieces of the literacy puzzle, and puts them together in a meaningful, usable way.  (It also includes videos!)

• Students reached extraordinary heights because they have all developed extraordinary habits: a deeply learned database of skills and strategies that they can access automatically when they read. Automaticity is important...in reading and writing! That's why we work so hard on letter id, letter formation, and high-frequency words. But reading automaticity can be taken to the comprehension level, the discussion level. Isn't this exciting????!!!
• Habits are the product of the choices their teachers have made. Make reading lessons about learning the right habits. Targeted instruction!
• Every student can be taught.
• Repeated actions build our habits, our habits build our skills.

Core idea

Key determinant of success is the number of practice opportunities participants have. So...reading ONE book a week (around 36 books) or FOUR books a week (around 164 books). Hmmmm......

• Reading proficiency....higher rates of graduation and college enrollment, depth and breadth to one's understanding of the world. (Plus....what do you do in the summer if you don't READ?)
• Teach on grade level. 
• Radically reduce the amount of time spend on transitioning, looking for pencils, etc. to increase the amount of time spent on practicing key skills.
• Guided reading allows students to read, engage in rigorous comprehension conversation with their teacher and peers, each moment cementing a great reading habit more deeply. It ensures that every practice opportunity is a perfect practice opportunity. Guided reading also ensures that students are always working on the skills they most urgently need to master.
• The best teacher carefully and routinely tailor their instruction to the skills their students need the most. They differentiate. They adapt. 
• When a child gets something wrong, leverage that instant to begin forming the habits that will help him get it right. I always taught my students that when they were WRONG, they were learning something. And, it helped me know what to TEACH! (Which was my job.)

Habits are started at the moment of error, 

not at the moment of success. 

Core idea

• Content area instruction is vital to the literacy block. Is departmentalization a good idea?At what grade?
• Balance informational and literary texts, creating a staircase of text complexity. Build vocabulary as you increase the complexity.
• Require text based answers.
• Write from sources. Writing becomes the critical first step to grasping meaning from a text. Writing drives comprehension conversations. 

I can't wait to read more! Please feel free to post comments, if you are or have read this book. I feel the need for discussion...to cement my learning!

Now, to another item on my list. Okay....I'm going to read another chapter of my literary text! I love summer!