Category Archives: Vocabulary

NEW RESOURCES: Video Training Modules!!!

I am super-excited to report that I’ve been designing video training modules to support literacy instruction!!!  These brief but informative modules cover key topics that I’ve been presenting on and writing about for the past decade, and they are now … Continue reading

Posted in Comprehension, Inference, Main Idea, Paraphrasing, Presentations, Professional Development, Quadrant Analysis, Reading, Resources, Summarizing, The Literacy Cookbook BOOK, TLC Website Resources, Video Training, Vocabulary, Vocabulary in Context | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

How to Use Rewordify.com to Make Your Life Easier

I’ve mentioned Rewordify.com before here. Now I’d like to emphasize how useful this Website can be! If you want to use a text that might be too much of a stretch for some students to read independently, you could copy … Continue reading

Posted in Assessment(s), TLC Website Resources, Vocabulary, Vocabulary in Context | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

How to Blend Grammar into Daily ELA Instruction

[This post originally appeared in slightly different form on MiddleWeb.] One of the most common concerns I hear from ELA teachers is “I want to teach grammar, but I’m not sure how to fit it in.” This post explains a … Continue reading

Posted in Curriculum, ELA Common Core Standards, Grammar, Instruction, Lesson-planning, MiddleWeb, Reading Instruction, Resources, TLC Website Resources, Using Grammar to Improve Writing BOOK, Vocabulary, Writing, Writing Feedback | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Techniques and Tools for Vocabulary Instruction

When it comes to vocabulary instruction, teachers have many, many questions. Here are just a few: “How can I fit vocabulary in with everything else I have to do? How should I pick the words? What should my quizzes look … Continue reading

Posted in Assessment(s), Curriculum, Demo Lesson, ELA Common Core Standards, Instruction, Lesson-planning, TLC Website Resources, Vocabulary, Vocabulary in Context | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Essential Vocabulary Resource: ACHIEVE THE CORE’s ACADEMIC WORD FINDER

In the realm of vocabulary instruction, we are always on the hunt for helpful tools. As I’ve previously noted, Verbal Workout is a great resource for selecting and teaching vocabulary words in commonly used texts. Now we also have Achieve … Continue reading

Posted in ELA Common Core Standards, Resources, Vocabulary, Vocabulary in Context | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Helpful Website: FreeRice.com

In case you haven’t already seen it, the Website FreeRice.com is helpful on many levels. FreeRice.com is a nonprofit that has two stated goals: Provide education to everyone for free. Help end world hunger by providing rice to hungry people … Continue reading

Posted in Grammar, Reading, Resources, Vocabulary | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Why Students Don’t Write Clearly and What We Can Do About It

[The following post originally appeared in slightly different form on MiddleWeb on Nov. 3, 2015.] After reading yet another piece lamenting students’ inability to write clearly, I feel compelled to share what I’ve learned about this problem and offer some … Continue reading

Posted in Argument, Assessment(s), Curriculum, ELA Common Core Standards, Evidence, Explanation, Grammar, Literacy and the Common Core BOOK, MiddleWeb, Research, Resources, The Literacy Cookbook BOOK, TLC Website Resources, Vocabulary, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Another Helpful Reading Resource: Smithsonian TweenTribune

If you are looking for more resources to support nonfiction reading, The Smithsonian TweenTribune is a FREE online educational service offered by the Smithsonian for use by K-12 grade teachers and students. TTribune consists of daily news sites for kids, … Continue reading

Posted in Comprehension, Curriculum, DBQ Approach, ELA Common Core Standards, Independent Reading, Inference, Lesson-planning, Main Idea, Media Literacy, Nonfiction, Paraphrasing, PARCC, Reading, Reading Informational Text, Recommended Reading, Research, Resources, Test Prep, Text Selection, TLC Website Resources, Vocabulary, Vocabulary in Context | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Professional Development Ideas to Support Literacy Instruction

This has been a particularly challenging year in our field. As teachers and school leaders continue to wrestle with how best to prepare students to meet and exceed the Common Core Standards, I would like to humbly submit some professional … Continue reading

Posted in Analyzing the Common Core Standards, Argument, Assessment(s), Close Reading, Comprehension, Curriculum, DBQ Approach, ELA Common Core Standards, Essential Questions, Events, Evidence, Explanation, Grant Wiggins, Inference, Lesson-planning, Literacy and the Common Core BOOK, Literacy Manipulatives, Literary Analysis Writing, Main Idea, Narrative Writing, Nonfiction, Novels, Paraphrasing, PARCC, Presentations, Professional Development, Quadrant Analysis, Reading, Reading Informational Text, Reading Literature, Research Writing, Resources, RPM Objectives, Socratic Seminars, Test Prep, Text Selection, The Literacy Cookbook BOOK, TLC Website Resources, Trajectory Analysis, Unit-planning, Using Data, Vocabulary, Vocabulary in Context, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

OUTLINING YOUR FIRST UNIT

Recently I received an Email message from a reader who wanted to know what to include in an “ideal” first unit. In my new book, Literacy and the Common Core, I offer a sample 5th-grade unit that can be adapted … Continue reading

Posted in Argument, ELA Common Core Standards, Evidence, Grammar, Inference, Lesson-planning, Literacy and the Common Core BOOK, Main Idea, Nonfiction, Paraphrasing, Reading, Reading Informational Text, Resources, Roots, Socratic Seminars, The Literacy Cookbook BOOK, TLC Website Resources, Unit-planning, Vocabulary, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment