The pink hearts and red candy boxes are everywhere in stores.  Flowers, candy, stuffed animals: they all serve as concrete representations of love.  I wonder, what symbols would we use for our love of books?  How could we surround our students with reminders of the importance of books and reading in their lives?

The most powerful image we can provide our students is ourselves as a model of reading.  How often do students see you engaged in a text?  Do they see you reading books or listening to an audiobook or reading a book on your e-reader?  I would often be sitting at my desk with a book open as students came into class.  I would purposefully select books whose titles might engage even reluctant readers:  WHEN DAD KILLED MOM, THE EARTH MY BUTT AND OTHER BIG ROUND THINGS, WHY WE BROKE UP, UNDER A METH MOON.  If I were listening to an audiobook, I would ensure it was an intense passage such as when the main characters of Kenneth Oppel’s THIS DARK ENDEAVOR are defending themselves against the barbed teeth of the coelacanth fish or one of the battle scenes from THE ASK AND THE ANSWER by Patrick Ness or perhaps the chapter from Jack Gantos’  DEAD END IN NORVELT when young Jack believes his neighbor is boiling the skin from her hands (trust me, this scene is actually hysterically funny).  If I am reading electronically, I always make certain that a copy of the actual book is displayed so students can see what I am reading.  Two of my colleagues have clear folders on their door with book covers from the books they are reading with their eyes and reading with their ears. John Schu, an elementary librarian in Illinois, surrounds his library with covers of the books he reads (he read 2011 last year).

So, students need to see us reading.  Preferably, the books they “catch” us reading should be books appropriate for their pleasure reading as well.  Students are more likely to come to us for book suggestions if they know we are familiar with contemporary books.  Surrounding them, then, with children’s and YA books, fiction and nonfiction, is also critical.  Walk into Donalyn Miller’s classroom (she is THE BOOK WHISPERER) and you cannot help but know how important books are to Donalyn.  Tub after tub, shelf after shelf, her books number in the thousands.  Is it any surprise that her students read dozens of books for pleasure each school year?  Classroom libraries are another essential way to surround students with concrete reminders about books and reading  (this does not mean that your students never visit the school library, though). Classroom libraries also eliminate the excuse of “I left my book at home or in my locker” as there are always some books they can pick up in its stead.

Finally, we need to talk about our reading, share it with others.  Now that my classroom is often online, I use a blog to let students know what I am reading right now. Other educators do the same.  Explore the blogs of  Kate Messner, educator and author (http://kmessner.livejojurnal.com) or  John Schu, librarian (www.mrschureads.blogspot.com) or the hundreds of others out there who blog about books and reading.   Get the word out: you are a reader.  You want to share books with others.  You love reading.

He just published an article in the Colorado Reading Council Journal, where he writes that ”new skills are needed in the 21st century, but few students will succeed if they don’t master letters—reading, writing, and speaking them. Of those three, speaking has become far more important as technology has advanced. If you ask people what skills they consider to be “cutting edge,” it is unlikely anyone would mention speaking skills. Yet in the new decade and beyond, a seemingly retro skill like verbal communication actually is cutting edge and is becoming more crucial to success.”

Read the full article here, and then check out two other pieces by Erik in AMLE’s e-newsletter and in the CATE journal.

Gardening rather than agriculture is the analogy for education.

For many years, teachers have criticized education research for not being relevant to their needs, or for being written in a way that fails to connect with classroom practice. Teacher research—an extension of everyday teacher inquiry and reflective practice—starts with a pressing question or problem, and the solution can produce immediate benefits in the classroom.

Thoroughly revised and expanded, the second edition of Living the Questions takes you step-by-step through designing and implementing research projects that inform instruction. Presenting a variety of rich examples of real projects from teachers across the country, Ruth Shagoury and Brenda Power help you hone your inquiry skills and better understand your students, while developing your own community of researchers.

The new edition incorporates new technologies for conducting research, analysis, and sharing/networking; offers more short examples from a greater diversity of teacher-researchers; and provides many more research designs.

Living the Questions will inspire you to take the leap into a rewarding and fulfilling process of discovery. Preview the entire text online!

I See What You Mean: Visual Literacy K-8 (Second Edition)
Steve Moline
$25.00
Now available!

What Are you Thinking? Conferring in Reader’s Workshop (DVD)
Patrick Allen
$295.00
Now available!

What Every Middle School Teacher Needs to Know About Reading Tests (From Someone Who Has Written Them)
Charles Fuhrken
$24.00
Now available!

Living the Questions: A Guide for Teacher-Researchers (Second Edition)
Ruth Shagoury and Brenda Miller Power
$28.50
Now available!

Small Steps, Big Changes: Eight Essential Practices for Transforming Schools Through Mathematics
Chris Confer and Marco Ramirez
$21.00
Available in March

Opening Minds: Using Language to Change Lives
Peter Johnston
$14.00
Now available!

Beyond the Five-Paragraph Essay
Kimberly Hill Campbell and Kristi Latimer
$22.50
Available in April

How Can I Support You? Strategies for Effective Writing Conferences (DVD)
Mark Overmeyer
$99.00
Available in February

Setting up a website and blog was something we have wanted to do for a long time. We have met so many wonderful teachers in the past few years that have come to our conference presentations or workshops in schools and who asked for ways to keep in touch with us. So, with a little help from colleague Kate Tiedeken, we have taken the dive into technology.

At the heart of Mentor Texts with Lynne and Rose (www.mentortextswithlynneandrose.com) is our blog. Each of us has a separate blog space where we can share our thinking on a variety of topics and let readers in on our current personal and professional experiences. We hope this space will help us dialogue with teachers to share ideas and reflections.

