Literacy Blogs

Years ago, I was invited to coach some teachers. I’ve done a lot of that over the past almost 50 years. I watch a lesson, and the teacher and I sit down and discuss how it may be improved. But this was going to be a strange situation. The school had adopted a curriculum program I’d developed. They hadn’t told me that. Now I was to critique teachers who were using my lessons. Uncomfortable territory. The principal assured me it would be fine since the classes using my stuff were doing well—better test scores than in the past. I wasn’t so sure. Two teachers were using the program: one was ...

Teachers question: I have just been hired as a reading coach in a school where I have been a third-grade teacher. My principal wants me to raise reading achievement and he says that he’ll follow my lead. I think I’m a good teacher, but what does it take to raise reading achievement in a whole school (K-5) with 24 teachers? Shanahan's answer:             It’s easy J. Just do the following 9 things: 1.    Improve leadership.                                 Literacy leadership matters. You and your principal will need to be a team. The more the two of you know and agree upon the ...

What is the biggest educational change promoted by the Common Core?   There are so many choices: kids will be reading more challenging texts; close reading will revolutionize the reading lessons; high school English, science, and social studies teachers will teach disciplinary literacy; there will be greater attention to argument, multiple text, informational text, and writing from sources, and so on?   So which is the biggest change? Perhaps one that you haven’t even thought of…   Past standards were long lists of skills, knowledge, and strategies; lists so endless that they were less standards than curriculum guides. Until CCSS, the typical standards looked like a ...

My district has decided not to purchase a core reading program since we are now teaching Common Core. Does CCSS really prohibit the use of commercial instructional materials?   No, CCSS neither requires the use of commercial programs nor does it prohibit such use. That is strictly a local decision. So should we use a program?   I’ve long argued that teachers need programs. The development of extensive lesson plans and tracking down appropriate materials each day is overwhelming for most teachers, and it introduces great variability into classroom instruction. One of the things I learned as director of reading in Chicago was that having ...