Reading Update: Immigration Issues

Hola! I've been absent on the blog and you might think I've had a quiet couple months, but I have been caught up in a reading frenzy! This is somewhat like the Franzia Frenzies of yesteryear in the Greek system. You emerge with bleary eyes and a little confused about names.  Seriously. A book a day for a solid couple weeks. For the most part, it's been enjoyable. I might be the most frequent visitor to the public library's young adult literature section. I'm a little disappointed the librarian doesn't know me by name yet... but she definitely recognizes me, so that's got to count for something... and hopefully something good.

So what have I been reading, you ask. I'm adopting the Teachers College Units of Study created by Lucy Calkins and her team, and my reading workshop curriculum this year will focus on social issues, informational text, and realistic fiction. Realistic fiction is easy-peasy. I don't need to fret too much about compiling a list of recommended titles, but I got on it for the reading on social issues.

In the past, I've tended to be pretty loose about the titles on my classroom bookshelves. If the book was popular, I didn't get too picky about what was on the pages. I figured that head honcho librarians and educators who are much more in the know about YA titles than I am recommended the book, so I'll take the recommendation. I only got in a scrape once, and an irate mom wanted to know why a book on my classroom shelf (that her daughter opted to read) contained fellatio. I told her the honest truth, which is simply I didn't know I had that. I gladly removed the book, and life went on. I asked the girl if I had scarred her for life, and she looked at me and rolled her eyes, so I think we all survived the small fiasco.

However, I will say this scenario did make me pause and reflect. Not to sound stuffy, but there truly is an advantage to having some teaching experience. In my twenties, I didn't have a motherly stance toward my students. I was too young and self-centered. At times, I still feel too young and self-centered, but there have been a few times when I've asked myself, "Ok, if I had a middle school child, would I want him/her reading this?" This is maturity in the making.

That question paired with the fact that I'm teaching in a Catholic school next year has caused me to be more conservative in selecting which titles make it to my classroom bookshelves. Much more conservative. I'm slightly terrified by the wrath of parents paying to send their children to school where they are expected to learn strong values and morals. I think if the fellatio fiasco (alliteration at its finest and completely inappropriate for school) were to happen this year, things could get ugly. Really ugly. Therefore, I am reading everything that I put on my shelves and on my recommended reading list.

Thankfully, Teachers College provides a hefty list of recommended titles to use with each unit of study. As I said earlier, I've focused heavily on books that address immigration issues. If I can, I check out the book from the library, and if the book earns a passing grade, I buy it on Amazon. Greg will probably not read this blog, so I feel safe in confiding that I have spent more than $1,000 stocking my classroom library... and it's only June. 

For those of you considering the Teachers College Units of Study and the social issues reading unit, I'll share my take-aways. These will be most helpful if you are teaching in a conservative school like I am because there have been some powerful books that I've had to scratch off the list because of language, sex, and/or derogatory comments about faith.

1. A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park
2. Before We Were Free by Julia Alvarez: My only word of caution would be that this book is better suited for girls. Although it is a thin thread in the book, there is semi-frequent discussion of a girl entering puberty.
3. Refugee by Alan Gratz
4. Return to Sender by Julia Alvarez
5. Uprising by Margaret Peterson
I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sanchez: By page 8, I had flagged three places. The word motha***** appeared one too many times.

I have more reading to do, but I am grateful for any additional titles you might recommend that deal with immigration issues.

The First Goal of Writing Workshop

     In their book Writing Workshop: The Essential Guide, Ralph Fletcher and JoAnn Portalupi provide caution teachers against using the first month of writing workshop on "trying to improve the quality of the writing, or getting students to make substantial revisions. These are appropriate long-term goals, but they will sink the workshop if they become the focal point too early in the year" (22). Instead, the authors suggest focusing on the following short-term goals:

• get students to love writing time
• establish a safe environment so that kids can take risks in their writing
• set up a workable management system to handle the flow of writing

Love and Safety

The first two goals go together hand-in-hand. If kids feel safe taking risks with their writing, chances are they're engaged and "lovin'" it. The authors remind us that the quickest way to engage students is to offer them choice. As writers, students can have choice in topic, length, audience, and pace. To encourage students to take risks, Fletcher and Portalupi suggest giving specific praise about each student's writing, reading aloud from powerful texts that serve as models of the kind of writing you hope they might do, and writing alongside of them. 

