In order to teach or to lead well, a person must bridge the gap between ideals and practice, between big plans and the very real work of today and tomorrow. Everyday this week, I have been surrounded by others who are tackling the challenge of supporting district-wide reform in reading. The guiding question for all of us has been the same - “How can I provide teachers with the support they deserve in teaching of reading?”

Here are some things I am learning more about…..

• What does true independence look like?
• Reader’s notebooks in middle school: making these matter without killing the love of reading
• Communicating with parents so they not only heartily endorse your reading work, they also deepen it outside of school
• Developing classroom and school cultures that value self-assessment and setting challenging goals
• Using learning progressions to plan for instructional next steps
• Developing and using manageable systems for shared resources, like classroom libraries
• Using read alouds to increase engagement and transfer
• Using technology to enhance the research process: Students working to be producers of information not just consumers of information
• Transferring nonfiction reading and note-taking skills to social studies and science
• Using guided reading and small group instruction to accelerate students’ progress

Here are my small group leaders and what learning looks like at TCRWP….

Brooke Geller, Senior Lead Staff Developer, is dedicated to mentoring staff developers and teacher leaders. Brooke is coauthor of the third grade unit, Mystery: Foundational Skills in Disguise.	Kelly Boland Hohne, Writer in Residence and Senior Research Associate, earned her Ed.D. in Curriculum and Teaching. Kelly is the author and coauthor of several titles in the Units of Study series, including Changing the World and Argument and Advocacy, and Up the Ladder: Accessing Upper-Grade Opinion Units of Study.
Strategy Lessons that Work To Support Massive Amounts of Practice	Using Progressions to Plan and Lead Interactive Read Alouds