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!