Helen S. Comba Language Arts Supervisor School District of the Chathams

 Read the article from Parade Magazine entitled back-page-who-runs-out-of-gas.html back-page-who-runs-out-of-gas.html  Go ahead and read – but also think about your own thinking. What do you do – when you read?

 Make predictions  Reread  Skimmed the article  Monitored your comprehension  Questioned the author  Made inferences  Made connections to the article

Good Readers 1. Understand that reading should make sense. 2. move beyond the literal decoding and to comprehending the global meanings of text. 3. Learn how to read using different strategies. Struggling Readers 1. Poor reader concentrate on decoding and often do not make meaning or expect texts to make sense. 2. Poor readers have a limited passive view of reading.  3. Have an impoverished idea of what real reading involves and a limited repertoire of strategies.

Balanced Literacy includes  Shared Reading (Big Books)  Guided Reading (Leveled Readers)  Independent Reading (trade books)

 Shared Reading- New strategies are introduced.  Guided Reading- Students are taught strategies that will help them to improve their reading skills and students apply what they have learned independently.  Independent Reading- Strategies are applied to a wide range of books.

Common Core State Standards require a balance between fiction and nonfiction in reading. Shared Reading and Guided Reading Good Habits Great Readers (Pearson) Independent Reading NEW! Classroom Libraries (Booksource)

 Encourage wide reading as part of classroom instruction  Encourage students to read new genres  Facilitate community building  Build stamina in reading  Develop lifelong reading habits

 Writing Workshop based on Teachers College Reading and Writing Project (Lucy Caulkins)  New!Units of Study boxes & Mentor Texts  A Curriculum Calendar for Writing Workshop for every grade level  A balance of writing narrative and expository writing  NEW! Persuasive Writing (Core Standards)