What Are You Reading: February 2016

We believe it is important for educators to be readers and writers, so every month we take a day to report out on what we're reading. Join in by sharing your current reading list in the comments.

Maggie recently finished Bluefish by Pat Schmatz. She writes, "Meet Travis and Velveeta: two middle students who may seem different on the surface, but who both carry secrets that lead them to develop an unexpected friendship. This is a sweet story of friendship and overcoming adversity. Loved it."

Diane is reading Literacy Assessment and Intervention for Classroom Teachers by Beverly DeVries. Her school is using it as a book study.

Maggie explains, "When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead is a bit of a mystery and is written in short, easy to read chapters that hook you and make you want to keep going... Sixth grader Miranda lives in New York City and has begun receiving notes that contain information about the future that no one else should know. I'm very curious to see how this book turns out."

Sharon is reading Visible Learning for Teachers - Maximizing Impact on Learning by John Hattie. She says, "Just when I thought I knew what contributed to effective teaching , I read Hattie's ranked list of influences on achievement.  Lots of ah, ha moments that are still leading me to dig deeper."

Jaimie is reading Writers ARE Readers: Flipping Reading Instruction into Writing Opportunities By Lester Laminack and Reba M. Wadsworth. She says, "I just got this book, but haven't started it yet and am super excited about it. I love that reading and writing are seen as companions, not separate entities!"

Maggie is currently reading Stubby the War Dog and Sergeant Stubby by Ann Bausum. Maggie explains, "Ann Bausum will be a guest author in our middle school in early March so I'm preparing myself and my students by exposing us to her nonfiction books! I'm currently reading Stubby the War Dog with my students and am reading Sergeant Stubby (the adult version) on my own. These books tell the engaging, real-life story of a terrier whose brave deeds made him an animal hero during World War I."

Carrie just finished The Last Time We Say Goodbye by Cynthia Hand. Carrie writes, "The story tells about a teenage girl dealing with the suicide of her brother. I was originally interested in the book when I read a note by the author explaining that her own brother had taken his life and this story was her way of dealing with the grief. While the book is a work of fiction, the message is both timely and relevant."

Andrea is reading Integrating Differentiated Instruction and Understanding by Design by Tomlinson and McTighe. She explains, "I am leading a workshop for district participants on Backwards Design for teachers to review a unit and make sure they have the necessary components for planning, assessing and providing feedback."

Lisa writes, "Because of my promise to myself that I would write more frequently, I picked up a book my friend Callie gave to me last spring - Old Friend from Far Away: The Practice of Writing Memoir by Natalie Goldberg. The book is a series of exercises focused on simply tuning the reader into remembering, because memoir requires the memories we don't give ourselves time to recall"

Diane's students are influencing what she reads. Diane explains, "My students are pushing me to try different things.  I read Island of the Blue Dolphins many, many years ago!  One of my students claimed that she just finished reading Zia by Scott O Dell and that it was better than Island of the Blue Dolphins. I had never read it. I would have to agree. It was very good.  Sometimes we need to get our of our comfort zone."
Andrea is also reading Essential Questions by McTighe and Wiggins in preparation for a district-wide workshop on Backwards Design.
Julie is reading Engaging Students with Poverty in Mind by Eric Jensen. She says, "This book digs into engagement as the key factor in the academic success of economically disadvantaged students. I am interested in pursuing this concept as it relates specifically to English Language Arts instruction."

Heather has read two wonderful young adult books that have were immediately checked out from her classroom library- A Night Divided (during the rise of the Berlin Wall) and Fish in a Tree (about a girl who struggles with reading).  She is currently reading a The Drop by Jeff Ross with a student.  This book is in the Orca Sports series and is about Alex who wants to become part of the Backcountry Patrol- a snowboarding patrol group.  Right now we are noticing as we read that they are being tested to see if they could make it as a patrol, and in the midst of their testing a member of their group goes missing.  

Barb finished Written in the Stars. This young adult novel tells the story of a Pakistani-American teen placed into an arranged marriage. It was a great opportunity to consider DPI's updated text complexity resources, which include a representation and diversity component.

Mindset on My Mind - Chapter 4 Disco

Barb contributed this post. Click here to read more of Barb's thinking about mindset.

Chapter 4 - "Sports: The Mindset of a Champion" - gives examples of athletes with and without growth mindset.

Confession: I skipped this chapter the first time I read Mindset. Sports, athletics, and fitness are not things I feel confident about; they're not areas where I have much background knowledge. Examples from these areas don't resonate with me. (See my previous post about teaching aerobics.)

