This week's blog post was written by Karen Devereux, literacy coach at Barton School.

​Whether you are a teacher who regularly provides independent reading time to your students, or one who has let independent reading time slip away because of the constant pressure to teach more, or the feeling of guilt that independent reading is something students can do at home, Whose Doing the Work?, by Jan Burkins and Kim Yaris has some ideas that might cause you to rethink your approach to independent reading in your classroom. 
 
            “The most important aspect of next generation independent reading is the emphasis on reading for its own sake.”  Yes, we sometimes want students to document their reading, but reading for meaning and pleasure has to be the ultimate goal.  For this to happen successfully, teachers need to understand the explicit connection between read aloud, shared reading, guided reading and independent reading.  We need to understand the concept of independent reading as “the pot of gold at the end of the gradual release rainbow, the place where students can discover their power and the power of books.”  It is about more than just teaching children to read so that they can, we have to teach children to read so that they will! 
 
            For independent reading to lead to students “reading for its own sake”, teachers have to do more than just provide the time.  We have to lead children to “discover that they don’t need help to read the books that interest them!”  We have to provide the time for them to “discover the intrinsic joys of reading.”  We have to recognize independent reading as an opportunity to confer with individual students as they work with text that is just right for them.  “No other structure or time during the school day offers such an opportunity to so naturally meet students’ individual reading needs.”  It is more than just providing time to silent read.  It is about providing opportunities for students to become stronger and more independent as a result of successfully solving problems.  It is also a time where teachers can observe what things have been taught well and places where instruction may need to change.  Next generation independent reading goes way beyond the teacher sitting at their desk modeling reading behavior.  The teacher is the mastermind behind the scenes who is allowing students opportunities to read, discuss, and share in an environment that is safe and respectful.  It is the place where students can read texts that change who they are, as individuals, and as members of their classroom community. 
 
            This is beginning to sound like a lot more work for the teacher than the old- fashioned independent reading block!  The good news is that students really are doing a lot of the work!  Students are selecting the texts that they read and may be taking brief notes.  Students are building stamina and learning to talk about their reading.  Most importantly, students are learning to self-regulate when it comes to developing as readers.  They are in control of where they read, what they read, how they stay focused and how they use the tools that they have been given.  Students have the power to be the kind of readers that they want to be.  The teacher’s job is to use this time to get to know their students as readers.  What more valuable formative assessment data could there be?

This week's blog post was written by tech guy extraordinaire, Jeff Coburn.

When I think of the word “etiquette”, an image develops in my mind of someone prim and proper, pinky outstretched, as they quietly sip on their tea.  With that in mind, here are some “prim and proper” suggestions I would like to recommend around email etiquette.  (Several are from personal experience…hopefully you can learn from my mistakes) 

• Address the email last. There have been plenty of times where I have sent an email before it was finished by accidentally clicking the wrong button (I think my tea sipping pinky gets in the way).  A good way to avoid that is by not addressing the email until you are done composing it.  This may feel counter-intuitive in the beginning; most people think “who do I need to talk to?” and then “what do I need to say?”, but doing the email addresses last helps me with premature sends, as well as oftentimes forcing me to skim over the email one more time before sending it out.

• Walk away when you are up in flames.  Frustration is a part of life. If you find yourself frustrated, mad, or generally PO’ed about something, the best bet is to walk away from email for a while.  Once you have a cooler head, then compose your thoughts.  If needed, write something in a word processing document first, then let it sit on your computer for awhile.  If you’re still rip roaring mad, consider whether you should talk to the person directly instead (yes, we can still exercise verbal communication).  Don’t send something you will regret later or that will make things worse.

• Use subjects that make sense.  The subject line should be like a bumper sticker: here is my main idea in as few words as possible.  The person should know what the general idea will be about before opening the message, and the subject should help the recipients search and find the email later.  Also, please avoid using ALL CAPS for subjects (or email messages, for that matter)…no one wants to feel like they are being yelled at.

 

• Know when to Cc: and when to Bcc: The Cc: (carbon copy) and the Bcc: (blind carbon copy) can be powerful tools when used right.
  • Cc: - Commonly used when you want to include someone on a message as an “oh, by the way….”.  You send emails to people you want answers from, a dialogue with, or action from.  You Cc: people that you only want aware of the situation.
  • Bcc: - Most people shy away from blind carbon copying people for good reason: it feels like “tattling” or talking behind someone’s back.  If you send an email to someone and Bcc: it to someone else, the original recipient will not know the Bcc:’ed person has a copy.  There are, however, some instances where using the Bcc: makes sense.  For example, if you want to send a message to a group of people but not share their email addresses (maybe they don’t all know one another), that is a good use of Bcc.  Another great utilization is to prevent a slew of “reply all” messages to the masses; if you leave the “to” blank, the Cc: blank, and in the Bcc: add individuals or a group, only the original sender will get the reply if someone hits “reply” or “reply all”.  That will cut down on unwanted clutter in everyone else’s mailboxes and ensure they still consider you the bee’s knees.  If you need help using Bcc:, find a tech to walk you through it. 

Hopefully these suggestions assist in your proper use of email and cements your standing as a respectable online communicator. (And with that said, I’m off to view one of the classics…pretty sure there is a Three Stooges rerun on right now.  That Shemp is genius!) 

Happy computing!
Jeff C.

For more tech tips from Jeff, check out his YouTube channel.

Here in OCSU we are in our ninth year of working in professional learning communities (PLCs). As I reflected on the work that was accomplished during PLCs this year, I realized that all OCSU staff have a lot to be proud of, and I’ve been reaffirmed in my commitment to this important strategy of continuous improvement.
 
The work of John Hattie, Michael Fullan, and Rick Dufour all point to the fact that PLCs are one of the most effective ways to improve teaching and learning. Each of these educational researchers has identified similar areas of focus that apply to working in PLCs.
 
Dufour ("What is a Professional Learning Community?" http://www.allthingsplc.info)

• What is it we expect our students to learn?
• How will we know when they have learned it?
• How will we respond when some students do not learn it?
• How will we respond when some students already know it?

 
 
Hattie (Visible Learning for Teachers, p. 70):

• What is it we want students to know and be able to do?
• How will they demonstrate that they have acquired the essential knowledge and skills? Have we agreed on the criteria that we will use in judging the quality of student work, and can we apply the criteria consistently?
• How will we intervene for students who struggle and enrich the learning for students who are proficient?
• How can we use the evidence of student learning to improve our individual and collective professional practice?

 
Fullan – (Coherence, p. 126):

• Internal accountability is based on the notion that individuals and the group in which they work can transparently hold themselves responsible for their performance.
• Successful schools build a collaborative culture that combines individual responsibility, collective expectations, and corrective action.
• Internal accountability must precede external accountability if lasting improvement in student achievement is the goal.

 
Whether you were in a math group analyzing student work from a new math program, or a group working on identifying proficiencies in your content area, you were working toward the principles mentioned above. Your meeting minutes and exit ticket responses reflected the fact that you were learning from your colleagues and improving outcomes for your students.
 
I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all those who led PLCs this year – facilitating meetings, creating agendas, and sending out reminder emails to your group. We would not be able to do this work without you!
 
And a big thank-you to all of you who actively participated in improving your own practice through PLCs. Your dedication and commitment to lifelong learning is noticed and appreciated!