Management System

    Google Drive replaces the two-pocket folders and hanging files of yesteryear. I envision my students creating folders within their Writing folder, labeled Unfinished Writing Folder, Finished Writing Folder, and Reflection Folder. 

     The Unfinished Writing Folder will contain the student's work(s) in progress while the Finished Writing Folder will serve as a portfolio. Within the Finished Writing Folder, have all students make a copy of a shared Google Doc that will serve as a table of contents. In the table of contents, students will list the title of the finished piece, the date it was finished, and with whom the published writing was shared.

      It's imperative that students reflect upon their learning, and I will require that students complete a reflection form upon the completion of each published writing. Students will also conduct grander reflections at the end of each semester. 

     Students will also keep Writer's Notebooks which will serve as another component of the management system. I constantly change the sections of my students' notebooks, but I plan to use the following sections for the upcoming school year: (1) Grammar Minilessons, (2) Mechanics Minilessons, (3) Craft Minilessons, (4) Pre-Writing, (5) Revision/Editing. Students will keep a table of contents on the first two pages of each section to make the notes more user-friendly. 

Questions

• I'm still unsure how to provide students meaningful choice while still adhering to the Common Core State Standards. For example, if students need to show proficiency in argumentative writing, then should I ask them all to write a 5-paragraph argument yet choose their own topic? Or should I allow them to choose their own genres within the mode of argument/persuasion and apply the same rubric to all the different modes since all will be expected to consist of the elements of argument? The connection between writing workshop and standards-based assessment is still not clear to me. 

Space and Time in the Writing Workshop

    It's been a while! For the last few weeks, I've been swamped putting together our new house. Yes, we bought a house! It's been fun taking our wedding gifts from last August out of their boxes and putting them to use finally. And, of course, when buying a house, there are inevitably projects (small or large) that find themselves at the top of the priority list.
     Greg and I have been busy fixing our backyard fence, installing a cat door in our garage, and repainting a couple rooms so far. Every time we knock one item off the list, we seem to add two more, so despite our completed projects, the list doesn't seem any shorter!
     Anywho, this is my feeble attempt to feel less guilty about not posting updates to the blog. I've been busy, folks - which I know, I know, is the lamest excuse ever.
    So let's get on with it. My focus as of late is writing workshop. I've been inundated with the merits of the writing workshop instructional approach, and yet, I have to admit I've never implemented it with fidelity. Outcome assessments and PLC demands have hindered me. Yet, as the promise of a new teaching gig lays before me, I'm determined to give workshop a whirl. A dedicated whirl.
     I bought Writing Workshop: The Essential Guide by Ralph Fletcher and JoAnn Portalupi to help me review the nuts and bolts of the workshop. I feel as if I've read a bazillion pieces of literature about writing workshop, and yet, when it comes time to explain it and ultimately implement it, I find myself stumbling a bit. I thought a return to the basics would be a valuable refresher course, so here are my take-aways from the first chapter of the aforementioned guide.

Time

• Fletcher and Portalupi address time and space first as crucial components of a successful workshop. It's comforting that a process that seems so complex rests on such simple building blocks. The authors say set aside frequent, predictable time. Since the position I'm hoping to fill involves a reading and writing block of two hours, I don't have to struggle to find time. Check. 
• The teacher is responsible for finding the time and structuring it. Predictable structure is important, too. Workshop structure traditionally includes three basic components: minilesson, writing time, and share time. Previously, I have erred with the use of the minilesson. Mine have been too long and I have perseverated on the lesson, and instead, Fletcher and Portalupi state that "it may feel funny to put forth a skill or strategy that your students don't immediately apply in their writing. But you can be sure that such instruction will broaden their visions as writers...." (12). I'm guilty of giving a minilesson and then structuring the next 40 minutes of class time practicing the skill. Instead, I should give the minilesson (which I would like to give through flipped instruction), ask students to record the minilesson in a writer's notebook or some such compilation, perhaps direct students to practice the skill during the minilesson (e.g. "choose a page in your writing and circle the verbs"), and then set them loose to to focus on their writing projects. 