I read the chapter this time, though, and here's why. During a recent presentation about mindset (see "The Power of Yet: Improving Literacy Learning through Growth Mindset" for the slides), participants started talking about whether an individual is all fixed or all growth mindset. Lots of examples were shared, including mine.

I have a very, very fixed mindset about sports. I don't do them. I don't watch them. I actively avoid them. And, I'm starting to see that it's because of my fixed mindset about sports. I've never experienced any sports-related success. In fact, I sometimes think my family goes out of their way to tease me about not being athletic. I've never been on or coached any type of sports team. I don't have any favorite sports teams and don't own even a single piece of clothing with a team logo.

Actually reading - instead of skipping - this chapter is about the only step I'm willing to take in moving towards a having a growth mindset related to sports, but I have to start somewhere, right?

Updated to add:

I signed up for a yoga class for beginners. Baby steps, friends.

Walking Meetings: Advantages of Taking that Meeting Outside for a Walk

Diane Jenquin contributed this post. Click here for more of Diane's thinking.

In this busy, hectic world we live in it is hard to fit in another meeting, let alone taking time to get that much needed brain break in. In the school district I am in right now we have turned to implementing walking meetings on our WOW days (Work-Out Wednesday) It is amazing how we not only get the exercise but mix a little socialization and brainstorming into the equation.  When the walk is done, so is our meeting.  It helps us stay on track and straight to the point of the meeting.

Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerman, Ariannah Huffington,and President Barack Obama are known for holding walking meetings.  Why you might ask? Research coming out of Stanford found that walking boosts creative inspiration (Wong, 2014). Other companies have reported that meetings with movement create a better working atmosphere along with getting away from the office.  

Some of the things to consider when holding a walking meeting are limiting the size of the group because your team might have trouble hearing others, having a basic route planned out, and limiting the use of smart phones. This allows you to keep focused, be efficient, and clear your head.

Carrying this over into my life outside of school has become a routine where instead of talking on the phone with some of my professional networks, we call and say, "Let’s go for a walk." This has pushed us to get out there and together solved all the problems of the world.

Here are some resources if you would like more information.

• "Got a Meeting? Take a Walk" (a TED talk from Nilofer Merchant)
• "Why Walking Meetings can be Better than Sitting Meetings" (an article from HuffPost Business)
• "Guide to Walking Meetings" (from Feet First)
• "Why Everyone from Beethoven, Goethe, Dickens, Darwin to Steve Jobs Took Long Walks and Why You Should Too" (from Andrew Tate)

Time in the Classroom: Multiple Benefits

Heather Zimmerman contributed this post. Click here for more of Heather's thinking.

I am sure we all know the overwhelming feeling of trying to balance the many directions we are pulled in as reading specialists.  Last year was the first year I was teaching reading intervention courses and also coaching.  That dreaded feeling of not doing either role justice was common for me last year.  This year though I decided to tackle that feeling with a coaching game plan.

Last school year my district implemented the Lucy Calkins’ Units of Study for Writing into middle school classrooms.  The summer before the roll-out, I worked with a small group of 8th grade teachers on various assigned tasks to prepare for the roll-out.  This helped me get a better idea of the Calkins’ curriculum, but throughout the year I started to feel as if my depth of knowledge was lacking.  This was the first curriculum roll-out I was not a part of as a teacher.  Therefore, I did not feel like I knew the Calkins’ curriculum as well as I knew the rest of our curriculum

I made a decision that this year I was going to focus on the Units of Study with the teachers. Due to schedule conflicts, my focus this year is 7th and 8th grade, and next year I will focus on 6th grade.  I felt this made sense for a few reasons, but one primary reason was that the 6th grade teachers have three literacy teachers at their level.  Therefore, they  have a built-in team of support.  The 7th and 8th grade teachers on their own islands in my school. My plan for supporting teachers with the Calkins’ curriculum was to be in their classrooms as they were teaching the units.  I planned as best as I could to go into hours where I had intervention students, so I could also support them too.  I told the teachers I wanted to learn more about the Calkins’ units, so I could better support them too.  I let them know I would be game to co-teach or work with small groups of students.  This experience has helped me as an interventionist and as a coach.  

As an interventionist, I have been better able to help my students when they have questions on assignments even when they are not in their literacy classroom.  There has been times when I have taken 5-10 minutes to talk students through a lesson from Calkins’ or helped the student through a conference during intervention.  I also have been able to support them inside the literacy classroom.

