In Focus on Text, Amy Benjamin provides a detailed description of what should happen at each level of the CCSS reading standards, 4-8. Reviewer Mark Domeier praises the book for its clarity, ideas and potential to spark vertical team conversations.
Ready for fresh math bellringers? Reviewer Lynne Menechella highly recommends Math Lesson Starters for the Common Core. Arranged by CCSS-M domains, the compact book “does a wonderful job of providing ready-to-use problems that work as formative assessment.”
Gretchen Owocki tackles complex literature, informational texts and content-area reading in her new middle grades CCSS book, weaving together instructional elements in a teacher-friendly format. Reviewer Anne Anderson highly recommends it.
The Common Core expects students will support claims with evidence from a text. History teacher Aaron Brock shares an innovative technique he created to help weak readers in his under-resourced urban school develop an understanding of this process.
Book Reviews / Vocabulary Instruction
by MiddleWeb · Published 12/17/2014 · Last modified 11/24/2019
When teachers across the content areas put the ideas in Janet Allen’s Tools for Teaching Academic Vocabulary to work, their students will feel as if they truly own their vocabulary and want to share and celebrate it, says teacher-reviewer Linda Biondi.
Examining the Evidence explains seven strategies to engage with primary sources, all easily understood by students. Aligned to specific Common Core standards, the strategies are useful in K-8 classrooms beyond social studies, says reviewer Nicole Miller.
Common Core / Two Teachers in the Room
by Elizabeth Stein · Published 10/26/2014 · Last modified 12/10/2019
Teachers in every subject and type of classroom can tailor Common Core instruction to individual student needs using the Universal Design for Learning strategies, says instructional coach Elizabeth Stein, who provides a wealth of helpful resources.
Rather than wasting space unpacking the standards (again), PD director Bryan Harris supplies educators with tips on running a classroom, asking questions, and staging conversations for a CCSS friendly culture, says teacher-reviewer Lena Welch.
Teachers in grades 3-5 will treasure The Common Core Companion: The Standards Decoded by Leslie Blauman with Jim Burke. The content, the layout and the companion website make clear what the standards say, what they mean, and how to use them.
Among the elements of Suzy Pepper Rollins’ Learning in the Fast Lane that reviewer Carolyn Miller liked best were her references to recent research, her fresh suggestions for making formative assessments, and her close look at student motivation. And there’s lots more to try out!
