Ms KbM

These are graphic organizers and activities that I created to support my students' practice of the reading strategy of making inferences. There are 6 separate activities and are set up according to a gradual release model where the student work becomes more challenging as they increase their understanding. All 6 activities focus on the strategy of inferring. Each activity has very clear directions so that students could complete without prompting. Oftentimes I had many groups of students wor

These are graphic organizers that I created to use with my students while practicing the thinking strategy of activating schema. They were particularly helpful because students could use with a variety of genres (fiction and nonfiction) and range of difficulties. They are similar in style to the other file I am selling which is "inferring activities". Each page has detailed directions so that students can work through independently or in small guided groups, or as a whole class. I loved havi

This is a log that I have used with students for them to independently track their reading. It is so very important in middle school to truly develop the habits of a good reader. I have found this to be very helpful in achieving this goal. Each night students have a place to record their reading - including an optional parent initial section. I check this daily as part of my start of class routine. I use a quick "smiley face" stamp and quickly assess which students have completed the log. T

Have you gotten sick of the strict roles with your Lit Circles? I did! I found that when I limited student roles, I also limited their thinking. I designed this sheet to serve several purposes: 1 - To record the reading to be shared at the discussion/meeting 2 - To promote active reading with purposeful reflection. There is a journal section for students to record and process their thinking following the reading. 3 - To prepare the student to participate in a LIVELY group discussion. There i

This is the letter that I send home to parents at the start of every year outlining my reading expectations both for them, as well as for my students. It details the importance of independent daily reading as well as ways that parents can support their child's reading. I teach in a very diverse school and always send home a spanish version as well. My original letter has been translated into spanish by my mom who taught spanish for 15 years before retiring.

I designed this assignment as an ongoing way to assess student application of effective reading strategies throughout the year. The thinking notebook is used as a reading journal where students can record, monitor, and improve the quality of their strategy usage. The front page of this document outlines what a thinking notebook is and how it should be used in class. (It is designed for use at the middle school level and implemented across disciplines - not just in Language Arts.) The second

The importance of self-reflection in the classroom is well known. I instituted a structure called "Learning Logs" in my classroom. In the learning logs students would write letter of reflection to me throughout the year to truly reflect on their learning in class. This checksheet allows a column for student evaluation and critique, promoting self-assessment, then a column for teacher evaluation. The checksheet outlines the expectations for: letter formatting, neatness, quality of reflection/