Space

• Fletcher and Portalupi advise teachers to let the question of space be answered by the students. They also advise revisiting the question: "Have we created a comfortable place for writing?" 
• Some aspects of space should be planned by the teacher. The authors recommend having a plan for writing materials and tools. Personally, I'm a fan of using caddies at each student table because the materials are easily accessible, and this eliminates any unnecessary roaming, which is ultimately a form of task avoidance. Anything to make classroom management easier, people! The authors also emphasize the importance of having an area that I dub the "Coaching Corner," which is a place for whole-class share sessions, group minilessons, or private conferences. 
• I've never considered anchor charts as an issue of space, but the authors address the use of anchor charts, and it hits home for me. Anchor charts are "traces of teaching" and an easy reference point for students. When utilized effectively, anchor charts free up a lot of the teacher's time. When teaching three different grade levels, I think it might be clever to assign an anchor chart wall to each grade level so students know where to find relevant information.

Questions

• Fletcher and Portalupi have briefly touched upon workshop structure, but I expect more in-depth guidance in later chapters. I'm still hung up on the same issue that has always caused me strife in the workshop world. How do you effectively provide choice and avoid teacher "assignments" when restricted to assessing Common Core standards? I realize that argument writing can take many different forms, but how do you provide enough support for students to explore different genres without resulting chaos? Call me a control freak, but this is a problem I've always grappled with. 

Framing Instruction as Study

     At my former school, there was this terrific veteran teacher in my English department. She had 30 years of teaching under her belt and invaluable insight, but I most appreciated her continuing desire to learn, trying new teaching tools and methods. She constantly participated in book studies, and she possessed quite a collection of professional texts, a few of which she generously deposited periodically in the teacher's lounge when her shelves became too crowded. I prowled the lounge for any recent contributions, and I'd swoop up an armful and scurry (somewhat guiltily due to my greediness) back to my classroom with my treasure.
    I'm a little embarrassed admitting my greediness, but I have to say, I don't regret it. Every hand-me-down book with K.Malin scrawled on the inside cover has resulted in an "aha!" My current read, Study Driven by Katie Wood Ray, is one of these books I quickly smuggled to my classroom. The author's intention is to provide a framework for planning units of study in the writing workshop. The author is an advocate of authentic study. She doesn't want pre-made lessons and curriculum guides. She wants to present her students with real-world examples of writing in a particular genre, ask her students to study the writing and share what they notice, and then use the observations to guide students as they write their own piece in the genre.
    I've struggled to wrap my mind around the premise that curriculum is the outcome of instruction rather than the starting point, but this framework represents an inquiry stance, and inquiry is something I've wanted to develop further in my classroom.
    I've become determined to create more inquiry-based learning in my classroom because I think authentic inquiry is key to student engagement and motivation. Ray's framework is a perfect fit. Ray, herself, addresses the engagement of students involved in a study-driven workshop: "Because [Emily's] students knew they were expected to write something that was similar to what they had been reading... their inquiry had that wonderful sense of urgency that writers who are expecting to write something know so well" (6).
     When developing units of study, Ray shares that she determines in advance approximately how much time she would devote to each phase of the inquiry, and she uses short assessments to help her students pace themselves. Ray defines the phases of the framework as the following:

Gathering Texts:  The teacher, sometimes along with students, gathers examples of the kind of writing students will do (different kinds of genres)
Setting the Stage: Students are told they will be expected to finish a piece of writing that shows the influence of the study.
Immersion: During immersion (Cambourne 1988) the teacher and students spend time reading and getting to know the texts they'll study. They makes notes of things they notice about how the texts are written. They think about the process writers use to craft texts like the ones they are studying. Ray often guides her student's note-taking by asking leading questions that correspond to her essential questions for the unit.
Close Study: The class revisits the texts and frames their talk with the question. "What did we notice about how these texts are written?" the teacher and students work together to use specific language to say what they know about writing from this close study, developing curriculum as they go. Think anchor charts galore. The teacher, through modeling, takes a strong lead in helping students envision using what they are learning in their own writing.
Writing Under the Influence: Students (and often the teacher) finish pieces of writing that show (in specific ways) the influence of the study.

Reading Update: Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli

I've read Spinelli's Stargirl, and I love his fun writing style. Maniac Magee did not disappoint.