Two of the most popular features of our books, the Your Turn lessons and the Treasure Chest of Books, are also a part of our site. In Books Too Good to Miss we will be reviewing new books we come across and discussing how they might be used for writing or reading lessons. Of course, new books (and even some old ones we look at with new eyes) lead to new writing lessons that we will share with our readers as well. From time to time we will also review professional books on the teaching of writing or reading.

From time to time we will also give readers a glimpse into our writing notebooks – memories that are sparked, writing we are trying out, thinking we are engaging in or reflecting on.  Hopefully, our writing will spark an idea or thought that our readers can write from or try out themselves.

We hope you will visit our site to gain practical tips for writing workshop and be encouraged to write in your own notebooks. Teachers of writers are teachers who write. Please join us in our conversations!

A child asks a question. Do we answer it? If so, how? How long do we wait before we answer it? If not, what do we say? A child successfully accomplishes something—or fails to. We have another opportunity to say something, but what? My intention with this book is to offer a basis for choosing more productive talk—how to make the most of those opportunities children offer us.

Expanding on the ideas in his groundbreaking book Choice Words, Peter Johnston explores the lasting impact that subtle differences in teacher language can have on children and their view of the world in his new book, Opening Minds. You’ll discover how your words can:

• encourage students to view their abilities and traits as dynamic and malleable rather than hopelessly fixed;
• portray change, mistakes, uncertainty, and disagreement as a normal part of learning and accomplishment;
• invite conversations that are focused on problem-solving and learning processes;
• create a classroom culture of feedback that avoids the pitfalls of personal praise and judgment;
• encourage classroom dialogue and collaborative inquiry through engaging questions;
• enhance social imagination and moral development.

Filled with concrete examples, Opening Minds will change the way you think about talk in your classroom and guide you toward more effective interactions with students. It’s available now, and you can preview the entire book online.

- If you are an EdWeek Book Club member, you probably already received information about the upcoming book club discussion of Kelly Gallagher’s new title, Write Like This. Here is some information about the book and details of the discussion. It’s not too late to sign up!

- Are you a book nerd? It’s OK! We all are! So check out this new blog started by Donalyn Miller, book whisperer extraordinaire, along with teachers Colby Sharp and Cindy Minnich. But the blog includes contributions from many, many like-minded readers, teachers, writers — all book nerds, just like you!

- If you have a bit of a notebook obsession — collecting them, writing in them, smelling their pages — head over to Ruth Ayres’ blog Ruth Ayres Writes where you can watch a fun video she put together of all of her notebooks. (Ruth is the coauthor of Day by Day.) What does your notebook look like? Did you start a new one with the new year?

In his new book, What Every Middle School Teacher Needs to Know About Reading Tests, Charles Fuhrken shares his behind-the-scenes insights as a test writer, demystifying tests and saving you valuable time.

Following the same format as his previous book, What Every Elementary Teacher Needs to Know About Reading Tests, Charles provides a host of strategies and activities for mastering test items across all of the commonly assessed reading standards. He demonstrates how students can learn the language of tests and apply their knowledge on test day.

This is a resource that you’ll turn to again and again as you integrate test prep into everyday reading work, enhancing your teaching of vocabulary development, literary techniques, interpretation, comprehension, and more. It’s available now, and you can preview the whole book online.

So tell us, what is your new year’s resolution when it comes to reading and writing?

New Year,  New Goals

I am a list maker.  There is something satisfying about making that list and then checking items off as they are completed.  Of course, no list is ever complete; it simply morphs into a new list.  As the new year opens, my first list centers on some New Year’s Resolutions.  My professional goals are simple and to the point.  I resolve to read more and to write more.  Now, for the tough part:  how to accomplish these goals?

Reading More

1. Set aside the time: As I wait for the coffee to finish brewing in the morning, I sit down with a book. Generally, I can read a chapter before coffee is ready. Sometimes I manage a few more pages as I sip that first cup. In fifteen minutes a day, a person can read an average of more than a million words a year or about 20 books.  If you are a commuter, add audiobooks to your drive time.  Make sure your devices have books loaded for that time when you are kept waiting somewhere.
2. Join a reading community: Paul W. Hankins, a high school English teacher in Indiana formed a Facebook group a couple of years ago.  Those of us who joined the community pledged to read 100 books that year.  We posted our progress monthly. This was sort of like a support group for us all.  It kept us on track. So, gather a few colleagues around you who will join in your resolution to read more.
3. Make a realistic goal: My personal reading goal each year is to read one more book than I read the year before.  So, if you have been dormant for a while, start small.  If 100 books seems daunting, settle on a number that is realistic for you and your situation.
4. Monitor your progress: Goodreads can help you monitor your progress once your goal is set.  Once you set up an account, you can enter your reading goal and Goodreads will monitor your progress for you.  Basically, I keep an open  file on my desktop each month where I enter the titles of the books I have read.
5. Save for that rainy day:  I love a rainy weekend.  It provides just the excuse I need to sit and curl up with some books.  I have a separate TBR (to be read) stack for those days: books that I want to read in one huge gulp instead of tiny sips.  Sometimes I have a big stack of picture books for those rainy days.  At an average of 32 pages per book, I can knock out quite a few picture books on a dreary weekend.  And I have found there are many picture books that work across the grade levels.

Where does the writing come in?  I write daily on my blog. Most of the time I write about the books I am reading.  However, from time to time another topic presents itself.  My blog is informal and personal.  It is also, though, a place to explore ideas and issues that might later evolve into longer pieces of writing.  You might opt for a notebook.  Even annotating a text by jotting notes and comments in the margins (or using these features with an e-reader) is writing.  Readers and writers do not operate in a vacuum; they are part of a larger community.  I hope you will join me this new year as I resolve once more to be active in my development as a reader and a writer.