Latest Reading Posts from the Blog

4 Super Simple Ways to Effectively Use Anchor Charts to Teach Reading Skills
If you’re here, there’s about a 99.5% chance that you’ve used anchor charts in your classroom. Anchor Charts have had a revolution over the last

Using Task Cards to Boost Reading Comprehension
Raise your hand if you’ve ever heard a teacher say, “I need more for my students to do. We just never have enough to fill

Fun and Effective Nonfiction Text Feature Activities
“Nonfiction Text Features” at first glance may may not sound super exciting, but it’s such a fun reading concept to teach! It’s not a phrase

Choosing “Just Right” Books in Upper Elementary
The topic of “just right” books has become big in recent years. A quick search of Pinterest or Google will bring up a plethora of

The Best Way to Lead Reading Workshop’s Reading Conferences
One of the most challenging parts of the Reading Workshop model for most teachers is holding Reading Conferences. After all, leading a Reading Conference is

Do These Puzzle Pieces Fit? Using Text Evidence to Make Inferences
Making inferences is a super important skill for both 4th and 5th graders. Luckily, the process for making an inference is simple. Just take some

A Fresh Perspective on Theme: 5 Things Students Need to Know
Have you ever repeated a word so many times that it seems to lose all of its meaning? In reading instruction, “theme” can be one

Character Profiles: How to Inspire Readers to Connect Literature and Life
Some reading skills that we teach in elementary translate directly to real life, and vice versa….these are basically a two-for-one deal! Work on an important

What is Standards-Based Grading? Why is It So Hard? And How to Tackle It!
What is Standards-Based Grading, Why is It So Hard, and How to Tackle It! Standards-based grading’s advent came around in 2012, two years after the

Tracking Student Data: Why Measuring Student Reading Progress is Vital in Today’s Classroom
Over the last few years, education has adopted many new endeavors that rely on data to tailor the student learning experience. For example, your school

QAR: 4 Question and Answer Relationships to Help Students Clarify Text
QAR: 4 Question and Answer Relationships to Help Students Clarify Text Teachers like to keep things fresh! We want to hold our students’ attention and

Bringing Text Alive: How to Use Pictures and Videos to Deepen Understanding
Bringing Text Alive: How to Use Pictures or Videos to Deepen Understanding A striking image, a funny video, a fascinating picture of a faraway place…what