I’m excited to announce that I’ve developed and released my very first software application, Fluency Timer, available now in the new Mac App Store or via my own site at: http://www.fluencytimer.net. Fluency Timer is both a timer and a recorder that records students’ one minute fluency readings. Research has shown that having students listen to …
Category: Open Court Reading
Connect with Me Through Social Media
In addition to subscribing to this blog via RSS or e-mail, you can find almost daily quick tips and links by following mrneedleman on Twitter, multimedia files are posted to youtube where you can subscribe and visitors who have gotten through this blog via the Open Court Resources side of the site can become a fan of Open Court Resources …
Literature Circle Table Tents
Using literature circles is another way to increase student comprehension. Even teachers of prescribed reading series should incorporate additional authentic literature in their teaching. This literature may be related to curricular units and must be high interest and at an appropriate reading level of students. I adapted my reading comprehension posters into Literature Circle Table Tents …
Beginning of the Year Pre-Assessments
Here are a few tools to use when assessing students at the beginning of the year: The Basic Phonics Skills Test (BPST) This is helpful in identifying specific areas of phonics need (short vowels, long vowels, digraphs, etc.) San Diego Quick Assessment It’s also important to know students’ knowledge of sight words which is an …
Back to School Week: Resources
Here are some resources I’ve compiled to assist you in planning for your return to school: Need something to do? Want to get to know your students? Activities for the First Day of School Want to beef up on classroom management? Here’s everything you need from job charts to management systems: Classroom Management for Teachers …
For E-mail Subscribers
I am suspending e-mail delivery of the blog for the summer. As always, you can visit the blog directly by going to: http://www.creatinglifelonglearners.com E-mail delivery will resume in the fall.
Digital Literacy and Information
Here are some terrific finds for the end of the school year. 1. A fabulous listing of fake web sites, hoax photos, etc. The best being a site warning of the dangers of dihydrogen monoxide (also known as water). 2. Snag Films Can’t remember where I found this but you can watch documentaries on this …
An Ideal Language Arts Curriculum
Kevin Hodgson lays out what he considers to be an ideal language arts curriculum. Please read the entire post. However, the tenets he puts forth are: Writing to Learn Including listening and speaking (as well as reading and writing) A “Stakes Approach” (Moving from low-stakes like journal writing to high stakes like publishing and performance) …
It’s Not the Curriculum, It’s Us
Scott McLeod suggests that we might be the problem with education. Blaming the problem of low-level “kill and drill” education on the test is no excuse: Our prevalent instructional model that emphasizes low-level, decontextualized, factual recall was dominant long before ‘the tests.’ Our challenges of providing higher-order thinking experiences, opportunities for authentic collaboration, and real-world …
Navigating Social Networks: You Can Pick Your Friends
How do you decide who to befriend on a social network? I was planning on writing this even before my mother befriended me on Facebook. This is not a how-to guide for students using social networks. This is about how I use them as a teacher. I preface this by saying that there are no …