5-4-3-2-1

5 people to follow

There are so many fantastic educators leading the way in literacy, shifting not only how we teach reading and writing but what we consider to be literacy as a whole. These are my Top 5.

1. Pernille Ripp - Follow Pernille on social media (see her blog about what she posts on which site) and you will be guaranteed to walk away with a wealth of book recommendations, not to mention strategies for creating a culture of reading in your classroom and, more recently, becoming an anti-racist educator. Not on social media? That's ok - Pernille has written 4 books that elaborate on creating a community of passionate readers and learners.
2. Donalyn Miller - If you've read The Book Whisperer or Reading in the Wild, then you know the magic of Donalyn Miller. Her books are beautifully written but, even more importantly, they share ideas that will transform how you teach reading in your classroom. From the 40 Book Challenge to the #bookaday summer reading challenge, Donalyn focuses on inspiring students to become lifelong readers.
3. Colby Sharp - Like Pernille Ripp, Colby Sharp is #goals when it comes to building a classroom library that will inspire kids to read. He regularly highlights new books on his Instagram page, hosts the podcast The Yarn, where he interviews some of the best middle grades and YA authors around, and co-organized nErDcampMI, the first literacy-focused EdCamp. He has also written a couple of books, one of which is the writing focused The Creativity Project.
4. Jennifer Serravallo - Through her multiple books, articles and blog posts, Jennifer shares practical strategies that every teacher can implement in their classrooms to grow strong readers and writers. If you already own The Reading Strategies Book, you'll be interested to know that she completely updated chapter 3 to reflect recent research (you can read her letter about that here). Jennifer's books go well beyond tips and tricks...these books are jam-packed with easy-to-implement strategies for all areas of reading and writing (bonus: 2 of the books are available in Spanish).
5. Adrienne Gear - I remember attending a pro-d session with Adrienne back when her first book was merely a photocopied booklet handed out during the session. Now, Adrienne has 7 published books (with another one coming soon!) with accompanying resources in French and English. In many ways Adrienne is a combination of the rest of the educators on this list - part practical strategies, part inspirational ideas and part book recommendations. Stay up to date with her latest releases, including her GearPicks Pack book subscriptions for schools, on her website and on social media.

4 Apps & websites to check out

1. Read Aloud Revival
2. Epic - Kids Books & Videos
3. Libro.Fm - ALC program for educators
4. NaNoWriMo - Young Writers Program

3 things to try

1. First Chapter Fridays - kids of all ages love read alouds - yes, even the big kids. To get kids inspired to read or try a new genre, consider reading them the first chapter of a book each Friday. Then be sure to make the book available for those kids that just can't wait to borrow it! Not comfortable reading aloud to a crowd? Check out Audible, Libro.fm or the author's website for an audio version and play it in your classroom.
2. Showcase Your Reading - show your community that you are a reader by prominently posting your books read list. It's easy! Simply create a poster that says "(your name) is reading...", then add a picture of the books you're reading. As you finish them, move them to the outside of the poster and add the next one on your list! See here for what it looks like in my classroom!
3. Commit to #classroombookaday - want to incorporate more mentor texts in your teaching? Maybe you want to highlight inclusive texts to ensure all your students feel seen. Or maybe you just want to be sure that your littles are read to every single day. No matter what your goal is, you can reach it by committing to reading a picture book to your class every single day. To learn more, connect with other educators and find great book recommendations, follow #classroombookaday on social media or check out Jillian Heise's website. ​

2 Quotes to consider

- Being a master reading teacher begins with being a master reader. Donalyn Miller
​
- The true alchemists do not change lead into gold; they change the world into words. William H. Gass

1 question to Answer

Are you teaching reading or teaching readers? What about writing? What's one thing you can change today to make sure that all of your students see themselves as readers and writers?