This book is full of the adventures of a boy dubbed Maniac Magee. He's an orphan who runs away from home and challenges the stereotypes and "norms" of the world. He finds homes with many different people and challenges the preconceived notions of people.
    Grayson is a crotchety old bachelor who tends the zoo. He's unable to read and write, and he's suspicious of others and bitter about life. Maniac befriends the old man and gives him a new take on life.
    Maniac also befriends a sassy Amanda Beale. Amanda's parents realize Maniac is homeless, and they open their home to him. He quickly becomes a part of the family. There's one small problem (according to some - definitely not Maniac): the Beales are black and Maniac is white.
    Maniac also befriends two devilish boys, Russell and Piper McNab. He quickly settles into their home where he adopts the role of surrogate older brother. The McNabs' father notices there's a new face in the house, but he pays this new household member as little attention as he pays his unruly sons. Maniac attempts to teach Russell and Piper the importance of education and kindness.
    In addition to his ever-changing home life, Maniac also becomes a legend among his peers. He can run faster than anyone. He can catch more footballs. He can untie "The Knot." He's allergic to pizza.

As I was reading this book, I found myself sticky noting excerpts for writing workshop minilessons. Here are a few.
Catchy beginning.
They say Maniac Magee was born in a dump. They say his stomach was a cereal box and his heart a sofa spring.
They say he kept an eight-inch cockroach on a leash and that rats stood guard over him while he slept.
They say if you knew he was coming, and you sprinkled salt on the ground and he ran over it, within two or three blocks he would be as slow as everybody else.
They say (1).

Entertaining and effective analogies. 
So, there's Arnold Jones, held up by all these hands, flopping and kicking and shrieking like some poor Aztec human sacrifice about to be tossed off a pyramid. "No! No! Please!" he pleads. "Pleeeeeeeese!" (17).

A chittering. A chattering. And getting louder - yes - chattering teeth. Arnold Jones's teeth. They're chattering like snare drums (18). 

McNab froze, then flinched, just in time. The ball missed his head but nipped the bill of his cap and sent it spinning like a flying saucer out to shortstop (24). 

If you look at old pictures in the Two Mills times, you see that the Knot was about the size and shape of a lopsided volleyball. It was made of string, but it had more contortions, ins and outs, twists and turns and dips and doodles than the brain of Albert Einstein himself (69). 

Practical Considerations: This book is a home-run. Middle schoolers, both boys and girls, would enjoy this read. It'd be a good one for read-alouds, too. I was surprised by the book's message about racism as I didn't know the book dealt with the topic until I was reading it. Maniac doesn't understand why blacks and whites live in separate neighborhood and regard one another as "different" because to him, they're not different at all.

Reading Update: From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg

So this book is a classic, and I feel a bit sheepish that I have not read it before now. The narrator is Mrs. Bail E. Frankweiler, who is sharing with her estate attorney, Mr. Saxonberg, the reason why she has included Claudia and Jamie Kincaid in her will. Claudia and Jamie Kincaid are siblings who run away from home and hide in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan. Their adventures in the museum and the ingenious ways they avoid being caught are entertaining. While at the museum, they become intrigued by a new piece of art recently donated to the museum. The identity of the artist is under question, and the brother and sister attempt to discover the true identity of the artist. Their investigation leads them to Mrs. Frankweiler.
  I would save this read for younger kids. I think many of my 7th and 8th graders would scoff at the book because it's childish when compared to adolescent literature written today. It was amusing to read the story and be reminded of the changes that have occurred in daily life since the 1950s: bus tickets were 25 cents and cell phones were nonexistent.
    E.L. Kongisburg provides insight about life truths, and I would use some of her insight as a writing workshop prompt.

Because after a time having a secret and nobody knowing you have a secret is no fun. And although you don't want others to know what the secret is, you want them to at least know you have one" (158). 

Konigsburg also uses parentheticals as a way to insert asides that illustrate the narrator's voice. This would be a handy writing workshop minilesson.

The bed had a tall canopy, supported by an ornately carved headboard at one end and by two gigantic posts at the other. (I'm familiar with that bed, Saxonberg. It is as enormous and fussy as mine. And it dates from the sixteenth century like mine. I once considered donating my bed to the museum, but Mr. Untermyer gave them this one first. I was somewhat relieved when he did. Now I can enjoy my bed without feeling guilty because the museum doesn't have one. Besides, I'm not that fond of donating things) (40). 

