School districts are critical partners for Children’s Literacy Initiative, as demonstrated in the successful launch of our Investing in Innovation (i3) Scale-up project in four urban school districts, including Broward County Public Schools (BCPS) in Florida, during the 2016-2017 school year. BCPS Superintendent of Schools Robert W. Runcie, and district leaders, quickly embraced our i3 project in seven district schools, …
We spoke with Leah Eller, a Kindergarten teacher at Green Valley Elementary in Denver, CO about her experience with CLI and why our partnership with teachers is so important. How has Children’s Literacy Initiative training impacted your early literacy instruction? The training that I have received from Children’s Literacy Initiative has helped me really target the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) while …
When Books Change Lives
Ingrid is a proud 2nd grader who loves to read. When asked to name her favorite book, she will tell you that she has many, but her most favorite book right now is The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds. The Dot, part of the Children’s Literacy Initiative Spanish language book collection, is about a little girl who doesn’t believe that …
Names: The Foundation for Reading and Writing
Learning to read and write is a big task! Luckily, our children enter preschool and kindergarten already equipped with one of the most powerful teaching tools – their names! Children’s names are one the most important words in their lives. The first letters they learn are the letters in their names. Children’s phonological awareness of their names and their eagerness …
3 Books that Promote Positive Classroom Culture
Teachers often ask us to recommend books that promote a positive classroom culture. Below are some wonderful read alouds that can help children learn to take care of themselves, take care of others, and take care of their classroom. Children’s Literacy Initiative calls this the Power of Three. Take Care of Yourself Melena’s Jubilee by Zetta Elliott Melena wakes …
Don’t overlook this critical aspect of genre studies…
Pre-Writing, Drafting, Revising, Editing and Publishing. While these are the five steps most closely, and most generally associated with the writing process, we must not forget one critical aspect of genre studies, the “Immersion Phase”. It was early in my teaching career when I engaged in the planning of a genre study with my grade level counterparts. I was eager, …
How to Celebrate Student Writing with Publishing Parties
There Destiny stood, all of four feet tall, holding a single piece of paper tightly in her hands. She smiled proudly, anxiously awaiting her audience members’ attention. She gently brushed her freshly curled hair away from her face and carefully groomed the front of her dress as if to smooth away any lingering wrinkles. “Writers,” Mrs. Burns announced enthusiastically, “please …
Why Literature Circles are an Important Part of Student Learning & How to Implement Them
Here’s what students had to say about the literature circles in their classrooms: “I get to ask more questions and learn more by talking about the books with my friends. We help each other with new words, reading them and understanding them.” “During book clubs we talk to people and they can help you figure out questions or words. Book …
Books for National Women’s History Month
March is National Women’s History Month. What better way to celebrate the legacy of female resilience, ingenuity, and limitless possibilities than with rich, diverse, picture books? A good book has the power to shift our thinking and challenge preconceived notions. Intentional Read Alouds provide the opportunity for students to think about and discuss great books while exploring big ideas, themes, …
Supporting Our Newcomers with Literature
Stories of the journeys taken by refugees touch all of our lives. Perhaps we have neighbors, friends, or family who are refugees. Perhaps we have read about the global crisis in the news. Perhaps refugee children are new to our schools. The moment a newcomer walks into a classroom, the journey that student took to reach that doorway becomes a …