Nurturing the "Cognitive Enterprise" of Reading

Reading has been called a “cognitive enterprise” and it happens as a result of the connection between the reader and the text. – What do I visualize?  What connections can I make?  Does this make sense? – Successful readers monitor their reading, use strategies for understanding, and evaluate their efforts.  To comprehend a text, a reader…

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Effective Reading Indicators

From the desk of Alice… People often ask me if their child is on track with reading and confess in a whisper, “I don’t know what to look for.”  It can be overwhelming for a parent who now has access to more “data” about their child than ever, but really are not sure if the…

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Revisiting Touching the Soul of a Child

From the desk of Carol C. . . There was quite a bit of feedback from my post “Touching the Soul of a Child”.  A common question was “Do teachers still go above and beyond as this teacher did?”.  My answer is…Yes.  In this day and time for a multitude of reasons teachers may not…

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Cowboy Confidence

From the desk of Alice… So today is Throwback Thursday on social media.  I love it.  I love everything about seeing people’s snapshots of their lives prior to me meeting them or just reminding me of great memories. As I look at my early years of teaching, I will tell you that I was far…

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Fear Transformed

From the desk of Alice… On days like these, it is difficult to say things that have not already been said.  If you are over a certain age, there is no doubt you remember where you were 13 years ago on September 11th and you will relive it each and every year on this date. …

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Where Did You Get Your Eyes?

 From the desk of Hope… I was in a kindergarten classroom last week and a student came up to me and asked, “Where did you get your eyes?” Hmmm. I wasn’t quite sure how to answer but it didn’t matter because she was quickly shooed off to do her seat work. She promptly got busy…

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A New Era

From the desk of Alice… As 2013 is arriving, I am sitting at my kitchen table on a work holiday, typing on a wireless laptop and scheduling this blog to post in the future when I am no longer at my computer.  My iPhone is nearby with my calendar at my fingertips and I am…

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Lessons Learned from Sandcastles

I have had the pleasure of vacationing over the last few weeks with my family.  We have logged many hours on the sand, watching waves, and learning from each other.  This morning, as I was building sandcastles with all 3 kids, I was reflecting on the lessons learned while on vacation and how they translate…

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A Reading Journey

From the desk of April F… I have a confession. Though my professional career is now devoted to Literacy, I was (into adulthood) an apathetic, reluctant reader. I could read, though I didn’t know about any strategies. If I looked at the words long enough I could figure them out or fake it. That was…

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Let's Be Solution Oriented

From the desk of Hope… As I reflect on my work week I keep thinking about all of the obstacles and barriers I heard that keeps progress from happening. I recounted conversations over and over in my head and the more I recounted the more stressed and drained I felt. All of us are guilty…

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