The other benefit, which is the original benefit I was expecting, I was knowing the curriculum better so I could better help support my literacy teachers.  I feel our collaboration time is much better used when I am not paging through the curriculum book or having them give me information on what the unit is about.  We have been able to talk through questions together and brainstorm ideas.

I am so happy I was able to connect with my teachers during this first unit of Calkins.  The time commitment was so well worth it. I look forward to working with them using the same plan for unit two.  

Coaching with Kindness when the Truth Might Sting

Lisa Weiss contributed today's post. Click here for Lisa's previous post about coaching with kindness. Click here for all of Lisa's posts.

Last month, as I was writing my specific example about the literacy coach who asked me if I had any suggestions for how she might improve her instruction, a little voice in my head was saying: It’s easy to coach from a place of kindness when you are working with a reflective teacher who seeks honest feedback...

I get that, and although that wasn’t the point of the last blog, it brings up important thinking about honest feedback as an act of kindness, when courageous conversations become necessary. I’ve been lucky enough to have a smattering of colleagues in my life who I consider masters of brave conversations. Because of my professional relationships with these leaders, I’ve witnessed some of these crucial conversations. I share this fact because, even though I have read numerous texts on how to have critical conversations, I was not prepared to have them; it was through watching my colleagues, and being able to ask them questions (about things they did that terrified me) that set me up to use what I knew about facilitating uncomfortable conversations. Through watching these two women, I began to visualize myself emulating  those same sorts of conversations when the time came.

I have had the opportunity to provide feedback to coaches who were not meeting the standards for coaching, and/or for providing intervention to students. What I learned from each of those situations is that, even when I heard or saw things that befuddled me, I had the ability to provide honest feedback with kindness. There were two permeating questions when I saw or heard things I knew I’d need to address:

1) What is the standard or expectation?  

2) What exactly did I see and/or hear? Just the facts.

When there are clear standards set, as we have for our intervention courses, giving difficult feedback becomes much easier. I can talk from what I expected to see versus what I actually saw. I’m thinking about a teacher who I once observed teaching an intervention course. This teacher reported that she planned for the Comprehension Focus Group using a GANAG format for daily lesson planning. As I observed the lesson, I filled in a self-made GANAG, writing what I witnessed, so during the debrief I could talk through the lesson in the format this coach knew well.

Full disclosure: I had difficulty filling in the GANAG for a variety of reasons. The goal was unclear, because there were five shared at different times through the lesson. The directions for each task were unclear, and there wasn’t any scaffolding as students attempted to work. As I considered my words to this teacher in our debrief, I thought my most effective move was to ask her to take a moment and GANAG the lesson she just taught. My purpose in doing that was to have her think through what she just did (what I witnessed), and then compare our GANAGs.

It was fascinating, and yet, not difficult to hold this conversation. It was easy to have her tell me about her goal, and then show her that I had five goals recorded; additionally I could share that all five seemed to be of equal importance so I felt confused when it came time for students to independently apply their learning. We talked about each goal I heard her share. We talked about how that impacted students when they were given time to apply the lesson. We talked about what the goal for tomorrow would be based on what happened today. I was the one who had to name the problems when our GANAGs were a mismatch, but because we both knew the expectations of a GANAG’d CFG lesson, we were able to address the problem areas, so I could coach her through the planning for the following day.

If given the choice, I’d avoid these types of conversations altogether, but our purpose is far too great. I owe it to the students, and to this teacher to provide the honest feedback--to provide it kindly, and to gently coach back into the tracks by focusing on the expectations of the lesson, what happened today, and what needs to happen tomorrow and beyond. I think kindness shines in this uncomfortable interaction through the coaching that happens on the spot to plan for the next day, and through the coaching that occurs to keep the teacher on track in the future weeks/months. A coach who only gives the honest feedback is different from the coach who invests the time to stick with the teacher to support her attempts to refocus her lessons.  If I am willing to give the honest feedback, the kindest move I can play afterward is partnering with the teacher, investing time to build efficacy, to put her back in a position to shine.

I will admit that this was a best case scenario; this is what happens when the teacher recognizes the mismatches in expectations, and chooses to look at herself honestly, and is willing to take the feedback. Next month I will write about what I’ve learned from the other side of courageous conversations--what has happened when the teacher gets defensive, is not willing to acknowledge mismatches in expectations, and has justification for all actions and thinking.

Aligning Our Goals

Andrea Reichenberger contributed today's thinking. Click here for more of Andrea's posts.

