Many teachers who use reading units of study as a vital part of their reading workshops have a dog-eared copy of Growing Readers by Kathy Collins on their shelves. Practical, humorous, and wholly inspiring, it's a book that has transformed many a reading workshop over the past few years.

If you're a fan of Kathy's work, you'll be pleased to know she's turned her attention to reading centers in her new writing. But these are not reading centers as we've been defining them in the field over the past decade or two. Working alongside Lucy Calkins, Kathy and her colleagues from the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project have reconceived the purpose and style of reading centers. She likens them to a "jam" among musicians:

For some reason, the image of musicians getting together to jam comes to mind whenever I try to explain reading centers.

When I imagine musical friends getting together in a garage somewhere, I picture them playing for each other the new lick or groove or joint (or whatever the musical jargon is at this point) they've been working on. Then, as they all join in, I imagine that through their improvisation, the original little groove is adjusted, revised, and altered and moved in new directions. The whole process is energetic and joyful, and there is a feeling among the musicians that they are making something important and new.

Now, I will try to apply this scene from someone's garage to reading centers in, say, a kindergarten classroom. Reading centers are a sort of reading jam, in many ways. Readers get together with books of interest, and they read, then stop and talk back and forth to share ideas. This is the improvisation part - the conversation may cause the readers to revise, alter, or move their thinking in new directions. The readers are engaged because they're reading and talking to serve their own purposes, to satisfy their own interests, and to meet their own goals. There is a sense of purpose, exploration, and exuberance shared by reading center partners.

by Kathy Collins. Reprinted by permission of Kathy Collins and Stenhouse Publishers. All rights reserved.

This week we've posted an interview with Kathy about her new book in progress, as well as a sneak peek at how she is redefining reading centers.
Talking with Kathy made me realize many of us are in sore need of a new sense of "purpose, exuberance, and exploration" when it comes to reading groups and partner work in general. If you're finding yourself in a rut when it comes to groupwork in your classroom, read on. We've got a new twist on literature circles, and an article on what teachers learn from observing reading groups in colleagues' classrooms. Plus more as always. Enjoy!

Brenda Power

Editor, Choice Literacy

www.choiceliteracy.com

***Free for All***

Kathy Collins talks about her new book in progress on reading centers. Kathy has worked closely with Lucy Calkins over the years to redefine centers as loose partnerships among readers. This audio interview with transcript includes examples of how reading centers can enhance any reading workshop:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/public/307.cfm
We've also posted an excerpt from Kathy's new writing, where she gives a more detailed definition of how reading centers are connected to the goals of different reading units of study.

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/public/304.cfm

If you're not familiar with Kathy's work on reading units, her bestselling book Growing Readers is a great place to start. You can read a sample chapter at the link below. All orders from Big Fresh readers receive free shipping through March 31st. Just use coupon code CL7B when placing your order:

http://stenhouse.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idProduct=373

Registration information for all Choice Literacy summer workshops for K-6 literacy leaders is now posted. You can access the information here:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/public/department22.cfm

***For Members Only***

Shari Frost presents the "Open Book Club," a marvelous way to "open up" the promise of literature circles to students, family members,and staff in a way that fosters more spontaneity and choice:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/members/284.cfm

Jennifer Allen discovers the power of observation in changing practice, in the March update to her "New Teachers Group" series. In this article with video insert, she writes about how teachers change not just from observing each other, but from listening to colleagues talk about what they learned during visits:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/members/306.cfm

We've posted the third article in our six-part series on improving notetaking skills. In "Raw and Cooked Notes," the value of uncensored notes is presented, as well as a simple strategy for beginning to code and analyze the observations you are jotting down in classrooms:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/members/305.cfm

That's all for this week!