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.