One of the things I love most about my new school district is the work that I do with my new colleagues.  Discussions are a lot easier when we are all on the same page, have a similar mindset, and are working toward the same goal.  We are also comfortable enough to challenge each other’s thinking in a professional manner that won’t impede our work. As is the goal of any district, ours is to improve our overall instructional practices. My two closest partners in crime are the Director of Curriculum and Instruction and the District Technology Coordinator.  

District Technology Coordinator? Why would I work so closely with the technology department? If departments such as ours don’t work toward the same goals, our work and initiatives become a barrier to improving instruction. It is imperative that technology coaches and coordinators work closely with our instructional coaches and continue an open dialogue about best practices. We are always talking about grade level standards, literacy, math, assessment and unit design. One of our technology integration coaches has been working to model lesson design with the ELA standards in mind and then incorporating technology to promote authentic assessment and reflection through an online portfolio!

We all need to understand sound instructional practices, so we can use technology to support learning and instruction. Technology isn’t meant as a substitute or a replacement for teaching and learning. The ISTE professional standards for teachers related to integrating technology into the curriculum remind us that it should facilitate and inspire student learning, allow us to design and develop digital-age learning experiments and assessments, promote digital citizenship and responsibility and allow us to engage in professional growth and leadership. Recently, our technology department released a district online newsletter/magazine and it contains questions that challenge teachers to think about why they are using technology. One of my favorites is:

If your students can accomplish mastery of the content using the 4 C’s (Communication, Collaboration, Critical Thinking and Creativity) without  technology, then why are we using technology?

This is an important question to reflect on as we continue to encourage incorporating technology to create rich, collaborative learning environments that foster group inquiry, research investigations, critical thinking and problem solving. This is what we try to accomplish and encourage with our instruction in all areas--especially literacy.

I See You, I Hear You (Part 1): Building Relationships with Students

Meghan Retallick contributed this post. Click here for more of Meghan's thinking.

Between my reading for my graduate courses, the professional development sessions I’ve attended, and the online reading I’ve stumbled upon (See: See Each Other:  A New Year’s Resolution for 2015), one big idea has taken up space in my brain this month:  How do we show others that we see and hear them?  For this month, I’d like to reflect on how this happens when we first build relationships with students.  I’ll be continuing this idea in future blog posts :)

First, I’ve realized that all we really want, whether we are a teacher, student, coach, child, parent, spouse, administrator, etc., is to feel that we are seen and heard.  This does not mean that others always do as we ask or want, but that our actions and words are acknowledged and considered.

So, how do we show students that we see and hear them the very first time we meet them?  An interesting experience inspired by professional development with Laura Gleisner, an ICF certified life and leadership coach, helped give me some insight into this.  In her session, she used an activity to promote positive culture.  We all shared our 180 Song--a song that when you hear it, immediately elevates your mood, turning your outlook around 180 degrees.  Sharing the songs in small groups served two purposes:  1)  The mood of the room immediately lifted as people shared their songs.  2)  We were able to gain some insight into individual’s personalities, thus seeing and hearing a piece of them, when learning their 180 Song.

Shortly after this, a colleague expressed interest for my support within his ninth grade Global Studies class.  We came up with a plan to support readers in his neediest class period that would have me co-teaching 1-2 times a week.  The first step in this process would be establishing a relationship with these students, many of whom don’t see themselves as readers.  I knew that before I could have open conversations with them around their reading behaviors, I needed them to see me as a regular part of the classroom, even though I’m not there daily.  We were a few weeks into the school year and this class had already established a culture.  What I noticed in my first few minutes of this class was, first, even though many students seemed disengaged from the learning process, they loved and respected their teacher.  Second, when I was introduced as a reading specialist/literacy coach, many openly expressed their dislike for reading, i.e., there was a lot eye rolling going down.  

[Side Note:  Something important to know about me is that I love eye rolling!  Maybe this is why teaching eighth grade is my favorite?  I see an eye roll as a challenge--a challenge for me to figure out what will engage the person rolling their eyes at me, a challenge to build a trusting relationship with someone who has different viewpoints from my own, a challenge to push us to grow in our learning together.  My most common response when seeing someone roll their eyes at me is some version of the following statement (tailored to my audience):  “I’m sensing some discomfort.  Please be open with me about how you are feeling.  I want to know your true thoughts on this because then we can figure out a way to approach the situation together and in a way that makes us both feel comfortable.”]

