Heinemann Blog

In a world of education that’s crowded by acronyms that vary state by state, teachers often find themselves needing to comply with mandates that someone far away has imposed on them. Sometimes, teachers look to principals for support in either doing away with these mandate, or to help make sense of them.

Katie Wood Ray interviews Carl Anderson and Jenifer Serravallo, who both recently published two conferring books in Heinemann’s Classroom Essentials Series.

We want to build a bridge for children—a bridge between what we are doing in class and the lives that they lead outside of class. We want to be able to show kids how each skill we teach in class makes life right now better outside of class.

Welcome back to the PLC Series for the 2018-19 school year!

Student conversations about writing, whether with a peer or a supportive adult, can provide powerful support on multiple levels. Opportunities to talk during writing workshop might take the form of rehearsal for writing, problem solving, reflection, feedback, or goal setting.

An Assessment Conference offers you a little time to study a reader along a number of different dimensions, considering a variety of possible goals.

Whether teacher vulnerability leads to an increase in student engagement is yet to be determined. However, an initial survey responses suggest students crave and appreciate authenticity.

Some children, no doubt, are just naturally reflective. I don’t doubt that much of Lucas’ thoughtfulness about his work was just part of who he is. But all children— and adults for that matter—can be taught to be more reflective.

Not only can teachers be flexible with what is taught to a small group of students, but also how it is taught can be differentiated according to how much teacher scaffolding, or how much student independence is appropriate for the students in that group.

In the online resources for A Teacher's Guide to Reading Conferences, you will find a variety of note-taking forms and other documents that will help you get started implementing—or refining—reading conferences right away in your classroom.

Today on the Heinemann Podcast, we’re continuing our series of conversations with author Cornelius Minor. In We Got This, Cornelius says it’s not necessary to be brave every second of every day, but rather in the moments when we are called upon to raise our voice and advocate for the right thing.

The more opportunities students have to practice using the language of mathematics through conversation, the deeper their understanding will be. As students engage in brief discussion, they have the chance to hear and practice providing explanations, multiple representations, and solutions.

The classroom library is the home of a class’ reading community. Like any remodeling project, it is best to make a plan that is real but achievable for the situation at hand. We always advise not to take on more than you can finish in the amount of time you have to do it.

Consider how well you know your students by this time of year. By now you know about their interests, hobbies, favorite sports, and so much more. The best literacy assessments help you to get to know another side to your students--as readers and writers.

I still believe that conferring is where the magic happens—it’s the heartbeat of the literacy block. It’s an essential time for teachers to meet with students, tailor instruction to their individual goals, provide them with meaningful feedback, and grow relationships.

Today on the Heinemann podcast, we’re joined by Kristin Ziemke and Katie Muhtaris to explore how we can make the most of technology with our students. They believe that digital literacy is necessary, and must grow from student ownership and creativity.

Heinemann fellow Julie Kwon Jee has this question: In what ways does a continuous exploration of identity via literature and personal reflection increase engagement and encourage students to become active participants in choosing the books they read both inside and outside their classrooms?

Bring the empowering messages from We Got This to your classroom walls with these free, printable posters! The colorful six-piece set will brighten your room and inspire your learning community. Download your set here!