Practical Considerations: A great book to have in classroom libraries in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades.

Reading Update: Coraline by Neil Gaiman

This little read is CREEPY, and middle schoolers tend to like creepy. Coraline has moved to a new house with her parents, and Coraline meets her peculiar neighbors: an old man who trains rats and two old women who revel in the past, a time when they were stage actresses. Despite her interesting neighbors, Coraline is often bored, and her parents have little time for their daughter.
     As she explores her new home on her own, Coraline becomes intrigued with a door in the dining room that leads... nowhere. The door has been blocked with an old brick wall. Coraline sneaks the key from her mother and opens the door again late one night, and this time the door opens to a mysterious dark tunnel. And here the dark adventure awaits.
     I found the book to provide some excellent descriptions of setting, and I would recommend using excerpts for student exemplars.

The theater was derelict and abandoned. Chairs were broken on the floor, and old, dusty spiderwebs draped the walls and hung from the rotten wood and the decomposing velvet hangings (99). 

Coraline let herself down into the hole, looking nervously at the trapdoor. It was so heavy that if it fell she was sure she would be trapped down in the darkness forever. She put up a hand and touched it, but it stayed in position. And then she turned toward the darkness below, and she walked down the steps. Set into the wall at the bottom of the steps was another light switch, metal and rusting. She pushed it until it clicked down, and a naked bulb hanging from a wire from the low ceiling came on. It did not give up enough light even for Coraline to make out the things that had been painted onto the flaking cellar walls (109). 

Practical Considerations: This book belongs in a classroom library, and I highly recommend it as a class read-aloud for middle schoolers. Major themes are being careful for what you wish and not all things are as they seem.

Reading Update: Crispin the Cross of Lead by Avi

In my former school, I had a class set of this novel, and now I kick myself for not finding the time to read the book and to utilize that class set. Many of my former middle schoolers would have enjoyed this read.
The novel is set in the medieval times, and the protagonist is a nameless peasant boy who has recently been orphaned. His mother has died, and he never knew his father's identity. The boy's mysterious father creates the plot for the story. As the plot develops, the boy's true identity is slowly revealed. Therefore, this book would be a good fit for a literature circle/book club with the thematic focus of identity/coming of age.

"What are you going to do?" I cried.

"Cut your hair."

"Now look at yourself again," he said when he was done. "What do you see now?"

I considered my reflection anew.

"Are you different?" he said.

"A little," I said.

"And that was only water and a blade. Think what you might become if you were cleansed of thirteen years of dirt, neglect, and servitude" (104). 

The story also illustrates the grim lifestyle of peasantry during that time period and the role that religion played in day-to-day village life.

Thus our lives never changed, but went round the rolling years beneath the starry vault of distant Heaven, Time was the great millstone, which ground us to dust like kerneled wheat. The Holy Church told us where we were in the alterations of the day, the year, and in our daily toil. Birth and death alone gave distinction to our lives, as we made the journey between the darkness from whence we had come to the darkness where we were fated to await Judgment Day. Then God's terrible gaze would fall on us and lift us to Heaven's bliss or throw us down to the everlasting flames of Hell (13). 

Practical Considerations: There is one rather vivid description of a man who has been hanged on page 55, but other than that, I have zero concerns about using this book as a required reading in a middle school classroom. 

A Glimpse into Sub Life, Take 4

    I have learned that it's definitely an advantage to have teaching experience when subbing but  subbing is a far cry from teaching. Subbing has illustrated the importance of Relationship. The three R's (Relationship, Rigor, Relevance) get hammered in college education courses, and they're addressed in interviews, but I think substitute teachers might best realize the importance of Relationship.
     I have learned that my classroom management style has relied heavily on the relationships I have fostered with my kids. I don't have a heavy hand - I don't particularly like having to use a heavy hand - and I have noticed how a lack of relationship has affected my classroom management style.
     As a sub, you're already a few notches below human in the eyes of the kids. It's like a feeding frenzy. I can't tell you how many kids have walked through the classroom door and shrieked with glee, "We have a sub today!" Picture kid licking his chops. Classroom management is challenging, but I think it's especially challenging for substitute teachers.
     It doesn't help when a glance at the lesson plan reveals this: One hour for math. Kids silently read if they finish early. One hour for reading. Kids silently read if they finish early. One hour for writing. Kids silently read if they finish early.
    No kid wants to read all day, especially not intermittently. If you're going to give them time to read, then give them a chunk of time so they can really sink into their books. So I have taken the liberty to tweak plans to maintain sanity for all. Here are my go-to activities:

Younger Grades
These are my favorite go-to activities because they require zero prep or very, very minimal prep.

