Lesson From the Hairdresser

by Lori Sabo

I love reconnecting with friends in summer. Over a steaming hot cup of Starbucks we catch up on each other's personal lives and inspire one another as teachers. This happened for me in an unusual way yesterday. I met with a girlfriend and immediately noticed her cute new haircut. She looked guilty and sheepishly admitted she had tried someone new. (Why is it we feel a marriage-like commitment that requires creative breakup strategies with our hairstylists?) Holly, the new stylist, asked my friend to describe the last haircut she remembered loving. After reflecting for a moment, my friend responded, "I can't even remember." "Well, that is going to be my job then, to help match you with a haircut you'll love, that fits your personality and lifestyle."

Together they came up with a plan of action. It was going to require some growing out and patience, but my friend left feeling that hope was in sight, she was in good hands, and she could trust this new person to make informed decisions based on personal knowledge that would meet her needs.

Hmmm…my brain started turning, "Isn't that what good teachers do?" Imagine returning to school and asking a child, "Tell me about the last book you loved." What if they say, "I can't remember."? Can we honestly respond with, "Well then, it's my job this year to introduce you to books you will love"? Will that child leave the conference with a sense of hope, knowing that we care about them, and their interests and abilities? Will we be ready?

Summer is a great time to immerse ourselves in voracious reading of texts so we'll be ready to recommend the book that might be that perfect book for our kids. The children's librarian at the public library is always happy to tell us about what's hot and new. Our local bookstore can inform us of current trends among the age of students we teach. Maybe we just need to look through our own classroom book tubs to get reacquainted with what we already have. Regardless of how we do it, we need to do it. It's the surest way I know to insure the children in our care will become lifelong learners and lovers of reading.

FAQ

Q: Do your daily focus lessons connect to each other somehow?

A: Not necessarily. Our primary students are beginning readers and need instruction on all of the CAFE strategies, so it can be difficult to make the lessons connect. We usually deliver a Comprehension lesson, an Accuracy lesson, and either Fluency or Vocabulary for the third focus lesson. If you are looking for a way to tie the strategies together, you might consider using the same text for all three lessons.

With our intermediate students, we often divide one long lesson into two or three shorter segments. It's much easier to make the lessons connect with our older students since their instruction is typically centered around comprehension strategies. Spanning short bursts of instruction over the course of Daily 5 allows us to remain aware of the brain research - keeping the length of instruction limited to the number of minutes our students are in age.

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Poetry Pathways (Website)

Ahhhh, Poetry! We have experienced turning more students into passionate writers through poetry than any other genre. This site has a wealth of resources organized by grade level. You'll find poems by famous authors Shel Silverstein and Jack Prelutsky, poetry forms, poetry ideas, a rhyming dictionary and even magnetic poetry. Enjoy!

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Registration Information for 2010 Summer and Fall Workshops

If your summer plans are already set, consider scheduling a working retreat and join us in the fall. How does Arizona, Maine, or Florida, sound? We thought so! Check out the beautiful places.

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New This Week For Members

Interested in becoming a member of The Daily Cafe? Click here for more information.

Parent Pipeline ~ Voracious Reading (Download)

By: Allison Behne

Have you ever read a book that you just couldn't put down? Maybe you have an author that you enjoy more than others. How many of you have a series that you eagerly anticipate the continuation of? Those who could relate to any or all of the above would be considered voracious readers. Readers who read often, and always come back for more, are voracious...

http://www.TheDailyCafe.com/members/990.cfm

Book Boxes (Video)

Book boxes are a wonderful tool for students, allowing them the flexibility to choose anywhere to sit in the room and have their books right at hand. But what goes in a book box? How many books? In this video, Joan gives us a look at her student's book boxes. Listen in as she takes you on a book box tour.

http://www.TheDailyCafe.com/members/914.cfm

Math - The Value of Exploration (Video)

It can be tempting to think that allowing time for students to explore math manipulatives will lead to play rather than real learning, but exploration is essential to learning. You'll see what we mean when you witness these two children experimenting with patterns and beginning to engage in math talk surrounding their work.

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Design - Clever Clipboards

By Trish Prentice

Using a clipboard while recording student check-in choices is easy. Sometimes, finding the clipboard is not so easy. I will admit, there are times when I've buried my clipboard under a stack of papers or left it here or there in the room. Here's a simple idea to help make your clipboard easy to find...add ribbons to the top. The ribbons will stick up and out, even in a stack of papers, so you can easily locate the clipboard...

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Video Updates

With the addition of our new video players with higher resolution and full-screen options, we are reposting many videos in this new format. As we make these improvements, we'll announce them in the newsletter. Here is an updated video you may want to revisit. n this video Janet models 3 strategies in combination. Author's purpose and Text Features help deepen comprehension, and paying close attention to pictures helps expand vocabulary.

http://www.TheDailyCafe.com/members/1004.cfm

Easy Access Pipeline Page

If you are wanting a quick way to access just the Parent Pipelines, this page was created just for you! Under the Literacy CAFE Menu on the right side of our home page, locate Parent Pipeline, voila!

http://www.TheDailyCafe.com/public/913.cfm

Until Next Week!