Teachers may not agree on everything, but almost all of us despise the accepted wisdom in our society that we have the summer "off" from work. Even if we're not paid for it, we're still working in June, July, and August. It's just a different kind of work. And yet...

There is something to be said for the gift of summer in our profession, a time to reflect, recharge, and especially, to transition. As William Bridges notes, transitions are one of the least understood and undervalued aspects of any change process:

"It isn't the changes that do you in, it's the transitions. Change is not the same as transition. Change is situational: the new site, the new boss, the new team roles, the new policy. Transition is the psychological process people go through to come to terms with the new situation. Change is external, transition is internal."

William Bridges, from Managing Transitions

What we love about summer isn't the "time off" - it's the time to transition...to take a quiet morning or week or month and reflect on where we are, and where we need to go next with new students and new goals in the fall. And others are right in that sense...summer is a gift for us, because it gives us the time and space to adjust to the continual, unrelenting changes in our field.

For literacy leaders, there are two levels of transitions to think about through the summer months - ours, and those of the teachers we will work with all year long. That's why the urge to announce big changes in literacy programs at the start of the school year is a dangerous one. People need time to wrap their minds around any major shift in the way they work with children or teach reading and writing. Any time spent with teachers over the summer, helping them transition to new practices, is time well-spent.

Over the next couple months, the newsletter will reflect the transitional nature of these summer months for literacy leaders, with more features on planning, goal setting, and taking stock. Enjoy!

Brenda Power

Editor, Choice Literacy

www.choiceliteracy.com

***Free for All***

It's hard to know where we're going if we don't know where we've come from. Jan Miller Burkins has developed an evaluation form for literacy coaches to give to teachers. Even though schools are out, this is a terrific tool to mail out for anonymous responses, or to use as a catalyst for summer one-on-one discussions of goals and strategies with colleagues in informal, relaxed settings.

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/public/369.cfm

The form is included in Jan's book Coaching for Balance, which has just been released by the International Reading Association. Congratulations, Jan! We've enjoyed excerpts from the book all winter and spring at Choice Literacy, so we're delighted the book is available now for purchase from IRA:

http://www.reading.org/publications/bbv/books/bk617/

Did you know there is a nonprofit foundation devoted to studying and supporting summer learning for students? The Institute for Summer Learning at Johns Hopkins has a wealth of materials on their website, including an event planning kit for National Summer Learning Day, which takes place in mid-July:

http://www.jhu.edu/teachbaltimore/summerlearningday/index.html

If you're still mapping out your own summer learning plans, consider joining "The Sisters" for their one-day CAFE in the Classroom workshop on integrating assessment and goal-setting into K-5 reading workshops. Space remains at the Denver and Portland, Oregon locations:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/public/293.cfm

***For Members Only***

Transitions between a hectic day of teaching and an afternoon study group or staff meeting are never easy for teachers. Suzy Kaback depends upon Anticipation Guides to help with these transitions in the study groups and staff meeting she leads for colleagues. Anticipation guides are the "little black dress" (or blue blazer for the guys) of literacy leaders - easily adapted to any setting or topic, they prime adult learners and pique interest quickly. Suzy provides a quick introduction and example of a guide:

http:/www.choiceliteracy.com/members/368.cfm

At the end of the year after students leave, your classroom probably looks perfectly clean...until someone opens that one catch-all closet. The Sisters (Gail Boushey and Joan Moser) help Carrie reorganize a storage area, making choices about what to keep and what to chuck in this brief time-lapse video:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/members/370.cfm

From the Choice Literacy archives - Do you plan this summer to spend more time writing a journal and honing your own writing skills? Aimee Buckner had this goal for years and failed every summer to meet it, until she developed some successful strategies for jumpstarting her summer writing. She presents them in her essay, "Getting Started with Your Own Writer's Notebook":

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/members/98.cfm

That's all for this week!