• Have a crossword puzzle for kids to complete if they finish an assignment early. Kids like choices!
• Most elementary classes have a weekly spelling list. This activity requires zero prep and kids really like it. It's called Spelling Sparkle. Gather kids in a large circle and designate a kid as the starter. Call out a spelling word, and the designated kid gives the first letter. Moving clockwise, each student contribute a letter until the word is spelled out. The student who follows the last letter calls out Sparkle and sits down. The next word starts with the student following the one who sat down. The goal is to be the last one standing. 
• If I find I'm teaching math, I'll usually stick this extra challenge into the lesson to get the brain juices flowing (somewhat). Have students start with a number between 1-10 (I do this because I don't have a clue about their mathematical expertise). Then give them 3 or 4 steps where they subtract and add various numbers designated by you. The final step is always to have them subtract the number they started with. This way, all kids will end up with the same number depending on the steps you told them to do. At first, it's like I've done a magic trick and kids are baffled. The second time, at least a kid or two has caught on. I ask them to explain it, and then we usually do one more problem to help the others understand. Simple but fun. 
• Pictionary: I have pre-made index cards in my sub bag, and if we have 10 minutes to burn and kids are burned out on silent reading, I'll divide the class into two teams (usually boys v. girls) and we'll play pictionary. Snowstorm usually stumps them ;)
• This activity can get a little rowdy so pre-teach expectations, but it's a handy activity if the kids are getting restless and need a brain break and movement. Pair the kids up and then have Partner 1 do some type of gesture (e.g. clap their hands 3 times, slap their knee once, stomp their foot, e.g.). Partner 2 imitates what Partner 1 did and adds a gesture to it. This continues with kids going back and forth and adding to the sequence for a designated time period - about a minute - and I usually use music. The challenge is if kids can remember their entire sequence. Once they mess up, they have to sit down. 
• I have Junior Trivia cards in my sub bag and I use these any time we have a couple minutes to kill, usually before we line up for lunch, recess, or a trek to the gym. These are handy.
• Pack Jolly Ranchers. Always. 

Secondary Grades

High schoolers are a tough sell, and honestly, I don't tend to tweak the lesson much. High schoolers just want to get the work done, and then they want down time. And my experience has been that most high schoolers are capable of handling down time. Middle schoolers not so much. They need structured time just like the 5th and 6th graders do. Here are some activities I've used with middle schoolers:

• Top 10: Most classrooms have a stack of abandoned newspapers piled in some corner. Grab these and distribute pages to the kids and ask them to skim the articles. You may need to quickly review what constitutes a news article. Ads and comics are not news articles. They have 10 minutes to learn 10 things from the news. They write 10 sentences on a piece of paper, sharing what they learned, and then we hold a whole-group share at the end. Kids have fun sharing.
• Hide the Adjective: This activity takes about 20 minutes and requires about 5 minutes of prep. I have pre-made cards in my sub bag. Here's the link to my lesson. On the flip side, when I had my own classroom, this was a go-to sub plan for me. 
• Those Junior Trivia cards are still handy at this level. They're great for those awkward last two minutes of class before the bell rings.
• Pack Jolly Ranchers. Always. 

Workshop Structure

One of the most daunting tasks in running a readers' and writers' workshop in the classroom is determining the structure. Common questions include: what components do I need? how much time should I allot to each component? how do I incorporate both reading and writing into my limited amount of class time each day? I've gathered suggestions from a few experts in the field, and these suggestions are ones that have guided me when getting the workshop off the ground.

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In Mosaic of Thought Keene and Zimmerman list the following four components as the most effective supports for comprehension learning.

• Large group meeting time: The teacher thinks aloud about a comprehension strategy, then encourages children to share their thinking.
• Independent reading time: a long period during which the teacher moves among the students to confer
• Needs-based grouping: occurs during independent reading to address specific learning needs
• Reflection: A time for kids to reflect on their learning with others. This includes large-group sharing session, book clubs, written responses, one-on-one sharing, or discussion. 

