The Big Fresh from Choice Literacy
January 3, 2009
Kinder, Gentler Literacy Leaders
It is better to be kind than to be right.
These words were spoken by my sister over the holidays, in the
midst of one of our family's cutthroat card games. As a matter of
fact, "Cutthroat" is one of our favorite versions of pinochle. We
come from the Midwest tradition of long evenings at a huge scarred
oak table filled with all the leaves. Scores of cousins, aunts,
uncles, and friends play euchre, pinochle, and other games of
chance for hours. It's mostly laughter and fun, but occasionally
an argument bursts out after a particularly feisty hand, with the
players disagreeing about whether someone played their cards right.
It is better to be kind than to be right.
My sister spoke those words quietly to quickly end a disagreement
between a niece and nephew at the card table, and I carried them
away into the new year as my resolution. It's sometimes tough when
you're sure you're right - from the research, experience, or just
gut instinct - to back down in kindness and let a wrong notion pass
when uttered by a colleague. But for literacy leaders, it may be
one of the most important attitudes to have - a willingness to
choose kindness over correcting a peer. Sometimes it is so hard
to hold your tongue and let things go, in a world where everyone
thinks they are an education expert.
The truth is, we do know what we're doing, and our expertise is
hard won. Yet it's a gentle touch that wins colleagues and
community members over, and a heavy hand that leads to stalemates.
In the end, how would you prefer to be remembered - as someone who
was always right, or always kind?
This week, we've got some "best of" book and resource compilations
to start your year off right, plus more as always. Enjoy!
Brenda Power
Editor, Choice Literacy
Free for All
Franki Sibberson checks in with her list of the best new
read-alouds in 2008 for the intermediate and middle grades:
http://www.choiceliteracy.com/public/788.cfm
The end of the year always brings a flurry of "best of" lists in
every category, and I always miss a bunch of them. Who has time
during the holidays to check out dozens of sites as these lists are
posted? Lucky for us, the Chicken Spaghetti blog has compiled a
"best of the best" listing of 2008 top children's and young adult
literature features from newspapers and journals across the
country. The dozens of links include a few organizations that
were new to me, and lots of books I'd missed throughout the year:
http://tinyurl.com/68pza4
Speaking of the "best of," Teacher's Domain is an online library
of more than 1,000 free media resources from the best in public
television. These short digital videos, podcasts, and lessons are
sorted by grade level, topic, and content area. Registration is
required, but all the materials provided are free - there is plenty
available for literacy educators, and the site is especially strong
in science and math:
http://www.teachersdomain.org/
A hearty welcome to our newest Choice Literacy site license members
from Franklin, Massachusetts; Aberdeen, Washington; Independence,
Oregon; Painesville & Dublin, Ohio; Hamburg, New York; Alexandria,
Minnesota; Vestavia Hills, Alabama; and our renewing members from
Mishawaka, Indiana and Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Information on our
affordable site license program is available at this link:
http://www.choiceliteracy.com/public/department63.cfm
For Members Only
[Not yet a Choice Literacy member? Click here for information on subscription plans that can give you access to members-only content.]
One of the best things about teaching is that we get two fresh
starts each year - in late summer when students arrive, and in
January when the new year begins. Both are great times for using
read-alouds to build the classroom community and shared
expectations. Mary Lee Hahn, author of Reconsidering Read Aloud,
shares her favorite read alouds for integrating community building
and strategy instruction early in the year:
http://www.choiceliteracy.com/members/789.cfm
Text selection for English language learners poses special
challenges. Clare Landrigan and Tammy Mulligan explain how the
criteria for "just-right books" are different for ELLs, and provide
practical examples of how teachers use these principles of book
selection in their classrooms. This would be a helpful short text
to use in a study group or staff meeting discussion:
http://www.choiceliteracy.com/members/783.cfm
Is it time for students to do a little weeding of their book boxes?
In this week's video, Franki Sibberson helps a child think through
what texts might go in her "next-read" stack in a conference during
reading workshop:
http://www.choiceliteracy.com/members/767.cfm
Finally, if you're trying to get everyone on your staff on the same
page when it comes to comprehension instruction, you might enjoy
our new Choice Literacy Cluster on the Basics of Comprehension
Instruction featuring Ruth Shagoury, Andie Cunningham, and "The
Sisters" (Gail Boushey and Joan Moser:
http://www.choiceliteracy.com/members/754.cfm
That's all for this week!
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About
Jennifer Allen