So, back to the ninth grade class groaning and rolling their eyes at me…

After explaining my role, I made clear that the purpose for my visit today was to get to know them.   All they had to do was think of their 180 Song and I would be checking in with them during the class period about it.  I’m sure I made a fabulous impression on them when I shared my current 180 Song--”Bad Blood” by Taylor Swift.  I then spent the whole class period walking around the room, stopping by students to meet them, learn their name, and ask them the title and artist of their 180 Song.  I then wrote it down in my notebook.  That was it.  No hard questions about their reading habits, likes and dislikes, etc., just their name and 180 Song.  The conversations all were short, simple, and went well--except one.  When I met Cole (name changed), he was talking with his neighbor when he was supposed to be reading, he didn’t have his materials with him, and he answered my questions with questions while giggling, trying to impress the girl near him.  The conversation was pretty much a wash, but after repeating myself calmly a number of times, I got his 180 Song and name out of him.  I could have gone into a lecture on what he was supposed to be doing; I could have asked him to treat me with respect; I could have addressed the girl he was giggling with, but I didn’t.  I wrote down his name and the song and thanked him, knowing a little more about Cole than just those two things.  At the end of the class period, I announced to the whole group that my goal was to listen to each one of their songs by the next time I was in class.  This statement was also met with a lot of groaning and eye rolling.

So then, I listened to the songs, paying special attention to Cole’s song.  It was a challenging song to listen to, and very different from my musical tastes, but I worked really hard to figure out one positive thing to say about it in case the time came to share it with Cole.

A week flew by and I found myself back in Cole’s class.  The goal for my work today was to help the students pick independent reading books.  (You might be asking yourself, “Independent reading books in Global Studies class?”  More about the exciting things our Global Studies teachers are doing in future posts!)  We were meeting in the library, and I was going to support them in their book selections, reading along with them for the class period.  Before we dispersed to find books, I told everyone that I listened to their songs.  Cole immediately perked up in his seat, and stated, “Even mine?!  What did you think?”  Thankfully prepared, I answered, “Yes, I did!  At first it was really mellow and then it got really intense.  That is quite a song!”  A look of awe came over Cole’s face that I can’t explain.  I, meanwhile, was doing a mental fist pump.

About twenty minutes later, as I chatted with a group of girls about their book selections, I felt a presence behind me.  I turned around and came face to face with Cole.  I looked over his shoulder and saw a group of his friends goofing off in the corner of the library, but then asked him if I could help him with something.  He mumbled that he needed a book.  I asked him about his reading interests and if he was looking for longer or shorter texts, and he mumbled back that shorter would be better, never making eye contact (can those of you familiar with adolescents picture this?!).  I escorted Cole over to the magazines as I thought that this would be a good type of text to start with.  This also helped him get out of the direct eyesight of his friends (still goofing off in the corner).  Once we got to the magazines, I asked him about his hobbies and the floodgates opened.  In the next five minutes I learned that Cole lives with his dad on acreage in the country, loves hunting and dirt biking, struggles with staying focused while reading, gets frustrated in school, misses his mom, and is fairly new to the area.  Cole walked away with a dirt bike racing magazine and settled in a corner away from his friends to read.  I, meanwhile, was mentally dropping the mike and walking off stage.  Just kidding, I was in shock at what had just happened!

Did I cast some magical spell over Cole that made him want to spent the class period engaged in reading?  I literally knew the kid for five minutes and he did today exactly what we expected and wanted after being the most challenging student last week.  How could this be?

My theory is this:  By listening to Cole’s 180 Song, I saw and heard him.  The relationship of trust began to build on something that simple.  I took three minutes out of my day and listened to a song that hurt my ears, trying to find something positive to let Cole know that I found value in his song choice.  For three minutes, I saw and heard him loud and clear.  And, to be honest, what I learned from those songs about all the students helped me understand them more deeply than I expected.  It has become a starting point of conversation many times as I continue to work in the classroom.

I wish I could tell you how Cole is doing now, but he moved away two weeks after this conversation.  Would he have continued this trend if he had stayed?  Would our relationship have grown to support deeper conversations around his challenges with school?  I don’t know, but I’d like to hope that it would have.  I hope wherever he is, the idea of a 180 Song has stuck with him.

And, I hope the idea of asking people about their 180 Song sticks with you!  Who knew such a simple question could be a foundation for great relationships?  Thanks again for this golden nugget, Laura!

So, I leave you with two final questions:

• What is your 180 song?
• How do you show students you see and hear them when first building a relationship?

P.S. - My current 180 Song is “Alive” by Sia.  When things are so challenging, it is so important to remember that “I’m still breathing...I’m alive.”  It is dance party time whenever I hear this song!