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In Reading in the Wild Donalyn Miller recommends dividing the class period into thirds. Her daily minilessons alternate in focus from reading to writing according to the curricular learning objectives. She provides a weekly schedule for both a reading focus and a writing focus to illustrate how she utilizes her class time with kids. It's important to note that her school operates on a block schedule, so she has her kiddos for 90 minutes at a time.

Weekly Schedule: Reading Focus

Monday: The first 30 minutes are spent on readers' workshop/ small groups/conferences. The next 45 minutes are spent on vocabulary and spelling minilessons and guided practice. The last 15 minutes are saved for a read aloud.

Tuesday: The first 30 minutes are spent on readers' workshop/ small groups/conferences. The next 15 minutes are spent on a reading minilesson and guided practice. The following 30 minutes are spent on a writing a response to literature. The last 15 minutes are saved for a read aloud.

Wednesday: Identical to Tuesday's schedule.

Thursday: Identical to Tuesday's schedule.

Friday: The first 15 minutes are spent completing the weekly vocabulary test. The next 30 minutes is a readers' or writers' workshop. The students can choose which they work on. The following 30 minutes are used as an informal share time. Students can give book commercials, participate in discussions, or conduct read-arounds. The last 15 minutes are saved for a read aloud. 

*Observation: Miller carves out time for independent reading and read alouds in her classroom every single day. Her weekly schedule includes the four essential components identified by Keene and Zimmerman as essential to an effective readers' workshop, but not each component is evident on a daily basis. 

Weekly Schedule: Writing Focus

Monday:  The first 30 minutes are spent on readers' workshop/ small groups/conferences. The next 45 minutes are spent on vocabulary and spelling minilessons and guided practice. The last 15 minutes are saved for a read aloud.

Tuesday: The first 30 minutes are spent on readers' workshop/ small groups/conferences. The next 15 minutes are spent on a writing minilesson and guided practice. The following 30 minutes are spent on writers' workshop. Students independently write and Miller conducts one-on-one conferences. The last 15 minutes are saved for a read a loud. 

Wednesday: identical to Tuesday's schedule

Thursday: identical to Tuesday's schedule

Friday: The first 15 minutes are spent completing the weekly vocabulary test. The next 30 minutes is a readers' or writers' workshop. The students can choose which they work on. The following 30 minutes are used as an informal share time. Students can give book commercials, participate in discussions, or conduct read-arounds. The last 15 minutes are saved for a read aloud. 

*Observations: Her writing focus schedule is similar to her reading focus schedule, which allows for consistency for her students. She still allots 30 minutes a day for independent reading during an instructional unit on writing. 

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Nancie Atwell, who is perhaps the decisive authority on all matters regarding reading and writing workshop, makes an argument for considering the workshop the English course - not an add-on - in her book In the Middle. Atwell, who runs her own school in Maine, also operates on a block schedule. She describes a typical 90-minute class period:

• reading and discussion of poem (5 minutes)
• procedures/writing/reading minilesson (5-20 minutes)
• status-of-the-class conference about students' plans for writing workshop (3 minutes)
• independent writing and conferring (35-50 minutes)
• read-aloud from a chapter book or short story (10 minutes)
• independent reading, including roving status-of-the-class record keeping while students are reading (15 minutes)

Atwell also provides suggestions for teachers operating on a 50-minute bell schedule. She recommends giving the bulk of the class period to writing as she finds this is where kids need the most hands-on help, teacher demonstrations, and structured time.

Option 1: When a workshop approach is the curriculum

• Writing workshop on four regular, consecutive days (e.g. Monday - Thursday)
• Reading workshop on one regularly scheduled day (e.g. Friday) but with sharing and literary minilessons throughout the week
• A half hour's worth of independent reading as homework every night
• An hour's worth of writing as homework, done at the student's discretion between Thursday night and Monday morning

Option 2: When a required curriculum must be covered

• Writing workshop four days a week (e.g. Monday - Thursday) for one semester, with an hour's worth of writing as homework between Thursday and Monday morning
• The required curriculum four days a week for the alternate semester
• Reading workshop on one regular scheduled day (e.g. Friday) throughout the entire school year, and frequent sharing and literary minilessons
• A half hour's worth of independent reading as homework every night.

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Perhaps the best advice I've found regarding workshop structure is find the balance that works for YOU. None of the reading and writing gurus are advising teachers to adopt their workshop approach without a few tweaks. I have found that my workshop is a compilation of borrowed ideas. I take a few here and a few there and make something of my own that works for my classroom, my kids, and me. 

Mosaic of Thought Reflections

   I haven't yet finished reading Mosaic of Thought, but I have stopped numerous times and asked myself this question: "How is it that I'm  just reading this book after teaching ELA for seven years?" Truly, I can't believe that this was not a required text at some point in my formal schooling because it's that missing piece of the puzzle that allows everything else to fall into place.

     I know that teaching students metacognition is important, and I can list the seven strategies that help students develop metacognition, but this book makes everything more clear. If you're a teacher asking why should I teach metacognition or how should I teach it, then this book is a must-buy.
     After recently finishing Donalyn Miller's The Book Whisperer and Reading in the Wild, one might think that all you need to do as a reading teacher is pile good books into your students' arms and check in once in a while. Don't get me wrong, this is an essential first step. Yet, more is needed: fluency instruction, word analysis instruction, text structure instruction, vocabulary instruction, and comprehension strategy instruction. Mosaic of Thought is a tome of wisdom about comprehension strategy instruction.
    Believe me, I wish teaching reading comprehension was an easy gig. It's reassuring to read Mosaic of Thought and realize that many teachers before me have asked how to provide focused instruction that improves comprehension.
     Insightful teachers collaborated decades ago and, through trial and error, developed the following metacognition strategies. Keene and Zimmerman provide a suggested sequence for this strategy instruction, which I appreciate because I have grappled with the order of my instruction.

          Primary: monitoring, using background knowledge, questioning, creating mental images,
          inferring, determining importance, synthesizing

          Intermediate: monitoring, using background knowledge, inferring, determining importance,
         synthesizing, questioning, creating mental images (34)

     Other practical advice from the first section of the book include a reminder that the strategies themselves are not a means for differentiation but rather the text in which we ask students to apply the strategies allows for differentiation. One strategy is not harder than another.
     In addition, Keene and Zimmerman suggest teaching one strategy at a time for a prolonged period. Their classroom examples show how focus on a specific strategy can extend for 4 weeks - or even longer depending on students' needs. Keene and Zimmerman encourage teachers to teach the strategies one at a time but also to constantly loop the strategies into instruction so that by the end of the school year, the students are not solely practicing the most recent strategy but are using all seven strategies independently and at their own discretion. "Ultimately, the goal is to be able to use all the strategies in an integrated manner... depending on the demands of the text" (36).
     Keene and Zimmerman also state that "comprehension strategy study needs to be built on a gradual release of responsibility from teacher to student" (11). In other words, a lot of modeling and demonstrating is necessary before students can be expected to apply the strategy independently. The "I Do, We Do, You Do" method could easily dupe newbies into thinking that instruction follows these three neat and tidy steps. However, "I Do" gets repeated several times. And "We Do" gets repeated several times in different ways. Then we might loop back to "I Do" to address some student misconceptions... You get the idea.
     A natural question is how do you model a reading strategy. The answer is the Think-Aloud (serious voice). Initially, I remember thinking, "No way am I going to read aloud - and think aloud - to my high school students." Yet, this is the bread-and-butter of strategy instruction. It may sound elementary  but actually thinking aloud effectively requires preparation. I've stumbled my way through some poorly planned Think Aloud minilessons. The first step is to find engaging text challenging to the group of kids for whom you are modeling. This is where I have bumbled before because I've used a picture book that caused my 8th graders to roll their eyes. The second step is to identify places in the text where the reader could apply the strategy in a deep and meaningful way. This is where I've bumbled also.
     I was under the impression for the longest time that these modeling sessions needed to be authentic. Teachers needed to model what we ask our kids to do, which is pick up a book and apply the strategy on the fly. Here's the problem. Learning is messy. I don't have time to ramble during a five-minute minilesson. So even though it feels a little like cheating, figure out what you're going to think-aloud before you have your kids quietly listening to your every word.